Actor Meryl Streep shows solidarity at UN with Afghan women, girls

A female cat has more freedom in Afghanistan than a woman does, Hollywood actor Meryl Streep said at the United Nations on Monday in a bid to get world leaders to focus on the plight of Afghan women and girls. "The way that ... this society has been upended is a cautionary tale for the rest of the world," Streep told an event on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly to encourage the inclusion of women in the future of Afghanistan.

The Taliban seized power in August 2021 when U.S.-led forces withdrew after 20 years of war. The U.N. has sought a unified global approach to dealing with the Taliban, who have cracked down on women's rights.

Most girls have been barred from high school and women from universities by the Taliban. The group has closed beauty salons and curtailed travel for women without a male guardian.

"Today in Kabul a female cat has more freedoms than a woman. A cat may go sit on her front stoop and feel the sun on her face. She may chase a squirrel into the park. A squirrel has more rights than a girl in Afghanistan today, because the public parks have been closed to women and girls," Streep said.

"A bird may sing in Kabul, but a girl may not and a woman may not in public. This is extraordinary," she said.

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