KABUL — Taliban have expanded their campaign to cut public sector jobs by issuing formal dismissal notices to professors at Kabul Education University and Kabul Polytechnic University, in addition to removing hundreds of lecturers from other institutions across the country in recent days, sources said.
The move follows a directive from the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, to slash tens of thousands of positions across government institutions as part of what the group calls an administrative “restructuring” effort.
Sources say the layoffs will affect both male and female faculty and are expected to be implemented within the next one or two days. There has been no public explanation or formal criteria given for the dismissals.
Earlier this month, Amu obtained a copy of an internal plan from the Taliban’s Ministry of Education outlining the elimination of nearly 90,000 positions. The document referred to the cuts as part of a broader “organizational balancing” strategy.
The dismissals are not limited to university professors. Sources say dozens of schoolteachers have already been removed from their posts, many without due process or official documentation. Teachers over the age of 60 and those working on contract bases have reportedly been among the first to go.
Compounding the issue is a sharp reduction in teacher salaries. Multiple sources confirmed that educators with bachelor’s degrees now earn as little as 4,500 Afghanis per month (approximately $60), while those without degrees or on temporary contracts receive just 3,000 Afghanis.
“They’ve dismissed many of us who are older,” said one teacher, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retribution. “Our salaries have dropped from 5,000 to 4,500 Afghanis. Some of us have been reassigned to distant schools with no transportation support. How are we supposed to cover our expenses or feed our families? The goal seems to be total elimination, under flimsy excuses.”
University staff have also begun reporting dismissals at institutions such as Kabul University, with no formal evaluation or justification provided by authorities.
The Taliban-run Ministry of Education and Ministry of Higher Education have denied the reports, saying no official dismissal process has begun. However, education sector workers say the purges are already underway — deepening concerns over academic freedom and institutional collapse under Taliban rule.
