Queen urged to personally step in and help women flee brutal Afghanistan regime

A former Afghan MP and women's rights activist has urged the Queen to step in to help women flee Afghanistan.

Fawzia Koofi, who was held under house arrest by the Taliban before escaping to Doha, has said senior figures in the UK need to support attempts of those desperate to escape the country.

She called for Boris Johnson, British politicians and the Queen to ensure women are awarded visas so they can come to the UK.

She told Channel 4 News: "My appeal would be to the British Prime Minister, to British politicians and to the Queen, to her Majesty the Queen to sponsor more women by awarding visas for them.

"We are working with regional countries to see if they can have a safe passage to these countries and if then they can fly to the UK.

"My request would be to give priority to them because the evacuation was successful in many ways but a nightmare in most cases."

Read more: Operation London Bridge: Leaked document reveals how public will be told when the Queen dies

There are widespread concerns over the future of women in Afghanistan after the Taliban regained control.

In the run-up to the withdrawal of US, UK and other forces from Afghanistan, the group vowed to respect people's rights and to allow women to work under the framework of sharia.

Watch: What will the Taliban government look like?

But this week a spokesman for the Taliban admitted there may not be any women in high positions when it forms a new government in Afghanistan.

Sher Abbas Stanekzai told the BBC the new administration would be inclusive but that roles for women would be limited to lower levels.

In her interview with Channel 4 News, Koofi said the move was a clear discrimination against women and a contradiction of Islamic principles and practices in the rest of the Muslim world.

She added: "To deny 55% of society from economic, social and political rights is not only risky for women but for the country's economy, the future of the economy.

"It will certainly undermine the .... transformation of Afghanistan that we have achieved in the last 20 years.

"I hope the world will watch this and not keep silent, but act."