Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Pakistani Taliban as a schoolgirl, has urged the US to extend its support for Afghan schoolgirls.
Ms Yousafzai met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington DC where she spoke of the importance of education for women and children in the wake of the Taliban takeover.
Secondary schools in Afghanistan, where the Taliban regained power this summer, have reopened for boys only, and only men are permitted to teach.
"Afghanistan right now is the only country where girls do not have access to secondary education, she said.
"They are prohibited from learning.
"This is the message of Afghan girls right now: we want to see a world where all girls can have access to safe and quality education."
She also presented a letter, addressed to US President Joe Biden, from a 15-year-old Afghan girl named Sotodah.
Sotodah wrote in her letter that "the longer schools and universities remain closed to girls, the more it will shade hope for [their] future," according to Ms Yousafzai.
"Girls' education is a powerful tool for bringing peace and security," added Ms Yousafzai, reading the letter, adding: "If girls don't learn, Afghanistan will suffer, too.
"We hope that the United States, together with the UN, will take immediate actions to ensure that girls are allowed to go back to their schools as soon as possible," Ms Yousafzai noted before a private meeting with the secretary.
Mr Blinken, whose country hastily withdrew its troops from Afghanistan after 20 years of war, saluted the 24-year-old as "an inspiration to girls and women around the world", and someone who "by her work, by her efforts, is making a real difference".
