An Afghan doctor has won the US State Department’s Courage Award
The US State Department has awarded the Courage Award to Dr. Zakerah Hakim, an Afghan physician and founder of a refugee institution in Turkey
The honorary ceremony for courageous women in 2023 was held at the White House, attended by First Lady of the United States, Jill Biden, and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Alongside Dr. Hakim, 10 other women were also awarded
During the ceremony, it was announced that after the Taliban’s ban on women’s education in Afghanistan, Zakerah secretly completed her primary education and received a scholarship to study in Turkey. Eventually, she became a doctor. After witnessing the challenges faced by refugees, she founded the Afghan Refugee Solidarity Association to advocate for the rights of all refugees and women in Turkey