Gunmen kill 5 female airport workers, driver in Kandahar

The Afghan government has been struggling to expand opportunities for women in the workforce, but that effort has been hampered by conservative customs about the role of women and security threats posed by the conflict with the Taliban.

Samim Khapalwak, a spokesman for the governor of Kandahar, said two men on motorcycles stopped the van and fired on its occupants around 6:30 a.m. The women, who worked as contractors for a security company, helped screen passengers and luggage, Khapalwak said.

According to a recent report by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, women listed lack of security as the biggest challenge to their advancement.