The Afghan government led by the Taliban announced today, Tuesday, the closure of public and private universities for girls and women across Afghanistan, and the United States was quick to condemn the decision.

A government source told Al Jazeera that the leader of the Taliban movement, Hebatullah Akhundzadeh, called on the Ministry of Higher Education to implement the decision to close universities to girls.

The decision comes after the Taliban prevented the opening of middle and secondary schools to girls after they came to power in the summer of last year. There are 40 public universities in Afghanistan and about 140 private universities, of which 68 are in the capital, Kabul.

In Washington, the US State Department strongly condemned what it called the Taliban's unjustified decision to ban girls and women from universities, and said that the United States would impose measures to hold the movement accountable while continuing to help the Afghan people.

The US mission to the United Nations also condemned the Afghan government's decision, and said that the Taliban cannot be "a legitimate member of the international community until it respects the rights of all Afghans, especially women," as she put it.

It is noteworthy that about 40% of private universities were closed due to financial conditions after the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan, and a source in the Ministry of Higher Education said that more than 200 university professors left Afghanistan after the Taliban came to power.