Exactly a year ago, hard-line Islamists seized Kabul after their nationwide blitzkrieg against government forces culminated in a 20-year US-led military intervention.
The Taliban listen to Afghan Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund during a meeting at the former presidential palace in Kabul on August 13, 2022. Photo: Vakil KOHSAR/AFP.
KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban marked the first anniversary of their return to power in Afghanistan with a national holiday on Monday after a turbulent year that saw women’s rights violated and a humanitarian crisis worsen.
Exactly a year ago, hard-line Islamists seized Kabul after their nationwide blitzkrieg against government forces culminated in a 20-year US-led military intervention.
“We have fulfilled the duty of jihad and liberated our country,” said Niyamatullah Hekmat, a fighter who entered Kabul on August 15 last year, hours after then-President Ashraf Ghani fled the country.
The chaotic withdrawal of foreign forces continued until August 31, when tens of thousands of people rushed to Kabul airport in the hope of being evacuated on any flight from Afghanistan.
Images of crowds of people storming the airport, clambering onto planes – and some clinging to a departing US military cargo plane as it taxied down the runway – were broadcast on news around the world.
Authorities have not yet announced any official celebrations to mark the anniversary, but state television said it would air special programs.
Taliban fighters, however, expressed happiness that their movement is now in power – even as humanitarian organizations say half of the country’s 38 million people face extreme poverty.
“The time we entered Kabul and the time the Americans left were moments of joy,” said Hekmat, now a member of the special forces guarding the presidential palace.
- “Life has lost its meaning” –
But for ordinary Afghans – especially women – the return of the Taliban has only added to the hardship.
The Taliban initially promised a softer version of the brutal Islamist rule that characterized their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001.
But many restrictions were placed on women to conform to the movement’s strict vision of Islam.
Tens of thousands of girls were excluded from secondary schools, while women were barred from returning to many government jobs.
And in May, they were ordered to cover themselves completely in public, ideally with an all-encompassing burqa.
“Since the day they came, life has lost its meaning,” said Ogai Amail, a resident of Kabul.
“Everything was taken from us, they even got into our personal space,” she said.
On Saturday, Taliban fighters beat women protesters and fired weapons into the air to disperse their rally in Kabul.
While Afghans acknowledge a decline in violence since the Taliban took over, the humanitarian crisis has left many helpless.
“People who come to our shops complain so much about the high prices that we shop owners have started to hate ourselves,” said Noor Mohammad, a shop owner from Kandahar, the Taliban’s de facto center of power.
However, for Taliban fighters, the joy of victory is overshadowed by the current economic crisis.
“We may be poor, we may face hardships, but now the white flag of Islam will fly forever in Afghanistan,” said a fighter guarding a public park in Kabul.
