Afghanistan One Year Later

She could hear the roller coasters but not ride on them.

To celebrate the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in May, Zulhijjah Mirzadah, 25, had prepared a small picnic of dried fruit, packed her five children into a minibus, and navigated for two hours through the congested streets of Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, to visit a bustling amusement park.

The entrance was as far as Mirzadah could get, however—close enough to hear the joyous screams of others enjoying the rides. The Taliban, she was told at the gate, had barred women from entering the park during the holiday.

“We’re facing economic problems; things are expensive; we can’t find work; our daughters can’t go to school—but we had hoped to have a picnic in the park today,” she says.

Women’s exclusion from the park on a day when men are allowed is among a growing list of restrictions that Afghan women have faced under the second era of Taliban rule. A few days before Mirzadah’s derailed family picnic, the Taliban had decreed that women must cover themselves head to toe when they venture outside their homes. The edict, which also urged women to stay home unless they had a compelling reason to go out, followed soon after an order requiring women who travel more than 45 miles from their homes to be accompanied by a male relative. The Taliban have also barred girls from attending middle school and high school.

“The Taliban are reneging on all their promises about an open and inclusive society,” says Bruce Hoffman, an Afghanistan expert at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C.

She could hear the roller coasters but not ride on them.

It was the end of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan in May. To celebrate, Zulhijjah Mirzadah, 25, had put together a small picnic of dried fruit. She packed her five children into a minibus to visit a bustling amusement park. They had to travel through the congested streets of Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, to get there. The trip took two hours.

The entrance was as far as Mirzadah could get. She was close enough to hear the joyous screams of others enjoying the rides. At the gate, she was told that the Taliban had barred women from entering the park during the holiday.

“We’re facing economic problems; things are expensive; we can’t find work; our daughters can’t go to school—but we had hoped to have a picnic in the park today,” she says.

Women are no longer allowed to enter the park on a day when men can visit. This exclusion is among a growing list of the limits Afghan women have faced under the second era of Taliban rule. A few days before Mirzadah’s derailed family picnic, the Taliban had decreed that women must cover themselves head to toe when they leave their homes. The order also urged women to stay home unless they had a good reason to go out. It followed soon after an order requiring women who travel more than 45 miles from their homes to do so with a male relative. The Taliban have also stopped girls from attending middle school and high school.

“The Taliban are reneging on all their promises about an open and inclusive society,” says Bruce Hoffman, an Afghanistan expert at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington, D.C.

After 20 years of fighting, the United States withdrew its last troops from Afghanistan a year ago, on August 30, 2021. The U.S. departure ended the longest war in American history and left the Taliban, an extremist group that had long been fighting to overthrow the Afghan government, once again in charge.

Now, a year later, Afghanistan is struggling with an intensifying economic crisis in addition to the tightening constraints on women and girls. Because most Western nations consider the Taliban to be a terrorist group, they’ve halted foreign aid and frozen the Afghanistan Central Bank’s assets. That has destroyed the country’s fragile economy. The government has no money to pay salaries, including for teachers and doctors. With a growing number of Afghans unable to find work, more families are going hungry.

“What’s clear from being here in Kabul is that the situation in Afghanistan is not sustainable,” says Athena Rayburn, who works in Afghanistan for the aid organization Save the Children. “We seem to be teetering on somewhat of a knife’s edge. All the money that was propping up the entire public infrastructure of this country—about 80 percent of the budget was funded by foreign aid—all that money is gone. One of the most heartbreaking things is the level of food insecurity. About half the population is not getting enough to eat.”

Suffering is nothing new for Afghans. The country has been wracked by war and upheaval since the 1979 Soviet invasion (see Key Dates, below). The Taliban first came to power in 1996. Their radical interpretation of Islam led them to oppress religious minorities, bar women from working, and prohibit girls from going to school. Afghanistan became a pariah state.

After 20 years of fighting, the United States withdrew its last troops from Afghanistan a year ago, on August 30, 2021. The U.S. departure ended the longest war in American history. It also left the Taliban once again in charge. The extremist group had long been fighting to overthrow the Afghan government.

Now, a year later, Afghanistan is struggling with a growing economic crisis. And the impact of tightening constraints on women and girls has been felt as well. Most Western nations consider the Taliban to be a terrorist group. In response, the West has cut off foreign aid and frozen the Afghanistan Central Bank’s assets. That has destroyed the country’s fragile economy. The government has no money to pay salaries, including for teachers and doctors. With a growing number of Afghans unable to find work, more families are going hungry.

“What’s clear from being here in Kabul is that the situation in Afghanistan is not sustainable,” says Athena Rayburn, who works in Afghanistan for the aid organization Save the Children. “We seem to be teetering on somewhat of a knife’s edge. All the money that was propping up the entire public infrastructure of this country—about 80 percent of the budget was funded by foreign aid—all that money is gone. One of the most heartbreaking things is the level of food insecurity. About half the population is not getting enough to eat.”

Suffering is nothing new for Afghans. War and unrest have hit the country hard since the 1979 Soviet invasion (see Key Dates, below). The Taliban first came to power in 1996. Their radical take on Islam led them to oppress religious minorities, bar women from working, and keep girls from going to school. Afghanistan became a pariah state.

U.S. troops invaded Afghanistan in 2001, in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., in which nearly 3,000 people were killed. Al Qaeda planned the attacks in Afghanistan after the Taliban gave the terrorist group safe haven. After the invasion, the U.S. quickly ousted the Taliban and set up a new Afghan government.

But the Taliban forces simply melted into the civilian population and became insurgent fighters. For two decades, as the U.S. and its allies worked to rebuild Afghanistan, the Taliban continued attacking and slowly regained territory. More than 2,300 Americans died in the fighting, and the ongoing violence killed tens of thousands of Afghan civilians.

In 2020, the U.S. signed a peace deal with the Taliban to clear the way for a troop withdrawal. Officials hoped the Afghan government would negotiate with the Taliban to end the fighting and let them participate in elections. But as U.S. troops withdrew in 2021, the Afghan military collapsed and the Taliban took control of the entire country.

The final weeks of the American troop departure were filled with chaos: Hundreds of thousands of Afghans desperate to flee crowded the airport in Kabul. The 10-day airlift evacuated tens of thousands of Afghans, but that was a fraction of those who wanted to leave.

U.S. troops invaded Afghanistan in 2001. The invasion was in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the U.S., in which nearly 3,000 people were killed. Al Qaeda planned the attacks in Afghanistan after the Taliban gave the terrorist group shelter there. After the invasion, the U.S. quickly got rid of the Taliban and set up a new Afghan government.

But the Taliban forces simply melted into the civilian population. They then became rebel fighters. For two decades, the U.S. and its allies worked to rebuild Afghanistan. During that time, the Taliban continued attacking and slowly regained territory. More than 2,300 Americans died in the fighting. The ongoing violence also killed tens of thousands of Afghan civilians.

In 2020, the U.S. signed a peace deal with the Taliban to clear the way for a troop withdrawal. Officials hoped the Afghan government would work out a deal with the Taliban to end the fighting and let them take part in elections. But as U.S. troops withdrew in 2021, the Afghan military collapsed. At that point, the Taliban took control of the entire country.

The final weeks of the American troop departure were filled with chaos: Hundreds of thousands of Afghans were desperate to flee. They crowded into the airport in Kabul. The 10-day airlift evacuated tens of thousands of Afghans. But that was a fraction of those who wanted to leave.

Today, Afghans can travel more safely on highways that are finally free of gunfire, roadside bombs, and dangerous checkpoints. The terrifying drone of warplanes overhead is gone.

“There’s an element of a silver lining,” says Rayburn of Save the Children. She explains that it’s a lot safer for children now that parents don’t need to worry about them getting caught in a conflict on their way to school or stepping on an improvised explosive device (I.E.D.). It’s also easier for aid organizations to get access to Afghans living in more remote parts of the country that had been off limits.

But peace hasn’t brought prosperity. The economy has collapsed because anyone who works for the government—the nation’s largest employer—is no longer getting paid. That includes teachers and the country’s entire health-care system. Desperate families are taking their children out of school and sending them out to work.

Today, Afghans can travel more safely on highways. The roads are finally free of gunfire, roadside bombs, and dangerous checkpoints. And the terrifying drone of warplanes overhead is gone.

“There’s an element of a silver lining,” says Rayburn of Save the Children. She explains that it’s a lot safer for children now that parents don’t need to worry about them getting caught in a conflict on their way to school or stepping on an improvised explosive device (I.E.D.). It’s also easier for aid organizations to get access to Afghans living in more remote parts of the country that had been off limits.

But peace hasn’t brought prosperity. The government is the nation’s largest employer. The economy has collapsed because government workers are no longer getting paid. That includes teachers and the country’s entire health-care system. Desperate families are taking their children out of school and sending them out to work.

Rayburn says she frequently hears reports of families having a proper meal only every three to four days because they can’t afford to eat more often. Beyond that, she says, they’ll mush a piece of bread with water to stretch it so the whole family can share. Save the Children’s mobile health-care site in Kandahar has seen its caseload quadruple since the Taliban takeover.

“People are walking two to three hours because our site is the only place to get health care,” she says.

Rayburn says she frequently hears reports of families having a proper meal only every three to four days because they can’t afford to eat more often. Beyond that, she says, they’ll mush a piece of bread with water to stretch it so the whole family can share. Save the Children’s mobile health-care site in Kandahar has seen its caseload quadruple since the Taliban takeover.

“People are walking two to three hours because our site is the only place to get health care,” she says.

When the Taliban seized Kabul last year, they promised less-restrictive policies toward women than during their previous rule in the 1990s. But in a matter of months, they’ve imposed onerous decrees that have dragged women from the relative freedoms achieved over the past two decades to a harsh interpretation of Islamic law that smothers women’s rights.

“We’re not seeing stadiums filled with people watching individuals being stoned to death,” says Hoffman of the Council on Foreign Relations, referring to the kinds of scenes that were common when the Taliban previously ruled Afghanistan. “It’s much more behind the scenes. It’s a much more quiet and insidious oppressiveness.”

For a generation of women who’ve grown up with more opportunities, that’s a bitter pill to swallow.

“Women now are not like the women of 20 years ago, and the Taliban should understand that,” says Fatima Farahi, 55, a women’s rights activist in Herat, in western Afghanistan.

The Taliban took control of Kabul last year. At the time, they promised less-restrictive policies toward women than during their previous rule in the 1990s. But in a matter of months, they’ve put harsh rules in place. These limits have deprived women of the relative freedoms achieved over the past two decades. Instead, the Taliban have promoted a strict view of Islamic law that smothers women’s rights.

“We’re not seeing stadiums filled with people watching individuals being stoned to death,” says Hoffman of the Council on Foreign Relations, referring to the kinds of scenes that were common when the Taliban previously ruled Afghanistan. “It’s much more behind the scenes. It’s a much more quiet and insidious oppressiveness.”

For a generation of women who’ve grown up with more opportunities, that’s a bitter pill to swallow.

“Women now are not like the women of 20 years ago, and the Taliban should understand that,” says Fatima Farahi, 55, a women’s rights activist in Herat, in western Afghanistan.

In Kabul, a 24-year-old university student who wore a head scarf (also known as a hijab) but no face covering to a popular recreation area said she had been struck on the head by a rifle butt wielded by a passing Taliban gunman who shouted at her to cover her face.

Taliban gunmen have pointed weapons at female protesters, sprayed them with pepper spray, and called them “whores” and “puppets of the West,” says Human Rights Watch, a human rights group.

In May, Maryam Hassanzada, 24, joined a dozen other women protesting the Taliban restrictions in Kabul. With their faces uncovered, the women chanted “Justice! Justice!” and “Stop tyranny against women!” After 10 minutes, Taliban gunmen roughly broke up the demonstration. Security officials held the protesters for about two hours, questioned them, then released them with warnings not to do it again.

In Kabul, a 24-year-old university student wore a head scarf (also known as a hijab) but no face covering to a popular recreation area. A Taliban gunman who passed by had struck her on the head with the end of his rifle, she said. He also shouted at her to cover her face.

Taliban gunmen have pointed weapons at female protesters, sprayed them with pepper spray, and called them “whores” and “puppets of the West,” says Human Rights Watch, a human rights group.

In May, Maryam Hassanzada, 24, joined a dozen other women protesting the Taliban restrictions in Kabul. With their faces uncovered, the women chanted “Justice! Justice!” and “Stop tyranny against women!” After 10 minutes, Taliban gunmen roughly broke up the demonstration. Security officials held the protesters for about two hours and questioned them. The women were then released with warnings not to do it again.

“If we don’t protest, the world won’t know how badly Afghan women are oppressed,” Hassanzada says.

Zakia Zahadat, 24, another protester, says she won’t give up.

“I won’t stop protesting,” she says. “We’re facing an economic crisis, a social crisis, and a political crisis, but the Taliban only care about the hijab? Does this mean if we wear a hijab all our problems will be solved?”

“If we don’t protest, the world won’t know how badly Afghan women are oppressed,” Hassanzada says.

Zakia Zahadat, 24, another protester, says she won’t give up.

“I won’t stop protesting,” she says. “We’re facing an economic crisis, a social crisis, and a political crisis, but the Taliban only care about the hijab? Does this mean if we wear a hijab all our problems will be solved?”