Terrorist hatchery and sexual apartheid. Afghanistan after 5 years of Taliban rule

It was a Sunday, mid-August 2021. Nigara Mirdad Omar had been working in Warsaw for several months as the deputy head of the diplomatic mission. – Early in the morning, I called my brother. I was afraid for my family and friends. He said that the Taliban are very close. At nine o'clock, we heard that President Ashraf Ghani had fled the country. It became clear that this was the end of Afghanistan as we knew it for the past quarter of a century.

When the Taliban first took over the country in 1996, Nigara and her family fled from Kabul. Over twenty women and children crowded into two medium-sized cars.

– We sought refuge in the Pandeshir Valley, where my father was from. We left everything behind. We cried all the way.

Don't look up. Forbidden kites

Nigara's childhood coincided with the time of the civil war. Between 1992-1996, rockets from Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a drug dealer and producer, and twice Prime Minister of Afghanistan, fell on Kabul. Despite this, children went to school, boys and girls together. They played, flew kites. – When you fly a kite, you look up. You see the sky and the space. The Taliban immediately banned this. You are supposed to look down and only down. It is very symbolic – says Nigara.

During the civil war in Kabul, over 50,000 people were killed. Over the last twenty years, Nigara has lost more than thirty members of her family. In 1984, her father, Mirdad Pandeshiri, was imprisoned for seven years for contacts with Ahmad Shah Masoud. The last two years he spent in a cell one meter by one meter, without light. When he was released, he could see nothing and was unable to move. At the same time, 26 members of Nigara's family were arrested.

– When my mother was interrogated, my six-month-old brother was thrown out of the window into the snow. It was minus 20 degrees outside. All to force my mother to give testimony. My brother survived, he was picked up by my grandmother. The imprisoned mother believed he was dead. From midnight to four in the morning, she had to stand on one leg. We truly know the price of freedom.

In August 2021, Afghanistan was not an exemplary country. After the Soviet invasion (1979-1989), the civil war (1992-1996), and Taliban terror (1996-2001), there was still much to be done. Corruption was rampant at all levels of government, and a significant part of the society remained illiterate. But women could learn, study, start businesses, and play sports – soon, this was about to change.

When Nigara Mirdad Omar started working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, women made up one-fifth of the staff. In the Afghan parliament, women held 27 percent of the seats. There were four ministers in the government, and over twenty women represented the country abroad, either leading a mission or as number two. Women could learn, study, and work.

Today, a midwife who has trained many of her colleagues or cleans men's shoes on the streets of Kabul.

Taliban versus the National Resistance Front

– The first weeks after August 15 were a continuous stream of news from the country. We all remember the scenes from the airport – babies passed through the fence, people holding onto airplane wings. It was a time of fear for loved ones, but also a time of hope that the Taliban could be pushed out once again.

Already on August 16, Ahmad Masud, son of Ahmad Shah Masud, a national hero of Afghanistan who fought against the Soviet occupation and, from 1996-2001, against the Taliban, along with Vice President Amrullah Saleh and thirty thousand fighters, crossed into the Pandeshir Valley and announced resistance. The National Resistance Front (NRF) was formed.

– More people were joining, including from my family. Not only those who wanted to free our country from terrorists, but also those who simply had to flee their homes and hide somewhere. Some haven't seen their wives and children for over four years – Nigara recounts.

Working in police, military, or ministries before 2021 was a sentence. People destroyed their work certificates, language course diplomas, thank-you notes from foreign aid organizations they previously worked for. The Taliban proudly claim they defeated the most powerful army in the world and expelled it from Afghanistan. They consider those who worked for them as traitors.

The NRF still receives no external support. The Taliban seized equipment worth up to 8.5 billion dollars at Bagram base, including over a hundred helicopters and tens of thousands of vehicles. The NRF does not have this.

– Our fighters are now mostly in the mountains because the Taliban have turned the Pandeshir Valley into a huge weapons depot and training center for terrorists from over twenty countries – explains Nigara.

Besides the NRF, there are also the Afghanistan Freedom Front and Afghanistan United Front. All these forces cooperate because their goal is the same – to push terrorists out of Afghanistan. On the fifth anniversary of the Taliban's return to power, more and more people feel that enough is enough.

El Dorado funded by US money and drug trade

Talking about the situation of women in Afghanistan, Nigara often uses the term “gender apartheid”, emphasizing the pervasive violence. The Taliban can approach a woman on the street and hit her in the head with the butt of a gun if they consider her clothing inappropriate. They believe this is not only their right but also their duty. They are supposed to uphold morality. The same teacher in a madrasa, who talks about purity and modesty, then repeatedly rapes boys and forces them to remain silent.

– It's sad that we can't count on external support, but life can't go on like this – Nigara sighs and reminds us that Afghanistan is currently the only country in the world where half the population is excluded from public and economic life.

– The Taliban turn everything they touch into pathology. Look at the madrasas. They used to be centers of learning. Astronomy, algebra, logic were studied. Poetry was read. Now they are brainwashing centers and sexual violence camps. Two weeks ago, a young widow from Pandeshir asked me for help. Three children and an advanced pregnancy. She saw the Taliban kill her husband. Two shots. One in the neck, the other in the chest. He was still alive for a moment. They didn't let the woman approach. They threatened to kill her and the children.

Her oldest son, twelve years old, attends madrasa. The Taliban force boys to take drugs. The woman wants to escape to protect her children, but has nowhere to go. She received immediate help from the Polish organization School for Peace, which provides shelter for fifteen other widows in Kabul. That's how it looks now.

People beg and starve, but the Taliban have money. Every week, $40 million from the US flows to them for counter-terrorism and another amount for humanitarian aid. Foreign food also reaches terrorist training camps. There is also money from drug trafficking.

– Chinese companies interested in our rich natural resources are active and paying. Everything goes to the Taliban. There is no budget in the sense you understand or normal state management. These people have no idea about that – explains Nigara.

However, the Taliban are capable of seeking useful collaborators. Such a case was recently highlighted by Sarah Adams in Belgium – a former CIA agent, now an analyst. Supposedly a businessman, importer of dried fruits and saffron. But during a trip to Afghanistan, he met with several prominent representatives of Taliban services. He is also on their payroll. Wealthy, with a stable position. Through contacts with politicians, he can influence not only the narrative but also specific actions. He can encourage a “pragmatic” approach. After all, the presence of the Taliban is a fact; one cannot be angry at reality.

There are also others in different countries. Commentators, analysts, tour organizers. Recently, an Afghan journalist at a literary festival in London claimed that the situation is “normal” and Afghan women can walk the streets. On the same day, in Herat, the Taliban kidnapped dozens of women over alleged dress code violations.

Some do it for specific money, others out of ignorance. Influencers promoting trips to Afghanistan, posting their photos with the Taliban and their weapons, also serve the terrorists' narrative. When a prominent Afghan businessman with access to politicians encourages, for example, sending medicines to Afghanistan, it is worth being cautious. No one on the ground will hold him accountable, and aid will probably not reach the most needy. Just like WFP food, which ends up in terrorist training camps.

– My mission in Warsaw ended in October 2024. Poland, the host country, made that decision. Since August 2021, we worked without pay. We paid bills, often out of our own pocket. I was very eager to keep the mission going. I lobbied for it until the end. The ambassador was already living and working in London then – recalls Nigara.

Currently, only 8 offices representing the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan operate: in Tajikistan, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, Australia, Greece, and France. In Poland, there are no Taliban, but the last deputy head of the mission, Nigara, had to leave the country. The head of one office – the Austrian one – is a woman, Manizha Bakhtari. She is the subject of the film The Last Ambassador from 2025.

Pragmatism versus human rights

– This needs to be constantly reminded. Especially those who call for cooperation with the Taliban in the name of pragmatism. From the West, which talks so much about human rights and values, we expect something different – says Nigara.

Russia and China don't even have to pretend they care about human rights. In both countries, representatives of the Taliban hold diplomatic functions, and no one expects explanations from Moscow or Beijing. The situation is different with Western countries, which usually justify their contacts with the Taliban with pragmatism.

This was the case in Germany. The Taliban took control of the consulates in Berlin and Bonn, but not the one in Munich. The explanation is familiar: this is the reality, you need to talk to the authorities in Kabul because you need to control migration, send back people who do not have the right to stay, handle consular affairs. Similarly, the invitation to Taliban representatives in Brussels was justified – the talks were mainly about migration.

Regional countries also cite pragmatism. Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan handed over Afghan offices to representatives of the new authorities in Kabul. Here, migration issues are joined by trade, investments, and economic interests. With each such step, the Taliban gain more than just the ability to issue passports or conduct business talks. They gain additional elements of normality: an office, a sign, a place at the table, and the possibility to act as representatives of a state they have taken over by force.

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