“I was in Ghazni when I found out about the Taliban taking over Kabul. I froze and couldn’t move until tears started flowing down my cheeks,” narrates Zarlasht Wali.
A 26-year-old English teacher, human rights activist and a firm supporter of girls’ education, Wali has since moved to a relative’s home in Kabul, nearly 150 kilometres to the north-east.
“When we heard about provinces falling under the Taliban’s control one by one, we hoped Kabul would stand strong,” she says. Three days before the Taliban took control of the capital, insurgents led an offensive on Ghazni, her home town. “Ghazni fell three days before Kabul, but we still had hope for our future. But when our capital fell on 15 August, I feared it was truly the end of our freedom.”
