In a viral video garnering millions of views, a young Afghan girl, tears streaming down her face, weeps, “No one cares about us. We’ll die slowly in history.”
The video, tweeted out by famed Iranian dissident activist journalist Mashi Alinejad, shows the young girl traveling in a vehicle as she says quietly, “We don’t count because we were born in Afghanistan. I cannot help crying. I have to wipe my tears to be able to film this video. No one cares about us. We’ll die slowly in history.”
She concludes sadly, “Isn’t it funny?”
"We don't count because we're from Afghanistan. We'll die slowly in history"
Tears of a hopeless Afghan girl whose future is getting shattered as the Taliban advance in the country.
My heart breaks for women of Afghanistan. The world has failed them. History will write this. pic.twitter.com/i56trtmQtF
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) August 13, 2021
Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head in Pakistan by a member of the Taliban in 2012, tweeted, “We watch in complete shock as Taliban takes control of Afghanistan. I am deeply worried about women, minorities and human rights advocates. Global, regional and local powers must call for an immediate ceasefire, provide urgent humanitarian aid and protect refugees and civilians.”
We watch in complete shock as Taliban takes control of Afghanistan. I am deeply worried about women, minorities and human rights advocates. Global, regional and local powers must call for an immediate ceasefire, provide urgent humanitarian aid and protect refugees and civilians.
— Malala (@Malala) August 15, 2021
“Local reports say Taliban fighters are already going door-to-door and forcibly marrying girls as young as 12 as Jihadist commanders order imams to create ‘marriage lists’ and offer girls for sexual servitude,” the Daily Mail reported. “Taliban soldiers are to marry the women aged from 12 to 45 … because they view them as ‘qhanimat’ or ‘spoils of war’ — to be divided up among the victors.”
The Taliban ruled Afghanistan between 1996-2001; after the 9/11 attacks, the United States ousted them from power. The State Department wrote in 2001 of one particular story under Taliban rule:
The day was much like any other. For the young Afghan mother, the only difference was that her child was feverish and had been for some time and needed to see a doctor. But simple tasks in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan today are not that easy.
The mother was alone and the doctor was across town. She had no male relative to escort her. To ask another man to do so would be to risk severe punishment. To go on her own meant that she would risk flogging.
Because she loved her child, she had no choice. Donning the tent-like burqa as Taliban law required, she set out, cradling her child in her arms. She shouldn’t have.
As they approached the market, she was spotted by a teenage Taliban guard who tried to stop her. Intent on saving her child, the mother ignored him, hoping that he would ignore her. He didn’t. Instead he raised his weapon and shot her repeatedly. Both mother and child fell to the ground. They survived because bystanders in the market intervened to save them. The young Taliban guard was unrepentent — fully supported by the regime. The woman should not have been out alone.
This mother was just another casualty in the Taliban war on Afghanistan’s women, a war that began 5 years ago when the Taliban seized control of Kabul.
President George W. Bush commented in November 2001 of Taliban rule, “Women are imprisoned in their homes, and are denied access to basic health care and education. Food sent to help starving people is stolen by their leaders. The religious monuments of other faiths are destroyed. Children are forbidden to fly kites, or sing songs … A girl of seven is beaten for wearing white shoes.”
The State Department added:
Under Taliban rule, women were given only the most rudimentary access to health care and medical care, thereby endangering the health of women, and in turn, their families. In most hospitals, male physicians could only examine a female patient if she were fully clothed, ruling out the possibility of meaningful diagnosis and treatment. These Taliban regulations led to a lack of adequate medical care for women and contributed to increased suffering and higher mortality rates. …
In May 2001, the Taliban raided and temporarily closed a foreign-funded hospital in Kabul because male and female staff allegedly mixed in the dining room and operating wards. It is significant to note that approximately 70% of health services had been provided by international relief organizations — further highlighting the Taliban’s general disregard for the welfare of the Afghan people.