Bulletin board demolished. Challenge song in the school yard. A row of protesting women. Almost empty cafe without music.
Amid the Taliban’s quick and final takeover of Kabul, Afghans took out their cell phones, filming the chaos of the group’s arrival, the changes that marked their presence and the eerie calm that followed.
In the wake of the US withdrawal from the country after 20 years of war, the armed group known for its brutal treatment of women and strict religious interpretations is once again in charge of Afghanistan.
Chaos engulfed the international airport masses of people Try to escape. But millions remain in Kabul, unsure of what will happen next.
At a press conference on Tuesday, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid announced She said Those who helped the former Afghan government or the Afghan army will be “pardoned” and there will be no “discrimination against women, but, of course, within the frameworks we have”. But there is already Reports In other parts of the country, women were forced to cover themselves, and girls’ schools were closed.
With international embassies and some news outlets leaving the country, it is not yet clear how the group will rule, or who will be there to document it.
The Washington Post compiled social media posts uploaded from Kabul between August 15-17. Most of the videos and photos came from Snap Map, a public platform that allows Snapchat users to post videos and photos captured in real time.
The Post has analyzed more than 100 videos and photos that together illustrate what Kabul residents experienced when the Taliban took control of the city.
Taliban Arrival
As the Taliban entered Kabul on Sunday morning, the videos appeared to show panic. Traffic jams clog the city.
Pictures showed fighters entering the city early on Sunday afternoon, sparking despair among some and an immediate change. According to the caption, the Taliban members were surreptitiously filmed in the “Area 5” section of the city. The user posted an emoji with a white flag symbolizing the group banner.
Users filmed trucks they identified as Taliban vehicles driving through the streets.
One person showed what they described as the “largest” military base in Kabul “under the control of the Taliban.”
Another picture showed men tearing up a poster of a woman on the Rana University campus.
A man filmed people lowering the Afghan flag in Kabul.
He said: “Oh God, help my country.”
Scenes of a changing city
As night fell on Sunday, the streets were deserted. The bustling neighborhood of Pole Sorkh was usually quiet and dark.
Meanwhile, some users have used their social media accounts in a subtle challenge. Someone posted a music video for a song whose lyrics evoke the spirit of female expression.
A woman sings “Don’t hide me inside the house, behind the veil, under the shade.” “Because I am the Lady of the Sun, progressive, full of passion. “
Another user posted a parody of a children’s song.
The original song reads, “I wish I was a fish / In a big sea.”
“I wish I was Dostum / Going to Uzbekistan,” the user sarcastic, referring to the former Afghan Vice President, Abdul Rashid Dostum, Who has the Escaped Country.
Pictures of women on storefronts were distorted. The photographer who took the pictures on Monday said it was ordinary Afghans who destroyed the posters, recalling that the Taliban banned such pictures when they were in power from 1996 to 2001.
Pictures of women are painted on shop windows in Kabul as civilians fear the repercussions of the Taliban. Follow Favorite
An uncertain calm begins
Over the next two days, an eerie calm reigned in the city as some shops and restaurants reopened.
“Everything is normal,” one wrote, showing an unremarkable intersection in Kabul.
But there were signs the city was changing. One user said there were no “security guards” on the street for the first time in their lives.
Another user posted a typical morning pastry and a hot drink in a coffee shop, but noticed that there was no music playing in the nearly empty facility.
Others turned to black humor.
Three days after the Taliban took control of Kabul, Snapchat users are sharing their reactions online. (snap chat)
While some Afghans resumed their daily lives, the fate of their country in the balance, few took that future into their own hands. On Tuesday, several women lined up to demand freedoms in the new system.
“Sharia gives us the right to work, study and teach,” they chanted. The Taliban said they would Giving women more rights within Islamic law, but how will this be interpreted and applied?
Mahnaz Rezaei contributed to this report.
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