‘I fear I’ll starve as a prisoner in my flat’
A WOMAN fears starving to death in her Kabul apartment because she risks being killed by the
Taliban if she leaves to get food.
Marzia Hussaini has become a prisoner in her own home since the Islamic insurgents took power in Afghanistan following the collapse of the Western-backed regime and the withdrawal of US troops.
The 27-year-old, who was a senior advisor for the Afghan Government and US military, says the Taliban’s harsh interpretation of Islamic law is already being implemented and she isn’t allowed to leave her home – even for essential items – without a male companion. She also risks being
killed in revenge attacks. She says: “I am a prisoner in my own home. I can’t even go grocery shopping alone and I have no-one. I am so afraid. I tried to go out to buy food but the Taliban pushed me back into my home and told me I wasn’t allowed to leave without men. I’ve nothing to eat in my apartment.
“I have no option for escape and people are dying. The Taliban is looking door-to-door for people who have worked with the US and the Afghan Government. I am terrified they will know I worked for them. They will kill us.”
Marzia says women’s rights had improved since 2001, when UK and US forces arrived. But now she warns they are being abandoned.
She says: “I beg UK and US officials – please do not leave Afghan women here. Over 20 years you’ve taught us how we can fight for our human rights. If you leave us alone here in Kabul we will die. We have no more hope.
“If you leave the Afghan women, they will die because all their hopes and aspirations will die.”
Marzia, whose family are in Iran, also fears for her life as a member of the Hazara minority, who the Taliban have tortured and killed.
She tried to get on a plane at Kabul airport earlier this week but all flights were cancelled.