“The Taliban seized control over Kabul on Sunday, four months after President Joe Biden announced it was “time to end the forever war,” following through with Trump’s February 2020 deal with the Taliban.
Many fear the Taliban will return to their 1996-2001 reign, prior to US intervention, which imposed strict Islamic law, where women were required to be escorted by a man to leave their homes and women were unable to receive education or hold jobs. There is also fear among Afghans and the international community (and several current examples) that the Taliban will exact retribution on critics or those who worked with the US or other foreign entities, worked as journalists, served in some capacity in the US-backed Afghan government or the Afghan military.
“There is no ‘new Taliban,'” Amb. Melanne Verveer, the executive director of Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace, and Security told Insider. “Already across Afghanistan, we’re seeing girls being told they’re not to go to school anymore, women being told that they can’t leave their homes except with a guardian, flogging, sex slavery – a whole host of horrific prospects for women who’ve already suffered a great deal.”
Videos and images show that the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul resulted in a chaotic gathering at the airport as people clung to US airplanes in a desperate attempt to flee the country. The Associated Press reported that at least seven people died.
“I know my decision will be criticized. But I would rather take that criticism than pass this on to a fifth president,” Biden said on Monday. “I am the president of the United States, the buck stops with me.”
Women for Women International, a nonprofit that works to support female survivors of war, told Insider that their colleague said, “If the Taliban doesn’t kill women, the tension of this crisis just might.”
The humanitarian crisis is front and center in the news, appearing in outlets from CNN to BBC and more. So it follows that there are people who want to help.
Insider has compiled a list of ways to help the people of Afghanistan below.
Donate
Many organizations are taking donations to support those in need amid the humanitarian crisis. Women for Women International has a generous donor who will match up to $500,000 in donations made on their site.
“We are heartened by the outpouring of support – we’ve raised $1 million – but the need in Afghanistan and other conflict areas we work in is greater than that,” the CEO of Women for Women International told Insider.
A Task and Purpose article linked to several non-profit advocacy groups aiding the crisis, including Evacuate Our Allies and the International Refugee Assistance Project.”
