Habibullah Shabab found his calling as a singer — but since the Taliban’s return to power, he’s given up performing and instead makes a living as a shopkeeper. The Taliban has not yet imposed a ban on music as it did in the 1990s, but Shabab and others fear such a policy is imminent,
Haroon Bacha Abubakar Siddique Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty August 29, 2021 Young musician Ahmad Khan says doomsday arrived for him when the hard-line Taliban movement overran the Afghan capital, Kabul — the conclusion of a dramatic sweep across the war-torn country that saw Afghanistan’s pro-Western government melt away. Khan — using a pseudonym for security
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty August 29 2021 The family of an Afghan folk singer and musician says he has been shot dead by a Taliban fighter in a mountain province north of Kabul. The alleged slaying of Fawad Andarabi comes amid growing concerns that the hard-line Islamist group will return war-torn Afghanistan to the repressive
NYT: Although he sought to convey a much more tolerant image of the Taliban, Mr. Mujahid did confirm one report: Music will not be allowed in public. “Music is forbidden in Islam,” he said, “but we’re hoping that we can persuade people not do such things, instead of pressuring them.” Click here to read more
Los Angeles Times: The capital’s morning rush hour is a discordant backdrop for the workshop of Izzatullah Neamat. But walk down an alley, sidestep a sewage canal, and there he is: ensconced in the rabble among dozens of rubabs — an ancient instrument that resembles a lute — that have become his life’s work and
Tolo News: The Ministry of Education on Saturday retreated from its decision to ban public singing by schoolgirls above 12 years of age at public and private schools across the country. The move was first announced by the ministry on March 10. In a statement, the ministry announced to ban girls 12 years old and
AP: A memo from Afghanistan’s education ministry banning girls 12 years old and older from singing at school functions has been causing a stir on social media, prompting the authorities to say it was a mistake and that its authors had misunderstood the objective. Click here to read more (external link).
AFP: Sporting a black quiff and sideburns, Ahmad Zahir sang of love and heartbreak in liberal 1970s Kabul – a city now plagued by war and suffering, but where the popularity of Afghanistan’s “Elvis” remains undimmed 40 years after his death. Click here to read more (external link).
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty July 18, 2019 Police in Slovakia are searching for four members of Afghanistan’s first all-female orchestra who disappeared from their hotel after participating in a local festival. Zohra, a 35-member orchestra, performed at a concert on July 13 at the Pohoda Festival in the western town of Trencin, some 130 kilometers
Time: Fresh from a sold-out concert tour of the U.K. and Sweden, Afghanistan’s first female conductor is convinced music can help deliver peace to her war-torn country. If only the Taliban would listen. Click here to read more (external link).