Before Taliban rule in Afghanistan, Sardar Mohammad made his living and provided for his family by playing the harmonium, a traditional folk instrument that was popular at celebrations. Since the Taliban takeover in August 2021, playing and listening to music has been banned, with sermons or Koran readings replacing the melodies once heard at
8am: Taliban forces in the Jaghuri district of Ghazni province opened fire on a wedding party convoy on Thursday afternoon (July 14th). According to the source, the incident occurred on the outskirts of the district center. Taliban fighters apparently opened fire on the wedding entourage because they were playing music. Traditionally, during the wedding parties,
8am: The Taliban have ordered all the students that music is forbidden, adding that the students are not allowed to listen to music neither in the dormitory rooms nor in the dining hall. In the meantime, most students at Kabul University dormitory have raised concerns and consider the new order as turning the university into
8am: Sources on Wednesday (June 15th) said that a wedding party was being held in the new city of Faizabad, which was stormed by the Taliban’s virtue promoters. Taliban forces have forcefully prevented the wedding from taking place. According to sources, the Taliban claimed that the women attending the wedding party did not wear the
RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal Abubakar Siddique June 3, 2022 PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Zaryali is among the hundreds of Afghan musicians who have fled to neighboring Pakistan since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Soon after seizing power in August, the Taliban outlawed music and footage emerged of its fighters publicly beating and humiliating musicians and burning their instruments. The
8am: Local artists in Kapisa province have expressed concern about restrictions imposed by local officials in the province, saying that their economic problems and security concerns have multiplied since the fall of the republic. They say their professional lives are under threat. Local artists in Kapisa are asking the authorities to allow them to work
NPR: After the Taliban took over Afghanistan, members of the institute feared for their lives. After five airlifts starting Oct. 2, nearly 300 students, faculty and family members affiliated with the music school all made it safely to Doha by mid-November. Click here to read more (external link).
AP: Students and faculty members from the Afghanistan National Institute of Music arrived with their families Monday in Portugal, where they are being granted asylum and where they hope to rebuild their acclaimed school. Click here to read more (external link).
NBC News: The last two of more than 270 students, faculty and staff from Afghanistan’s only music school have left the country in the wake of the Taliban takeover, the institution’s founder said on Thursday. “It was extremely emotional,” the Afghanistan National Institute of Music’s founder and director Ahmad Sarmast said of students he greeted
Tolo News: According to the musicians, music was the only way of income but as they have abandoned it for over two months and are currently facing severe economic challenges. “Any country that doesn’t have culture and national music will never develop,” said Asif Khalili, a musician. The musicians called on the [Taliban] government to