Amu: On this day 24 years ago, the Taliban carried out one of the most infamous acts of cultural destruction in modern history, demolishing the ancient Buddhas of Bamiyan, two towering statues that had stood for centuries as symbols of Afghanistan’s rich Buddhist heritage. On March 11, 2001, Taliban founder Mullah Mohammad Omar ordered the
AFP: Musicians play behind closed doors despite a ban on music in Afghanistan and a maker of stringed instrument the rubab refuses to down tools. Click here to read more (external link).
Amu: The UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has inscribed the art of crafting and playing the rubab as an Intangible Cultural Heritage, recognizing Afghanistan and its neighbors Iran, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan. Rubab is one of the oldest musical instruments in Central, South, and Southwest Asia. Crafted from dried mulberry wood collected in deserts,
The Taliban announced in August that it had destroyed over 20,000 musical instruments in Afghanistan in the past year. The extremist group considers instruments un-Islamic and permits only unaccompanied singing. In interviews with RFE/RL, an exiled Afghan musician condemned the move, while the head of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music said, “Music was the
Khaama: The Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture has announced that the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) will soon begin the restoration of the monastery of Mawlana Jalaluddin Balkhi-Rumi’s father. Some historians consider the Bahauddin Monastery to be Rumi’s birthplace. Due to its historical significance, the monastery annually attracts hundreds of domestic and international
Abubakar Siddique and RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi August 29, 2024 The Taliban has attempted to police the public appearances and behavior of millions of Afghans, especially women, since seizing power in 2021. But the enforcement of the extremist group’s rules governing morality, including its strict Islamic dress code and gender segregation in society, was sporadic and
The Guardian (UK): “The Taliban tried to silence us,” said Ahmad Sarmast, the director of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music, in his new office in Braga. “But we’re much stronger and much louder than yesterday.” Click here to read more (external link).
Khaama: The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) agreed during a conference, upon the request of writers and scholars from Afghanistan, to designate Mowlānā Jalāloddin Mohammad Balkhi’s birthday (September 30, 1207) as “Respect for Others Day.” Dr. Mohammad Fazil Sharifi, a researcher and professor at the university who participated in this conference, told
8am: It’s evening, and the last rays of sunlight, casting an orange hue across the canvas of paintings that have now changed their colors and mood, are spreading. Sitting amidst a multitude of paintings, she gazes sorrowfully at her artistic creations. On one hand, she worries about the darkening sky, and on the other, she
8am: Reports emerging from Balkh and Bamiyan provinces reveal that despite the populace’s eagerness to celebrate Nowruz in these regions, stringent measures enforced by the Taliban have cast a pall over the festive spirit marking the New Year in these locales. This marks the third consecutive year in which the Taliban have proscribed Nowruz celebrations,