From an old-style Afghan camera, a new view of life under the Taliban emerges
From an old-style Afghan camera, a new view of life under the Taliban emerges
In the years after the 2001 U.S. invasion and the ouster of the Taliban regime, Associated Press photographer Rodrigo Abd spent months on assignment in Afghanistan and learned how to use a traditional Afghan “box camera,” a handmade camera and darkroom in one. Abd returned this year with an idea: to employ the nearly disappeared Afghan art form to document how life has changed in peacetime, for better and worse, two years after U.S. troops left and the Taliban returned to power. (Sept. 22) (AP video: Bram Janssen)
The Moradi family sits for a portrait on a small boat in Band-i-Mir lake, one of the tourist attractions in the Bamiyan Valley region in Afghanistan, Saturday, June 17, 2023. The family traveled a long way from Helmand to spend a few days for their summer vacation. During their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban banned photography of humans and animals as contrary to the teachings of Islam. On Aug. 26, 2023 they banned all women from entering all national parks including Band-i-Mir, in a move that has triggered widespread condemnation.(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Habibollah, 27, gathers wood to make a fire for cooking, accompanied by his son, Ali Sina, 5, in a camp organized by Afghan nomads, known as Kuchis, in Bamiyan province, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A general view of Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A bird is kept in a cage waiting to be used in a fight, next to a grave at the Kart-e Sakhy cemetery in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A woman in a burqa walks home carrying bread for her family and neighbors in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, June 18, 2023 (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Traffic officers work in the middle of a street in Kandahar City, Afghanistan, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A Taliban flag waves from a U.S. military vehicle which had been used during the years of military intervention, on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Street photographer Lutfullah Habibzadeh, 72, poses for a portrait at his house on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban fighters gather before lunch inside an adobe house used to rest near their makeshift checkpoint in Wardak province, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A mannequin with a covered face stands outside a store in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, June 5, 2023. The heads of mannequins are wrapped in adherence to the renewed ban on the depictions of faces by the Taliban. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children cool off in an irrigation canal in the Arghandab River valley in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Villagers ride a motorcycle near the remnants of the giant Buddha statue destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Nikbakht, 70, works in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Nikbakht’s husband and three sons have died of illness. She has other five daughters who are married. She lives with one of her daughters. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Zermine, 32, poses for a portrait while taking a break from her job in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Zermine has three children. Her husband was killed in a suicide attack by the Taliban five years ago. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Hakimeh, 55, is embraced by her daughter, Freshta, 16, while posing for a portrait in a carpet factory where they have been working for a year, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Before this, Hakimeh worked in the homes of the wealthy. Freshta had studied until eighth grade when schools closed and helps to earn money and support her family. Her husband is a laborer who works with a cart in the city. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Women wait in a line to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. Nearly half of Afghanistan’s 40 million people face acute food insecurity, the U.N.’s World Food Program says. Malnutrition is above emergency thresholds in 25 of 34 provinces. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children play on swings near the Kart-e Sakhy cemetery in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Students of a religious school pose for a portrait after praying inside the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, during Friday prayers in Herat, Afghanistan, June 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Kabir Jan, 27, prays next to Qargha Lake on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, June 9, 2023. Kabir, who rents out his horse, Tajdar, to tourists at the lake, earns the equivalent of U.S. $140 a month. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children pose for a portrait holding the Quran inside a school in the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, in Herat, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Worshippers pray inside the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, in Herat, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban commander Mazlumyar, 32, center, poses for a portrait with security guards who work for the Migration department, after the distribution of food rations for women by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mujeeburahman Faqer, a 26-year-old Taliban fighter, sits for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. Like many others, he’s struggling to adapt to a peacetime mentality, because all he’s ever known was war. “I had prepared my head for sacrifice,” he says, “and I am still ready.” (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban fighters pose for a portrait at a makeshift checkpoint in Wardak province, Afghanistan, Monday, June 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Addicts take doses of heroin under a bridge in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children, working in a brick factory with their parents, pause for a portrait on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Khayesta Gul, 57, stands for a portrait with his children, from left, Osna, 5; Yesna, 8; Ali, 3, and Gulalai, 7, while taking a break from working in a brick factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Khayesta, a seasonal brick worker, comes in the summer with thousands of other villagers to work in the brick factories and then goes back to Nangarhar where he lives the rest of the year. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Marwan, 7, scoops out a chunk of mud with his hands, kneading it until it’s pliable enough to put into a mold, in a brick factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children gather outside their house near the remnants of the giant Buddha statue destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Actor Nabi Attai, 74, poses for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. Nabi has appeared in more than 76 films and 12 series. When the Taliban banned movies, Attai had nothing to fall back on. In his 70s, the actor appeared in a dozen television series and 76 films, including the Golden Globe-winning 2003 movie “Osama.” Now he is destitute. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Empty seats are seen in the Ariana Cinema in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Tuesday, June 21, 2023. Hundreds of people used to come to this theater every day to watch movies, but the Taliban government has banned movies. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Destroyed Humvess used by the U.S. Army during the war against the Taliban in Afghanistan are stacked to be sold as scrap metal in Kandahar City, Afghanistan, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A man walks in front of the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A road marked by an explosion during the conflict between the Taliban and the former Afghan Army is seen in Wardak province, Afghanistan, Thursday June 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Imperial Continental wedding hall in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May 31, 2023. With a ban on music and dancing, gone are the live musicians and even the DJs who would bring in extra revenue. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mohammad Wesal Quaoni, 30, manager of Imperial Continental wedding hall, poses for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May 31, 2023. The former Kabul University lecturer in economics and politics is trying to ensure the business thrives amid the country’s economic woes. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Businessman Abdul Khaliq Goddadi, 39, poses for a portrait at Rayan Saffron Company in Herat, Afghanistan, Saturday June 3, 2023. Twenty five women work at the company which exports saffron to different countries. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Women working for the Rayan Saffron Company have lunch together in Herat, Afghanistan, Saturday June 3, 2023. Twenty five women work in the company that exports saffron to different countries. The Taliban takeover and ensuing sanctions left many foreign clients reluctant to do business with an Afghan company – even though it’s one of the few still allowed to employ women, whose hands are deemed more suitable than men’s to extracting and handling the delicate crocus flowers. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mohammad Shafiq Azizi, 29, manager of the Imperial Continental wedding hall, poses for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, May 31, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Shahram, 18, poses for a portrait while taking a break from working in a wheat field on the outskirts of Herat, Afghanistan, Saturday, June 3, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Marghuba Timuri, 22, poses for a portrait in Herat, Afghanistan, Saturday June 3, 2023. Marghuba, who is not married, is a web designer at the Rayan Saffron Company where 25 women work exporting saffron to different countries. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Traffic officer Muhammad Yaseen Niazi, 27, poses for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. His monthly salary is 12,000 afghanis, around 142 U.S. dollars, and says it is not enough for him and his family. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mirwais, 11, poses for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. He collects plastic and bottles and sells them in the capital, earning 100 afghanis, around 1.14 U.S. dollars, a day, and he can’t go to school because his family cannot afford it. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Khatira, 7, poses for a portrait outside her home near the remnants of the giant Buddha statue destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Men ride horses next to Qargha Lake on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, June 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Pigeons fly over the Shah-Do Shamshira Mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
An Afghan nomad, known as a Kuchi, leads his donkeys in Bamiyan province, Afghanistan, Saturday, June 17, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
In the years after the 2001 U.S. invasion and the ouster of the Taliban regime, Associated Press photographer Rodrigo Abd spent months on assignment in Afghanistan and learned how to use a traditional Afghan “box camera,” a handmade camera and darkroom in one. Abd returned this year with an idea: to employ the nearly disappeared Afghan art form to document how life has changed in peacetime, for better and worse, two years after U.S. troops left and the Taliban returned to power. (Sept. 22) (AP video: Bram Janssen)
The Moradi family sits for a portrait on a small boat in Band-i-Mir lake, one of the tourist attractions in the Bamiyan Valley region in Afghanistan, Saturday, June 17, 2023. The family traveled a long way from Helmand to spend a few days for their summer vacation. During their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban banned photography of humans and animals as contrary to the teachings of Islam. On Aug. 26, 2023 they banned all women from entering all national parks including Band-i-Mir, in a move that has triggered widespread condemnation.(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
The Moradi family sits for a portrait on a small boat in Band-i-Mir lake, one of the tourist attractions in the Bamiyan Valley region in Afghanistan, Saturday, June 17, 2023. The family traveled a long way from Helmand to spend a few days for their summer vacation. During their first stint in power from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban banned photography of humans and animals as contrary to the teachings of Islam. On Aug. 26, 2023 they banned all women from entering all national parks including Band-i-Mir, in a move that has triggered widespread condemnation.(AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Habibollah, 27, gathers wood to make a fire for cooking, accompanied by his son, Ali Sina, 5, in a camp organized by Afghan nomads, known as Kuchis, in Bamiyan province, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Habibollah, 27, gathers wood to make a fire for cooking, accompanied by his son, Ali Sina, 5, in a camp organized by Afghan nomads, known as Kuchis, in Bamiyan province, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A bird is kept in a cage waiting to be used in a fight, next to a grave at the Kart-e Sakhy cemetery in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A woman in a burqa walks home carrying bread for her family and neighbors in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, June 18, 2023 (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Traffic officers work in the middle of a street in Kandahar City, Afghanistan, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A Taliban flag waves from a U.S. military vehicle which had been used during the years of military intervention, on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Street photographer Lutfullah Habibzadeh, 72, poses for a portrait at his house on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban fighters gather before lunch inside an adobe house used to rest near their makeshift checkpoint in Wardak province, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 22, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A mannequin with a covered face stands outside a store in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, June 5, 2023. The heads of mannequins are wrapped in adherence to the renewed ban on the depictions of faces by the Taliban. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
A mannequin with a covered face stands outside a store in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, June 5, 2023. The heads of mannequins are wrapped in adherence to the renewed ban on the depictions of faces by the Taliban. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children cool off in an irrigation canal in the Arghandab River valley in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, Monday, June 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Villagers ride a motorcycle near the remnants of the giant Buddha statue destroyed by the Taliban in 2001, in Bamiyan, Afghanistan, Sunday, June 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Nikbakht, 70, works in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Nikbakht’s husband and three sons have died of illness. She has other five daughters who are married. She lives with one of her daughters. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Nikbakht, 70, works in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Nikbakht’s husband and three sons have died of illness. She has other five daughters who are married. She lives with one of her daughters. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Zermine, 32, poses for a portrait while taking a break from her job in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Zermine has three children. Her husband was killed in a suicide attack by the Taliban five years ago. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Zermine, 32, poses for a portrait while taking a break from her job in a carpet factory in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Zermine has three children. Her husband was killed in a suicide attack by the Taliban five years ago. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Hakimeh, 55, is embraced by her daughter, Freshta, 16, while posing for a portrait in a carpet factory where they have been working for a year, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Before this, Hakimeh worked in the homes of the wealthy. Freshta had studied until eighth grade when schools closed and helps to earn money and support her family. Her husband is a laborer who works with a cart in the city. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Hakimeh, 55, is embraced by her daughter, Freshta, 16, while posing for a portrait in a carpet factory where they have been working for a year, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, May 29, 2023. Before this, Hakimeh worked in the homes of the wealthy. Freshta had studied until eighth grade when schools closed and helps to earn money and support her family. Her husband is a laborer who works with a cart in the city. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Women wait in a line to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. Nearly half of Afghanistan’s 40 million people face acute food insecurity, the U.N.’s World Food Program says. Malnutrition is above emergency thresholds in 25 of 34 provinces. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Women wait in a line to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. Nearly half of Afghanistan’s 40 million people face acute food insecurity, the U.N.’s World Food Program says. Malnutrition is above emergency thresholds in 25 of 34 provinces. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children play on swings near the Kart-e Sakhy cemetery in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 8, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Students of a religious school pose for a portrait after praying inside the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, during Friday prayers in Herat, Afghanistan, June 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Kabir Jan, 27, prays next to Qargha Lake on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, June 9, 2023. Kabir, who rents out his horse, Tajdar, to tourists at the lake, earns the equivalent of U.S. $140 a month. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Kabir Jan, 27, prays next to Qargha Lake on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, June 9, 2023. Kabir, who rents out his horse, Tajdar, to tourists at the lake, earns the equivalent of U.S. $140 a month. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children pose for a portrait holding the Quran inside a school in the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, in Herat, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Worshippers pray inside the Jama Masjid mosque, also known as Great Mosque, in Herat, Afghanistan, Thursday, June 1, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban commander Mazlumyar, 32, center, poses for a portrait with security guards who work for the Migration department, after the distribution of food rations for women by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban commander Mazlumyar, 32, center, poses for a portrait with security guards who work for the Migration department, after the distribution of food rations for women by a humanitarian aid group, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, May 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mujeeburahman Faqer, a 26-year-old Taliban fighter, sits for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. Like many others, he’s struggling to adapt to a peacetime mentality, because all he’s ever known was war. “I had prepared my head for sacrifice,” he says, “and I am still ready.” (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Mujeeburahman Faqer, a 26-year-old Taliban fighter, sits for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, Wednesday, June 7, 2023. Like many others, he’s struggling to adapt to a peacetime mentality, because all he’s ever known was war. “I had prepared my head for sacrifice,” he says, “and I am still ready.” (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Taliban fighters pose for a portrait at a makeshift checkpoint in Wardak province, Afghanistan, Monday, June 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Addicts take doses of heroin under a bridge in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, June 20, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Children, working in a brick factory with their parents, pause for a portrait on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Khayesta Gul, 57, stands for a portrait with his children, from left, Osna, 5; Yesna, 8; Ali, 3, and Gulalai, 7, while taking a break from working in a brick factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Khayesta, a seasonal brick worker, comes in the summer with thousands of other villagers to work in the brick factories and then goes back to Nangarhar where he lives the rest of the year. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Khayesta Gul, 57, stands for a portrait with his children, from left, Osna, 5; Yesna, 8; Ali, 3, and Gulalai, 7, while taking a break from working in a brick factory on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, May 30, 2023. Khayesta, a seasonal brick worker, comes in the summer with thousands of other villagers to work in the brick factories and then goes back to Nangarhar where he lives the rest of the year. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)