Agony in Afghanistan: Manyfeel abandoned nearly a year

KABUL (Agencies): Afghans are facing a continued crisis. While tens of thousands of refugees have resettled in the US, many more are living under the Taliban rule. One Tucson City Council member worries the plight of Afghan civilians has been ‘forgotten,’ as other world conflicts take center stage.
“I don’t think there is anyone in this country right now who doesn’t have huge sympathy for the Ukrainian people and the devastation that we are watching happen in their country,” said Steve Kozachik. “The problem is that Ukraine has had wall-to-wall news coverage. The reality is people in Afghanistan are suffering by the day, by the hour.” It’s leaving some feeling abandoned nearly a year after the US withdrew its troops. Amin Mandegar was English teacher in Kabul, which is the largest city and the capital of Afghanistan.
Mandegar recently made it to the US, thanks to a private sponsor. Now, he explains what his wife, six siblings and parents are facing each and every day. “They are speaking to the world, ‘Please help us,’ and, ‘This is not our human rights,’” Mandegar said.
Taliban leaders insisted they would be merciful when retaking the country. Mandegar says they’ve been anything but. “Especially [towards] the Hazara people,” said Mandegar. “They sort of have the tendency to be educated, they love education.”
Mandegar is part of the Hazara ethnolinguistic group. He says his people have always been targeted, but it’s only gotten worse under Taliban control. When word of the US withdrawal started circulating, Mandegar says the Amazon English Academy where he worked was bombed. “I was in the third floor, I was teaching [when the building] exploded,” he said. “All of my students started crying, especially the ladies.”
It’s a sight most of us can’t even imagine. Mandegar says more than 300 students were killed and even more were injured. The Taliban has now banned girls from attending school above grade 6. It’s reminiscent of the Taliban’s previous rule when women and girls were barred from education and employment from 1996 to 2001.
Mandegar says his family is constantly on the move, trying to avoid Taliban interrogation or worse. “I do really want the US citizens not to forget the sufferings in Afghanistan,” Mandegar said. Kozachik says about 700 Afghan refugees have made it to Tucson since last summer. Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest is asking people to contact them with leads on rental properties they may be able to use. They are also accepting monetary donations.