LGBTQ Afghans Living In Fear Beneath Taliban Rule

“I truly don’t think I’m going to make it out of here alive.”

33 year old Maali has been hiding in her small flat just North of Kabul for weeks. “I’m scared to go out now.” She explains. “If someone knows me or suspects me, I risk being arrested or killed.”

Her Cousin is the only person she communicates with. He delivers food to her every week. The rest of her family rejected her over ten years ago and she hasn’t heard from them since experiencing a violent clash with her brothers after coming out. This amplifies her fear of being discovered as she claims some former family members have likely joined the Taliban forces. “My brothers hate me. When I revealed I was transgender, they beat me; they broke a glass bottle a threatened to cut my throat.” When I ask how she knows she can trust her cousin, she assures me he is a safe resource. “He is a gay man, but no one knows this.”

Her Cousin, who arranged for me to meet with Maali, tells me that he was detained by the Taliban in the late 90’s. “I was with Taliban from a young boy,” he explains. “There was too much violence and death.”

“Did you lose loved ones?” I asked him.

“Yes. Many.” He replied. “I was not a good fighter. I could not cooperate any longer when my mind started to break. I wanted to leave or run…