The Taliban were so angry with the women's football team that they allegedly set fire to the homes of some players.KA spoke to former team captain Khaleda Popal, who is working to ensure the safety of the players.
Afghanistan Frauen Football Training
Former Afghan women's national football team captain Khaleda Popal said Friday (October 1st) that 32 Afghan women soccer players and their families had fled Afghanistan to Pakistan and sought refuge in a third country for fear of the Taliban.
"The Taliban burned down the houses of some of the players and took away the families of some of them," he told KA.About 135 people, including the coaches of 32 players and their families, have been displaced due to their affiliation with the women's team, he said.
"They are all in Pakistan at the moment and we are trying our best to find a third host country for them," he added.
The urge to be steadfast
She told the women of her country that she needed to be steadfast in this difficult time.She also said that I feel sorry for my people, especially the women of Afghanistan.She want to tell them to stay strong.We are doing our best to help you in any way we can".
Afghan women's team captain Khaleda Popal
Former Afghan women's team captain Khaleda Popal is currently in Denmark.He expressed happiness that some women players had the opportunity to go out of the country and play the game.
"As one of the founders of the first Afghan women's national football team,she said, I gained my independence through football".The foundation of women's football was based on the struggle for the rights of Afghan women.As well as to challenge the culture that was depriving women of their basic human rights.
When the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August, Khaleda Popal warned female soccer players that they should burn their kits as well as delete their social media accounts.
Khalida Popal Khalida Footballer in Afghanistan Escape from Afghanistan
After the US withdrawal from Afghanistan, about 3,000 women and girls who played football were in danger of losing their lives.Between 1996 and 2001, the Taliban banned women's education and playing games during their first term in office.
On September 8, Ahmadullah Wasiq, a spokesman for the Taliban, told an Australian broadcaster:
"Islam and the Islamic Emirate do not allow women to play cricket or play games where they are in public I am".
Afghanistan's national football team and many senior female players have sought refuge in countries such as Australia and Portugal.An international organization, Football for Peace, arranged for the transfer of state-level football players, coaches and their families to neighboring Pakistan in September.
The Pakistan Football Federation welcomed all such football players from Afghanistan with flowers at its headquarters in Lahore.
(Reuters, AFP)
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