August 15, 2018

AFTER TALIBAN SIEGE OF GHAZNI, AFGHANS TELL OF FEAR AND DEPRIVATION

[Ghazni residents shared their stories of hardship as they fled the city for safer environs. They told of being trapped without food and water, seeing bodies on the streets and having no news of loved ones because phone networks were down.]


By Fatima Faizi and Mujib Mashal

Injured men being treated at a hospital in Ghazni on Sunday. At least 165 Afghan 
police officers and soldiers and 40 civilians were killed in the siege. 
Credit Mohammad Anwar Danishyar/Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan — Some of the earliest aid that arrived in Ghazni, a strategic city under siege by the Taliban for days, included body bags and medical supplies, food and water for thousands of residents, and coffins for 250.

The five-day siege of Ghazni, which eased on Wednesday as Afghan officials declared that they had retaken full control of the city, left 165 Afghan police officers and soldiers and at least 40 civilians dead. Hundreds of Taliban fighters were also killed, the officials said.

Facing acute shortages of water and food, and having endured days without electricity, Ghazni residents remain in dire need of assistance. The United Nations called the civilians’ plight “particularly grim.”

Severe insecurity in Afghanistan has made the delivery of aid dangerous. In the latest example, the Taliban said on Tuesday that they had withdrawn a security guarantee with the International Committee of the Red Cross, which provides crucial assistance near the front lines.

Ghazni residents shared their stories of hardship as they fled the city for safer environs. They told of being trapped without food and water, seeing bodies on the streets and having no news of loved ones because phone networks were down.

Sayed Ahmad, 30, a government employee, and his wife, Frozan, 23, a dental student

“It was 1 a.m. on Friday that the gunfire started in Ghazni. At first, it didn’t feel out of the ordinary — we are used to it in Ghazni. But it got heavy and heavier, and it continued until morning light,” said Mr. Ahmad, who has a 3-year-old daughter and 8-month-old son with Frozan. Like many women in Afghanistan, she goes by one name.

“I stayed inside for most of the day. In evening, I went out and there were 10 or 15 bodies on the street. I have never seen something like it before. The Taliban torched the telecom antennas and the situation got worse.”

Frozan said: “My daughter was screaming, and would not let her father go outside. She kept asking what the Taliban is, and why they kill people. I kept telling her they are humans, too.”

On the second day, when he went out again, Mr. Ahmad said, he found much of the city under Taliban control.

“There wasn’t any police in the city. The Taliban burned down the buildings. I saw the Taliban on the streets and talked to them for more than an hour. They said that they don’t want to target civilians. We talked a lot; I asked them why they were burning buildings and check posts. They said they don’t need fancy buildings — they even hold their courts in the desert. They kept asking me to show them the houses of government officials.”

On Tuesday, as the fate of the city remained uncertain, the couple and their children left for Kabul.

“I didn’t go out of the house at all during the four days of fighting,” Ms. Frozan said. “On the way to Kabul, the Taliban stopped the car. In the vehicles where there were women, they wouldn’t check. But they would question the men.”

Safiullah, 35, a shopkeeper

“When the fighting started the whole city lost power and there wasn’t enough food and water. We didn’t stock food because we didn’t know the Taliban would attack the city.

My daughter is only 2, and the fighting affected her a lot. Since Friday she has been crying, and now she is sick. We had to leave because of her.

I had 20,000 Afghani at home, and 8,000 of that I paid for the car from Ghazni to Kabul. The driver said he wouldn’t put his life in danger for anything less.

As I was searching for a car on the streets, I saw five dead bodies lying around and five wounded people. One of the wounded was a young man who wanted to bring medicine from the hospital. He was shot in the shoulder, but he had a bag full of medicine in his hand. He was lying on the ground and no one paid attention. I couldn’t do anything — I had to find a car and save the family. The bodies smelled.

I tried to find water before we left for Kabul. It was very difficult. I kept searching for open shops. Finally I found one shop that had six small bottles of water. When I asked the price, the shopkeeper said I could only take two bottles, and each bottle was 35 afghani. On normal days, it is 15 afghani.”

Ghulam Ghaws, 45, a laborer in Ghazni city

“The whole city was under the control of the Taliban, and they had many check points. We left everything to just save our lives. We left everything behind. I don’t even remember whether I locked the gate or not. It was difficult to find a car; people were fighting with each other over a car.

The Ghazni River is near my home. The river was full of dead bodies, and they smelled. It was hard to breathe. I saw more than 200 bodies in the river and on the streets.

The city was out of power, food, water and medicine. Hospitals got full with bodies on the first day of fighting and after that there wasn’t any space for new victims. We left because if the Taliban and the Afghan forces don’t kill us, we might die of hunger. Markets, shops, homes were burned down and little has remained. If you go there, you won’t be able to recognize the city.”

A female police officer in Kabul, who is not being identified because of concerns for her safety

“It was Friday that my boyfriend sent me a message and said the situation is critical in Ghazni city. He has been a police officer for nine years and he was out on a patrol when a friend called him to say that he shouldn’t return to the headquarters because the Taliban have attacked. So he went to hide in a hotel.

He called again, at 10 a.m. on Friday and said the situation was bad, but he had made it back on duty. I tried to console him, saying everything would be O.K. He wanted to say something, but the phone didn’t work anymore and I could not hear him.

Then, at 1 p.m., he called me and it was our last conversation. He said that only two check posts were under their control and the rest of the city had fallen to the Taliban. I told him that I love him and he must stay safe — if not for himself, for my sake. After that, I don’t have any information about him. I don’t know if he is alive or dead.

I madly love him. If he is killed, I can’t stay alive anymore. We have been in a relationship for a year, and he wanted to send his family to my parents to ask for my hand. But now I don’t know how he is. I called many people and asked about the situation in Ghazni, but people say different things. I don’t know who to trust. I want him to live, please.”



Fahim Abed contributed reporting.