With the withdrawal of foreign and NATO forces almost complete, the Taliban launched an extensive offensive, seizing territory and inciting fear of military takeover.
Sodaba is particularly worried about whether Islamic fundamentalist groups still adhere to “their strict beliefs, especially their belief in women.”
“This is an interesting channel that allows ordinary Afghans to directly talk to the Taliban and the government in real time,” said Fahim Kohdamani, a political activist and writer based in Kabul, who regularly hosts on the platform Political debate.
“Given that international forces are withdrawing from Afghanistan, people are very worried about what will happen next.”
Since the fall of the Taliban, the social freedoms enjoyed by Afghans in the country’s urban centers have relatively increased, but these gains have been threatened as militants advance to several provincial capitals.
For women, worries are magnified-during the Taliban’s rule in the 1990s, strict Islamic laws were enforced and half of the population was confined at home.
“I saw that they didn’t allow people they viewed as opponents to speak, and even mocked a woman who asked about women’s rights,” Sodaba said.
