Taliban Erases Signs Of Ex-government From Kabul Streets

In the six months since taking back control of Afghanistan, the Taliban have erased all visible signs of the former government from the capital.

A Taliban fighter (top) standing next to a poster bearing the image of late Afghan commander Ahmad Shah Massoud in Kabul on August 16, 2021; and (bottom) the same view with the poster removed on January 23, 2022 Photo: via AFP / Wakil KOHSAR

Gone are flags of the former republic, murals of national heroes, and memorials honouring those killed in Taliban attacks.

Blast walls are now covered with slogans of the new Islamic Emirate. “With the help of God, our nation defeated the Americans,” reads one.

A worker (top) watering a lawn near an Afghan national flag flying at half-mast in Kabul on May 11, 2021; and (bottom) the same view with an empty flag pole on January 20, 2022, following the Taliban’s takeover Photo: AFP / Mohd RASFAN

The owners of many beauty salons in central Kabul have removed posters of women in full make-up and fashionable hair styles once displayed on their doors.

The facade of a beauty salon (top) with images of women defaced using spray paint in Kabul on August 18, 2021; and (bottom) the same view with the images removed on January 22, 2022 Photo: AFP / Mohd RASFAN

Iconography of the slain anti-Taliban commander Ahmad Shah Massoud in his trademark Pakol cap that adorned almost every neighbourhood of the city has been covered up.

Fewer women and girls are seen moving between markets and cafes, many too afraid to leave the house after the takeover, or with no money to spend after losing their jobs.

Vehicles all but vanish after dark, as extra Taliban checkpoints spring up.

And on a hilltop overlooking Kabul, the black, green and red flag of the former regime has been taken down.

The flagpole now stands bare in the middle of a snowy garden.