An Update from Afghanistan
From Open Doors partner Sam Arshad (pseudonym used)
For the past 20 years, progress was made in Afghanistan in terms of freedom and opportunities for women and children. There were initiatives to safeguard minors, education and employment for women, better health facilities – but all that was reversed when the Taliban took over.
The Taliban re-implemented their hardcore extreme Islamic rule. Women are once again denied education. All the girls’ schools remain shut to this day. There are no more co-ed schools, as only boys can go to school. There is now an on-going recruitment war for young boys to be recruited into the two best known extremist groups in Afghanistan – the Taliban, and ISIS.
Women are afraid to go out of their house for fear of kidnapping, rape and forced marriages to Muslim men. If the Taliban wants to hurt a family or clan, they will the take the womenfolk away.
Single women are most vulnerable. They are afraid to go out of their house, even to go to work or shop for groceries, as strict Islamic rule does not permit women to go out on their own.
Recently, our contact told us that the Taliban are broadcasting messages in loudspeakers, driving around in vehicles, telling everyone to follow their proper Islamic teachings. Failure to do so will result in punishment.
Towns are also in lockdown. The Taliban are shutting down communities from time to time to see people who are hostile to their cause. They lock down motorways and initiate blackouts. Supply chains have also broken down. Our contact informed us that the cost of living has soared by 400%.
Many people have lost their jobs and are unable to pay taxes. This means that when they need to access medical treatment, it would be too expensive for them to afford it.
And for those who left the country, living as refugees in neighbouring countries, our contacts informed us that they are in desperate need for food, clean water, shelter, heaters, and medical aid.
The situation for Christians
According to our contact, certain lists have gone around about who believers could be. Those lists became available to the TB somehow, and these people are now being hunted down for apostasy, which carries a death penalty under TB’s Shariah Law. As a result, these believers are now forced to go into hiding.
In the field, it is no less frightening now that it was last August. I would like to go back to Saad’s* words, a secret Christian in Afghanistan. He shared that a list has already circulated with names of Christians on it. “For us, everything has been taken away… We need you to ask God on our behalf. We need to know you are strong. Everyone seems to have forgotten God. This is very frightening. We feel disoriented. We feel alone. We cannot speak of our God, but you can. So, speak to Him and find Him empower you and us to fight this era of destructiveness and bring His kingdom by being like Him.”
In another story from the field, a frontline partner shared that an organization in the country was able to stop a girl from committing suicide. Women are experiencing high level of stress because of the fear that they will be forced to marry extremists – and that there has been a recent video circulating of a 5-year old girl married to a 55-year old man.
Believers in Afghanistan must live their life very cautiously. They are no longer able to go out freely to meet up with fellow believers. Before, in the public sphere, believers could see each other – they may not be able to pray in public spaces, but they could meet up, they could go elsewhere. They are no longer able to do that, and pastors are finding it difficult to physically meet up with them to encourage them.
They also have great difficulty in accessing medical care. Medical care is covered under the religious tax, and if a person is known to have turn away from Islam, they not only could be killed or imprisoned, they also no longer have the right to access medical care. They must pay for it fully, which can be exorbitant, beyond their means.
Another frontline partner also shared that lack of food is hitting the whole country, it is turning into a humanitarian crisis. Fathers selling daughters for marriage is becoming a trend. Many offices of NGOs have been occupied by the TB indefinitely. A frontline partner shared that they were very shocked that all the NGOs in the country are now operating at either skeletal or no staff at all. They are very limited by what they can do and have to restart their operations with the new government.
Worldwide Consequences
The Taliban’s return fuels fears that the bubble of extremist activity in South Asia and Southeast Asia could burst.
The chairman of Indonesia’s largest Islamic organization expressed worries in this UCAN report that the Taliban victory could “spark a new wave of radicalism in Indonesia and inspire jihadists to continue, if not increase, terrorist activities.”
In Bangladesh, “Pro-Islam groups in the country have not only openly declared support for the Taliban government, but have packed their bags for Afghanistan to personally join their ranks” Contacts report that right after the Taliban takeover, Christians from Muslim backgrounds in the north and southwest parts of the Bangladesh have consequently received more personal threats to their safety.”
Open Doors' work
Our organization is providing support to partners seeking to make impact in the field. These partners are providing basic needs for over thousands of refugees, with food, blankets, antiseptics, medicines, winter coats, shoes, socks, diapers, and other needs. We will continue to support them. We are also supporting the digging of 3 wells to provide clean water for the refugees, as well as the locals in surrounding areas. We are also providing counselling support to those who experience trauma.
We continue to ask the global church to pray for the believers in AFG. Speak out, advocate to governments for religious freedom, bring awareness of the plight of Afghans to newspapers, social media, or your immediate circles. Please keep in mind that any economic embargo affects people more than the government.
Ministry to Refugees
Last December, OD’s frontline partners visited Afghan refugees in Central Asia for presence ministry, and to deliver Christmas gifts. There is a house church and several Christian home groups in one of the villages there where our partners helped believers with the food, some firewood, and coal for heating for the winter period.
There is a refugee camp in that area, but locals cannot enter the camp even for humanitarian help. There are also illegal refugees – they are not in the refugee camp but hiding from authorities.
Praise God that a local pastor and some house church members found and support some of illegal Afghan refugees and shared the Gospel with them. The refugees were so glad to find somebody who cared for them, as they are stressed and suffering with everything they had to experience for the last months. As Christians support them, they are open for the Gospel.
Local people can feel the impact of the events of the end of last year when Kabul fell. Muslim people with radical views became more active. One church member, Habib*, shares: “The Muslim traditions are very strong in our area and the number of convinced Muslims with radical views is big here. It is very dangerous to be a known converted Christian, so we should be very careful in our everyday life and ministry. There is no official church – this looks like it’s hardly possible for us. We only have a house church and small home groups of secret believers – this is the only possible kind of church here.”
This looks like the impact of being near Islamic Afghanistan. Local Christian believers and the rest of population are concerned if the forces who dream to bring Taliban regime to Central Asia would bring Taliban ideas. Besides, this can cause the growth of the pressure and hatred to the church and to converts.
Another big issue is that people there live in poverty – there is not enough food and clean water. Locals use the dirty water from the shallow river there. That is why many have health issues.
There are not many chances to earn for living so the life conditions are so poor – the houses are old, and not fit to stay in, there is meager food, a lack of clothes, a lack of heating materials, a lack of good medicine.
The hard economic situation in the whole country caused by the pandemic and several waves of lockdowns brought to that many people have financial problems, especially in remote areas, and its surrounding are also such place.
Late December 2021 our partners distributed Christian materials – Bibles, Christian books, DVDs with Christian films and cartoons to Afghan refugees. Also, for the first time, they organized Christian events for children and distributed Christmas presents in that area. People are so grateful for these events which let them feel the love of Jesus.
A local Muslim woman told our frontline partner: “Nobody cared for us, nobody came to visit and asked how we are doing here – our children never got presents for the New Year or Christmas or other celebrations, as we have no money for presents, but you brought a lot of joy to our children. For the first time we can feel care and love to us and our children. Thank you, a lot, for this. Now we can see that Christians are loving and sincere.”
Praise God that through small deeds, the love of Jesus can be seen and felt by Muslim and Christian locals.
Local believers have expressed their gratitude: “Thank you for your time with us, for your coming in spite of the long distance from your place and in spite of the poor conditions in which you have to stay here. Thank you for the gifts for our children, for the food, for the firewood and the coal you brought. Another gratitude for Christian books and Bibles. The need for Christian materials is huge, we can’t buy such books here, so this is so in time.”
“This is a good help for our everyday needs, and it gives us the feeling of unity with other Christians. We feel that brothers and sisters from other places, countries love, care and support us. We are like a big family.”
Prayer
1. The country has been rocked by tragic incidences lately. According to news reports, seven (7) people were killed and nine (9) injured in a terrorist attack on a minibus in Herat on 22 January. And earlier, two earthquakes struck in the district of Qadis on 17 January, killing 26 people. Pray for God’s comfort on the victims of these tragedy, especially those who lost loved ones. May they find salvation and hope in Jesus through their pain.
2. Many Afghans have not heard, not even once, the message of salvation in Jesus. They believe, in order to go to heaven, they must obey every laws of Islam, no matter how archaic it is. And even if one were to follow it strictly, there is no guarantee of a place in heaven. So, pray that they will discover another way, which is the one and only way to Father God, through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
3. The recent Taliban takeover of the country has created chaos and untold suffering on the people, especially on women, with their own brand of extreme Islam. In desperation, many families, some with young children and old people, left the country, hoping for a better life elsewhere. But as refugees, what they encounter is more hardship and suffering, great lack of food, water, and medicines. Pray for God to strengthen our frontline partners and move the hearts of other charitable organisations and governments bringing desperately needed help in this new humanitarian crisis.
4. Pray for those living in fear under the rule of the Taliban – women, believers, those who worked for the former US-backed government. Pray for their protection, safety – for themselves and their loved one. Pray also for a miracle to turn their fear into boldness, resulting in actions that can change the situation in the country.
5. Pray for the Taliban, who are as cruel as the city of Nineveh during the time of Jonah. As God showed mercy when they repented, pray for the Taliban that they will also repent of their cruelty and indiscriminate killings and torture. Pray for God to remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh to love people, all people!
