Afghan filmmaker Sahraa Karimi’s video of running around Kabul as Taliban forces took control of the city over the weekend has gone viral.
The Taliban is in control of Afghanistan 20 years after being overthrown by American and British forces, with its fighters patrolling the streets of Kabul and the country’s president, Ashraf Ghani, fleeing abroad.
Karimi, an independent film director and scriptwriter, begged for help on social media, saying the militants were coming to “kill us.”
“The Taliban entered Kabul, unfortunately, and we were detained,” she said in an Instagram video. “Pray for us.”
In the video, the filmmaker is seen running around the city, fear visible in her eyes.
Karimi also appealed for help on Twitter. She wrote: “Taliban surrounded Kabul. I went to the bank to get some money, they closed and evacuated. I still cannot believe this happened.”
“Please pray for us, I am calling again,” she added. “Hey ppl of this big world, please do not be silent. They are coming to kill us.”
The militant group seized Kabul after capturing the last remaining major cities from the government and tightening their hold around the capital by systematically cutting off every route out of the rest of the country.
Karimi, who is the director-general of the state-run Afghan Film, also tweeted a message in Arabic saying: “I put all my brain and intellect together why we got here! My understanding of the situation is completely paralysed.”
In another post, she wrote how the “morning is darker than the night.”
“A morning full of despair; morning with a world of pain,” Karimi wrote.
There is now deep apprehension about what the future holds for Afghanistan’s women, children, and minorities, especially those who oppose the harsh theocratic rule of the Talibans. The Taliban has assured that no retribution will be meted out, but there have been executions in areas under its control such as Spin Boldak and Ghazni.
It was reported yesterday that Ghani had flown to Tajikistan along with national security adviser Hamdullah Mohib and other close associates.
In a Facebook post later on Sunday, he confirmed he had flown out of Afghanistan and said he had sought to “avoid bloodshed” with the fate of millions of people at the stake as the Taliban entered Kabul.
The president, who did not disclose his location, said insurgents now faced a historic test. “The Taliban won victory in the judgment of sword and gun and they have responsibility to protect the honour, prosperity and self-respect of our compatriots,” he said.
