Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan
The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan (RAWA) is a women's organization based in Kabul, Afghanistan, that promotes women's rights and secular democracy. It was founded in 1977 by Meena Keshwar Kamal, an Afghan student activist who was assassinated in February 1987 for her political activities. The group, which supports non-violent strategies, had its initial office in Kabul, Afghanistan, but then moved to Pakistan in the early 1980s.
Meena Keshwar Kamal, founder of RAWA
A protest of RAWA in Peshawar, Pakistan on April 28, 1998
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001)
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, also referred to as the First Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, was a totalitarian Islamic state led by the Taliban that ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. At its peak, the Taliban government controlled approximately 90% of the country, while remaining regions in the northeast were held by the Northern Alliance, which maintained broad international recognition as a continuation of the Islamic State of Afghanistan.
A member of the Taliban's religious police beating a woman in Kabul on 26 August 2001. The footage was filmed by RAWA.
Destruction of Buddhas, 21 March 2001