https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11108307/Taliban-pedalos-families-celebrate-year-ruling-Afghanistan.htmlPedaling back to the dark ages: The Taliban celebrate a year of ruling Afghanistan which saw them ban girls from schools by taking to a lake with their families in pedalos
Images of Taliban fighters enjoying time with families on pedalos in Band-e-Amir national park have emerged
Pictures show fights on the boats at the popular tourist destination as a rally began in Afghan's capital, Kabul
The rare rally comes one year on from Taliban takeover which has seen women's rights severely restricted
Protestors dispersed by Taliban soldiers who shot guns into the air, tore at banners and confiscated phones
By Gemma Parry For Mailonline
Published: 12:04, 13 August 2022 | Updated: 13:52, 13 August 2022
A year on from seizing control in Afghanistan, pictures of Taliban fighters riding pedalos with their families in celebration have emerged. The images, taken at one of the lakes in Band-e-Amir national Park, a popular weekend destination in the country, show members of the Taliban enjoying the sunshine as a rally gathered in the capital. Pictures show them gathered on the boats, some holding weapons, smiling and chatting amongst themselves at the lake, which has been described as Afghanistan's Grand Canyon and attracts thousands of tourists a year. Some were seen jumping into the cooling water amid soaring temperatures of 40c and above. A rare rally gathered on Saturday (August 13) just days before the one year anniversary of hardline Islamists' take over, which saw around 40 women march in front of the education ministry building in Kabul. Since seizing control, the Taliban have reversed many of the gains made by women in the two decades of US intervention in the country. They were chanting 'bread, work and freedom' and carrying a banner which read 'August 15 is a black day' before being dispersed by Taliban fighters who shot guns into the air. Some protesters, who were demanding rights to work and political participation, took refuge in nearby shops and were chased and beaten by Taliban fights with their rifle butts, according to reports. Many women were not wearing face veils and chanted, 'Justice, justice. We're fed up with ignorance.'
One of the organisers of the march said Taliban fights tore their banners and confiscated phones as they dispersed the rally. 'Unfortunately, the Taliban from the intelligence service came and fired in the air, Zholia Parsi said. They dispersed the girls, tore our banners and confiscated the mobile phones of many girls.'
According to reports, some journalists covering the protest were also beaten by the Taliban fighters. Many restrictions have been reintroduced in the last year, particularly on women, to comply with the Taliban movement's vision of Islam. Tens of thousands of girls have been shut out of secondary schools, and women have been barred from returning to many government jobs. Women have also been banned from travelling alone on long trips and are only permitted to visit public gardens and parks in the capital on days separate from men. Earlier this year, the country's supreme leader and chief of the Taliban, Hibatullah Akhundzada, ordered that women should fully cover themselves in public, including their faces. The United Nations and rights groups and repeatedly slammed the Taliban government for imposing the restrictions. Richard Bennett, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan told reporters that the policies showed a 'pattern of absolute gender segregation and are aimed at making women invisible in the society' during a visit to Kabul in May. Initially, some Afghan women pushed back against the restrictions in the form of small protests. But the ringleaders were soon rounded up and held incommunicado, while denying they had been detained. The takeover of the country paved the way for a collapse in the economy and the freezing of Afghan and donor funds, which created a humanitarian crisis. In the months since the takeover, most art, culture and pastimes have also been banned.
