Afghanistan Women

Over the centuries, army wives have followed their men to the front, helped keep order in far-flung parts of the empire or waited anxiously at home. Army Wives uses firsthand accounts, letters and diaries to tell their stories. We meet imperial army wives in Crimea and the Raj, explore the experiences of 20th-century wives in two world wars and a Cold War and hear from modern women supporting their men in the war on terror. From how army wives communicate with their husbands to the impact of life-changing injury and bereavement, Army Wives examines what it really means to be part of the 'army family'.

In 2010, for the first time since the Soviets, Afghanistan allowed women to join the armed forces, and Niloofar entered Afghanistan’s military academy. Niloofar had to break through social barriers to demonstrate confidence, leadership, and decisiveness - essential qualities for a combat pilot. Niloofar performed the first solo flight of her class - ahead of all her male classmates - and in 2013 became Afghanistan’s first female fixed-wing air force pilot.

Born in Britain, Saira Shah was inspired by her father's dazzling stories to rediscover the now lost life their forebears knew for 900 years within sight of orchards, snow-topped mountains, and the minarets of Kabul. This is Saira, part sophisticated and sensitive Western liberal, part fearless (even fierce) life-gulping Afghan, falling in love with her ancestral myth, chasing Afghanistan.

Not even old enough to drink, Corporal Savannah Cannon is a young enlisted United States Marine deployed to support Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan in 2010. As a tactical data networking specialist, she is sent away from everyone she knows and attached to a Regimental Combat Team where women are not allowed to repair communications. Her experiences over the next few months shed light on the unique and difficult positions women are placed in when supporting combat roles, while offering a raw look at the painful choices women must sometimes make.

Set internationally and spanning two decades, Annisa is an intricate portrait of a young Afghan girl's struggle to survive after the Soviet invasion in 1979. Her harrowing escape to America, and her fatal decision to return to her people in Afghanistan, evokes insight into a society torn apart by terrorism, drug smuggling, and bitter conflicts over the role of its women.

Shirin Gol erzählt ihre Geschichte, die die Geschichte Tausender afghanischer Frauen ist. Sie spricht vom Leben im höllischen Paradies Afghanistan. Shirin-Gol wird als neuntes Kind in einem abgelegenen Bergdorf geboren. Jahrhunderte alte Traditionen bestimmen ihren Weg, der geprägt sein wird von Armut, Korangläubigkeit, Unwissenheit und der Enge des islamischen Frauenbildes...

Zarifa Ghafari ist die weibliche Stimme Afghanistans. Mit 24 Jahren zur jüngsten Bürgermeisterin des Landes ernannt, versuchen Taliban, sie gewaltsam von der Ausübung ihres Amtes abzuhalten. Trotz der Anschläge setzt sie sich unermüdlich gegen Korruption, für Frieden und Frauenrechte ein. Als Vergeltung wird ihr Vater ermordet. Nach dem Einmarsch der Taliban 2021 muss Ghafari fliehen. Doch ihr Kampf geht weiter. Eindringlich schreibt sie über ihr Leben und ihr Engagement.

Amelia Gittens, a Black female, has the distinct honor of being the first female to be admitted to the US Army's elite group of snipers, fighting in Afghanistan. It doesn't come without its price, though. She comes back as so many veterans do - with post-traumatic stress syndrome, complete with major flashbacks.