Muhammad Zawar

5 days ago | rferl.org | Wasim Sajjad |Muhammad Zawar |Will Tizard

When the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan in 2021, they quickly banned music, declaring it un-Islamic. Musicians faced threats, raids, and the destruction of their instruments. “Our homes were searched for what we had there,” says Faiz Muhammad Sakhki, an Afghan musician now living in Peshawar. “Our instruments were smashed, the instruments that we hid at home.

5 days ago | rferl.org | Wasim Sajjad |Muhammad Zawar |Will Tizard

Afghan musicians were persecuted after the Taliban gained control of their country in 2021 and many fled to Pakistan. Those who remain there have found ways to continue their profession but now that Pakistan has launched a new campaign to deport Afghans, they are worried about their future.