[NOTE: This is the latest in a series of ongoing conversations I have been having with a friend in Afghanistan about life there since the Taliban seized power. I am withholding his identity out of concern for his safety.]
Dear David:
Long before the Taliban, the situation for girls in Afghanistan villages was too often tragic. About six years ago, something happened in our village that received no press coverage because it is in a remote area.
There was a tall, pretty teenage girl who had brown eyes and blond hair. I will call her Soraya. She was a humorous and good-natured girl, but had a cruel father who beat her when she disobeyed his strict orders.
Boys in the village always talked of her beauty; girls talked about her father’s oppressive nature.
One day Soraya decided to go with a girlfriend to a bazaar which was far away – an hour by car. But her father opposed her to going to such a place, so she made the trip in secret. However, when she got to the bazaar it turned out her father was there also and he saw her.
When they got home, the father beat his daughter unmercifully and threatened that there would be more to come.
At dinner time that night news spread throughout the village that Soraya had poured gasoline on herself and set herself on fire. Neighbors rushed to her side and extinguished the fire, but it was too late to save her. She died a week later.
Soraya’s story, though extreme, shows the type of challenges girls faced in many places even before the Taliban came to power. Now, under the Talibs, it is truly intolerable.
TODAY’s LINKS (6/9/22 — 31 stories from 15 sources)
The pocket of resistance that the Taliban doesn’t want to talk about (WP)
Global Growth Will Be Choked Amid Inflation and War, World Bank Says (NYT)
Ukrainian troops holding out in the ruins of Sievierodonetsk came under renewed heavy assault from Russian forces who see the capture of the industrial city as key to control of the surrounding Luhansk region. (Reuters)
Fear and Destruction Turn Ukraine’s Front-Line Cities Into Ghost Towns (WSJ)
Ukraine’s strategic dilemma in Sievierodonetsk: Stand and fight, or pull back? (NYT)
n southern Ukraine, another major battleground in the war, authorities warned that Russian attacks on agricultural sites including warehouses were compounding a global food crisis that has stirred concerns of famine in some developing countries. (Reuters)
The world is finally reacting to India’s descent into hate (WP)
Police in northern India arrested a youth leader from the Hindu nationalist ruling party for posting anti-Muslim comments on social media after derogatory remarks by another party official about the Prophet Mohammad led to a diplomatic furor. (Reuters)
A U.S. woman pleads guilty to leading an all-female ISIS battalion (NPR)
Capitol attack’s full story: Jan. 6 panel’s chilling details (AP)
Jan. 6 committee Chair Bennie Thompson says the U.S. came close to losing democracy (NPR)
Rick Caruso and Karen Bass head to a runoff in the Los Angeles mayor’s race. (NYT)
Is This the End of the George Floyd Moment? (Atlantic)
America is two nations barely on speaking terms (Financial Times)
A looming Supreme Court decision on abortion, an increase of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border and the midterm elections are potential triggers for extremist violence over the next six months, the Department of Homeland Security said. [AP]
Six Predictions About the End of Roe, Based on Research (Politico)
Yen slides to new 20-year low against dollar (NHK)
US has a "very serious" problem with Covid-19 vaccine uptake (CNN)
FDA advisers recommended the Novavax coronavirus vaccine. A shot made from more traditional — and more time-consuming — technology than the Pfizer or Moderna mRNA vaccines. It may be easier for some to tolerate. (WP)
Climate change: Ukraine war prompts fossil fuel 'gold rush' - report (BBC)
As the Great Salt Lake Dries Up, Utah Faces An ‘Environmental Nuclear Bomb’ — Climate change and rapid population growth are shrinking the lake, creating a bowl of toxic dust that could poison the air around Salt Lake City. (NYT)
Climate-driven flooding poses well water contamination risks (AP)
Swarms of Crab-Like Creatures Found in River 1,600ft Beneath Antarctic Ice (Newsweek)
An “explosion of child deaths” is coming to the Horn of Africa if the world focuses only on Russia's war in Ukraine and doesn’t act now, UNICEF warned. Humanitarian assistance has been sapped by global crises like COVID and now the war. Prices for staples like wheat are rising quickly and millions of the livestock that provide families with wealth have died. [AP]
Brazil police arrest man in connection with journalist’s disappearance (Guardian)
Bones Found in 1974 May Be Linked to Serial Killer, Authorities Say (NYT)
New unusual repeating fast radio burst detected 3 billion light-years away (CNN)
Visa Announces Cards Can Now Be Inserted, Swiped, Tapped, Bent, Clapped, Rolled, Shoved, Thrown, Dangled, Slid, Or Whacked (The Onion)
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