News of the attacks on America spread slowly through the dusty streets of Afghanistan. People sat in mud huts with radios pressed against their ears. They couldn't watch the images of the destruction—the government has outlawed television. Some Afghanis were saddened by what they heard.
"The attack on the U.S. was very bad. It killed innocent people, ordinary citizens," said Zalmai Khan, a housepainter. Sadness is turning into fear and anger as Afghanistan braces itself for a U.S. response.
Since 1996, Afghanistan has been home to Osama bin Laden, the terrorist leader who is suspected of planning the attacks. Bin Laden has managed to live in secret hiding places in the rugged, mountainous country, while running training camps for terrorists. The U.S. wants Afghanistan to turn over bin Laden and close down the camps. Afghanistan's religious leaders refuse to force out their friend and ally. Last Thursday, President Bush warned Afghanistan's leaders that if they do not hand over the terrorists "they will share in their fate."
War is not new to Afghanistan. The country has been torn up by more than 22 years of fighting. Millions of starving orphans and widows beg for food in the streets.
The Taliban, a group of Muslim fighters who took control of Afghanistan in 1997, rules with an iron fist. Girls are not allowed to go to school. Woman cannot work. Everything from playing musical instruments to wearing nail polish has been outlawed. Men can be jailed for not having a long beard.
The World's Fight
To fight terrorism in Afghanistan, the U.S. needs the support of other Muslim countries, especially Pakistan. Afghanistan's southern neighbor had been one of the few nations to accept the Taliban government. Last week, Pakistan's president Pervez Musharraf promised to help the U.S. Pakistan's borders are now closed to millions of Afghani refugees. The people of Afghanistan have no way out as the winds of war sweep through their land once again.