AFGHAN women living in Oxford have spoken of the horrific trauma they and their families back in Afghanistan have faced since Islamist Taliban extremists regained control of the country.

The women, who we are calling Mya, Aisha and Leila as they are too afraid to reveal their real identities – have loved ones in Kabul and other provinces in the war-ravaged central Asian country, who are hiding in fear of brutal Taliban fighters.

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Their relatives, including sisters, in-laws and fathers, are considered ‘high-risk’ because they worked in jobs of which the hardline Taliban does not approve.

Mya said: “All my husband’s family – all his brothers and sisters – are living through this nightmare at this moment. His family are all in very high professional jobs for the government.

“They are very well known and are also known to the Taliban as well. His brother and brother-in-law are in hiding and they have to keep moving from place to place.

“Last month, the stress of what’s going on affected my husband so much that he ended up having a severe heart attack. It was so severe that he’s now ended up with a blood clot on his heart.

“The left side of his heart is damaged. He now, as a 40-year-old man, is so weak like a very old man, and it’s affected our lives. His family back home are all scared for themselves and there’s no one there to help them.”

Mya’s husband’s heart attack was triggered after he saw a video of an Afghan soldier being killed by the Taliban.

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She added: “The soldier had fought the Taliban, so they went and hunted him down. They dragged him out of his house, blindfolded him and shot him dead.

“That night my husband had his heart attack because we then worried about his brother-in-law who also works for the army.”

Aisha is upset that the West has pulled out of the war and says the international community needs to do more to help.

She said: “We are all disappointed. People will die from hunger; people will destroy everything they have achieved in the last 20 years. But there’s no human rights group or international community listening to this.

“It’s hard. People try to survive; people are trying to escape but they can’t. Everywhere is shutdown. My family can’t do anything; there’s no embassy, there’s no airport. What do you think they can do? Nothing."

After asking what would make Aisha happy, she said: “The end of the Taliban. Just stop killing innocent people.

“Stop the Taliban!"

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"Now the Government is saying we’ll give the Taliban a chance, but how can they run the government as uneducated people?”

Last weekend the last evacuation flights carrying Afghan citizens, British military personnel and diplomatic staff, touched down at RAF Brize Norton from Kabul. However, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said this week that evacuations may be able to resume from Kabul airport 'in the near future' and stressed the need for direct engagement with the Taliban.

Mr Raab said the UK will not recognise the Taliban in the 'foreseeable future', but said there was an 'important scope for engagement and dialogue'.

But Mya said the Taliban could not be trusted and would not follow through with any agreements made with the UK.

She said: “I strongly believe the Taliban is saying one thing but actually doing another. The media shows us what they want to show us, but is not showing the lives these Afghans have to deal with every single day.

Pictured: First flight carrying Afghan evacuees in Brize Norton

“They are unable to go back to work. They are saying the women can go back but none of the women in our family feel it is safe to go back.

“These Taliban are uneducated; I wouldn’t even call them human. They’ve gone there, invaded Afghanistan and they’re telling us what they want us to hear.”

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