Taliban portraits
Shirullah Badri has been a Taliban fighter for most of his life. He paid a heavy price in the war, losing three brothers along with other relatives and friends.
During that time, he had one focus: To expel foreign forces, especially the U.S., from Afghanistan.
Overnight on Aug. 15, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan became the Islamic Emirate, ruled by the Taliban. In this new era, Badri has a new mission: To keep the peace.
Badri, who is in his late 20s, was made chief of Kabul’s District 12 police station.
Under the Taliban’s watch, Afghanistan will be different, he says. Under the previous, internationally backed government, robberies and kidnappings were common. “In our government we won’t allow anyone to be involved in corruption,” he said.
In Kabul, the Taliban are ruling over a population eager for an end to crime and corruption. But many also fear the former insurgents will impose the same strict version of Islamic law they did last time in power, in the 1990s. That meant everything from hand amputations for thieves to beatings for those who cut their beards, removal of women from public life and banning of most music and entertainment.
In police districts across Kabul, young fighters emerging fresh from the battlefields are now patrolling the streets of the Afghan capital.
Some wear the uniforms left behind by the U.S.-assisted Afghan forces they deposed.
“As long as we live, we will be the Islamic Emirate,” Badri said.
Taliban fighter Shirullah Badri, police chief of district 12, poses for a portrait at his office in Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Sept. 20, 2021. Badri says he’s been a Taliban for most of his life. He lost his three brothers and many close friends in the war. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Shirullah Badri
Police chief of district 12, Badri says he’s been a Taliban for most of his life. He lost his three brothers and many close friends in the war.
Taliban fighter Hizbullah Fath, 25, poses for a photo at a police station in Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. Fath spent 3 years in jail and has been with the Taliban for 8 years. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Hizbullah Fath, 25
Fath spent 3 years in jail and has been with the Taliban for 8 years.
Taliban fighter Abdul Rahim Nizami, deputy police chief of district 10, poses for a photo in Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Abdul Rahim Nizami
Nizami is a deputy police chief of district 10.
Taliban fighter Osman, 20, poses for a photo at a police station holding his AK-47 rifle and a wearing a new Taliban-flag headband on top of his scarf, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Osman, 20
Osman is holding his AK-47 rifle and a wearing a new Taliban-flag headband on top of his scarf.
Taliban fighter Harris Al-Baghlani, 26, poses for a photo at a police station in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. Al-Baghlani studied religion, politics and is a trained sniper. He has been a Taliban since he was 14 years old. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Harris Al-Baghlani, 26
Al-Baghlani studied religion, politics and is a trained sniper. He has been a Taliban since he was 14 years old.
Taliban fighter Gullam Sabur, 25, poses for a photo at a police station in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Gullam Sabur, 25
Taliban fighter Nazir Ahmed, 22, poses for a photo wearing a new police uniform in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. Ahmed is from Parwan province and has been with Taliban forces for 5 years. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Nazir Ahmed, 22
Ahmed is from Parwan province and has been with Taliban forces for 5 years.
Taliban fighter Mohammad Adel, 43, poses for a photo holding a rocket-propelled grenade, RPG, at a police station in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. Adel is from a village near Kabul and has been a Taliban for more than 20 years. He says he went into hiding after US forces entered Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Mohammad Adel, 43
Adel is from a village near Kabul and has been a Taliban for more than 20 years. He says he went into hiding after US forces entered Afghanistan.
Taliban fighter Briali Badri poses for a photo at a police station in Kabul, Afghanistan, Thursday, Sept. 16, 2021. Badri is wearing the former Afghanistan army uniform he found left behind by soldiers of the previous government after the Taliban took control of Kabul. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
Briali Badri
Badri is wearing the former Afghanistan army uniform he found left behind by soldiers of the previous government after the Taliban took control of Kabul.
Visual artist and Digital Storyteller at The Associated Press
