The situation in Afghanistan

Kabul is being renovated – thousands are being forced to demolish their homes

While the US-backed government in Afghanistan was still in power, plans were drawn up to modernize and upgrade Kabul's roads. But most of the projects never came to fruition due to corruption and security risks linked to the Taliban insurgency, reports the AP.

When the Taliban regained power in 2021, the plans were put into action, and since then 450 kilometers of road have been built. At the same time, the expansion has required space and led to extensive demolition of homes. A total of 11,278 properties have been demolished.

“This was our house, and now I'm demolishing it with my own hands,” says a 25-year-old who the AP spoke to during a break from demolishing a brick wall.

Property owners are given about three months' notice and compensation for the demolitions.

– If the state gives us money in compensation, I can, hopefully, start working again and buy or build a new house, says another whose business was demolished.

The dead must give way as the Taliban build roads

Graveyards in the Afghan capital have had to give way as the Taliban government invests in upgrading Kabul's roads. Since they took power in 2021, about 450 kilometers of road have been built, but this has required more space, reports the AP.

More than 11,000 buildings have been demolished. In the Qala-e-Khater neighborhood, parts of cemeteries, where remains from up to 200 years ago were found, have also been removed. Instead, rectangular holes gape empty and the bodies have been moved to another location.

Abdul Wadood Alokozay tells the news agency that his grandfather was one of those relocated. His family has also been forced to demolish their home, which consisted of three buildings, to make way for the new roads.

He says the family was initially saddened by losing their house, and that it was even harder to tear it down themselves after living there for more than two decades.