Report News ›› Afghanistan

Story Behind the Story

 

The Story Behind the Story gives an insight into the work that goes into IWPR articles and the challenges faced by our trainees at every stage of the editorial process.

This feature allows our journalists to explain where they get the inspiration for their articles, why the subjects matter to them, and how they personally have felt affected by the often controversial issues they explore.

It also shows the difficulties writers can face as they try to get to the heart of a story.

Tracking Down Shady Passport Trade in Afghanistan
3 Feb 12
Clandestine meetings and confrontational officials make pinning down details of illicit passport sales a difficult job.

Local Reconstruction Effort Goes Awry
18 Oct 11

I was going from the centre of Kapisa province to my own district, Tagab, in a crowded taxi one day.

Grave Abuse Alleged at Kabul Juvenile Centre
23 Jun 11

On the television news one night I saw the story of a 17-year-old boy called Masud who had been killed while in a juvenile detention centre in Kabul.

Afghan Security Personnel Fear US Withdrawal
17 Dec 10

One day a journalist friend of mine told me he would like to discuss a very important decision with me.

Taleban Try Hearts-And-Minds Tactics
8 Oct 10

I was in Kabul when some of my friends from Tagab started calling me to tell me I should go there to get married. Although my family is originally from this district, I have lived mostly in other provinces. But they told me, “God has blessed the youth in Tagab.” I thought they were just teasing me, but what they said was true; God had really blessed the youth in Tagab, because the Taleban had passed laws there banning huge dowries and significantly lowered other wedding costs.

Circumcision Festival's Last Home
23 Jun 10

I got the idea for this story after a colleague of mine mentioned a 2,000-year-old circumcision ritual still practiced in a village in Jawzjan province. The local people call it Bazi-e-Mashal (torch ceremony).

The Drug Courier Children of Herat
13 May 10

I was on my way home at about 4 pm one day when I stopped at a red traffic light at the Shahr-e Naw intersection in the western Afghan city of Herat. Children often wait here and clean car windscreens, hoping for money.

Afghan Reporter Sentenced to Death for Blasphemy
30 Jan 08

It all started with a phone call in mid-October, when one of my brother’s classmates called to tell me that Parwez had been arrested by the National Directorate of Security, NDS.

The Limits of Afghan Press Freedom
16 Nov 07

No reporters have been to Musa Qala since the district centre fell to the Taleban in February. It was a difficult decision for us to go there, but we had made contact with the Taleban spokesman, Qari Yusuf, and he told us it would be okay.