Voice of America
26 Nov 2021, 00:06 GMT+10
ROME - Italy has given safe haven to Sharbat Gula, the green-eyed 'Afghan Girl' whose 1985 photo in National Geographic became a symbol of her country's wars, Prime Minister Mario Draghi's office said Thursday.
The government intervened after Gula asked for help to leave Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover of the country in August, a statement said, adding that her arrival was part of a broader program to evacuate and integrate Afghan citizens.
U.S. photographer Steve McCurry took the picture of Gula when she was a youngster, living in a refugee camp on the Pakistan-Afghan border.
Her startling green eyes, peering out from a headscarf with a mixture of ferocity and pain, made her known internationally, but her identity was only discovered in 2002 when McCurry returned to the region and tracked her down.
An FBI analyst, forensic sculptor and the inventor of iris recognition all verified her identity, National Geographic said at the time.
In 2016, Pakistan arrested Gula for forging a national identity card in an effort to live in the country.
The then Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, welcomed her back and promised to give her an apartment to ensure she 'lives with dignity and security in her homeland.'
Since seizing power, Taliban leaders have said they would respect women's rights in accordance with Sharia, or Islamic law. But under Taliban rule from 1996 to 2001, women could not work, and girls were banned from school. Women had to cover their faces and be accompanied by a male relative when they left home.
Get a daily dose of Greek Herald news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Greek Herald.
More InformationLONDON, U.K.: British oil giant Shell has denied reports that it is in talks to acquire rival oil company BP. The Wall Street Journal...
LONDON, U.K.: A little-known investment fund based in the United Arab Emirates has emerged as the most prominent public backer of U.S....
New Delhi [India], July 2 (ANI): The Indian rupee is expected to trade in the range of 85.25-86.25 against the US dollar in the near...
New Delhi [India], July 2 (ANI): The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Kesavan Ramachandran as Executive Director of RBI with...
The inflation is driven by the price of services, which recorded a yearly inflation rate of 3.3 percent in June, up from 3.2 percent...
DUBAI, 1st July 2025 (WAM) -- Emirates will be layering on more retrofitted Boeing 777s and Airbus A380s on its existing schedules...
SAN FRANCISCO, California: Under pressure from European regulators, Apple has revamped its App Store policies in the EU, introducing...
The US president has urged the Palestinian group to accept his Gaza ceasefire proposal US President Donald Trump has publicly warned...
US President Donald Trump urged Iran-backed Hamas militants to agree to what he called a final proposal for a 60-day cease-fire with...
(250702) -- ANKARA, July 2, 2025 (Xinhua) -- Syrians shop at a local market in the Onder neighborhood of Ankara, Trkiye, on July 1,...
Washington DC [US], July 2 (ANI): United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday (local time) said that Israel has agreed to the necessary...
U.S. Senate passes Trump's landmark mega-bill The GOP-led Senate on Tuesday passed U.S. President Donald Trump's One Big Beautiful...