Alexander Matheou, Regional Director for Asia Pacific of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent (IFRC). In this interview he unpacks the scale of Afghanistan’s humanitarian emergency. In the past year, over two million people have been forced back from Iran and Pakistan - returning to drought, collapsing livelihoods, and shrinking international aid. Matheou shares first-hand accounts from the borders, the daily struggles of returnees, and why long-term investment, not just short-term relief, is vital for the country’s survival and dignity.

👍🏼 Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On 15 August 2021, the Taliban captured Kabul, reclaiming power after 20 years of war. Despite promises to the contrary, they have imposed severe restrictions on the rights of women and girls, ethnic minorities, free speech, and all civil liberties.

Marking the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power, Fereshta Abbasi, Afghanistan researcher at Human Rights Watch, shares her reflections and thoughts on the future.

👍🏼 Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Heidi Meyer is a former NATO, Pentagon, and US State Department official with over a decade of experience in Afghanistan, including time spent working inside the Arg Palace. In this interview, she shares candid reflections on her time in the country — from witnessing widespread corruption and travelling across Afghanistan, to whether the Taliban should be recognised, along with some weird and wonderful stories.

👍🏼 Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nathalie Paarlberg is an art historian and the Chief Operating Officer at Turquoise Mountain. In this interview, she takes us on a journey through Afghanistan’s rich cultural history and art, as well as sharing her personal story of living and working in the country for several years. Her book, 'Je Ogen Zijn Mooi' (Your Eyes Are Beautiful), has been published in the Netherlands.

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

Cover photo: © Jeanette Huisman

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this exclusive and gripping interview, acclaimed historian Professor Mary Beard explores how the Taliban’s treatment of women and girls in Afghanistan reflects enduring patterns of patriarchal control throughout history. Drawing on examples and stories of ancient Greek and Roman history, Professor Beard examines how societies have historically silenced women, excluded them from public life, and regulated their behaviour through coercion, custom, and control.

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Pascal Maitre is a world-renowned French photojournalist whose decades of work from around the world, particularly in Afghanistan, have produced some of the most iconic images of people, war, culture, nature, and more.

He first travelled to Afghanistan in the 1970s and has since covered the Soviet–Afghan War and the Mujahideen civil war; he travelled through Bamiyan and Hazarajat, capturing breathtaking photos of the Buddhas in 1996, and spent two weeks with Ahmad Shah Massoud, during which he took some of his most iconic photographs. His lens documented the looting of the Kabul Museum in July 2000, the Pashtun communities of the east, Kabul in 2018, Buzkashi in northern Afghanistan, and life under the Taliban after the group's return in August 2021.

In this interview he shares his and the stories behind his photographs.

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

David Tyson is a retired CIA officer who served for 25 years, much of it in Central and South Asia. He cultivated relationships with anti-Taliban leaders and commanders in northern Afghanistan prior to the 9/11 attacks, making multiple trips into the country and meeting figures such as Ahmad Shah Massoud. A member of Team Alpha - whose story was told in a previous episode with Toby Harnden - David played a key role in organising forces behind Taliban lines. After taking Mazar-i-Sharif in November 2001, he faced a violent uprising of over 400 al-Qaeda fighters in Qala-i-Jangi, where he had to fight for his life. For his actions, he was awarded the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Cross, the Agency’s highest award for valour, as well as the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal.

In this interview, he shares his story in detail. In this final instalment - Part 3 - we continue from where we left off in Part 2. David recounts the inside story of the fall of Mazar-i-Sharif, the circumstances surrounding it, and the capture and interrogation of hundreds of Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters. He explains how the Qala-i-Jangi uprising began, and how he managed to survive it. He then reflects on his experiences, shares his views on the current situation and the Taliban, and recounts stories involving General Dostum.

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

David Tyson is a retired CIA officer who served for 25 years, much of it in Central and South Asia. He cultivated relationships with anti-Taliban leaders and commanders in northern Afghanistan prior to the 9/11 attacks, making multiple trips into the country and meeting figures such as Ahmad Shah Massoud. A member of Team Alpha - whose story was told in a previous episode with Toby Harnden - David played a key role in organising forces behind Taliban lines. After taking Mazar-i-Sharif in November 2001, he faced a violent uprising of over 400 al-Qaeda fighters in Qala-i-Jangi, where he had to fight for his life. For his actions, he was awarded the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Cross, the Agency’s highest award for valour, as well as the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal.

In this interview he shares his story in detail. In this Part 2, we carry on his story from Part 1, David's pre 9/11 relationships and engagements with anti-Taliban commanders, joining Team Alpha, joining General Dostum behind Taliban line, the capture of Mazar-i-Sharif and...

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

David Tyson is a retired CIA officer who served for 25 years, much of it in Central and South Asia. He cultivated relationships with anti-Taliban leaders and commanders in northern Afghanistan prior to the 9/11 attacks, making multiple trips into the country and meeting figures such as Ahmad Shah Massoud. A member of Team Alpha - whose story was told in a previous episode with Toby Harnden - David played a key role in organising forces behind Taliban lines. After taking Mazar-i-Sharif in November 2001, he faced a violent uprising of over 400 al-Qaeda fighters in Qala-i-Jangi, where he had to fight for his life. For his actions, he was awarded the CIA’s Distinguished Intelligence Cross, the Agency’s highest award for valour, as well as the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal.

In this interview he shares his story in detail. In this Part 1, he gives an account of his background, what made him interested in Central Asia, his initial work in Afghanistan, the CIA’s policy on Afghanistan in the years preceding the 9/11 attacks, and his meetings with Ahmad Shah Massoud and others.

Support the show: Leave stars, comments, share with friends

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sir Rodric Braithwaite is a former British diplomat and author who served as ambassador to the Soviet Union. He has written extensively on Russia and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, including in his acclaimed book Afgantsy.

In this interview, he offers a rare insight into how Soviet leaders came to the decision to invade Afghanistan, why the country became strategically significant, the role of communism and Afghan leadership at the time, how the Soviet intervention differed from the British and later NATO-led invasions, the legacies they left behind, witnessing the fall of the Soviet Union and more.

📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube

Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi

Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi

Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

X: @TheAfgPod & @RohYakobi

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.