Kabul Falling

Neha Wadekar, Associate Producer of Kabul Falling, speaks with two Afghan women on their ongoing work in media – and the extreme dangers journalists face as they continue to report under the Taliban’s regime.

In this exclusive audio interview, Rukshana Media founder Zahra Joya talks about setting up the women-focused publication, and shares her own story of escaping Afghanistan following the Taliban takeover. Shirin Yusofi, a Kabul-based journalist at Rukshana Media, shares her motivation for continuing to report from Kabul despite the risks – including terrifying close calls with Taliban enforcers.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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Lucy Woods, Managing Producer of Kabul Falling – Project Brazen’s series following the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan – interviews an Afghan family torn apart by the chaos.

Hakim Shakib was separated from his wife Paimana, and his young daughters Neyo and Seto, in July 2021. In this bonus interview, the family charts the anxiety of their separation as Kabul fell to the Taliban – trapping Hakim, an employee at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Interior Affairs – in the city. The Shakibs describe the tireless work that went into reuniting them, the challenges of resettlement, and their fears and hopes for Afghanistan’s future.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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Siddhartha Mahanta sits down with composer Arson Fahim to chat about his soundtrack for Kabul Falling, the latest podcast from Project Brazen.

In this exclusive audio interview, recorded live at the PRX Podcast Garage in Boston, Arson talks about what drew him to the project, and what makes his connection to it—as an Afghan-born composer and musician—so personal and important.

He shares his own experiences of leaving Afghanistan just two weeks before the Taliban takeover last year, and how Afghan musicians around the world can use their craft as a form of resistance, ensuring that the nation’s music continues to flourish in difficult circumstances.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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In this episode, we catch up with Afghan refugees to hear about life after evacuation. How is the fall of Kabul still impacting them? Who do they feel is responsible for the Taliban takeover? What could have been done differently? You’ll hear how many Afghans feel abandoned as the world’s attention moves to Ukraine and the ensuing refugee crisis in Europe. Famine grips Afghanistan and the Taliban’s harsh reign faces little international scrutiny. But Afghans continue to fight: for their freedom, for the truth to be heard and for accountability from those who let them fall.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Correction: In this episode, we stated that an earthquake hit the provinces of Paktia and Khost in Afghanistan in June. This is an error. The earthquake occurred in the provinces of Paktika and Khost.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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A young Taliban member, radicalized by the US invasion of Afghanistan, shares why he left social work and NGO employment to join the militant group. Obaidullah Baheer, a lecturer in transitional justice at the American University of Afghanistan and the grandson of a feared warlord, reflects on the possibility of reconciliation with the Taliban.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With the US Army and allied forces gone, Taliban fighters are consolidating control over Afghanistan. The regime’s leaders make assurances that there will be no retribution for their enemies, but the reality on the ground is different. With the help of journalist Danna Harman, Muhammad Javed Khan, who had worked for the Afghan government, reaches the Tajik border but must then turn around and make a last-minute journey back to Kunduz to retrieve a batch of passports. In order to escape, he must come face to face with the Taliban, members of whom had arrested and tortured him just weeks earlier.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts.

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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With security now on high alert at the Kabul airport, it is nearly impossible for Afghans to fly out of the country to escape the Taliban takeover. Danna Harman, the journalist who profiled Rodaba Noori and her all-girls robotics team, comes up with a wild plan to evacuate the women to Tajikistan by bus, along with a group of female cyclists. Tajik journalist Anahita Saymidinova is waiting on the other side to receive them. But they have to work with the Taliban to bring the women out of Afghanistan and over the border — putting them face to face with the very men they’re afraid of. Meanwhile, Mohammed is turned away from one of the very last evacuation flights leaving Afghanistan and must say goodbye to his wife.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With the evacuation deadline looming, Afghans race to Kabul airport in hopes of getting on a flight and escaping the Taliban regime. With help from Jake, an ex-Marine Corps officer, Tariq and his family manage to get in and board their plane for evacuation, after spending a harrowing night outside in a desolate yard. Abdul and his family also make it out — just hours before a suicide bomber detonates his explosive belt, killing at least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 members of the United States military. You’ll also hear from newlyweds Mohammed and Taara as they confront the possibility that they will be separated, as only Taara has the proper paperwork to flee Afghanistan and fly to the US.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

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Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

As the US and NATO prepare to withdraw all forces from Afghanistan by the deadline of August 31, the evacuation of Afghan allies and partners quickly spins out of the control of Western governments. There is chaos as desperate crowds try to enter the airport in Kabul, where final evacuation flights are departing. Those lucky enough to make it over the high cement walls wait for hours on the tarmac under the hot sun with no food or water. This includes Fatima Faizi, an Afghan journalist working for the New York Times. Informal networks of foreign volunteers quickly spring up to help their Afghan friends and colleagues navigate the chaos and evacuate the country. Ultimately, for many Afghans, getting out comes down to who is in their WhatsApp contacts list.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/

With the Taliban back in power, Kabul’s streets were mobbed with traffic as thousands rushed to escape, many heading towards the capital’s airport. At particular risk of retribution were Afghans who had worked with the US Army or the international community, those who'd served in Afghanistan’s government and women who had pursued full lives outside the home. In this episode, you’ll hear how quick thinking — and chance — helps former CIA interpreter Abdul and TV journalist Ogai Wardak evade Taliban fighters and pass through checkpoints towards Kabul airport. Amidst the chaos, Tariq, a young father and former US contractor, walks for 8 hours across the blisteringly hot city to get his son from kindergarten and then tries to take his family to the airport. But with huge crowds of desperate Afghans surrounding the gates, there is no easy way in.

For a transcript of this episode and additional material, visit: https://www.kabulfalling.com

Correction: In this episode, we stated that Muhammad Javed and his brother are from the Paktia Province. This is an error - they are from the Paktika Province.

Kabul Falling is a Project Brazen production. Subscribe to Brazen+ on Apple Podcasts or at brazen.fm/plus and get exclusive bonus episodes, ad-free listening and early access to new podcasts. 

For more fearless storytelling visit brazen.fm, home to all our podcasts, documentaries and newsletters. At Brazen, we show you how the world really works – from espionage and corruption to deal-making and organised crime, we’ll take you inside stories from hidden worlds.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://brazen.fm/plus/