New Zealand citizen Charlotte Bellis decided to stay in Afghanistan after receiving permission from the Taliban. The woman It is reported that she learned about her pregnancy while working at the Al Jazeera office in Qatar. Shortly before that, she had returned from Afghanistan, where she was on assignment and where her partner, photographer for The New York Times, Jim, was working. “I was sent to Afghanistan by Al Jazeera from my base in Doha, Qatar. When I returned to Doha in September, I realized that I was just a few days late. It is illegal to be pregnant and unmarried in Qatar. My partner and photographer for The New York Times, Jim, was in Kabul and could not get out. I could not return to New Zealand,” Charlotte Bellis wrote. Understanding that pregnancy for an unmarried woman in Qatar is a criminal offense, Bellis decided to leave the country as soon as possible. After that, the journalist contacted representatives of the Taliban movement.
Taliban allowed a pregnant unmarried journalist to stay in Afghanistan
New Zealand citizen Charlotte Bellis decided to stay in Afghanistan after receiving permission from the Taliban. The woman Photo: Instagram It is reported that she learned about her pregnancy while working at the Al Jazeera office in Qatar. Shortly before that, she had returned from Afghanistan, where she was on assignment and where her partner, […]
“I arranged a conversation with my high-ranking contacts in the Taliban: ‘You know I am dating Jim from The New York Times, but we are not married, right?’ They replied: ‘Yes, yes, we respect both of you, and you are foreigners, this only concerns you.’ I nervously continued: ‘I am pregnant and cannot return to New Zealand. If I come to Kabul, will we have problems?’ One of them translated my words to another, and they laughed. ‘No, we are happy for you, you can come, and you will have no problems. Just tell people that you are married. If the situation escalates, call us. Don’t worry. Everything will be fine,’ the Taliban assured,” the journalist said.
After that, Bellis arrived in Kabul, but she does not intend to stay there for the birth. She reported that she was allowed to return to New Zealand at the end of February.
She reminded that everyone knows her as the journalist who asked the Taliban a question at their first press conference: “What will you do to protect the rights of women and girls?”