Civilian Casualties in Afghanistan…

When I was in Balkh exploring the structure above (which many Afghans believe once belonged to Rumi’s family), I encountered several young custodians of Rumi’s poetry and memory. In fact, they insisted on referring to him as “Rumi al-Balkhi” (Rumi, the one from Balkh). I was thinking of these little Rumi rascals today while reading the United Nation’s mid-year report–according to which there has been a sharp increase in casualties suffered by women and children in the Afghan war. The report reads: “The thousands of civilians killed and injured from conflict-related violence in the first six months of 2015 demonstrate the continued failure of parties to the conflict to protect civilians from harm.” So far this year, the “number of women casualties has risen by 23 percent and children by 13 percent.” Reading statistics like these, I immediately think of all the children I met and photographed along the road while wandering through Afghanistan. When–if ever–will these children know peace?