Aljazeera :
The day after the Taliban seized control of Kabul, Farshad Usyan had the option to evacuate from his native Afghanistan with colleagues from a news agency where he works as a photojournalist.
Usyan had little time to mull it over. All he could think about was reaching a safe place so he could later help his family members find safety, too.
He headed to the airport, listening to the sounds of gunfire as they drove by crowds outside embassies and at the gates of the country’s only functioning airport.
After a day waiting inside the airport, and then a long and disorienting trip through Abu Dhabi, he arrived in the French capital, Paris. It is the first time he has ever lived outside his own country.
For a journalist who has spent his entire career covering Afghanistan, the decision to leave was a painful one, he says.
“I was keen to stay back and to try to work more, but it seemed impossible,” Usyan told Al Jazeera by telephone from Paris, where he is staying while he figures out his next move.
The withdrawal of American and NATO troops and subsequent Taliban takeover of Afghanistan have fuelled scenes of chaos and confusion over the past 10 days, as many Afghans desperately look for ways out of the country.
My friends who wanted to stay in Afghanistan and wanted
to continue their work, nowadays they’re asking me how they can get out Among those trying to evacuate are Afghan journalists who fear for their security with the Taliban in control. During the previous Taliban regime (1996-2001), the press was heavily controlled, and independent journalism was almost impossible, journalists and rights groups say.
“My friends who wanted to stay in Afghanistan and wanted to continue their work, nowadays they’re asking me how they can get out,” Usyan said. “They don’t feel safe anymore.”
On Thursday, Ziar Khan Yaad, a journalist from Tolo News, tweeted that he was beaten by the Taliban in Kabul while reporting, and his cameras, technical equipment and mobile phone were taken away by Taliban fighters.
“I still don’t know why they behaved like that and suddenly attacked me.
“The issue has been shared with Taliban leaders. However, the perpetrators have not yet been arrested, which is a serious threat to freedom of expression,” he tweeted.
The Taliban has a history of targeting journalists and restricting media coverage. Despite recent reassurances from the group that it will respect press freedoms, many in the media are not convinced.
