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 YouT...
Jul 08, 2025•49 min•Ep. 59
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, com...
Jun 12, 2025•42 min•Ep. 58
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 t...
Jun 05, 2025•58 min•Ep. 57
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 Novembe...
May 18, 2025•42 min•Ep. 56
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 Novembe...
May 11, 2025•30 min•Ep. 55
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 Novembe...
May 03, 2025•37 min•Ep. 54
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...
Apr 27, 2025•47 min•Ep. 53
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 Britis...
Apr 19, 2025•36 min•Ep. 52
Steve MacBeth is a former soldier in the Canadian Army and the author of ' No Names, No Packdrill - An Oral History of Canadians at War in Afghanistan '. He served multiple tours in Afghanistan, and in this interview, takes us inside Canada's mission in Afghanistan, talks about his book, and shares his personal reflections and stories. 📺 Watch/Subscribe on YouTube Producer | Host: Roh Yakobi Assistant Producer/Researcher: Sa-aadat Yakobi Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh Email: hello@rohyakobi.com Insta...
Apr 09, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Ep. 51
General Joseph Votel is a retired U.S. Army four-star general and was the Commander of U.S. Central Command from 2016 to 2019. He led multiple operations in Afghanistan, beginning shortly after the 9/11 attacks. In this second part, he talks about his arrival in the country, how he found the people, their values, and their culture. He also offers a personal reflection on the country’s future, the Taliban’s rule, and shares a story about celebrating New Year in Helmand with a non-alcoholic beer a...
Mar 22, 2025•34 min•Ep. 50
General Joseph Votel is a retired U.S. Army four-star general and Commander of U.S. Central Command from 2016 t0 2019. He led multiple operations in Afghanistan, beginning shortly after the 9/11 attacks. In this first part of the interview, he analyses recent developments in the Middle East, including the role of Iran, the geopolitical situation in South and Central Asia, and assesses the factors that contributed to the failure in Afghanistan, which he will explore in greater depth, along with h...
Mar 15, 2025•39 min•Ep. 49
Dr Jonathan L. Lee is a social and cultural historian and a leading authority on the history of Afghanistan. He lived in Afghanistan and travelled widely across the country for many years. He is the author of The Journals of Edward Stirling in Persia and Afghanistan, 1828-1829, The Ancient Supremacy: Bukhara, Afghanistan and the Battle for Balkh, 1731-1901, Amazing Wonders of Afghanistan, and Afghanistan: A History from 1260 to the Present. In this third part, he delves into the Hazara genocide ...
Feb 23, 2025•37 min•Ep. 48
Dr Jonathan L. Lee is a social and cultural historian and a leading authority on the history of Afghanistan. He lived in Afghanistan and travelled widely across the country for many years. He is the author of The Journals of Edward Stirling in Persia and Afghanistan, 1828-1829, The Ancient Supremacy: Bukhara, Afghanistan and the Battle for Balkh, 1731-1901, Amazing Wonders of Afghanistan, and Afghanistan: A History from 1260 to the Present. In this second part, we continue the conversation on wh...
Feb 15, 2025•39 min•Ep. 47
Dr Jonathan L. Lee is a social and cultural historian and a leading authority on the history of Afghanistan. He lived in Afghanistan and travelled widely across the country for many years. He is the author of The Journals of Edward Stirling in Persia and Afghanistan, 1828-1829, The Ancient Supremacy: Bukhara, Afghanistan and the Battle for Balkh, 1731-1901, Amazing Wonders of Afghanistan, and Afghanistan: A History from 1260 to the Present. In this first part of the interview, he tells us how he...
Feb 08, 2025•42 min•Ep. 46
Toby Harnden is an award-winning journalist and author of 'Dead Men Risen' and 'First Casualty'. In this second part of the interview, we continue the story of the fall of Mazar-i-Sharif on 9th November 2001. In the days that followed, over 400 captured Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters revolted at Qala-i-Jangi, where they were being held, killing Mike Spann, and Hazara and Uzbek guards. The uprising lasted for six days, and only 86 Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters survived, including John Walker Lindh...
Feb 01, 2025•39 min•Ep. 45
Toby Harnden is an award-winning journalist and author of Dead Men Risen and First Casualty . In this first part of the interview, he shares his story of Afghanistan and the inside story of Team Alpha—a group of eight CIA operatives who landed in the mountains of northern Afghanistan to join the forces of General Abdul Rashid Dostum and begin the war to avenge the 9/11 attacks. They fought their way to the capture of the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, where, soon after, the team suffered their—and Amer...
Jan 25, 2025•49 min•Ep. 44
رضا سرور یکی از دانشآموختگان برنامهی تحصیلی فولبرایت و مدیر پیشین پذیرش در دانشگاه آمریکایی افغانستان و در حال حاضر، دانشجوی دکترای دانشگاه Texas A&M ایالت تگزاس آمریکاست. او تجربهی گسترده در کمک به دانشجویان برای درخواست و دریافت بورسیههای تحصیلی در خارج از افغانستان دارد. در این گفتوگو، او داستان شخصی خود را به اشتراک میگذارد و یک راهنمای جامع برای دستیابی به بورسیههای تحصیلی ارائه میدهد. 📺 Watch on YouTube Producer: Roh Yakobi Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh Email: hello@rohyakobi.com ...
Jan 17, 2025•1 hr 33 min•Ep. 43
Shaharzad Akbar is the Executive Director of Rawadari and the former Chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission. In this interview, she reflects on and reviews 2024, shares her analysis of the current situation, discusses what the future may hold for Afghanistan in the year ahead, and her expresses hopes for the country, particularly women and girls. 📺 Watch on YouTube Producer: Roh Yakobi Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh Email: hello@rohyakobi.com Instagram: @TheAfgPod & @RohYako...
Jan 12, 2025•54 min•Ep. 42
Saad Mohseni is the Chairman and CEO of Moby Group, and the author of ' Radio Free Afghanistan '. Born in London, raised in Kabul, Tokyo and Melbourne, Saad Mohseni has been one of the most influential figures in Afghanistan's recent history, transforming Afghanistan and its culture by revolutionising the country's media landscape. In this interview, he shares his remarkable story, how he brought new media to Afghanistan, its impacts and consequences, as well as sharing his views on the current ...
Nov 26, 2024•56 min•Ep. 41
General H.R. McMaster served as Donald Trump's National Security Advisor for 14 months during his first term and he formulated America's South Asia Strategy, which Trump abandoned after McMaster's departure. In this interview, he discusses the implications of the second Trump presidency for the world, looks back at the failure in Afghanistan and whether the country will feature in the new administration's foreign and security policy. He also shares his thoughts on the future of Afghanistan and t...
Nov 09, 2024•35 min•Ep. 40
Sune Engel Rasmussen is a Danish journalist and author who lived in Afghanistan, reporting extensively for several international outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and The Guardian . In this interview, we discuss his book Twenty Years , which offers an unique intimate insight into two decades of Western involvement in Afghanistan, told through the stories and struggles of young men and women affected by it, along with his own experiences of living and working in the country. 📺 Watch on ...
Oct 20, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 39
Andrew North is an award-winning British journalist and former BBC correspondent in Afghanistan, Iraq, India, and the United States. He lived and reported from Afghanistan throughout two decades of international involvement and visited the country three times after the Taliban’s return, with his last visit resulting in his kidnapping by the group’s intelligence agents. His recently published book, War & Peace & War , tells his and the stories of five people who lived through the country’...
Sep 20, 2024•54 min•Ep. 38
Rahmatullah Nabil is an Afghan politician and former intelligence chief. Having lost his father at the age of one, he was raised by his mother, who dedicated her life to him. Nabil left school and joined one of the Mujahideen factions as a teenager. An ambush on Soviet forces, during which he was injured, and the discovery of a handwritten letter belonging to a Soviet soldier, changed his life. This led him to become a refugee in Pakistan, where he graduated from university and worked for the UN...
Sep 13, 2024•54 min•Ep. 37
Rahmatullah Nabil is an Afghan politician and former intelligence chief. Having lost his father at the age of one, he was raised by his mother, who dedicated her life to him. Nabil left school and joined one of the Mujahideen factions as a teenager. An ambush on Soviet forces, during which he was injured, and the discovery of a handwritten letter belonging to a Soviet soldier, changed his life. This led him to become a refugee in Pakistan, where he graduated from university and worked for the UN...
Sep 06, 2024•53 min•Ep. 36
Sir William Patey is a retired British diplomat with extensive experience in Middle Eastern and South Asian geopolitics. He served as the UK Ambassador to Kabul from 2010 to 2012, following earlier roles as Ambassador to Sudan, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. In this interview, he shares his insights and analysis on Afghanistan—discussing what went wrong, what the future may hold, and recounting stories from his time in the country. 📺 Watch on YouTube. Producer: Roh Yakobi Music ©: Dawood Sarkhosh Emai...
Aug 30, 2024•54 min•Ep. 35
Mark Urban is a British journalist, broadcaster, and best-selling author of many books, including War in Afghanistan and The Skripal Files. He has covered Afghanistan extensively since the late 1980s, witnessing firsthand the withdrawal of Soviet forces, accompanying Ahmad Shah Massoud as he took Kabul in 1992, and other key events. In this interview, he shares his stories of the country and his thoughts on its future, as well the impacts of the West's failure. 📺 Watch on YouTube. Producer: Roh...
Aug 23, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 34
Sir Laurie Bristow, the UK's last ambassador in Kabul, witnessed the disintegration of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the fall of Kabul into the hands of the Taliban in August 2021. He is the author of Kabul: Final Call , which provides an insider's view of the events as they unfolded. In this interview, we discuss the book, Sir Laurie’s reflections on his experiences, and his thoughts on the current situation in the country and its future. 📺 Watch on YouTube. Producer: Roh Yakobi Musi...
Aug 16, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 33
Professor Thomas Barfield is one of the preeminent experts on Afghanistan, having spent over five decades studying and writing on the country. He is the author of 'Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History' and 'Shadow Empires,' among many others. In this interview, he talks about traveling around Afghanistan for the first time in 1971 and the impact it had on him, his fieldwork in northern Afghanistan, the country's history, its place in the region, its complex politics and society, as well...
Aug 10, 2024•57 min•Ep. 32
Professor Thomas Barfield is one of the preeminent experts on Afghanistan, having spent over five decades studying and writing on the country. He is the author of 'Afghanistan: A Cultural and Political History' and 'Shadow Empires,' among many others. In this interview, he talks about traveling around Afghanistan for the first time in 1971 and the impact it had on him, his fieldwork in northern Afghanistan, the country's history, its place in the region, its complex politics and society, as well...
May 18, 2024•57 min•Ep. 31
Artemis Akbary is an LGBTIQ rights activist and the co-founder and Executive Director of the Afghan LGBT Organization (ALO), and a producer/presenter at Radio Ranginkaman. They have spoken and campaigned at various international gatherings about the plight of the LGBTIQ community in Afghanistan. In this moving interview, Artemis shares their personal story, and their harrowing experience of growing up in Iran, fleeing to Turkey, and then settling in Europe, enduring years of torment and abuse, a...
May 03, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 30
