Latest news with #Nilab
The Star
01-08-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Sydney hosts first talent camp for Afghan women's refugee team
(Reuters) -A group of Afghan refugee players participated in the first of three global talent identification camps in Sydney last month as part of efforts to build a 23-player women's squad for friendly internationals this year, world soccer body FIFA said on Friday. Many players from the women's national team fled the country over fears of persecution after the Taliban took control of the government in 2021 and they have been fighting for their right to play internationally again after being excluded from World Cup qualifying events. The Taliban-controlled Afghan Football Federation has banned women's sports, shattering the dreams of the team which requires recognition by a national federation to compete internationally. The Taliban say they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law and local customs and that internal matters should be addressed locally. There was a ray of hope in May, however, after FIFA approved the creation of an Afghan women's refugee team and named Pauline Hamill as coach, with the former Scotland international holding the team's first talent camp from July 23 to 29 in Sydney. "It's great to have the players here," the 53-year-old Hamill told the FIFA website. "Now we have the chance to work with them and try to evaluate their performance, and they can all come together again in an environment that they always wanted to be a part of. "I think it's an incredible project. It's given the players the chance to perform and play together again. I think they'll create memories that they otherwise wouldn't have created, and making memories with your team is really special." FIFA is hopeful that players from the trials can take part in approved friendlies later this year, thereby returning Afghan women's soccer to the international stage. It said it would also provide equipment and help them build connections with local clubs and enable access to counselling, media and social media training as well as identify potential educational pathways and opportunities within the sport. "I am confident that we have taken an important step in the right direction by offering these women the opportunity to play internationally while prioritising their safety and well-being...," FIFA President Gianni Infantino said. "We are proud of this, of having brought to life this pilot project, and our aim is to expand it in the future to include women from other countries as well." Nilab, one of the players at July's camp, said football has helped her a lot. "My goal is not just about me," Nilab said. "It's about all Afghanistan, especially women and girls. This project helps and supports me and teaches us how we can help each other and how to represent Afghanistan." (Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru;Editing by Christian Radnedge)
Straits Times
01-08-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
Sydney hosts first talent camp for Afghan women's refugee team
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox A group of Afghan refugee players participated in the first of three global talent identification camps in Sydney last month as part of efforts to build a 23-player women's squad for friendly internationals this year, world soccer body FIFA said on Friday. Many players from the women's national team fled the country over fears of persecution after the Taliban took control of the government in 2021 and they have been fighting for their right to play internationally again after being excluded from World Cup qualifying events. The Taliban-controlled Afghan Football Federation has banned women's sports, shattering the dreams of the team which requires recognition by a national federation to compete internationally. The Taliban say they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law and local customs and that internal matters should be addressed locally. There was a ray of hope in May, however, after FIFA approved the creation of an Afghan women's refugee team and named Pauline Hamill as coach, with the former Scotland international holding the team's first talent camp from July 23 to 29 in Sydney. "It's great to have the players here," the 53-year-old Hamill told the FIFA website. "Now we have the chance to work with them and try to evaluate their performance, and they can all come together again in an environment that they always wanted to be a part of. "I think it's an incredible project. It's given the players the chance to perform and play together again. I think they'll create memories that they otherwise wouldn't have created, and making memories with your team is really special." FIFA is hopeful that players from the trials can take part in approved friendlies later this year, thereby returning Afghan women's soccer to the international stage. It said it would also provide equipment and help them build connections with local clubs and enable access to counselling, media and social media training as well as identify potential educational pathways and opportunities within the sport. "I am confident that we have taken an important step in the right direction by offering these women the opportunity to play internationally while prioritising their safety and well-being...," FIFA President Gianni Infantino said. "We are proud of this, of having brought to life this pilot project, and our aim is to expand it in the future to include women from other countries as well." Nilab, one of the players at July's camp, said football has helped her a lot. "My goal is not just about me," Nilab said. "It's about all Afghanistan, especially women and girls. This project helps and supports me and teaches us how we can help each other and how to represent Afghanistan." REUTERS
New York Times
30-03-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
‘They Will Label Us as Spies': The Afghan Students Abandoned by America
When she finds it hard to focus, Nilab jots down her worries on slips of paper and pins them to her wall, a strategy she picked up in a seminar on mental health at the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul. She makes a mental note to deal with the issues at a scheduled time and then gets back to studying. That kept her sane when the U.S.-backed Afghan government was overthrown in 2021, when the Taliban made it illegal for women to receive an education and when she left in July 2023 to study at the university's campus-in-exile in Qatar. Now, in Nilab's dorm room in Doha, the little notes are stacking up. The Trump administration's shutdown of foreign aid and refugee admissions has left her terrified that she will be forced to return to Afghanistan. There, she would be alone and deprived of any rights as a woman. Her hard-earned American-style education would be all but worthless. She imagines the worst. 'How can girls go back to Afghanistan?' said Nilab, 30, who asked that only her first name be used to protect her identity. 'What will happen to us? Rape, forced marriage and death.' On Jan. 20, just as Nilab was planning her final project for her cybersecurity degree, President Trump signed an executive order suspending refugee resettlement. The U.S. government had promised refugee status for her and her classmates, but Nilab's hopes of rejoining her family, who received asylum in the United States after the Taliban took over, were shattered. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times. Thank you for your patience while we verify access. Already a subscriber? Log in. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
