‘Samira and Hamed are terrified’

The friend of an Afghani couple and their baby son who are being hunted by the Taliban has set up a petition to allow them to take refuge in Cork.

Cork woman Joya Kuin first met Samira and Hamed Naderi through her fundraising work for the Afghan Women’s Network.

The newlywed couple, who are of mixed ethnicity, were forced into hiding when the Taliban entered Kabul on 15 August this year. They have remained in hiding ever since and fear they will be killed if discovered.

Hamid, a human rights worker who worked for the Afghan Women’s Network, is Tajik and his wife Samira, a scientist who teaches biology and encourages her female students to go to university, is Pashtu. When the Taliban took over, Ms Kuin reached out to her friends but it was some weeks before she was able to establish contact.

She said: “I was in shock when I finally spoke to them. They have a young baby son, Zahid. I remember that first year with my own baby. Being responsible for the safety and wellbeing of this tiny human, you just feel so incredibly vulnerable. I would wake up in the middle of the night just to watch her breathe. And now, Samira and Hamed are terrified that the Taliban will discover them in their hiding place and that they will all be killed. It is just unthinkable.”

In an effort to help her friends, Ms Kuin contacted a number of Cork politicians asking for their help in obtaining Irish visas.

Ms Kuin said: “In fairness, everyone has been very supportive and I have been told that their case is on Minister O’Gorman’s desk, but I’m just so worried. It has been a month now.

“The family have had to move again and I haven’t been able to get any further updates on their case and Irish visas. They’re in imminent danger, I just can’t stress enough how urgent this situation is.”

Speaking from their hiding place in Kabul, Samira described the terrifying reality she and her family’s situation: “We are afraid. We are always afraid. We have moved three times now but the Taliban intelligence network is strong and we can’t even trust our neighbours. We try to stay strong for Zahid but it is not easy. I manage to sneak out in a full burka every few days for essentials but this is not sustainable.”

“It’s rumours you hear about mostly,” added Hamad, a number of whose former colleagues have already disappeared. He continues: “It is hard to know who is in hiding and who has actually been taken by the Taliban. But yes, people are disappearing and we hear about the Taliban going door to door to track down people who have worked in government, media, education and progressive organisations.”

In Cork, Ms Kuin’s friends’ Nicki French Davis and her husband, Bertrand Galen, have agreed to host the family in their home and help them integrate into the community.

Ms Davis said: “When Joya told us about Samira, Hamed and little Zahid, we agreed immediately that we wanted to help. We have hosted people in our home before and we feel fortunate to be in the position to offer them a place in our family.

“We have a room ready and waiting for them. Our youngest is a boy a year older than Zahid and we already have a pile of clothes waiting for him and everything a little boy needs. Our girls keep asking, ‘how is the baby and when are they coming to live with us?’.”

Ms Kuin’s petition asking Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Simon Coveney to accept the Naderi family into the Irish Refugee Protection Programme, has already amassed over 900 signatures. To join the petition, visit myuplift.ie, click on campaigns and search ‘Naderi family’.