The morning after CanadaB次元官网网址檚 military withdrew from Kabul, when dozens of Afghans and 13 American military personnel died in the terrorist attack on the cityB次元官网网址檚 airport, a woman named Najiba pondered the darkening future.

B次元官网网址淢y message to the Canadian government is not to leave women, girls in Afghanistan alone. This is a time that we need your support. I know that you have been supporting Afghanistan for the last 20 years,B次元官网网址� Najiba, an Afghan human rights activist, told The Canadian Press on Friday.

B次元官网网址淏ut unfortunately, our politicians, they didnB次元官网网址檛 care about the people of Afghanistan. B次元官网网址� But it is not the fault of the ordinary people of Afghanistan. It is not the fault of women, girls and children,B次元官网网址� said Najiba, whose full name is being withheld to protect her safety.

Canadian taxpayer dollars have funded various projects that she has worked on that were designed to raise the rights of women and girls over the last 20 years.

The swift return to power of the Taliban earlier this month brings fear that the clock is about to be turned back two decades to when women and girls were stripped of basic freedoms, including the right to work or go to school, Najiba said.

The end of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 military mission in Afghanistan has left an unknown number of Canadians and their families trapped in the country, as well as vulnerable Afghans exposing them to Taliban reprisals.

But it also left behind scores of women and girls that Canada helped transform into parliamentarians, judges, prosecutors, activists and others, said Corey Levine, a Canadian specializing in womenB次元官网网址檚 rights for two decades with international organizations in Afghanistan.

B次元官网网址淭here was a whole generation that benefited from international engagement in Afghanistan, and my heart goes out to them,B次元官网网址� said Levine, who returned from a seven-month stint in Afghanistan earlier this summer.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Friday Canada would continue to work with its international partners B次元官网网址渢o pressure the Taliban to not reverse the tremendous progress specifically made for women and girls in Afghanistan because of Canadians and other alliesB次元官网网址� efforts over the past two decades.B次元官网网址�

International Development Minister Karina Gould also emphasized that Canada has not turned its back on those women and girls, and they will be part of Canadian efforts to resettle Afghans.

B次元官网网址淲e remain in very close contact with many of the women who we have been working with in Afghanistan and partners here in Canada that are working very diligently to find safe ways for them to get out of the country,B次元官网网址� said Gould.

But for Najiba, there were no signs of escape routes on the horizon. Instead, women are girding for a return to a dark past.

B次元官网网址淲hen Canada and the U.S. are withdrawing from Afghanistan, it would put people at greater risk,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淲omen, the human rights activists will not be allowed to raise their voices to criticize the government. So, the future is very, very uncertain. And it is very dangerous.B次元官网网址�

Some of her fellow Afghans are weighing the risks of trying to flee, which includes running the gauntlet of the Kabul airport despite ThursdayB次元官网网址檚 horrific attack by an Afghan chapter of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, a faction also known as ISIS-K, she said.

B次元官网网址淭oday was another awful day in my life, full of tension and stress. The images from the airport are still in my mind,B次元官网网址� Najiba said. B次元官网网址淚t is a very terrible day that I will never forget in my life. I feel as if IB次元官网网址檓 also dead because I canB次元官网网址檛 help my poor people.B次元官网网址�

The airport as an escape option diminished Friday as White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki warned that as the Aug. 31 deadline draws nearer, the number of evacuations is likely to decline as the military ramps up its own B次元官网网址渞etrogradeB次元官网网址� withdrawal of troops and equipment, while ensuring it can do so safely.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marc Garneau said 500 more Canadians were flown out of Kabul on an American flight Thursday after CanadaB次元官网网址檚 military mission ended as part of the staged withdrawal plan by the U.S.

Najiba said women, for the most part, remain locked at home in Kabul.

B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e not allowed to go to work because Taliban has announced that women still can stay at home until the new procedures within Islamic law, within Islamic Shariah is developed,B次元官网网址� said Najiba, who believes the new Taliban edicts will dictate to B次元官网网址渨omen how to dress, where to go, whether they can work the within the environment with men together.B次元官网网址�

The Canadian-funded projects she worked on produced B次元官网网址渋ncredible resultsB次元官网网址� that made women economically independent, and removed old restrictions on social, economic and political life. The loss of that is only one aspect of the misery now engulfing her country, she said.

B次元官网网址淥n the other side, people are starving, no work opportunities, banks are closed and no money transactions. Costs for products have increased so much in the market, and unaffordable for many people. I have no idea if the situation continues like this in Afghanistan, everyone will die out of hunger,B次元官网网址� she said.

AfghanistanB次元官网网址檚 neighbouring countries are in talks with the Taliban to reopen the Kabul airport to keep humanitarian aid flowing and to allow people to travel in and out, said Garneau, but added nobody knows if or when that will occur.

Conservative Leader Erin OB次元官网网址橳oole criticized the government for not doing enough and said it should work with allies to establish B次元官网网址渕ore longer-term corridorsB次元官网网址� with neighbouring countries to allow refugees to flee.

Trudeau said the speed at which the Taliban took control of Afghanistan was a widespread surprise.

B次元官网网址淚 think politicians and leaders around the world, I think Afghans themselves, were surprised at just how fast the Taliban were able to take over in Afghanistan,B次元官网网址� Trudeau said Friday.

Levine said friends and colleagues in Kabul she had contact with just days before the Taliban victory werenB次元官网网址檛 expecting the country to fall so quickly. No one seemed to be packing or making evacuation plans.

B次元官网网址淚 think even the Taliban themselves did not envision the lightning speed at which they were able to achieve this.B次元官网网址�

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 27, 2021.

Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press