Afghanistan won’t be at the Olympics

When the thousands of international athletes march proudly behind their national flags along the banks of the River Seine in Paris to open the Olympic Games in a few months, the country that usually leads the parade, behind the host, will be absent.

Afghanistan, first in the alphabetical order of nations, has been captured by the Taliban, an extreme Islamist movement that does not allow women to play sport. It also bans girls from high school and university, women from work, and all females from walking in public parks, even if they do leave their homes fully-covered and accompanied by a mandatory male relative.

As the Taliban are ideologically opposed to complying with the fundamental condition of Olympics participation – sending a mixed-gender team of competitors – Afghanistan will be absent from Paris.