The National Museum of Afghanistan is open once again and the Taliban, whose members once smashed their way through the facility destroying irreplaceable pieces of the country’s national heritage, now appear to be among its most enthusiastic visitors.
The museum in south-west Kabul, which hosts artefacts from the Paleolithic period to the 20th century, reopened just over a week ago for the first time since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August amid the chaotic withdrawal of US and Nato troops.
Its director, Mohammad Fahim Rahimi, and his staff have so far been allowed to continue in their positions although they, like many of Afghanistan’s civil servants, have not received salaries since August.
Only the security guards have changed, Mr Rahimi said, with Taliban now replacing the police contingent who used to guard the building and providing women security guards to check female visitors.
Currently about 50 to 100 people visit the museum each day.
Power cuts are frequent and the museum’s generator has broken down, leaving many of the exhibition rooms plunged into darkness.
On Friday several Taliban, some with assault rifles dangling from their shoulders, were among visitors using the lights of their mobile phones to peer into display cases of ancient ceramics and 18th-century weapons.
“This is from our ancient history, so we came to see it,” said Taliban fighter Mansoor Zulfiqar, a 29-year-old originally from the Khost province in south-eastern Afghanistan who has now been appointed as a security guard at the interior ministry.
“I’m very happy,” he said of his first visit to the museum, marvelling at his country’s national heritage.
