'It's so hard to be a woman in Afghanistan': Final Afghan refugee joins classmates in Saskatoon
CTV
The final Afghan student who fled the Taliban in her home country is now in Saskatoon, joining a contingent of others who arrived over the past two years.
The final Afghan student who fled the Taliban in her home country is now in Saskatoon, joining a contingent of others who arrived over the past two years.
After two years of travelling — first escaping Afghanistan then to various safe houses — Zahra Mohammadi is now at her destination in Saskatoon.
“I really like it here. There is my besties in school I’m really happy to see them,” Mohammadi told CTV News.
She’s the last student of 213 to arrive in Saskatoon from the progressive Marefat School in Kabul, which taught subjects like democracy and women’s rights.
Other students from the school arrived in Saskatoon in 2021 and another group last year. All students at the school were targets of the Taliban because they were female and educated, with a strong online presence.
“How Zahra ended up as the last girl was simply because there were so many little things that happened. Twice she got turned down at an airport because of paperwork. When she was flying in from Iran, she couldn’t fly because she had the wrong exit visa,” said Bella Pollen, 30 Birds Foundation co-founder.
Pollen is based in England and founded the worldwide group to aid the students of Marafet School once the Taliban seized power.
