“Before this morning’s General Audience, Pope Francis received in the small room adjacent to Paul VI Hall, three Christian Afghan families, a total of 14 people including seven minors, that fled Kabul in the last weeks, reported the Holy See Press Office on September 22, 2021.

According to “Vatican News,” the group included eight women and six men. The seven minors gave Pope Francis a drawing. The youngest, Elias, a one-year-old, was taken to a hospital on his arrival, suffering from an infection. Fortunately, he has now recovered.

Pary Gul, 57, one of the women, gave the Holy Father her ring, which belonged to her husband, who was “gobbled up” by the Taliban terror and a tunic “that speaks of a life of suffering.” The Pope accepted the gift of the ring on one condition: that Pary Gul should keep it as a pledge of friendship and a sign of hope.

Flight from Kabul 

In the case of these families, being Christians, they were reported immediately when the Taliban entered Kabul. “My husband was fired and then detained and, since then, we know nothing about him,” said Pary Gul. “We stayed locked in the basement for four days and four nights, afraid of being detained. Someone probably reported us for being Christians,” they said.

Pary has three daughters: Adila, Robina, and Setara, and a son, Nasim, ranging in age from 14 to 25. The messages requesting help, sent by the girls on their smartphones, made their staggered flight from Kabul possible. Then they arrived in their homes in Bergamo, Italy, to begin a new life.

For his part, Gholam Abbas and his wife Fatima, both 32, were also able to leave Kabul with their children Safa Marwah, 9, and Muhammed Yousouf, 4. Zamin Ali, 35, and Seema Gul, 34, were also with them, as well as their children Maryam, 11, Ali Reza, 8, and little Elias.

The flight from Kabul became a reality thanks to a solidarity network and the Meet Human Foundation. “Afghan Brothers” is the motto of the humanitarian campaign of the Meet Human Foundation, which the latter is carrying out in Afghanistan with the collaboration of Italian civil and military institutions.

Translation by Virginia M. Forrester