Rabia was in labor with her third child, but was given no pain medication or food, and painfully delivered her baby in a hospital without electricity.
Another woman in labor was denied an ambulance and told to “find a taxi” to take her to the hospital – but when none were available, she was forced to deliver her baby in a car, passing out from the pain.
Although the Taliban promised to treat women with dignity and respect upon regaining power, more and more stories leak out about the horrific conditions women are forced to endure – and the heartbreaking reality for women in Afghanistan is devastating.
Rabia’s midwife Abida recalled the horrific conditions they endured as Rabia gave birth… with the power out.
BBC News reported:
“The hospital sweltered in temperatures topping 43C (109F) – the power had been cut and there was no fuel to work the generators. “We were sweating like we were taking a shower,” says Rabia’s midwife Abida, who worked tirelessly in darkness to deliver the baby by mobile phone light.
“It was one of the worst experiences I’ve ever had in my job. It was too painful. But this is our story every night and every day in the hospital since the Taliban took over.”
By the grace of God, Rabia and her baby survived.
But as actual statistics reveal, not every woman has the same outcome.
BBC News continued:
“Afghanistan has one of the worst maternal and infant mortality rates in the world, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), with 638 women dying per 100,000 live births.”
The truth is, women in Afghanistan are not respected nor valued.
Because women are deemed second-class citizens, leaders couldn’t care less if women are forced to endure birth without medications that help ease the pain or prevent infections or complications.
Basic necessities like having electricity and air conditioning are gutted – and women have no choice but to give birth in these conditions and hope they survive.
Sadly, this is just one of the many ways women have been treated since the Taliban regained power in Afghanistan.
Young girls are being taken as child brides, and Christians continue to be slayed without mercy.
Women who were once free to walk the streets are hiding in their homes, terrified to leave.
This is the sad reality of what happens when those who deny Christ are given the power and authority to rule.
Our hearts ache for the people left in Afghanistan that are forced to submit to the brutal Taliban regime.
We must continue to pray for all the people in Afghanistan – that God will use their unspeakable suffering to draw them into the peace and comfort of His presence that surpasses all human understanding.
May our Christian brothers and sisters in Afghanistan continue to speak of His truth, and help set others free.
And finally, let us pray that Taliban leaders will repent and turn from their wicked ways, and treat women with the dignity and respect they deserve.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” – John 3:16-17
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