Afghanistan's Taliban woos foreign tourists
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) —
Around 30 men are crammed into a Kabul classroom, part of the debut student cohort at a Taliban-run institute training tourism and hospitality professionals.
It’s a motley crew. One student is a model. Another is 17 and has no job history.
The students vary in age, education level and professional experience. They’re all men — Afghan women are banned from studying beyond sixth grade — and they don’t know anything about tourism or hospitality. But they are all eager to promote a different side of Afghanistan. And the Taliban are happy to help.
Afghanistan’s rulers are pariahs on the global stage, largely because of their restrictions on women and girls. The economy is struggling, infrastructure is poor, and poverty is rife.
And yet, foreigners are visiting the country, encouraged by the sharp drop in violence, increased flight connections with hubs like Dubai, and the bragging rights that come with vacationing in an unusual destination. The numbers aren’t huge — they never were — but there’s a buzz around Afghan tourism.
Related articles
New Mexico reaches record settlement over natural gas flaring in the Permian Basin
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico has reached a record settlement with a Texas-based company over2024-05-01Xi's Article on New Development Pattern to Be Published
Contact Us HomeNewsHighlightACWF NewsSocietyWom2024-05-01Night tourism flourishes in Shaanxi's Xi'an
Tourists in traditional Tang Dynasty costumes enjoy themselves at the Great Tang All Day Mall in Xi'2024-05-01Scenery of Xiezi Mountain in China's Shandong
Aerial photo taken on Nov. 4, 2019 shows the scenery of Xiezi Mountain in Jinan, east China's Shando2024-05-01Two more people sentenced for carjacking and kidnapping an FBI employee in South Dakota
RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) — The last two members of a trio who carjacked and kidnapped an FBI employee i2024-05-01White cranes in Quanzhou, SE China
A white crane forages in shoals in Shishi Wetland Park, Quanzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province.2024-05-01
atest comment