The Escape from Kabul

Karen Bartlett

WINNER OF THE ORWELL PRIZE FOR POLITICAL WRITING 2026.

A gripping story of rescue, survival and female solidarity. In the twenty years since 2001, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country – tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy.

However, when Western forces withdrew in August 2021, the women judges of Afghanistan and their families faced mortal danger. The Escape from Kabul is the never-before-told story of the escape of nearly 200 women and their families, thanks to a network of professional friends, female judges and lawyers from around the world, who refused to abandon them to the Taliban. A searing insight into the challenges of safely building a new life overseas and also the captive fate of women in Afghanistan.