Saifullah had endured immense physical and psychological pain. He would stuff a cloth inside his mouth to prevent himself from yelling while Banou cleaned his wounds or changed his clothes. He experienced terrible nightmares and suffered from severe anxiety and panic attacks.
After three weeks, they moved to a farmhouse near the Pakistani border. Saifullah felt that the endless conflict shattered their life and did not want his family to endure the mental and bodily suffering he had gone through.
During their time together, Warda ran her fingers through her father’s hair and sang poetry. Poetry and literature were the only things that allowed her to connect with and comfort him, as there were no happy endings to lift his spirits or bring him joy.
It took four months for him to regain his strength, feel safe, and care for himself.
Considering her father's immense suffering, Warda vowed to obey his decisions and keep her secrets hidden. With the increasing possibility of additional reprisal and rising carnage, Saifullah decided it was time to move his family to neighbouring Pakistan. Remaining in Afghanistan was no longer an option.
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Leaving their homeland was an emotionally overwhelming choice, particularly for Saifullah and Warda. Walking across rough terrain to reach Pakistan, everyone in the caravan fought back tears as they bid farewell to their loved ones, homes, and belongings. A film of old memories played in everyone’s mind.
In 1988, after an exhausting and perilous hike, a group of over fifty adults, children, and elderly individuals crossed the border into the safety of Pakistan. They were transported by truck to a refugee center, where they registered as refugees with the authorities, received food, and were directed to a nearby camp.The sound of the Azaan, the call to prayer, greeted the morning instead of gunfire.
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While the hot summers tortured the camp residents, the refugees were hesitant to return to Afghanistan even after the Soviet Union withdrew from the country in 1989. Help for repatriation and rebuilding dried up when the West lost interest in the area.
Political instability and lawlessness prevailed throughout Afghanistan. Life in the capital maintained a precarious balance under a Russian-backed leader, the former chief of KhAD, until the Mujahideen took control of Kabul in 1992, purging his government.
Since the Mujahideen could not agree on a political framework for power sharing, a bloody civil war followed, and the nation effectively fell under the control of warlords and militia commanders who demanded transit taxes from all vehicles passing through the areas under their control and imposed heavy levies on almost any means of livelihood prevalent in their territory.
If someone refused to give in to their threats or comply with their demands, they resorted to using violence. While they were in power, kidnappings for ransom were standard procedure and the educational system completely collapsed as colleges and universities were either looted or became battlefields.
Rival Mujahideen groups unleashed artillery and mortar fire on Kabul, killing thousands of residents.
A multitude of casualties were a direct result of sectional conflict; competing tribes and religious and cultural subgroups executed tens of thousands of captives and civilians. In addition, hundreds of thousands perished due to hunger or disease or were slain or maimed by the countless land mines that littered the terrain.