Local Afghans Back Airstrikes

Many Afghan Americans hailed U.S. airstrikes at Afghanistan on Sunday, expressing hope that the military action would liberate their ancestral homeland from Osama bin Laden’s terrorism and the brutal Taliban rule.

But others grieved over the unknown fate of family members, the potential loss of innocent life and the further destruction of their battle-scarred land.

The complex feelings stirred by the attack were reflected in families like the Pearoses of Irvine. When news of the attack flashed on TV, Najiba Pearose said, she first thought of her older brother and his five children trapped somewhere inside Afghanistan.

At last report, she said, they had tried to flee to Pakistan two weeks ago but were beaten at the border and sent back. Telephone contact has been impossible since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, she and other Afghan Americans said.

“I’m very upset and I can’t talk,” Pearose said. “I’m just watching TV and crying and praying for the innocent people on both sides.”

Her husband, Abrahim, however, saw the airstrikes as heaven-sent. “I welcome the bombing,” said Pearose, who fled Afghanistan more than two decades ago to escape the Soviet invasion. “This is God’s will for the people of Afghanistan. The Taliban have brought nothing but hunger, unemployment and depression.”

For Northridge homemaker Norbibi Lodin, news of the airstrikes brought confusion and sorrow: She is a native of Kandahar, one of the targets of Sunday’s attacks. Although only distant relatives remain in the area, she said, her utmost worry was for innocent people who might be killed by the military assault.

Lodin’s family has suffered the ravages of war, with her husband’s father and brother killed during the Soviet invasion and other relatives held in refugee camps along the border with Pakistan.

“I just pray that God protects the innocent,” she said.

Others, however, said the sacrifice of some innocent Afghans would be worth the price if the U.S. and British military actions successfully expelled Bin Ladin and the Taliban from Afghanistan. “All these years, we have lost so many people already--millions have left,” said Zia Riza, a sales and marketing specialist in Irvine. “We have to sacrifice now, and hopefully we’ll find some peace.”

In Anaheim Hills, Simin Khatab spent the day wiping tears and switching channels, a feeling of helplessness growing by the hour.

“Every time I wanted to eat or drink, I feel so guilty, I feel so bad,” said Khatab, who fled Kabul more than two decades ago, leaving behind brothers, cousins and uncles.

“I wish there was a way to have peace in Afghanistan, instead of bombing,” she said. “You can’t even send help. We used to be able to send money. . . . They don’t even have Tylenol.”

Simin’s husband, Omar Khatab, runs an Afghan radio program out of a studio in Orange. He scrapped his planned programming and spent the day translating news reports into Pashto and Dari, a form of Persian, two prevalent languages in Afghanistan, and trying to explain what is happening.

“As far as the Afghan community is concerned, it’s very bad,” said Omar Khatab. “They are all shocked, they’re upset, and they’re in grief about what’s going to happen. You are talking about the life of the nation.”

Meanwhile, many in the community--which is estimated to be about 25,000 in Southern California--have begun to plan for an Afghanistan without the Taliban.

On Saturday night, as American bombers prepared for their missions, about 350 Afghans from throughout Southern California gathered in Buena Park to draft a resolution on their wishes for the future of Afghanistan. They plan to send it to President Bush, members of Congress and to Zahir Shah, the exiled king of Afghanistan now living in Rome.

Whatever the ultimate impact of Sunday’s airstrikes, the specter of more pain for their homeland seemed to stretch some Afghan Americans nearly to the breaking point. “We’ve had 27 years of tragedy,” said Airan Nassir, owner of Kabul Market in San Diego. “I can’t take it anymore.”