PARIS — Last year, two decades after the U.S.-led invasion of Afghanistan, they were finally leaving. The Taliban was mounting its comeback, gobbling up territory across the country and closing in on the capital.
Its fighters arrived in Kabul on Aug. 15, setting off a chaotic exodus by artists, journalists, rights activists — anyone who embraced Western ideals or whom the new rulers might see as a threat. More than 120,000 people fled in a series of airlifts over the next two weeks.
They had no choice but to leave most of their possessions behind. The items they took with them often had deep personal value and in ways large and small connected them to their homeland.
