‘My computer is my weapon’
When the Taliban last ruled Afghanistan, Zahra Joya dressed as a boy and called herself Mohammad, allowing her to circumvent the Islamist group's ban on girls going to school.
The journalist's unusual childhood not only let her get an education, but gave her a taste of the freedoms denied to most girls in Afghanistan, where many families only celebrate the birth of sons.
An outspoken feminist, Joya set up Rukhshana Media last year – a news service reporting on Afghan women's lives, including the economic hardship and violence many endure.
Joya, 29, is among hundreds of journalists who have fled the country since the Islamist militants' shock return to power on Aug. 15.
Today she is living in a London hotel - a stone's throw from the Tower of London - after being evacuated from Kabul following the Taliban's takeover.
From her room she continues to report on events 5,800 km (3,600 miles) away, relying on six women journalists working covertly, and her network of contacts.
"Our work is now more important than ever because most media have closed," she said, adding that more than 150 outlets in the country's once vibrant media sector had shut since August, and most women journalists had stopped working.
"Afghanistan is the only country where half the population don't have basic rights. It's crucial we show what's happening," said Joya. "My computer is my weapon," she said. "With my computer I'll continue to ... stand up against the Taliban."
When the Taliban last ruled from 1996 to 2001, they barred women from work and imposed harsh restrictions on their lives, flogging or stoning those who broke the rules.
This time they have said girls and women will be allowed to study and work in accordance with Islamic law, without clarifying exactly what this means. Most women and high school girls remain at home.
Joya said technology and social media were helping journalists monitor the Taliban in a way that was not possible when the Islamists last ruled.
But she said extremists were also using social media to spread propaganda and incite hatred.
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