Sharbat Gula
Who was Sharbat Gula?
Afghan refugee who became globally recognized as the green-eyed subject of Steve McCurry's iconic 1984 National Geographic photograph 'Afghan Girl.'
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Sharbat Gula (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Sharbat Gula was born around 1972 in Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan. Her early childhood was disrupted by the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979, triggering a massive refugee crisis. Like millions of other Afghans, her family fled to Pakistan, where she lived in the Nasir Bagh refugee camp near Peshawar. It was there, at about twelve years old, that American photojournalist Steve McCurry took her photo, which became one of the most recognized portraits in modern journalism.
The photograph appeared on the cover of National Geographic's June 1985 issue under the title 'Afghan Girl.' It showed Gula's striking green eyes and intense expression against a plain background. The image resonated with audiences worldwide and came to represent the broader human suffering caused by the Soviet–Afghan War. Despite its global impact, the identity of the young woman in the photograph remained unknown for almost twenty years. Gula herself was unaware of how widely her image had spread.
In 2002, a National Geographic team led by McCurry returned to Pakistan and used facial recognition and iris scanning to confirm the identity of the woman in the photograph. Gula had grown up, married, and raised a family in Pakistan, living there for about thirty-five years. She was photographed again for a follow-up story in National Geographic, marking only the second time she had been professionally photographed. In interviews then, she expressed surprise at her image's fame and discussed the hardships of life as a refugee.
In 2016, Pakistani authorities arrested Gula on charges of having fraudulent identity documents. The arrest drew international attention due to her public profile. She was deported to Afghanistan in 2017. Her return came during continued instability and conflict, and conditions were difficult. She faced challenges reintegrating into Afghan society after so many years away.
After the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, Gula's situation became more uncertain. In November 2021, the Italian government granted her asylum, and she moved to Italy. Her case renewed attention to the ongoing displacement of Afghan civilians and the particular struggles faced by women after the government change. The National Geographic Society had previously started the Afghan Girls Fund in her name to support education for Afghan girls and women.
Before Fame
Sharbat Gula was born around 1972 in Nangarhar Province, eastern Afghanistan, near the border with Pakistan. Not much is known about her family or early childhood, which happened during a time of major political changes in Afghanistan. After the Soviet invasion in December 1979, her family was among the three to five million Afghans who fled to Pakistan in the 1980s.
Gula ended up at the Nasir Bagh refugee camp near Peshawar as a child, probably having lost one or both parents due to the war. While in the camp in 1984, she met Steve McCurry, who was on assignment for National Geographic. At about twelve years old, she was attending a school in the camp when he took her photograph. She had no idea at the time that the image would be published worldwide or that it would shape the world's view of the Afghan refugee experience.
Key Achievements
- Subject of Steve McCurry's 1984 'Afghan Girl' photograph, published on the June 1985 cover of National Geographic and widely regarded as one of the most iconic portrait photographs of the twentieth century
- Her identification in 2002 prompted the creation of the National Geographic Afghan Girls Fund, raising funds for Afghan women's education
- Granted asylum by Italy in November 2021, raising international awareness of the dangers facing Afghan civilians following the Taliban takeover
- Her image became a global symbol of the humanitarian cost of the Soviet–Afghan War and of refugee displacement more broadly
Did You Know?
- 01.Sharbat Gula's identity was confirmed in 2002 partly through iris recognition technology, which matched the unique patterns in her eyes to those in the 1984 photograph.
- 02.She had never seen the famous photograph of herself until journalists showed it to her during the 2002 identification process.
- 03.National Geographic established the Afghan Girls Fund in her name following her identification in 2002, with the aim of supporting education for Afghan women and girls.
- 04.Gula's green eyes, unusual among Pashtun people and a focal point of McCurry's portrait, are believed to reflect the Nuristani ancestry present among some communities in eastern Afghanistan.
- 05.She was arrested in Pakistan in October 2016 and faced up to fourteen years in prison under Pakistani law before being deported to Afghanistan in early 2017.