How we cite our quotes: (Part.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
"You try this again and I will find you. […] And, when I do, there isn't a court in this godforsaken country that will hold me accountable for what I will do." (3.36.147)
Rasheed holds a frightening amount of power over Laila. This wouldn't be possible, however, if the government at large didn't support his right to do so. Laila is unable to escape because there simply isn't anyplace to go.
Quote #5
Marco Polo Restaurant, near Chicken Street, had been turned into an interrogation center. Sometimes screaming was heard from behind its black-painted windows. (3.38.3)
The image of a restaurant being used as an interrogation chamber might make you chuckle at first, but the reality is far more frightening. The citizens of Kabul must live in fear of being randomly grabbed for a minor infraction and then being brutally tortured.
Quote #6
Mariam had heard about the announcement, in January of that year, that men and women would be seen in different hospitals, that all female staff would be discharged from Kabul's hospitals and sent to work in one central facility. (3.39.7)
This absurd rule embodies the Taliban's abuse of power. The Taliban are so obsessed with wielding their authority over women that they relegate all of their female citizens to an understaffed and under-resourced facility. It's practically a death sentence.