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Well-Known Afghan Novelist Zaryab Remembered

December 11 marks the first anniversary of the death of well-known novelist, journalist and literary scholar Rahnaward Zaryab. He spent over 50 years of his life writing about Persian and Afghan culture and wrote acclaimed novels and other works.

Zaryab was born in 1944 in the Rika Khana area in Kabul.  

He had a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Kabul University and had pursued his education in Wales and New Zealand. 

“Today we are remembering the first anniversary of the death of Rahnaward Zaryab, who was a precious writer in Persian,” said Jawid Farhad, a writer.  

“When he was at the hospital in critical condition, the cultural society of Afghanistan wrote a letter to the first vice president to take (Zaryab) to India for treatment, but unfortunately, the letter was ignored,” said Mohammad Ishaq Faiz, a poet.  

Zaryab had written the script for the famous comedy Akhtar-e-Maskhara in 1981, and many of his writings have been published in Russian. 

His books and other writings made him famous beyond Afghanistan’s borders in Iran, Tajikistan and India.

Zaryab's novel Char Gerd Qala Gashtum won the best author award in Iran in 2016. 

He worked at Zhwandoon Magazine in Kabul as a crime reporter in the 1970s. 

He continued to work as a print and TV journalist and editor throughout his career and worked as an editor for TOLOnews TV in Kabul for over 10 years.  

He also held government positions in the Ministry of Information and Culture of Afghanistan. 

Zaryab lived in exile in France during the 1990s but returned to Kabul after the fall of the Taliban.  

He is survived by his wife Spozhmai Rauf and three daughters. 

Well-Known Afghan Novelist Zaryab Remembered

Zaryab's novel Char Gerd Qala Gashtum won the best author award in Iran in 2016. 

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December 11 marks the first anniversary of the death of well-known novelist, journalist and literary scholar Rahnaward Zaryab. He spent over 50 years of his life writing about Persian and Afghan culture and wrote acclaimed novels and other works.

Zaryab was born in 1944 in the Rika Khana area in Kabul.  

He had a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Kabul University and had pursued his education in Wales and New Zealand. 

“Today we are remembering the first anniversary of the death of Rahnaward Zaryab, who was a precious writer in Persian,” said Jawid Farhad, a writer.  

“When he was at the hospital in critical condition, the cultural society of Afghanistan wrote a letter to the first vice president to take (Zaryab) to India for treatment, but unfortunately, the letter was ignored,” said Mohammad Ishaq Faiz, a poet.  

Zaryab had written the script for the famous comedy Akhtar-e-Maskhara in 1981, and many of his writings have been published in Russian. 

His books and other writings made him famous beyond Afghanistan’s borders in Iran, Tajikistan and India.

Zaryab's novel Char Gerd Qala Gashtum won the best author award in Iran in 2016. 

He worked at Zhwandoon Magazine in Kabul as a crime reporter in the 1970s. 

He continued to work as a print and TV journalist and editor throughout his career and worked as an editor for TOLOnews TV in Kabul for over 10 years.  

He also held government positions in the Ministry of Information and Culture of Afghanistan. 

Zaryab lived in exile in France during the 1990s but returned to Kabul after the fall of the Taliban.  

He is survived by his wife Spozhmai Rauf and three daughters. 

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