Photos of cockfighting in Afghan capital show a bloody pastime thriving in the shadows

Acceptance, Afghanistan (AP) – When a rooster fight begins in Kabul, noise is immediately. “Hit!” and “Kill!” The two birds explode between the audience as they fly to each other, feathers and blood.

This century of blood sport is once a widespread winter entertainment, but now in the Afghan capital, not only with tradition, but also in poverty, unemployment and helplessness.

The Taliban has banned rooster fighting since he seized power in 2021. Nevertheless, fights continue.

Men prepare their birds like award -winning athletes by keeping cash in temporary tents, gardens and back streets. They cool their roosters with scarves, and even spray water to the creatures with their mouths to revive them. The claws are connected. The beaks sharpen. Sometimes birds get energy boosters.

Fights can take several rounds of pause to clean the wounds and reset feathers. Victory is declared when a bird cannot continue.

Sometimes violence is poured out of the ring. Disputes shine on bets, leading to physical fights. The elderly, known as “white beard ,, intervene in calming tensions before the next match.

Cockfighting is not just a game. This is a source of livelihood, a gambling and a obsession for most. Bet families can leave poor or suddenly rich.

Mohammad, 63 -year -old, a rooster fighting, saw that lives have been transformed and destroyed for decades. He remembers how a man and his two sons die in a deadly fight.

Poor men bought a house with their earnings and the rich men lost everything.

Some owners treat their birds better than their own families, and spend money for food for special feed and medicine. The roosters give warrior names and speak with deep love from them.

Although bloodshed and illegal, fights continue. In a city shaped by conflict, the rooster fight continues to be a brutal escape, a form of control and pride.

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This is a photo gallery curated by AP photo editors.