Arms against fury: Magnum photographers in Afghanistan - Hardcover

"Arms Against Fury" investigates the dramatic struggles of the Afghan people through the lens of Magnum photographers, from co-founder George Rodger's documentation of the country's role in World War II, through years of turmoil and ultimately to the overthrow of the Taliban in 2001. As early as the 1950s, Eve Arnold and Marc Riboud filed stories from a small kingdom struggling for statehood against the forces of under-development and an unfortunate geographical position in the Cold War. The arrival of Soviet-style communism in 1978 initiated a jihad that was covered first by Raymond Depardon and then by Steve McCurry, and later by photojournalist Abbas who also focused on the massive Red Army invasion and occupation. The victory against the Soviets also signalled the beginning of a civil war that began in 1992. Observed by Luc Delahaye, Chris Steele-Perkins, Abbas and McCurry, Afghan militias destroyed large swathes of Kabul. The Taliban militia subdued warring factions in 1996 and proclaimed an Islamic emirate. Steele-Perkins was one of the few journalists to report from Afghanistan during this period of theocratic tyranny. In the wake of of September 11th, the hated Taliban were finally shaken from power. Yet nothing seemed to remedy the miserable spectacle of a ruined country littered with ten million land mines and thousands of innocent victims of the hi-tech war on terror. As depicted by Abbas, Delahaye, Thomas Dworzak, Alex Majoli and Francesco Zizola, the future of Afghanistan remains uncertain. The volume contains additional photographs by Ian Berry, Elliott Erwitt, Stuart Franklin, Philip Jones Griffiths, Susan Meisellas and Wayne Miller, commentary by the photographers and illustrated essays.

Robert Dannin was editorial director of Magnum from 1985-1990 and has edited photojournalists' work for over 25 years.