Kabul Zoo

Taliban soldiers cradling AK-47s and M16 assault rifles mingle among families at Kabul Zoo, a novelty experience for many of the young fighters from rural Afghanistan.

Its scarred lion Marjan was for years a symbol of Afghan survival. Now, more than a decade after his death, Afghanistan remains battered by war but Kabul zoo is buzzing again -- a haven for women, children and young lovers in a capital city that has little public space for anyone but men.

Taliban soldiers cradling AK-47s and M16 assault rifles mingle among families at Kabul Zoo, a novelty experience for many of the young fighters from rural Afghanistan.

Its scarred lion Marjan was for years a symbol of Afghan survival. Now, more than a decade after his death, Afghanistan remains battered by war but Kabul zoo is buzzing again -- a haven for women, children and young lovers in a capital city that has little public space for anyone but men.