Angelina Jolie makes Instagram debut with letter from an Afghan girl

Angelina Jolie made her Instagram debut this week. File/AFP
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Updated 21 August 2021
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Angelina Jolie makes Instagram debut with letter from an Afghan girl

DUBAI: Hollywood actress and humanitarian Angelina Jolie has finally joined Instagram. The 46-year-old made her debut on the social media platform on Saturday.

But do not expect outfit-of-the-day mirror pictures or skincare tutorials from Jolie. The actress, who is also a special envoy for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said she joined the photo-sharing app “to share … stories and the voices of those across the globe who are fighting for their basic human rights.”

Her first post on the platform was an emotional handwritten letter she had received from a teenage girl in Afghanistan.

Using her platform to highlight the plight of women and young girls from Afghanistan amid the Taliban takeover, Jolie shared the letter, which hid the young woman’s identity but shared details of her fears about living in the country.

An excerpt read “20 years and again we have no rights. The life of all of us is dark. We all lost our freedom, and we are imprisoned again.”

In a lengthy caption that accompanied the post, which has garnered nearly two million likes since it was posted, Jolie wrote: “Right now, the people of Afghanistan are losing their ability to communicate on social media and to express themselves freely. So I’ve come on Instagram to share their stories and the voices of those across the globe who are fighting for their basic human rights.”

The actress went on to share that she met Afghan refugees when she was on Afghanistan’s border back in 2011.




Angelina Jolie in Afghanistan in 2011. AFP

She added: “It is sickening to watch Afghans being displaced yet again out of the fear and uncertainty that has gripped their country.

“To spend so much time and money, to have bloodshed and lives lost only to come to this, is a failure almost impossible to understand.

“Watching for decades how Afghan refugees — some of the most capable people in the world — are treated like a burden is also sickening.”

She concluded by stating that she will “not turn away,” adding: “I will continue to look for ways to help. And I hope you’ll join me.”


Incoming: The biggest TV shows coming your way before summer 2026 

Updated 2 min 28 sec ago
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Incoming: The biggest TV shows coming your way before summer 2026 

  • From the return of an iconic comedy to the end of TV’s most twisted superhero saga, here are the series you need to see 

‘A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms’ 

Starring: Peter Claffey, Dexter Sol Ansell, Finn Bennett 

HBO may be taking its George R.R. Martin tribute a little too far with the delayed release of their latest venture into the “Game of Thrones” universe, based on Martin’s “Tales of Dunk and Egg” novellas.The show follows hedge knight Ser Duncan the Tall (Dunk) and his young squire Aegon Targaryen (Egg) — who will grow up to become King Aegon V — on their adventures across Westeros. It’s finally set to drop Jan. 11. The reception for HBO’s other “GoT” spinoff, “House of the Dragon,” the third season of which is due this summer, has been lukewarm. Can “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” recapture the old magic? 

‘The Pitt’ 

Starring: Noah Wyle, Tracy Ifeachor, Patrick Ball 

The winner of 2025’s Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series returns (along with its Emmy-winning regular cast members — Wyle and Katherine LaNasa) Jan. 8 for another glimpse into the lives of the staff at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center, led by attending physician Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch. The tense, claustrophobic first season covered a single 15-hour shift in real time. This second outing will do the same, set on Independence Day nearly 10 months after the events of season one, on the first day back at work after attending rehab for Robinavitch’s right-hand man, senior resident Dr. Langdon (Ball).  

‘The Night Manager’ 

Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Olivia Colman, Alistair Petrie 

Nearly a decade on from its acclaimed first season, this spy thriller — inspired by the work of John Le Carré — sees Hiddleston returning as Jonathan Pine; although he’s now living as Alex Goodwin, a low-level MI6 officer, in London. But when that new identity is threatened by a face from the past, he’s plunged into a twisty plot involving arms deals, guerillas, and a new nemesis, Colombian businessman Teddy Dos Santos (Diego Calva). Due out on Amazon Prime on Jan. 11. 

‘Industry’  

Starring: Myha’la Herrold, Marisa Abela, Kit Harrington 

The ‘special relationship’ between the US and the UK may be cooling, but this HBO/BBC joint production, at least, is thriving. Season four of the high-stakes finance drama, which debuts Jan. 11, sees a new fintech executive, Whitney Halberstram (Max Minghella, best known as Nick in “The Handmaid’s Tale”) shaking up London, while the employees of investment bank Pierpoint & Co continue to navigate their chaotic personal and professional lives. Charlie Heaton, fresh from “Stranger Things,” also joins the cast as financial journalist Jim Dycker. 

‘Scrubs’  

Starring: Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke 

February sees the return of Bill Lawrence’s much-loved medical sitcom, with many of the original cast members returning, at least for cameos, and the three main characters — Dr. John “J.D.” Dorian (Braff), surgeon Chris Turk (Faison), and Dr. Elliot Reid (Chalke) — taking center stage once again, 16 years after the season nine finale. This time around, they’ll be the ones teaching the interns how to do their jobs, attempting to emulate their mentor Dr. Perry Cox (John C. McGinley), who’s still knocking around Sacred Heart hospital.