Kabul’s ‘Jewish lion’ prepares to leave

KABUL: Zabulon Simintov is having a Passover meal in a solitary celebration of the Jewish holiday — the last one he is likely to observe in Afghanistan.

Now in his late 50s, Simintov has lived in Kabul through some of the capital’s darkest eras, witnessing a civil war, Soviet and US invasions, Taliban rule and the looming end to America’s decades-long engagement in the country, which he fears will plunge Afghanistan into chaos again.

After losing hope in the peace process, Simintov — the last known Afghan Jew remaining in the country — is preparing to leave.