A commemorative gathering marking Afghanistan’s Martyrs’ Week was held Sunday in Elk Grove, Sacramento, bringing together members of the Afghan community to remember Ahmad Shah Massoud, Afghanistan’s National Hero, and Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani, the country’s former president and former chairman of the High Peace Council.
The event, held on September 6, 2026, marked the 25th anniversary of Massoud’s assassination and the 15th anniversary of Rabbani’s assassination. It was attended by community activists, academics, cultural figures, women and young people from the Afghan community in Northern California.
Speakers at the gathering discussed the two leaders’ political, academic and social contributions and their roles in Afghanistan’s modern history. Massoud was widely known for his resistance to the Soviet occupation and later for his fight against the Taliban. He was officially honored as Afghanistan’s National Hero during Hamid Karzai’s presidency.
Rabbani, a professor and former president of Afghanistan, was also remembered for his political and academic career and for his later role in efforts to pursue peace with the Taliban. He was assassinated in Kabul in September 2011 while serving as chairman of the High Peace Council.
The gathering took place amid Afghanistan’s continued rule by the Taliban. Speakers criticized restrictions on civil and political freedoms and pointed to the continued closure of secondary schools for girls, restrictions on women’s participation in public life and limits on political and civic activities.
They also discussed the political and military developments surrounding the deaths of Massoud, Rabbani and other Afghan political and military figures, placing their assassinations within the broader conflicts that have shaped Afghanistan over the past several decades.
Excerpts from speeches by Massoud and Rabbani on Afghanistan’s political developments, national issues and the country’s future were also screened during the program.
Martyrs’ Week has historically been observed in Afghanistan around the anniversary of Massoud’s assassination on September 9.
The Elk Grove gathering concluded with further discussion of Afghanistan’s current political situation and the historical and political legacy of the two leaders.
