Afghan govt contacts Pakistan for Nat Geo green-eyed girl’s release

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GEO NEWS
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Afghan govt contacts Pakistan for Nat Geo green-eyed girl’s release

PESHAWAR: An Afghan diplomatic team on Thursday arrived in Peshawar for release of Sharbat Gula after her arrest over illegal documents, sources said.

The green-eyed Afghan girl shot to fame after a 1985 issue of National Geographic magazine published a memorable picture of her on its cover.

The Afghan government contacted Pakistan shortly afterwards the news of arrest got worldwide coverage.

According to sources, the release of Sharbat Gula is expected within 24 hours.

On Wednesday, Sharbat Gula was arrested by the FIA from the Nothia area for illegally possessing a Pakistani ID card. A court sent her on a two-day physical remand to the FIA.

Gula’s portrait 'Afghan Girl' appeared on the June 1985 cover of the National Geographic magazine and is recognised as 'its most recognized cover'. Her intense stare at the camera and expressionless face likened her to the famous 'Mona Lisa' painting. Sharbat who was pictured outside a refugee camp became a symbol of the human cost of the Soviet War.

Steve McCurry, the National Geographic journalist who photographed her in 1984, later began a search for her. After several unsuccessful attempts he found her in Afghanistan 17 years later and confirmed her identity using iris recognition. She never saw her picture till 2002.