Mariam Abou Zahab

Mariam Abou Zahab (1952–2017) first travelled to South Asia and Afghanistan in 1973, and was an eyewitness among the anti-Soviet mujahideen. Fluent in Hindi, Urdu, Arabic, Persian and Pashto, she was a specialist of South Asian Islam, particularly Shiism. Her expertise extended to the Pashtun belt and South Waziristan.