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(Reuters Report) – From the ruins of a bombed-out palace above Kabul,
a young Afghan man bearing a striking resemblance to kung fu legend
Bruce Lee is high-kicking his way to Internet fame, aiming to show
another side to his war-weary nation.
Videos and photos of Abbas Alizada, 20, posted on the Facebook page
"Bruce Hazara" show him performing back flips and striking Lee's
famous poses. They blazed through Afghanistan's small Internet
community this week, part of a publicity burst he hopes will catapult
him to broader fame.
"I want to be a champion in my country and a Hollywood star," Alizada
said at Kabul's desolate Darulaman palace, where he trains twice a
week, swirling nunchakus and sporting a Lee-like bowl haircut.
At a workout at the palace, adorned with photos of thousands of
civilian war victims as part of a protest exhibition, Alizada showed
off his wiry physique, doing push-ups on his fingertips and sparring
with a partner. Two assistants dabbed his brow and fixed his hair for
the cameras.
Alizada is from a poor family of 10 children. His parents could not
afford the fees at an academy of Wushu, a Chinese mixed martial art,
but the trainer took him under his wing.
Darulaman palace, built in the 1920s by King Amanullah Khan, was
damaged by decades of fighting for control of the capital. It is now a
ruin pocked by artillery craters and bullet holes, overlooking an
as-yet-unfinished national parliament building.
"The destruction here makes me sad, but it also inspires me," said
Alizada, who refused to be filmed in one room where the walls were
daubed with graffiti reading "death to Americans".
He rejects the name Bruce Hazara given to him by friends in
recognition of his ethnic heritage, saying he prefers to be known as
the Afghan Bruce Lee in a country riven by tribal divides.
Questions of national unity are poignant in Afghanistan, where Taliban
insurgents are flexing their muscles with near-daily attacks.
This year has been the bloodiest of the war, as foreign troops
drastically reduce their presence.
Alizada's recent success on the Internet and at a martial arts
tournament in Kabul reflects some of the changes in the country since
the U.S.-led intervention toppled the Taliban after the Sept. 11, 2001
attacks.
Helped by the spread of TV and the Internet, Afghanistan has witnessed
a rapid rise in interest in sports under the government that succeeded
the hardline Islamists, who had banned television and many sports and
martial arts.
"The only news that comes from Afghanistan is about war … I am happy
that my story is a positive one," Alizada said.
