Life and war in Afghanistan

Here, two little girls play with a prosthetic arm in Kabul. It is photographs like this one which have won the photo journalist Majid Saeedi from Tehran multiple awards.

Majid Saeedi took up photography at the age of 16. Over the past two decades he has focused on the human side of conflicts in South Asia and the Middle East and has been committed to these regions. His photos have been published in numerous prestigious magazines and newspapers, among them the German magazine DER SPIEGEL, the Washington Post and the New York Times.

Afghan people have been heavily influenced by decades of war. He portrays their lives in his newest photo set, provided to DW. Many of the pictures focus on children, such as this boy, who lost his arms in a landmine explosion.

Not only do the people speak of Afghanistan's past, the multitude of ruins throughout the country do as well.

The wounds of war and impressive landscapes - the contrast between the humane and the inhumane sides of war: one of the topics of Saeedi's photo documentation.

Drug addiction is a major problem in the country. Providing around 90 percent of the world's output, Afghanistan is by far the largest producer of opium. The number of those addicted to opiates is accordingly high. There's no official data as to how many children are addicted, but the UN puts it at around 300,000.

Here, cadets line up early in the morning at an academy in Kabul to start their day of training. The German Bundeswehr has been helping Afghanistan train its security forces for a over a decade. The goal is for Afghanistan to have its own functioning military and police system to ensure the country's stability after the withdrawal of foreign forces in 2014.

Here, a boy is disciplined by his teacher. Afghanistan does not have a good education system and many children must leave school early to work and earn money for their families. That is, if they go to school at all.

The decades since 1979 have had a drastic effect on education. According to statistics published by the German government in the summer of 2011, around 72 percent of men 93 percent of women had no formal education. The illiteracy rate was around 70 percent.

Here, women participating in classes provided by a Malaysian NGO learn how to make dolls. Each class has up to 80 participants. The goal is to help them become independent.

After a Taliban attack in the spring of 2011 - shortly after the killing of Osama bin Laden - four people were killed and 36 left wounded. This photo shows two of the injured victims in a hospital.

Here, two sportsmen relax after their work out. Bodybuilding is one of the most popular sports in Afghanistan.

The past 30 years have greatly influenced Afghan life - a fact that can be seen in the most unexpected of places.

Here, pupils concentrate at a madrassa in Kandahar, 2011.

Public dog fighting is very popular in Afghanistan. The dogs are trained to be aggressive and kill their opponent.

Those who suffer from psychological ailments are often held in inhumane conditions, isolated from the rest of society. Here, patients of a psychiatric ward lie in chains in the western Afghan city of Herat.

Akram lost both of his arms. He removes both prostheses before going to sleep. He shares this fate with many other children in Afghanistan.

Majid Saeedi tries to portray unspoken social problems, violence and social injustices in his photography. For his achievements Saeedi won first prize of the 2014 addition of the Lucas Dolega Award held in the French capital, Paris.