by Abdul Haleem

KABUL, March 4 (Xinhua) -- Nearly three dozen Afghan girls have joined a boxing club in the relatively secure Afghan capital Kabul after an Islamic State group-claimed suicide bombing killed scores of athletes at a wrestling center last year.

Girls between 15 and 20 years old are seen in the Fajr Sport Complex, a training center for athletes throwing punches in a ring, as members of the recently established boxing club, aiming at breaking cultural barriers to become professional boxers to defend themselves in the traditional society where women sometimes are teased on streets.

"Boxing removes fear of mine and is my favorite sport, and exercising the art enables a girl to defend herself in the Afghan society, which is not still safe for girls," a 19-year-old trainee Zakia Hussaini told Xinhua.

Zakia's ambition was to become an Afghan boxing medal winner and could proudly wave the flag of her country once in regional and international tournaments.

Although, in Afghanistan, where war, violence and the abuse of women rights are still common, joining sport is challenging not only for girls but also for boys.

Last year, 20 sportsmen were killed after an explosive-laden car went off near a sport club west of Kabul.

But, Zakia who dreamed of becoming an Olympic medalist in the future, believed that every girl should be self-relied and do what she wants, not to be overshadowed by others or vicious traditions.

Blemished from malicious individuals, even the gory past of the Taliban militants ranging from stoning women for adultery and public execution and most importantly the deadly terrorist attacks that took dozens of lives didn't spook the brave Zakia who was multiple times warned by some individuals not to attend the boxing club.

"Only my parents have backed me and supported me in my decision to become a boxer in future," Zakia who was heavily gasping due to heavily punching, murmured.

More than 1,000 teenagers are now practicing in various sports in the Fajr Sport Complex, with 35 girls attending the boxing club created four months ago within the training center, Besmillah Naseh, who is in charge of the boxing field in the sport Complex, told Xinhua.

"Girls are more interested in boxing than boys, and this is why we created this training center within the sport complex," said Naseh who also works as professional boxing manager for the Ministry of Interior's Athletes Association.

Naseh hoped a talented female fighter from his boxing club could shine well in a boxing competition expected to be held in April in Kabul, as he expected his trainees to qualify for Asian boxing tournaments in the future.

Girls are seen eagerly throwing punches at the punching bags inside the training hall, while many Afghans still consider attending sport clubs as a taboo for women and girls in the conservative Afghan society.