DOUNIAMAG-US-POLITICS-AFGHANISTAN-CHILDREN

Members of the Afghan all-girls robotics team work with their robot in the practice area on July 17, 2017, between 2017 FIRST Global Challenge competitions at DAR Constitution Hall, in Washington, DC. A team of Afghan girls prevailed in their first encounter at an international robotics competition in Washington Monday, but the result was perhaps less significant than the fact they made it at all. Twice denied visas into the United States until a late intervention by the Trump administration, the team of six from the war-torn country's western Herat are now determined to strike a blow for gender equality and national pride. / AFP PHOTO / PAUL J. RICHARDS (Photo credit should read PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images)