On Tuesday, the last US troops left Kabul and the day had broken on a country entirely controlled by the Taliban, the last shadow of American threat banished.
It is still uncertain what this second iteration of the caliphate will look like, but with foreigners finally gone, the shape of the new Afghanistan will come into sharper focus.
The Taliban have made clear they want to avoid a repeat of their 1990s rule when they presided over an international pariah state, mismanaged the economy and increased repression as discontent spread. What is less clear is whether they can achieve that, or how they will attempt it.
The pivot from fighting an insurgency to managing the government was always going to be difficult, and the Taliban have had less time to prepare than they expected. The speed with which Kabul fell caught even the Taliban by surprise, co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar has admitted, and it is clear the group had not yet pinned down who would rule, and how.
“They are so slow. I assume they have to announce a government when the Americans leave, but it’s really taking a long time and has potential to spin out of control,” said Ashley Jackson, co-director of the centre for the study of armed groups at the Overseas Development Institute, who has researched the Taliban for many years. “Particularly with the threat from IS [Islamic State] attacks, they have to show they are strong and can guarantee security.”
Last week’s IS suicide attack at Kabul airport, which is known to have killed nearly 200 people, including 13 US service members, underlined the security challenges the Taliban will face. They have offered in the past – and are offering again – a respite from the horrors of war, as justification for their harsh rules.
Denne historien er fra September 03, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra September 03, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
No 298 Bean, cabbage and coconut-milk soup
Deep, sweet heat. A soup that soothes and invigorates simultaneously.
Cottage cheese goes viral: in reluctant praise of a food trend
I was asked recently which food trends I think will take over in 2025.
I'm worried that my teenage son is in a toxic relationship
A year ago, our almost 18-year-old son began seeing a girl, who is a year older than him and is his first \"real\" girlfriend.
BOOKS OF THE MONTH
A roundup of the best recent science fiction, fantasy and horror
Dying words
The Nobel prize winner explores the moment of death and beyond in a probing tale of a fisher living in near solitude
Origin story
We homo sapiens evolved and succeeded when other hominins didn't-but now our expansionist drive is threatening the planet
Glad rags to riches
Sarcastic, self-aware and surprisingly sad, the first volume of Cher's extraordinary memoir mixes hard times with the high life
Sail of the century
Anenigmatic nautical radio bulletin first broadcast 100 years ago, the Shipping Forecast has beguiled and inspired poets, pop stars and listeners worldwide
How does it feel?
A Complete Unknown retells Bob Dylan's explosive rise, but it als resonates with today's toxic fame and politics. The creative team expl their process-and wha the singer made of it all
Jane Austen's enduring legacy lies in her relevance as a foil for modern mores
For some, it will be enough merely to re-read Persuasion, and thence to cry yet again at Captain Wentworth's declaration of utmost love for Anne Elliot.
