Taliban hard-line path worsens Afghanistan dilemma
Reminiscent of their previous harsh rule in the 1990s, the Taliban have already begun to wipe out some of Afghanistan's gains of 20 years. They've denied women a seat at the Cabinet, beaten journalists into silence and enforced their severe interpretation of Islam, on occasion violently.
And yet there seems little the international community can do about it. The world will need to engage with the Taliban to some extent, despite disappointment with the new allTaliban Cabinet that defied earlier promises it would be inclusive.
The U.S. needs Taliban cooperation to evacuate the remaining Americans and to fight an increasingly brazen Islamic State affiliate, considered the greatest terrorist threat against America emanating from Afghanistan. In recent weeks, the IS flag has been seen flying from several districts of the eastern province of Nangarhar.
Meanwhile, a humanitarian disaster that threatens millions of Afghans has the world scrambling to respond. On most days, Qatar is flying in food and medical supplies. Pakistan has announced it is sending planeloads of aid to Afghanistan.
The United Nations has launched a $606 million emergency appeal to help nearly 11 million people in Afghanistan, or nearly onethird of the population. They are deemed to be in desperate need as a result of drought, displacement, chronic poverty and a sharp increase in hostilities as the Taliban swept to power last month.
Even before the Taliban takeover, nearly half the population needed some humanitarian aid and more than half of all children under the age of 5 were expected to face acute malnutrition, according to the U.N. report that accompanied the emergency appeal.
The economic challenges are steep. Most Afghans live on less than $2 a day, 80% of the country's budget was covered by international funds over the past 20 years, and no industries of note have emerged to provide employment to a mostly young population. Tens of thousands of Afghans have fled, most of them members of the educated elite.
Yet despite such dependence on international support, the Taliban sent a message with their Cabinet lineup this week that they intend to run Afghanistan on their terms.
They named a government filled with veterans of their 1990s rule and the subsequent insurgency against a U.S.-led military coalition. Their Cabinet includes former Guantanamo Bay prisoners and - perhaps one of the most eyebrow-raising appointments - Sirajuddin Haqqani, wanted by the FBI for questioning in several deadly attacks, as interior minister.
They also forbade protests without prior authorization in a new attempt to silence dissent and reportedly banned some women's sports.
The Taliban would seem to want it both ways to run Afghanistan according to their harsh interpretation of Islam, while maintaining some level of cooperation with the international community.
In portraying their Cabinet as a caretaker administration, the Taliban signaled there is still room for change and that other nations can do business with this government without recognizing it first.
In a three-page policy statement that accompanied the formation of the government, the Taliban also addressed concerns of the region and the larger world. They promised Afghanistan would not be used as a staging arena for attacks on other countries.
They said they would not interfere in the affairs of other nations and demanded the same in return. And they pledged to allow Afghans to leave the country, provided they have the proper travel documents.
"I imagine the use of the term "caretaker" is very strategic," said Michael Kugelman, deputy director of the Asia Program at the U.S.-based Wilson Center. "The idea is to create an impression that at some point the government will change and become more inclusive, and therefore more amenable to the West.