The Taliban is responsible for atrocities dating back to the 1990s, but has never been held responsible. The international community can play a role in ending the impunity.
Forced from their homes by fighting between the Taliban and Afghan government forces, thousands of families seek refuge in a Kabul park.
Haroon Sabawoon/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
When the US invaded Afghanistan in late 2001, Afghans had endured 22 years of war. The Taliban were on the rise. Little has changed after an additional 20 years of war and suffering.
The people of Afghanistan that the author encountered live very different lives from Americans.
Brian Glyn Williams
As American troops leave Afghanistan, a scholar of the country’s history and culture reexamines his photos of the nation’s people.
Paving way for talks: Taliban members stand in front of a poster of President Ashraf Ghani after their release from prison in May 2020.
Jalil Rezayee/EPA
The US is taking an untraditional approach in its peace talks with the Taliban. The new deal does not contain many of the elements that are typically key to a successful peace negotiation.
US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad and Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar sign an agreement ending the US’s 18-year war in Afghanistan, Doha, Feb. 29, 2020.
GIUSEPPE CACACE/AFP via Getty Images
A peace deal with the Taliban has been signed. But rebuilding Afghanistan after three decades of conflict will take much more than an accord, says a scholar of peacebuilding.
Counting underway in Herat, Afghanistan.
Jalil Rezayee/EPA
Building a lasting peace in Afghanistan will take much more than an accord with the Taliban. In post-conflict nations, economic development and job creation are critical to national security.
A supporter of Ashraf Ghani takes part in an election rally in Kabul last month.
Jawad Jalali/EPA
According to a recent survey, Afghans rate their lives worse than anyone else on the planet. The election is unlikely to be a game changer considering the magnitude of challenges facing the country.
Supporters of incumbent Ashraf Ghani at a rally in Kabul ahead of elections on September 28.
Ghulamullah Habibi/EPA
A ceasefire and peace agreement in Afghanistan may mean that the Taliban would have to lose their “terrorist” classification and turn from despised outlaws to legitimate powerbrokers.