As signs of resistance grow, the Taliban may find it difficult to take full control of Afghanistan

Editorial: Sporadic demonstrations in the cities, featuring the old Afghan flag, suggest that there are some who are prepared to defy the Taliban

21 June 2021 (Brian Adcock)

Afghanistan, as the cliche goes, is the graveyard of empires. It is also, not coincidentally, an extremely difficult country to rule.

Even during the rule of the Taliban in the late 1990s, when the group was at its most powerful, it was only able to exert control over the country by the use of extreme force, by doing deals with tribal warlords, by deploying elements of al-Qaeda to terrorise its own people, and with the indulgent assistance of the Pakistani authorities.

Even then, there were portions of the country – especially in the north, with its patchwork of ethnic groups – where resistance ensured the Taliban’s power was fettered. Even then, in other words, the Taliban was not quite in absolute control of the country, and there are indications that it may now be able to exert much less control.