Afghanistan has completed five years under Taliban rule, a period marked by sweeping social restrictions, particularly on women and girls, tighter controls over the media and the return of public corporal punishment.

The Taliban captured Kabul on August 15, 2021, following the collapse of the previous Afghan government and the withdrawal of US-led international forces. Five years later, the group has consolidated its control over the country, while Afghanistan's economy has recorded some signs of recovery.

However, the economic improvements have taken place alongside continued international criticism over human rights and restrictions on fundamental freedoms.

Taliban Seizes Kabul

The Taliban entered Kabul on August 15, 2021, bringing the previous government to an abrupt end.

Commercial flights were suspended as thousands of Afghans rushed towards Hamid Karzai International Airport in an attempt to leave the country. Images of people attempting to cling to a departing US Air Force C-17 aircraft became one of the defining scenes of the chaotic evacuation.

The Taliban initially promised that women would retain their rights within an Islamic framework and that people who had worked with the previous government or foreign forces would receive amnesty.

Those assurances were followed by a series of increasingly restrictive policies.

Women Face Severe Restrictions

Afghanistan has become the only country where girls are formally barred from secondary education and women are excluded from university education under Taliban policy.

The restrictions extend beyond education. Women have faced limits on employment, travel, access to public spaces and other areas of daily life.

According to United Nations findings cited in the report, the Taliban has issued more than 100 decrees affecting women since 2021.

A UN survey found that around seven in ten Afghan women described their mental health as bad or very bad. More than half said they left their homes only once or twice a month, while nearly three-quarters reported feeling unsafe outside without a male guardian.

Women also account for only a small share of formal employment compared with men.

Public Punishment Returns

Corporal punishment has also returned as a visible feature of Afghanistan's justice system.

According to Human Rights Watch, courts ordered corporal punishment in at least 18 cases between August 2021 and November 2022, with many involving offences classified as moral crimes.

In December 2022, 27 people were publicly flogged before a crowd at a stadium in Parwan province.

While corporal punishment existed under previous Afghan governments as well, rights organisations have criticised the Taliban for implementing such punishments more openly and regularly.

Media Freedom Under Pressure

Afghanistan's media sector has also undergone major changes since the Taliban takeover.

The Committee to Protect Journalists has described the country as one of the world's most difficult environments for journalists. Numerous Afghan journalists have left the country since 2021 amid security concerns and restrictions.

Among the measures reported during Taliban rule are restrictions on live political broadcasts, limitations on criticism of Taliban leadership and tighter controls over the selection of guests appearing on television programmes.

The Taliban has also expanded its own media presence. By 2025, it reportedly controlled or directly influenced a significant network of television, radio, newspaper and digital media outlets.

Economy Shows Recovery

Despite sanctions, international isolation and reduced foreign assistance, Afghanistan's economy has shown some signs of stabilisation.

According to the World Bank, real GDP grew by 4.8% in 2025, while domestic government revenue increased to around 19.8% of GDP.

However, the recovery has not translated into broad improvements in living standards. Per-capita income remains below pre-2021 levels, while limited banking access, electricity shortages, dependence on imports and a large informal economy continue to constrain growth.

The reduction in foreign aid has also placed additional pressure on households and businesses.

Opium Production Falls

One of the most significant changes under Taliban rule has been the dramatic decline in poppy cultivation.

Afghanistan was the world's largest source of opium when the Taliban returned to power. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime had estimated that the country accounted for a substantial share of global opium production.

After the Taliban announced a ban on poppy cultivation in April 2022, cultivation fell sharply. UNODC reported a 95% decline in poppy cultivation in 2023.

The reduction has been welcomed from a narcotics-control perspective, although it has also created economic difficulties for farmers who previously depended on poppy cultivation for income.

Russia Recognises Taliban Government

Afghanistan's diplomatic position has also evolved since 2021.

Russia became the first country to formally recognise the Taliban government, marking a significant development in the group's international relations.

The Taliban has said it maintains diplomatic contacts with around 40 countries and argues that it has met conditions required for wider recognition.

India has increased diplomatic engagement with Kabul without formally recognising the Taliban government. In October 2025, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi visited India, marking the first visit by a senior Taliban government official to the country.

China and the United Arab Emirates have also accepted ambassadors appointed by the Taliban, although neither country has formally recognised the government.

Five Years of Contrasting Developments

Five years after the Taliban's return to power, Afghanistan presents a mixed picture.

The authorities have maintained territorial control, increased domestic revenue and sharply reduced poppy cultivation. At the same time, restrictions on women and girls, pressure on journalists and the use of corporal punishment have drawn sustained criticism from international organisations.

The country's future remains closely tied to whether the Taliban can balance economic recovery with demands for greater rights and freedoms, while also seeking wider international acceptance.

For millions of Afghans, the fifth anniversary therefore represents not only a change in political leadership but also a profound transformation of everyday life.

The Strike That Shocked the World

In the deadliest single incident of the ongoing Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict, a Pakistani airstrike struck the Omar Addiction Treatment Hospital in Kabul at approximately 9 p.m. local time on March 16, killing at least 400 people and injuring around 250 others. The facility — a 2,000-bed drug rehabilitation centre known as "Omid," meaning "Hope," located in a former NATO camp — was housing thousands of young Afghans battling addiction, one of the country's most severe social crises.

This was not a military base. This was a hospital full of patients.

The Pakistan airstrike on Kabul's Omid hospital is not just a tragedy — it is a turning point. Whatever the truth of competing narratives, the images of rescue workers using flashlights to carry bodies from burning rubble demand a global response.

What Happened: A Timeline

The conflict began in late February when Pakistan launched airstrikes inside Afghanistan that Kabul said killed civilians. Afghanistan retaliated with cross-border attacks, disrupting a ceasefire that Qatar had brokered in October 2024. Since then, Pakistan has declared itself in a state of "open war" with Afghanistan.

On the day of the hospital strike, Afghan officials reported that mortar shells from Pakistan struck villages in Khost province, killing four people including two children, as fighting entered its third week. That same evening, the Omid hospital was hit.

Television footage showed firefighters struggling to extinguish flames among the ruins of the building, while security forces carried out casualties under flashlight in the dark.

Pakistan Denies It. Afghanistan Calls It a Crime Against Humanity.

The two sides are telling vastly different stories.

Pakistan's Ministry of Information stated that its strikes precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure in Kabul and Nangarhar, and that its targeting was "precise and carefully undertaken to ensure no collateral damage."

Afghanistan's government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid flatly rejected that version, accusing Pakistan of "targeting hospitals and civilian sites to perpetrate horrors" and calling the act "against all accepted principles and a crime against humanity."

A Taliban health spokesman confirmed that the death toll could rise further, as rescue teams were still pulling bodies from the rubble.

The truth of what happened inside that facility matters enormously — but the scale of death demands accountability regardless of which narrative holds up to scrutiny.

The Bigger Picture: Why This Conflict Keeps Escalating

At the heart of this war is a long-running accusation. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of providing safe haven to the Pakistani Taliban (TTP), designated a terrorist organisation by the United States, as well as to Baloch separatist groups who regularly attack Pakistani civilians and security forces. Kabul flatly denies this.

China's Foreign Ministry confirmed that its special envoy has been shuttling between Kabul and Islamabad to mediate, urging both sides to "remain calm, exercise restraint," and achieve a ceasefire through dialogue. The international community is watching closely — and nervously — because the region is also home to al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, both of which have been attempting to resurface.

The UN Speaks — But Is Anyone Listening?

Hours before the hospital strike, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling on Afghanistan's Taliban rulers to immediately step up efforts to combat terrorism. The resolution also extended the UN political mission in Afghanistan for three months. It condemned terrorist activity in the strongest terms — but crucially did not name Pakistan.

That omission reflects the geopolitical tightrope the international community is walking. Naming Pakistan would escalate diplomatic tensions. Staying silent enables a war with no ceasefire in sight.

The World Cannot Look Away

The Pakistan airstrike on Kabul's hospital is a moment that strips away the language of military precision and lays bare the human cost of this conflict. Whether the building housed patients or militants — and overwhelming evidence points to the former — 400 people are dead and 250 are injured. Rescue workers are still pulling bodies from the fire.

South Asia cannot afford a full-scale war between two nuclear-armed neighbours in an already volatile neighbourhood. The international community's calls for restraint have so far gone unheeded. That must change — now.