It has been two years since a triumphant Taliban entered Kabul’s presidential palace, marking the end of the Afghan republic. The end was swift and decisive – but also chaotic: people trying to flee crowded the airport; pandemonium on the streets; and gun-toting fighters roaming, secure in the knowledge that they now had the upper hand.
The fraught energy of those days has since been replaced by a kind of torpor. The dust has settled on the Taliban’s victory and Afghanistan, diplomatically isolated and saddled with a misfiring economy, seems bogged down in inertia. Women and girls have been largely excluded from public life, poverty remains rife, the footprint of the international community and NGOs is shrinking, terrorist groups continue to pose a threat in some parts of the country and there seems to be little direction. According to the UN, more than 1.6 million Afghans have fled their homeland since 2021, bringing the Afghan refugee population to more than eight million people. The final Taliban push in 2021 took just a fortnight to deliver victory but winning the peace, it seems, has proven more difficult.
Afghanistan’s people have suffered far too much, and there is an urgent need for change. Effective politics always needs to be tempered by realism, and the reality here is that the Taliban are now firmly established as the sole governors of Afghanistan. Undoubtedly, the legality and morality of their claim to authority is to be questioned, but nonetheless accepting that it forms the current shape of things could be the starting point for finding ways to help the country’s people.
Intransigent refusals to engage with the Taliban have proved ineffectual. It is true that the militants are responsible for grave human rights abuses, which are often given as the reason for withholding financial support or maintaining sanctions, but the effect of these policies serves only to maintain the stalemate and has done little to persuade the Taliban to change their behaviour towards their own people. Rather it is people who are suffering the most from the current strategy of sanctions and international isolation. Establishing an international, coherent, constructive framework for working with the authorities in Kabul is long overdue. The international community, which thus far has mostly presented vague demands for “inclusivity” to the Taliban, must elaborate concrete and realistic steps that can lead Afghanistan’s rulers towards a modus vivendi.
Critics of this view, of course, raise a valid point: there is one clear demand on the table, the reopening of girls’ schools, and the Taliban have responded with empty promises. The Taliban are among the world’s most frustrating negotiators – their ideology is as rigid as it is extreme, so working with them on anything is a huge challenge. For any goodwill on the international community’s part to translate into a better life for Afghans, the militants must learn to embrace compromise. There are elements within the group who know this, and their voices should be amplified. In the meantime, however, the world must continue to explore more avenues for dialogue and persuasion, while insisting on providing Afghans with the most basic of human rights as a starting point.
There are no easy answers and no overnight solutions. There is a lack of trust on all sides. But a way out of Afghanistan’s current stasis will have to be based on some form of engagement, otherwise this inertia will still be in place this time next year. Two difficult years have passed – it is time for a new phase to emerge.
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
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Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Fight card
1. Featherweight 66kg: Ben Lucas (AUS) v Ibrahim Kendil (EGY)
2. Lightweight 70kg: Mohammed Kareem Aljnan (SYR) v Alphonse Besala (CMR)
3. Welterweight 77kg:Marcos Costa (BRA) v Abdelhakim Wahid (MAR)
4. Lightweight 70kg: Omar Ramadan (EGY) v Abdimitalipov Atabek (KGZ)
5. Featherweight 66kg: Ahmed Al Darmaki (UAE) v Kagimu Kigga (UGA)
6. Catchweight 85kg: Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) v Iuri Fraga (BRA)
7. Featherweight 66kg: Yousef Al Husani (UAE) v Mohamed Allam (EGY)
8. Catchweight 73kg: Mostafa Radi (PAL) v Ahmed Abdelraouf of Egypt (EGY)
9. Featherweight 66kg: Jaures Dea (CMR) v Andre Pinheiro (BRA)
10. Catchweight 90kg: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Juscelino Ferreira (BRA)
SOUTH%20KOREA%20SQUAD
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65
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if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre V6
Power: 295hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 355Nm at 5,200rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
Price: Dh179,999-plus
On sale: now
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Fight Night
FIGHT NIGHT
Four title fights:
Amir Khan v Billy Dib - WBC International title
Hughie Fury v Samuel Peter - Heavyweight co-main event
Dave Penalosa v Lerato Dlamini - WBC Silver title
Prince Patel v Michell Banquiz - IBO World title
Six undercard bouts:
Michael Hennessy Jr v Abdul Julaidan Fatah
Amandeep Singh v Shakhobidin Zoirov
Zuhayr Al Qahtani v Farhad Hazratzada
Lolito Sonsona v Isack Junior
Rodrigo Caraballo v Sajid Abid
Ali Kiydin v Hemi Ahio
RESULT
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai 0 Al Ain 6
Al Ain: Caio (5', 73'), El Shahat (10'), Berg (65'), Khalil (83'), Al Ahbabi (90' 2)
SPECS
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Real estate tokenisation project
Dubai launched the pilot phase of its real estate tokenisation project last month.
The initiative focuses on converting real estate assets into digital tokens recorded on blockchain technology and helps in streamlining the process of buying, selling and investing, the Dubai Land Department said.
Dubai’s real estate tokenisation market is projected to reach Dh60 billion ($16.33 billion) by 2033, representing 7 per cent of the emirate’s total property transactions, according to the DLD.
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
