{
  "id": 980655,
  "title": "Five years after the Taliban won, Afghanistan is still losing",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/five-years-after-the-taliban-won-afghanistan-is-still-losing",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-15T07:04:50.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Egypt Independent",
    "slug": "egypt-independent",
    "url": "https://www.egyptindependent.com/five-years-after-the-taliban-won-afghanistan-is-still-losing/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Five years have passed since the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan, and the nation continues to endure one of the world's most severe humanitarian and human rights crises. The United States, once the primary source of aid for the country, now ranks far down the list of donors, having cut humanitarian aid dramatically. Since the Taliban's return to power, women and girls have faced the most severe repercussions, with their rights being systematically stripped away under a regime likened to \"gender apartheid.\"\n\nUnder Taliban rule, girls are prohibited from attending school beyond the sixth grade, which has left a generation of girls without access to secondary education. This ban has effectively kept 2.4 million girls out of school. Women are barred from most jobs, forced to wear face coverings in public, and restricted from traveling long distances without a male chaperone. The isolation faced by women has led to a mental health emergency, with seven in ten women reporting their mental health as \"bad\" or \"very bad.\"\n\nAmnesty International and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child have warned that a recent Taliban decree legalizing men's right to beat their wives, provided no permanent harm is done, is legitimizing child marriage and will exacerbate the crisis. The decree also makes it more difficult for women to leave abusive marriages and lowers the minimum legal age for marriage from 16. This has resulted in a significant increase in child marriages since the Taliban's return to power. Former Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction John Sopko has described the situation for women in Afghanistan as \"hell\" and criticized the international community, particularly the Trump administration, for not taking any action to address the deteriorating situation.",
  "summary": "In the five years since the chaotic US withdrawal from Kabul and the Taliban’s return to power, Afghanistan has become home to one of the world’s worst human rights and humanitarian emergencies. Once central to US foreign policy, with American taxpayers footing a $2.3 trillion bill for its 20-year war there, Afghanistan and its people … The post Five years after the Taliban won, Afghanistan is…",
  "key_points": [
    "Five years since Taliban took control, Afghanistan faces severe humanitarian crisis.",
    "Women and girls suffer most under Taliban regime, rights systematically stripped.",
    "Child marriage increases, women's mental health in critical state, UN warns."
  ],
  "editors_take": "The Taliban's continued rule has entrenched a humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, particularly for women and girls, whose rights and freedoms have been severely curtailed, leading to a mental health emergency.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 6,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Middle East Eye",
        "title": "Five years of Taliban rule: A state has survived, but at what cost?",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/five-years-of-taliban-rule-a-state-has-survived-but-at-what-cost",
        "published": "2026-08-15T08:34:35.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Punch Nigeria",
        "title": "Taliban celebrates five years in power with military parades, celebrations",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/taliban-celebrates-five-years-in-power-with-military-parades",
        "published": "2026-08-15T08:34:59.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "France 24",
        "title": "Five years of Taliban rule: Afghan women face deepening repression",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/five-years-of-taliban-rule-afghan-women-face-deepening-repression",
        "published": "2026-08-15T08:49:40.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "NPR",
        "title": "They fought for the U.S. in Afghanistan. Now they worry about losing their green cards",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/they-fought-for-the-u-s-in-afghanistan-now-they-worry-about-losing",
        "published": "2026-08-15T09:00:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Winnipeg Free Press",
        "title": "Afghan advocates urge action for women as Taliban marks five years since takeover",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/15/afghan-advocates-urge-action-for-women-as-taliban-marks-five-years",
        "published": "2026-08-15T10:00:33.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}