After two years of Taliban rule in Afghanistan, women and girls pay the price

The Taliban have kept a struggling economy afloat and improved domestic security, but they have also introduced a slew of bans on Afghan girls and women, barring them from parks, gyms, universities, and jobs at non-governmental groups and the United Nations

A Taliban fighter stands guard as women wait to receive food rations distributed by a humanitarian aid group in Kabul in May. File photo: AP/Ebrahim Noroozi

The Taliban have settled in as rulers of Afghanistan, two years after they seized power as US and NATO forces withdrew from the country following two decades of war.

The Taliban face no significant opposition that could topple them. They have avoided internal divisions by falling in line behind their ideologically unbending leader.