On August 15, 2021, the Taliban violently seized control of Afghanistan from its democratically elected government. In the five years since, the Taliban have drastically curbed human rights in Afghanistan, including barring higher education for women and severely restricting their rights, and once again allowed Afghanistan to become a base for terrorist groups such as al-Qaeda.

Following its 2021 takeover of Kabul, the Taliban sought international legitimacy by promising a moderate government that respected human rights in the context of “Islamic law.” The Taliban have repeatedly promised to prevent terror groups from using Afghanistan as a base. Nonetheless, U.N. investigators have found that Afghanistan under Taliban rule remains “a permissive safe haven” for groups such as al-Qaeda. Neighboring Pakistan has also accused the Taliban of harboring militant bases and allowing terrorist groups to launch attacks on Pakistan from Afghan territory. Domestically, anti-Taliban opposition groups have begun launching violent attacks on Taliban targets, threatening a full civil war.

After the Taliban initially took control of Afghanistan in 1996, they closed all girls’ schools and prohibited women from appearing in public except under strict supervision by a male relative. Upon returning to power in 2021, the Taliban established new restrictions. A December 2021 proclamation affirmed the humanity of women, but did not address women’s education. In December 2022, the Taliban announced a total ban on the education of women and girls. In August 2024, the Taliban adopted a new morality law called the “Law on the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice,” which included provisions on women’s clothing, prohibition of women’s voices in public, and restriction of movement without a male relative. The law also granted morality police greater powers of enforcement. And this past June, the Taliban decreed that women may not appear in public without a “proper hijab,” while threatening punitive measures for those who do not comply. The morality police arrested at least 30 women in a five-day span after announcing the law.

The Taliban’s moves have drawn international condemnation, as well as legal repercussions. In July 2025, the International Criminal Court issued warrants for senior Taliban leaders Haibatullah Akhundzada and Abdul Hakim Haqqani for their alleged responsibility for the crime against humanity of persecution on gender and political grounds. Earlier this week, the ICC reportedly issued additional warrants for two more Taliban officials.

Nonetheless, the Taliban have made some diplomatic inroads. Russia became the first nation to formally recognize the Taliban government. Since then, other nations have elevated their relations with the Taliban and weighed recognition. This past June, the European Union hosted members of the Taliban for discussions on the return of Afghans facing deportation from the EU. Earlier this month, Germany negotiated a deal to allow Taliban-appointed officials to operate within Afghan diplomatic missions in Berlin and Bonn in exchange for Taliban cooperation in deporting Afghans from the country. Earlier this week, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights repeated a warning against normalization with the Taliban.

Five years since taking power, the Taliban government continues to demonstrate that it is not ready to be a part of the global community. The responsibility of governance has not moderated the Taliban. Before the September 11 attacks, the Taliban were an oppressive regime that allowed terrorism to flourish under their gaze. Since seizing control of Afghanistan again in 2021, the Taliban have decimated the human rights of ordinary Afghans and once again allowed Afghanistan to become a haven for despicable actors, including al-Qaeda. The Taliban continue to prove themselves to be irresponsible actors who place their hardline ideology above the needs of the Afghan people. International moves to grant the Taliban legitimacy reward this unacceptable behavior and cement the Taliban’s repressive regime, setting Afghanistan further back.

The international community must continue to reject any normalization with the Taliban until it fulfills its basic obligations to prevent terrorists from using Afghan territory and guarantee basic human rights to all Afghan citizens.