Divorce, smartphones and control - BBC sees how Taliban run Afghanistan

The BBC has investigated how the Taliban governs Afghanistan, examining issues from divorce to smartphone usage and the group's control.

Abdullah Sarhadi, the governor of Jawzjan province and a former Taliban fighter, spent several years in US detention at Guantanamo Bay.

In his office in northern Afghanistan, Governor Sarhadi, after providing funds for a boy's broken arm treatment and a local mosque, engaged in a remarkable discussion. A young woman, her face completely obscured by a full-face veil and sunglasses, calmly and confidently presented her case for divorce from her husband, whom she accused of months of abuse and beatings. Despite girls being prohibited from secondary education in the country, the 18-year-old was resolute, stating, "If there was any chance to live together, I wouldn't be here… I have taken my decision."

After attempting to dissuade her from divorce, the governor later remarked that women are "mindless" and "deficient in intellect," eliciting laughter from the surrounding male officials, bodyguards, and elders. This interaction offered a rare insight into the daily realities of Taliban rule, five years after they overthrew the US-backed government in 2021. Since then, women have been largely excluded from most workplaces, banned from universities, and are prohibited from traveling alone or visiting parks and leisure centers.

Over two years, the BBC gained unique access to influential figures within the extreme Islamist movement, spending time with individuals who once orchestrated suicide attacks or lived in underground hideouts, but now serve as officials and soldiers. The Taliban, upon assuming power, claimed to have changed, yet many of their policies mirror the strict interpretation of Sharia (Islamic religious law) they enforced in the 1990s. The men interviewed appeared eager to project an image of reasonableness but were reluctant to discuss their violent past. The BBC also observed moments of tension between the rulers and the ruled.

Governor Sarhadi advised the woman, identified as Tuba (not her real name), to remain married. "Ask yourself: 'Who would marry me after I get my divorce?'" Sarhadi questioned. "You'll have to compromise a lot or you'll lose your dignity and honour." Tuba retorted, "Mr Governor, my honour and dignity have already been ruined." Her husband listened, awaiting his turn to speak.

Under Sharia, a woman seeking a divorce with her husband's consent may be required to return some or all of the money given to her by him at the time of marriage, often involving a financial settlement. However, Tuba's husband demanded four times the original amount, which her family refused to pay. The governor suggested that the woman be given her own room and added that officials would warn the husband against beating her, "otherwise he'd be jailed."

Dissatisfied, Tuba's father later informed the BBC that the family would pursue divorce through the courts, despite the difficulty for a woman to obtain a divorce without her husband's consent under the Taliban's judicial system.

Sarhadi served as a military commander during the Taliban's initial period of power in the 1990s. He was among thousands of insurgents who surrendered in late 2001 when a US-led coalition ousted the group. After several years in US detention at Guantanamo Bay, he was eventually released. Upon the Taliban's return to power, he became a governor, first in Bamiyan province, and then in Sheberghan city, Jawzjan province, when the BBC met him in late June. He has recently been appointed deputy commander of a military corps in the northern province of Kunduz.

Using an older model mobile phone with a small screen, Sarhadi noted that a recent ban on smartphones for officials had slowed down operations. "Before, you could send a quick message… sending documents and getting an answer fast." He added that further comments on the ban would "cause trouble." However, his worldview largely aligns with the Taliban's stance from 25 years ago. At that time, as a military commander in Bamiyan, he oversaw the destruction of ancient giant Buddha statues, an act that drew international shock and condemnation.

Initially, he tried to avoid questions about the archaeological site but eventually stated, "I destroyed it with my own hands. Whatever we did and we do is in accordance with the guidance and God's law… We smash idols rather than sell them. Why should I regret? It was God's will."

In Kabul, the capital, the BBC met another senior Taliban figure, Habibullah Badr, who transitioned from a violent past to a role within the ruling administration. Badr, driving an armored car through the streets, claimed he was previously "responsible for the operations of suicide attackers" in Kabul. "I know all the roads and streets very well… we had all the information we needed about Kabul and its alleys," he said. "There were areas that needed a long time to plan." Taliban suicide attacks resulted in thousands of deaths in Afghanistan, including many civilians.

Badr was hesitant to discuss his past, fearing it would "make people upset" and "reopen wounds." When asked about civilian casualties, he asserted that the Taliban targeted US convoys and urged civilians to avoid foreign bases. He consistently evaded questions about specific attacks in civilian areas. Currently on leave for medical treatment, Badr previously served as deputy head of prisons nationwide and managed the very jail where he was once held on death row under the previous government.

Badr invited the BBC to a tribal gathering where the head of a charitable foundation was to honor him with a medal. However, the event took an unexpected turn. Sultan Mohammad Talaee, the foundation head, stated, "Mr Badr is a pride for Afghanistan and a great fighter. But I also have a complaint. If the schools and education were open to all it would be a great work for Afghanistan. I hope this doesn't offend you." An awkward silence followed, with the audience unsure how to react. Talaee's microphone was quickly removed. Afterward, he told the BBC, "I requested for the girls' schools to reopen… seeking knowledge is an obligation for both men and women in Islam." He added, "There were other things I wanted to say but they didn't let me talk more."

Those who speak out often face more severe repercussions. Women shared their profound despair over dreams shattered by educational restrictions and spoke of friends imprisoned for protesting. Most journalists interviewed reported being summoned or questioned by the Taliban's intelligence organization, Estikhbaraat.

The BBC presented some of these concerns to Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government's spokesman. Mujahid, a public face for the Taliban government since 2021, still uses the pseudonym he adopted during the insurgency but revealed his real name, Tahir Shah Seddiqi, publicly for the first time. In a lavish press center, funded by Americans for the previous government, the BBC questioned him about his first press conference there, two days after the Taliban seized control. At that time, he assured the world that the Taliban government would permit women to work and study "within our frameworks" and be "very active" in society. When asked why they failed to uphold this promise, he replied, "We are committed to women's rights, freedom of speech and other things within Sharia. We should see everything through the Sharia lens." He added that allowing women to work in offices like his own "would lead to immoralities" and "their dignity would be undermined." He stated that the issue of women's education is "under discussions… we need a Sharia-based solution for it." Regarding the crackdown on media freedom, he said, "In a society like Afghanistan we have our restrictions. We can't let media do whatever propaganda they want… they can't broadcast against Islamic laws and rites."

While the Taliban government is based in Kabul, Mujahid spends considerable time in Kandahar, the Taliban's heartland, which some now consider the de facto capital. The BBC requested to meet the Taliban's supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, who resides there and rarely appears publicly or grants media interviews; the request was denied.

Restrictions in Kandahar have intensified since the BBC's last visit two years ago. Men are now required to have beards. Radio stations are prohibited from playing music or broadcasting women's voices, and filming in the city was not permitted.

Two hours away, along dusty roads, some of the group's most dedicated former fighters showed the BBC the insurgents' old secret cave network. Abid Lalai, a former fighter now manning a checkpoint as part of a security force under the interior ministry, pointed out firing positions and places where he kept his Quran and hung AK-47s. His superior, Abdul Samad, showed an unmarked graveyard, stating his father was buried there, killed fighting for the Taliban. This area is among the most impoverished in a country where the UN reports that three out of four people cannot meet their basic needs. Samad emphasized the local population's desperate need for water, roads, and clinics. "Emirate [Taliban] officials have not forgotten us," Samad said, expressing hope that leaders, though busy with other priorities, would eventually attend to them.

Five years into the Taliban's second period of rule, poverty, unemployment, and economic instability remain critical concerns. While Taliban figures interviewed claimed to be addressing these issues, others believe the group itself is the country's primary problem. "I'm speechless about how a group that has no understanding about life is suddenly in power," said Hoda (not her real name), a woman who protested in the streets when the Taliban first returned to power. "Women can't accept this situation," she told the BBC. "They might advance restrictions but it won't stay like this forever." She added, "I think the Taliban are scared of educated women. That's why they restrict women. They want uneducated women so they can't raise wise men. Because that would end the Taliban."