Five Years Under The Taliban: Meduza Reports From Afghanistan, Where A War On Drugs And Greater Security Have Come With Mass Poverty, Unemployment, And The Loss Of Women’s Rights

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A Meduza report based on a visit to Afghanistan in August 2026 describes a country where fighting has largely ended and travel is safer, but poverty, unemployment and restrictions on women remain severe. The Taliban’s opium ban appears to have reduced cultivation, while the country’s economic and social conditions remain difficult and the government’s support is contested.

Five years after the Taliban seized power, a Meduza report from Afghanistan describes improved security on major roads and an apparently effective campaign against opium, alongside mass poverty, unemployment and sweeping restrictions on women’s rights. Middle East scholar Ruslan Suleymanov visited three cities in August 2026 and spoke with dozens of people for the report, which documents both changes since 2021 and deep divisions over Taliban rule.

Suleymanov’s account describes a journey of about 500 kilometers from Herat to Kandahar, with poor road surfaces and frequent document checks but no reported fighting. Taliban fighters welcomed him after learning he was Russian. Meduza says long-distance travel in the country is now relatively safe compared with the decades of fighting, ambushes and kidnappings that preceded the Taliban’s return. The report also cautions that foreign visitors are better off traveling with a local companion.

Security has not eliminated the threat of armed groups. Afghanistan ranked 11th for terrorism risk in 2026, according to the Global Terrorism Index compiled by Australia’s Institute for Economics and Peace. The report says this is the first time Afghanistan has fallen outside the index’s top 10 since the ranking began. It identifies the Taliban’s enemy, Islamic State Khorasan Province, or ISIS-K, as a continuing threat. U.N. experts estimate the group has around 2,000 fighters; the report says it has recruited at least 600 people from Central Asian countries over five years.

The report also describes a government dominated by Taliban members and Pashtuns, and says women’s rights have been severely curtailed. A Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice enforces the authorities’ social rules. Meduza reports that the Taliban has declared a war on opium and appears to be waging it successfully, but the supplied report does not provide a measure of cultivation or production before and after the ban. Its account centers on interviews, travel observations and competing views of the government rather than a nationwide survey.

Safer Roads, Unequal Lives

The account points to a sharp contrast in life under Taliban rule: less active fighting and safer travel in many areas, but limited political inclusion and severe restrictions on women. The end of major combat has not translated into broad economic security. The report frames poverty and unemployment as defining conditions for many Afghans, making the security gains only one part of the country’s situation.

The opium campaign also matters beyond Afghanistan because drug production and enforcement affect communities whose livelihoods may depend on cultivation. Meduza says the crackdown appears successful, but does not provide figures in the source material to show its scale or its effects on farmers. The reported outcome should therefore not be read as evidence that the economic costs of the campaign have been resolved.

For readers outside Afghanistan, the security picture has regional implications. ISIS-K remains active, and U.N. experts estimate it retains thousands of fighters. At the same time, the report notes that Russia is the only country to have officially recognized the Taliban-formed Afghan government, adding a diplomatic dimension to the country’s position.

From the 2021 Takeover to 2026

The Taliban took power in August 2021, following the withdrawal of U.S. troops. The movement formed a government the next month. Since then, it has imposed restrictions on women and established a ministry tasked with promoting virtue and preventing vice. Meduza also reports attempts by the authorities to block internet access nationwide and prohibit officials from using smartphones.

The report places these developments against Afghanistan’s long record of conflict and social divisions. It says at least 74% of Afghans live in rural areas or are nomads, while 26% live in cities. It describes ethnic divisions among Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks, Hazaras and other communities, and says the Taliban government is almost entirely Pashtun. Interviewees from six minority groups told Meduza they lacked equal rights and opportunities; a Pashtun government employee disputed claims that the government was not inclusive.

The report also notes that Afghanistan’s last presidential election, held in September 2019, had turnout below 20%. It attributes low participation in part to Taliban calls to boycott the vote and threats against voters. The country has not held a new national election since the Taliban takeover, according to the account.

“We remain a deeply divided community, but we are not yet a nation. Everyone understands the word ‘Afghan’ differently.”

— Amin, a 31-year-old employee of the radio station Salam Watandar, speaking to Meduza

Gaps in the Afghanistan Picture

The report is a correspondent’s account based on visits to three cities and dozens of conversations, not a nationwide survey. How widely views expressed to Meduza are shared is not established. The source material does not provide a breakdown of interviewees or enough detail to measure public support for Taliban rule.

The scale and effects of the opium crackdown also remain unclear from the material provided: it gives no cultivation figures, time series or comparison baseline. Nor does it quantify poverty and unemployment. The report describes serious economic hardship but does not provide a national estimate or explain how conditions have changed over the five years.

Security has improved on the route Suleymanov traveled, but this does not establish that all areas are equally safe. ISIS-K remains a threat, and the source material does not detail the likelihood of attacks or the current security conditions in every region. The degree to which reported restrictions on internet use and smartphones are enforced nationwide is also not specified.

Questions Facing Afghanistan

The report offers a snapshot rather than announcing a new policy or a scheduled political milestone. No change to the Taliban’s governing arrangements, women’s rights restrictions or opium policy is confirmed in the source material. Readers should watch for further reporting and independently sourced data on living conditions, drug cultivation and security threats.

Future evidence would help clarify whether safer travel extends across the country, how the opium ban is affecting rural livelihoods, and whether minority communities and women gain greater access to rights and opportunities. The immediate picture in Meduza’s account is of a country with less active fighting than before 2021, but with economic hardship and contested political legitimacy still unresolved.

Key Questions

What is the news in Meduza’s report?

Meduza published a report based on Ruslan Suleymanov’s August 2026 visit to Afghanistan, describing changes during the five years since the Taliban took power, including safer travel, an opium crackdown, economic hardship and restrictions on women.

Has security improved in Afghanistan?

Meduza describes long-distance travel on the Herat–Kandahar route as relatively safe compared with the years of fighting that came before the Taliban takeover. The report also says Afghanistan ranked 11th for terrorism risk in 2026 and notes that ISIS-K remains a threat, so conditions should not be treated as uniform across the country.

What does the report say about the opium ban?

It says the Taliban declared war on opium and appears to be carrying out the campaign successfully. The supplied material does not include cultivation figures or a comparison baseline, so it does not quantify the ban’s results.

What remains difficult for Afghans under Taliban rule?

The report describes poverty, unemployment and severe restrictions on women’s rights. It also records concerns from members of minority groups about unequal rights and opportunities, alongside a government employee’s defense of the Taliban’s inclusiveness.

Source: rss