On 2 February 2024 a speech in Kabul by leading Shia cleric Ayatollah Waizzada caught the attention of people across Afghanistan. The Taliban authorities had given their blessing to a meeting which they hoped would calm down the Hazara community which was agitated over reports of young women being detained for hijab infringements. The cleric’s speech provides an example of the use of coded language by people living under an authoritarian regime. The literal meaning of what he said was placatory but it contained an implicit warning to the authorities that they would face an uprising if they did not curb their abuses.

The episode considers the ways in which Taliban rule is authoritarian in nature and sets out the implications for international engagement with the Taliban and for Afghans living under or hoping to resist Taliban rule.

Podcast produced by Colm Heatley.