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The Taliban are close to retaking full control of Afghanistan, almost 20 years after being ousted by a US-led military coalition. The Taliban now control all key cities and have closed in on the capital, Kabul. The speed of the Taliban takeover has taken many by surprise. Kate Clark, co-director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, says this is an indication of the way the US troops withdrew, the fragility of government control and a lack of co-ordination among government forces.

"The rapidity of the collapse of this government has been breathtaking. One of the problems is that the forces who had wanted to resist the Taliban have been let down - there was no sense of a war cabinet to co-ordinate."

Photo: Taliban patrol in Kandahar, Afghanistan, 15 August 2021 Credit: EPA