“I’m from the Taliban and I’m here to help”

Under ashraf ghani, Afghanistan’s president until the Taliban seized power last August, the country’s interior ministry oversaw much of the security apparatus involved in fighting the insurgents. It is now presided over by one of its deadliest foes, Sirajuddin Haqqani, who led a faction of fighters known for its high-profile bombings in Kabul, the capital. Corridors where American and European advisers once roamed are crowded instead with Mr Haqqani’s long-haired fighters. Civil servants who worked for Mr Ghani’s government sit alongside men who would cheerfully have murdered them a year ago.