The Taliban’s Advance

<p>The Taliban have made big moves in the last few days in their bid to take control of Afghanistan. </p><p>This weekend, they seized several cities and suddenly claimed a lot of the north. On Monday, they took another provincial capital. </p><p>What is the Taliban’s strategy, what will the United States do, and where does this leave the Afghan government?</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/carlotta-gall?smid=pc-thedaily">Carlotta Gall</a>, the Istanbul bureau chief for The New York Times. She previously reported from Afghanistan and Pakistan from 2001 to 2011. </p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/signup/NTTD?smid=pc-thedaily">Sign up here</a> to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/the-daily?module=inline">subscribe to our newsletter</a>. </p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The seizure of five Afghan capitals has amplified <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/08/08/world/asia/taliban-kunduz-afghanistan.html?smid=pc-thedaily">fears about the nation’s future</a> after the U.S. withdrawal.</li><li>What to know about the war in Afghanistan — <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/afghanistan-war-us.html?smid=pc-thedaily">how it started and how it is ending</a>.</li></ul><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. </p>