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Paul Krugman PAGE A19

OPINION A18-19

KABUL, Afghanistan — For thefirst time since retaking power inAfghanistan, the Taliban’s leaderson Tuesday sketched out whattheir control of the country couldlook like, promising peace at homeand urging the world to look pasttheir history of violence and re-pression.

“We don’t want Afghanistan tobe a battlefield anymore — fromtoday onward, war is over,” saidZabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’slongtime chief spokesman, in anews conference in Kabul, thecapital.

Mr. Mujahid, a high-rankingleader, said the Taliban had de-clared a blanket amnesty, vowingno reprisals against former ene-mies. And the group has in someplaces appealed to civil servants— including women — to continueto go to work.

After days of uncertaintyaround the world over Afghani-stan’s swift fall to a group notori-ous for its brutality, Mr. Mujahid’swords, delivered in a restrainedtone, were a glimpse into a Talibandesire to portray themselves asready to join the internationalmainstream.

But much of the world is wary oftheir reassurances. After takingover Afghanistan in 1996, the Tal-iban imposed their harsh inter-pretation of Islam with punish-ments like floggings, amputationsand mass executions.

On Tuesday, a Biden adminis-tration official confirmed that anycentral bank assets the Afghangovernment had kept in theUnited States would not be avail-able to the Taliban.

Many Afghans, too, remain ut-terly unconvinced by the new facepresented by the Taliban, and itspromises of political pluralismand women’s and minority rights.

On Tuesday, fearful Afghanshunkered down in their homes orattempted to flee, joining the fren-zied rush to Kabul’s airport, whichcontinued to be a scene of massdesperation and chaos two daysafter the Taliban entered the city.The group said its fighters wereacting to restore order, but insome corners, they were also in-flicting fear.

More broadly, the United Na-tions secretary-general warned ofhaving received “chilling reportsof severe restrictions on humanrights” across Afghanistan since

VIOLENT HISTORY CLOUDS TALIBAN’S VOWSWorld Is Skeptical as

Leaders Lay OutAfghan Future

By MUJIB MASHALand RICHARD PÉREZ-PEÑA

Continued on Page A8

WASHINGTON — Classifiedassessments by American spyagencies over the summerpainted an increasingly grim pic-ture of the prospect of a Talibantakeover of Afghanistan andwarned of the rapid collapse of theAfghan military, even as Presi-dent Biden and his advisers saidpublicly that was unlikely to hap-pen as quickly, according to cur-rent and former American gov-ernment officials.

By July, many intelligence re-ports grew more pessimistic,questioning whether any Afghansecurity forces would muster seri-ous resistance and whether thegovernment could hold on in Ka-bul, the capital. President Bidensaid on July 8 that the Afghan gov-ernment was unlikely to fall andthat there would be no chaoticevacuations of Americans similarto the end of the Vietnam War.

The drumbeat of warnings overthe summer raise questions aboutwhy Biden administration offi-cials, and military planners in Af-ghanistan, seemed ill prepared todeal with the Taliban’s final pushinto Kabul, including a failure toensure security at the main air-port and the rush to send thou-sands more troops back to thecountry to protect the UnitedStates’ final exit.

One report in July — as dozensof Afghan districts were fallingand Taliban fighters were layingsiege to several major cities — laidout the growing risks to Kabul,noting that the Afghan govern-ment was unprepared for a Tal-iban assault, according to a per-son familiar with the intelligence.

Intelligence agencies predictedthat should the Taliban seize cit-ies, a cascading collapse couldhappen rapidly and the Afghan se-curity forces were at high risk offalling apart. It is unclear whetherother reports during this periodpresented a more optimistic pic-ture about the ability of the Af-ghan military and the govern-ment in Kabul to withstand the in-surgents.

A historical analysis providedto Congress concluded that theTaliban had learned lessons fromtheir takeover of the country inthe 1990s. This time, the reportsaid, the militant group would firstsecure border crossings, com-mandeer provincial capitals and

Contradicting Biden,Reports Warned of

Rapid Collapse

Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban spokesman, addressed reporters on Tuesday in the room where the government used to brief the press.JIM HUYLEBROEK FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Continued on Page A6

This article is by Mark Mazzetti,Julian E. Barnes and Adam Gold-man.

CHRISTIAN MONTERROSA FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

The Dixie fire, one of six raging in Northern California, as it neared Janesville late Monday. Resi-dents were evacuated to Susanville, a city of 15,000, which is next in the blaze’s path. Page A20.

Winds Push Flames Toward a Refuge

George Brian McGee, a financeexecutive in Florida, was drivinghome in a Tesla Model S operatingon Autopilot, a system that cansteer, brake and accelerate a caron its own, when he dropped hisphone during a call and bent downto look for it.

Neither he nor Autopilot no-ticed that the road was ending andthe Model S drove past a stop signand a flashing red light. The carsmashed into a parked ChevroletTahoe, killing a 22-year-old col-lege student, Naibel Benavides.

One of a growing number of fa-tal accidents involving Tesla carsoperating on Autopilot, Mr.McGee’s case is unusual becausehe survived and told investigatorswhat had happened: He got dis-tracted and put his trust in a sys-tem that did not see and brake fora parked car in front of it. Tesladrivers using Autopilot in other fa-

A Tesla CrashExposes PerilsOf Its Autopilot

By NEAL E. BOUDETTE

Continued on Page A16

Since Americans first beganrolling up their sleeves for corona-virus vaccines, health officialshave said that those who are im-munized are very unlikely to be-come infected, or to suffer seriousillness or death. But preliminarydata from seven states hint thatthe arrival of the Delta variant inJuly may have altered the calcu-lus.

Breakthrough infections in vac-cinated people accounted for atleast one in five newly diagnosedcases in six of these states andhigher percentages of total hospi-talizations and deaths than hadbeen previously observed in all ofthem, according to figures gath-ered by The New York Times.

The absolute numbers remainvery low, however, and there is lit-tle doubt that the vaccines remainpowerfully protective. This con-tinues to be “a pandemic of the un-vaccinated,” as federal health offi-cials have often said.

Still, the rise indicates a changein how vaccinated Americans

might regard their risks.“Remember when the early

vaccine studies came out, it waslike nobody gets hospitalized, no-body dies,” said Dr. RobertWachter, chairman of the depart-ment of medicine at the Univer-sity of California, San Francisco.“That clearly is not true.”

The figures lend support to theview, widely held by officials in theBiden administration, that someAmericans may benefit frombooster shots in the comingmonths. Federal officials plan toauthorize additional shots asearly as mid-September, althoughit is not clear who will receivethem.

“If the chances of a break-through infection have gone upconsiderably, and I think the evi-

Rethinking the Risks as the CasesClimb for Vaccinated Americans

By APOORVA MANDAVILLI

Continued on Page A14

As Afghan women cloistered intheir homes on Tuesday, fearingfor their lives and their futures un-der Taliban rule, a pair of femaletelevision broadcasters offeredstarkly contradictory visions ofthe country’s direction.

On Tuesday morning, BeheshtaArghand, a newscaster with theprivately owned Tolo News chan-nel, interviewed a Taliban official,asking him about the Taliban’shouse-to-house searches in the Af-ghan capital.

“The entire world now recog-nizes that the Taliban are the realrulers of the country,” said the offi-cial, Mawlawi Abdulhaq Hemad, amember of the Taliban’s mediateam. “I am still astonished thatpeople are afraid of Taliban.”

The remarkable scene of a Tal-iban official taking questions froma female journalist was part of abroader campaign by the Taliban

to present a more moderate faceto the world and to help tame thefear gripping the country sincethe insurgents seized the capitalon Sunday.

But hours later, a prominent an-chorwoman on state television,Khadija Amin, tearfully told aClubhouse chat room that the Tal-iban had suspended her, and otherfemale employees, indefinitely.

“I am a journalist and I am notallowed to work,” said Ms. Amin,28. “What will I do next? The nextgeneration will have nothing; ev-erything we have achieved for 20years will be gone. The Taliban isthe Taliban. They have notchanged.”

The stories of the two journal-ists reflect the uncertainty anddeep anxiety Afghan women faceas they try to assess what will be-fall them as the Taliban take con-

‘My Future Is Dark’: Fear Rises In Women After Years of Gains

By FARNAZ FASSIHI and DAN BILEFSKY

Continued on Page A5

An era that began two decadesago with the shock of hijackedplanes flying into Americanskyscrapers drew to a close thisweek with desperate Afghansclinging to American planes asthey tried to escape the chaos ofKabul. Some fell; one was founddead in the landing gear.

A colossal bipartisan invest-ment of American force, treasureand diplomacy to defeat a hostileideology bent on the creation ofan Islamic Emirate of Afghani-stan has failed. Over four presi-dencies, two Republican and twoDemocratic, more than 2,400Americans gave their lives, andmore than $1 trillion was spent,for shifting Afghan goals, manyof which proved unattainable.

The curtain came down on thepost-9/11 era, with the Talibanretaking control of the countrythat served as the base for the

attack on America, a full-circledebacle for the United Statesthat will engrave Afghanistanpainfully in the national memory.

Mistakes and illusions and aparticular American naïveté, orhubris, about remaking the worldin its image led to the swift Tal-iban takeover almost two dec-ades after its defeat, but a morefundamental factor also played apart. With China flexing its mus-cles, the nation’s prioritiesshifted. The relative power of theUnited States is not what it was20 years ago.

The country’s capacity andinclination to commit resourcesto faraway struggles ebbed.Absent the Cold War, Americanshave little appetite for the kind ofopen-ended military commit-ment that cemented democraciesin Germany, Japan, South Korea

Post-9/11 Era Ends Painfully,For America and Afghanistan

By ROGER COHEN NEWS ANALYSIS

Continued on Page A8

BOOSTERS The U.S. will advisegetting a third shot eight monthsafter full vaccination. PAGE A14

Shakespeare in the Park is back, andDede Ayite’s West African-influencedcostume designs are as lively as Joce-lyn Bioh’s version of the play. PAGE C1

ARTS C1-6

Dressing Up ‘Merry Wives’J. Kenji López-Alt offers praise forgrilled pizza, an easy way to get arestaurant-quality pie at home. PAGE D8

FOOD D1-8

Making a Better PizzaThe dictator Enver Hoxha’s image oncecovered Albania. A last statue is guardedby an 80-year-old defender. PAGE A10

INTERNATIONAL A4-12

A Regime’s Protector

In a milestone for how people shop, thebiggest e-commerce giant outside Chinahas unseated the biggest brick-and-mortar seller. Online demand during thepandemic probably helped. PAGE B1

BUSINESS B1-6

Amazon Outsells WalmartGov. Greg Abbott, a Republican who is astaunch opponent of mask and vaccinemandates, is receiving monoclonalantibody treatment. PAGE A14

NATIONAL A13-16, 20

Texas Governor Tests Positive

Lusco’s, in Greenwood, Miss., where aBlack waiter once spoke out about theJim Crow South, is closing soon. PAGE D1

History on the MenuThe free medical system, long a sourceof national pride, is in acute distress asthe Delta variant takes a toll. PAGE A12

Cuba’s Health System Reels

The retailer’s former stores are beingused by tenants, such as churches andflea markets, that might not typicallyget a crack at so much commercialspace at an affordable price. PAGE B1

When Kmart Moves OutDemocrats are working to mobilizeenough of their huge base to save thejob of California’s governor. PAGE A15

Newsom in Tight Recall Race

Maki Kaji, a college dropout, turned anumbers game into one of the world’smost popular puzzles. He was 69.

OBITUARIES A17

‘Godfather of Sudoku’

Late Edition

VOL. CLXX . . . . No. 59,154 © 2021 The New York Times Company NEW YORK, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2021

Today, cloudy, humid, showers, high80. Tonight, showers, thunder-storms, some heavy, low 74. Tomor-row, clouds, thunderstorms, high 80.Weather map appears on Page A20.

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