Knock-knock. Who's there? The Taliban. The Taliban Wh--- SHIDIGDIGDIGDIGDIGDIGDIGDIGDIG

Throughout the latter section of the book, we can clearly identify that the Taliban have nearly complete control of Afghanistan, both in a mental and physical way. We can see through this quote said showing Assef talking to Amir that the Taliban are truly evil: ‘"Door to door we went, calling for the men and boys. We'd shoot them right there in front of their families. Let them see. Let them remember who they were, where they belonged." He was almost panting now. "Sometimes, we broke down their doors and went inside their homes. And... I'd... sweep the barrel of my machine gun and fire and fire until the smoke blinded me." .... "You don't know the meaning of the word liberating until you've done that, stood in a roomful of targets, let the bullets fly, free of guilt and remorse, knowing you are virtuous, good, and decent. Knowing you're doing God's work. It's breathtaking."‘ (Hosseini, pg. 277)

This part comes after Amir learns that Assef is a Talib official. The Taliban obviously have immense power in Afghanistan, as Assef and the Taliban inspire fear and respect among the people of Afghanistan. We know this because we can see that they terrorize people on a regular basis to enforce their beliefs and their religion. The Afghani people and government do not fight back, or even attempt to resist in a minor form against the Taliban. As we can see from this quote the Taliban are very aggressive in their enforcement and use the most brutal forms of intimidation to terrorize the Hazaras. Having family killed in front of you can make a person very afraid. The Taliban effectively diminished any counterparts by using these methods, and are clearly the most powerful political movement in Afghanistan at that point in time.
Another example of the Taliban’s power is their ability to get what they want by bribing poor people. “There is a Talib official. He visits once every month or two. He brings cash with him, not a lot, but better than nothing at all. Usually he’ll take a girl. But not always.” ...”What choice do I have?” (Hosseini, pg. 255-256)

Assef and the Taliban inspire fear and respect among the people of Afghanistan. Zaman, who is the owner of the orphanage, explains that the Taliban official (Assef) comes and buys a child every so often. Zaman has no choice but to sell one child because in doing so, he possibly saves 10. He earns money to spend for food when he sells one child. If he does not sell the child, then Zaman risks having all the children killed or captured by the Taliban, and being killed himself.

It is truly an unfair cycle that the Taliban bring into the Afghan lifestyle. They force the children out of their childhood and into orphanages, causing them to have little food and clothing, and further leading to the selling of a child to a dangerous person. This whole cycle creates a terrible situation for not just Shi’a, but for the whole of Afghanistan, as they have no choice but to support the Taliban in their malevolent conquests in order to survive.