SHARE Many Afghans predict that the Taliban will return to formal power in Afghanistan, either through a peace settlement or a bloody military takeover once foreign troops are gone. But it remains a mystery to what extent the Islamist militant group has moderated its extremist beliefs and is willing to embrace major change. During its brutal rule from 1996 to 2001, the Taliban established a fundamentalist regime that oppressed women, massacred religious and ethnic minorities and banned free speech. It has adopted a more conciliatory public image in recent years, claiming that it is not seeking a monopoly on power, nor does it want to re-establish its rule of the 1990s, which even it now describes as “harsh”.