The week unpacked: Afghanistan, Florida and Northern Ireland

Olly Mann and The Week go behind the headlines and discuss what really matters.

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In this week’s episode we discuss:

Taliban vs World Bank

The World Bank has suspended four aid projects in Afghanistan worth a total of $600 million (£460 million) after the Taliban reversed an earlier decision to allow girls to go to school. The Islamist group blamed problems with the national school uniform, but the group is widely believed to be ideologically divided over whether girls will ever be allowed back into high school. Are the Taliban falling back into their old ways, and is there anything the West could or should do about it?

“don’t say gay”

This week, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law what became colloquially known as the Don’t Say Gay Bill. The new law, which bans teaching about sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade (for children ages five to nine), has drawn intense scrutiny and criticism, including from Joe Biden. But with DeSantis expected to run as the Republican presidential nominee for 2024, is that a sign of things to come?

problem attempts

A former British soldier has been put on trial in connection with the 1988 death of Aidan McAnespie in Northern Ireland, which could be the last charge before a proposed amnesty for Troubles killings goes into effect. Defendant David Holden does not deny shooting dead McAnespie, an unarmed civilian, at a border checkpoint in Tyrone – but says he accidentally fired his gun. What can this process teach us about the state of the Northern Ireland peace process?