After the Taliban rolled in, what ironic event occurs?

• A. The Taliban stop all kite fighting and massacre the Hazaras.
• B. Kite fighting continues and happiness returns.
• C. They begin to rebuild the city.
• D. They welcome foreigners.

Answer: (A)

The key idea here is irony in how power is exercised. When the Taliban roll into Kabul, they present themselves as moral guardians, enforcing strict rules and purging what they see as vice. The cruel irony is that, while they ban a beloved, joyful activity like kite fighting, they simultaneously unleash violence on the Hazara community, massacring people who have long faced discrimination. This contrast—promising virtue and order yet delivering fear and ethnic brutality—highlights the hypocrisy of their rule. The other scenarios—rebuilding the city, welcoming foreigners, or a return of happiness—don't fit the book’s portrayal of the Taliban’s harsh, violent reality, whereas the combination of banning kite fighting and carrying out massacres captures the stark, ironic shift in Kabul under their control.