Afghanistan relationship with Pakistan was mostly good throughout the course of history. However, in order to understand this relationship, we first need to understand a phenomenon called the Taliban.
“The one that was really dangerous for me was the time that we needed to distribute the books and notebooks to the very far village. I was working with an international organization teaching the girls out there. So we put all the books in the back of the car. Of course, my father-in-law and a driver accompany me. During the way, crossing the road, we’re stopped by the Taliban. They keep everyone separated so they cannot listen to each other. So, I was the only woman sitting out there. All the trunks and backs of our cars were full of books. I was really sure that this time they will definitely kill me.”
Afghan Taliban’s First Rule
This was in 1999. When the Taliban first ruled Afghanistan. They oppressed Afghans with laws drawn from tribal codes and a strict interpretation of Islam. Their control was total and brutal. Two decades later, the Taliban have taken back power. Every year, I’ve seen how the Taliban, grew stronger. They have taken over Afghanistan twice. Not because they’re good at governing. But because of the other actors in Afghanistan, because of their failures.
In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan to back an ally the new Communist Afghan government. Together, they wanted to transform the country into a socialist state. But they faced resistance. “The Afghan crisis won’t be easily dismissed, and a glance at the map shows why.” Afghanistan is a deeply divided country.
Abundance of Rural Life
At the time, only a small fraction of the population lived in a few major cities including some who supported the government. But the majority of Afghans lived in rural areas where people were generally poor, conservative, and very devoted to Islam and tribal traditions. For many, authority came from tribal leaders of their respective ethic groups. Not the government in Kabul. So when the Communist Afghan government attempted to authorize land changes and nullify social codes, rustic Afghans revolted. They formed independent militias, but were collectively known as the mujahideen.
“These are real mujahideen.”
“They are scattered and almost impossible to unite.”
“They operate best in small groups and in their home the mountains.”
The Soviet Army managed to occupy the cities but met fierce resistance from the mujahideen in the rural areas. The Soviets responded by pounding the countryside with bombs and razing entire villages. But it galvanized more people to join the rebellion. Thousands of Muslim volunteers from around the world joined the mujahideen. Countries eager to gain influence in Afghanistan started arming and funding militias. Even the US sent weapons to drain the Soviets, their main rival. The support allowed the mujahideen to fight for 10 years.
Around a million Afghans died and 6 million were displaced. In 1989, the Soviets gave up and left. Three years after that, the Afghan Communist government fell. But the violence didn’t end. The mujahideen groups turned on each other. And by 1992, Afghanistan was consumed by civil war. Door to door, street to street, road to road. Region to region, province to province. There was always fighting.
Mullah Omar to the Rescue
It was really the worst time. Kandahar was especially violent. Several mujahideen and criminal groups terrorized the population. In the spring of 1994, a group of locals here had enough. They asked this man, Mohammed Omar, for help. He had fought in the Soviet war, before becoming a teacher, or mullah, at an Islamic school called a madrassa.
Emergence of Taliban and Afghanistan relationship with Pakistan
He and a few other mullahs gathered some students, and drove out the mujahideen. When more students joined, they captured the whole district. Then Kandahar City. This group became known as the Taliban, which means ‘the students’, in Pashto. As the sole militia in Kandahar, they brought peace for the first time in years. And that’s exactly why many people supported them.
If the mullahs and imams say that the color of the milk is black, all the people accepting that because it comes from mullahs. Why not giving them an opportunity to take over the government. At this point, the Taliban were all members of Afghanistan’s largest ethnic group the Pashtuns. Which made it easier for them to take over the mostly Pashtun-areas in the south. Then they moved west and north, defeating some warlords and bribing others to join them.
As they gained territory, they also found a way to fund their expansion. By taking over these highways they raised millions through taxes. And by gaining control of Afghanistan’s poppy-growing regions they profited from the illegal opium trade. But the most crucial support came from a neighbor.
Pakistan’s Stance vis-à-vis Afghanistan Relationship with Pakistan
Pakistan was worried that one of these mujahideen groups would take power and ally with its enemy, India. Effectively surrounding them. So they gave the Taliban huge loads of weapons from the beginning. In September 1996, the Taliban entered Kabul and took control of Afghanistan.
When the Taliban took Kabul in 1996, they set up a government that was basically only their members. Both its leadership and fighting base were predominantly Pashtun teachers and students. It was basically a very in-experienced government without any practical knowledge about how to govern.
However, they chose to redo the nation in view of a strict philosophy that came to fruition in their madrassas. What makes the Taliban unique is that these madrassas called Deobandi madrassas are motivated by a specific understanding of Islam affected by Pashtun culture. Music, television, and even flying kites were banned.
Focus on the Optics
Men had to grow beards. But the most draconian rules were placed on women. They weren’t allowed to go out without a male relative. They couldn’t educate themselves. They were essentially prohibited from working. Many schools for girls went underground. It was like only 20 meters away from the Taliban camp. I had like a good number of the students coming to my school. It was all done in secret. And one day, the Taliban enter. So I stopped them in front of the door and I asked them to wait. My students just notice that they hide the books and take out their holy Qurans.
They would start beating me. And same thing they would do with the family of the girls. Beatings, stoning, and public executions were common punishments under the Taliban regime. It’s why most countries, except Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the UAE refused to recognize them as a legitimate government. But the Taliban soon found other allies.
“The most wanted terrorist in the world: Osama bin Laden.”
“…by Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban.”
“The ruling Taliban’s refusal to surrender suspected terrorist bin Laden.”
“The US will hold Afghanistan responsible for any attack linked to bin Laden.”
“You’re looking at, obviously a very disturbing live shot there.”
“That is the World Trade Center…”
The US War on Terror
After the 9/11 attacks, a US-led coalition invaded Afghanistan to hunt down bin Laden and topple the Taliban. With the help of these mujahideen leaders it took less than 3 months to capture Kabul. Bin Laden escaped but the Taliban regime surrendered and asked for amnesty. The US refused. So basically, the Taliban, they don’t get a choice. They can either become prisoners or continue fighting.
The Taliban leadership fled to Pakistan, while most fighters went into hiding in rural Afghanistan. Then, the US promised to rebuild the country and turn it into a democracy. It worked with the UN to set up an Afghan government and Army. And invited mujahideen leaders to run the local governments. Then they gave the government billions of dollars to build roads, bridges, hospitals, and utilities in the cities and rural areas. But many of those projects never took shape.
Corruption in Afghan Government and Afghanistan relationship with Pakistan
The Afghan government was profoundly bad and took millions. What’s more, in 2003, the US attacked Iraq and redirected a great deal of its cash. What remained was spent for the most part in the urban communities. While country Afghanistan was dismissed. What’s more, progressively enduring an onslaught. While the US was attempting to remake Afghanistan, it was at the same time pursuing a conflict on it.
The American military was chasing down Taliban and al-Qaeda individuals to a great extent in these rustic regions. Also, subsidizing and outfitting these mujahideen chiefs in return for their assistance. In any case, everything blew up. Drone-strikes and night attacks progressively killed honest regular citizens. Furthermore, the mujahideen chiefs began threatening individuals, really becoming warlords. “The enduring of Afghanistan in specific pieces of the nation have not finished.”
“We actually continue losing our non military personnel lives.”
“It’s becoming to be weighty for us. It’s not reasonable any longer.”
Basically, the Americans, they made their own beasts. As soon as 2004, the Taliban administration pulled together in Pakistan and began enlisting warriors. Like the 90s, they pulled in Pashtun contenders in the south and east.
Entry of Non-Pashtuns
But this time they also attracted non-Pashtuns, including Afghans from the west and north. But the thing that they have in common is that they are from rural Afghanistan. They had been harassed by the local authorities. They had relatives being killed by US aerial bombings. They were caught between a rock and a hard place and they ended up choosing the hard place. And that was the Taliban. Soon they were ambushing US, NATO, and Afghan troops.
Also, presenting more refined strategies like side of the road bombs. Also, self destruction assaults. Enrolling different gatherings, even those that didn’t share their severe strict convictions, made it workable for the Taliban to take an area in many pieces of the country. For subsidizing, they depended on natural strategies, burdening thruways and exchanging poppy.
Additionally, they kept on having help from Pakistan, who safeguarded Taliban pioneers as well as furnished, supported, and prepared their warriors. By 2008, the Taliban controlled immense areas of provincial Afghanistan and, surprisingly, compromised a few urban communities.
“And as Commander in Chief, I have determined that it is in our vital, national interest to send an additional 30,000 troops to Afghanistan.”
US Troops Inflow and Afghanistan relationship with Pakistan
In 2009, the US answered by sending a flood of troops for a long time. They cleared significant urban communities, yet couldn’t unstick the Taliban from the country regions. In 2012, the US decreased its soldiers and depended on the Afghan Government and Army to lead the battle. However, long stretches of defilement had driven numerous Afghans to doubt the public authority. Passing on space for the Taliban to begin overseeing their own domains. Be that as it may, this variant of the Taliban’s administration was more adaptable than their standard during the 90s.
In certain spots, their administration resembled the old Taliban during the 90s. In different regions, In specific spots, their organization looked like the old Taliban during the 90s. In various locales, they are significantly more sensible. They had youngsters’ schools and they didn’t practices, you know, rules about stubbles and TV shows. It was check that you had a very isolated Taliban. That was key that allowed them to harden power and trust that the US will leave.
Doha Agreement
In February 2020, the Trump organization went directly to the Taliban to strike an arrangement. They consented to leave Afghanistan. In August 2021, the Biden organization followed through on that arrangement. As the last soldiers pulled out, the Taliban went after. The world looked as the Afghan armed force gave up, the public authority escaped and the Taliban entered Kabul unopposed. In September, the Taliban declared another break government. Also, it looks recognizable. Its top authority is generally Pashtun. A large number of whom served during the 1990s system. Be that as it may, their base, similar to their warriors, is undeniably more different.
To Sum Up
Which makes this new system flighty. It will be an issue for the Taliban on the off chance that they don’t endure variety of understanding of Islam in the development which could wind up with a fierce struggle between the various gatherings. I’m persuaded that they haven’t settled on what sort of Afghanistan they need at the present time. There is a little window of trust assuming the global local area put force on the Taliban simply ensure that the ladies and individuals have their fundamental necessities. Admittance to schooling, admittance to occupations. Admittance to opportunity.
