The History of Afghanistan

Afghanistan:

• An ethnically mixed population a) Due to location astride historic trade and invasion routes of Central Asia

• Yet Pashtuns make up the largest ethnic group at 42%

An Islamic country

• 80% Sunni

• The remainder is predominantly Shi’a

A Turbulent History:

• In 328 BCE, Alexander the Great entered the territory, which had been part of the Persian Empire

• Alexander established a Hellenistic state in Bactria (northern part of present-day Afghanistan)

• After Alexander, there were invasions by Scythians, White Huns, and Turks

In 642 CE, Arabs invaded region and introduced Islam

• Arab rule gave way to Persian rule until the region was conquered by the Turkic Ghaznavids in 998

• In 1219, a destructive Mongol invasion of the region was led by Genghis Khan

• And in late 14th century, Tamerlane incorporated Afghanistan into his empire

In 1747, Ahmad Shah Durrani established his rule

• In the 1800s, a collision between the British Empire and czarist Russia influenced Afghanistan in what was termed “The Great Game”

• Two Anglo-Afghan Wars a) But in a third war, a war-weary British relinquished control by signing Treaty of Rawalpindi in August 1919

King Amanullah (1919-1929) moved to modernize the nation

a) But the king alienated tribal leaders and was forced to abdicate

Mohammad Zahir Shah succeeded to throne and reigned from 1933 to 1973

Amid charges of corruption, former Prime Minister Sardar Mohammad Daoud seized power in a military coup on July 17, 1973

a) Daoud abolished the monarchy

But On April 27, 1978, the communist PDPA (People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan) initiated a bloody coup

a) And murdered Daoud and most of his family

In December 1978, Moscow signed a treaty of friendship and cooperation with the Afghan communist government a) But even with Soviet support (invaded in 1979), as much as 80% of the countryside eluded government control

1. The Communist program alienated traditional Afghans

A Long and Bloody Conflict:

• Afghan fighters (mujahideen) made it almost impossible for the regime to maintain a system of local government outside major urban centers

• Poorly armed at first but in 1984 mujahideen began receiving substantial assistance from the U.S. (Cold War)

About 14,500 Soviet and an estimated one million Afghan lives were lost between 1979 and the Soviet withdrawal in 1989

In 1988, the Geneva accords were signed, which included a timetable that ensured full Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan by February 15, 1989

But mujahideen were party to neither negotiations nor to 1988 agreement, and, consequently, refused to accept the terms of accords

a) A civil war continued after Soviet withdrawal, which was completed in 1989

Eventually, the mujahideen entered Kabul to assume control over city and central government but a new round of internecine fighting began

The Taliban

• Had risen to power in mid-1990s in reaction to anarchy and warlordism that arose after withdrawal of Soviet forces

• Many Taliban had been educated in madrassas in Pakistan and were largely from rural southern Pashtun backgrounds

• By end of 1998, the Taliban occupied about 90% of the country

• Imposed an extreme interpretation of Islam

• Human rights violations, particularly directed against women and girls

• In 2001, as part of a drive against relics of Afghanistan’s pre-Islamic past, the Taliban destroyed two huge Buddha statues carved into a cliff face outside of the city of Bamiyan

• The Taliban provided sanctuary to Osama bin Laden, a Saudi national who had fought with mujahideen resistance against Soviets

• Bin laden and Al-Qaida acknowledged responsibility for September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks against U.S.A.

• With U.S.A. invasion of Afghanistan (October 7, 2001), the Taliban disintegrated rapidly, and Kabul fell on November 13, 2001

• Afghan factions opposed to Taliban met at a United Nations conference and agreed to restore stability and governance to Afghanistan

• The “Loya Jirga” (Grand Council) decided on the structure of the government

• Hamid Karzai was inaugurated as Afghanistan’s first democratically elected president