The Haunting Reality Of Americans Facing Brutal Treatment In Afghanistan

The US war in Afghanistan has been ongoing since 2001, following the 9/11 attacks. The war has resulted in the deaths of thousands of US troops and civilians. In 2021, the Taliban beheaded an Afghan translator who worked for the US Army, sparking fears that other translators would be targeted as the Taliban gained control of wider areas of the country. The US pledged to relocate Afghan interpreters and translators who worked for them and whose lives were at risk. In 2024, 13 US service members were killed in a Kabul attack.

The Taliban's history of beheading Afghan interpreters for the US military

In May 2021, Sohail Pardis, an Afghan interpreter who worked for the US Army, was beheaded by the Taliban. Pardis was driving from Kabul to Khost province to celebrate the upcoming Eid holiday with his family when his car was blocked by Taliban militants at a checkpoint. Days earlier, Pardis had confided in his friend that he had been receiving death threats from the Taliban, who knew of his work as a translator for the US during the 20-year conflict. Despite speeding up to get past the checkpoint, his car was shot, and he was dragged out of the vehicle and beheaded.

Pardis's tragic death is not an isolated incident. There are numerous reports of Afghan interpreters being targeted and killed by the Taliban. In 2009, a man named Ameen, who had worked as a translator for the US Army, witnessed his brother being taken away by the Taliban. Days later, he found his brother's headless corpse in front of their family farmhouse with a note attached: "Do not work with infidels anymore." In 2013, Taliban fighters beheaded two boys, aged 10 and 16, as a warning to villagers not to cooperate with the Afghan government. In June 2021, the Taliban released a statement saying they would not harm those who worked with foreign forces, but many interpreters do not trust this promise and know they may still be targeted.

The threat is so severe that in July 2021, the White House announced "Operation Allies Refuge," an effort to relocate Afghan interpreters and translators who worked for the US. Around 18,000 Afghans who worked for the US military have applied for Special Immigrant Visas to the US, and thousands have already been evacuated. However, the process is lengthy and complex, and many interpreters fear they will not make it out in time.

The Taliban's brutality towards Afghan interpreters who worked for the US military has caused immense suffering and fear. Those who are left behind live in constant danger, and even those who manage to escape often continue to face challenges and uncertainty in their new homes.

The US withdrawal from Afghanistan

The US State Department report on the withdrawal detailed damning shortcomings, including insufficient consideration of worst-case scenarios and poor crisis preparation. The report also noted that the speed of the US military's withdrawal from Afghanistan compounded the difficulties faced by the State Department. The evacuation process was further hindered by unclear leadership and constantly changing policy guidance.

The withdrawal left thousands of Afghans who had assisted US forces stranded in the country, with up to two hundred Americans also remaining in Afghanistan. The Taliban's rapid advance and the collapse of the Afghan government led to a refugee crisis, with many Afghans fleeing the country. The Taliban's return to power also raised fears of human rights abuses, particularly against women and girls, and concerns that Afghanistan could once again become a safe haven for terrorists.

The US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan was generally supported by the American public, with 54% agreeing with the decision, according to a survey conducted in August 2021. However, a majority (69%) also believed that the US had failed to achieve its goals in the country. The Biden administration's handling of the situation received negative reviews, with around seven-in-ten or more Americans expressing dissatisfaction.

The human cost of the war in Afghanistan was significant. By the time of the US withdrawal, thousands of American service members, contractors, and civilians had lost their lives. The war also resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Afghan civilians, national military and police personnel, and Taliban and opposition fighters.

The Taliban's treatment of Afghan women

The Taliban's treatment of women in Afghanistan has been described as "gender apartheid" by the United Nations.

During their first rule of Afghanistan (1996-2001), the Taliban were internationally notorious for their misogyny and violence against women. Women were mandated to wear the burqa at all times in public and were subjected to a systematic segregation. They were not allowed to work or receive an education past the age of eight. Women seeking an education were forced to attend underground schools, where they and their teachers risked execution if caught. They were not allowed to be treated by male doctors unless accompanied by a male chaperone, which led to illnesses remaining untreated. They faced public flogging and execution for violations of the Taliban's laws.

After retaking control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban initially gender-segregated classrooms in universities as long as they "followed Islamic standards". However, in September 2021, they only allowed boys to return to school, preventing most teenage girls from returning to secondary school education, and blocked women in Afghanistan from working in most sectors outside of health and education. In July 2022, the Taliban's reclusive leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, rejected any negotiations or compromise on his "Islamic system" of governance. In December 2022, the Taliban government prohibited university education for women and prevented them from working in NGOs. The Taliban also shut down beauty salons and prohibited women's entry into gyms and parks.

In March 2024, the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, announced the group was reinstating flogging and death by stoning for women, saying "the Taliban’s work did not end with the takeover of Kabul, it has only just begun".

The Taliban's history of beheading civilians

In 2015, a video went viral of women mannequins being beheaded in Afghanistan, as the Taliban ordered shop owners to cut off the heads of mannequins, deeming them a violation of Islamic law. Also in 2015, local village militia members loyal to an Afghan lawmaker beheaded four Islamic State fighters and placed their severed heads along a main road in eastern Afghanistan.

In 2021, the Taliban massacred nine ethnic Hazara men after taking control of the Ghazni province. Three of the men were tortured to death, including one who was strangled with his scarf and had his arm muscles sliced off. That same year, the Taliban killed four men and hung their bodies in public squares in the northwestern city of Herat.

In March 2024, Taliban fighters killed 18 Afghan soldiers, beheading eight of them, in a major attack in northeast Afghanistan.

The Taliban have a history of imposing harsh interpretations of Islamic law and have committed numerous human rights violations, including intimidating journalists, restricting press freedoms, violently cracking down on demonstrations, and forcibly disappearing protesters and activists. Their history of beheading civilians is just one example of their brutal tactics and commitment to extreme interpretations of Islamic law.

The US's history of Taliban commanders

The US has had a long history of conflict with the Taliban, which began in 2001 after the September 11 attacks. The US demanded that the Taliban extradite Osama bin Laden, the leader of Al-Qaeda, to the US. The Taliban refused, and the US subsequently invaded Afghanistan, declaring Operation Enduring Freedom. The US-led forces toppled the Taliban-ruled Islamic Emirate and established the Islamic Republic.

The Taliban regrouped and began a widespread insurgency against the new Afghan government and coalition forces. The Taliban used guerrilla tactics, such as suicide bombings and roadside bombs, to target coalition forces. In 2008, a federal grand jury in New York charged an Afghanistan national, Haji Najibullah, with federal terrorism-related offences. Najibullah was a Taliban commander responsible for the Jaghato district in Afghanistan's Wardak Province. He was charged with attacks on US troops, including an attack on a US military convoy that killed three US Army servicemen and their Afghan interpreter.

In 2009, the US deployed additional troops to Afghanistan and increased the use of drone strikes in Pakistan. The US also supported and funded the creation of an Afghan army. However, the army was poorly trained and equipped, which enabled the Taliban. The Taliban continued to gain support from Pakistan, which provided funding, access to safe houses, and political support.

In 2011, the US conducted a covert operation in Pakistan that led to the killing of Osama bin Laden. This was a significant blow to the Taliban, as bin Laden was their leader. Despite this, the Taliban continued to gain territory in Afghanistan, and by 2014, large parts of the country had been retaken by the Taliban.

In 2014, NATO formally ended its combat operations in Afghanistan and transferred security responsibility to the Afghan government. However, the Taliban remained a significant threat, and the US and Afghan governments turned to diplomacy to end the conflict. In 2020, the US and the Taliban signed a peace agreement, which included the withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan. Despite this, the Taliban continued their offensive and, in August 2021, they seized control of Kabul, marking the end of the US-led war in Afghanistan.

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