The Fragmentation Of Afghanistan: A Complex History Of Division

Afghanistan has been a crossroads of civilisations for millennia, with its strategic location along the historic Silk Road. The country has been invaded and fought over by numerous empires, including the Persians, Alexander the Great, the Maurya Empire, Arab Muslims, the Mongols, the British, the Soviet Union, and a US-led coalition.

Afghanistan's modern history has been marked by civil war, invasions, insurgencies, and coups. The country has been a pawn in struggles over political ideology and commercial influence, with the Soviet Union invading in 1979 and the US-led coalition in 2001. The country has also been divided by internal conflict, with various mujahideen groups vying for power and the Taliban imposing a strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Afghanistan's diverse ethnic and linguistic groups have further contributed to the country's divisions. The country is home to Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks, and other ethnic groups, with Dari and Pashto as the official languages.

The country's current political situation remains fragile, with the Taliban regaining control in 2021 and imposing strict social restrictions, particularly on women. The international community has largely refused to recognise the Taliban government, and Afghanistan continues to face economic challenges, including high levels of poverty and malnutrition.

The Durrani Empire and the founding of modern Afghanistan

The Durrani Empire, also known as the Afghan Empire, was founded in 1747 by Ahmad Shah Durrani at Kandahar, Afghanistan. Ahmad Shah Durrani was a member of the noble Sadōzai clan and the second son of Moḥammad Zamān Khan, a hereditary chief of the Abdālī (later, Durrānī) tribal confederation of Afghans. Ahmad Shah Durrani was chosen as the new leader of the Afghans by the Afghan chiefs in a Loya Jirga (grand council) in 1747.

Ahmad Shah Durrani united the different Pashtun tribes and created the Durrani Empire, which at its peak included modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, as well as some parts of northeastern Iran, eastern Turkmenistan, and northwestern India, including the Kashmir Valley. The Durrani Empire is considered to be the foundational polity of the modern nation-state of Afghanistan, with Ahmad Shah Durrani being credited as its Father.

Ahmad Shah Durrani invaded India nine times between 1747 and 1769, supposedly with no intention of founding an empire there. After an unopposed march to Delhi in 1757, he plundered that city, Agra, Mathura, and Vrindavan. Ahmad Shah Durrani invaded the remnants of the Mughal Empire a third time, and then a fourth, consolidating control over the Punjab and Kashmir regions. He sacked Delhi in 1757 but permitted the Mughal dynasty to remain in nominal control of the city as long as the ruler acknowledged his suzerainty over Punjab, Sindh, and Kashmir.

Ahmad Shah Durrani also attempted to rally neighbouring Muslim khanates and the Kazakhs to unite and attack China, ostensibly to liberate its western Muslim subjects. However, with his campaigns in India exhausting the state treasury, and with his troops stretched thin throughout Central Asia, Ahmad Shah Durrani lacked sufficient resources to do anything besides sending envoys to Beijing for unsuccessful talks.

Ahmad Shah Durrani's successors governed so ineptly during a period of profound unrest that within fifty years of his death, the Durrani empire per se was at an end, and Afghanistan was embroiled in civil war. Much of the territory conquered by Ahmad Shah Durrani fell to others in this half century. By 1818, the Sadozai rulers who succeeded Ahmad Shah Durrani controlled little more than Kabul and the surrounding territory within a 160-kilometer radius. They not only lost the outlying territories but also alienated other tribes and lineages among the Durrani Pashtuns.

The Durrani Empire fragmented after Ahmad Shah Durrani's death in 1772, but in 1826 Dost Mohammad, the leader of the Pashtun Muhammadzai tribe, restored order. Dost Mohammad Khan is sometimes considered to be the founder of the first modern Afghan state. Afghanistan would be reunited in the 19th century after seven decades of civil war from 1793 to 1863, with wars of unification led by Dost Mohammad Khan from 1823 to 1863, where he conquered the independent principalities of Afghanistan under the Emirate of Kabul.

The Great Game and the First Anglo-Afghan War

The Great Game was a political and diplomatic confrontation between the British and Russian empires over influence in Central and South Asia, primarily in Afghanistan, Persia, and Tibet. The rivalry began in the 19th century and continued through to 1907.

The Origins of the Great Game

On January 12, 1830, Lord Ellenborough, the President of the Board of Control for India, tasked Lord William Bentinck, the Governor-General, with establishing a new trade route to the Emirate of Bukhara. This move was part of a broader British strategy to create a series of buffer states, including the Ottoman Empire, Persia, the Khanate of Khiva, and the Emirate of Bukhara, to protect British colonial India and key sea trade routes from Russian expansion.

Russia, meanwhile, was also seeking to expand its territory and sphere of influence in the region. The Russians aimed to establish a neutral zone in Afghanistan, which would allow them to control crucial trade routes.

The First Anglo-Afghan War

The First Anglo-Afghan War took place in 1838 and was one of four unsuccessful wars fought by the British to control Afghanistan, Bukhara, and Turkey. The British forces invaded Afghanistan and deposed Dost Mohammad Khan, replacing him with Shah Shuja, who was more aligned with British interests. However, Shah Shuja was unpopular with the Afghans, and tensions led to the killing of the British envoy, Captain Alexander Burnes, in 1841. By January 1842, the Afghans were in full revolt, and the British decided to withdraw from Kabul. The retreat ended in disaster, with over 12,000 troops and camp followers killed by Afghan forces.

In response, the British launched a punitive expedition and recaptured Kabul, freeing captives in September. Despite this, the new Governor-General, Lord Ellenborough, decided to withdraw all British garrisons from Afghanistan and restore Dost Mohammad Khan to the Afghan throne.

The End of the Great Game

The Great Game officially ended with the Anglo-Russian Convention of 1907, which divided Persia into spheres of influence for the two empires and declared Afghanistan an official protectorate of Britain. While relations between Britain and Russia remained strained, the two powers eventually allied against the Central Powers in World War I.

The Second Anglo-Afghan War and the establishment of British influence

The Second Anglo-Afghan War, fought between the British Raj and the Emirate of Afghanistan, lasted from 1878 to 1880. It was a conflict driven by Britain's desire to curb Russian influence in Afghanistan and secure its interests in India. This war can be divided into two main campaigns, with the first beginning in November 1878 and the second concluding in September 1880.

The First Campaign (November 1878 - May 1879)

The first campaign of the Second Anglo-Afghan War commenced in November 1878 when British-Indian forces invaded Afghanistan from three different routes, penetrating the country with approximately 40,000 to 50,000 fighting men, most of whom were Indian. The British forces were divided into three columns, with one marching through the Bolan Pass to seize Kandahar, another occupying the Ali Masjid fortress to secure the Khyber Pass before advancing to Jalalabad, and the third advancing along the Kurram Valley towards Kabul.

The British quickly achieved military victories at the battles of Ali Masjid and Peiwar Kotal, leaving the approach to Kabul largely undefended by Afghan troops. As a result, the Amir of Afghanistan, Sher Ali Khan, fled to Mazar-i-Sharif, hoping to rally Afghan tribes and exploit the challenges the British would face in occupying southern Afghanistan during the winter. Despite Sher Ali Khan's efforts, the British forces occupied Kabul and forced his successor, Mohammad Yaqub Khan, to sign the Treaty of Gandamak on May 26, 1879.

The Treaty of Gandamak (May 1879)

The Treaty of Gandamak was a pivotal moment in the Second Anglo-Afghan War and had significant implications for British influence in Afghanistan. According to the treaty, Yaqub Khan agreed to relinquish control of Afghan foreign affairs to Britain in exchange for British support and vague assurances of assistance against foreign aggression. The treaty also included territorial concessions, with Afghanistan ceding various areas in the North-West Frontier Province and Quetta to Britain. Additionally, Yaqub Khan renounced all rights to interfere in the internal affairs of the Afridi tribe.

To solidify their influence, the British installed their representatives in Kabul and other locations. They also sent an envoy, Sir Louis Cavagnari, to Kabul, but his mission was short-lived.

The Second Campaign (September 1879 - September 1880)

In September 1879, just a few months after the treaty was signed, an uprising in Kabul led to the massacre of Cavagnari and his staff, reigniting the conflict. The British responded by dispatching Major General Sir Frederick Roberts, who led the Kabul Field Force into Afghanistan. Roberts' force faced opposition from Afghan armies but managed to reach Kabul and occupy the city.

During this period, Abdur Rahman Khan, a nephew of the former ruler Sher Ali Khan, returned to Afghanistan from exile. Abdur Rahman had been an opponent of the British but was now invited to become the new Amir, which he accepted. In July 1880, he agreed to abide by the terms of the Treaty of Gandamak, ensuring British influence over Afghan foreign policy.

The second campaign concluded in September 1880 when Roberts decisively defeated Ayub Khan, another contender for the throne, outside Kandahar. With this victory, the war officially ended, and the British achieved their goal of creating a buffer between British India and the Russian Empire. British and Indian soldiers then withdrew from Afghanistan, leaving the country in the hands of Abdur Rahman Khan.

The Third Anglo-Afghan War and Afghanistan's independence

The Third Anglo-Afghan War began on May 6, 1919, when the Emirate of Afghanistan invaded British India. The conflict lasted for three months and ended with an armistice on August 8, 1919, known as the Anglo-Afghan Treaty of 1919 or the Treaty of Rawalpindi. This treaty resulted in the Afghans gaining control of their foreign affairs from Britain and the British recognising the Durand Line as the official border between Afghanistan and British India.

The roots of the Third Anglo-Afghan War can be traced back to the First and Second Anglo-Afghan Wars, which took place in the 19th century. During this period, known as the Great Game, the British attempted to exert their influence over Kabul due to fears of Russian intentions and a potential invasion of India through Afghanistan. Despite maintaining nominal independence, Afghanistan's external affairs were largely controlled by Britain per the Treaty of Gandamak (1879).

In 1901, the death of Emir Abdur Rahman Khan indirectly set the stage for the Third Anglo-Afghan War. His successor, Habibullah, played a delicate balancing act between Britain and Russia. Despite Afghanistan's neutrality during World War I, internal dynamics shifted with Habibullah's assassination in February 1919, leading to a power struggle between his brother Nasrullah Khan and his son Amanullah. Amanullah ultimately seized the throne and sought to consolidate his power by invading British India, taking advantage of the post-World War I unrest and nationalist sentiments in India.

The Afghan army, despite its shortcomings, crossed the Durand Line and occupied strategic positions near the Khyber Pass. The British responded by attacking the Afghan positions and declaring war on May 6, 1919. The Afghan army, supported by tribal auxiliaries, engaged in skirmishes and battles with the British Indian forces, who were exhausted from World War I. Despite some initial successes, the Afghan forces faced setbacks and were eventually pushed back across the border.

The war concluded with a peace treaty signed at Rawalpindi, recognising Afghanistan's independence and granting them control over their foreign affairs. This outcome aligned with Amanullah's primary goal of achieving full independence from Britain. The treaty also reaffirmed the Durand Line as the official border and included an agreement by the Afghans to refrain from interfering with the tribes on the British side of the line.

The Third Anglo-Afghan War had significant consequences for both Afghanistan and the British. It marked a shift in Afghanistan's foreign relations, as they gained independence and established a "special relationship" with the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, the British had to adapt their policies on the North-West Frontier, leading to the permanent garrisoning of Waziristan with regular troops and the implementation of a road-building programme to improve military access to the region.

The Soviet-Afghan War and the rise of the Mujahideen

The Soviet-Afghan War, which lasted from 1979 to 1989, was a major conflict of the Cold War. It saw intense fighting between the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA), the Soviet Union, and their allied paramilitary groups against the Afghan Mujahideen and their foreign allies. The Mujahideen were Islamic guerrilla fighters who opposed the Soviet-backed communist government in Afghanistan.

The war began when the Soviets, under Leonid Brezhnev, invaded Afghanistan to support the local pro-Soviet government. The Soviets deployed around 100,000 soldiers, taking control of major cities and highways. The Mujahideen, on the other hand, waged guerrilla warfare in the rugged, mountainous terrain of the countryside, which constituted about 80% of the country. The Mujahideen received support from various countries, including Pakistan, the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Iran, and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf.

The Soviets attempted to crush the Mujahideen insurgency by using aerial power, levelling villages, and employing scorched-earth tactics. They also laid millions of landmines across Afghanistan. However, the Mujahideen continued to elude Soviet attacks and gained support from sympathetic Muslims worldwide. The Mujahideen's acquisition of shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles from the United States enabled them to challenge Soviet air control.

The war resulted in massive casualties and destruction in Afghanistan. Approximately one million civilians were killed, along with 90,000 Mujahideen fighters, 18,000 Afghan troops, and 14,500 Soviet soldiers. The conflict caused millions of Afghans to flee the country as refugees, with most seeking refuge in Pakistan and Iran. The Soviet-Afghan War contributed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and set the stage for the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in 1996.

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