The Unconquerable: Afghanistan's Resilience Against Foreign Invaders

Afghanistan has been the site of many wars over the centuries, with the most recent one ending in 2021. The country's location, rough terrain, and multiple ethnic groups and tribes make it a challenging place to wage war.

The US-led war in Afghanistan was triggered by the September 11 attacks and lasted from 2001 to 2021, becoming the longest war in US military history. The conflict began when an international military coalition led by the US invaded Afghanistan, declaring Operation Enduring Freedom as part of the war on terror. The US-led forces toppled the Taliban-ruled Islamic Emirate and established the Islamic Republic.

The Taliban regrouped and launched an insurgency against the new Afghan government and coalition forces, resulting in a protracted war with heavy casualties on both sides. Despite the US and NATO's superior military technology, they faced challenges due to the Taliban's guerrilla tactics and the complex social and political landscape of Afghanistan.

The war ended with the Taliban's offensive in 2021, which overthrew the Islamic Republic and re-established the Islamic Emirate. The US and its allies evacuated their citizens and Afghan allies, marking the conclusion of America's longest war.

The US-led coalition's invasion of Afghanistan and the toppling of the Taliban regime

The US did not invade alone: it began with assistance from the UK, and eventually, over a dozen more countries joined the coalition. The US and its allies drove the Taliban from power and built military bases near major cities across the country. However, most al-Qaeda and Taliban members were not captured, escaping to neighbouring Pakistan or retreating to rural or remote mountainous regions.

On October 7, 2001, the US began military operations in Afghanistan with airstrikes on 31 targets across the country. Most of the Taliban's outdated missiles, small fleet of aircraft, and radar and command units were destroyed on the first night. The invasion consisted of American, British, Canadian, and Australian forces, with other countries providing logistical support.

In late October, Northern Alliance forces, with assistance from the US ground and air forces, began to overtake a series of towns formerly held by the Taliban. The forces defied US wishes when, on November 13, they marched into Kabul as the Taliban retreated without a fight.

Kandahar, the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the Taliban's spiritual home, fell on December 6, marking the end of Taliban power. It had been besieged by a force led by Hamid Karzai that moved in from the north and one commanded by Gul Agha Sherzai that advanced from the south; both operated with heavy assistance from the United States. As the Taliban leadership retreated into Afghanistan's rural areas and across the border to Pakistan, anti-Taliban figures convened at a United Nations-sponsored conference in Bonn, Germany. With behind-the-scenes manoeuvring by the United States, Karzai was selected to lead the country on an interim basis.

The fall of the Taliban regime is generally tied to this date when the Taliban surrendered Kandahar and Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar fled the city, leaving it under tribal law administered by Pashtun leaders. Despite the official fall of the Taliban, however, al-Qaeda leaders continued to hide out in the mountains.

The formation of the Afghan Interim Administration and international rebuilding efforts

The formation of the Afghan Interim Administration (AIA) was the result of an international conference in Bonn, Germany, sponsored by the United Nations, which took place in December 2001. The conference was attended by four delegations of anti-Taliban factions: the Northern Alliance, the "Cypress group", the "Rome group", and the "Peshawar group".

The Bonn Agreement established an Afghan Interim Authority, which would be established upon the official transfer of power on 22 December 2001. The Interim Authority would consist of an Interim Administration, a Supreme Court of Afghanistan, and a Special Independent Commission for the Convening of an Emergency Loya Jirga (Grand Council).

The Interim Administration, the most important part of the Interim Authority, would be composed of a chairman, five vice-chairmen, and 24 other members, each heading a department of the Interim Administration. Hamid Karzai was chosen as the chairman of the Interim Administration.

The Bonn Agreement also stipulated that an Emergency Loya Jirga would be held within six months of the establishing of the AIA. The Emergency Loya Jirga would put in place an Afghan Transitional Authority, which would replace the Afghan Interim Authority.

After the 2002 loya jirga concluded, the Interim Administration was replaced by a Transitional Administration.

The Taliban's resurgence and their adoption of new tactics, such as suicide bombings and IEDs

The Taliban's resurgence in Afghanistan can be attributed to a variety of factors, including the group's adoption of new tactics such as suicide bombings and the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). The Taliban, having been ousted from power in 2001, began to regroup and rearm, finding support and sanctuary in neighbouring Pakistan.

The Taliban's resurgence was marked by an increase in suicide bombings and complex attacks. In 2015, suicide and complex attacks increased by 78% countrywide compared to the same period in 2014. The Taliban conducted a series of attacks in Kabul, resulting in at least 60 deaths and marking the deadliest stretch in the capital since the US-led invasion in 2001. These attacks included suicide bombings targeting an Afghan Defense Ministry building, a Kabul Police Academy, and a NATO installation.

The Taliban's use of suicide bombers, often children, continued into the 2020s. In December 2021, a female suicide bomber was shot dead while attempting to detonate a bomb inside a Kabul passport office. In January 2022, the Taliban announced the establishment of a battalion of suicide attackers, or "martyrdom brigades," as part of the national army of Afghanistan. This announcement was met with condemnation from human rights groups.

In addition to suicide bombings, the Taliban also employed the use of IEDs. According to a report by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), IEDs were the main cause of civilian casualties during the first half of 2021 and accounted for 38% of all civilian casualties. The Taliban's use of pressure-plate IEDs, which can be triggered by a child's footsteps, resulted in a 42% increase in civilian casualties compared to the same period in 2020.

The Taliban's adoption of new tactics, such as suicide bombings and IEDs, played a significant role in their resurgence and ability to challenge the Afghan government and US-led coalition forces. These tactics enabled the Taliban to conduct high-profile attacks, inflict casualties, and spread fear among the population.

The US-Taliban deal and the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan

The US-Taliban deal, also known as the Doha Accord, was signed on February 29, 2020, in Doha, Qatar. The agreement was negotiated by Zalmay Khalilzad, a diplomatic envoy of the US. The deal was signed between the US and the Taliban and excluded the Afghan government.

The agreement laid out a timetable for the withdrawal of US and NATO troops from Afghanistan. It also stipulated fighting restrictions for both parties and outlined the Taliban's counter-terrorism commitments. The US agreed to an initial reduction of its troops from 13,000 to 8,600 within 135 days, followed by a complete withdrawal within 14 months if the Taliban kept its commitments. The US also committed to closing five military bases within 135 days.

The intra-Afghan negotiations were scheduled to begin on March 10, 2020, in Oslo, Norway. However, the talks hit a major snag when the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani rejected the US-Taliban deal's call for a prisoner exchange. Ghani stated that the release of prisoners was under the authority of the Afghan government and not the US.

Despite these setbacks, the US started withdrawing some troops on March 9, 2020, as stipulated in the deal. The withdrawal of US troops was contingent on the Taliban's actions against groups like Al-Qaeda. However, the Taliban continued to attack Afghan forces and welcomed Al-Qaeda terrorists into their leadership.

The Trump administration kept to the pact and reduced US troop levels from 13,000 to 2,500. The Biden administration delayed the May 1, 2021, withdrawal date but ultimately pushed ahead with the plan to withdraw by August 31, 2021. The last US military planes left Kabul airport on August 30, 2021, marking the end of the US's longest war.

The Taliban's offensive in 2021 and the fall of Kabul

The Taliban's offensive in 2021, which led to the fall of Kabul, began on 1 May 2021, coinciding with the withdrawal of 2,500 US troops from Afghanistan. The offensive was supported by various other armed militant groups, including al-Qaeda and its associates. The Taliban's forces included large numbers of armed civilians, including women, and some former warlords. Despite this, the Taliban managed to make significant territorial gains in the countryside, increasing the number of districts it controlled from 73 to 223 in the first three months of the offensive.

On 6 August, the Taliban launched an assault on the provincial capitals, with most towns surrendering without a fight. This culminated in victories in the major cities of Herat, Kandahar, and Lashkargah on 13 August. On 15 August, President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, and the Taliban captured Kabul with only sporadic resistance. The speed of the Taliban's takeover came as a surprise to many, including the US government and its allies.

The Taliban's offensive was aided by several factors, including the effective use of social media, the strategic choice to attack northern provinces, and freedom of movement on Afghan highways due to the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) following US-recommended strategies. Additionally, there was a drop in US support, with technical, software, and logistics support, particularly aerial support, being removed. Errors in the training of ANSF forces, corruption, and a lack of loyalty towards the central government in Kabul also contributed to the Taliban's success.

The fall of Kabul marked the end of the nearly 20-year War in Afghanistan, which had begun with the US invasion of the country. It resulted in the overthrow of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the reinstatement of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan under Taliban control. The Taliban's victory had widespread domestic and international ramifications, particularly regarding human rights and the proliferation of terrorism.

Frequently asked questions