The Taliban's Resurgence: Understanding The Group's History And Ideology

The Taliban is a Sunni Islamist nationalist and pro-Pashtun movement that ruled most of Afghanistan from 1996 until 2001. The word Taliban is Pashto for students and the group was founded in the early 1990s by peasant farmers and men studying Islam in Afghan and Pakistani madrasas, or religious schools. The Taliban first gained a foothold in southern Afghanistan, and by 1994 they had moved through the south, capturing several provinces from various armed factions. In 1996, the Taliban captured the capital, Kabul, and established the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

The Taliban's rule was marked by a strict interpretation of Islamic law, which resulted in harsh policies towards women, political opponents, and religious minorities. They also provided refuge to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, which led to a US-led campaign that removed them from power in 2001. Despite being ousted, the Taliban regrouped and continued to wage an insurgency. In 2021, they returned to power in Afghanistan after the US withdrew its remaining troops from the country.

Since regaining control, the Taliban have imposed restrictions on women and girls, limited freedom of expression, and committed human rights violations. They have also struggled to address the country's economic and humanitarian crises, with Afghanistan's economy floundering and malnutrition soaring. The international community has frozen billions of dollars in Afghan assets, waiting for the Taliban to honour promises on security, governance, and human rights.

The Taliban's origins and first regime

The Taliban, meaning "students" in Pashto, emerged in the early 1990s in northern Pakistan following the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. The predominantly Pashtun movement first appeared in religious seminaries, which were mostly funded by money from Saudi Arabia.

The Taliban's emergence can be traced back to the power vacuum created by the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan in 1989. The country was subsequently torn apart by warring mujahideen groups. During this time, the Taliban were based in the Helmand, Kandahar, and Uruzgan regions and were overwhelmingly ethnic Pashtuns and predominantly Durrani Pashtuns.

In 1994, a small Taliban militia emerged near Kandahar, committing vigilante acts against minor warlords. They soon began to receive backing from local Durrani Pashtun leaders, and their militia grew. By 1995, all of southern Afghanistan was held by the Taliban. In the spring of 1996, Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban, held a meeting of over a thousand Pashtun leaders in Kandahar—the largest gathering of religious leaders in modern Afghan history.

In August 1996, the Taliban launched a surprise attack on Jalalabad and, in September, they captured the capital, Kabul, from President Burhanuddin Rabbani, an ethnic Tajik whom they viewed as anti-Pashtun and corrupt. The Taliban declared Afghanistan an Islamic emirate, with Mullah Omar, a cleric and veteran of the anti-Soviet resistance, leading as "commander of the faithful". By 1998, the Taliban controlled 90% of Afghanistan.

The Taliban imposed a harsh brand of justice as they consolidated territorial control. Their regime neglected social services and other basic state functions, even as the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice required women to wear the head-to-toe burqa, banned music and television, and jailed men whose beards were deemed too short. The Taliban also closed down schools and banned girls from even studying at home.

The Taliban's first regime ended in 2001, following the United States invasion of Afghanistan.

The Taliban's second rise to power

In the years following their exile, the Taliban regrouped in Pakistan and began to slowly rebuild their power base in Afghanistan. They received support from various sources, including some Afghan businessmen and a few Arab donors, as well as from Pakistan, which continued to provide safe havens and other assistance. By 2005, the Taliban insurgency was gaining momentum, with increased attacks on government schools and clinics and the assassination of government officials.

In 2020, the United States and the Taliban signed a peace agreement in Doha, Qatar, which stipulated the withdrawal of all US and NATO troops from Afghanistan in exchange for the Taliban's pledge to prevent al-Qaeda from operating in areas under their control. However, the Taliban took advantage of the US withdrawal to launch a widespread offensive in 2021, quickly overwhelming the Afghan National Army and capturing the capital, Kabul, on August 15, 2021.

The Taliban's rapid resurgence and return to power can be attributed to several factors, including the support they received from regional powers such as Pakistan, the weakness of the Afghan government and security forces, and the vacuum created by the US withdrawal. The Taliban's extreme ideology, including their strict interpretation of Islamic law and oppression of women's rights, continues to be a source of concern for the international community.

The Taliban's human rights abuses

The Taliban is an Afghan militant movement with an ideology comprising elements of Pashtun nationalism and the Deobandi current of Islamic fundamentalism. They have been accused of human rights abuses since their first rise to power in the 1990s. Here is a list of some of the human rights abuses they have been accused of:

• The Taliban have been accused of committing massacres against Afghan civilians.
• They have denied UN food supplies to starving civilians.
• They have committed cultural genocide against the Afghan people by destroying their historical and cultural texts, artifacts, and sculptures.
• They have banned women from school and most employment.
• They have prohibited most music.
• They have imposed a strict interpretation of Sharia law, or Islamic law.
• They have committed public executions of convicted murderers and adulterers, as well as amputations for those found guilty of theft.
• They have required men to grow beards and women to wear the all-covering burka.
• They have been accused of various human rights and cultural abuses, including the 2001 destruction of the famous Bamiyan Buddha statues in central Afghanistan, despite international outrage.
• They have been accused of killing opponents, as well as beating and detaining journalists and Afghans protesting for their rights.
• They have banned women from going on long-distance journeys without a male chaperone.
• They have closed beauty salons, impacting some 60,000 women-owned businesses.
• They have banned girls from attending secondary school and university.
• They have restricted the right of women and girls to work and to have an education.
• They have been accused of arbitrary detention, torture, and other ill-treatment.
• They have enforced public executions and corporal punishment such as stoning and flogging.
• They have marginalised and discriminated against ethnic groups, including religious minorities.
• They have been accused of extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture, and other ill-treatment.
• They have been accused of killing, abducting, and attacking foreigners, medical and non-governmental organisation workers, and other civilians.
• They have been accused of using child soldiers.
• They have been accused of discrimination against Hindus and Sikhs.
• They have been accused of violence against Western aid workers and Christians.
• They have been accused of targeted killings of civilians, including government employees, journalists, and religious leaders.
• They have been accused of forced conscription.
• They have been accused of restricting modern education.
• They have been accused of committing a cultural genocide against the Afghan people by destroying their historical and cultural texts, artifacts, and sculptures.
• They have been accused of banning entertainment and recreational activities.
• They have been accused of imposing restrictions on freedom of expression.
• They have been accused of repressing women's rights.
• They have been accused of repressing the LGBTQ+ community.

The Taliban's relationship with al-Qaeda

The Taliban and al-Qaeda have a long history of working together. The Taliban is an Afghan militant movement with an ideology comprising elements of Pashtun nationalism and the Deobandi current of Islamic fundamentalism. The group first emerged in the early 1990s in northern Pakistan following the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan. The Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001, before being overthrown following the American invasion.

Al-Qaeda is a terrorist organisation founded by Osama bin Laden in 1988. The group gave rise to terrorist networks around the world, including Southeast Asia’s Jemaah Islamiyah, formed in Afghanistan in 1993, and Al Qaeda in Iraq, which morphed into the Islamic State in Iraq in 2006.

Al-Qaeda and the Taliban have a close relationship. The Taliban provided al-Qaeda with a safe haven in Afghanistan, and al-Qaeda, in turn, provided the Taliban with financial support. The two groups also collaborated on the insurgency against US and Afghan forces.

The Taliban and al-Qaeda's relationship has been strained at times. In 2001, the US invaded Afghanistan after the Taliban refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. The Taliban suffered a major setback when they were removed from power by US-led forces.

Despite this, the Taliban and al-Qaeda have maintained their alliance. In 2020, the Taliban signed a peace deal with the US, in which they committed to restraining jihadist groups, including al-Qaeda. However, there are concerns that the Taliban will not uphold this agreement.

The Taliban's return to power in 2021 has raised fears that Afghanistan could once again become a safe haven for terrorists. The Taliban maintains close ties with al-Qaeda, and analysts are concerned that the Taliban could provide it with a safe haven to launch international terrorist attacks.

The Taliban's relationship with the international community

The Taliban first rose to power in Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001, during which they imposed a harsh interpretation of Islamic law, committing massacres, denying food supplies to civilians, and restricting women's access to education and employment. This led to international isolation and sanctions, with the United Nations (UN) imposing sanctions on the regime for harbouring terrorist groups and committing human rights abuses.

Following their ouster by a US-led military coalition in 2001, the Taliban regrouped and waged a twenty-year insurgency against the US-backed government in Afghanistan. During this period, the Taliban received support from various countries, including Pakistan, which sought to gain strategic influence in the region. Despite international efforts to stabilize Afghanistan, the Taliban gradually regained control, culminating in their return to power in 2021.

The Taliban's resurgence has been met with concern and condemnation from the international community. The group has been criticized for its treatment of women, restricting their access to education, employment, and freedom of movement. There have also been reports of human rights abuses, including the persecution of ethnic and religious minorities, restrictions on freedom of expression, and extrajudicial killings.

The international community's response to the Taliban's return to power has been mixed. No country has officially recognized the Taliban government, and countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom have engaged in military action against the regime. However, there have also been efforts to negotiate and engage with the Taliban, with countries like Russia and China hosting talks and calling for a peaceful transition of power.

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