In September 2015, the Taliban captured the city of Kunduz in Afghanistan, marking their
biggest victory since the United States invaded the country in 2001. Since being ousted, the
Taliban insurgency has been slowly regaining power. So, how has the Taliban survived the
War on Terror?
Well, the Taliban in Afghanistan was originally born out of Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence
agency, which trained, funded, and equipped the terrorist organization. In 1996, the Taliban
seized the Afghan capital of Kabul and instituted an Islamic theocratic dictatorship. Their
reign was marked by human trafficking, brutality towards women, and massacres of civilians.
They ruled until 2001, when the US invaded Afghanistan following the attacks of September
11th. The orchestrator of the attacks, and founder of Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden, was
thought to be harbored by the Taliban government.
The US invasion ousted the Taliban government, pushing hundreds of fighters and commanders
into hiding in northern Pakistan. Over the next few years, former members regrouped into
an insurgency, and by 2006 were fighting full force against the US-backed Afghan government.
As a terrorist group, the Taliban primarily targeted Afghan civilians, accounting for
more than three-quarters of civilian deaths. Hundreds of suicide bombings killed Afghan
and NATO troops as the Taliban continued to regain followers and influence.
In 2010, the Taliban launched a massive offensive against occupying forces, alongside Pakistani
and Afghan tribal groups. This strong push saw the Taliban re-enter a number of cities,
including the recently captured Kunduz. The Taliban’s long-time leader, Mohammed Omar,
died in 2013 - a fact which was hidden until 2015.
The newly appointed leader, Muhammad Mansour, favored peace talks with Afghan forces. But
a portion of the Taliban rejected any peace agreement with foreign forces, and wanted
to continue fighting for what the Taliban calls their version of an Islamic state.
Today, despite growing influence and the capture of Kunduz, Taliban leaders have promoted the
idea of peace talks in order to get foreign forces out of Afghanistan. Although the US
troop drawdown has seen the total number drop from about 100,000 to 10,000, Afghan forces
have struggled to maintain power. Afghanistan’s stability has long been a point of concern,
and even despite the US’s occupation, the Taliban-led drug trade has exploded, with
93% of the world’s heroin produced in the country. As US troops leave, many are questioning
how long Afghanistan will stay under the control of allied local forces before falling back
into the hands of the Taliban.
To learn about the Taliban's dangerous recruiting tactics, check out my video on Seeker Daily up top.
Or for more on Al Qaeda, a terrorist group that the Taliban used to protect, check out our video below. Thanks
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