Afghanistan a country in south-central Asia, one of India's neighbours has been taken over by the Taliban- a Deobandi Islamist religious-political movement and military organization which earlier ruled the country from 1996 to 2001 before the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the world trade centre and the Pentagon in the USA by the Al-Qaeda operating from Afghanistan. After the incident, the US permanently staffed its troops there and helped set up an administrative government, leading to the end of the Taliban’s rule. In April 2021, President Joe Biden announced the complete withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan by September 11, effectively winding down the conflict 20 years after it began. This led to an insurgency in many rural parts of the country with the Taliban coming back into power as it conquered several provinces by August beginning. This shocked the entire world as the Taliban had advanced at a rate much faster than anticipated by almost every intelligence agency. Everyone is gravely worried about the social and economic welfare of the Afghan civilians as the Taliban had imposed the hard Islamic sharia law, when earlier in power and strove to impose it again where the rights given to women were negligible with them being forced to wear the burqas, being denied basic education and employment opportunities, and restraining their movement outside to only in the presence of at least 1 male member of the family. The Taliban forced many villages and towns to submit to them a list of all the unmarried/widowed women from the age of 15 to 45 so that they could be married to their soldiers. They forced many families with 2 or more sons to send off at least one of them to join their organization. Here is a timeline of all the major events which have taken place since then:
Aug. 10, 2021: The Taliban is estimated to have control of 65 per cent of the country, according to the European Union. Around 400,000 Afghans have been displaced from their homes.
Aug. 12, 2021: Taliban forces capture Kandahar and Herat, the country’s second and third largest cities.
Aug. 15, 2021: The Taliban begins entry into Kabul, prompting President Ghani to flee alongside several other government officials. The insurgent group claims “The Afghanistan War is over,” with them having essentially complete control of the country following their storming of the capital.
Aug. 16, 2021: Evacuation flights coming out of Kabul’s Hamid Karzai Airport were suspended after at least five people were killed.
Aug. 17, 2021: Mullah Baradar, leader of the Taliban forces was declared the new president of Afghanistan. Evacuation flights resumed out of Kabul, with U.S. forces taking charge of the airport. The Taliban maintained control of all other ground routes in the city. Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the Cabinet Committee on Security that India would not only protect its own citizens but also provide refuge to Sikh and Hindu minorities and extend it to all Afghans who are looking to India for help.
Aug. 18, 2021: Biden pledged to evacuate all American citizens from the country, and said that U.S. soldiers would stay until they had all left safely. The Taliban killed at least one person and injured six more after quashing a protest in Jalalabad, near the border of Pakistan.
Aug. 20, 2021: Reports of targeted killings in Taliban-controlled areas fueled the exodus of thousands more refugees to Kabul’s airport.
Aug. 23, 2021: U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that he would convene the G7 for emergency talks on Afghanistan. Biden also confirmed that he would not rule out extending the Aug. 31 deadline set prior to the Taliban’s takeover.
Aug. 26, 2021: Reports emerge of two blasts near the entrance of Kabul’s airport. Officials later revealed that the explosions had killed 12 members of the U.S. military and injured another 15 — the first troops to be killed in action there in 18 months (about 1 and a half years). At least 60 Afghan civilians were reported killed and another 140 injured by the end of the day. U.S. military officials placed the blame on ISIS Khorosan, otherwise known as ISIS-K — an offshoot of the Islamic State operating in Afghanistan which later did claim responsibility for the suicide bombing.
Aug. 27, 2021: The death toll from the blast rose to more than 180 people — 169 Afghans and 13 U.S. service members in total, according to officials.
The Taliban promises to maintain peace and security, social equality and justice and to uphold the humanitarian rights of the Afghans but almost every nation has little or no faith in them. While the atmosphere in Afghanistan continues to be filled with political tension, apprehension, violence and bloodshed, economical stress, its future remains dark and gloomy with no light at the end of the tunnel for now.
Great detail!