The latest developments
In Afghanistan, the Taliban in August Took power in 2021. Many states have evacuated their compatriots and local employees under sometimes dramatic circumstances. The situation in the country is confusing.
Hundreds of people gather at Kabul airport around a transport plane on August 16, 2021. Shortly before, the Taliban had advanced into the city.
Shekib Rahmani / AP
The latest developments:
- The Afghan ex-President Ashraf Ghani has fled the country Justified in mid-August. This was not planned and he did so in order to cause the bloodshed and the destruction of Kabul impede. “On the morning of that day I had no idea that I would be going out in the late afternoon,” he told BBC Radio 4 in an interview published on Thursday (December 30th). The head of the Presidential Guard and National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib informed him at the time that the Presidential Guard had collapsed. Should he resist, everyone would be killed and no one could defend him. Mohib was really scared and didn’t give him more than two minutes. «It was all really suddenly.»
- The imposition of restrictions on women in Afghanistan has received rare criticism from Pakistan of the Taliban -Guide triggered. “Women cannot travel alone or go to schools and universities,” said Pakistani Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry in a speech at a ceremony in the capital Islamabad on Monday evening (December 27th). This kind of “backward thinking” is dangerous for Pakistan, such extremism could spread to the South Asian country and beyond. Pakistan is considered a close ally of the Taliban government in Kabul. Politicians in the country, including Prime Minister Imran Khan, have repeatedly praised the Taliban since they came to power and ignored their violations of human and women’s rights.
- Anyone who drives a car in Afghanistan should neither listen to music nor take a woman without a hijab as a passenger. This is what it says in a letter from the Ministry for the Preservation of Virtue and the Suppression of Vice Distributed to Motorists. The spokesman for the ministry, Mohammed Sadik Asif, confirmed the directive on Sunday (December 26th). How exactly the hijab should look like is not clear from the arrangement. As a rule, the ruling Taliban do not understand this to mean covering the hair and neck, but rather a cloak from head to toe.
- Qatar and Turkey are negotiating with the Taliban about the operation of the international airport in the Afghan capital Kabul. The talks continued that there has not yet been an agreement, said Taliban chief spokesman Sabihullah Mujahid of the German Press Agency on Friday evening (December 24th). The Turkish state news agency Anadolu reported, citing diplomats, that Turkey and Qatar had agreed to operate five airports, including the one in Kabul. Technical details should therefore be discussed with the Taliban in the coming week. Should an agreement be reached, all domestic and international flights would resume, another senior Taliban official said. The airspace over Afghanistan is currently closed to overflights. Only domestic flights and international evacuation and humanitarian aid flights take place.
How did the Taliban come to power in Afghanistan?
After the announcement of the American troop withdrawal, the Taliban were able to conquer all cities and provinces in the country within a very short time, without encountering significant resistance from the Afghan army. On August 15, they penetrated the capital Kabul, occupied the presidential palace and took power in Afghanistan. President Ashraf Ghani had fled abroad shortly before.
The withdrawal of the last American soldier at the end of August marked the end of the twenty-year American military presence in Afghanistan. The then incumbent American President Donald Trump had assured the Taliban in February 2020 that Western troops would be withdrawn by May 1, 2021. His successor Joe Biden initially set the date on September 11th, but then moved it forward to August 31st. In fact, already on August 30th, shortly before midnight,
under dramatic circumstances the last machine with the last American soldiers and officials from Kabul Airport.
In over 120,000 people had been evacuated by American and other Western forces in the previous two weeks. However, by no means all those in need of protection – i.e. former local workers and their families, but also prominent politicians and women’s rights activists – were able to get a seat on the aircraft. In Kabul, only the airport was under the control of American soldiers until the final withdrawal of the troops. Dramatic scenes took place around Kabul Airport. More than 170 people were killed in two suicide attacks by the IS terrorist group, most of them Afghan civilians.
The US State Department and the Pentagon allegedly withhold information on the circumstances surrounding the Taliban’s takeover. That information would be needed by lawmakers and the public to understand the collapse of the previous Afghan government and military, as well as the chaotic withdrawal of American troops, said John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for the Reconstruction of Afghanistan (SIGAR). While the State Department admitted that some information had been removed or made illegible in order to protect people in Afghanistan, the Pentagon has not yet commented on the allegations.
Taliban fighters took off on 15 August 2021 took control of the Afghan presidential palace in Kabul. The Afghan President Ashraf Ghani had fled the country before.
Zabi Karimi / AP
The Taliban provide the new government: who are they and what interests are they pursuing?
The Taliban announced at a press conference in Kabul on September 7th, with which personnel you want to tackle the business of government. It should officially be a transitional government. Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund , the little-known chairman of the Taliban leadership council, has been appointed prime minister. The Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar , the main public face of the group, will be his deputy. The Taliban chief Haibatullah Akhundzada Finally, the chief mullah is to watch over the new regime. As “Supreme Leader” he is supposed to ensure the conformity of politics with Sharia law. As the so-called leader of the faithful, he makes the final decisions on political, religious and military affairs of the Taliban and is thus supposed to steer the Islamic emirate of Afghanistan. The religious hardliner belongs to the founding generation of the Taliban. Here is the portrait of the mysterious new Emir.
His excellency Sheikh Hibatullah Akhundzada will be the emir of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” pic.twitter.com/VsN8QRgG22 – Muhammad Jalal (@ MJalal700) September 7, 2021
The occupation of the Interior Minister’s post with Sirajuddi n Haqqani , who also acts as one of Akhundzada’s deputies. Because Haqqani is the leader of the Haqqani network, an organization classified as terrorist by the USA. He is held responsible for some of the cruelest attacks in Afghanistan. Due to his involvement in suicide bombings and his ties to Al Qaeda, the man in his mid-40s is one of the most wanted men by the American secret service FBI. The US has written a seven-figure bounty on Haqqani.
Another deputy of Akhundzada is Mullah Jakub, the eldest son of the long-time, deceased Taliban chief Mullah Omar. The leadership also includes Mullah Baradar Akh and Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, who were involved in the negotiations with the US and the Afghan government.
According to their own statement, the Taliban want to build an “Islamic system” free of foreign interference. In the past few months they had always asserted that they were striving for peace. However, they rejected the formally democratic political system in Afghanistan and described the government of President Ashraf Ghani as a puppet of the Americans.
Do the Taliban control all of Afghanistan?
The last area in which resistance was still offered after the beginning of September was the rebellious province of Panjshir . According to the Taliban, this too fell after less than a week of fighting. They posted pictures of them hoisting their white flag in the Panjshir Valley on social media. After fierce fighting, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid declared that this last rebellious province had fallen. Since then it has been unclear whether anything is left of the resistance fighters and whether their leaders are still in the country at all. But it seems to be clear that the Taliban now control all of Afghanistan.
How do other states want to deal with the Taliban government?
The international community is faced with the question of the extent to which the Taliban should be accepted as a discussion and negotiation partner. Many Western states are holding talks with the Taliban, but do not – yet – recognize them as legitimate governments. In mid-August, the UN Security Council called for negotiations on the formation of a new government, which should include women.
The foreign ministers of the EU states had declared, as a condition for any cooperation with the Taliban, that the Taliban had to subordinate a government Include other political forces in the country and enable people in need of protection to leave the country. In addition, they should ensure compliance with human rights, the rule of law and freedom of the press, enable humanitarian aid and guarantee that Afghanistan will not become a base for internationally operating terrorist groups again.
These demands are of little interest to the Taliban, as was once again shown with the announcement of the government personnel. Notwithstanding this, both the Russian and Chinese governments recently
Contacts with the Taliban expanded. At the same time, there are fears in Beijing, as elsewhere, that the Taliban are providing shelter to Islamist groups. What is the situation like for the people of Afghanistan?
In many parts of the country people do not dare to leave their homes for fear of the Taliban. Afghans who have worked as local staff for foreign military or other organizations are particularly at risk. Human rights organizations report targeted executions and other repression. Open protests against the Taliban broke out in some cities, including Kabul.
Above all, it is unclear how the situation will develop for Afghan women. During the first Taliban rule from 1996 to 2001, women were only allowed to leave the house if accompanied by their husbands or male relatives, they had to wear a burqa and were not allowed to work. In its first public statements, the Taliban have emphasized that women and girls should continue to be allowed to go to work or school.
Women in public health were specifically encouraged to return to their jobs. However, all of this should only be possible within the framework of the Sharia, and it is not yet clear how the Taliban will interpret it this time. In mid-September, the Taliban announced that men and women would not be allowed to work together. Women are allowed to study, but only in a gender-segregated environment. In addition, the Taliban are “temporarily” suspending schooling for girls from the 7th grade. No women were included in the appointment of the cabinet.
Afghans gather in front of a passport office that recently reopened. The Taliban announced that they would issue applications approved by the previous government. Image taken on October 6, 2021, in Kabul, Afghanistan.
Felipe Dana / AP
Although a decree was issued at the beginning of December to safeguard various women’s rights – these are fundamental rights, including the Rules of Islam correspond – but the Taliban made no statements about women’s rights to education or work: Most secondary schools for girls are still closed. Many of the initial statements by the Taliban, which were supposed to guarantee women’s rights, are probably also propaganda aimed at the West, since the Taliban are dependent on aid funds and strive for recognition under international law.
What happens to the refugees?
Some of the people in Afghanistan bordering countries expect another wave of refugees. They have already taken in several million Afghans: 90 percent of them are in Iran and Pakistan, others in Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, it is said. In European countries, too, there is a discussion about which refugee movements will follow the regime change and whether they could affect the European continent. How the situation will actually develop cannot yet be foreseen.
The Taliban have given assurances that Afghans will continue to operate after the American troops have withdrawn from August 31st are allowed to leave the country. At the same time, they emphasize that the country can only be rebuilt with the help of the population. But they do not want to rely to a large extent on the words of the Taliban. In fact, many border crossings are still closed or are strictly controlled by the Taliban. Why did the USA invade Afghanistan and why did they leave the country again?
After the attacks of September 11, 2001, the “war on terror” began in Afghanistan. It was from there that Usama bin Ladin’s al-Qaeda planned the terrorist attacks in the United States. After air strikes by the United States and Great Britain, which overthrew the Taliban regime, 42 countries under the leadership of NATO took part in a security mission. The international troops stayed in the country for twenty years to stabilize the security situation and to establish a democratic system.
In the past few years there had been a stalemate in the country: the American and Afghan forces failed to defeat the approximately 60,000-strong Taliban. These continued to control around half of the country or at least had a presence there. Again, the Taliban were not strong enough to oust the Americans and government forces. Under Donald Trump, Washington finally declared in February 2020 that it would withdraw international troops.
How many people came from Kabul evacuated?
Between August 14th – the day before the fall of Kabul – and the withdrawal of the last US troops on August 30th, the United States and its allies August saw more than 122,000 people from Kabul in a historically unique rescue operation flown out or allows their departure. According to their own information, the American armed forces were able to temporarily accommodate up to 50,000 evacuated Afghans at their bases in the United States.
According to a media report, an American Air Force plane brought around 640 Afghan civilians to safety in a single flight.
US Air Force / Reuters
Two suicide bombings at the airport in Kabul
First explosion: The first explosion. This entrance had been used as the main entrance to the airport for the past few days.
Second explosion: The Hotel Baron is used by foreign troops to control refugees before they enter the airport.
Who is the IS-K who is responsible for is responsible for the attacks at the airport?
On August 26th detonated in front of the airport Kabul two bombs. The “New York Times” reported the next day of up to 170 dead and over 200 injured, with reference to the local health authorities. 13 American soldiers and 28 Taliban fighters also fell victim to the attacks.
A sub-group of the Islamic State (IS) is held responsible for the attacks. IS in Afghanistan is called IS-K (IS Khorasan). The historical region of Khorasan includes Afghanistan and Pakistan. ISIS and the Taliban are both Islamist groups, but they are considered enemies. The Taliban are traditionally rooted in Afghanistan, while the Islamic State seeks rule over large parts of Central Asia and Africa. The IS apparently also does not consider the Sharia practiced by the Taliban to be harsh enough. When the Taliban held talks with the US in recent years, dissatisfied Taliban fighters turned to the more extreme IS-K.
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