Religious figures, insurgency, and jihad in southern. Helmand is notorious, if not for the flourishing narcotics trade, then for the taliban insurgency that dominates large swaths of territory. As a result, coalition forces have spread themselves out over vast areas with long and vulnerable lines of communication. There would also be a risk of the situation in the north deteriorating significantly in the meantime.
The advantage with the light footprint is that it can allow the us to maintain a longerterm presence in afghanistan that, while not being. The oxford english dictionary defines insurgency as a rebellion against authority for example, an authority recognized as such by the united nations when those taking part in the rebellion are not recognized as belligerents. This study examines how the taliban profit from narcotics, probes how traffickers influence the strategic goals of the insurgency, and considers the extent to which narcotics are changing the nature of the insurgency itself. Public support for alqaidas transnational jihadist movement, the taliban insurgency in afghanistan, the kurdistan workers party pkk in turkey, and the maoist insurgency in nepal is examined using a conceptual model that draws on social science and social movement theory. This is the primary driver of the insurgency in afghanistan. Most interviewees believe that the presence of foreign forces in afghanistan.
Analysis of taliban revenue and the importance of the opium trade to the insurgency open pdf 334 kb the current taliban insurgency in afghanistan has multiple funding sources. Achieving the united states strategic objectives in afghanistan. When i would ask about the taliban to try to find out. This article assesses this insurgency and the reemergent taliban. We then analyze the effects of the current insurgency from the strategic and operational levels and examine its implications for u. Understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan by. Taliban taxes either coopt islamic finance concepts, such as oshr and zakat, or mimic official state systems. Understanding insurgency and counterinsurgency models to develop a path forward in afghanistan. Pdf the history of afghanistan ebooks includes pdf. A successful outcome in afghanistan requires balancing tribal.
Afghanistan s 34 provinces and controlling around a quarter of the countrys mobile phone coverage. The related conflict in pakistan is known as war in northwest pakistan today. The importance of the opium production and smuggling has been touted as essential to the continuation of the taliban insurgency in todays media. Understanding local ownership in peacebuilding operations in afghanistan marika theros december 2012 in afghanistan, political authority is fragmented across an array of external and internal actors, each with their own interests and agendas. Taliban insurgency simple english wikipedia, the free. The aim of this report is to get a better understanding of the taliban movement and its role in the. The aim was to better understand insurgent motivations. The forever war what factors are driving afghanistans. The common view of the taliban as simply a radical afghan islamist movement is overly simple, for that organization has been.
The talibans winning strategy in afghanistan carnegie endowment. Using and testing a conceptual model that draws on social science and particularly social movement theory, this volume examines public support for alqaidas transnational jihadist movement, the taliban insurgency in afghanistan, the kurdistan workers. The taliban insurgency began after the groups fall from power following the 2001 war in afghanistan. Mar 11, 2020 since its ouster in 2001, the taliban has maintained its insurgency against the u. They are committed to remove foreign forces and influence and to restore a more traditional and strictly islamic form of governance in afghanistan. Understanding afghan insurgents motivations, goals, and. Pdf the aim of this report is to get a better understanding of the taliban movement and its role in the afghan insurgency post2001.
This taliban logic for peace has been consistent, with the ideology viewed as a means to recruit fighters and, to some extent, to appeal for local support for the insurgency. Cultural understanding doesnt just help you achieve your objectivesit helps you discover. That means understanding their culture and engaging the afghans with respect to the system of governance that has worked for them in the past. Following are the yearly figures on insurgentinitiated attacks in afghanistan. The forever war what factors are driving afghanistans 17.
The talibans bases are in the countrys many farflung villages and remote valleys where there is little or no government presence. We assume that the insurgency stems from three fundamental problems. The aim of this report is to get a better understanding of the taliban movement and its role in the afghan insurgency post2001. The rise of afghanistans insurgency the belfer center for science.
Understanding local ownership in peacebuilding operations. To encourage frankness, and for safety reasons, most interviews were nonattributable. This in turn can also help to create a better theoretical understanding of the mechanisms that explain obedience to authority, especially with regard to sources of substantive legitimacy in conflicttorn spaces. Pdf afghanistan is in danger of capsizing in a perfect storm of insurgency that mimics operations and tactics witnessed in iraq. Analysis of taliban revenue and the importance of the. Pdf the taliban insurgency in afghanistan organization. Despite widespread recognition that the only way toward ending the taliban insurgency in afghanistan is a negotiated settlement, understanding of the talibans thinking on the subject is scant. Mason, understanding the taliban and insurgency in. Afghanistans taliban legitimate jihadists or coercive. Information from its description page there is shown below. Understanding why the taliban fight home assed baig.
The local taliban want to control the political situation. How opium rk profits the taliban united states institute. Main findings islamic groups and afghan mullahs play a critical role in politics in southern afghanistan. The insurgency has spread to some degree over the durand line border to. The common view of the taliban as simply a radical afghan islamist movement is overly simple, for that organization has been a nation must think before it acts understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan. The common view of the taliban as simply a radical afghan.
Exactly what type of insurgency the taliban is waging in afghanistan in 2014 is still a matter of debate. Understanding and influencing public support for insurgency and terrorism book description. This essay examines the social and political roles of religious figures in southern afghanistan in an attempt to develop a more nuanced understanding of the present insurgency. Interviewees were between the ages of 16 and 53 and varied considerably in educational and professional backgrounds. A persistent taliban presence outside of kabul indicates that the insurgency is fighting for more than remote district centers, and furthermore that it can regenerate itself and strengthen its military capability. Not only does it give them a summary of afghanistans colorful geography and history, but it also presents an uptodate picture of where the war is heading and an informed discussion of the range of choice for afghanistan and its allies. The taliban insurgency remains resilient nearly two decades after u. Understanding afghan insurgents motivations, goals, and the. Pashtutaliban actions against nato forces in afghanistan and in the tribal controlled areas of pakistan, the base for insurgency is increased power or representation from the masses, utilizing violence as a tool for either regime defeat or capitulation of a wide range and scope of demands. Abstract afghanistan is in danger of capsizing in a perfect storm of insurgency that mimics operations and tactics witnessed in iraq. Understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan. Any effective strategy for finding a political solution to the conflict needs, as a key initial step, to take this into account. Amisunderstanding of the insurgency is at the heart of the difficulties facing the international coalition in afghanistan. The taliban forces are fighting against the afghan government, formerly led by president hamid karzai, now led by president ashraf ghani, and against the usled international security assistance force isaf.
But more than this, it creates an impression that the taliban would not accede to the presence of even a small number of american troops in afghanistan. Afghanistans 34 provinces and controlling around a quarter of the countrys mobile phone coverage. Barfield vividly describes how afghanistans armed factions plunged the country into a civil war, giving rise to clerical rule by the taliban and afghanistans isolation from the world. After the war in afghanistan in 2001, the taliban started an insurgency, which is known as the taliban insurgency. Dangerous liaisons with the afghan taliban the web site cannot. The taliban and other insurgent groups enjoyed a sanctuary in the federally. The taliban insurgency in afghanistan organization. Wright and the contemporary operations study team, a different kind of war. With this, the conflict in the region spread to pakistan. Executive summary 78 indepth interviews were conducted with selfidentified afghan insurgents in baghlan, ghazni, helmand, kandahar, khost, kunar, kunduz, nangarhar, nimruz, nuristan, paktia, parwan, uruzgan, wardak, and zabul. Local ownership in peacebuilding operations in afghanistan marika theros december 2012 in afghanistan, political authority is fragmented across an array of external and internal actors, each with their own interests and agendas. Understanding and influencing public support for insurgency. Description of the us occupation of afghanistan from the foreign policy research institute.
Understanding war in afghanistan is an excellent book for journeyman students of afghanistan. The coalitions lack of sufficient resources and a clear strategy has resulted. The common view of the taliban as simply a radical afghan islamist movement is overly simple, for that organization has been able to build on tribal kinship networks and a charismatic mullah. The taliban s bases are in the countrys many farflung villages and remote valleys where there is little or no government presence. A bombing campaign against the taliban that was expected to last only a few days has instead continued for almost three weeks, with little indication. With the fall of the communist backed government in kabul, the various mujahideen groups that defeated the soviets began to fight amongst themselves, and the country came to be ruled by bandits and petty warlords. The afghan taliban are trying to drive the united states and nato forces out of afghanistan, using pakistan as a base of operations. The taliban defeat of these elements during the 1990s was applauded by ordinary. Afghanistan is in danger of capsizing in a perfect storm of insurgency that mimics operations and tactics witnessed in iraq. The advantage with the light footprint is that it can allow the us to maintain a. This book examines counterinsurgency operations in afghanistan fol lowing the overthrow of the. In afghanistans poppyrich south and southwest, a raging insurgency intersects a thriving opium trade.
But more than this, it creates an impression that the taliban would not accede to the presence of. Transformation and the war in afghanistan strategic studies quarterly spring 2018 101 engagement roe to allow them, if necessary, to take offensive actions against the insurgency. Pashtu taliban actions against nato forces in afghanistan and in the tribal controlled areas of pakistan, the base for insurgency is increased power or representation from the masses, utilizing violence as a tool for either regime defeat or capitulation of a wide range and scope of demands. Indeed, under the current strategy of concentrating new forces in the south and east, the taliban will move the insurgency to the north. Understanding the taliban more precisely could enable better u. Understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan by thomas h. Pdf understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan. It is increasingly difficult to locate where ownership, power, and accountability lie. Understanding the taliban and insurgency in afghanistan article pdf available in orbis 511. Key to success in afghanistan is understanding the afghan mindset. He examines why the american invasion in the wake of september 11 toppled the taliban so quickly, and how this easy victory lulled the united states into. Religious figures, insurgency, and jihad in southern afghanistan. It is worrisome that these fighters said they could travel to and from pakistan with relatively impunity, despite the.