Kamna Arora

Following two decades of war, as the US prepares to complete its withdrawal on August 31, the Taliban are making huge advances across the country. There are reports of the group seizing districts, capturing major border crossings, and surrounding provincial capitals, raising concerns that the Taliban will overthrow the Afghan government once again.

The development has rekindled fears among Afghans of being subjected to the harsh interpretation of Islamic law that they faced during the Taliban’s previous stint in the country. 

Following the capture of a remote district in northern Afghanistan recently, the Taliban issued their first orders to the district’s imam in the form of a letter. 

The letter reportedly said that women cannot go to the bazaar alone, and men should not shave their beards.
The insurgents have also banned smoking, adding that anyone who violates the rules will “be seriously dealt with”.

In June, the Taliban seized Shir Khan Bandar, a northern customs post that connected Afghanistan with Tajikistan via a US-funded bridge built across the Panj River.

Reports suggested that the Taliban ordered women there not to exit their homes, leaving them terrified.  

Who are the Taliban?

The word Taliban means ‘students’ in the Pashto language. The group took shape in the early 1990s after Afghan mujahideen resisted the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan (1979–89). They were covertly supported by the US’ Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI).

Reports suggest that the movement first began in religious seminaries (mostly funded by Saudi Arabia) preaching a hardline form of Sunni Islam. 

The Taliban made promises of peace and Sharia law enforcement in Pashtun areas straddling Pakistan and Afghanistan once they came to power.

Notably, Pashtuns constitute a majority in Afghanistan and are the dominant ethnic group in its south and east. Pakistan’s north and west are also major centres of this ethnic group.

Taliban’s rise to power

After four years of conflict between rival mujahideen groups after Soviet withdrawal (1992–1996), the movement acquired widespread support by vowing stability and rule of law. 

The Taliban quickly expanded their influence from south-western Afghanistan. 

In November 1994, they seized southern city Kandahar and in September 1995, the province of Herat, bordering Iran, was captured. 

Exactly a year later, the Taliban captured Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, toppling the regime of the then Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, a Tajik (one of Afghanistan’s largest ethnic groups). The group perceived Rabbani to be anti-Pashtun and corrupt. Notably, Burhanuddin Rabbani was one of the founders of the Afghan mujahideen that resisted the Soviet occupation. 

It was in 1996 when the Taliban declared Afghanistan as an Islamic emirate. 

By 1998, more than 90 per cent of Afghanistan was under the Taliban’s control.

How Taliban ruled Afghanistan

After the Soviets left, Afghans were tired of the mujahideen’s infighting. As a result, they welcomed the Taliban when the group first appeared on the block. The group rose to prominence when they successfully weeded out corruption, deterred lawlessness, and made the roads they controlled safer for commerce.

As the Taliban consolidated control of territories, they implemented a harsh brand of justice. The Taliban law was influenced by Pashtuns’ pre-Islamic tribal code and the Wahhabi understanding of Sharia shared by the madrassas’ Saudi sponsors.

Taliban officials implemented Islamic punishments, like public executions of murderers and adulterers, as well as amputations for theft offences. It was customary for men to grow beards, and women wore chadri or head-to-toe burqa. Women were also denied the right to work. 

While men had somewhat more freedom, they were forced to attend prayers, and to wear only traditional clothing.

Furthermore, the Taliban forbade music, television, and cinema, and prohibited the education of girls older than 10 years of age. 

Various cultural and human rights violations were allegedly committed by them. 

A notorious example of this was in 2001 when the Taliban destroyed Bamiyan Buddha statues in central Afghanistan despite outrage from across the world.

Three countries – Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) – had recognised the Taliban when they were in power in Afghanistan.