Download War in Afghanistan

Afghanistan
A Brief History
• Has been invaded many
times:
– Persians from (modern
day) Iran
– 327 BC 150BC:
Alexander the Great
– Kushans 0 AD  700
AD
– ~ 700 AD: Muslims
(Sunni) take over
– 1220: Genghis Khan
– 1505: Mogul Dynasty
– 1738: Persians
– 1838-1842: The British
try to take over
– 1878-1880: They try
again
– 1979 - 1989: Russia
invades
History
• Diverse population of
29 million people
– Dozens of ethnic
groups
– Hundreds of tribes
• Many Afghans identify
with their tribe first
• Then their ethnic group
– Few major cities
• Most scattered though
out small villages/
hamlets
• Very difficult to bring
together under one
government
Effect of Invasions
Recent History of Fundamentalist
Islam in Afghanistan
• 1979 The Soviet
Union Invades
– 10 years of fighting
• A worldwide call goes
out to declare Jihad
(struggle)
– Muslims across the
world rush to remove
the invaders of a
Muslim nation
– They form the
Mujahideen
Mujahideen
• An army of Muslim
fighters of Jihad
defending Islam
• Made up of Muslims
from around the world
(including Osama Bin
Laden)
• Assisted by the
United State’s CIA to
remove the Soviet
Union ($, weapons,
training)
1989: The Soviets Retreat
• The United States then removes aid
• Leaves a gap for who is going to run the
country
• The Mujahideen break up into groups
fighting for control
• The Civil War rips apart the country even
more than the Soviet Invasion
• 1996: The Taliban take control of
Afghanistan
• Fundamentalist Islamic
group who believes that
the religion of Islam
should be the government
• Began during the Civil
War as a group to fight
road thieves.
• Brutal fighters
• They bring order to
Afghanistan through strict
religious rules
– Most Afghans welcome
the end of the wars at
first.
The Taliban
Taliban Law
• Shiria (Islamic)
Laws…No:
– Education or sports for
women
– TV
– Movies
– Videos
– Music
– Dancing
– Clapping during sports
events
– Kite flying
– Beard trimming