WHAT HAPPENED?

It has been months since the Taliban takeover, and they now hold a solid, stable position of power. Middle Eastern extremist groups and America have always been engaged in political and social tensions.  After the 9/11 attacks, the United States invaded Afghanistan as the commencement of the “War on Terror”. Its public aims were to dismantle Al-Qaeda (the terrorist groups behind the attack) and deny it a safe base of operations in Afghanistan by removing the Taliban from power.

In order to achieve this, America attempted to form a stable, democratic government and nation instead of its corrupt leaders in the past. Many people have commented however, that in doing this the West ignored some of the country’s vital culture. On the borders of cities, there had been chiefs with connections to the government who held diplomatic views for the tribe, especially in the more rural areas, that the Americans ignored in the creation of their new government. When the Taliban took over, it was much easier for them to force these provincial areas to give up and assure them of safety if they forfeited presently, due to the Americans’ neglect of these groups.

Whilst the Americans were there however, they enlisted many Afghan nationals and citizens to help them with this new, terrorist-free nation building, such as interpreters and translators. These people, performing these harmless acts only served others, putting themselves at risk. In fact, whilst encouraging their nation and civilian wellbeing they became key targets and enemies of the extremists.

As the country progressed, the population strived for inclusivity and women’s empowerment. There were several women politicians and esteemed workers -  with the help of the Americans. Again, these basic rights made influential women a target as well. The Taliban did not condone the power they held, and made several false promises, leading to women being amongst the people hit the hardest after the takeover. They were threatened violently and forced out of their jobs for no reason other than misogyny.

MISCONCEPTIONS

The Taliban and other extremist groups in the Middle East such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS are not Islamic. They are twisted, inaccurate, evil interpretations of Islam. The Qur’an could not  more strictly prohibit the heinous crimes they commit, but they use Islam as an excuse. Consequentially, many people tend to associate true innocent Muslims with these extremist groups, causing so many problems for the Muslim community they claim they are trying to protect. Furthermore, it was found that only 13% of the 40 million population of the country condoned the Taliban’s actions.

President Donald Trump last year signed an agreement - not with the Afghan government but with the Taliban - that no more US troops in the country would be harmed as they would all be withdrawn by May 1. Joe Biden then extended the withdrawal to August 31.

America’s abrupt withdrawal caused absolute chaos and a swift overtake by the Taliban. And the worst thing is, this could easily have been prevented. The CIA openly admits to giving Biden ample warning of a catastrophically rapid takeover. Some have asked why the Afghan military didn’t fight back hard enough as they had (supposedly) “300, 000” troops, a claim made by Biden. This number has since been contested and revealed to be around 50, 000 Afghan fighters. Many allied veterans however are largely disappointed as they were on the ground fighting alongside the Afghans and have seen reportedly over 70, 000 Afghans giving their lives for this fight.

America also did not consult with any of their allies for other perspectives. United States intelligence workers have stated how they fear that the lack of consultation skews the ideal of a benevolent America and distorts it back into one of a selfish, arrogant, unreliable country that many perceived during the last presidency. More importantly, what about the civilian Afghan lives they have risked, not even only civilian Afghan lives but ones that have risked their lives in aiding us all.

America claims to give freedom, truth and honour to allies but what many on Afghan soil feel right now is entrapment, deceit and iniquity.

The situation in Afghanistan has been relatively static; there have been no attempts to dismantle Taliban rule from crucial international allies - only Afghan citizens rallying and protesting avidly. Instead the US has accidentally killed 10 innocent civilians in a small drone attack.

HOW DO EXTREMIST GROUPS WORK?

It is difficult to believe, but extremists and violent extremists are in complete belief that their thoughts and actions are moral and helpful. Extremists come from a range of different backgrounds and not one single demographic. A key statement to recall is that they are made not born. Radicalization is the process in which people become extremists and come to support extremism and terrorism. Extremism is when a person deems that committing violent acts in public spaces, usually aligned by their beliefs, is acceptable. Violent extremism is when people act upon this belief.  Many extremists are triggered by the same factors however, such as discrimination and marginalization, as well as monetary issues and a lack of security. All these elements point strikingly towards the inherent human need for social groups and a sense of community. Extremists often feel understood and connected with the skewed ideas of the group. Especially if they come from any sort of dysfunctional background where they may feel alone and misunderstood. Having a sense of security and purpose fuels anyone’s beliefs and ideas, however damnable they may be.

The Taliban’s aim is to create an Islamic state, but they did this with force and great dissent from the people of the state they want to create.