Others say Omar "was chosen by God," Rashid writes. When interviewed by a journalist from Pakistan (Rahimullah Yousufzai) after taking control of Kabul, according to Rashid's book, Omar stated, "We had complete faith in God Almighty. We never forgot that. He can bless us with victory or plunge us into defeat."
Omar was born around 1959 (albeit much of his life is carefully guarded in secrecy), he has only one eye, and he never meets with or speaks with anyone who is not Muslim. He was born into a "family of poor, landless peasants who were members of the Hotak tribe" (Rashid, 25). The Rashid book (24-25) describes him as a "tall, well-built man with a long, black beard and a black turban." He has a "dry sense of humor and a sarcastic wit," albeit he is "extremely shy of outsiders" and is a "poor public speaker," according to Rashid on page 24. Rashid writes that Omar sits on a bed during meetings - to emphasize "his status as leader" - and his business style consists of "lengthy debate and discussions which end with the issuing of 'chits' or scraps of paper on which are written instructions allowing commanders to make an attack..." (Rashid, 25).
On page 105 of Rashid's book, he describes Maulvi Qalamuddin, the then head of "The Department of the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice" (or as he preferred to call it, "Department of Religious Observances"), also known as the Taliban's "religious police." His physique and name generated fear across the city of Kabul, and with good reason. This head of "religious police" had under his jurisdiction "thousands of young zealots" who walked around town "with whips, long sticks, and Kalashnikovs" (assault rifles).
Everywhere one looks in researching the Taliban and their policies and beliefs, religion is not far behind. Indeed, in his book, the Taliban: Ascent to Power, author M.J. Gohari writes (Gohari 31) that "Taliban" literally means "students" in Arabic; but the Persian form of "tabid" means "religious student." It is in the elementary schools where "the mentality of religious students [was] basically shaped," Gohari writes. These schools place "a strong emphasis on reading and memorizing the Qur'an, as well as traditions transmitted from the Prophet..."
Continuing the investigation into the literature - with reference to the corruption of pure Islamic "bible" (the Qur'an), and hence the marriage of "church and state" - Gohari (32) points out that these elementary schools are more like official institutions of propaganda. "The Prophet's sayings are the chief source of interpretation of legislative, ethical, theological and social laws and rules," taught to the students, the author explains.
And as to the matter of ethnic minorities living in Afghanistan during the Taliban's religious-driven takeover, Gohari (102) explains that on August 8, 1998, and a few days following that date, "Taliban militiamen...systematically executed between 2,000 and 5,000 males "of fighting age" in one of the deadliest mass killings of civilians..."
And why were these innocent boys gunned down "by firing squads" and by having their throats slashed - in front of their families in a house-to-house rampage? They were believed to be of the "Hazara ethnic minority," and some members of that minority had resisted the Taliban's initial thrust into Kabul at the end of the war with the Soviets, Gohari continues.
Indeed, speaking of the way in which the Omar-led Taliban interpreted "Islamic law," it is worthwhile to point to their incredibly cruel blasting of the irreplaceable internationally revered icons, the 2,000-year-old Bamiyan Buddha statues. The Taliban blew up the Buddhas ostensibly because Buddhism was not tolerated in this new radical Islamic state.
The man who did the demolition of the great statues - they rose 175 feet and 121 feet into the air - was Mawlawi Mohammed Islam Moham-medi; he was interviewed by journalist Christian Parenti in Mother Jones magazine (Parenti 2006). He said he "had tried to stop it," but he had "no real power." He was just a "symbolic leader." Later in the interview though, Mohammedi, a former Taliban commander and now a member of the National Assembly, admitted that he had "secured" his region "well"; the people "cooperated because they knew they had a leader of their own," he said. "And if they didn't cooperate, I'd kill them."
FIVE: Theoretical Construct
The concept of "Classical Realism" fits nicely into any objective observation of what is going...
War in Afghanistan After the terrorist group al Qaeda attacked the United States on September 11, 2001, the American military was sent to Afghanistan to attack the Taliban, and destroy their governing position. The Taliban became the target of the U.S. because they had allowed Osama bin Laden to use their country as a training ground for terrorist activities directed against the United States. However, the U.S. is now bogged down
S. forces were made to operate on ground and targeted operations were planned against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda fighters. There were significant individually planned battles and skirmishes between the U.S. army and Taliban often resulting in heavy losses to both sides. A tactic that Taliban often used in such conditions was the suicide attacks and planting improvised explosive devices (IEDs) that left the soldier carrying vehicles destroyed. The U.S. utilized
Fallout A section of commentators have taken issue with the manner in which the federal government denied suspected terrorist the due process of law as stipulated under the constitution. The government even commissioned the establishment of a torture chamber in Guantanamo Bay. This amounts to gross violation of human rights and civil liberties. There is another clause in the patriot act dubbed "enhanced surveillance procedures," which allows federal authorities to gather
(NYT) Meanwhile the Soviets and its Afganistan government forces brace for the complete deterioration of the nation Soviet newspapers report that some Afghan army units have begun looting their strongholds and abandoning them to guerrillas. (VOA)the last Soviet troops fly out of Kabul, ending a nine-year occupation of Afghanistan ahead of schedule. Moslem rebels launch rocket attacks on Kabul hours before the final withdrawal. (BBC) The value of the early assumptions proved
break out of war in Afghanistan and Iraq propelled alarming forecasts about its most likely psychiatric effects. The chief of recuperation or readjustment therapy services at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) asserted that as high as 30% of soldiers deployed to Iraq may establish posttraumatic tension ailment (PTSD) (Dentzer, 2003), a disorder that can arise following experience of gruesome, dangerous occasions, such as battle, natural catastrophes, and rape.
However, little concern is given to the Afghan people when their innocent is killed due to military action of developed nations. This too will only exacerbate the turmoil within the country. Revenge is a powerful emotion, especially when an individual has nothing a stake to achieve it. As such, due in parts to foreign operations in Afghanistan, many individuals have extreme animosity towards the developed world. It is therefore much
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