14 Years and Counting: Afghanistan and The Longest U.S. War
October 7, 2015 marked the 14th anniversary of US direct intervention in Afghanistan in the aftermath of attacks perpetrated by the terrorist group Al Qaeda on September 11, 2001. Osama Bin Laden used the failed state of Afghanistan (under the control of Taliban) to hatch the plan of attack on the twin towers in New York and the Pentagon. Our objective at the time, under the banner of global war on terror, was to dismantle Al Qaeda and bring its leaders to face justice. We were able to rout the Taliban and Al Qaeda in a rapid manner over the course of several days. We accomplished this blitzkrieg with our overwhelming airpower, Special Forces and the participation of militias mostly from the Northern Alliance warlords.
Rank and file Afghans were overjoyed and came out in the streets, many shaving off the beards imposed on them by the Taliban as a religious edict. People believed that the US led intervention, followed by the participation of other countries, was a ticket for Afghanistan to put its devastating troubles of the prior 20 years behind. But what ensued dashed these hopes and was instrumental in a resurgent Taliban insurgency, active again by 2006. As the perceived or actual king makers of Afghanistan, we gave the warlords and their militias legitimacy instead of pressuring the Afghan leaders to clean house and marginalize them. The warlords and their militias who eventually became the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) reinstated the culture of impunity and corruption. As legitimate leaders and members of the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) they took corruption and lawlessness to even higher levels. ANSF was seen again not as protector of people, but predators prying on people's property, money and helpless sons and daughters. This is the narrative that the Taliban have used so successfully to become resurgent again.
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Rank and file Afghans were overjoyed and came out in the streets, many shaving off the beards imposed on them by the Taliban as a religious edict. People believed that the US led intervention, followed by the participation of other countries, was a ticket for Afghanistan to put its devastating troubles of the prior 20 years behind. But what ensued dashed these hopes and was instrumental in a resurgent Taliban insurgency, active again by 2006. As the perceived or actual king makers of Afghanistan, we gave the warlords and their militias legitimacy instead of pressuring the Afghan leaders to clean house and marginalize them. The warlords and their militias who eventually became the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) reinstated the culture of impunity and corruption. As legitimate leaders and members of the Government of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) they took corruption and lawlessness to even higher levels. ANSF was seen again not as protector of people, but predators prying on people's property, money and helpless sons and daughters. This is the narrative that the Taliban have used so successfully to become resurgent again.
More...