Rise of Taliban | Afghanistan Crisis Continued | US Troops Return | Dhruv Rathee
How did the Taliban come to power in Afghanistan? In this video, I explain the history of Afghanistan after the 1978 Saur Revolution, which saw the overthrow of Daoud Khan, and communist Noor Mohammad Taraki came to power. He was replaced by tyrant Hafizullah Amin. Then the Soviet Union intervened through Operation Storm 333 invading in Tajbeg palace. Communist leader Barbak Karmal was installed as new head. US CIA did covert Operation cyclone, and with Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Britain, they indirectly supported the mujahideen.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Hello, friends.
00:01For the past two months, Taliban has been strengthening its grip on Afghanistan.
00:06And the Afghan government is losing control.
00:09According to news reports, 90% of the Afghan borders are now under Taliban control.
00:15Who are these Taliban?
00:17Where did they come from?
00:19Where does Osama Bin Laden come in this story?
00:21And why did the USA send its army to Afghanistan?
00:25Let's find out this terrifying part of history in today's video.
00:33So, in this video, friends, I'll start the story from 1979.
00:36I've already told you the story before 1979 in an old video.
00:40If you haven't seen the video, you can watch it after this video.
00:43I'll put the link in the description below.
00:44In 1979, Afghanistan's President and Communist leader Noor Mohammad Taraki was killed.
00:51And after that, the Soviet Union interfered in Afghanistan.
00:55Taraki himself was a Communist leader.
00:57But he was killed by a fellow Communist leader.
01:00His name was Hafizullah Amin.
01:02Hafizullah Amin first arrested Taraki and then killed him.
01:06As I told you in the previous video,
01:08the Communist parties in Afghanistan were divided into two parts.
01:11There was a lot of infighting between them as well.
01:14It wasn't that Taraki himself was very innocent.
01:16He had also tried to kill Hafizullah Amin.
01:20There was an infighting between the Communists.
01:22But at the same time, there was also a fight between the Communists and Islamists in Afghanistan.
01:28At this point of time.
01:29Around the same time, in 1979,
01:31there was a revolution in the neighbouring country of Afghanistan, Iran.
01:35It is called the 1979 Iranian Revolution.
01:38Actually, the situation in Iran at the time was very similar to the situation in Afghanistan.
01:44On one side, there were Islamists and on the other, there were leftists and communists.
01:48The king of Iran, Mohammad Reza,
01:50believed in Modernism and Secularism.
01:52And he had also brought a lot of economic development for his country.
01:56Along with Secularism.
01:58But at the same time, he was very greedy for power.
02:01And in this greed, he got the protesters killed in his opposition.
02:05He suppressed the opposition voices.
02:07He got the political parties outlawed.
02:09And dismissed the Parliament.
02:11For this very reason, there was a revolution against him.
02:13And in 1979,
02:16the Islamists took over Iran.
02:19While this was happening in Iran,
02:21in Afghanistan, Hafizullah Amin, who was a communist,
02:23was afraid that the Islamists would take over Afghanistan as well.
02:27To avoid this, he thought that he would have to appease the religious conservative people.
02:32For this, he started the construction of mosques.
02:35He started taking the name of Allah in his speeches.
02:38He distributed the copies of the Quran.
02:40And despite being a communist,
02:42Because he was trying to somehow bring the Islamists to his side.
02:46But the people didn't like him at all.
02:49He had committed a lot of atrocities against the people of Afghanistan.
02:52So he is actually considered a semi-psychopath in Afghanistan.
02:56An interesting thing that you'll notice here, friends,
02:59in all these leaders, whether it's Hafizullah Amin,
03:01Taraki or Mohammad Reza,
03:03no matter what ideology they show from the outside,
03:06you can see greed for power in all of them.
03:10Because of the greed for power, they can twist their ideology to a great extent.
03:14And this is something that even today's political leaders,
03:17even the leaders of any political party,
03:19you will still see today.
03:21Dictators can make any excuse to stay in power.
03:24This was also seen in the Soviet Union.
03:27When Lenin lost power,
03:29Stalin had his opponent murdered to gain power.
03:33What happened in the story is that on December 1979,
03:36before the Islamists could take over Afghanistan,
03:39the Soviet Union intervened and sent its forces.
03:43The Soviet Union actually killed Hafizullah Amin.
03:47There was an ideological and a geopolitical reason behind this.
03:51The ideological reason was that
03:53the ideology of communism in Afghanistan was weakening,
03:55and was being defamed because of Hafizullah Amin.
03:57The Soviet Union believed in the ideology of communism
04:00and wanted to support it.
04:02The geopolitical reason was that the Cold War was going on
04:04between the USA and the Soviet Union.
04:06If the Soviet Union had its influence in Afghanistan,
04:09then another country would be under the influence of the Soviet Union.
04:13It would be good for the Soviet Union in the fight against the USA.
04:16After killing Hafizullah Amin,
04:18Babrak Karmal was installed as the new head of government.
04:21He was also a leader of the Sour Revolution.
04:23After coming to power, he released more than 2,700 political prisoners.
04:27He replaced the red communist flag with a new one.
04:31He promised to give Afghanistan a new constitution.
04:34Apart from this, free elections, freedom of speech,
04:36right to protest and freedom of religion were also promised.
04:40Finally, it seemed that there would be peace in Afghanistan.
04:44And that Afghanistan would move in the right direction.
04:47But how could the USA remain silent after seeing this?
04:51The USA was seeing that the Soviet Union
04:53had established its influence over Afghanistan.
04:56And along with this, in countries like Vietnam and Ethiopia,
05:00the Soviet Union humiliated America.
05:03America was seeing a downfall in this Cold War.
05:06So the USA thought that they would use Afghanistan as an opportunity
05:10to take revenge against the Soviet Union.
05:12How could they take this revenge?
05:14The USA took this revenge by supporting the opposing ideology, Mujahideen, in Afghanistan.
05:19Countries like Pakistan and Saudi Arabia
05:21were already supporting Islamist Mujahideen in Afghanistan.
05:25But the USA also joined in to do this.
05:28The CIA conducted its largest ever secret operation to do this.
05:33They named it Operation Cyclone.
05:36CIA Director Robert Gates later confessed
05:40that the US President Jimmy Carter
05:43had authorized a secret aid of $500,000
05:47to be given to the Mujahideen on 3rd July 1979.
05:50Even after the change of power in the USA,
05:52millions of dollars of funding was given to the Mujahideen.
05:55Even after Ronald Reagan came to power.
05:58Look at this photo. Reagan is standing with the Mujahideen.
06:01Along with the American CIA,
06:03Pakistan's ISI, British Secret Agency MI6,
06:06and Saudi Arabia were also supporting Islamist Mujahideen.
06:10Who were these Mujahideen?
06:11In the beginning, they were only guerrilla fighters
06:13who hid in the mountains and fought.
06:15But with so much support,
06:17they not only had weapons, guns,
06:20but even anti-aircraft missiles.
06:22That's why the Soviet Union was shocked by this fight.
06:25In 1988, Afghanistan's President Mohammad Najibullah
06:29signed the Geneva Accords with Pakistan.
06:31Which is basically a peace agreement
06:33that both countries will not interfere in each other's countries.
06:37The guarantors of this peace agreement are the Soviet Union and the USA.
06:41The USA promised that if the Soviet Union
06:43withdrew its army from Afghanistan,
06:45then the USA would stop supplying weapons to the Mujahideen.
06:49Finally, about 9 years later,
06:51in February 1989,
06:53the Soviet Union withdrew its army from Afghanistan.
06:56The Soviet Union left Afghanistan.
06:58And there are many reasons behind it.
07:00Because the Soviet Union itself was falling apart.
07:03After that, the Soviet Union was divided into different countries.
07:07One of the major countries was Russia.
07:09This is a different story.
07:11Let's focus on Afghanistan.
07:13Najibullah tried his best to end this conflict.
07:16He reduced his powers.
07:18In 1987, a new constitution was introduced for Afghanistan.
07:22Afghanistan would no longer be a one-party state.
07:24Like other communist countries at that time.
07:26Other parties could also hold elections.
07:28In 1988, new parliamentary elections were held.
07:31And Najibullah's party PDPA won these elections.
07:34And Najibullah retained this power.
07:37In 1990, Afghanistan was declared an Islamic Republic.
07:41And all the references of communism were removed.
07:44Najibullah is trying to appease the religious conservative people
07:48and bring peace to the country.
07:50Najibullah is also trying
07:52to get foreign aid to Afghanistan.
07:54And start private investment.
07:56But despite all this,
07:58America continues to supply weapons to Mujahideen.
08:01And the Mujahideen group is still not a step behind.
08:05They boycott the elections.
08:07And they feel that despite all this,
08:09Islam is still in danger.
08:11This civil war continues.
08:13The Soviet Union is trying to help Najibullah from behind.
08:16By sending foreign aid.
08:18But it's of no use.
08:19In 1991, the Soviet Union itself falls apart.
08:22As I told you.
08:23And in 1992, the Mujahideen win this civil war.
08:27The Mujahideen was an Islamist group.
08:29But it was made up of many different people.
08:31With different ethnicities.
08:33And there were many greedy people for power.
08:35So the Mujahideen group starts to fight
08:39for power.
08:40Finally, in 1992, a person gains power.
08:43He becomes the new leader of the Islamic State of Afghanistan.
08:46His name is Burhanuddin Rabbani.
08:49In the next few years,
08:51a new enemy has been born.
08:53His name is the Taliban.
08:55In 1996, the Taliban remove the leader of the Islamic Mujahideen from power.
09:00Who is this Taliban?
09:02In the Pashtun language, Taliban means students.
09:04In the beginning, the leader of this Taliban group was Mullah Omar.
09:08He formed this group with 50 students.
09:10But with time,
09:12some refugees from Pakistan to Afghanistan
09:14came back to Afghanistan.
09:16And became a part of this group.
09:18These people were even more religious extremists.
09:20Even more extreme right-wing people.
09:22Compared to the Mujahideen.
09:24These Afghan refugees apparently
09:26learned this extremism in some Madrasas in Pakistan.
09:29But here, it wasn't just a question of religion.
09:32As I said, the Mujahideen had different ethnic groups.
09:36The Taliban also believed in the ideology of Pashtun Nationalism.
09:41While being Islamists.
09:43Pakistan and Saudi Arabia also supported the Taliban.
09:45And it is said that America has made the Taliban.
09:48Technically speaking, this is not true.
09:51But practically speaking,
09:53there is some weight in this argument.
09:55Because America basically made every effort
09:57to bring democracy in Afghanistan
10:01by supplying weapons to the Mujahideen.
10:05And such an environment was created
10:07which gave birth to the Taliban.
10:09Not only weapons, but apparently America
10:11also spent millions of dollars
10:13to publish textbooks in Afghanistan.
10:15These were such books
10:17filled with violent images.
10:19And promoted this extremist ideology.
10:21Later, the same books funded by America
10:25were also used by the Taliban.
10:27By September 1996,
10:29the Taliban captured Kabul.
10:31And established the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
10:34Initially, the common people
10:36were in support of the Taliban.
10:38Because they finally saw
10:40the stability in the country.
10:42The war that had been going on for so many years was coming to an end.
10:44And in the beginning, the Taliban
10:46made some areas more peaceful in Afghanistan.
10:48But with time,
10:50the conservative ideology of the Taliban
10:52came to the fore.
10:54And the common people saw it.
10:56The Taliban banned a lot of things in Afghanistan.
11:00The list of banned items is so long
11:02that your eyes will pop out
11:04when you see what all things the Taliban banned in Afghanistan.
11:06Cinema, TV, Music,
11:08VCR, Football, Chess, Kite Flying,
11:10Painting, Photography,
11:12Embroidery on Sleeves,
11:14Keeping Clean Shave,
11:16Banning Foreigners,
11:18Banning United Nations Offices,
11:20Banning NGOs,
11:22Even banning Internet
11:24and education for girls above 10 years of age.
11:26Under the rule of the Taliban,
11:28it has become compulsory to keep a beard.
11:30And women will have to fully cover their bodies
11:32in burkha.
11:34Women cannot leave their homes
11:36if they are not accompanied by a male relative.
11:40And because the Taliban believed in the ideology of Pashtun Nationalism,
11:44the non-Pashtun ethnicities
11:46started ethnic cleansing against them.
11:48Thousands of Muslims
11:50were killed in thousands.
11:52Christians were prosecuted.
11:54Hindus were given separate batches
11:56to identify them as different from Muslims.
11:59A very important part of Afghanistan's cultural history,
12:02the Buddha Statues,
12:05were destroyed by the Taliban.
12:07Obviously, former President Najibullah
12:09was also killed by them.
12:11The people and governments of the world
12:13saw this happening
12:15and criticized the Taliban badly.
12:17And raised their voice against them.
12:19But there are three countries
12:21that consider the Taliban
12:23as a legitimate government at that time.
12:25These three countries were
12:27Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and UAE.
12:29In the late 1990s,
12:31some Mujahideen forces tried to fight against the Taliban.
12:33They were called the Northern Alliance.
12:35They were headed by Ahmed Shah Masood.
12:39But in 2001,
12:41the Northern Alliance lost the battle
12:43and Ahmed Shah Masood was also killed.
12:45Just two days after this,
12:47a terrorist group, Al-Qaeda,
12:49conducted 9-11 attacks in the USA.
12:51The attacks
12:53changed the entire world.
12:55Al-Qaeda's leader at that time
12:57was a Saudi terrorist named
12:59Osama Bin Laden.
13:01He helped Osama Bin Laden to shelter.
13:03He gave him a place in his country.
13:05Osama Bin Laden wrote a letter to the USA
13:07in which he said that
13:09the 9-11 attacks were a revenge
13:11that the USA was doing in countries like
13:13Somalia, Libya and Afghanistan.
13:15He justified this by saying that
13:17the USA was torturing Muslims in these countries.
13:19So they took revenge
13:21from the USA for the 9-11 attacks.
13:23Now the USA also wants to take revenge
13:25for the 9-11 attacks.
13:27So the USA sends its forces to Afghanistan.
13:30So the USA conducts airstrikes
13:32in Afghanistan
13:34in places where they think
13:36terrorist groups are hiding.
13:38But obviously, if the airstrikes are conducted,
13:40some civilians will also be killed.
13:42Because it won't happen that
13:44a bomb is dropped from the sky
13:46and only terrorists are killed.
13:48So civilians are also killed.
13:50But with the support of Mujahideen's Northern Alliance,
13:52by December 2001,
13:54the Taliban was completely backed by the USA.
13:56Ahmed Shah Masood's aide
13:58and Amit Karzai become the new President
14:00of Afghanistan's new Interim Government.
14:02In 2004, a new Constitution
14:04is made in Afghanistan.
14:06Elections are held and more than 6 million
14:08Afghans vote in these elections.
14:10Karzai wins these elections
14:12and becomes the new President of Afghanistan.
14:14He establishes some good relations
14:16with India.
14:18Afghanistan-India relations
14:20become very strong at this time.
14:22On the other hand, the USA also
14:24conducts bombings and airstrikes in Pakistan.
14:26To destroy the Taliban's hideouts.
14:28In 2011,
14:30Osama Bin Laden was also killed
14:32by the US forces.
14:34In 2015, Mullah Omar,
14:36who was the original leader of the Taliban,
14:38died in 2013
14:40due to an illness.
14:42During this time, the USA has sent
14:44its army to Afghanistan to maintain peace.
14:46And to suppress the Taliban.
14:48And to support
14:50the new democratic government in Afghanistan.
14:52But year after year,
14:55the Taliban doesn't end completely.
14:57Instead, they keep appearing
14:59in different places.
15:01The Taliban conducts shootouts
15:03and bombings in different areas
15:05of Afghanistan and neighboring countries.
15:07Many civilians are killed.
15:09In February 2020, Donald Trump
15:11becomes the President of the USA.
15:13And shockingly, he starts peace talks
15:15with the Taliban.
15:17The US government starts
15:19talking to the Taliban.
15:21They say that if the Taliban
15:23cut ties with the terrorist group,
15:25the US will withdraw its forces
15:27and leave Afghanistan.
15:29Because the US is spending
15:31a lot of money in Afghanistan.
15:33As I said, more than $2 trillion was spent.
15:35And the Americans are also against it.
15:37Because the Americans feel that
15:39why should we go there to fight
15:41a war that is not ours?
15:43We've been in that country for 20 years.
15:45And our people are being martyred.
15:47Our soldiers are being martyred.
15:49And we're not getting anything in return.
15:52More than 85,000 fighters
15:54are fighting for the Taliban.
15:56At this time, when Joe Biden
15:58is the President of the USA,
16:00he continues Donald Trump's policy
16:02and decides that the US troops
16:04will be withdrawn from Afghanistan.
16:06Especially before 9-11's
16:0820th anniversary.
16:10The US says, what about us?
16:12We're the US.
16:14We'll withdraw our troops.
16:16Many people say that if revenge
16:18was the purpose of the US
16:20then why did the US allow
16:22its troops to stay in Afghanistan
16:24even after Osama Bin Laden was killed in 2011?
16:26Why didn't it withdraw its army after that?
16:28And on the other hand,
16:30if the purpose of the US
16:32was to make Afghanistan a democratic country
16:34and destroy the Taliban,
16:36then this purpose has not been
16:38accomplished at all.
16:40The US has completely failed in this purpose.
16:42Because the Taliban has returned.
16:44And they're at their strongest point today.
16:47Joe Biden says that
16:49he doesn't trust the Taliban
16:51but the 300,000 soldiers of the
16:53Afghanistan Army can easily
16:55counter the 85,000 Taliban fighters.
17:15But the ground reality is not like that.
17:17As I said, today,
17:19it's being said that 90% of the
17:21borders of Afghanistan are now
17:23under the control of the Taliban.
17:25And it's possible that the government of Afghanistan
17:27might collapse.
17:29Some experts give their opinion
17:31that India should intervene.
17:33The Indian Army should go and support
17:35the army of Afghanistan to fight
17:37the Taliban.
17:39But the same question arises again.
17:41Is this a fight for the Indians?
17:43Should the Indians interfere?
17:45Will it make sense to do so?
17:47What do you think?
17:48Tell me in the comments below.
17:50If the Taliban returns to Afghanistan,
17:52it will be a bad news for India.
17:54Not only will the relations with India
17:56in Afghanistan end,
17:58but the $3 billion that India has invested
18:00in Afghanistan will also be stalled.
18:03And maybe there will be a risk of
18:05terrorist attacks later.
18:07What lesson do you get from this story?
18:09Tell me in the comments below.
18:11In my opinion, this is a lesson
18:13about unity and diversity.
18:15If we want to fight each other,
18:17there are thousands of excuses for it.
18:19Different ethnicities, different ideologies,
18:21Communism somewhere,
18:23a different religion somewhere.
18:25But if we want to maintain peace
18:27in the world,
18:29we need to learn to accept each other
18:31and promote the feeling of tolerance and unity.
18:33I hope you found this video informative.
18:35Let's meet in the next video.
18:37Thank you very much.