109 Facts About Taliban

The Taliban government has been criticized for restricting human rights in Afghanistan, including the right of women and girls to work and education.

Taliban emerged in September 1994 as one of the prominent factions in the Afghan Civil War and largely consisted of students from the Pashtun areas of eastern and southern Afghanistan who had been educated in traditional Islamic schools .

The Taliban's government was opposed by the Northern Alliance militia, which seized parts of northeast Afghanistan and largely maintained international recognition as a continuation of the interim Islamic State of Afghanistan.

The Taliban held control of most of the country until being overthrown after the United States invasion of Afghanistan in December 2001.

Subsequently, the Taliban launched an insurgency to fight the United States–backed Karzai administration and the NATO–led International Security Assistance Force in the War in Afghanistan.

Related searches

Mass persecutions of Taliban members left the group weakened and many ultimately fled to neighboring Pakistan.

Under Hibatullah Akhundzada's leadership, in May 2021, the Taliban began a military offensive, and soon seized control of several areas from the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

The Taliban returned Afghanistan to many policies implemented under its previous rule, including requiring women to wear head-to-toe coverings such as the burqa, blocking women from travelling without male guardians, and preventing women from attending school past 6th grade.

Taliban are a movement of religious students from the Pashtun areas of eastern and southern Afghanistan who were educated in traditional Islamic schools.

Taliban was unhappy because Islamic law had not been installed in Afghanistan after the ousting of communist rule, and now, he and his group pledged to rid Afghanistan of warlords and criminals.

The Taliban used the American textbooks but they scratched out the images of human faces which were contained in them in keeping with their strict aniconistic and fundamentalist interpretation of Islam.

Early Taliban were motivated by the suffering of the Afghan people, which they believed was being caused by the power struggles which were being waged by rival Afghan groups which were not adhering to the moral code of Islam; in their religious schools, they had been taught to believe that they should strictly adhere to Islamic law.

The ISI and Pakistan aimed to exert control, while the Taliban leadership manoeuvred between keeping its independence and sustaining support.

At these stages, the Taliban were popular because they stamped out corruption, curbed lawlessness, and made the roads and area safe.

On 26 September 1996, as the Taliban prepared for another major offensive, Massoud ordered a full retreat from Kabul to continue anti-Taliban resistance in the northeastern Hindu Kush mountains instead of engaging in street battles in Kabul.

The Taliban entered Kabul on 27 September 1996 and established the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.

The Taliban sought to establish an Islamic government through law and order alongside a strict interpretation of Sharia law, in accordance with the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence and the religious edicts of Mullah Omar, upon the entire land of Afghanistan.

In July 1998, the Taliban closed "all NGO offices" in Kabul by force after those organisations refused to move to a bombed-out former Polytechnic College as ordered.

On 1 August 1997, the Taliban launched an attack on Sheberghan, the main military base of Abdul Rashid Dostum.

In late 1996, Ahmad Shah Massoud and Abdul Rashid Dostum, former enemies, created the United Front against the Taliban that were preparing offensives against the remaining areas under the control of Massoud and those under the control of Dostum.

Taliban says that the cultural environment of the country suffocates women, but the Taliban exacerbate this with oppression.

Taliban repeatedly offered Massoud a position of power to make him stop his resistance.

Taliban brought them all into the northern area where he was.

Taliban retired from the FBI and was offered the position of director of security at the World Trade Center .

Additionally, the Taliban insisted that any trial of Bin Laden be held in an Afghan court.

Related searches

Pashtun tribal chief Hamid Karzai was elected as the national interim leader, and the Taliban had surrendered Kandahar following an offer of amnesty by Karzai.

The Taliban were not invited to the Bonn Agreement of December 2001, which many cite has been the cause of the Taliban's battlefield resurgence and the continuation of conflict.

In May and June 2003, high Taliban officials proclaimed the Taliban regrouped and ready for guerrilla war to expel US forces from Afghanistan.

In December 2009, Asia Times Online reported that the Taliban had offered to give the US "legal guarantees" that it would not allow Afghanistan to be used for attacks on other countries, and that the US had given no response.

The Taliban themselves had refused to speak to the Afghan government, portraying them as an American "puppet".

Sporadic efforts for peace talks between the US and the Taliban occurred afterward, and it was reported in October 2010 that Taliban leadership commanders had left their haven in Pakistan and been safely escorted to Kabul by NATO aircraft for talks, with the assurance that NATO staff would not apprehend them.

The Taliban did hold informal talks with the Afghan government in 2016.

On 27 February 2018, following an increase in violence, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani proposed unconditional peace talks with the Taliban, offering them recognition as a legal political party and the release of the Taliban prisoners.

In mid 2021, the Taliban led a major offensive in Afghanistan during the withdrawal of US troops from the country, which gave them control of over half of Afghanistan's 421 districts as of 23 July 2021.

One local observer has argued the Taliban have not killed "a lot" of people after returning to power.

In March 2022, the Taliban abruptly halted plans to allow girls to resume secondary school education even when separated from males.

The Taliban won backing from the 10 regional powers for the idea of a United Nations donor conference to help the country stave off economic collapse and a humanitarian catastrophe, calling for the UN to convene such a conference as soon as possible to help rebuild the country.

The Taliban asked the international community to recognize its government, but no country has yet recognized the new Afghan government.

On 23 January 2022, a Taliban delegation arrived in Oslo, and closed-door meetings were held during the Taliban's first official trip to Western Europe and second official trip to Europe since their return to power.

The Taliban delegation, led by acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, met senior French foreign ministry officials, Britain's special envoy Nigel Casey, EU Special Representative for Afghanistan and members of the Norwegian foreign ministry.

Turkmenistan, the Russian Federation, and China were the first countries to accept the diplomatic credentials of Taliban-appointed envoys, although this is not equivalent to official recognition.

Taliban's ideology has been described as combining an "innovative" form of Sharia Islamic law which is based on Deobandi fundamentalism and militant Islamism, combined with Pashtun social and cultural norms which are known as Pashtunwali, because most Taliban are Pashtun tribesmen.

Taliban's ideology has been described as an "innovative form of sharia combining Pashtun tribal codes", or Pashtunwali, with radical Deobandi interpretations of Islam favoured by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam and its splinter groups.

The Taliban have said they aim to restore peace and security to Afghanistan, including Western troops leaving, and to enforce Sharia, or Islamic law, once in power.

Taliban strictly enforced their ideology in major cities like Herat, Kabul, and Kandahar.

Related searches

The Taliban regime interpreted the Sharia law in accordance with the Hanafi school of Islamic jurisprudence and the religious edicts of Mullah Omar.

The Taliban forbade the consumption of pork and alcohol, the use of many types of consumer technology such as music, television, filming, and the Internet, as well as most forms of art such as paintings or photography, participation in sports, including football and chess; Recreational activities such as Kite-flying and the keeping of pigeons and other pets were forbidden, and the birds were killed according to the Taliban's rules.

Gambling was banned, and the Taliban punished thieves by amputating their hands or feet.

In recent years, the Taliban have attempted to court Shiites, appointing a Shia cleric as a regional governor and recruiting Hazaras to fight against ISIL-KP, in order to distance themselves from their past sectarian reputation and improve their relations with the Shia government of Iran.

The Taliban announced in May 2001 that it would force Afghanistan's Hindu population to wear special badges, which has been compared to the treatment of Jews in Nazi Germany.

In general, the Taliban treated the Sikhs and Jews of Afghanistan better than Afghan Shiites, Hindus and Christians.

Taliban cared for the only synagogue in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul.

Taliban, being largely Pashtun tribesmen, frequently follow a pre-Islamic cultural tribal code which is focused on preserving the honour.

The Taliban has criticized the US role in the abuse of Afghan children.

Taliban visited the capital, Kabul, only twice while he was in power.

Taliban have been compared to the 7th-century Kharijites who developed extreme doctrines which set them apart from both mainstream Sunni and Shi?a Muslims.

Malkasian further argues that the Taliban's imposing of Islamic ideals upon the Afghan tribal system was innovative and a key reason for their success and durability.

Taliban have been internationally condemned for their harsh enforcement of their interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, which has resulted in their brutal treatment of many Afghans.

The Taliban prevented girls and young women from attending school, banned women from working jobs outside of healthcare, and required that women be accompanied by a male relative and wear a burqa at all times when in public.

The UN said the Taliban were starving people for their military agenda and using humanitarian assistance as a weapon of war.

Iran assumed the Taliban had murdered them, and mobilised its army, deploying men along the border with Afghanistan.

Many Taliban were opposed to the human trafficking operations conducted by al-Qaeda and other Taliban commanders.

Nuruludah, a Taliban commander, is quoted as saying that in the Shomali Plains, he and 10 of his men freed some women who were being abducted by Pakistani members of al-Qaeda.

In Jalalabad, local Taliban commanders freed women that were being held by Arab members of al-Qaeda in a camp.

The Taliban issued edicts forbidding women from being educated, forcing girls to leave schools and colleges.

Related searches

The high number of civilians killed by the Taliban is blamed in part on their increasing use of improvised explosive devices, "for instance, 16 IEDs have been planted in girls' schools" by the Taliban.

The Taliban issued decrees that forbade non-Muslims from building places of worship but allowed them to worship at existing holy sites, forbade non-Muslims from criticizing Muslims, ordered non-Muslims to identify their houses by placing a yellow cloth on their rooftops, forbade non-Muslims from living in the same residence as Muslims, and required that non-Muslim women wear a yellow dress with a special mark so that Muslims could keep their distance from them .

On several occasions between 2008 and 2012, the Taliban claimed that they assassinated Western and Afghani medical or aid workers in Afghanistan, because they feared that the polio vaccine would make Muslim children sterile, because they suspected that the 'medical workers' were really spies, or because they suspected that the medical workers were proselytizing Christianity.

The Taliban claimed that they killed them because they were foreign spies.

Taliban claimed they killed her because her organisation "was preaching Christianity in Afghanistan".

The Taliban stated that they murdered them because they were proselytizing Christianity and possessing which were translated into the Dari language when they were encountered.

However, the Taliban imposed restrictions on modern education, banned the education of females, only allowed Islamic religious schools to stay open and only encouraged the teaching of the Qur'an.

The Taliban have carried out brutal attacks on teachers and students and they have threatened parents and teachers.

Taliban have committed a cultural genocide against the Afghan people by destroying their historical and cultural texts, artifacts and sculptures.

However, since it came to power and even after it was deposed, the Taliban has banned all music, including cultural folk music, and it has attacked and killed a number of musicians.

All the top leadership of the Taliban are ethnic Pashtuns, more specifically those belonging of the Ghilzai confederation.

Taliban initially enjoyed goodwill from Afghans weary of the warlords' corruption, brutality, and incessant fighting.

Taliban visited the capital, Kabul, only twice while in power.

The Taliban did not issue press releases or policy statements, nor did they hold regular press conferences.

On 2 November 2021, the Taliban required that all economic transactions in Afghanistan use Afghanis and banned the use of all foreign currency.

Taliban are supported by several militant outfits which include the Haqqani network, Al-Qaeda and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

Likewise, the Taliban deny receiving any foreign support from any country.

At its peak, formal diplomatic recognition of the Taliban's government was acknowledged by three nations: Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Traditionally, the Taliban were supported by Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, while Iran, Russia, Turkey, India, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan formed an anti-Taliban alliance and supported the Northern Alliance.

Pakistan and Kashmir-based militant groups which are thought to have ties with the Taliban have historically been involved in the Kashmir insurgency and they have frequently attacked Indian security forces.

Related searches

The Taliban moved its militias near the hijacked aircraft, supposedly to prevent Indian special forces from storming the aircraft, and they stalled the negotiations between India and the hijackers for several days.

The Taliban granted the hijackers and the released militants safe passage.

In 2012, the Taliban said that they want to have cordial relations with India, and they praised India for resisting US calls for more military involvement in Afghanistan.

In early August 1998, after attacking the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Taliban forces killed several thousand civilians and 11 Iranian diplomats and intelligence officers in the Iranian consulate.

The Taliban have condemned Islamic State-linked attacks on the Hazara Shia minority.

In January 2020, the Taliban condemned the US killing of Iranian Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani and hailed Soleimani as a "great warrior".

Author Ahmed Rashid claims that the Taliban had "unprecedented access" among Pakistan's lobbies and interest groups.

Taliban writes that they at times were able to "play off one lobby against another and extend their influence in Pakistan even further".

The Taliban has warned Turkey of "severe consequences" if its military remains in Afghanistan when other foreign forces pull out.

In July 2021 Zabiullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman stated that Taliban wanted "normal ties" with Turkish government, but would consider Turkish forces as occupiers if they stay after the pull-out.

Qatar in 2013, with the approval of the US and the Afghan government, allowed the Afghan Taliban to set up a diplomatic and political office inside the country.

The Taliban turned towards the use of improvised explosive devices.

For example, it made no comment when the Taliban captured Herat in 1995, and expelled thousands of girls from schools.

On 26 November 2009, in an interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, President Hamid Karzai said there is an "urgent need" for negotiations with the Taliban, and made it clear that the Obama administration had opposed such talks.

In December 2009, Asian Times Online reported that the Taliban had offered to give the US "legal guarantees" that they would not allow Afghanistan to be used for attacks on other countries, and that there had been no formal American response.

On 29 February 2020, the Trump administration signed a conditional peace agreement with the Taliban, which calls for the withdrawal of foreign troops in 14 months if the Taliban uphold the terms of the agreement.

In July 1998, the Taliban closed "all NGO offices" by force after those organisations refused to move to a bombed-out former Polytechnic College as ordered.

In 2010, the UN lifted sanctions on the Taliban, and requested that Taliban leaders and others be removed from terrorism watch lists.

Originally, the Taliban were naive and ignorant of politics and welcomed al-Qaeda into their homes.

Taliban has a negative relationship with the Islamic State – Khorasan Province.

Related searches

Malakand Taliban is a militant outfit led by Sufi Muhammad and his son in law Molvi Fazalullah.

The Afghan Taliban have no affiliation with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan and routinely deny any connection to the TTP.

Major leaders of the Afghan Taliban including Mullah Omar, Jalaluddin Haqqani and Siraj Haqqani are believed to enjoy or have enjoyed safe haven in Pakistan.

Pakistani Taliban were put under sanctions by UN Security Council for terrorist attacks in Pakistan and the 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt.