Afghanistan

Afghanistan, 1992 to today. Draft, not yet reviewed

The mujahideen won against the Soviets in the Soviet–Afghan War, leading to the Soviets' withdrawal in 1989. The ensuing civil war overthrew the socialist republic and established the Islamic State of Afghanistan through the Peshawar Accord, which could not remain in force and resulted in a second civil war between mujahideen factions in 1992. The Taliban controlled most of the country by 1996, but their Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan received little international recognition before its overthrow in the 2001 US invasion of Afghanistan. The Taliban returned to power in 2021 after capturing Kabul, ending the 2001–2021 war.

Seat of power: Kabul

Rulers

Mohammed Omar

Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, 1996–2001

Mullah Omar was an Afghan militant and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001. He founded the Taliban, an Islamist militant organization, in 1994 and served as its first supreme leader until his death in 2013. Omar led the Taliban to form a Sunni Islamic theocracy headed by the Supreme Council, known as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, which strictly enforced the Sharia.

Burhanuddin Rabbani

Head of state, 2001–2001

Rabbani served as the sixth president of Afghanistan from 1992 to 1996, and again from November to December 2001 (in exile from 1996 to 2001). Rabbani was chosen to be the President of Afghanistan after the end of the former communist regime in 1992. Rabbani and his Islamic State of Afghanistan government was later forced into exile by the Taliban.

Portrait of Burhanuddin Rabbani: Combined Joint Task Force 101, Public domain, file

Hamid Karzai

President of Afghanistan, 2004–2014

Hamid Karzai served as the seventh president of Afghanistan from 2002 to 2014, particularly as the first president of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan from 2004 to 2014. He also served as chairman of the Afghan Interim Administration from 2001 to 2002. After the 2004 presidential election, Karzai was declared the winner and became President of Afghanistan.

Portrait of Hamid Karzai: Pete Souza, Public domain, file

Ashraf Ghani

Head of state, 2014–2021

Ghani served as the 8th and last president of Afghanistan from 2014 until his government was overthrown by the Taliban in 2021. Ghani became president after winning the 2014 Afghan presidential election, which was so disputed that negotiations between Ghani and rival Abdullah Abdullah were mediated by the United States. Ghani made efforts to make peace with Taliban insurgents and improving relations with Pakistan.

Portrait of Ashraf Ghani: original author: Mueller /MSC, CC BY 3.0 de, file

Akhtar Mansour

Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, 2015–2016

Akhtar Mohammad Mansur served as the second supreme leader of the Taliban from 2015 until his assassination in a US drone strike in Balochistan, Pakistan in 2016. He was a close aide and successor of the Taliban's founding leader, Mullah Omar.

Hibatullah Akhundzada

Supreme Leader of Afghanistan, 2021 to today

Hibatullah Akhundzada is serving as the supreme leader of Afghanistan under the Taliban government. He has led the Taliban since 2016, and came to power with its victory over U.S.-backed forces in the 2001–2021 war. He was an Islamic judge of the Sharia courts of the 1996–2001 Taliban government.

Culture

Human habitation in Afghanistan dates to the Middle Paleolithic era.
Afghanistan is rich in natural resources, including lithium, iron, zinc, and copper. It is the third largest producer of both saffron and cashmere.
Kabul is the country's capital and largest city. Afghanistan's population is estimated to be between 35 and 50 million.

Picture

Band-e Amir National Park is located in the central Bamyan Province of Afghanistan and was established on 22 May 2009 as Afghanistan's first national park.

Image: USAID, Public domain, file

Sources

Text adapted from the Wikipedia articles listed as sources, CC BY-SA 4.0.