Afghanistan
Mr. McDuffie
World Geography
Spring 2008
Location
1. Where is Afghanistan located?
History
• Has existed as a Muslim state since 1747
• Some territory lost to Great Britain in 19th
century; later returned
• 1978- pro-Communist rebels overthrow
President
▫ Try to improve women’s rights, give freedom of
religion
▫ Some groups don’t like the changes
2. What happened in 1978?
3. What are 2 things the new government tried to do?
Soviet Invasion
• Islamic rebels (Mujahideen) in Afghanistan
fight back against new government
• 1979-Soviet Union invades to support proCommunist government
▫ Wanted to spread Communism, gain ally and
trading partner
4. ______________ fought back against the new govt.
5. The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan to …
U.S. Responds
• Cold War is still going on
• U.S. sees a chance to weaken the Soviet
Union by defeating Communism
• U.S. supports Islamic rebels (Mujahideen)
▫ Provide weapons, intelligence and money.
▫ $ is matched by Saudi Arabia, who also wants to
support the Muslims
6. Why did
the U.S. get
involved?
7. We
supported
___________
___________
.
U.S. Response cont.
• Osama bin Laden, a native of Saudi
Arabia, travels to Afghanistan to
support the rebels.
• U.S. donates over 2000 Stinger
missiles, many of which were never
recovered.
• The CIA provided training manuals
in bomb-making, later used for the
1993 World Trade Center bombing.
Two Sides
• Pro-Communist (Reform)
Government
• Islamic Rebels
VS.
Soviet army directly
fighting rebels.
Provided weapons
and money. No
troops on the ground.
Continues until 1989
1979-1989
• Fighting for control of the government
• Both sides supported by two superpowers,
U.S. and USSR
1989
• Soviet Union is collapsing
• Soviet army has trained Afghani military
▫ Withdraws from Afghanistan
▫ U.S. soon loses interest
• Neither country stays to rebuild country or keep
the peace
8. What important event happened in 1989?
After Withdrawal
9. • Warlords begin
fighting for control
and to overthrow
Soviet govt.
• Taliban wins out
▫ Guess who trained
them?
10. • Taliban rules from
1996-2001
11. 3 restrictions under the Taliban:
Taliban
• Installed strictest
government seen in the
Muslim world
▫ Women could not work, could
not go to school past age 8,
required to wear head to toe
coverings called burqas
▫ Women caught in schools were
executed as were their teachers
▫ Movies, televisions, music,
computers banned
• Massacres of various ethnic
groups
When the Taliban Ruled Afghanistan
Al Qaeda
• Terrorist organization responsible for attacks on 9/11
• Negotiated a partnership with Taliban government
▫ Taliban allows Osama bin Laden to operate and plan
terrorist attacks worldwide
• Believed to have moved into Iraq
12. Al Qaeda is …
For more than seven years the United States has been
occupying the land of the Two Holy Places, the Arabian
Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers,
humiliating its people, terrorizing its neighbors, and turning its
Peninsula bases into spearheads through which to attack
neighboring Muslims…
All of these crimes and sins committed by America clearly
demonstrate a declaration of war on God, his Messenger (the
Prophet Muhammad), and Muslims…
On that basis, and in compliance with God’s order, we issue
the following fatwa to all Muslims:
By the ruling, it is an individual duty for every Muslim who
can do it to kill Americans and their allies-civilian and militaryin any country where it is possible to do so…
--al Qaeda statement prior to attacks on American embassies in Kenya
and Tanzania in 1998
Osama bin Laden
• Member of one of
the richest oil
families in Saudi
Arabia
• Founder and leader
of Al Qaeda
• Claims to have
planned 9/11 attacks
• Fought against the
Soviet Union during
the invasion of
Afghanistan
Death of bin Laden
• On May 2, 2011, U.S.
Navy SEALs
conducted a raid on
bin Laden’s
compound in
Pakistan
• Bin Laden and 4
others were killed
• Al Qaeda has vowed
to continue attacks
on the U.S.
Al Qaeda After 9/11