SSE 110 (Asian Studies)

Chapter 12
Afghanistan, Graveyard of Empires

Afghanistan, presently the site of a US-led war, is called the graveyard of

empires" (Milton Bearden, Foreign Affairs Nov/Dec 2008). Indeed, it has seen many
empires cross its land, then they decline in power, leaving the native tribes as
stubbornly independent and the land as desolate as before. We end our study of
South-Central Asia with this unconquerable land and people.

Land and People. Afghanistan is a landlocked country which is

geographically located in Central Asia, South Asia and the Middle East. It is
bordered by Pakistan in the south and east, Iran in the south and west,
Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan in the north, and China in the far northeast.
Most of its 650,000 sq km area is covered by high, snow-capped Hindu Kush
mountains deep valleys, and rugged passes, including the Khyber Pass.
The country has resources, including natural gas, and oil, coal, copper, and
precious gems, but these have yet to be developed due to the troubles. Meanwhile it
is poor and isolated, and survives due to aid by Western countries and international
organizations. Today, it is the world's opium capital, the source of over 90% of illegal
opium in the world, according to the International Narcotics Control Board. It has no
railway or navigable rivers, and much of the infrastructure is still to be rebuilt after the
war. Camels and horses are still used for travel. Its population of 34 million declined
due to the wars, and is presently around 32 million (2009).
The capital is Kabul. It is an Islamic country, officially called the Islamic
Republic of Afghanistan. This devout Islamic society is really made up of
independent, self-governing tribes. Thus, the central authority finds it hard to govern
the whole country.
There are three million Afghan refugees in Pakistan, one million refugees in
Iran, and another two million dead from the wars. The Afghans in Pakistan are the
world's largest concentration of refugees.
The national languages are Pashtun and Dari Persian. Illiteracy is high (72%).
Most Afghans are farmers and herdsmen.

Afghanistan's Claim to Fame. Afghanistan is famous for these:

 the Khyber Pass, a strategic passage between west-central Asia and South Asia,
historic trade and military route between Afghanistan and the Indian
subcontinent;
 horses better than Arabian steeds;
 the unique two-humped camel;
 karakul wool;
 opium and hashish,for it is the source of 90% of world opium, and a million
people are drug addicts;
 the Taliban, a cruel and fierce Islamic tribe;
 abuse and oppression of women, who have been subjected to religious and
social atrocities;
 Osama bin Laden, financier of the alQueda international terrorist network, who
brought the war on terror to Afghanistan, where he is protected by Taliban
leaders.

Bloody History. Afghanistan, the crossroads of conquerors, lies in the

strategic rugged spot between North and South Asia. Thus, it has a turbulent history
of tribal feuds, assassination of rulers, civil war, and successive streams of invasion
by Persians, Greeks, Sakas, Parthians, Kushans, Sasanians, White Huns, Arabs,
Turks, Mongols, Mughals, British, Russians and lately, the anti-terror coalition of US
and other countries' troops.
The world's great armies have traversed Afghanistan, but ran into trouble with
unruly Afghan tribes. In 327 BC, Alexander the Great met fierce resistance at the
Khyber Pass and was struck by an Afghan archer's arrow, barely making it out alive.
Genghis Khan and his heirs, the Indian Mughal emperors; began passing through
these mountains a millennium later, only after reaching painful compromises with the
Afghans. At the Khyber Pass, one can still see the ruins of the Mughal signal to relay
torch-lit messages 1,500 miles from India to Bukhara in less than an hour.
In the 19th century, the Khyber became the center of a contest between
Britain and Russia for control of Central and South Asia. The first Aghan War (1839-
42) began when British commanders sent a huge army of British and Indian troops
into Afghanistan to secure it against Russian invasion. But the Afghans, even without
their emir, opposed them so strongly that the British were forced to retreat from
Kabul, with 16,500 soldiers and civilians, heading for safety to Pakistan 110 miles
away. Only a single survivor, William Brydon, made it there alive.
The longest period of stability in Afghanistan was when the country was under
the rule of King Zahir Shah from 1933-1973. Under King Zahir, Afghanistan became
a modern nation. He abolished polygamy, emancipated women and stayed neutral
during World War II. In 1964, a new constitution created a constitutional monarchy.
But his brother-in-law and cousin Mohammed Daoud Khan seized power, and he in
turn was killed, along with his family a few years later, and Afghanistan became a
pro-communist republic ruled by another tribe in 1978.
Thus, followed years of political chaos leading to a Russian invasion and
occupation, and still later a civil war. Attempts by the Soviet-led leaders to establish
communism in Afghanistan met with fierce resistance from the majority Islamic Sunni
tribes and with the free world.
Afghan Muslims of the Sunni sect, anti-communist army and civilian patriots
organized mass demonstrations in the country. In March 1979, the Afghan Muslim
rebels, encouraged by the Iranian Muslim overthrow of the Shah of Iran declared a
holy war (jihad) against the pro-Soviet republic. A revolutionary group was formed at
Peshawar, led by three Sunni Muslim rebels. They appealed to foreign governments
for arms.
In September 1979, another bloody coup in Kabul led to the death of
President Taraki and his replacement by Hafizullah Amin, a former teacher. This new
pro-communist regime did not last long, for the Russians decided to invade
Afghanistan to expand its sphere of influence in Asia.
On December 25, 1979, the Soviet Union launched a massive air and land
assault on Kabul. A Soviet KGB hit squad shot and killed Amin and his family, and
new puppet leaders were installed.

Russian Occupation and Withdrawal. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

met with unexpected fierce resistance from the Afghan people, resulting in a bloody,
dirty and almost secret civil war that raged for eight years. The Soviet Russians
poured 120,000 troops and modern equipment into the backward, rugged land to
dominate the hardy and independent Afghans. At first, they were supported by the
Afghan army. But eventually, 40,000 army deserters fled to the guerrilla side, and
only 20,000 loyalists stayed in the unpopular struggle.
Some 30,000 Afghan warriors (mujahedin) outnumbered and out armed by
the Soviet troops, nonetheless fought with the sympathy and support of the
population and the rest of the world. It proved a bloody civil war - the Russians lost
30,000 casualties; the Afghans lost 3 million dead and 6 million refugees fled to
Pakistan, Iran and elsewhere. Soviet bombing demolished many villages in several
regions in the country. Some 1,800 schools were damaged and thousands of
teachers tortured by the Russian invaders.
In the beginning, the mujahedin warriors fought alone in a jihad (holy) war
against the "infidel" communists. Later, they were supported by the US government,
which provided arms, missiles and other support to battle the Soviet occupation of
their country. Ironically, the US-provided weapons would later be used against them,
when it was their turn to occupy Afghanistan.
Finally, the Soviet government was forced to abandon the occupation of
Afghanistan. In December 1987, new Soviet Party Chairman Mikhail Gorbachev
announced that the USSR would withdraw its troops by 1988. The Soviet Union, a
Big Power, had lost the war. Their humiliation in the hands of the Afghans was like
the defeat of the US in Vietnam in 1975. Afghanistan became the graveyard of
Russia, too. The great Soviet Union was later dismantled and became plain Russia.
The reasons for the Soviet defeat were as follows:
(1) guerrilla tactics by the Afghan defenders;
(2) lack of popularity of the communist-backed government;
(3) desire for peace by Soviet leaders because the Afghan war had cost the
lives of 30,000 Soviet troops and $2 billion a year; and
(4) international pressure to end the war due to UN resolutions and news of
war atrocities.

Taliban Rule. For over a decade after the UN peace treaty on April 14, 1988,
there really was no peace for Afghanistan. After the withdrawal of foreign troops, the
warlords now began to fight among themselves.
Another bloody civil war erupted. The sight of Muslim brothers fighting each
other grieved other Muslim nations. Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and other countries tried
to stop them, without much success. The fighting and bombardment destroyed the
capital of Kabul and claimed many lives. By the 1990s, two million people had died,
and millions more fled the country.
One faction won the carnage. An Islamic fanatic group - the Taliban controlled
90% of the country. They were opposed by the Northern Alliance of Uzbec warlords.
In 1999, the Taliban hanged pro-Russian leaders in Kabul and took over the
government.
But instead of improving peoples' life, the Taliban regime made life worse.
Under the Taliban, Afghanistan fell into the absolute rule of Muslim priests, or
"mullahs". Their orders were cruel and repressive for dress and behavior, especially
for women. They banned all music, entertainment and sports. Women were forced to
stay indoors and be fully covered from head to toe, they could not go to school, or
work as doctors, teachers or lawyers. The Taliban tried to wipe out the nation's
cultural heritage, including valuable archaeological and religious relics. Those who
disobeyed the new rules were executed quickly. The reign of terror had few friends
abroad.

How the West Went to War. On September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the
US World Trade Center and Pentagon brought the global war on terror to
Afghanistan. In an invasion called "Operation Enduring Freedom," US-led forces
invaded Afghanistan to overthrow Taliban rule and find their "guest," a wealthy Saudi
businessman named Osama bin Laden. Bin Laden funded an international terrorist
network (al-Qaeda), which was accused of the 9/11 and other attacks on US
operations. The US-led invasion was participated in by 83 countries, including the
Philippines.
 They smashed Taliban rule and terrorist training camps in the country. The
Taliban leaders, including Bin Laden, fled into hiding in the mountains between
Pakistan. A new day dawned for Afghanistan, this time with the help of the US and
Western powers.
In June 2002, a new government was chosen for Afghanistan by the loya jirga
or tribal council. Under the protection of the US and allied peacekeeping forces, they
elected a dashing Westernized leader from the majority Pashtun tribe, Hamid Karzai,
to head the new government. A new constitution was made in 2004, and Karzai won
as first president.
With the help of the US and international donors, hundreds of billions of
dollars have been pledged to rebuild the devastated country. Afghanistan itself has
made great strides since then, electing women to the national parliament, rebuilding
infrastructure, schools and hospitals, and developing resources. But improvements
to life, especially of women, have yet a long way to go.
To protect their mission to open Afghanistan to the world, nearly 100,000 US
and NATO forces have been stationed, including (for a while) Prince Harry, second
heir to the British throne.
Suicide bombings, rocket and mortar attacks by Taliban insurgents against
military and civilian targets continue. The growing of opium has increased, for lack of
alternative livelihood. The Taliban continue to operate from their sanctuaries along
the mountain border and brought trouble into Pakistan. The connection between
Afghanistan and Pakistan causes serious threats to world peace.

Effects of Afghan Wars. We learned that Afghanistan is called "the

graveyard of empires." History shows that Afghanistan has meant misfortune to great
powers that crossed its rough terrain and tough warriors. Will it also bring down
Western powers like the US, now involved in its latest war? Only time will tell, as the
West has been weakened by economic woes, and the job of saving Afghanistan is
not done.
The war in Afghanistan and Iraq has cost the US nearly $1 trillion in military
spending as of 2008. In 2009, a new US President, Barack Hussein Obama,
promised to fulfill the US commitment to Afghanistan, despite a global recession that
began in the US and the West. Clearly, the battle for Afghanistan has not been won
decisively. Ordinary Afghan people, especially the women and children, need a
better life, and their hopes depend on their country's future.