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Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (1996–2001)

Coordinates: 33°56′N 66°11′E / 33.933°N 66.183°E / 33.933; 66.183
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Not to be confused with Emirate of Afghanistan.
Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
1996[1]–2001
Location of Afghanistan
CapitalKabul
Common languagesPashto (official)
Arabic (recognised) Dari (recognised)
GovernmentIslamic theocracy,
Totalitarian Dictatorship
Head of the Supreme Council 
• 1996–2001
Mohammed Omar
Historical eraPost-Cold War
War on Terror
• Established
27 September 1996[1]
• Disestablished
2001
ISO 3166 codeAF
Preceded by		 Succeeded by
Islamic State of Afghanistan
Afghanistan

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan[2] was founded in 1996 when the Taliban began their rule of Afghanistan and ended with their fall from power in 2001. At the peak of their influence the Taliban never controlled the entire area of Afghanistan, as about 10% of the country in the northeast was held by the United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan.[3]

History

The Taliban and its rule arose from the chaos of post-Soviet Afghanistan. It began as an Islamic fundamentalist politico-religious movement composed of students in the Helmand and Kandahar region of Afghanistan. Overwhelmingly local ethnic Pashtuns, the Taliban blended Pashtunwali tribal code with elements of Deobandi Islamic teaching to form an anti-Western, anti-modern, and highly restrictive Islamic fundamentalist ideology with which it ruled.[4]

Spreading from Kandahar, the Taliban eventually seized Kabul in 1996. By the end of 2000, the Taliban were able to capture 90% of the country, aside from the opposition (Afghan Northern Alliance) strongholds primarily found in the northeast corner of Badakhshan Province. The Taliban sought to impose a strict interpretation of Islamic Sharia law and were later implicated as supporters of mujahideen, most notably by harbouring Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network.

During the five-year history of the Islamic Emirate, much of the population experienced restrictions on their freedom and violations of their human rights. Women were banned from jobs, girls forbidden to attend schools or universities. Those who resisted were punished instantly. Communists were systematically eradicated and thieves were punished by amputating one of their hands or feet. Meanwhile, the Taliban managed to nearly eradicate the majority of the opium production by 2001.[5]

Following the Taliban's harsh treatment of Afghanistan's Shia minority, Iran stepped up assistance to the Northern Alliance. Relations with the Taliban deteriorated further in 1998 after Taliban forces seized the Iranian consulate in Mazari Sharif and executed Iranian diplomats. Following this incident, Iran almost went to war with the Taliban regions of Afghanistan but intervention by the United Nations Security Council and the United States prevented an imminent Iranian invasion.[citation needed]

International relations

Only Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates recognized the Taliban government.[6] The state was not recognised in the UN. Turkmenistan, however, was known to have held official meetings and agreements with Taliban government ministers.

One reason for lack of international recognition was the Taliban's disregard for international law as demonstrated by their actions on taking power. For example, one of the first acts of the Islamic Emirate was the murder of the former President of Afghanistan, Mohammad Najibullah. Before the Taliban had even taken control of Afghanistan's capital they sent out a squad to arrest, torture, mutilate and murder Najibullah, leaving his body hanging from a street lamp outside the presidential palace for two days. As Najibullah was staying in the United Nations compound in Kabul, this was a violation of international law.[citation needed] As a further example, the Taliban regime was also heavily criticised for the murder of Iranian diplomats in Afghanistan[7] in 1998. The Taliban supported the Islamic militants operating in Chechnya, Kashmir and Xinjiang, thus antagonizing Russia, India and the People's Republic of China simultaneously.

Sanctions

Main article: UN Security Council Resolution 1267

In 1999, the UN Security Council established a sanctions regime to cover individuals and entities associated with Al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden and/or the Taliban. Since the US Invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, the sanctions were applied to individuals and organizations in all parts of the world, also targeting former members of the Taliban government.

On January 27, 2010, a United Nations sanctions committee removed five former senior Taliban officials from this list, in a move favoured by Afghan President Karzai. The decision means the five will no longer be subject to an international travel ban, assets freeze and arms embargo. The five men, all high-ranking members of the Taliban government:

All had been added to the list in January or February 2001.[8]

Mohammed Omar continues to speak in the name of this Emirate.[9]

See also

References

  1. ^ Marcin, Gary (1998). "The Taliban". King's College. Retrieved 26 September 2011.
  2. ^ Directorate of Intelligence (2001). "CIA -- The World Factbook -- Afghanistan" (mirror). Retrieved 2008-03-07. note - the self-proclaimed Taliban government refers to the country as Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan
  3. ^ Map of areas controlled in Afghanistan '96
  4. ^ Rashid, Taliban (2000)
  5. ^ Afghanistan, Opium and the Taliban
  6. ^ http://books.google.com/books?id=diJSFBiOMjUC&pg=PA55&dq=islamic+emirate+of+afghanistan+recognition&hl=es&ei=oXykTcSmIojprQe4uqDfCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CDoQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=islamic%20emirate%20of%20afghanistan%20recognition&f=false
  7. ^ [15 Sep 1998] SC/6573 : SECURITY COUNCIL STRONGLY CONDEMNS MURDER OF IRANIAN DIPLOMATS IN AFGHANISTAN
  8. ^ "U.N. Reconciles itself to Five Members of Mulla Omar’s Cabinet"
  9. ^ http://www.ansa.it/ansalatina/notizie/rubriche/mundo/20090919182534948977.html


33°56′N 66°11′E / 33.933°N 66.183°E / 33.933; 66.183

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