Talk:Afghanistan

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Frequently asked questions

This section is here to provide answers to some questions that have been previously discussed on this talk page.

Note: This FAQ is only here to let people know that these points have previously been addressed, not to prevent any further discussion of these issues.

Q1: Why does this article state that the government of Afghanistan is the Islamic Emirate? Isn't that government unrecognized/illegitimate?

A1: Because reliable sources state that the Taliban have taken over. This determination is the result of a discussion among editors in this RfC. A new RfC (Request for Comment) will be required to change this. As an encyclopedia, Wikipedia reflects reliable sources, which may not align with editors' own views on the matter. The threshold for inclusion of material in Wikipedia is verifiability, not truth. Wikipedia is not a place to right great wrongs, such as by determining and advocating the rightful government of a country based on international law.

Q2: The flag is wrong!

A2: Since the sole current government of Afghanistan is that of the Taliban, consensus in this RfC is to identify the current flag of Afghanistan as that of the Taliban. A new RfC (Request for Comment) will be required to change this.

Q3: Why is Afghanistan listed as being in both Central and South Asia? It belongs to only one of those!

A3: Different reliable sources include Afghanistan in either one macroregion, or the other (or in both) depending on the field of study and the perspective taken. This has been discussed many times before.

This article is written in American English, which has its own spelling conventions (color, defense, traveled) and some terms that are used in it may be different or absent from other varieties of English. According to the relevant style guide, this should not be changed without broad consensus.

Afghanistan was one of the Geography and places good articles, but it has been removed from the list. There are suggestions below for improving the article to meet the good article criteria. Once these issues have been addressed, the article can be renominated. Editors may also seek a reassessment of the decision if they believe there was a mistake.

Article milestones
Date	Process	Result
April 7, 2005	Good article nominee	Listed
March 6, 2009	Good article reassessment	Delisted
September 24, 2019	Good article nominee	Not listed
Facts from this article were featured on Wikipedia's Main Page in the "On this day..." column on August 11, 2004, August 19, 2011, August 19, 2012, August 19, 2016, and August 19, 2020.
Current status: Delisted good article

Countries

This article is within the scope of WikiProject Countries, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of countries on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.CountriesWikipedia:WikiProject CountriesTemplate:WikiProject Countriescountry articles

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Afghanistan Top‑importance

	Afghanistan portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Afghanistan, a project to maintain and expand Afghanistan-related subjects on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, you can edit the article attached to this page, or visit the project page, where you can join the project and/or contribute to the discussion.AfghanistanWikipedia:WikiProject AfghanistanTemplate:WikiProject AfghanistanAfghanistan articles
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale.

Asia Top‑importance

	Asia portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Asia, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Asia on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.AsiaWikipedia:WikiProject AsiaTemplate:WikiProject AsiaAsia articles
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale.

South Asia Top‑importance

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject South Asia, which aims to improve the quality and status of all South Asia-related articles. For more information, please visit the Project page.South AsiaWikipedia:WikiProject South AsiaTemplate:WikiProject South AsiaSouth Asia articles
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the importance scale.

Islam High‑importance

	Islam portal This article is within the scope of WikiProject Islam, a collaborative effort to improve the coverage of Islam-related articles on Wikipedia. If you would like to participate, please visit the project page, where you can join the discussion and see a list of open tasks.IslamWikipedia:WikiProject IslamTemplate:WikiProject IslamIslam-related articles
High	This article has been rated as High-importance on the project's importance scale.

Central Asia Top‑importance

	Asia portal Afghanistan is part of WikiProject Central Asia, a project to improve all Central Asia-related articles. This includes but is not limited to Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Tibet, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Xinjiang and Central Asian portions of Iran, Pakistan and Russia, region-specific topics, and anything else related to Central Asia. If you would like to help improve this and other Central Asia-related articles, please join the project. All interested editors are welcome.Central AsiaWikipedia:WikiProject Central AsiaTemplate:WikiProject Central AsiaCentral Asia articles
Top	This article has been rated as Top-importance on the project's importance scale.

Limited recognition High‑importance

	This article is within the scope of WikiProject Limited recognition, a WikiProject dedicated to improving the coverage of entities with limited recognition on Wikipedia by contributing to articles relating to unrecognized states and separatist movements. To participate: Feel free to edit the article attached to this page, join our WikiProject by signing your name at the project page, or contribute to the project discussion.Limited recognitionWikipedia:WikiProject Limited recognitionTemplate:WikiProject Limited recognitionLimited recognition articles
High	This article has been rated as High-importance on the project's importance scale.

This article has been mentioned by a media organization:

Guo, Jeff (October 25, 2016). "Wikipedia is fixing one of the Internet's biggest flaws". The Washington Post. This chart, for instance, shows how the Wikipedia page on Afghanistan shifted in tone during 2006 ...

Text and/or other creative content from this version of Afghanistan was copied or moved into Islamic Republic of Afghanistan with this edit. The former page's history now serves to provide attribution for that content in the latter page, and it must not be deleted as long as the latter page exists.

The contentious topics procedure applies to this page. This page is related to India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, which has been designated as a contentious topic.

Editors who repeatedly or seriously fail to adhere to the purpose of Wikipedia, any expected standards of behaviour, or any normal editorial process may be blocked or restricted by an administrator. Editors are advised to familiarise themselves with the contentious topics procedures before editing this page.

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This article has been viewed enough times in a single year to make it into the Top 50 Report annual list. This happened in 2021, when it received 14,093,839 views.

This article has been viewed enough times in a single week to appear in the Top 25 Report 4 times. The weeks in which this happened:

It’s controversial to define Afghanistan as Unitary Totalitarian state.

Regional elders and vast clerics class have strong effect to government of Taliban, and the policies are usually made following to the advices given by them, and Taliban has absolutely weak control in some provinces - So how it could built a unitary totalitarian state? 5.151.139.53 (talk) 09:28, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 26 October 2024

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

AresuGeography (talk) 14:36, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Flag of Afghanistan.svg The Taliban flag should not be used as the official flag of Afghanistan, as the Taliban are barely recognized as a legitimate government internationally. Their flag represents an extremist ideology that reflects neither Afghanistan's diversity nor the international community. Therefore, Wikipedia and other platforms should use the previous Afghan flag to avoid misinformation and to preserve the country's historical identity.

Please don't use multiple requests for an identical changeRegentsPark (comment) 15:05, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 26 October 2024 (2)

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

Change the current flag to the former Afghan national flag used by the previous government.

The current use of the Taliban flag as the national flag of Afghanistan is problematic for several reasons:

1. Lack of International Recognition: The Taliban government is not officially recognized by the majority of the international community, including the United Nations, which still uses the former Afghan flag in its proceedings. Wikipedia should reflect this lack of recognition by using the flag recognized by international institutions.

2. Symbol of Extremist Ideology: The Taliban flag is not a neutral representation of Afghanistan; it symbolizes a specific ideology that does not reflect the diversity or values of the Afghan population as a whole. The use of this flag risks implying legitimacy or support for the Taliban's regime, which contradicts Wikipedia’s commitment to neutrality.

3. Preserving Afghanistan’s National Identity: Afghanistan's traditional flag represents its historical and cultural identity, which resonates with Afghans globally. Using the Taliban flag disregards the perspectives of millions of Afghans who do not support the Taliban and instead look to the former national symbols as a representation of their heritage.

4. Using the internationally recognized Afghan flag, as used by the UN and other global organizations, will ensure Wikipedia maintains neutrality, prevents misinformation, and respects Afghanistan’s broader identity.

YOU SHOULD PUT THIS ONE "Flag of Afghanistan.svg" AresuGeography (talk) 14:42, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Not done Please review the Frequently Asked Questions at the top of this page before making a request. Thebiguglyalien (talk) 17:20, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 26 October 2024 (3)

This edit request has been answered. Set the |answered= or |ans= parameter to no to reactivate your request.

Change > `Flag of Taliban.svg`

To > `Flag of Afghanistan.svg`

Reason for Change: The current use of the Taliban flag does not reflect the internationally recognized identity of Afghanistan. The Taliban are not recognized as the legitimate government by most of the global community, including the United Nations, which continues to use the previous Afghan flag in its official capacity. Displaying the Taliban flag could suggest unintended support for an extremist ideology that does not represent the Afghan population or its historical identity. Switching to `Flag of Afghanistan.svg` aligns with Wikipedia’s neutrality policy, respects the country's cultural heritage, and prevents the spread of misinformation. AresuGeography (talk) 14:52, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]

Multiple identical requests. I'm keeping the most detailed one open. Feel free to add to it if you like. RegentsPark (comment) 15:06, 26 October 2024 (UTC)[reply]