War in Afghanistan (2001–2014)

This article is about the war in Afghanistan from 2001 remained under direct U.S. command.
to 2014. For the previous conflicts, see History of The Taliban was reorganised by its leader Mullah Omar,
Afghanistan § Contemporary era (1973–present). For
and in 2003, launched an insurgency against the govern-
other phases of the conflict, see War in Afghanistan. For ment and ISAF.[43][44] Though outgunned and outnum-
the phase of the same conflict following the end of ISAF
bered, insurgents from the Taliban, Haqqani Network,
in 2014, see War in Afghanistan (2015–present). Hezb-e-Islami Gulbuddin and other groups have waged
“Afghanistan invasion” redirects here. For other inva- asymmetric warfare with guerilla raids and ambushes
sions of Afghanistan, see Invasions of Afghanistan. in the countryside, suicide attacks against urban targets
Further information: Civilian casualties in the war in and turncoat killings against coalition forces. The Tal-
Afghanistan (2001–14) iban exploited weaknesses in the Afghan government,
among the most corrupt in the world, to reassert influence
The war in Afghanistan (or the American war in across rural areas of southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Afghanistan)[29][30] followed the 2001 United States In the initial years there was little fighting, but from
invasion of Afghanistan.[31] Supported initially by the 2006 the Taliban made significant gains and showed an
United Kingdom, the US was later joined by the rest increased willingness to commit atrocities against civil-
of NATO, beginning in 2003. Its public aims were to ians. ISAF responded in 2006 by increasing troops
dismantle al-Qaeda and to deny it a safe base of op- for counterinsurgency operations to "clear and hold" vil-
erations in Afghanistan by removing the Taliban from lages and "nation building" projects to "win hearts and
power.[32] Key allies, including the United Kingdom, sup- minds".[45][46] Violence sharply escalated from 2007 to
ported the U.S. from the start to the end of the phase. 2009.[47] While ISAF continued to battle the Taliban in-
This phase of the war is the longest war in United States surgency, fighting crossed into neighboring North-West
history.[33][34][35][36][37] Pakistan.[48]
In 2001, U.S. President George W. Bush demanded that On 2 May 2011, United States Navy SEALs killed Osama
the Taliban hand over Osama bin Laden and expel al- bin Laden in Abbotabad, Pakistan. In May 2012, NATO
Qaeda; bin Laden had already been wanted by the United leaders endorsed an exit strategy for withdrawing their
Nations since 1999. The Taliban declined to extradite forces. UN-backed peace talks have since taken place
him unless given evidence of his involvement in the 9/11 between the Afghan government and the Taliban.[49] In
attacks[38] and also declined demands to extradite oth- May 2014, the United States announced that "[its] com-
ers on the same grounds. The request for evidence was bat operations [would] end in 2014, [leaving] just a small
dismissed by the U.S. as a delaying tactic, and on 7 residual force in the country until the end of 2016”.[50]
October 2001 it launched Operation Enduring Freedom As of 2015, tens of thousands of people have been killed
with the United Kingdom. The two were later joined by in the war. Over 4,000 ISAF soldiers and civilian con-
other forces, including the Northern Alliance which had tractors as well as over 15,000 Afghan national security
been fighting the Taliban in the ongoing civil war since forces members have been killed, as well as nearly 20,000
1996.[39][40] In December 2001, the United Nations Se- civilians. In October 2014, British forces handed over the
curity Council established the International Security As- last bases in Helmand to the Afghan military, officially
sistance Force (ISAF), to assist the Afghan interim au- ending their combat operations in the war.[51] On 28 De-
thorities with securing Kabul. At the Bonn Conference cember 2014, NATO formally ended combat operations
the same month, Hamid Karzai was selected to head the in Afghanistan and transferred full security responsibility
Afghan Interim Administration, which after a 2002 loya to the Afghan government.[52][53]
jirga in Kabul became the Afghan Transitional Admin-
istration. In the popular elections of 2004, Karzai was
elected president of the country, now named the Islamic 1 Before the start of war
Republic of Afghanistan.[41]
NATO became involved in ISAF in August 2003, and 1.1 Origins of Afghanistan’s civil war
later that year assumed leadership of it, with troops from
43 countries by this stage. NATO members provided Main article: War in Afghanistan (1978–present)
the core of the force.[42] One portion of U.S. forces in Afghanistan’s political order began to break down
Afghanistan operated under NATO command; the rest with the overthrow of King Zahir Shah by his cousin

1
2 1 BEFORE THE START OF WAR

approach to Kabul. With the political stage cleared of

socialists, the warlords, some of them Islamist, vied for
power. By then, Bin Laden had left the country and the
United States’ interest in Afghanistan also diminished.

1.2 Warlord rule (1992–1996)

Soviet troops in 1986, during the Soviet war in Afghanistan

Mohammed Daoud Khan in a bloodless 1973 coup.

Daoud Khan had served as prime minister since 1953
and promoted economic modernization, emancipation of
women, and Pashtun nationalism. This was threatening to
neighboring Pakistan, faced with its own restive Pashtun
population. In the mid-1970s, Pakistani Prime Minister
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto began to encourage Afghan Islamist
leaders such as Burhanuddin Rabbani and Gulbuddin
Hekmatyar, to fight against the regime. In 1978, Daoud
Khan was killed in a coup by Afghan’s Communist Party, Ahmad Shah Massoud (right) with Pashtun anti-Taliban leader
his former partner in government, known as the People’s and later Vice-President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA). The PDPA Haji Abdul Qadir
pushed for a socialist transformation by abolishing ar-
ranged marriages, promoting mass literacy and reform- Main article: Civil war in Afghanistan (1992–96)
ing land ownership. This undermined the traditional
tribal order and provoked opposition across rural areas. In 1992, Rabbani officially became president of the
The PDPA’s crackdown was met with open rebellion, in- Islamic State of Afghanistan, but had to battle other
cluding Ismail Khan's Herat Uprising. The PDPA was warlords for control of Kabul. In late 1994, Rabbani’s
beset by internal leadership differences and was weak- defense minister, Ahmad Shah Massoud defeated Hek-
ened by an internal coup on 11 September 1979 when matyr in Kabul and ended ongoing bombardment of the
Hafizullah Amin ousted Nur Muhammad Taraki. The capital.[54][55][56] Massoud tried to initiate a nationwide
Soviet Union, sensing PDPA weakness, intervened mil- political process with the goal of national consolidation.
itarily three months later, to depose Amin and install Other warlords, including Ismail Khan in the west and
another PDA faction led by Babrak Karmal. Dostum in the north maintained their fiefdoms.
The entry of Soviet forces in Afghanistan in December In 1994, Mohammed Omar, a mujahideen member who
1979 prompted its Cold War rivals, the United States, taught at a Pakistani madrassa, returned to Kandahar and
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and China to support rebels fight- formed the Taliban movement. His followers were reli-
ing against the Soviet-backed Democratic Republic of gious students, known as the Talib and they sought to end
Afghanistan. In contrast to the secular and socialist gov- warlordism through strict adherence to Islamic law. By
ernment, which controlled the cities, religiously moti- November 1994, the Taliban had captured all of Kanda-
vated mujahideen held sway in much of the country- har Province. They declined the government’s offer to
side. Beside Rabbani, Hekmatyar, and Khan, other mu- join in a coalition government and marched on Kabul in
jahideen commanders included Jalaluddin Haqqani. The 1995.[57]
CIA worked closely with Pakistan’s Inter-Service Intelli-
gence to funnel foreign support for the mujahideen. The
war also attracted Arab volunteers, known as "Afghan 1.3 Taliban Emirate vs Northern Alliance
Arabs", including Osama bin Laden.
After the withdrawal of the Soviet military from Main article: Civil war in Afghanistan (1996–2001)
Afghanistan in May 1989, the PDPA regime under
Najibullah held on until 1992, when the collapse of the The Taliban’s early victories in 1994 were followed by
Soviet Union deprived the regime of aid, and the defec- a series of costly defeats.[58] Pakistan provided strong
tion of Uzbek general Abdul Rashid Dostum cleared the support to the Taliban.[59][60] Analysts such as Amin
1.3 Taliban Emirate vs Northern Alliance 3

Saikal described the group as developing into a proxy the U.S. State Department confirmed that “20–40 percent
force for Pakistan’s regional interests, which the Taliban of [regular] Taliban soldiers are Pakistani.” The docu-
denied.[59] The Taliban started shelling Kabul in early ment said that many of the parents of those Pakistani na-
1995, but were driven back by Massoud.[55][61] tionals “know nothing regarding their child’s military in-
On 27 September 1996, the Taliban, with military sup- volvement with the Taliban until their bodies are brought
port by Pakistan and financial support from Saudi Ara- back to Pakistan”. According to the U.S. State Depart-
bia, seized Kabul and founded the Islamic Emirate of ment report and reports by Human Rights Watch, other
Afghanistan.[62] They imposed their fundamentalist in- Pakistani nationals fighting in Afghanistan were regular
soldiers, especially from the Frontier Corps, but also from
terpretation of Islam in areas under their control, issu-
ing edicts forbidding women to work outside the home, the army providing direct combat support.[60][77]
attend school, or to leave their homes unless accompa-
nied by a male relative.[63] According to the Pakistani ex- 1.3.1 Al-Qaeda
pert Ahmed Rashid, “between 1994 and 1999, an esti-
mated 80,000 to 100,000 Pakistanis trained and fought In August 1996, Bin Laden was forced to leave Sudan
in Afghanistan” on the side of the Taliban.[64][65] and arrived in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He had founded
Massoud and Dostum, former arch-enemies, created a Al-Qaeda in the late 1980s to support the mujahideen’s
United Front against the Taliban, commonly known as war against the Soviets, but became disillusioned by in-
the Northern Alliance.[66] In addition to Massoud’s Tajik fighting among warlords. He grew close to Mullah Omar
force and Dostum’s Uzbeks, the United Front included and moved Al-Qaeda’s operations to eastern Afghanistan.
Hazara factions and Pashtun forces under the leader- The 9/11 Commission in the U.S. reported found that un-
ship of commanders such as Abdul Haq and Haji Abdul der the Taliban, al-Qaeda was able to use Afghanistan
Qadir. Abdul Haq also gathered a limited number of as a place to train and indoctrinate fighters, import
defecting Pashtun Taliban.[67] Both agreed to work to- weapons, coordinate with other jihadists, and plot
gether with the exiled Afghan king Zahir Shah.[65] In- terrorist actions.[78] While al-Qaeda maintained its own
ternational officials who met with representatives of the camps in Afghanistan, it also supported training camps
new alliance, which the journalist Steve Coll referred to of other organizations. An estimated 10,000 to 20,000
as the “grand Pashtun-Tajik alliance”, said, “It’s crazy men passed through these facilities before 9/11, most of
that you have this today … Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks, whom were sent to fight for the Taliban against the United
Hazara … They were all ready to buy in to the pro- Front. A smaller number were inducted into al-Qaeda.[79]
cess … to work under the king’s banner for an eth-
nically balanced Afghanistan.”[68][69] The Northern Al- After the August 1998 U.S. Embassy bombings were
liance received varying degrees of support from Russia, linked to bin Laden, President Bill Clinton ordered
Iran, Tajikistan and India. missile strikes on militant training camps in Afghanistan.
U.S. officials pressed the Taliban to surrender bin Laden.
The Taliban captured Mazar-i-Sharif in 1998 and drove In 1999, the international community imposed sanctions
Dostum into exile. on the Taliban, calling for bin Laden to be surrendered.
The conflict was brutal. According to the United Na- The Taliban repeatedly rebuffed these demands.
tions (UN), the Taliban, while trying to consolidate con- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Special Activities Di-
trol over northern and western Afghanistan, commit- vision paramilitary teams were active in Afghanistan in
ted systematic massacres against civilians. UN offi- the 1990s in clandestine operations to locate and kill or
cials stated that there had been “15 massacres” between capture Osama bin Laden. These teams planned sev-
1996 and 2001. The Taliban especially targeted the eral operations, but did not receive the order to proceed
Shiite Hazaras.[70][71] In retaliation for the execution of from President Clinton. Their efforts built relationships
3,000 Taliban prisoners by Uzbek general Abdul Ma- with Afghan leaders that proved essential in the 2001
lik Pahlawan in 1997, the Taliban executed about 4,000 invasion.[80]
civilians after taking Mazar-i-Sharif in 1998.[72][73]
Bin Laden’s so-called 055 Brigade was responsible for
1.3.2 Change in U.S. policy toward Afghanistan
mass-killings of Afghan civilians.[74] The report by the
United Nations quotes eyewitnesses in many villages de-
During the Clinton administration, the U.S. tended to fa-
scribing “Arab fighters carrying long knives used for slit-
vor Pakistan and until 1998–1999 had no clear policy to-
ting throats and skinning people”.[70][71]
ward Afghanistan. In 1997, for example, the U.S. State
By 2001, the Taliban controlled as much as 90% of the Department’s Robin Raphel told Massoud to surrender
country, with the Northern Alliance confined to the coun- to the Taliban. Massoud responded that, as long as he
try’s northeast corner. Fighting alongside Taliban forces controlled an area the size of his hat, he would continue
were some 28,000–30,000 Pakistanis and 2,000–3,000 to defend it from the Taliban.[57] Around the same time,
Al-Qaeda militants.[57][74][75][76] Many of the Pakistanis top foreign policy officials in the Clinton administration
were recruited from madrassas.[74] A 1998 document by flew to northern Afghanistan to try to persuade the United
4 1 BEFORE THE START OF WAR

Front not to take advantage of a chance to make crucial tionalist and leader of the Northern Alliance, in-
gains against the Taliban. They insisted it was the time vited several other prominent Afghan tribal leaders
for a cease-fire and an arms embargo. At the time, Pak- to a jirga in northern Afghanistan “to settle politi-
istan began a "Berlin-like airlift to resupply and re-equip cal turmoil in Afghanistan”.[90] Among those in atten-
the Taliban”, financed with Saudi money.[81] dance were Pashtun nationalists, Abdul Haq and Hamid
U.S. policy toward Afghanistan changed after the 1998 Karzai.[91][92]
U.S. embassy bombings. Subsequently, Osama bin In early 2001, Massoud and several other Afghan lead-
Laden was indicted for his involvement in the embassy ers addressed the European Parliament in Brussels, ask-
bombings. In 1999 both the U.S. and the United Nations ing the international community to provide humanitarian
enacted sanctions against the Taliban via United Nations help. The Afghan envoy asserted that the Taliban and al-
Security Council Resolution 1267, which demanded the Qaeda had introduced “a very wrong perception of Islam”
Taliban surrender Osama bin Laden for trial in the U.S. and that without the support of Pakistan and Osama bin
and close all terrorist bases in Afghanistan.[82] The only Laden, the Taliban would not be able to sustain their mili-
collaboration between Massoud and the US at the time tary campaign for another year. Massoud warned that his
was an effort with the CIA to trace bin Laden following intelligence had gathered information about an imminent,
the 1998 bombings.[83] The U.S. and the European Union large-scale attack on U.S. soil.[93]
provided no support to Massoud for the fight against the On 9 September 2001, two French-speaking Algerians
Taliban. posing as journalists killed Massoud in a suicide attack
By 2001 the change of policy sought by CIA officers who in Takhar Province of Afghanistan. The two perpetrators
knew Massoud was underway.[84] CIA lawyers, work- were later alleged to be members of al-Qaeda. They were
ing with officers in the Near East Division and Counter- interviewing Massoud before detonating a bomb hidden
terrorist Center, began to draft a formal finding for Pres- in their video camera.[94][95] Both of the alleged al-Qaeda
ident George W. Bush's signature, authorizing a covert men were subsequently killed by Massoud’s guards.
action program in Afghanistan. It would be the first in
a decade to seek to influence the course of the Afghan
war in favor of Massoud.[62] Richard A. Clarke, chair of 1.4 September 11, 2001 attacks
the Counter-Terrorism Security Group under the Clinton
administration, and later an official in the Bush admin- Main article: September 11 attacks
istration, allegedly presented a plan to incoming Bush On the morning of 11 September 2001, a total of 19 Arab
National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice in January
2001.
A change in US policy was effected in August 2001.[62]
The Bush administration agreed on a plan to start sup-
porting Massoud. A meeting of top national security of-
ficials agreed that the Taliban would be presented with
an ultimatum to hand over bin Laden and other al-Qaeda
operatives. If the Taliban refused, the US would provide
covert military aid to anti-Taliban groups. If both those
options failed, “the deputies agreed that the United States
would seek to overthrow the Taliban regime through more
direct action.”[85]

1.3.3 Northern Alliance on the eve of 9/11 Ground Zero in New York following the attacks of 11 September
2001
Ahmad Shah Massoud was the only leader of the United
Front in Afghanistan. In the areas under his control,men carried out four coordinated attacks in the United
Massoud set up democratic institutions and signed theStates. Four commercial passenger jet airliners were
hijacked.[96][97] The hijackers – members of al-Qaeda’s
Women’s Rights Declaration.[86] As a consequence, many
Hamburg cell –[98] intentionally crashed two of the air-
civilians had fled to areas under his control.[87][88] In to-
liners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in
tal, estimates range up to one million people fleeing the
Taliban.[89] New York City, killing everyone on board and more than
2000 people in the buildings. Both buildings collapsed
Further information: Civil war in Afghanistan (1996– within two hours from damage related to the crashes,
2001) destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The
hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in
In late 2000, Ahmad Shah Massoud, a Tajik na- Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C.. The
 5

fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville, in ru- Forces.[102] On September 26, 2001, fifteen days after the
ral Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and flight 9/11 attack, the U.S. covertly inserted members of the
crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which CIA’s Special Activities Division led by Gary Schroen as
the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C., part of team Jawbreaker into Afghanistan, forming the
to target the White House, or the U.S. Capitol. No Northern Afghanistan Liaison Team.[103][104][105] They
one aboard the flights survived. According to the New linked up with the Northern Alliance as part of Task
York State Health Department, the death toll among re- Force Dagger.[106]
sponders including firefighters and police was 836 as of Two weeks later, Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA)
June 2009.[99] Total deaths were 2996, including the 19
555 and 595, both 12-man Green Beret teams from 5th
hijackers.[99] Special Forces Group, plus Air Force combat controllers,
were airlifted by helicopter from the Karshi-Khanabad
Air Base in Uzbekistan[107] more than 300 kilometers
2 U.S. invasion of Afghanistan (190 mi) across the 16,000 feet (4,900 m) Hindu Kush
mountains in zero-visibility conditions by two SOAR
Main article: United States invasion of Afghanistan MH-47E Chinook helicopters. The Chinooks were refu-
The United States invasion of Afghanistan occurred after eled in-flight three times during the 11-hour mission, es-
tablishing a new world record for combat rotorcraft mis-
sions at the time. They linked up with the CIA and North-
ern Alliance. Within a few weeks the Northern Alliance,
with assistance from the U.S. ground and air forces, cap-
tured several key cities from the Taliban.[103][108]

U.S. Army Special Forces and U.S. Air Force Combat Controllers
with Northern Alliance troops on horseback

the September 11 attacks in late 2001,[100] supported by

allies including the United Kingdom.
U.S. President George W. Bush demanded that the Tal-
iban hand over Osama bin Laden and expel al-Qaeda American and British special forces operators at Tora Bora,
from Afghanistan. Bin Laden had been wanted by the 2001.
U.N. since 1999 for the prior attack on the World Trade
Center. The Taliban declined to extradite him unless The U.S. officially launched Operation Enduring Free-
the United States provided convincing evidence of his in- dom on 7 October 2001 with the assistance of the
volvement in the 9/11 attacks.[38] They ignored U.S. de- United Kingdom. The two were later joined by other
mands to shut down terrorist bases and hand over other countries.[39][40] The U.S. and its allies drove the Tal-
terrorist suspects. The request for proof of bin Laden’s iban from power and built military bases near major cities
involvement was dismissed by the U.S. as a meaningless across the country. Most al-Qaeda and Taliban were not
delaying tactic. captured, escaping to neighboring Pakistan or retreating
General Tommy Franks, then-commanding general of to rural or remote mountainous regions.
Central Command (CENTCOM), initially proposed im- On 20 December 2001, the United Nations authorized
mediately after the 9/11 attacks to President George W. an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), with
Bush and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld that a mandate to help the Afghans maintain security in Kabul
the U.S. invade Afghanistan using a conventional force and surrounding areas. It was initially established from
of 60,000 troops, preceded by six months of prepara- the headquarters of the British 3rd Mechanised Divi-
tion. Rumsfield and Bush feared that a conventional in- sion under Major General John McColl, and for its first
vasion of Afghanistan could bog down as had happened years numbered no more that 5,000.[109] Its mandate
to the Soviets and the British.[101] Rumsfield rejected did not extend beyond the Kabul area for the first few
Franks’s plan, saying “I want men on the ground now!" years.[110] Eighteen countries were contributing to the
Franks returned the next day with a plan utilizing Special force in February 2002.
6 3 AN INSURGENCY GAINS STRENGTH

At the Bonn Conference in December 2001, Hamid

Karzai was selected to head the Afghan Interim Adminis-
tration, which after a 2002 loya jirga in Kabul became the
Afghan Transitional Administration. In the popular elec-
tions of 2004, Karzai was elected president of the coun-
try, now named the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.[41]
In August 2003, NATO became involved as an alliance,
taking the helm of the International Security Assistance
Force.[42] One portion of U.S. forces in Afghanistan op-
erated under NATO command; the rest remained under
direct U.S. command. Taliban leader Mullah Omar reor-
ganized the movement, and in 2003, launched an insur-
gency against the government and ISAF.[43][44] A number of 1.25lb M112 Demolition Charges, consisting of a
C-4 compound, sit atop degraded weaponry scheduled for de-
struction.
3 An insurgency gains strength
pared to launch the Taliban insurgency that Omar had
promised.[111] During September, Taliban forces began
a jihad recruitment drive in Pashtun areas in Afghanistan
and Pakistan. Pamphlets distributed in secret appeared
in many villages in southeastern Afghanistan called for
jihad.[112]
Small mobile training camps were established along the
border to train recruits in guerrilla warfare.[113] Most
were drawn from tribal area madrassas in Pakistan.
Bases, a few with as many as 200 fighters, emerged in
the tribal areas by the summer of 2003. Pakistani will
to prevent infiltration was uncertain, while Pakistani mil-
itary operations proved of little use.[114]

Map detailing the spread of the Neotaliban-Insurgency in

Afghanistan 2002–2006

US troops board a helicopter

The Taliban gathered into groups of around 50 to launch

attacks on isolated outposts, and then breaking up into
A U.S. Navy Corpsman searches for Taliban fighters in the spring groups of 5–10 to evade counterattacks. Coalition forces
of 2005. were attacked indirectly, through rocket attacks on bases
and improvised explosive devices.
Further information: War in North-West Pakistan, To coordinate the strategy, Omar named a 10-man lead-
2003 in Afghanistan, 2004 in Afghanistan, and 2005 in ership council, with himself as its leader.[114] Five oper-
Afghanistan ational zones were assigned to Taliban commanders such
as Dadullah, who took charge in Zabul province.[114] Al-
After evading coalition forces throughout mid-2002, Tal- Qaeda forces in the east had a bolder strategy of attacking
iban remnants gradually regained confidence and pre- Americans using elaborate ambushes. The first sign of
3.1 2006: Southern Afghanistan 7

the strategy came on 27 January 2003, during Operation

Mongoose, when a band of fighters were assaulted by U.S.
forces at the Adi Ghar cave complex 25 km (15 mi) north
of Spin Boldak.[115] 18 rebels were reported killed with
no U.S. casualties. The site was suspected to be a base for
supplies and fighters coming from Pakistan. The first iso-
lated attacks by relatively large Taliban bands on Afghan
targets also appeared around that time.

A U.S. Army soldier from 10th Mountain Division, patrols

Aranas, Afghanistan

troops.[121] Air support was provided by U.S., British,

Dutch, Norwegian and French combat aircraft and he-
An Apache helicopter provides protection from the air, October licopters.
2005
In January 2006, NATO’s focus in southern Afghanistan
As the summer continued, Taliban attacks gradually in- was to form Provincial Reconstruction Teams with the
creased in frequency. Dozens of Afghan government sol- British leading in Helmand while the Netherlands and
diers, NGO humanitarian workers, and several U.S. sol- Canada would lead similar deployments in Orūzgān and
diers died in the raids, ambushes and rocket attacks. Be- Kandahar, respectively. Local Taliban figures pledged to
sides guerrilla attacks, Taliban fighters began building up resist.[122]
forces in the district of Dai Chopan in Zabul Province.
The Taliban decided to make a stand there. Over the
course of the summer, up to 1,000 guerrillas moved there.
Over 220 people, including several dozen Afghan police,
were killed in August 2003. In late August 2005, Afghan
government forces attacked, backed by U.S. troops with
air support. After a one-week battle, Taliban forces were
routed with up to 124 fighters killed.
On 11 August 2003, NATO assumed control of
ISAF.[110] On 31 July 2006, ISAF assumed command of
the south of the country, and by 5 October 2006, of the
east.[116] Once this transition had taken place, ISAF grew
to a large coalition involving up to 46 countries, under a
U.S. commander. Swedish Army medic in the Mazar-e Sharif region.

Southern Afghanistan faced in 2006 the deadliest vio-

3.1 2006: Southern Afghanistan lence since the Taliban’s fall. NATO operations were led
by British, Canadian and Dutch commanders. Operation
Main article: Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan Mountain Thrust was launched on 17 May 2006, with. In
in 2006 July, Canadian Forces, supported by U.S., British, Dutch
Further information: 2006 in Afghanistan and Danish forces, launched Operation Medusa.
From January 2006, a multinational ISAF contingent
started to replace U.S. troops in southern Afghanistan. A combined force of Dutch and Australians launched a
The British 16th Air Assault Brigade (later reinforced successful offensive between late April to mid July 2006
by Royal Marines) formed the core of the force, along to push the Taliban out of the Chora and Baluchi areas.
with troops and helicopters from Australia, Canada and On 18 September 2006 Italian special forces of Task
the Netherlands. The initial force consisted of roughly Force 45 and airborne troopers of the 'Trieste' infantry
3,300 British,[117] 2,300 Canadian,[118] 1,963 Dutch, regiment of the Rapid Reaction Corps composed of Ital-
300 Australian,[119] 290 Danish[120] and 150 Estonian ian and Spanish forces, took part in 'Wyconda Pincer' op-
8 3 AN INSURGENCY GAINS STRENGTH

eration in the districts of Bala Buluk and Pusht-i-Rod, in

In February 2007, Combined Forces Command-
Farah province. Italian forces killed at least 70 Taliban.
Afghanistan inactivated. Combined Joint Task Force 76,
The situation in RC-W then deteriorated. Hotspots in- a two-star U.S. command headquartered on Bagram Air-
cluded Badghis in the very north and Farah in the south- field, assumed responsibility as the National Command
west. Element for U.S. forces in Afghanistan.[127] Combined
Further NATO operations included the Battle of Pan- Security Transition Command-Afghanistan, or CSTC-A,
jwaii, Operation Mountain Fury and Operation Falcon the other two-star U.S. command, was charged with
Summit. NATO achieved tactical victories and area training and mentoring the Afghan National Security
Forces.
denial, but the Taliban were not completely defeated.
NATO operations continued into 2007. On 4 March 2007, U.S. Marines killed at least 12 civilians
and injured 33 in Shinwar district, Nangrahar,[128] in a
response to a bomb ambush. The event became known
3.2 2007: Coalition offensive as the "Shinwar massacre".[129] The 120 member Marine
unit responsible for the attack were ordered to leave the
Main article: Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan country by Army Major General Frank Kearney, because
in 2007 the incident damaged the unit’s relations with the local
Further information: 2007 in Afghanistan Afghan population.[130]
In January and February 2007, British Royal Marines

Chinooks transporting troops to Bagram

US and British troops during a patrol in Helmand Province
Later in March 2007, the US added more than 3,500
mounted Operation Volcano to clear insurgents from troops.
firing-points in the village of Barikju, north of Kajaki.[123] On 12 May 2007, ISAF forces killed Mullah Dadullah.
Other major operations during this period included Eleven other Taliban fighters died in the same firefight.
Operation Achilles (March–May) and Operation Lastay
Kulang. The UK Ministry of Defence announced its in- During the summer, NATO forces achieved tactical vic-
tention to bring British troop levels in the country up to tories at the Battle of Chora in Orūzgān, where Dutch and
7,700 (committed until 2009).[124] Further operations, Australian ISAF forces were deployed.
such as Operation Silver and Operation Silicon, took
place to keep up the pressure on the Taliban in the hope
of blunting their expected spring offensive.[125][126]

US Army paratroopers navigate to Observation Post Chuck Norris

in Dangam.

On 16 August, eight civilians including a pregnant woman

A US Soldier conducts a mountain patrol in Nuristan Province. and a baby died when Polish soldiers shelled the village
 9

of Nangar Khel, Paktika Province. Seven soldiers have

been charged with war crimes.
On 28 October about 80 Taliban fighters were killed in a
24-hour battle in Helmand.[131]
Western officials and analysts estimated the strength of
Taliban forces at about 10,000 fighters fielded at any
given time. Of that number, only 2,000 to 3,000 were
highly motivated, full-time insurgents. The rest were
part-timers, made up of alienated, young Afghans, an-
gered by bombing raids or responding to payment. In
2007, more foreign fighters came than ever before, ac-
cording to officials. Approximately 100 to 300 full-
time combatants are foreigners, usually from Pakistan,
Uzbekistan, Chechnya, various Arab countries and per-
haps even Turkey and western China. They were report-
edly more fanatical and violent, often bringing superior
video-production or bombmaking expertise.[132]
On 2 November security forces killed a top-ranking mil-
itant, Mawlawi Abdul Manan, after he was caught cross-
ing the border. The Taliban confirmed his death.[133] On A U.S. Army Special Forces medic in Kandahar Province in
10 November the Taliban ambushed a patrol in eastern September 2008.
Afghanistan. This attack brought the U.S. death toll for
2007 to 100, making it the Americans’ deadliest year in
Afghanistan.[134] Iraq first, Afghanistan second.[136]
The Battle of Musa Qala took place in December. In the first five months of 2008, the number of U.S.
Afghan units were the principal fighting force, supported troops in Afghanistan increased by over 80% with a
by British forces.[135] Taliban forces were forced out of surge of 21,643 more troops, bringing the total from
the town. 26,607 in January to 48,250 in June.[137] In September
2008, President Bush announced the withdrawal of over
8,000 from Iraq and a further increase of up to 4,500 in
Afghanistan.[138]
4 Reassessment and renewed com-
In June 2008, British prime minister Gordon Brown
mitment from 2008 announced the number of British troops serving in
Afghanistan would increase to 8,030 – a rise of 230.[139]
Main article: Coalition combat operations in Afghanistan The same month, the UK lost its 100th serviceman.[140]
in 2008 On 13 June, Taliban fighters demonstrated their ongoing
Further information: 2008 in Afghanistan strength, liberating all prisoners in Kandahar jail. The
Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of operation freed 1200 prisoners, 400 of whom were Tal-

USA Koalition
iban, causing a major embarrassment for NATO.[141]
140.000
On 13 July 2008, a coordinated Taliban attack was
120.000 launched on a remote NATO base at Wanat in Kunar
100.000 province. On 19 August, French troops suffered their
worst losses in Afghanistan in an ambush.[142] Later in
Anzahl Soldaten

80.000
the month, an airstrike targeted a Taliban commander in
60.000
Herat province and killed 90 civilians.
40.000
Late August saw one of NATO’s largest operations in
20.000
Helmand, Operation Eagle’s Summit, aiming to bring
0.000
electricity to the region.[143]
07

08

09

10

11

12

13

14

15
20

20

20

20

20

20

20

20

20

On 3 September, commandos, believed to be U.S. Army

Development of ISAF troop strength Special Forces, landed by helicopter and attacked three
houses close to a known enemy stronghold in Pakistan.
Staff, said that while the situation in Afghanistan is “pre- The attack killed between seven and twenty people. Local
carious and urgent”, the 10,000 additional troops needed residents claimed that most of the dead were civilians.
there would be unavailable “in any significant manner” Pakistan condemned the attack, calling the incursion “a
unless withdrawals from Iraq are made. The priority was gross violation of Pakistan’s territory”.[144][145]
10 4 REASSESSMENT AND RENEWED COMMITMENT FROM 2008

4.1 Taliban attacks on supply lines

In November and December 2008, multiple incidents of
major theft, robbery, and arson attacks afflicted NATO
supply convoys in Pakistan.[148][149][150] Transport com-
panies south of Kabul were extorted for money by the
Taliban.[150][151] These incidents included the hijacking
of a NATO convoy carrying supplies in Peshawar,[149] the
torching of cargo trucks and Humvees east of the Khy-
ber pass[152] and a half-dozen raids on NATO supply de-
pots near Peshawar that destroyed 300 cargo trucks and
Humvees in December 2008.[153]

4.2 Issues with Pakistan

Main articles: Pakistan’s role in the War on Terror and
Pakistan–United States skirmishes
An unnamed senior Pentagon official told the BBC that

US troops burn a suspected Taliban safe house

Barack Obama with Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Pak-

istani President Asif Ali Zardari in 2009

at some point between 12 July and 12 September 2008,

President Bush issued a classified order authorizing raids
against militants in Pakistan. Pakistan said it would not
allow foreign forces onto its territory and that it would
vigorously protect its sovereignty.[154] In September, the
Pakistan military stated that it had issued orders to “open
fire” on U.S. soldiers who crossed the border in pursuit of
militant forces.[155]
On 25 September 2008, Pakistani troops fired on ISAF
Burning hashish seized in Operation Albatross, a combined op- helicopters. This caused confusion and anger in the Pen-
eration of Afghan officials, NATO and the DEA. tagon, which asked for a full explanation into the inci-
dent and denied that U.S. helicopters were in Pakistani
airspace.
A further split occurred when U.S. troops apparently
landed on Pakistani soil to carry out an operation against
On 6 September, in an apparent reaction, Pakistan an- militants in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province. Pakista-
nounced an indefinite disconnection of supply lines.[146] nis reacted angrily to the action, saying that 20 innocent
On 11 September, militants killed two U.S. troops in the villagers had been killed by US troops.[156] However, de-
east. This brought the total number of U.S. losses to 113, spite tensions, the U.S. increased the use of remotely pi-
more than in any prior year.[147] Several European coun- loted drone aircraft in Pakistan’s border regions, in partic-
tries set their own records, particularly the UK, who suf- ular the Federally Administered Tribal Regions (FATA)
fered 108 casualties.[22] and Balochistan; as of early 2009, drone attacks were up
4.3 2009: Southern Afghanistan 11

183% since 2006.[157]

By the end of 2008, the Taliban apparently had severed
remaining ties with al-Qaeda.[158] According to senior
U.S. military intelligence officials, perhaps fewer than
100 members of al-Qaeda remained in Afghanistan.[159]
In a meeting with General Stanley McChrystal, Pakistani
military officials urged international forces to remain on
the Afghan side of the border and prevent militants from
fleeing into Pakistan. Pakistan noted that it had deployed
140,000 soldiers on its side of the border to address mil-
itant activities, while the coalition had only 100,000 sol-
diers to police the Afghanistan side.[160]
A US soldier and an Afghan interpreter in Zabul, 2009.

4.3 2009: Southern Afghanistan

the Khyber Pass.[164] By 2011, the NDN handled about
40% of Afghanistan-bound traffic, versus 30% through
Pakistan.[163]
On 11 May 2009, Uzbekistan president Islam Karimov
announced that the airport in Navoi (Uzbekistan) was be-
ing used to transport non-lethal cargo into Afghanistan.
Due to the still unsettled relationship between Uzbek-
istan and the U.S. following the 2005 Andijon mas-
sacre and subsequent expulsion of U.S. forces from
Karshi-Khanabad airbase, U.S. forces were not involved
in the shipments. Instead, South Korea’s Korean Air,
which overhauled Navoi’s airport, officially handled
logistics.[165]

A U.S. Army soldier with 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment,

10th Mountain Division, fires his weapon during a battle with
insurgent forces in Barge Matal, during Operation Mountain Fire
in 2009.

Further information: 2009 in Afghanistan, List of

military operations in the war in Afghanistan (2001–14)
§ 2009 operations, and Khyber Border Coordination
Center

4.3.1 Northern Distribution Network

Main article: NATO logistics in the Afghan War § North-

ern Distribution Network
In response to the increased risk of sending supplies
through Pakistan, work began on the establishment of
a Northern Distribution Network (NDN) through Rus-
sia and Central Asian republics. Initial permission to
move supplies through the region was given on 20 Jan-
uary 2009, after a visit to the region by General David
Petraeus.[161] The first shipment along the NDN route
left on 20 February from Riga, Latvia, then traveled
5,169 km (3,212 mi) to the Uzbek town of Termez on
the Afghanistan border.[162] In addition to Riga, other
European ports included Poti, Georgia and Vladivostok,
Russia.[163] U.S. commanders hoped that 100 containers
a day would be shipped along the NDN.[162] By compari-
son, 140 containers a day were typically shipped through US soldiers fire mortars in Zabul.
12 4 REASSESSMENT AND RENEWED COMMITMENT FROM 2008

Originally only non-lethal resources were allowed on the of about 3,500 and the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Di-
NDN. In July 2009, however, shortly before a visit by new vision, a Stryker Brigade with about 4,000.[171] ISAF
President Barack Obama to Moscow, Russian authorities commander General David McKiernan had called for as
announced that U.S. troops and weapons could use the many as 30,000 additional troops, effectively doubling
country’s airspace to reach Afghanistan.[166] the number of troops.[172] On 23 September, a classified
Human rights advocates were (as of 2009) concerned assessment by General McChrystal included his conclu-
that the U.S. was again working with the government sion that a successful counterinsurgency [173]
strategy would
of Uzbekistan, which is often accused of violating hu- require 500,000 troops and five years.
man rights.[167] U.S. officials promised increased cooper- In November 2009, Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry
ation with Uzbekistan, including further assistance to turn sent two classified cables to Washington expressing con-
Navoi into a regional distribution center for both military cerns about sending more troops before the Afghan gov-
and civilian ventures.[168][169] ernment demonstrates that it is willing to tackle the cor-
ruption and mismanagement that has fueled the Taliban’s
rise. Eikenberry, a retired three-star general who in
4.3.2 2009 Increase in U.S. troops 2006–2007 commanded U.S. troops in Afghanistan, also
expressed frustration with the relative paucity of funds
set aside for development and reconstruction.[174] In sub-
sequent cables, Eikenberry repeatedly cautioned that de-
ploying sizable American reinforcements would result in
“astronomical costs” – tens of billions of dollars – and
would only deepen the Afghan government’s dependence
on the United States.

U.S. Army soldiers patrol the Korangal Valley in Kunar province.

In January 2009, about 3,000 U.S. soldiers from the 3rd

Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division
moved into the provinces of Logar and Wardak. Afghan
Federal Guards fought alongside them. The troops were
the first wave of an expected surge of reinforcements orig- U.S. Army soldiers watch the surrounding hills for insurgents
inally ordered by President Bush and increased by Presi- during a three-hour gun battle in Kunar province.
dent Obama.[170]
On 26 November 2009, Karzai made a public plea for
direct negotiations with the Taliban leadership. Karzai
said there is an “urgent need” for negotiations and made
it clear that the Obama administration had opposed such
talks. There was no formal US response.[175][176]
On 1 December, Obama announced at the U.S. Mili-
tary Academy in West Point that the U.S. would send
30,000 more troops.[177] Antiwar organizations in the
U.S. responded quickly, and cities throughout the U.S.
saw protests on 2 December.[178] Many protesters com-
pared the decision to deploy more troops in Afghanistan
to the expansion of the Vietnam War under the Johnson
administration.[179]
U.S. Army soldiers fire mortar rounds at suspected Taliban fight-
ing positions in Nuristan province.
4.3.3 Kunduz airstrike
In mid-February 2009, it was announced that 17,000 ad-
ditional troops would be deployed in two brigades and Main article: 2009 Kunduz airstrike
support troops; the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade
4.3 2009: Southern Afghanistan 13

On 4 September, during the Kunduz Province Campaign

a devastating NATO air raid was conducted 7 kilometres
southwest of Kunduz where Taliban fighters had hijacked
civilian supply trucks, killing up to 179 people, including
over 100 civilians.[180]

4.3.4 Operation Khanjar and Operation Panther’s

Claw

Main articles: Operation Strike of the Sword and

Operation Panther’s Claw

On 25 June US officials announced the launch of Opera-

tion Khanjar (“strike of the sword”).[181] About 4000 U.S. A soldier on patrol.
Marines from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade[182]
and 650 Afghan soldiers[183] participated. Khanjar fol-
lowed a British-led operation named Operation Pan-
ther’s Claw in the same region.[184] Officials called it the
Marines’ largest operation since the 2004 invasion of Fal-
lujah, Iraq.[182] Operation Panther’s Claw was aimed to
secure various canal and river crossings to establish a
long-term ISAF presence.[185]

Former Taliban fighters return weapons as part of a reintegration

program

had as many as 25,000 dedicated soldiers, almost as many

as before 9/11 and more than in 2005.[188]
On 10 August McChrystal, newly appointed as U.S.
commander in Afghanistan, said that the Taliban had
gained the upper hand. In a continuation of the Tal-
iban’s usual strategy of summer offensives,[189] the mil-
US soldiers conduct an operation.
itants aggressively spread their influence into north and
west Afghanistan and stepped up their attack in an at-
Initially, Afghan and American soldiers moved into towns tempt to disrupt presidential polls.[190] Calling the Tal-
and villages along the Helmand River[182] to protect the iban a “very aggressive enemy”, he added that the U.S.
civilian population. The main objective was to push into strategy was to stop their momentum and focus on pro-
insurgent strongholds along the river. A secondary aim tecting and safeguarding Afghan civilians, calling it “hard
was to bring security to the Helmand Valley in time for work”.[191]
presidential elections, set to take place on 20 August.
The Taliban’s claim that the over 135 violent inci-
dents disrupting elections was largely disputed. How-
4.3.5 Taliban gains ever, the media was asked to not report on any violent
incidents.[192] Some estimates reported voter turn out as
According to a 22 December briefing by Major Gen- much less than the expected 70 percent. In southern
eral Michael T. Flynn, the top U.S. intelligence officer Afghanistan where the Taliban held the most power, voter
in Afghanistan, “The Taliban retains [the] required part- turnout was low and sporadic violence was directed at
nerships to sustain support, fuel legitimacy and bolster voters and security personnel. The chief observer of
capacity.”[186] The 23-page briefing states that “Security the European Union election mission, General Philippe
incidents [are] projected to be higher in 2010.” Those in- Morillon, said the election was “generally fair” but “not
cidents were already up by 300 percent since 2007 and free”.[193]
by 60 percent since 2008, according to the briefing.[187] Western election observers had difficulty accessing
NATO intelligence at the time indicated that the Taliban southern regions, where at least 9 Afghan civilians and
14 4 REASSESSMENT AND RENEWED COMMITMENT FROM 2008

14 security forces were killed in attacks intended to in-

timidate voters. The Taliban released a video days af-
ter the elections, filming on the road between Kabul and
Kandahar, stopping vehicles and asking to see their fin-
gers. The video went showed ten men who had voted,
listening to a Taliban militant. The Taliban pardoned
the voters because of Ramadan.[194] The Taliban attacked
towns with rockets and other indirect fire. Amid claims of
widespread fraud, both top contenders, Hamid Karzai and
Abdullah Abdullah, claimed victory. Reports suggested
that turnout was lower than in the prior election.[195]
After Karzai’s alleged win of 54 per cent, which would
prevent a runoff, over 400,000 Karzai votes had to be
disallowed after accusations of fraud. Some nations crit-
icized the elections as “free but not fair”.[196]
U.S. Marines with Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) de-
In December, an attack on Forward Operating Base stroy an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) cache in Southern
Chapman, used by the CIA to gather information and to Shorsurak, Helmand province in June 2010.
coordinate drone attacks against Taliban leaders, killed at
least six CIA officers.

4.4 2010: American–British offensive and

Afghan peace initiative

U.K. service members of the Royal Air Force Regiment stop on a

road while conducting a combat mission near Kandahar Airfield,
Afghanistan, 2 January 2010

A U.S. Marine Corps sergeant exits an Italian Army CH-47 Chi-

nook helicopter, 30 November 2010

Australian and Afghan soldiers patrol the poppy fields in the

Baluchi Valley Region, April 2010

Main article: 2010 in Afghanistan

In public statements U.S. officials had previously praised

U.S. Marines with Bravo Company, 1st Battalion, 6th Marine
Regiment return fire on Taliban forces in Marjeh in February
Pakistan’s military effort against militants during its
2010 offensive in South Waziristan in November 2009.[197]
Karzai started peace talks with Haqqani network groups
4.5 2011: U.S. and NATO drawdown 15

in March 2010,[198] and there were other peace initia- tive in operations against the Taliban and al-Qaeda
tives including the Afghan Peace Jirga 2010. In July forces in Afghanistan,[214] but have expanded their
2010, a U.S. Army report read: “It seems to always be operations into Pakistan.[215] They were also important
this way when we go there [to meet civilians]. No one factors in both the “counterterrorism plus” and the full
wants anything to do with us.” A report on meeting up “counter-insurgency” options discussed by the Obama
with school representatives mentioned students throwing administration in the December 2010 review.[216]
rocks at soldiers and not welcoming their arrival, as had
been reported on several occasions elsewhere.[199] Pres-
ident Zardari said that Pakistan had spent over 35 bil-
lion U.S. dollars during the previous eight years fighting 4.4.2 WikiLeaks disclosure
against militancy.[200] According to the Afghan govern-
ment, approximately 900 Taliban were killed in opera- Main article: Afghan War documents leak
tions conducted during 2010.[201] Due to increased use of
IEDs by insurgents the number of injured coalition sol-
diers, mainly Americans, significantly increased.[202] Be- On 25 July 2010, the release of 91,731 classified docu-
ginning in May 2010 NATO special forces began to con- ments from the WikiLeaks organization was made pub-
centrate on operations to capture or kill specific Taliban lic. The documents cover U.S. military incident and
leaders. As of March 2011, the U.S. military claimed that intelligence reports from January 2004 to December
the effort had resulted in the capture or killing of more 2009.[217] Some of these documents included sanitised,
than 900 low- to mid-level Taliban commanders.[203][204] and “covered up”, accounts of civilian casualties caused
Overall, 2010 saw the most insurgent attacks of any year by Coalition Forces. The reports included many refer-
since the war began, peaking in September at more than ences to other incidents involving civilian casualties like
1,500. Insurgent operations increased “dramatically” in the Kunduz airstrike and Nangar Khel incident.[218] The
two-thirds of Afghan provinces.[205] leaked documents also contain reports of Pakistan collu-
sion with the Taliban. According to Der Spiegel, “the doc-
uments clearly show that the Pakistani intelligence agency
Inter-Services Intelligence (usually known as the ISI) is
4.4.1 Troop surge the most important accomplice the Taliban has outside
of Afghanistan.”[219]
Deployment of additional U.S. troops continued in early
2010, with 9,000 of the planned 30,000 in place before
the end of March and another 18,000 expected by June,
with the 101st Airborne Division as the main source. U.S. 4.4.3 Pakistan and U.S. tensions
troops in Afghanistan outnumbered those in Iraq for the
first time since 2003.[206]
Main articles: Pakistan–United States skirmishes and
The CIA, following a request by General McChrys- Pakistan–United States relations
tal, planned to increase teams of operatives, including
elite SAD officers, with U.S. military special operations
Tensions between Pakistan and the U.S. were heightened
forces. This combination worked well in Iraq and was
in late September after several Pakistan Frontier Corps
largely credited with the success of that surge.[207] The
soldiers were killed and wounded. The troops were at-
CIA also increased its campaign using Hellfire missile
tacked by a U.S. piloted aircraft that was pursuing Taliban
strikes on Al-Qaeda in Pakistan. The number of strikes
forces near the Afghan-Pakistan border, but for unknown
in 2010, 115, more than doubled the 50 drone attacks that
reasons opened fire on two Pakistan border posts. In retal-
occurred in 2009.[208]
iation for the strike, Pakistan closed the Torkham ground
The surge in troops supported a sixfold increase in Special border crossing to NATO supply convoys for an unspeci-
Forces operations.[209] 700 airstrikes occurred in Septem- fied period. This incident followed the release of a video
ber 2010 alone versus 257 in all of 2009. From July 2010 allegedly showing uniformed Pakistan soldiers executing
to October 2010, 300 Taliban commanders and 800-foot unarmed civilians.[220] After the Torkham border clos-
soldiers were killed.[210] Hundreds more insurgent lead- ing, Pakistani Taliban attacked NATO convoys, killing
ers were killed or captured as 2010 ended.[209] Petraeus several drivers and destroying around 100 tankers.[221]
said, “We've got our teeth in the enemy’s jugular now, and
we're not going to let go.”[211]
The CIA created Counter-terrorism Pursuit
Teams (CTPT) staffed by Afghans at the war’s 4.5 2011: U.S. and NATO drawdown
beginning.[212][213] This force grew to over 3,000
by 2010 and was considered one of the “best Afghan Further information: 2011 in Afghanistan and
fighting forces”. Firebase Lilley was one of SAD’s Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan
nerve centers.[213] These units were not only effec-
16 4 REASSESSMENT AND RENEWED COMMITMENT FROM 2008

Soldiers from 34th Infantry Division, Task Force Red Bulls, dis-
cuss plans to maneuver into Pacha Khak village, Kabul Province,
Soldiers prepare for operation while conducting a dismounted patrol, 7 April 2011

An Australian service light armored vehicle drives through Tangi

Valley, 29 March 2011
U.S. Army soldiers return fire during a firefight with Taliban
forces in Kunar Province, 31 March 2011
On 7 May the Taliban launched a major offensive on gov-
ernment buildings in Kandahar. The Taliban said their
goal was to take control of the city. At least eight locations
were attacked: the governor’s compound, the mayor’s
office, the NDS headquarters, three police stations and
two high schools.[223] The battle continued onto a second
day. The BBC's Bilal Sarwary called it “the worst attack
in Kandahar province since the fall of the Taliban gov-
ernment in 2001, and a embarrassment for the Western-
backed Afghan government.”[224]

4.5.2 Death of Osama bin Laden

Main article: Death of Osama bin Laden

U.S. Army National Guard soldiers patrol the villages in the
Bagram Security Zone, 23 March 2011
On 2 May U.S. officials announced that al-Qaeda leader
Osama bin Laden had been killed in Operation Neptune
4.5.1 Battle of Kandahar Spear, conducted by the CIA and U.S. Navy SEALs,
in Pakistan. Crowds gathered outside the White House
Main article: Battle of Kandahar chanting “USA, USA” after the news emerged.[225]

The Battle of Kandahar was part of an offensive named 4.5.3 Withdrawal

after the Battle of Bad'r that took place on 13 March 624,
between Medina and Mecca. The Battle followed a 30 On 22 June President Obama announced that 10,000
April announcement that the Taliban would launch their troops would be withdrawn by the end of 2011 and an
Spring offensive.[222] additional 23,000 troops would return by the summer of
4.6 2012: Strategic agreement 17

2012. After the withdrawal of 10,000 U.S. troops, only

80,000 remained.[226] In July 2011 Canada withdrew its
combat troops, transitioning to a training role.
Following suit, other NATO countries announced troop
reductions. The United Kingdom stated that it would
gradually withdraw its troops, however it did not spec-
ify numbers or dates.[227] France announced that it would
withdraw roughly 1,000 soldiers by the end of 2012, with
3,000 soldiers remaining. Hundreds would come back
at the end of 2011 and in the beginning of 2012, when
the Afghan National Army took control of Surobi dis-
trict. The remaining troops would continue to operate in
Kapisa. Their complete withdrawal was expected by the
end of 2014 or earlier given adequate security.[228] Ahmad Zia Massoud (left), former Vice-President of
Afghanistan, shaking hands with a U.S. Provincial Recon-
Belgium announced that half of their force would with- struction Team at the ceremony for a new road.
draw starting in January 2012.[229] Norway announced
it had started a withdrawal of its near 500 troops and
would be completely out by 2014.[230] Equally, the Span- wing of the United Front (Northern Alliance) to op-
ish Prime Minister announced the withdrawal of troops pose a return of the Taliban to power.[235] Meanwhile,
beginning in 2012, including up to 40 percent by the end much of the political wing reunited under the National
of the first half of 2013, and complete withdrawal by Coalition of Afghanistan led by Abdullah Abdullah be-
2014.[231] coming the main democratic opposition movement in the
Afghan parliament.[236][237] Former head of intelligence
Amrullah Saleh has created a new movement, Basej-i
4.5.4 2011 U.S.–NATO attack in Pakistan Milli (Afghanistan Green Trend), with support among the
youth mobilizing about 10,000 people in an anti-Taliban
Main article: 2011 NATO attack in Pakistan demonstration in Kabul in May 2011.[238][239][240]
In January 2012, the National Front of Afghanistan raised
After Neptune Spear, ISAF forces accidentally attacked concerns about the possibility of a secret deal between the
Pakistan’s armed forces on 26 November, killing 24 Pak- US, Pakistan and the Taliban during a widely publicized
istani soldiers. Pakistan blocked NATO supply lines and meeting in Berlin. U.S. Congressman Louie Gohmert
ordered Americans to leave Shamsi Airfield. NATO Sec- wrote, “These leaders who fought with embedded Spe-
retary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the attack cial Forces to initially defeat the Taliban represent over
was 'tragic' and 'unintended'. “This (regret) is not good 60-percent of the Afghan people, yet are being entirely
enough. We strongly condemn the attacks and reserve disregarded by the Obama and Karzai Administrations in
the right to take action,” said DG ISPR Major General negotiations.”[241] After the meeting with US congress-
Athar Abbas. “This could have serious consequences in men in Berlin the National Front signed a joint declara-
the level and extent of our cooperation.[232] tion stating among other things:

We firmly believe that any negotiation

4.6 2012: Strategic agreement with the Taliban can only be acceptable, and
therefore effective, if all parties to the conflict
Main article: 2012 in Afghanistan are involved in the process. The present form
of discussions with the Taliban is flawed, as
Taliban attacks continued at the same rate as they did it excludes anti-Taliban Afghans. It must
in 2011, around 28,000 attacks.[233] In September 2012, be recalled that the Taliban extremists and
the surge of American personnel that began in late 2009 their Al-Qaeda supporters were defeated by
ended.[234] Afghans resisting extremism with minimal
human embedded support from the United
States and International community. The
4.6.1 Reformation of the United Front (Northern present negotiations with the Taliban fail to
Alliance) take into account the risks, sacrifices and
legitimate interests of the Afghans who ended
In late 2011 the National Front of Afghanistan (NFA) the brutal oppression of all Afghans.[242]
was created by Ahmad Zia Massoud, Abdul Rashid Dos- — National Front Berlin Statement, January
tum and Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq in what many an- 2012
alysts have described as a reformation of the military
18 4 REASSESSMENT AND RENEWED COMMITMENT FROM 2008

4.6.2 High-profile U.S. military incidents

Afghan Army units neutralizes an IED in Sangin, Helmand

province

U.S. Army soldiers prepare to conduct security checks near the

Pakistan border, February 2012 Afghanistan.[257] On 7 July 2012, as part of the agree-
ment, the U.S. designated Afghanistan a major non-
Beginning in January 2012, incidents involving US NATO ally after Karzai and Clinton met in Kabul.[258]
troops[243][244][245][246][247][248] occurred which were de- On 11 November 2012, as part of the agreement, the
scribed by The Sydney Morning Herald as “a series two countries launched negotiations for a bilateral secu-
of damaging incidents and disclosures involving US rity agreement.[259]
troops in Afghanistan […]".[243] These incidents created
fractures in the partnership between Afghanistan and
ISAF,[249] raised the question whether discipline within 4.6.4 NATO Chicago Summit: Troops withdrawal
US troops was breaking down,[250] undermined “the im- and long-term presence
age of foreign forces in a country where there is already
deep resentment owing to civilian deaths and a percep- Further information: 2012 Chicago Summit, 2011
tion among many Afghans that US troops lack respect for NATO attack in Pakistan, and Withdrawal of U.S.
Afghan culture and people”[251] and strained the relations troops from Afghanistan
between Afghanistan and the United States.[244][245] Be-
sides an incident involving US troops who posed with On 21 May 2012 the leaders of NATO-member countries
body parts of dead insurgents and a video apparently endorsed an exit strategy during the NATO Summit.[41]
showing a US helicopter crew singing “Bye-bye Miss ISAF Forces would transfer command of all combat mis-
American Pie” before blasting a group of Afghan men sions to Afghan forces by the middle of 2013,[260] while
with a Hellfire missile[251][252][253] these “high-profile shifting from combat to advising, training and assist-
U.S. military incidents in Afghanistan”[247] also included ing Afghan security forces.[261][262] Most of the 130,000
the 2012 Afghanistan Quran burning protests and the ISAF troops would depart by the end of December
Panjwai shooting spree. 2014.[260] A new NATO mission would then assume the
support role.[261][263]

4.6.3 Enduring Strategic Partnership Agreement

4.7 2013: Withdrawal
Main article: U.S.-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership
Agreement 4.7.1 Karzai–Obama meeting
On 2 May 2012, Presidents Karzai and Obama signed a
strategic partnership agreement between the two coun- Karzai visited the U.S. in January 2012. At the time
tries, after the US president had arrived unannounced the U.S. Government stated its openness to withdrawing
in Kabul on the first anniversary of Osama bin Laden’s all of its troops by the end of 2014.[264] On 11 January
death.[254] The U.S.-Afghanistan Strategic Partnership 2012 Karzai and Obama agreed to transfer combat oper-
Agreement, officially entitled the “Enduring Strategic ations from NATO to Afghan forces by spring 2013 rather
Partnership Agreement between the Islamic Republic than summer 2013.[265][266] “What’s going to happen this
of Afghanistan and the United States of America”,[255] spring is that Afghans will be in the lead throughout the
provides the long-term framework for the two coun- country”, Obama said. “They [ISAF forces] will still be
tries’ relationship after the drawdown of U.S. forces.[256] fighting alongside Afghan troops...We will be in a train-
The Strategic Partnership Agreement went into effect ing, assisting, advising role.” Obama added[266] He also
on 4 July 2012, according to Secretary of State Hillary stated the reason of the withdrawals that “We achieved
Clinton on 8 July 2012 at the Tokyo Conference on our central goal, or have come very close...which is to
4.8 2014: Withdrawal continues and the insurgency increases 19

de-capacitate al-Qaeda, to dismantle them, to make sure

that they can't attack us again.”[267]

Resolute Support Colors presented at Kabul on 28 December, af-

ter the ISAF colors are encased.

Soldiers from the Michigan Army National Guard and the Lat- 4.8 2014: Withdrawal continues and the
vian army patrol through a village in Konar province.
insurgency increases

See also: NATO logistics in the Afghan War

Obama also stated that he would determine the
pace of troop withdrawal after consultations with
commanders.[268] He added that any U.S. mission beyond After 2013, Afghanistan was shaken hard with suicide
2014 would focus solely on counterterrorism operations bombings by the Taliban. A clear example of this is
and training.[267][268] Obama insisted that a continuing a bombing of a Lebanese restaurant in the Wazir Ak-
presence must include an immunity agreement in which bar Khan area of Kabul on 18 February 2014. Among
US troops are not subjected to Afghan law.[269] “I can go the dead in this attack was UN staff and the owner of a
to the Afghan people and argue for immunity for U.S. restaurant, who died protecting his business; 21 people
troops in Afghanistan in a way that Afghan sovereignty altogether were killed. Meanwhile, the withdrawal con-
will not be compromised, in a way that Afghan law will tinued, with 200 more US troops going home. The UK
not be compromised,” Karzai replied.[266] halved their force and were slowing withdrawal with all
but two bases being closed down. On 20 March 2014,
Both leaders agreed that the United States would
more than 4 weeks after a bomb in a military bus by the
transfer Afghan prisoners and prisons to the Afghan
Taliban rocked the city once again, a raid on the Serena
government[266][270] and withdraw troops from Afghan
Hotel’s restaurant in Kabul by the Taliban resulted in the
villages in spring 2013.[270][271] “The international forces,
deaths of 9 people, including the 4 perpetrators. The at-
the American forces, will be no longer present in the vil-
tack came just 8 days after Swedish radio journalist Nils
lages, that it will be the task of the Afghan forces to pro-
Horner was shot dead by the Taliban.
vide for the Afghan people in security and protection,”
the Afghan president said.[270] However, as the US troops withdrew from Afghanistan,
they were replaced by private security companies hired
by the United States government and the United Nations.
Many of these private security companies (also termed
military contractors) consisted of ex US Army, US Ma-
4.7.2 Security transfer rine, British, French and Italian defence personnel who
had left the defence after a few years of active service.
On 18 June 2013 the transfer of security responsibil- Their past relations with the defence helped establish their
ities was completed.[272][273][274][275] The last step was credentials, simultaneously allowing the US and British to
to transfer control of 95 remaining districts. Karzai continue to be involved in ground actions without the re-
said, “When people see security has been transferred to quirement to station their own forces. This included com-
Afghans, they support the army and police more than be- panies such as the Ohio based military contracting com-
fore.” NATO leader Rasmussen said that Afghan forces pany, Mission Essential Personal (MEP) set up by Sunil
were completing a five-stage transition process that be- Ramchand, [276]
a former White House staffer and U.S. Navy
gan in March 2011. “They are doing so with remark- veteran.
able resolve,” he said. “Ten years ago, there were no Despite the crisis in Crimea, by March 2014 Russia had
Afghan national security forces … now you have 350,000 not tried to exert pressure on the U.S. via the Northern
Afghan troops and police.”[272] ISAF remained slated to Distribution Network supply line.[277] On 9 June 2014
end its mission by the end of 2014.[275] Some 100,000 a coalition air strike mistakenly killed five U.S. troops,
ISAF forces remained in the country.[273] an Afghan National Army member and an interpreter in
20 5 IMPACT ON AFGHAN SOCIETY

Zabul Province.[278] 4.9 2015: Secretive war

See also: War in Afghanistan (2015–present)

Although there was a formal end to combat opera-

tions, partially because of improved relations between the
United States and the Ghani presidency, American forces
increased raids against Islamic militants and terrorists,
justified by a broad interpretation of protecting Amer-
A dust storm enveloping Camp Bastion in May 2014 ican forces.[291] A joint raid by American and Afghan
forces arrested six Taliban connected to the 2014 Pe-
On 5 August 2014, a gunman in an Afghan military uni- shawar school massacre.[292]
form opened fire on a number of U.S., foreign and Afghan American Secretary of Defense Ash Carter traveled to
soldiers, killing a U.S. general, Harold J. Greene[279] and Afghanistan in February 2015,[293] during a time in which
wounding about 15 officers and soldiers including a Ger- the slowing of American withdrawal from Afghanistan
man brigadier general and a large number of U.S. soldiers was discussed.[294] In the same month, the headquarters
at Camp Qargha, a training base west of Kabul.[280] element of the 7th Infantry Division (United States) be-
Two longterm security pacts, the Bilaterial Security gan to deploy to Afghanistan;[295] it was to be joined
agreement between Afghanistan and the United States of by the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Di-
America and the NATO Status of Forces Agreement be- vision (United States), and by the 101st Combat Aviation
tween NATO and Afghanistan, were signed on Septem- Brigade.[296] In March 2015, it was announced that the
ber 30, 2014. Both pacts lay out the framework for the United States would maintain almost ten thousand service
foreign troop involvement in Afghnistan after the year members in Afghanistan until at least the end of 2015,
2014.[281] a change from planned reductions.[297] As of late May
2015, American forces continued to conduct airstrikes
After 13 years Britain and the United States officially
and Special Operations raids, while Afghan forces were
ended their combat operation in Afghanistan on October
losing ground to Taliban forces in some regions.[298]
26, 2014. On that day Britain handed over its last base
in Afghanistan, Camp Bastion, while the United States
handed over its last base, Camp Leatherneck, to Afghan
forces.[282] 5 Impact on Afghan society
As early as November 2012, the U.S. and NATO were
considering the precise configuration of their post-2014 5.1 Civilian casualties
presence in Afghanistan.[283][284] On 27 May 2014, Pres-
ident Barack Obama announced that U.S. combat opera- Main article: Civilian casualties in the war in Afghanistan
tions in Afghanistan would end in December 2014 (see (2001–14)
Withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan). 9,800 War casualty estimates vary. According to a UN report,
troops were to remain, training Afghan security forces
and supporting counterterrorism operations against rem-
nants of al-Qaeda. This force would be halved by the
end of 2015, and consolidated at Bagram Air Base and in
Kabul. All U.S. forces, with the exception of a “normal
embassy presence,” would be removed from Afghanistan
by the end of 2016.[285] In 2014, 56 United States service
members, and 101 contractors, died in Afghanistan.[286]
On 28 December 2014 NATO officially ended combat
operations in a ceremony held in Kabul.[52] Continued
operations by United States forces within Afghanistan
will continue under the name Operation Freedom’s Sen-
tinel;[287] this was joined by a new NATO mission under
the name of Operation Resolute Support.[288] Operation
Resolute Support, will involve 28 NATO nations, 14 part-
Victims of the Narang night raid that killed at least 10 Afghan
ner nations, eleven thousand American troops, and eight
civilians, December 2009
hundred fifty German troops.[289]
The UK officially commemorated the end of its role in the Taliban were responsible for 76% of civilian casu-
the Afghan war in a ceremony held in St Paul’s cathedral alties in Afghanistan in 2009.[299] A UN report in June
on 13 March 2015. [290] 2011 stated that 2,777 civilians were known to have been
5.4 Drug trade 21

killed in 2010, (insurgents responsible for 75%).[300] A

July 2011 UN report said “1,462 non-combatants died”
in the first six months of 2011 (insurgents 80%).[301] In
2011 a record 3,021 civilians were killed, the fifth succes-
sive annual rise.[302] According to a UN report, in 2013
there were 2,959 civilian deaths with 74% being blamed
on anti-government forces, 8% on Afghan security forces,
3% on ISAF forces, 10% to ground engagements between
anti-Government forces and pro-Government forces and
5% of the deaths were unattributed.[303] 60% of Afghans
have direct personal experience and most others report
suffering a range of hardships. 96% have been affected
either personally or from the wider consequences.[304]
A report titled Body Count put together by Physicians for
Social Responsibility, Physicians for Global Survival and Opium production levels for 2005–2007
the Nobel Peace Prize-winning International Physicians
for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW) concluded
that 106,000–170,000 civilians have been killed as a re-
sult of the fighting in Afghanistan at the hands of all par-
ties to the conflict.[305]
According to the Watson Institute for International Stud-
ies Costs of War Project, 21,000 civilians have been
killed as a result of the war.[306]

5.2 Health

According to Nicholas Kristoff, improved healthcare re-

sulting from the war has saved hundreds of thousands of
lives.[307] Regional security risks and levels of opium poppy cultivation in
2007–2008.

5.3 Refugees
By 2000 Afghanistan accounted for an estimated 75%
Since 2001, more than 5.7 million former refugees have of the world’s opium supply and in 2000 produced an
returned to Afghanistan,[308][309][310] but 2.2 million oth- estimated 3276 tonnes from 82,171 hectares (203,050
ers remained refugees in 2013.[311] In January 2013 the acres).[314] Omar then banned opium cultivation and pro-
UN estimated that 547,550 were internally displaced per- duction dropped to an estimated 74 metric tonnes from
sons, a 25% increase over the 447,547 IDPs estimated for 1,685 hectares (4,160 acres).[315] Some observers say the
January 2012[310][311][312] ban – which came in a bid for international recognition
at the United Nations – was issued only to raise opium
prices and increase profit from the sale of large exist-
5.4 Drug trade ing stockpiles. 1999 had yielded a record crop and had
been followed by a lower but still large 2000 harvest. The
Main article: Opium production in Afghanistan trafficking of accumulated stocks continued in 2000 and
From 1996 to 1999, the Taliban controlled 96% of 2001. In 2002, the UN mentioned the “existence of sig-
Afghanistan’s poppy fields and made opium its largest nificant stocks of opiated accumulated during previous
source of revenue. Taxes on opium exports became years of bumper harvests”. In September 2001 – be-
one of the mainstays of Taliban income. According to fore 11 September attacks against the U.S. – the Tal-
Rashid, “drug money funded the weapons, ammunition iban allegedly authorized Afghan peasants to sow opium
and fuel for the war.” In The New York Times, the Finance again.[313]
Minister of the United Front, Wahidullah Sabawoon, de- Soon after the invasion opium production increased
clared the Taliban had no annual budget but that they “ap- markedly.[316] By 2005, Afghanistan was producing 90%
peared to spend US$300 million a year, nearly all of it on of the world’s opium, most of which was processed into
war”. He added that the Taliban had come to increasingly heroin and sold in Europe and Russia.[317] In 2009, the
rely on three sources of money: “poppy, the Pakistanis BBC reported that “UN findings say an opium market
and bin Laden”.[313] worth $65bn (£39bn) funds global terrorism, caters to 15
22 6 WAR CRIMES

million addicts, and kills 100,000 people every year”.[318] 6.3 Coalition

5.5 Public education

As of 2013, 8.2 million Afghans attended school, includ-
ing 3.2 million girls, up from 1.2 million in 2001, includ-
ing fewer than 50,000 girls.[319][320]

6 War crimes
Further information: List of war crimes § Civil war in
Afghanistan 1978–present

War crimes (a serious violation of the laws and

customs of war giving rise to individual criminal Young Afghan farmer boy murdered on 15 January 2010 by a
responsibility)[321] have been committed by both sides in- group of U.S. Army soldiers called the Kill Team.
cluding civilian massacres, bombings of civilian targets,
terrorism, use of torture and the murder of prisoners of On 21 June 2003, David Passaro, a CIA contractor and
war. Additional common crimes include theft, arson, and former United States Army Ranger, killed Abdul Wali, a
the destruction of property not warranted by military ne- prisoner at a U.S. base 16 km (10 mi) south of Asadabad,
cessity. in Kunar Province. Passaro was found guilty of one
count of felony assault with a dangerous weapon and three
counts of misdemeanor assault. On 10 August 2009, he
6.1 Taliban was sentenced to 8 years and 4 months in prison.[331][332]
In 2002, two unarmed civilian Afghan prisoners were
In 2011 The New York Times reported that the Taliban
3 tortured and later killed by U.S. armed forces personnel
was responsible for ⁄4 of all civilian deaths in the war
[322][323] at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility (also Bagram
in Afghanistan. In 2013 the UN stated that the
[324] Collection Point or B.C.P.) in Bagram, Afghanistan.[333]
Taliban had been placing bombs along transit routes.
The prisoners, Habibullah and Dilawar, were chained to
In 2015, Amnesty International reported that the Taliban the ceiling and beaten, which caused their deaths.[334]
committed mass murder and gang rape of Afghan civil- Military coroners ruled that both the prisoners’ deaths
ians in Kunduz.[325] Taliban fighters killed and raped fe- were homicides.[335] Autopsies revealed severe trauma to
male relatives of police commanders and soldiers as well both prisoners’ legs, describing the trauma as comparable
as midwives.[325] One female human rights activist de- to being run over by a bus. Fifteen soldiers were charged.
scribed the situation in the following manner:[325]
During the summer of 2010, ISAF charged five United
States Army soldiers with the murder of three Afghan
When the Taliban asserted their control civilians in Kandahar province and collecting their body
over Kunduz, they claimed to be bringing law parts as trophies in what came to be known as the
and order and Shari’a to the city. But every- Maywand District murders. In addition, seven soldiers
thing they’ve done has violated both. I don’t were charged with crimes such as hashish use, imped-
know who can rescue us from this situation. ing an investigation and attacking the whistleblower,
Specialist Justin Stoner.[336][337][338] Eleven of the twelve
soldiers were convicted on various counts.[339]
6.2 Northern Alliance
A British Royal Marine Sergeant, identified as Sergeant
In December 2001 the Dasht-i-Leili massacre took place, Alexander Blackman from Taunton, Somerset,[340] was
where between 250 and 3,000 Taliban fighters who had convicted at court martial in Wiltshire of having mur-
surrendered, were shot and/or suffocated to death in dered an unarmed, reportedly wounded Afghan fighter
metal truck containers during transportation by North- in Helmand Province in September 2011.[341] In 2013,
ern Alliance forces. Reports place U.S. ground troops he received a life sentence from the court martial in Bul-
at the scene.[326][327][328] The Irish documentary Afghan ford, Wiltshire, and was dismissed with disgrace from the
Massacre: The Convoy of Death investigated these alle- Royal Marines.[342][343]
gations and claimed that mass graves of thousands of vic- On 11 March 2012, the Kandahar massacre oc-
tims were found by UN investigators[329] and that the US curred when sixteen civilians were killed and six
blocked investigations into the incident.[330] wounded in the Panjwayi District of Kandahar
 23

Province, Afghanistan.[344][345] Nine of the victims

were children,[345] and eleven of the dead were from
the same family.[346] United States Army Staff Sergeant
Robert Bales was taken into custody and charged with
sixteen counts of premeditated murder. After plead-
ing guilty to sixteen counts of premeditated murder,
Bales was sentenced to life in prison without parole
and dishonourably discharged from the United States
Army.[347]

7 Costs
The cost of the war reportedly was a major factor as U.S.
officials considered drawing down troops in 2011.[348]
A March 2011 Congressional Research Service report
noted, 1) following the Afghanistan surge announcement
in 2009, Defense Department spending on Afghanistan
increased by 50%, going from $4.4 billion to $6.7 billion
a month. During that time, troop strength increased from
44,000 to 84,000, and was expected to be at 102,000
for fiscal year 2011; 2) The total cost from inception to
the fiscal year 2011 was expected to be $468 billion.[349]
The estimate for the cost of deploying one U.S. soldier
in Afghanistan is over US$1 million a year.[350] Accord-
ing to “Investment in Blood”, a book by Frank Led- A soldier fits shoes for Afghan children in the Zabul Province
widge, summations for the UK contribution to the war
in Afghanistan came to £37bn ($56.46 billion).[351]

8 Stability problems
In a 2008 interview, the then-head U.S. Central Com-
mand General David H. Petraeus, insisted that the Tal-
iban were gaining strength. He cited a recent increase
in attacks in Afghanistan and in neighboring Pakistan.
Petraeus insisted that the problems in Afghanistan were
more complicated than the ones he had faced in Iraq dur-
ing his tour and required removing widespread sanctuar-
An Afghan market teems with vendors and shoppers on 4 Febru-
ies and strongholds.[352] ary 2009
Observers have argued that the mission in Afghanistan is
hampered by a lack of agreement on objectives, a lack
of resources, lack of coordination, too much focus on the ing pan into the fire. Eight years is enough to know bet-
central government at the expense of local and provincial ter about the corrupt, mafia system of President Hamid
governments, and too much focus on the country instead Karzai. My people are crushed between two powerful
of the region.[353] enemies. From the sky, occupation forces bomb and kill
In 2009, Afghanistan moved three places in Transparency civilians … and on the ground, the Taliban and warlords
International's annual index of corruption, becoming continue their crimes. It is better that they leave my coun-
the world’s second most-corrupt country just ahead of try; my people are that fed up. Occupation will never
Somalia.[354] In the same month, Malalai Joya, a for- bring liberation,
[355]
and it is impossible to bring democracy
mer member of the Afghan Parliament and the author of by war.”
“Raising My Voice”, expressed opposition to an expan- Pakistan plays a central role in the conflict. A 2010 report
sion of the U.S. military presence and her concerns about published by the London School of Economics says that
the future. “Eight years ago, the U.S. and NATO – under Pakistan’s ISI has an “official policy” of support to the
the banner of women’s rights, human rights, and democ- Taliban.[356] “Pakistan appears to be playing a double-
racy – occupied my country and pushed us from the fry- game of astonishing magnitude,” the report states.[356]
24 9 AFGHAN SECURITY FORCES

U.S. Army soldiers unload humanitarian aid for distribution to U.S. Marines and ANA soldiers take cover in Marja on 13 Febru-
the town of Rajan Kala, 5 December 2009 ary 2010 during their offensive to secure the city from the Tal-
iban.

Amrullah Saleh, former director of Afghanistan’s intel-

ligence service, stated, “We talk about all these proxies
[Taliban, Haqqanis] but not the master of proxies, which
is the Pakistan army. The question is what does Pakistan’s
army want to achieve …? They want to gain influence in
the region”[357] About the presence of foreign troops in
Afghanistan he stated: "[T]hey fight for the U.S. national by 2011.[359] This increase in Afghan troops allowed the
interest but … without them we will face massacre and U.S. to begin withdrawing its forces in July 2011.[360][361]
disaster and God knows what type of a future Afghanistan
In 2010, the Afghan National Army had limited fighting
will have.”[357][358]
capacity.[362] Even the best Afghan units lacked training,
discipline and adequate reinforcements. In one new unit
in Baghlan Province, soldiers had been found cowering in
9 Afghan security forces ditches rather than fighting.[363] Some were suspected of
collaborating with the Taliban.[362] “They don't have the
Further information: Afghan National Army § Current basics, so they lay down,” said Capt. Michael Bell, who
status was one of a team of U.S. and Hungarian mentors tasked
with training Afghan soldiers. “I ran around for an hour
trying to get them to shoot, getting fired on. I couldn't get
them to shoot their weapons.”[362] In addition, 9 out of 10
9.1 Afghan National Army soldiers in the Afghan National Army were illiterate.[364]
The Afghan Army was plagued by inefficiency and en-
demic corruption.[365] U.S. training efforts were drasti-
cally slowed by the problems.[366] U.S. trainers reported
missing vehicles, weapons and other military equipment,
and outright theft of fuel.[362] Death threats were leveled
against U.S. officers who tried to stop Afghan soldiers
from stealing. Afghan soldiers often snipped the com-
mand wires of IEDs instead of marking them and waiting
for U.S. forces to come to detonate them. This allowed
insurgents to return and reconnect them.[362] U.S. train-
ers frequently removed the cell phones of Afghan soldiers
hours before a mission for fear that the operation would
be compromised.[367] American trainers often spent large
amounts of time verifying that Afghan rosters were accu-
rate – that they are not padded with “ghosts” being “paid”
Afghan Commandos practice infiltration techniques, 1 April 2010
by Afghan commanders who stole the wages.[368]
at Camp Morehead in the outer regions of Kabul.
Desertion was a significant problem. One in every four
U.S. policy called for boosting the Afghan National Army combat soldiers quit the Afghan Army during the 12-
to 134,000 soldiers by October 2010. By May 2010 the month period ending in September 2009, according to
Afghan Army had accomplished this interim goal and data from the U.S. Defense Department and the Inspec-
was on track to reach its ultimate number of 171,000 tor General for Reconstruction in Afghanistan.[369]
11.1 Domestic reactions 25

9.2 Afghan National Police ber 2001, the CNN reported widespread relief amongst
Kabul’s residents at the fall of the Taliban, with young
The Afghan National Police provides support to the men shaving off their beards and women taking off their
Afghan army. Police officers in Afghanistan are also burqas.[375]
largely illiterate. Approximately 17 percent of them
A 2006 WPO opinion poll found that the majority of
tested positive for illegal drugs in 2010. They were widely
Afghans endorsed America’s military presence, with 83%
accused of demanding bribes.[370] Attempts to build a
of Afghans stating that they had a favourable view of the
credible Afghan police force were faltering badly, ac-
US military forces in their country. Only 17% gave an
cording to NATO officials.[371] A quarter of the officers
unfavourable view.[373] The majority of Afghans, among
quit every year, making the Afghan government’s goals
all ethnic groups including Pashtuns, stated that the over-
of substantially building up the police force even harder
throwing of the Taliban was a good thing. 82% of
to achieve.[371]
Afghans as a whole and 71% of those living in the war
zone held this anti-Taliban view.[376] The Afghan popu-
lation gave the USA one of its most favourable ratings
in the world. A solid majority (81%) of Afghans stated
that they held a favourable view of the USA.[377] How-
ever, the majority of Afghans (especially those in the war
zone) held negative views on Pakistan and most Afghans
also stated that they believe that the Pakistani government
was allowing the Taliban to operate from its soil.[378]
Polls of Afghans displayed strong opposition to the Tal-
iban and significant support of the U.S. military presence.
However the idea of permanent U.S. military bases was
not popular in 2005.[379]

A joint patrol through Laghman province, June 2011

10 Insider attacks
Beginning in 2011, insurgent forces in Afghanistan be-
gan using a tactic of insider attacks on ISAF and Afghan
military forces. In the attacks, Taliban personnel or sym-
pathizers belonging to, or pretending to belong to, the
Afghan military or police forces attack ISAF person-
nel, often within the security of ISAF military bases and
Afghan government facilities. In 2011, for example, 21
Afghan women wait outside a USAID-supported health care
insider attacks killed 35 coalition personnel. Forty-six in- clinic.
sider attacks killed 63 and wounded 85 coalition troops,
mostly American, in the first 11 months of 2012.[372] According to a May 2009 BBC poll, 69% of Afghans sur-
The attacks continued but began diminishing towards the veyed thought it was at least mostly good that the U.S.
planned 31 December 2014 ending of combat operations military came in to remove the Taliban – a decrease from
in Afghanistan by ISAF. However, on 5 August 2014, a 87% of Afghans surveyed in 2005. 24% thought it was
gunman in an Afghan military uniform opened fire on a mostly or very bad – up from 9% in 2005. The poll indi-
number of international military personnel, killing a U.S. cated that 63% of Afghans were at least somewhat sup-
general and wounding about 15 officers and soldiers, in- portive of a U.S. military presence in the country – down
cluding a German brigadier general and 8 U.S. troops, at from 78% in 2005. Just 18% supported increasing the
a training base west of Kabul.[280] U.S. military’s presence, while 44% favored reducing it.
90% of Afghans surveyed opposed the Taliban, including
70% who were strongly opposed. By an 82%–4% mar-
11 Reactions gin, people said they preferred the current government to
Taliban rule.[380]
11.1 Domestic reactions In a June 2009 Gallup survey, about half of Afghan re-
spondents felt that additional U.S. forces would help sta-
The majority of Afghanistan’s population supported the bilize the security situation in the southern provinces. But
American invasion of their country.[373][374] In Novem- opinions varied widely; residents in the troubled South
26 11 REACTIONS

were mostly mixed or uncertain, while those in the West that about 88% of Americans and about 65% of Britons
largely disagreed that more U.S. troops would help the backed military action.[385]
situation.[381] A large-scale 37-nation poll of world opinion carried out
In December 2009, many Afghan tribal heads and lo- by Gallup International in late September 2001 found
cal leaders from the south and east called for U.S. troop that large majorities in most countries favored a legal re-
withdrawals. “I don't think we will be able to solve our sponse, in the form of extradition and trial, over a military
problems with military force,” said Muhammad Qasim, a response to 9/11: only three countries out of the 37 sur-
Kandahar tribal elder. “We can solve them by providing veyed – the U.S., Israel and India – did majorities favor
jobs and development and by using local leaders to nego- military action. In the other 34 countries surveyed, the
tiate with the Taliban.”[382] “If new troops come and are poll found many clear majorities that favored extradition
stationed in civilian areas, when they draw Taliban attacks and trial instead of military action: in the United King-
civilians will end up being killed,” said Gulbadshah Ma- dom (75%), France (67%), Switzerland (87%), Czech
jidi, a lawmaker and close associate of Mr. Karzai. “This Republic (64%), Lithuania (83%), Panama (80%) and
will only increase the distance between Afghans and their Mexico (94%).[386][387]
government.”[383] An Ipsos-Reid poll conducted between November and
In late January 2010, Afghan protesters took to the streets December 2001 showed that majorities in Canada (66%),
for three straight days and blocked traffic on a high- France (60%), Germany (60%), Italy (58%), and the UK
way that links Kabul and Kandahar. The Afghans were (65%) approved of US airstrikes while majorities in Ar-
demonstrating in response to the deaths of four men in gentina (77%), China (52%), South Korea (50%), Spain
a NATO-Afghan raid in the village of Ghazni. Ghazni (52%), and Turkey (70%) opposed them.[388]
residents insisted that the dead were civilians.[384]
A 2015 survey by Langer Research Associates found that
77% of Afghans support the presence of U.S. forces; 67% 11.4 Development of public opinion
also support the presence of NATO forces. Despite the
problems in the country, 80% of Afghans still held the See also: International public opinion on the war in
view that it was a good thing for the United States to over- Afghanistan
throw the Taliban in 2001. More Afghans blame the Tal- In a 47-nation June 2007 survey of global public opin-
iban or al-Qaeda for the country’s violence (53%) than
those who blame the USA (12%).[374]

11.2 International reactions

Main article: International public opinion on the war in

Afghanistan

11.3 Public opinion in 2001

22 June 2007 demonstration in Québec City against the Canadian
military involvement in Afghanistan.

ion, the Pew Global Attitudes Project found international

opposition to the war. Out of the 47 countries surveyed,
4 had a majority that favoured keeping foreign troops:
the U.S. (50%), Israel (59%), Ghana (50%), and Kenya
(60%). In 41, pluralities wanted NATO troops out as
soon as possible.[389] In 32 out of 47, clear majorities
wanted war over as soon as possible. Majorities in 7
out of 12 NATO member countries said troops should
be withdrawn as soon as possible.[389][390]
A 24-nation Pew Global Attitudes survey in June 2008
similarly found that majorities or pluralities in 21 of
Home-made sign (2015) in Devine, Texas, south of San Antonio, 24 countries want the U.S. and NATO to remove their
welcomes returning troops from the war in Afghanistan. troops from Afghanistan as soon as possible. Only in
three out of the 24 countries – the U.S. (50%), Aus-
When the invasion began in October 2001, polls indicated tralia (60%), and Britain (48%) – did public opinion lean
11.5 Protests, demonstrations and rallies 27

more toward keeping troops there until the situation has was an increase from 30 percent who said that in Decem-
stabilized.[391][392] ber 2002.[402]

Coalition military casualties in Afghanistan by month

An April 2011 Pew Research Center poll showed little
100
change in American views, with about 50% saying that
80
the effort was going very well or fairly well and only 44%
60
supporting NATO troop presence in Afghanistan.[403]
40

20

0
11.5 Protests, demonstrations and rallies
Jan 2002

Jul 2002

Jan 2003

Jul 2003

Jan 2004

Jul 2004

Jan 2005

Jul 2005

Jan 2006

Jul 2006

Jan 2007

Jul 2007

Jan 2008

Jul 2008

Jan 2009

Jul 2009

Jan 2010

Jul 2010

Jan 2011

Jul 2011

Jan 2012

Jul 2012

Jan 2013

Jul 2013

Jan 2014

Jul 2014

Jan 2015

Jul 2015
Further information: Opposition to the war in
Coalition fatalities per month since the start of the war. Afghanistan (2001–14) and Protests against the war in
Afghanistan (2001–14)

The war has been the subject of large protests around

the world starting with the large-scale demonstrations in
the days leading up to the invasion and every year since.
Many protesters consider the bombing and invasion of
Afghanistan to be unjustified aggression.[404][405] The
deaths of Afghan civilians caused directly and indirectly
by the U.S. and NATO bombing campaigns is a major un-
derlying focus of the protests.[406] In January 2009, Brave
New Foundation launched Rethink Afghanistan, a na-
tional campaign for non-violent solutions in Afghanistan
built around a documentary film by director and political
activist Robert Greenwald.[407] Dozens of organizations
Canadian Forces personnel carry the coffin of a fallen comrade planned (and eventually held) a national march for peace
onto an aircraft at Kandahar Air Field, 17 July 2009
in Washington, D.C. on 20 March 2010.[408][409]

Following that June 2008 global survey, however, pub-

lic opinion in Australia and Britain diverged from that
in the U.S. A majority of Australians and Britons now 12 Human rights abuses
want their troops home. A September 2008 poll found
that 56% of Australians opposed continuation of their Main article: Human rights in Afghanistan
country’s military involvement.[393][394][395] A November
2008 poll found that 68% of Britons wanted their troops Multiple accounts document human rights violations in
withdrawn within the next 12 months.[396][397][398] Afghanistan.[410]
In the U.S., a September 2008 Pew survey found that
61% of Americans wanted U.S. troops to stay until the
situation has stabilized, while 33% wanted them removed 12.1 Taliban
as soon as possible.[399] Public opinion was divided over
Afghan troop requests: a majority of Americans con- According to a report by the United Nations, the Tal-
tinued to see a rationale for the use of military force in iban were responsible for 76% of civilian casualties in
Afghanistan.[400] A slight plurality of Americans favored Afghanistan in 2009.[299] The Afghanistan Independent
troop increases, with 42%–47% favoring some troop in- Human Rights Commission (AIGRC) called the Tal-
creases, 39%–44% wanting reduction, and 7–9% want- iban’s terrorism against the Afghan civilian population a
ing no changes. Just 29% of Democrats favored troop war crime.[45] According to Amnesty International, the
increases while 57% wanted to begin reducing troops. Taliban commit war crimes by targeting civilians, includ-
Only 36% of Americans approved of Obama’s handling ing killing teachers, abducting aid workers and burning
of Afghanistan, including 19% of Republicans, 31% of school buildings. Amnesty International said that up to
independents, and 54% of Democrats.[401] 756 civilians were killed in 2006 by bombs, mostly on
In a December 2009 Pew Research Center poll, only 32 roads or[411] carried by suicide attackers belonging to the
percent of Americans favored increasing U.S. troops in Taliban.
Afghanistan, while 40 percent favored decreasing them. NATO has alleged that the Taliban have used civilians as
Almost half of Americans, 49 percent, believed that the human shields. As an example, NATO pointed to the vic-
U.S. should “mind its own business” internationally and tims of NATO air strikes in Farah province in May 2009,
let other countries get along the best they can. That figure during which the Afghan government claims up to 150
28 16 REFERENCES

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 41

• Risen, James (4 September 2008). State of War:

The Secret History of the CIA and the Bush Adminis-
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• Auerswald, David P. & Stephen M. Saideman, eds.
NATO in Afghanistan: Fighting Together, Fighting
Alone (Princeton U.P. 2014) This book breaks down
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deployed commander. Also useful in this fashion are
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War.”

• Stewart, Richard W. (2004). Operation Enduring

Freedom. BG John S. Brown. United States Army.
p. 46.

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• Woodward, Bob (27 September 2010). Obama’s
Wars. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-1-4391-7251-
3.

18 Further reading
• "Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War". by Robert
Gates. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2014.

• “U.S. War in Afghanistan”. Council on Foreign Re-

lations. 2014.

19 External links
• Afghanistan profile – A chronology of key events as
provided by BBC
• 75,000 documents on Wikileaks
42 20 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

20 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

20.1 Text
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20.1 Text 43

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20.2 Images
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• File:Barack_Obama,_Hamid_Karzai_&_Asif_Ali_Zardari_after_trilateral_meeting_5-6-09_1.jpg Source: https:
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near_the_Pakistan_border_at_Combat_Outpost_Dand_Patan_in_Afghanistan_s_Paktya_province_on.jpg Source: https:
//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0a/Defense.gov_News_Photo_120229-A-8536E-817_-_U.S._Army_soldiers_prepare_
to_conduct_security_checks_near_the_Pakistan_border_at_Combat_Outpost_Dand_Patan_in_Afghanistan_s_Paktya_province_on.jpg
License: Public domain Contributors: www.defense.gov Original artist: Staff Sgt. Jason Epperson, U.S. Army
• File:Defense.gov_photo_essay_090813-A-1211M-002.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Defense.
gov_photo_essay_090813-A-1211M-002.jpg License: Public domain Contributors:
This Image was released by the United States Army with the ID 090813-A-1211M-002 <a class='external text' href='//commons.wikimedia.
org/w/index.php?title=Category:Files_created_by_the_United_States_Army_with_known_IDs,<span>,&,</span>,filefrom=090813-A-
1211M-002#mw-category-media'>(next)</a>.
This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.
Original artist: Sgt. Matthew Moeller
• File:DeltaSBSTora.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bd/DeltaSBSTora.jpg License: Public domain Con-
tributors: “Kill Bin Laden”, CBS / 60 Minutes video, http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5153449n&tag=related;photovideo Orig-
inal artist: Exact author unknown. All Dalton Fury’s photos are credited to US Govt.
• File:Flag_of_Afghanistan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Flag_of_Afghanistan.svg License: CC0
Contributors: http://openclipart.org/detail/24112/flag-of-afghanistan-by-anonymous-24112 Original artist:
• User:Zscout370
46 20 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Flag_of_Afghanistan_(1992-1996;_2001).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Flag_of_

Afghanistan_%281992-2001%29.svg License: GFDL Contributors: Own work Original artist: Saul ip
• File:Flag_of_Albania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Flag_of_Albania.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Armenia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Flag_of_Armenia.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: Own work Original artist: SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Australia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b9/Flag_of_Australia.svg License: Public domain Con-
tributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Austria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Flag_of_Austria.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work, http://www.bmlv.gv.at/abzeichen/dekorationen.shtml Original artist: User:SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Azerbaijan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Flag_of_Azerbaijan.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: http://www.elibrary.az/docs/remz/pdf/remz_bayraq.pdf and http://www.meclis.gov.az/?/az/topcontent/21 Original
artist: SKopp and others
• File:Flag_of_Bahrain.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Flag_of_Bahrain.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: http://www.moci.gov.bh/en/KingdomofBahrain/BahrainFlag/ Original artist: Source: Drawn by User:SKopp, rewritten by
User:Zscout370
• File:Flag_of_Belgium_(civil).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Flag_of_Belgium_%28civil%29.svg
License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Bosnia_and_Herzegovina.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Flag_of_Bosnia_and_
Herzegovina.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Kseferovic
• File:Flag_of_Bulgaria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Flag_of_Bulgaria.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: The flag of Bulgaria. The colors are specified at http://www.government.bg/cgi-bin/e-cms/vis/vis.pl?s=001&p=0034&
n=000005&g= as: Original artist: SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Canada.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Flag_of_Canada.svg License: PD Contributors: ?
Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Croatia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Flag_of_Croatia.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: http://www.sabor.hr/Default.aspx?sec=4317 Original artist: Nightstallion, Elephantus, Neoneo13, Denelson83, Rainman,
R-41, Minestrone, Lupo, Zscout370,
<a href='//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:MaGa' title='User:MaGa'>Ma</a><a href='//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:
Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png' class='image'><img alt='Croatian squares Ljubicic.png' src='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/
commons/thumb/7/7f/Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png/15px-Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png' width='15' height='15' srcset='https:
//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png/23px-Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png 1.5x,
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7f/Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png/30px-Croatian_squares_Ljubicic.png
2x' data-file-width='202' data-file-height='202' /></a><a href='//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User_talk:MaGa' title='User
talk:MaGa'>Ga</a> (based on Decision of the Parliament)
• File:Flag_of_Denmark.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Flag_of_Denmark.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: Own work Original artist: User:Madden
• File:Flag_of_El_Salvador.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/34/Flag_of_El_Salvador.svg License: Pub-
lic domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: user:Nightstallion
• File:Flag_of_Estonia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Flag_of_Estonia.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: http://www.riigikantselei.ee/?id=73847 Original artist: Originally drawn by User:SKopp. Blue colour changed by User:PeepP
to match the image at [1].
• File:Flag_of_Finland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Flag_of_Finland.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1978/19780380 Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp
• File:Flag_of_France.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Orig-
inal artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Georgia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Flag_of_Georgia.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work based on File:Brdzanebuleba 31.pdf Original artist: User:SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Germany.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Flag_of_Germany.svg License: PD Contributors: ?
Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Greece.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Flag_of_Greece.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: own code Original artist: (of code) cs:User:-xfi- (talk)
• File:Flag_of_Hezbi_Islami_Gulbuddin.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ac/Flag_of_Hezbi_Islami_
Gulbuddin.svg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: MrPenguin20
• File:Flag_of_Hungary.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Flag_of_Hungary.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors:
• Flags of the World – Hungary Original artist: SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Iceland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Flag_of_Iceland.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Islandic National Flag Original artist: Ævar Arnfjörð Bjarmason, Zscout370 and others
• File:Flag_of_Ireland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Flag_of_Ireland.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Drawn by User:SKopp Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Italy.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/03/Flag_of_Italy.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Original
artist: ?
20.2 Images 47

• File:Flag_of_Jordan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Flag_of_Jordan.svg License: Public domain

Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Latvia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Flag_of_Latvia.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work Original artist: SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Lithuania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flag_of_Lithuania.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: Own work Original artist: SuffKopp
• File:Flag_of_Luxembourg.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Flag_of_Luxembourg.svg License: Pub-
lic domain Contributors: Own work http://www.legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1972/0051/a051.pdf#page=2, colors from http://www.
legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1993/0731609/0731609.pdf Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Macedonia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Flag_of_Macedonia.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: User:SKopp, rewritten by User:Gabbe
• File:Flag_of_Malaysia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Flag_of_Malaysia.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Create based on the Malaysian Government Website (archive version)
Original artist: SKopp, Zscout370 and Ranking Update

• File:Flag_of_Mongolia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Flag_of_Mongolia.svg License: Public do-

main Contributors: Current version is SVG implementation of the Mongolian flag as described by Mongolian National Standard MNS
6262:2011 (Mongolian State Flag. General requirements [1]
Original artist: User:Zscout370
• File:Flag_of_Montenegro.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/64/Flag_of_Montenegro.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: B1mbo, Froztbyte
• File:Flag_of_NATO.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/Flag_of_NATO.svg License: Public domain
Contributors:
• Source file on Wikimedia Commons Flag of NATO.svg (January 2013) Original artist:
• Found by 475847394d347339 in websites noted in the source section.

• File:Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3e/Flag_of_New_Zealand.svg License:

Public domain Contributors: http://www.mch.govt.nz/files/NZ%20Flag%20-%20proportions.JPG Original artist: Zscout370, Hugh Jass
and many others
• File:Flag_of_Norway.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Flag_of_Norway.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work Original artist: Dbenbenn
• File:Flag_of_Poland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/12/Flag_of_Poland.svg License: Public domain Contrib-
utors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Portugal.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Flag_of_Portugal.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: http://jorgesampaio.arquivo.presidencia.pt/pt/republica/simbolos/bandeiras/index.html#imgs Original artist: Colum-
bano Bordalo Pinheiro (1910; generic design); Vítor Luís Rodrigues; António Martins-Tuválkin (2004; this specific vector set: see sources)
• File:Flag_of_Romania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Flag_of_Romania.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: Own work Original artist: AdiJapan
• File:Flag_of_Russia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Origi-
nal artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Singapore.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Flag_of_Singapore.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: The drawing was based from http://app.www.sg/who/42/National-Flag.aspx. Colors from the book: (2001). The
National Symbols Kit. Singapore: Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts. pp. 5. ISBN 8880968010 Pantone 032 shade from
http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/colorfinder.aspx?c_id=13050 Original artist: Various
• File:Flag_of_Slovakia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Flag_of_Slovakia.svg License: Public do-
main Contributors: Own work; here, colors Original artist: SKopp
• File:Flag_of_Slovenia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Flag_of_Slovenia.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work construction sheet from http://flagspot.net/flags/si%27.html#coa Original artist: User:Achim1999
• File:Flag_of_South_Korea.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg License:
Public domain Contributors: Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea, Construction and color
guidelines (Russian/English) Original artist: Various
• File:Flag_of_Spain.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9a/Flag_of_Spain.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Original
artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Sweden.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Flag_of_Sweden.svg License: PD Contributors: ?
Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_Switzerland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Flag_of_Switzerland.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: PDF Colors Construction sheet Original artist: User:Marc Mongenet

Credits:
• File:Flag_of_Taliban.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Flag_of_Taliban.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: The text is the Shahadah; compare Image:Flag of Jihad.svg, Image:Hamas flag2.png, Image:Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg Original
artist: Based on Taliban flag (Flag of Afghanistan 1997-2001) at FOTW (instead of direct copy of text from Saudi Arabian flag).
• File:Flag_of_Tonga.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Flag_of_Tonga.svg License: CC0 Contributors:
? Original artist: ?
48 20 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Flag_of_Turkey.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Flag_of_Turkey.svg License: Public domain

Contributors: Turkish Flag Law (Türk Bayrağı Kanunu), Law nr. 2893 of 22 September 1983. Text (in Turkish) at the website of the
Turkish Historical Society (Türk Tarih Kurumu) Original artist: David Benbennick (original author)
• File:Flag_of_Ukraine.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Flag_of_Ukraine.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: ДСТУ 4512:2006 — Державний прапор України. Загальні технічні умови Original artist: Government of Ukraine
• File:Flag_of_al-Qaeda.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/30/Flag_of_Jihad.svg License: Pub-
lic domain Contributors: Unknown Original artist: Unknown<a href='https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4233718' title='wikidata:
Q4233718'><img alt='wikidata:Q4233718' src='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Wikidata-logo.
svg/20px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png' width='20' height='11' srcset='https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/
Wikidata-logo.svg/30px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png 1.5x, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/ff/Wikidata-logo.svg/
40px-Wikidata-logo.svg.png 2x' data-file-width='1050' data-file-height='590' /></a>
• File:Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic.
svg License: Public domain Contributors:

• -xfi-'s file
• -xfi-'s code
• Zirland’s codes of colors

Original artist:
(of code): SVG version by cs:-xfi-.
• File:Flag_of_the_International_Security_Assistance_Force.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/
Flag_of_the_International_Security_Assistance_Force.svg License: Public domain Contributors: http://www.crwflags.com/ Original
artist: Eugene Ipavec (PNG)
• File:Flag_of_the_Netherlands.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Flag_of_the_Netherlands.svg Li-
cense: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Zscout370
• File:Flag_of_the_United_Arab_Emirates.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Flag_of_the_United_
Arab_Emirates.svg License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Li-
cense: PD Contributors: ? Original artist: ?
• File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg License:
Public domain Contributors: SVG implementation of U. S. Code: Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 1 [1] (the United States Federal “Flag Law”).
Original artist: Dbenbenn, Zscout370, Jacobolus, Indolences, Technion.
• File:Flag_of_the_United_States_(Pantone).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Flag_of_the_United_
States_%28Pantone%29.svg License: Public domain Contributors: SVG implementation of U. S. Code: Title 4, Chapter 1, Section 1 [1]
(the United States Federal “Flag Law”). Original artist: Dbenbenn, Zscout370, Jacobolus, Indolences, Technion.
• File:Flag_placeholder.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dc/Flag_placeholder.svg License: Public domain
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• File:Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Company_completes_final_patrols_of_deployment_(Image_8_of_8).jpg Source: https:
//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Company_completes_final_patrols_of_deployment_
%28Image_8_of_8%29.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Company completes final patrols of deployment [Image 8 of 8] Original
artist: DVIDSHUB
• File:Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Firefight_in_the_Waterpur_Valley.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/
d6/Flickr_-_DVIDSHUB_-_Firefight_in_the_Waterpur_Valley.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Firefight in the Waterpur Valley
Original artist: DVIDSHUB
• File:Flickr_-_The_U.S._Army_-_Humanitarian_aid_in_Rajan_Kala,_Afghanistan.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/
wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Flickr_-_The_U.S._Army_-_Humanitarian_aid_in_Rajan_Kala%2C_Afghanistan.jpg License: Public domain
Contributors: Humanitarian aid in Rajan Kala, Afghanistan Original artist: The U.S. Army
• File:Flickr_-_The_U.S._Army_-_Securing_Barge_Matal.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/
Flickr_-_The_U.S._Army_-_Securing_Barge_Matal.jpg License: Public domain Contributors: Securing Barge Matal Original artist: The
U.S. Army
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• File:Former_Taliban_fighters_return_arms.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Former_Taliban_
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• File:GI_fits_American_shoes_to_a_little_Afghan_boy_in_Zabul.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/
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artist: U.S. Air Force Photo by Staff Sgt. David Flaherty, flickr upload by ISAF Headquarters Public Affairs Office from Kabul, Afghanistan
• File:GIs_burn_a_suspected_Taliban_safehouse.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/69/GIs_burn_a_
suspected_Taliban_safehouse.jpg License: Public domain Contributors:
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Original artist: SSG Justin Holley
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main Contributors:
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Original artist: White house photo by Eric Draper.
• File:Group_of_Women_Wearing_Burkas.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Group_of_Women_
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