THE HISTORY OF THE TALIBAN By: Aaron Thomas English II/2 nd Block/Ms. Nowacky March

WHAT IS THE TALIBAN The Taliban was a Sunni Muslim movement that took control of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001 (Smith). The founder of the Taliban was Mullah Mohammad Omar. The original members of this organization were religious students, who gained an intense conservative viewpoint on Islamic law. Throughout their rule they gained the attention of the world for drug trades and the support of terrorism, both directly and indirectly. Mullah Mohammad Omar

IDEALS The members of the Taliban believe that they are the “holy warriors of Allah” because they have fixed all the ideals of the Prophet Mohammed on to their countries (Reddy). All of the rules that the Taliban established, drastically reduced the freedom of the Afghani population. Women were the major victims of the rules imposed on Afghanistan. The women of Afghanistan have to cover their entire bodies, they can only leave their homes if they are accompanied by a male relative, and they are not allowed to receive education. These are some of the many rules the Taliban have imposed on them. The punishment of breaking any of these rules are severe. Usually resulting in death. A woman, once tried to leave the country with a male fried and was stoned to death for “adultery.”

IDEALS Afghani women wearing regular clothes An average classroom in Afghanistan

WHERE DID THEY COME FROM? The Taliban first started of in the region of Pashtun. It was started by a group of students who decided to purify the country from the corruption and brutality by the warlords who brought it there after Soviet residence. The population of Afghanistan at first were gratified that the Taliban would try to help the country to end all of its problems. During their rule, the Taliban has prohibited education from women and defended one of the world’s most wanted men, Osama bin Laden (Fremson). Pashtun region of Afghanistan

RISE TO POWER From December 1979 to February 1989, the Soviets occupied Afghanistan. During their stay, they imposed communism on the Afghani people. The Soviet rule was repressive and against the will of the people. With the tacit support of the United States the Soviet rule was overthrown by the Afghani people. After the Soviet’s left, Afghanistan was faction ridden and divided. The Taliban came to power by assuring peace, prosperity and unity. During 1994, the Taliban consisted of many students and gained supporters from conservative Muslim schools (McNamara).

RISE TO POWER In 1996, the Taliban took over the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul. Since then they now control about 95% of Afghanistan. The only opposition to their rule is a small north eastern area of the region.

EFFECTS The Taliban rule has effected everyone in the country. Girls were not allowed to go outside if not accompanied by a male relative. The only exception to this rule was if they are going out to get water. They had to cover their entire body but the clothes were less constricting and more revealing than that of a adult woman. The girls were not allowed to go to go to school. If a girl failed to abide by these rules they would be beaten. Malala Yousafzai was shot in head for trying to receive an education.

EFFECTS There is little freedom in Afghanistan due to Taliban rule. In 2001 Mullah Mohammad Omar commanded that a person who switches their religion from Islam to any other will be killed. To set an example for his new policy, he ordered to destroy two mountain carvings of Buddha. Muslims are only allowed to listen to religious music which cannot have any instruments playing with the song. Movies, kite-flying, television, and videos are all banned because they are distractions from prayer. Hindus must wear identification patches so that the religious police will not force them to follow Islamic rules (“The Taliban”)

EFFECTS The flag of the Taliban Taliban soldiers

EFFECTS A group of Muslims coming together and praying One of the many mosques Muslims go to pray

AL QAEDA Osama bin Laden founded Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda was an Islamic militant organization. It supported the motives of the Taliban so it sent soldiers and resources to help the cause. Many believe Al Qaeda and the Taliban are the same organization but this is in fact false. The Taliban have boundaries of their region while Al Qaeda has none. Al Qaeda consists of the Sunni Muslims who practice Wahabism, the most extreme and violent form of Islam. Osama bin Laden, founder of Al Qaeda

WHY DOES THE TALIBAN HATE AMERICA? America supports Israel They do not want the America’s presence in the Middle East. The America’s do not agree with their ideas of religion. The women in America have too much freedom and are treated as equals to men. The effects of 911 made America go to war with them. The difference between an American woman and a Muslim woman

TALIBAN Taliban soldiers get ready for war

TALIBAN Punishment for disobeying

WORK CITED Blake, Matt. "The girl that beat the Taliban: Malala, the 15-year-old Pakistani girl shot in the head for being educated, walks out of Birmingham hospital Read more: Pakistani-girl-shot-Taliban-inspiring-girls-education-discharged-Birmingham- hospital-life-saving-surgery.html "Campaign for Afghan Women & Girls." Feminist Majority Foundation. N.p.. Web. 3 Mar "Difference Between Taliban and Al qaeda."DiffrenceBetween. N.p.. Web. 3 Mar Fremson, Ruth. "Taliban." The New York Times. N.p., 10 Oct Web. 3 Mar

WORK CITED McNamara, Melissa. "The Taliban In Afghanistan."CBSNEWS. N.p., 08 Aug Web. 3 Mar Reddy, Keerthi. "Taliban: A Perfect Islamic Society!." Hope of Israel Ministries. N.p.. Web. 3 Mar Smith, S.. "What Is the Taliban?." WiseGeek. N.p., 22 Jan Web. 3 Mar "The Taliban." CBSNEWS. N.p.. Web. 3 Mar