The Taliban are at the helm of Afghanistan!! Again!!
The world witnessed a new parallel government taking over the Islamic Republic style government of Afghanistan. The severely reserved Sharia imposing kind of government led by tribal leaders.
There are many questions that needs to be answered, one of which is how did 85000 active fighters (source : Wikipedia) of Taliban overtake active Afghani military of 186000 (source :NATO)
For one, did Afghanistan's geography had a major role to play. How?
Well, According to Murat Aslan, a political scientist at Turkey's Hasan Kalyoncu University, said that " in a country like Afghanistan, scattered across the Hindu Kush mountains, the ground forces were heavily dependent on this air support." (Source : Anadolu Agency)
The truth however was far from reality as the U.S military was the only strong force defending the landlocked country and it's been said on multiple occasions that the Afghan soldiers lacked the will to fight. To Elaborate, U.S president Joe Biden said the following in his speech : -
"We gave them every tool they could need. We paid their salaries, provided for the maintenance of their air force — something the Taliban doesn’t have. Taliban does not have an air force. We provided close air support.
We gave them every chance to determine their own future. What we could not provide them was the will to fight for that future." (Source : The White House)
The unfortunate siege into the city of Kabul for the transfer of power was the last nail in the coffin as Afghan president Ashraf Ghani fled into Tajikistan on August 15, 2021 issuing a statement that he left the country to avoid bloodshed and violence. (Source : The Quint)
Come August 16, 2021 and the world woke up to the horrifying scenes at the Kabul Airport where hoard of locals rushed in to every corner trying to desperately leave the country for good. One can only imagine what they must be going through as people are leaving behind their houses, businesses, properties, money just so that they can have a future in any other land on the planet. All roads led to the airport and the most troublesome scenes were when a viral video showcased people "clinging to a US military transport plane as it taxied on the runway, according to footage posted by a media company. Senior US military officials say chaos at the Kabul airport this morning left seven people dead, including some who fell from a departing American military transport jet" (Source : The Tribune)
One stark observation during the chaos was the disproportionate number of men fleeing , compared to women. The reason behind the same is explained in an article by The Washington Post which stated that, "" Unfortunately, it is often the case that the men are the ones leaving, but the reasons for this are deeply rooted and complex. It is not true, for example, as some have claimed, that men are largely simply “abandoning” women. More likely, as has been seen in other refugee contexts, they are setting things in motion to try to help women and children reach safety in the future.""
Whatever one may want to believe but the fact of the matter is that people are unhappy and unsafe as they feel that their future seems bleak. "Afghan women have made major gains since the overthrow of the Taliban. Many are worried they will once again be confined to their homes. The Taliban have said they are no longer opposed to women attending school but have not set out a clear policy on women's rights. Afghanistan remains an overwhelmingly conservative country, especially outside major cities, and the status of women often varied, even under Taliban rule." (Source : India Today)
No one really knows about the future of those people who desperately want to leave but not all have the power or the luxury to leave behind everything and start afresh. Only time can tell, but we all hope that everyone may find peace and that happiness be restored in that region. The least the world can do is be empathetic to the plight of a helpless person.
Lastly, I leave you all to the heart - breaking message of a crying Afghan girl in a viral video where she says that : -
"I cannot help crying.
We don't count because we were born in Afghanistan."