Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia, Second Edition

405 Pages·2010·3.12 MB·English

by  Ahmed Rashid

Praise for the First Edition
“The standard work in English on the Taliban.”
—Christopher de Bellaigue, New York Review of Books
“Rashid spent 21 years compiling the data and interpretive materials in this
absorbing and disquieting book…. As the world enters an ominous stage of
history, Ahmed Rashid's book can serve as an excellent primer, guide book and
briefng of what the future may hold.”
—Arnold Ages, Chicago Jewish Star
“A brilliant and absorbing explanation of the radical Islamic movement and
Afghanistan's wretched situation, Taliban became required reading not just for
journalists, but for the world's senior politicians.”
—Alex Spillius, Daily Telegraph
“An extensively researched analysis by a noted journalist….
A fascinating survey.”
—Joshua Sinai, Journal of Homeland Security
“Taliban… provides an important perspective untainted by excessive emotion or
jingoism. Rashid's is an exceptional book that sorts out a multitude of questions
for the non–Central Asian specialist trying to make sense of current headlines….
Rashid's acute foresight produced a book that—if taken seriously by U.S.
policymakers at the time it was first published— might have helped prevent a
history-altering catastrophe.”
—Middle East Insight
“[Rashid is] Pakistan's best and bravest reporter.” —Christopher Hitchens,
Vanity Fair
“This is a fine book—erudite, concise, sure-footed, packed with information and
insight, easy to read. On each of the three major interrelated themes covered here
—the history of the Taliban and the internal politics of Afghanistan; Islam and
the Taliban; the ‘new Great Game’ of oil and gas in Central Asia— the author is
illuminating and thorough.”
—Dilip Hiro, Middle East International
“[A] supremely insightful book about Afghanistan's Taliban regime…. Rashid
bases his account on detailed reporting and travel throughout Afghanistan and
interviews with most of the Taliban's elusive top leadership. As a narrative, it is
gripping…. Rashid's book is superbly reported, a window into a world that
remains largely closed to American eyes.”
—Shankar Vedantam, Philadelphia Inquirer
“[A] thorough, authoritative exegesis.”
—Peter Bergen, Washington Post Book World
“Rashid marshals the vast amount of information he has accumulated over
decades of covering the area into a long, sad story and tells it with finesse. His
book is a gripping account of one of the horror stories of post–Cold War
politics.”
—Jonathan Groner, Salon.com
“A brilliant work, engrossing and wholly convincing.”
—Neville Maxwell, World Affairs
“Read this remarkable book and the bewildering complexity of Afghan politics
and the deadly overspill of chaos, narcotics, and sectarian violence into the
surrounding region will become clear.”
—Patrick Seale, Sunday Times
Taliban
Taliban

Militant Islam,
Oil and Fundamentalism
in Central Asia

SECOND EDITION
Ahmed Rashid

Yale
UNIVERSITY PRESS
New Haven and London
Published in the United Kingdom by I. B. Tauris & Co., Ltd., and in the United
States by Yale University Press.
First edition published as a Yale Nota Bene book in 2001.
Copyright © 2000 by Ahmed Rashid.
Second edition copyright © 2010 by Ahmed Rashid.
All rights reserved.
This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, including illustrations, in
any form (beyond that copying permitted by Sections 107 and 108 of the U.S.
Copyright Law and except by reviewers for the public press), without written
permission from the publishers.
Printed in the United States of America.
ISBN 978-0-300-16368-1 (pbk.)
Library of Congress Control Number: 2009938249
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For my mother,
what I have seen she taught me to see.
I hope I have honoured it.
And for Angeles.
CONTENTS

Preface to the Second Edition
Preface and Acknowledgements to the First Edition
Maps
Introduction: Afghanistan's Holy Warriors
Part 1: History of the Taliban Movement
Chapter 1
Kandahar 1994: The Origins of the Taliban
Chapter 2
Herat 1995: God's Invincible Soldiers
Chapter 3
Kabul 1996: Commander of the Faithful
Chapter 4
Mazar-e-Sharif 1997: Massacre in the North
Chapter 5
Bamiyan 1998-99: The Never-Ending War
Part 2: Islam and the Taliban
Chapter 6
Challenging Islam: The New-Style Fundamentalism of the Taliban
Chapter 7
Secret Society: The Taliban's Political and Military Organization
Chapter 8
A Vanished Gender: Women, Children and Taliban Culture
Chapter 9
High on Heroin: Drugs and the Taliban Economy
Chapter 10
Global Jihad: The Arab-Afghans and Osama Bin Laden
Part 3: The New Great Game
Chapter 11
Dictators and Oil Barons: The Taliban and Central Asia, Russia, Turkey and
Israel
Chapter 12
Romancing the Taliban 1: The Battle for Pipelines 1994-96
Chapter 13
Romancing the Taliban 2: The Battle for Pipelines 1997-99 – The USA and the
Taliban
Chapter 14
Master or Victim: Pakistan's Afghan War
Chapter 15
Shia Versus Sunni: Iran and Saudi Arabia
Chapter 16
Conclusion: The Future of Afghanistan
Chapter 17
The Taliban Resurgent 2000-2009
Appendices
Notes
Index