[Understanding from 1] Afghanistan "Taliban Victory Declaration" August 16 20:21

In Afghanistan, the rebel Taliban invaded the capital Kabul and declared victory over the government early on the morning of the 16th of Japan time, while President Gani left the country and the administration virtually collapsed.



The withdrawal of the US military, which began at the end of April, has a lot to do with the background of the Taliban's advance.

Conquer the state capital one after another this month

The Taliban have taken control of the state capital one after another earlier this month.



August 6


Conquer Zaranj, the capital of the southwestern province of Nimloose.


This is the first time that the state capital has been suppressed since the withdrawal of US troops began at the end of April.



August


7-11 Conquer state capitals such as Kunduz, Sar-e Pol, Takhar, and Badakhshan.



August 12


Conquer Herat, the third largest city in the west.



August 13


Conquer Kandahar, the second largest city in the south.


By this date, he had conquered 18 of the 34 capitals, more than half of them.

August 14


Suppressed Mazar-i-Sharif

,

a key point in the north.



August 15


Conquered 6 capitals including Nangarhar in the east.


Under control of more than 90% of 31 state capitals, advance to the capital Kabul.



August 16


Declaration of victory over the government.

Taliban once collapsed in US military operations

What kind of organization is the Taliban in the first place?



The Taliban was formed in southern Afghanistan in 1994, amid the civil war that followed the withdrawal of former Soviet troops.



The Taliban means "a divine student" studying Islam, and was formed by students educated at an Islamic seminary in neighboring Pakistan with the aim of "establishing a true Islamic state."



Two years later, in 1996, while rapidly expanding its power, it overwhelmed the capital Kabul and established a government, putting most of its land under control.



In addition to restricting women's employment and education by adopting a policy that interpreted Islam extremely rigorously, in 2001, the Great Buddha of Bamiyan, a world-famous Buddhist archaeological site, was described as "idol worship is contrary to Islamic teachings." It was blown up and received international criticism.



In the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, the Taliban administration collapsed as the U.S. military and others embarked on a military operation to Afghanistan after refusing to hand over the identity of Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the international terrorist organization Al Qaeda. Did.

U.S. military withdrawal from the end of April Strengthen offensive in various places

However, the Taliban were looking for an opportunity to counterattack.



After the collapse of the administration, some Taliban forces regained their stance centered on southern Kandahar, where they were based, and lurked in the border area with neighboring Pakistan to increase their fighting ability.



Then, in 2014, when most of the international troops stationed in Afghanistan withdrew, they regained their power to take advantage of the gap and began to repeat terrorism and attacks.



Meanwhile, in 2013, Tullivan opened an office in Doha, the capital of Qatar in the Middle East, to serve as an external contact point, and continued underwater contact with the Obama administration in the United States for peace in Afghanistan. Since 2018, we have been discussing peace negotiations with the Trump administration, and in February 2020, we signed a peace agreement including the complete withdrawal of US troops stationed in Afghanistan.



As the U.S. military began withdrawing from the end of April following the peace agreement, the Taliban intensified its offensive and expanded its territory throughout Afghanistan.

Background of U.S. military withdrawal Strategy for China and public opinion “war fatigue”

So how was the withdrawal of the US military decided?



The US side will gradually reduce the size of local troops in response to voices such as the murder of bin Laden in 2011 and the US Congress calling for a reduction in war costs.



In addition, former President Trump, who took office in 2017, continued peace talks with the Taliban with the aim of withdrawing from Afghanistan and signed the first peace agreement in February last year.



The peace agreement between the US government and the Taliban included the complete withdrawal of US troops stationed in Afghanistan within 14 months of the agreement, and set a deadline for withdrawal until May 1.



However, fighting and terrorism continued in the field even after the peace agreement, and the Biden administration, which was inaugurated in January, postponed the deadline by more than four months, and it will be 20 years from the terrorist attacks, and it will be completely withdrawn by September 11. I decided to let him.



Furthermore, in July, the Biden administration announced a policy to complete the withdrawal at the end of August, saying that the local Afghan government forces have sufficient power.



High-ranking officials from the Biden administration have acknowledged that the background to the complete withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan is also part of a strategy to relocate personnel and resources to counter China, which is intensifying military activity.



In addition, it seems that President Biden's decision was supported by the fact that the war costs and the number of dispatched soldiers increased due to the prolonged battle, and public opinion in the United States became "war tired".

US Government Joint Statement “Requesting Women's Human Rights”

On the 15th, the US government issued a joint statement with more than 60 countries including Japan and the United Kingdom.



With the Taliban in mind, the statement said, "Afghans and foreigners are safely evacuated abroad, saying that" those with power throughout Afghanistan have a responsibility to protect lives and property and to quickly restore security and order. " I want you to be able to do it.



On top of that, he said, "People in Afghanistan must be able to live in a state where safety and dignity are maintained," and demands that women's human rights be secured in the future administration.