Description
Book SynopsisAfghanistan is located at the cross-roads of many civilizations. It is the gateway to India as well as to Central Asia. It shares borders with Pakistan, Iran, and the Central Asian Republics of Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan a volatile mix of nations in a troubled corner of the world. Historically, the country with the most interest in the region is Russia, which views Central Asia as its back yard, and the nations located within it stepping stones to the warm waters of the Arabian Sea. In pursuit of that ambition, Russia over the centuries has gradually expanded its realm by conquering the vast lands of the Caucasus and Muslim Central Asia, eventually pausing at the northern borders of the Indian sub-continent and Afghanistan. Seven years after Afghanistan's first-ever Presidential election, the increasingly besieged Government of Hamid Karzai has virtually lost credibility at home and abroad. Al Qaeda has found a new friend in the region the Tehrik-e-Taliban of Pakistan (TTP) which has offered them a safe haven in the tribal belt of the country. The government of Pakistan beset by one political crisis after another and in the aftermath of the killing of Osama Bin Laden at Abbottabad, is on the defensive.
Table of Contents1. A Historical Perspective The Advent of Islam The Nationalist Uprising The Decline Iran's Dominance over Afghanistan Relations with British India The First Anglo-Afghan War The Beginning of the 'Great Game' The Second Anglo-Afghan War 2. Afghanistan in the Twentieth Century Amir Habibullah Khan (1901-1919) The Anglo-Russian Convention Amir Amanullah Khan Amir Nadir Shah Zahir Shah, the last Afghan King President Sardar Daud Khan Border Issues with Pakistan Loya Jirga Daud's Governance President Noor Muhammad Taraki President Hafizullah Amin President Babrak Karmal President Dr. Najibullah 3. Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan Taliban--The Holy Warriors Enter Osama bin Laden Launching Attacks on American Assets Al-Qaeda Training Camps in Afghanistan Operation Enduring Freedom 4. Afghanistan's Ethnic Conundrum 5. Afghanistan Today US Relations with Pakistan The Death of Osama bin Laden Pak-US marriage 6. How Pakistan was Talibanized? Role of the Media Taliban and the Political Parties in Pakistan's Tribal Belt The Mindset of the Pakistani Taliban Taliban's Restrictions on Arts in Pakistan 7. Militant Groups and their Leaders FATA (Federally Administered Tribal Areas) Militant Groups in FATA Groups of Taliban Forces in FATA Foreign Militant Groups in Pakistan's Tribal Belt Sources of Taliban Funding Opium as Source of Funding 8. The Issues in FATA-A Historical perspective FATA at a Glance Literacy Educational Institutes in FATA versus those in the entire Province of Khyber Pukhtunkhwa 9. Is Taliban Losing its Clout? Can the Taliban Revive again? Taliban's latest move could help Peace Drive 10. Attacks on the NATO Supply Line in Pakistan NATO Strike on Pakistani Military Posts 11. America's New Afghan Policy Drone Attacks 12. Afghanistan after 2014 What can the United States Accept? End Notes Index
