****040 - Part 1 Recap, Taliban, Planes Operation

U.S. National Security - Dr. Jason Brownlee

Page 1: Introduction

• Subject: U.S. National Security

• Lecture Title: Bringing Peace to Afghanistan, 9 February 2020

• Presented by Dr. Jason Brownlee, University of Texas at Austin, Department of Government.

Page 2: Course Overview

• Annual Lecture: Lecture 040

• Focus on national security policies and their implications.

Page 3: Key Figures and Groups in Afghanistan

• Taliban Government (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan): Key players before and after seizing power.

• Ethnic Groups: Major ethnicities include Pashtuns (42%), Tajiks (27%), Uzbeks (9%), and Hazaras (9%).

• Prominent Leaders:

  • Gulbuddin Hekmatyar

  • Ahmad Shah Massoud

  • Mullah Mohammed Omar

  • Abdul Rasul Sayyaf

• Key Events & Concepts:

  • Relationship between U.S. policy shifts and the Taliban from 1996-2001.

  • Links to key figures in terrorism, including Ramzi Youssef and Mohammed Atta.

Page 4: Taliban Rule (1996-2001)

• Overview of Taliban governance and its impact on Afghanistan's political landscape.

Page 5: Afghan Ethnic Composition

• Population Stats:

  • Total Population: 28.6 million (2006).

  • Growth Rate: 2.4%.

• Main Ethnic Groups:

  • Pashtun: Predominant group, Sunni Muslim.

  • Tajik: Persian origins, Sunni Muslim.

  • Uzbek: Turkish origins, Sunni Muslim.

  • Hazara: Mongolian origins, Shia Muslim.

• Geographic Distribution: Where each group predominantly lives in Afghanistan.

Page 6: Map of Afghanistan

• Visual representation of Afghanistan's ethnic distribution and borders.

Page 7: Historical Site

• Mausoleum of Ahmad Shah Durrani: Significant historical landmark in Kandahar, reflecting Afghan heritage.

Page 8: U.S. Involvement in Afghanistan

• 1983 Meeting: President Reagan with mujahideen leaders regarding Soviet actions in Afghanistan.

Page 9: Key Figures in Mujahideen Politics

• Major Leaders:

  • Burhanuddin Rabbani (Tajik)

  • Ahmad Shah Massoud (Tajik)

  • Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (Pashtun)

Page 10: Civil War Aftermath

• Description of the chaos following Najibullah’s rule.

• Conditions:

  • Infighting among mujahideen groups.

  • Civilian casualties and suffering in Kabul from 1992 onwards.

Page 11: Consequences of Civil Conflict

• Poor governance and militarized factions leading to further instability.

Page 12: Emergence of the Taliban

• Mullah Omar: Personal motivation to form Taliban due to civil war atrocities.

Pages 13-15: Questions on Taliban's Ascendancy

• Critical inquiries surrounding the Taliban's rise to power:

  1. Reasons for overpowering the Mujahideen government.

  2. Differences in ideology between Taliban and Mujahideen.

  3. Connections with Osama bin Laden.

  4. Treatment of non-Pashtun Afghans.

  5. Relations with foreign powers, especially the U.S.

Page 16: Women's Dress Codes in Islam

• Definitions and differences in various forms of women's clothing:

  • Hijab: General modest dress.

  • Niqab: Covers face except eyes.

  • Burka: Complete covering associated with Afghanistan.

  • Chador: Common in Iran, full-body cloak.

Page 17: Discussion on Gender Policies

• Kathy Gannon's Remarks: Discourse on women's issues under Taliban rule vs. perceptions of the mujahideen government.

Page 18: Education and Gender Rights

• Comparison of mujahideen and Taliban perspectives on women's education.

Page 19: Map Overview of Factions

• Shifts in Control (1992-2001): Overview of major conflicts and territorial controls in Afghanistan.

Page 20-24: Review Questions

• Recapitulation of central questions regarding Taliban governance, ideology, and relationships.

Page 25: The Planes Operation

• Introduction to lecture focusing on September 11, 2001, attacks.

Page 26: Key Individuals in 9/11 Attacks

• Khaled Sheikh Mohammed and Mohamed Atta: Central figures in the planning of 9/11.

Page 27: Timeline of Hijacked Flights

• Details of the American airlines flights involved in the 9/11 attacks and their outcomes:

  • Flight 11: Crashed into North Tower at 8:46 AM.

  • Flight 175: Crashed into South Tower at 8:52 AM.

  • Flight 77: Crashed into Pentagon at 9:37 AM.

  • Flight 93: Crashed in Pennsylvania at 10:02 AM.

Page 28: Impact of the 9/11 Attacks

• Overview of casualties, the nationality of hijackers, and implications for U.S. foreign policy.

Lecture 040 - Part I Recap, the Taliban, and the "Planes Operation"

/

• recap

  • 

  • focus

    • southwest asia/ middle east, pakistan, iraq, iran, afghanistan, iraqa nieghbors or arabian peninusla

  • america did not make military intervention a main policy until 1979

    • iran hostage crisis

  • prior 1979

    • trumen 1947

    • nixon 1969

    • did not extent to deployment

  • january 1980

    • carter doctrain

    • u.s still sus into big intervention at this time

  • part 1 of this course

    • seizure of u.s embessay in tehran (nov 4 1979)- sept 11, 2001 terriorist attacks

  • 5 presidents leading during these years

  • vietnam lost 58000 military personnel during the conflict, highlighting the significant human cost of war and the complex geopolitical landscape that shaped U.S. foreign policy in the following decades.

  • u.s conducted itself in southwest asia cautiously

  • last decade of the cold war, first decade of the new unipolar era

    • deciding when to intervene or leave govts not able to lead their countires

  • desert storm

    • showed u.s was willing to stop without conquering baghdad

  • operation cyclone

    • This demonstrated a shift in military strategy, focusing on targeted operations rather than full-scale invasions.

    • moving w afghan

  • 1979-1979

    • iranian toppled sha

    • This event led to a significant shift in the geopolitical landscape, influencing the rise of various militant groups, including the Taliban, who gained power in the 1990s.

  • 1980-1988

    • hopes to defeat islamic govt in iran

    • sadam used lethal gas on battlefield against iran

  • clinton

    • did not want to send troops to tehran

    • did not land trooops in afghan or other countires

      • did not wnat to risk desert 1 again

  • Ben lahden

    • did not pose threats like other countires who had weapons

Lecture 040 - Part I Recap, the Taliban, and the "Planes Operation"

• 2021 = 60 million Pashtuns in afghanistan

• 16 percent in pakistan

• larget ethinic group in afghanistant but more in pakistan

• language is more attributed to ethnicity but not always necessarily phenotype

• the pashtuns live in kandhar and are known for their distinct cultural practices, including traditional dress and hospitality, which play a significant role in their identity.

• the taliban stood a part bc of reginal and ethinic

• difference btwn taliban and mujahedeen

  • the taliban did not exsisit as org in 1983

  • ppl in pic would eventually oppose taliban

    

• omar

  • politically leader al Mullah Omar emerged as a significant figure, eventually becoming the spiritual leader of the Taliban and guiding its rise to power in the mid-1990s.

• 

1. their (mujaahideen) politically authority was restircted by region and ethnicity

   • operated as warlords, min kingdom

   • taliban in 1994 represented unity

     • loyalty to higher cause that they could market

     • This unity was instrumental in consolidating power, as the Taliban sought to establish a cohesive governance structure that transcended regional and ethnic divisions.

2. the most secular least religous govt of the time was replaced by a regime that emphasized strict adherence to Islamic law, which significantly altered the social fabric of Afghanistan.

   • they supported conservative views that ppl felt and made them law

   • looked to saudia arabia as example

     

   • people didnt rll ysee this as a problem bc they got saftey

   • no real social outcry

4. most of their approach came from islamic unity and how the first leaders of islmaic leaders govt

   • certiain level of predictability

   • no say from the people

   • contorversial poppy farming the taliban allowed

     • ltr outlawed it but faced criticism for the economic impact on farmers who relied on this crop for their livelihood.

     • pro pashtun

5. only offically reconginzed by pakistan, saudiarabia, and united arab emirities

   • none of them supported the taliban policies

   • Despite this limited recognition, these countries maintained a cautious approach, emphasizing diplomatic channels while expressing concerns over human rights violations and the treatment of women under Taliban rule.

   • energy situation

     • The energy situation in the region became increasingly complex, as the Taliban sought to leverage their control over natural resources to gain further legitimacy and financial support from international allies.

• unitl 1996, u.s couldnt achieve number 1

• the seige- poor protrayal of relations and middle east

Lecture 040 - Part I Recap, the Taliban, and the "Planes Operation"

• 9/11

  • how it happend

    • The events leading up to 9/11 involved a complex interplay of geopolitical tensions, including the rise of extremist groups in the region and the subsequent military responses from Western powers.

    • threatend the ppl on hijakced plane

    • all hijackers were arab men