Taliban+Control


 * Afghanistan before the Taliban **
 * **The country, as it is now, was founded in 1747 by Ahmad Shah Durrani(1) **
 * **Monarchy, with king elected by tribal leaders(1) **
 * **King Amanullah established diplomatic relationships with major countries and attempted to enact major reforms(1) **
 * **A republic was formed in 1973 when Prime Minister Daoud seized power and overthrew the monarchy in a military coup(1) **
 * **Daoud was assassinated and Hafizullah Amin becomes new president (3) **
 * ** The Soviets occupied Afghanistan from 1979-1989, killing about one million Afghans(3) **


 * Taliban Rise to Power **
 * **Came into prominence in 1994(2) **
 * **Were originally contracted by the Pakistani government to protect a convoy opening a trade route between Pakistani and Central Asia(2) **
 * **Became a military force and overthrew the Burhannudin Rabbani regime(2) **
 * **Slowly gained control of more and more providences of Afghanistan(2) **
 * **Would impose their own law and disarm the rest of the citizens(4) **
 * Taliban view points **
 * **They have decided to pursue and isolationist/fundamentalist agenda(2) **
 * **Their ideological views also include rural Pashtun values and totalitarian thinking(2) **
 * **Ultimate aim is to create the world’s purest Islamic state(2) **
 * **Have banned anything considered as frivolous or corrupting(2) **
 * **Have attempted to eradicate crime through their own variant of Islamic law(2) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Believe in an Orthodox interpretation of Islam, especially when it comes to women(4) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">The regime is completely intolerant of other religions(2) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Men are required to grow untrimmed beards(4) **
 * Parallels to the book **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">"But he was already here, in the flesh, sitting less than ten feet away from me, after all these years. His name escaped my lips: "Assef." (p. 281) (5) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">"The only people in Kabul who get to eat lamb now are the Taliban" (p. 247) (5) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">"That was the first time I saw the Taliban...telling myself that the sudden taste in my mouth wasn't unadulterated, naked fear." (p. 247) (5) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">"I remember the first time I saw them rolling into Kabul. What a joyous day that was!" he said. "An end to the killing!" (p. 249) (5) **
 * **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">"Young, whip-toting Talibs roamed the aisles, striking anyone who cheered too loudly." (p. 268). (5) **


 * Discussion Questions **
 * <span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">1. Are there people in the world who are solely of evil and detrimental to society? **
 * <span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">2. Should we, the U.S be weary of a group, such as the Taliban, who embodies the beliefs of Hitler? **
 * <span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">3. Is there any way to truly rid the world of the Taliban? If so, do you believe it would be worth taking that step? **

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 * (1) ** **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">U.S. Department of State. (2011, November 28). ****//<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Afghanistan //****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">. Retrieved from: ****<span style="background-color: initial; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">[] **
 * (2) ** **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">SATP. (2001). ****//<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Taliban //****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">. Retrieved from: ****<span style="background-color: initial; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">[] **
 * (3) ****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">BBC. (2008, November 21). ****//<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Afghanistan's turbulent history. //****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;"> Retrieved from: ****<span style="color: black; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt; text-decoration: none;">[] **
 * (4) ** **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Kakar, K. (2000). ****//<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">An Introdution of the Taliban //****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">. Retrieved from: **
 * <span style="color: black; font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt; text-decoration: none;">[] **
 * (5) ** **<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">Hosseini, Khaled. (2003). ****//<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">The Kite Runner //****<span style="font-family: Calibri,sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">. New York: Penguin Group Inc. **