Half of the chapters in Ground Zero are set in Afghanistan in 2019; these chapters depict the Afghan National Army's and US Army's counterinsurgency campaign against the Taliban, a fundamentalist Muslim movement that took power over Afghanistan in the mid-1990s and again following the US withdrawal from the country in 2021.
The Taliban emerged as a significant political and military force in Afghanistan during the mid-1990s, with origins that can be traced back to the Afghan resistance against the Soviet occupation of the country in the 1980s. The United States, along with other Western and Arab allies, provided covert support to Afghan resistance groups (mujahideen) fighting against the Soviet-backed regime, with the CIA arming and training the Afghan resistance. Following the ouster of the Soviets in 1989, Afghanistan plunged into civil war, with mujahideen factions fighting for control.
In 1996, the Taliban, led by Mullah Mohammed Omar, captured Kabul and established their rule over most of Afghanistan. Many early Taliban members were young Afghan refugees who had studied in religious schools in Pakistan and were deeply influenced by a strict interpretation of Islam. Their regime was known for implementing its interpretation of Islamic law, restricting women's rights, and harboring international terrorists, including Osama bin Laden, the founder of al-Qaeda and the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks.
The Taliban's rule was met with widespread international condemnation, leading to limited diplomatic recognition. In response to 9/11, the United States, in cooperation with Afghan opposition forces, initiated the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, which led to the fall of the Taliban government.
Over the subsequent years, the Taliban gradually regrouped and regained strength, particularly in the rural and mountainous regions of Afghanistan. They launched a sustained insurgency against the US and Afghan government, making use of guerrilla warfare tactics. Efforts to negotiate a political settlement and bring the Taliban into the Afghan political process were made, but progress was slow and often faltered.
In August 2021, following the Biden government's sudden withdrawal of US forces, the Taliban swiftly captured Kabul and much of the country, effectively returning to power. According to Amnesty International, the international isolation and economic upheaval following the Taliban takeover has meant that 97 percent of Afghans now live in poverty. Access to healthcare, education, and employment have suffered. There has also been the reimposition of sharia law, which has involved public executions, floggings, and torture. The Taliban have also repressed the rights of women and girls, with the imposition of a dress code, a ban on females using parks and gyms, and a ban on females attending middle school, high school, and university. The Taliban also ordered beauty salons to be shut down in July 2023, putting tens of thousands of female business owners out of work.
