Afghanistan: How it Started and How it’s Ending

About 20 years ago, the U.S went to Afghanistan to help the people fight against the Taliban. The Taliban is a military group from Afghanistan that ran the country in the late 1990’s, and now they are in control, once again. The U.S invaded in 2001, wanting to remove them from power, but they never left. 

Now, the government that had been running for 20 years collapsed. The Afghans ran to the airports, fearing for their future.

They are worried that their country would become dangerous, once again, or the Taliban could attack those who worked with the Americans or government. Many also fear that the Taliban will, once again, reinforce the harsh version of Shariah, or Islamic law that they used to run the country from 1996 to 2001. 

Some of the laws prohibited women from attending school or work, outside the home. They also had to be accompanied by a male relative to go outside. The Taliban banned music, and cut off the hands of thieves.

The most logical reason the Taliban has decided to take over again is that the U.S troops were set to leave by the end of the month. The U.S had been trying to get out of there for several years now. A few years ago, the U.S. started to focus on Iraq, and the Taliban began to regroup.

There still could be as many as 1,500 Americans, still waiting to get out of the country, before the Aug 31th deadline. Administrative officials told the congressional staff that some Americans have said that they do not plan to evacuate, unless they can bring Afghan families with them. The U.S. and other allied countries flew out about 19,000 people out of Kabul, in a 24-hour time period. Since Aug 14th, the United States helped evacuate more than 80,000 people.

Please contact the JHS Clarion if you know of anyone that has been affected by the attacks, or if you have any ideas of how to help. We would love to know about your stories/feelings about this affair.