The Taliban: War and Religion in Afghanistan

by Peter Marsden

Overview

This important book is a clear, concise, and authoritative introduction to the radical Islamist movement in Afghanistan. Peter Marsden offers a balanced portrait of the "warriors of God"-what they stand for and the factors leading to their rapid rise to military and political dominance. He succeeds in explaining the sources of the Taliban, including early support from the US, and provides an invaluable guide to the Afghan religious, political, and ethnic puzzle that was home to Taliban rule. Marsden also explores the complex history of Afghan's civil strife, and the responsibilities of outside interference in creating a breeding ground for tyranny and terror. He also provides a sharply defined agenda for international humanitarian response to political and human rights abuses, particularly those affecting women. Whatever shape the new, post-Taliban Afghan state may take, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to understand its dynamics without a full grasp of the conditions that led to the emergence of the Taliban. This powerful book is an essential starting point in that process of discovery.

Author Biography: Peter Marsden is Information Coordinator of the British Agencies Afghanistan Group and is Research Associate of Queen Elizabeth House, Oxford.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781842771662
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	11/01/2001
Series:	Politics in Contemporary Asia Series
Edition description:	REV
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.44(d)

About the Author

Peter Marsden has worked for the last 13 years as a specialist on aid to Afghanistan and has provided information to aid agencies, donor governments, the media and academics on the political, economic and humanitarian context in the country. He has conducted extensive research both in and out of Afghanistan over many years and has a specialist knowledge of the rapidly changing sequence of events since the Soviet withdrawal of February 1989.
Peter Marsden has worked for the last 13 years as a specialist on aid to Afghanistan and has provided information to aid agencies, donor governments, the media and academics on the political, economic and humanitarian context in the country. He has conducted extensive research both in and out of Afghanistan over many years and has a specialist knowledge of the rapidly changing sequence of events since the Soviet withdrawal of February 1989.

Table of Contents

Preface
1. Introduction
2. The nature of Afghanistan
3. The Mujahidin
4. The warriors of God
5. The Taliban creed
6. Earlier Islamic movements
7. The Afghan Islamic tradition
8. The gender policies of the Taliban
9. The dialogue with the humanitarian agencies
10. The Taliban and the international community 11. The Taliban and Pakistan
12. The Taliban and the wider region
13. Osama bin Laden
14. Conclusion

Editorial Reviews

...succinctly reviews Afghanistan's history and complex ethnic and linguistic map,then situates the rise of the Taliban.
—The New York Times

Margaret A. Mills

Offering a short introduction to the subject, this book describes the ideology of the Taliban regime, its gender politics, and the nature of its rule in Afghanistan. The Taliban's rise is situated within the histories of Islam and Afghanistan, and its international significance is discussed. Particular attention is given to the regime's relationships with other countries (especially Pakistan), humanitarian organizations, and Osama bin Laden. A preface was added after September 11th. Distributed by Palgrave. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

"Provides Western policy makers with a less sensationalised and more objective account of the Taliban and how best to deal with them." --Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, Director of The Muslim Institute, London

"Deserves attention as a first study of an Islamic phenomenon which is repressive in its social and racial policies, and as hostile to Western, as it is to Communist, values." --Hugh Carless, former British Ambassador to Afghanistan

"An objective and immensely informative account.... Highly recommended." --Jonathan Fryer, The Liberator

"Particularly good on the equivocal role played by the Americans." --The Sunday Telegraph

From the Publisher