New Delhi: The Taliban has effectively taken control over most parts of Afghanistan, including capital Kabul, forcing President Ashraf Ghani to flee the battered country. The situation has turned grim with most foreign missions repatriating their officials and civilians as the US troops have lost the long-held grip and are being withdrawn from war-torn Afghanistan.
With thousands of Afghans desperate to escape the Taliban takeover and abandon Afghanistan, there is chaos all over. As Monday saw people swarming the Kabul international airport, trying to cling to the departing American military planes, over six people lost their lives, some falling from the skies — even as Taliban fighters entered the presidential palace and posed for an iconic photo behind the presidential desk adorned by Ashraf Ghani till last week.
Here's a timeline of the Afghanistan crisis, from the Taliban peace talks with the US to final takeover by the group.
A Look-Back At The US-Taliban Equation and Peace Progress
February 2019: US-Taliban Peace Talks Progress
After more than 18 years of conflict, the US and the Taliban signed an "agreement for bringing peace" to Afghanistan. US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad and top Taliban official Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar held negotiations on the United States withdrawing its troops from the country in exchange for the Taliban taking a pledge to block international terrorist groups from operating on Afghan soil. From here on, the diplomacy talks signaled that the then president Donald Trump would pull out about half the total US deployment. The US insisted the Taliban to participate in an intra-Afghan dialogue on the country’s political structure, as well as a cease-fire.
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September 2019: US Calls Off Peace Dialogue
In a sudden move, just a week after top US negotiator Khalilzad announced that an agreement had been reached “in principle”, the then US President Donald Trump posted a tweet calling off the peace talks and cancelled a secret meeting with the Taliban and Afghan President Ghani after a US soldier was killed in an attack by the Taliban. The Taliban agreed to "continuing negotiations" but warned of increase in the number of deaths due to the cancellation.
February 2020: US-Taliban Deal on Path to Peace
The US and the Taliban inked an agreement in which the Taliban vowed that the country will not be used for terror activities. While on one hand the deal said intra-Afghan negotiations should begin the following month, the Afghan President on the other hand said the Taliban must meet his government’s own conditions before it enters talks. Within days after signing the deal, the Taliban attacked dozens of Afghan security forces. US forces retaliated with an air strike, with once again turned the situation grim.
September 2020: Intra-Afghan Peace Talks Begin
Almost after 20 years of war, the Taliban and the Afghan government met face to face for the first time in Doha after the Afghan government completed the release of 5,000 Taliban prisoners. After months of delay, both sides began direct negotiations and expressed eagerness to bring peace to Afghanistan and establish a framework for Afghan society after US troops withdraw. During the negotiations, the Afghan govt demanded ceasefire while Taliban pushed for the country to be governed through an Islamic system.
November 2020: US Announces Withdrawal of Troops
Days before Joe Biden's official takeover as President, acting US Defense Secretary Christopher C. Miller announced to cut down the number of troops in Afghanistan to 2,500 by mid-January. The announcement came as negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban were deadlocked and the group continued to launch deadly attacks. While thousands of troops had already been pulled out following an agreement with the Taliban in February, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg warned that withdrawing troops could allow Taliban to rebuilt its caliphate, turning the country an open land for terrorist.
April 2021: Biden Calls For Complete Withdrawal of US Troops by 9/11
"It’s time to end America’s longest war," US President Joe Biden announced, saying that the US will withdraw all troops by September 11, 2021, instead of May 1. As per the latest plan, the remaining 3,500 troops in Afghanistan will be withdrawn regardless of whether progress is made in intra-Afghan peace talks or the Taliban reduces its attacks on Afghan security forces and citizens. While the US pledged to assist Afghan security forces and support the peace process, the Taliban denied to participate in any conference on Afghanistan’s future until all foreign troops leave.
May 2021: Taliban Begin Rapid Advance
The Taliban fighters launched a major offensive on Afghan forces in southern Helmand and and at least six other provinces on May 4. Violence started to intensify across the country as the group captured Nerkh district just outside Kabul on May 11.
June 2021: Violence Intensify, Afghan Soldiers Killed
On June 7, more than 150 Afghan soldiers were killed in 24 hours. Officials said fighting was on in 26 of the total 34 provinces. Taliban fighters launched a series of attacks on June 22 in the north, far away from their traditional strongholds in the south.
June 2021: US Begins To Withdraw Troops
American troops quietly pulled out of Bagram Air Base, their main military base near Kabul, on July 2. The Taliban started taking more areas under their control. On July 5, they said they could give a peace proposal in writing to the Afghan government by August. By July 21, the Taliban had about a half of the country’s districts under their control, as claimed by the US. On July 26, the United Nations said nearly 2,400 Afghan civilians had been killed or injured in May and June.
August 2021: Kabul Falls To Taliban
Zaranj provincial capital fell to the Taliban on August 6. Many more, including Kunduz in the north, followed in the ensuing days. Kandahar and three more provincial capitals fell on August 13. Key city Herat fell too and Mohammad Ismail Khan, the veteran commander leading the fight against the Taliban, was captured. On August 14, the Taliban take major cities Mazar-i-Sharif and Pul-e-Alam. The US sent more troops to help in the safe evacuation of its civilians and officials from Kabul. Inching closer to Kabul, the insurgents took Jalalabad on August 15, without a fight. Within hours, Kabul fell too as the government collapsed, and Ghani fled Afghanistan.