Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia

Se ritenete che le informazioni che leggete sui giornali o sentite ai telegiornali sui talebani, l'Afghanistan e la regione circostante non siano sufficienti (e non lo sono), allora leggete questo libro. E' fatto bene, esauriente nella descrizione della nascita del movimento talebano, le cause che lo hanno favorito, guerre civili, tensioni sociali ed economiche, influenze sinistre di tutti i paesi confinanti, soprattutto il Pachistan. Poi la sottovalutazione, se non menefreghismo delle potenze occidentali del problema talebano fino ai noti disastri degli attacchi alle ambasciate USA in Africa e l'attacco alle torri gemelle. Fino ai giorni nostri, i sviluppi, il contagio talebano che sta colpendo i paesi contro asiatici e Pachistan show more facendo temere un futuro ancor più pessimista.
A cooredo del libro ci sono 3 appendici: una riguardante un esmpio di decreto talebano sulle donne e su altre questioni culturasli; una riguarda la struttura dell'allora governo talebano e l'ultima riguarda Il nuovo grande gioco, praticamente la corsa delle compagnie petrolifere occidentali per mettere le mani sul petrolio e gas della regione.
L'analisi di Ahmed Rashid arriva fino al 2009 quando il libro va alle stampe, pertanto non è ancora avvenuta l'uccisione di Osama Bin Laden, ma questo non toglie nulla all'attualità e all'autorevolezza del libro.
Ne consiglio vivamenta la lettura per non correre il rischio di parlare di cose che non si conoscono o di prendere per oro colato le tesi altrui. show less

"Taliban: Militant Islam, Oil and Fundamentalism in Central Asia" by Ahmed Rashid is a very complex, very intricate history of Afghanistan's recent past. As a Pakistan journalist covering Central Asia, Rashid was a first hand witness to the rise of the Taliban in the early '90s. In foreign policy circles, he is known as one of the few true experts of the ethnic, religious, and political strife that has plagued Central Asia.

In this book, Rashid holds few punches when it comes to who deserves the blame for what has happened in Afghanistan and the broader region. Complicit agencies in the United States, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the former Soviet Union take the brunt of the blame for arming various factions including the Taliban. show more Homegrown religious schools and ethnic rivalries also contributed to frequent disasters. When Texas oil companies brought Taliban leaders to Houston in order to fuel a rivalry with other international companies competing for pipeline contracts, things only got worse.

The author does not present any solutions to solve the crisis of Afghanistan perhaps because, as his history shows, outside involvement has only created more destruction in the area.

Rashid's history is very complete, but that also makes it very complicated. Although I believe he did his best to keep it simple, the constant flow of proper nouns made this book a little difficult to follow. show less

A detailed look at the Taliban's origins, history, and policies up to 2000. (Note: This is a review of the first edition; the second edition adds an updated chapter on additional developments 2000–2009.)

The first section of the book covers the history of the movement and how the Taliban came to control most of Afghanistan's territory by 2000. The second section covers the movement's internal policies, including its interpretation of Islam, treatment of women, drug policy, and connections to Bin Laden. The last section focuses on the Taliban's relations with its regional neighbors and other countries with an interest in the region.

Overall I found this an interesting and very informative book. Some parts were a little dry, such as the show more two chapters describing international oil companies' efforts to build an oil pipeline through Afghanistan. Also, the index had a few errors and omissions, which was occasionally frustrating when trying to refer back to previous information about a given person or faction. But apart from these minor flaws, this is a fascinating, well-organized, and comprehensive treatment of its subject matter. show less

Is yr country invading Afghanistan? Who'll it be next mnth? What's the invasion flavor of the mnth?! Anyway, I decided to read this to try to educate myself about Afhgani politics around the time the US government decided to invade there. It's published by Yale University Press - wch immediately makes it suspect as ruling elite propaganda - but I still found it to be informative & even-handed anyway. Will fundamentalist religious assholes NEVER GO AWAY?! & by that, I mean the ones in Afghanistan AND the United States (etc) - in case that wasn't already obvious.

Informative, but at times I struggled to follow due to lack of familiarity with most of the people and places. Part 2, “Islam and the Taliban,” was the most informative for me simply because I know more about Islam than Afghanistan.
This book was recommended on the same World podcast as The Places in Between and I am glad I read them consecutively as they balanced well and each book helped me understand the other book a little better.

An excellent summary of the Taliban and the ethnic and sectarian struggle in Afghanistan. Rashid's analysis in the last chapter is insightful but pre-dates the coalition invasion. The supplement to the last chapter which lists the rules governing women issued by the Taliban following their conquest of Kabul is chillingly Orwellian.

Read 10 years after publication I realize that this is a really amazing book. Many of the characters such as Mullen Omar and of coursse Osama himself are still around as are many Pakistan leaders. I can't think of a better rundown of the history of the Tali an, but the author wrote an earlier work on oil and gas pipe lines and most revealing the effect of Afghanista on Pakistan itself in a chapter titled "Master or Victim, Pakistan's Afghan War" ....could substitute US for Pakistan now. There is also a chapter on the Shia , Sumi issue and relationships with the former Soviet Union countries to thenorth. There is an excellent, very detailed chronology from 1992 to 2000. The book was published just before 9/ll, There is a listing of show more Taliban leaders and reading their education or lack of it is revealing. The author had been a Pakistai reporter for 21 years before writing the book and refers to personal interview all the way through.

There are many interviews of the author on the Net. This is an excellent onw.
http://www.q-and-a.org/Transcript/?ProgramID=1281 show less