History of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)

Taliban (red) and Northern Alliance (blue) control over Afghanistan in 2000

In 1996, with military support from Pakistan and financial support from Saudi Arabia, the Taliban seized Kabul and founded the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.[14] They imposed their fundamentalist interpretation of Islam in areas under their control, issuing edicts forbidding women to work outside the home or attend school and requiring them to abide by harsh rules on veiling and seclusion.[15]

After the Taliban takeover of Kabul, Massoud retreated north to his native Panjshir Valley and formed a resistance movement against the Taliban, called the United Front or the Northern Alliance.[16] In addition to Massoud's Tajik force, the United Front included Uzbeks under the former PDPA general Abdul Rashid Dostum and Hazara factions.[lower-alpha 1] The Northern Alliance received varying degrees of support from Russia, Iran, and India.[17] Like the Taliban,[18] Massoud also raised money by trafficking drugs.[19] By 2001, the Taliban controlled 80% of the country, with the Northern Alliance confined to the country's northeast corner.[20]

The 9/11 Commission in the US found that under the Taliban, al-Qaeda was able to use Afghanistan as a place to train and indoctrinate fighters, import weapons, coordinate with other jihadists, and plot terrorist actions.[21] While al-Qaeda maintained its own camps in Afghanistan, it also supported training camps of other organizations. An estimated 10,000 to 20,000 men passed through these facilities before 9/11, most of whom were sent to fight for the Taliban against the United Front. A smaller number were inducted into al-Qaeda.[22]

After the August 1998 United States embassy bombings were linked to bin Laden, President Bill Clinton ordered missile strikes on militant training camps in Afghanistan. US officials pressed the Taliban to surrender bin Laden. In 1999, the international community imposed sanctions on the Taliban, calling for bin Laden to be surrendered. The Taliban repeatedly rebuffed these demands. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Special Activities Division paramilitary teams were active in Afghanistan in the 1990s in clandestine operations to locate and kill or capture Osama bin Laden. These teams planned several operations but did not receive the order to proceed from President Clinton. Their efforts built relationships with Afghan leaders that proved essential in the 2001 invasion.[23]

During the early years of the Clinton administration, the US had no clear policy toward Afghanistan.[24] The 1998 US embassy bombings, however, masterminded by al-Qaeda, provoked President Clinton to order missile strikes on militant training camps in Afghanistan;[25] bin Laden was indicted for his involvement in the bombings. In 1999 both the US and the United Nations enacted sanctions against the Taliban in United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267, which demanded the Taliban surrender bin Laden for trial in the US and close all terrorist bases in Afghanistan.[26] At the time, the only collaboration between Massoud and the US was an effort with the CIA to trace bin Laden.[27] The US provided no support for Massoud's fight against the Taliban.[28]

A change in US policy was effected in early September 2001.[29] The Bush administration agreed on a plan to start supporting Massoud. A September 10 meeting of top national security officials agreed that the Taliban would be presented with an ultimatum to hand over bin Laden and other al-Qaeda operatives. If the Taliban refused, the US would provide covert military aid to anti-Taliban groups to attempt to overthrow the Taliban.[30]

Ground Zero in New York following the attacks of 11 September 2001

On the morning of 11 September 2001, a total of 19 Arab men—15 of whom were from Saudi Arabia—carried out four coordinated attacks in the United States. Four commercial passenger jet airliners were hijacked.[31][32] The hijackers intentionally crashed two of the airliners into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, killing everyone on board and more than 2,000 people in the buildings. Both buildings collapsed within two hours from damage related to the crashes, destroying nearby buildings and damaging others. The hijackers crashed a third airliner into the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C. The fourth plane crashed into a field near Shanksville, in rural Pennsylvania, after some of its passengers and flight crew attempted to retake control of the plane, which the hijackers had redirected toward Washington, D.C., to target the White House, or the US Capitol. No one aboard the flights survived. The death toll among responders including firefighters and police was 836 as of 2009.[33] Total deaths were 2,996, including the 19 hijackers.[33]

Osama Bin Laden masterminded the attacks, and the US desire to hold him accountable became the casus belli for invasion. Historian Carter Malkasian writes that "seldom in history has one man so singlehandedly provoked a war." Bin Laden sought, successfully, to draw the US into an extended war similar to that fought against the Soviets.[34] The Taliban publicly condemned the 11 September attacks.[35] They also greatly underestimated the US's willingness to go to war. The US was mistaken in its belief that the Taliban and al-Qaeda were almost inseparable when, in fact, they had very different goals and leaders.[36]

We will pursue nations that provide aid or safe haven to terrorism. Every nation, in every region, now has a decision to make. Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists. From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime.

– President George W. Bush addressing a Joint Session of Congress on 20 September 2001.[37]

Immediately after the 9/11 attacks, President Bush and the United States National Security Council agreed that military action would probably have to be taken against Al-Qaeda and Afghanistan.[38] However, Bush decided to issue an ultimatum to the Taliban first, announcing the decision in private on September 12.[38] Mullah Omar was not informed of the decision to attack the United States by Osama bin Laden, and the Taliban had forbidden such attacks from Afghanistan and condemned it afterwards.[39] Omar also agreed to hand over bin Laden to a third country, though the United States demanded he be extradited directly.[40]

The Central Intelligence Agency started negotiating with the Taliban on September 15, while Bush announced his ultimatum publicly on September 20, based on the Authorization for Use of Military Force of 2001, an Act of Congress.[40] The same day, religious scholars were meeting in Kabul, deciding that jihad was obligated if the US would invade, until they retreated.[40] The council also decided that bin Laden should be surrendered.[40] Meanwhile, Omar decided that “turning over Osama would only be a disgrace for us and for Islamic thought and belief would be a weakness”, and that the US would continue making demands after surrendering bin Laden, rejecting both the ultimatum and the council's advice.[40] He claimed bin Laden was innocent and that was under his protection as a guest and due to his oath of allegiance.[40] This decision was accepted by the rest of the Taliban, and sympathy for the Al-Qaeda existed within them.[40]

Abdul Salam Zaeef has claimed that Omar thought there was "less than 10 percent chance" of the US attacking.[41] He remained in Kandahar despute warnings of an immediate invasion.[41] According to Abu Walid al-Masri, bin Laden thought that the United States could be defeated using the same methods as in the Soviet–Afghan War.[41] Beyond the ultimatum, no high-level diplomatic line was opened by the Americans.[41] In public opinion, 67 percent of Americans supported military action with ground troops.[42] Bush pushed for military action in the cabinet, finally deciding to do so on October 5, with military action to start on the 7th with airstrikes.[42] This was followed by the Taliban rallying to Omar and bin Laden.[42]

The first plan for the war was made by Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, George Tenet two days after 9/11, which involved CIA paramilitary forces and US Army special forces fighting together with the Northern Alliance and with the support of air strikes against the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.[43] Bush wanted to have ground troops, believing that a mostly air campaign signaled weakness.[42] General Tommy Franks, then-commanding general of Central Command (CENTCOM), proposed to President Bush and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld that the US invade Afghanistan using a conventional force of 60,000 troops, preceded by six months of preparation.

Rumsfeld and Bush feared that a conventional invasion of Afghanistan could bog down as had happened to the Soviets from 1979 and the British in 1842.[44] Rumsfeld rejected Franks's plan, saying "I want men on the ground now!" Franks returned the next day with a plan utilizing US Special Forces.[45] On 26 September 2001, fifteen days after the 9/11 attack, the US covertly inserted members of the CIA's Special Activities Division led by Gary Schroen as part of team Jawbreaker into Afghanistan, forming the Northern Afghanistan Liaison Team.[46] They linked up with the Northern Alliance in the Panjshir Valley north of Kabul.[47]

US Army Special Forces and US Air Force Combat Controllers with Northern Alliance troops on horseback

American and British special forces operators at Tora Bora, 2001

The US officially launched Operation Enduring Freedom on 7 October 2001, with the assistance of the United Kingdom. The two were later joined by other countries.[48][49] The first operations were airstrikes against airfields, radars, Mullah Omar's home, as well as anti-aircraft and communications systems, lasting for two weeks.[50]

The first CIA team had arrived on 26 September.[51] In October, 12-man Special Forces teams began arriving in Afghanistan to work with the CIA and Northern Alliance.[47] The Alliance 15–20,000 fighters, while the Taliban had about 45,000, as well as around 2,700 foreign fighters.[52] 10,000 further volunteers may have entered from Pakistan in the first weeks of the war.[52] Instead of attacking Kabul, the main push was made on Mazar-i-Sharif to prevent Tajiks from gaining power and fraying the Alliance.[53] This would also allow a supply line to be opened to the Central Asian republics.[53] The north had about 10,000 Taliban fighters, supported by the 'brigade' of several hundred foreign troops sent by Omar, as well as hundreds of Pakistani ISI operatives.[53] They were faced by 7,000 Northern Alliances fighters divided into the Tajiks of Atta Muhammad Nur, the Hazaras of Muhammad Mohaqiq, and the Uzbeks of Abdul Rashid Dostum.[53]

Ground fighting began on October 21.[53] Air and ground attacks broke Taliban resistance, and after Omar gave the order to retreat from Mazar-i-Sharif, the front collapsed across 12 provinces of the north, only holding in Kunduz with its large Pashtuns population.[54] Omar ordered for the force to organise a defence of Kabul and the south.[54] However, panic spread among the ranks and the leadership.[54] On November 12, they left the capital to continue resistance from Jalalabad and Kandahar.[54] Mohammed Fahim occupied the city and Burhanuddin Rabbani declared himself the new president but was not recognised by the international or Afghan communities.[55]

After the fall of Kabul, troops began laying down arms everywhere, with Omar giving permission for commanders in provincial capitals outside of Kandahar to surrender.[55] Most al-Qaeda and Taliban were not captured, escaping to neighboring Pakistan or retreating to rural or remote mountainous regions.[56] In Kunduz, about 5,000 Taliban and their Pakistani supporters remained, with the Kunduz airlift allegedly allowing up to 2,000 of both to escape, while the rest surrendered in exchange for free passage.[55] However, the Dasht-i-Leili massacre killed 250 to 2,000 Taliban prisoners shot and/or suffocated to death in metal shipping containers while being transferred by Junbish-i Milli soldiers.[57][58][59]

After the Taliban had retreated to its southern highlands by mid-November, there was little interest in the Northern Alliance to continue advancing.[60] To complete the overthrow, the US needed Pashtun allies.[60] For this purpose, the CIA had cultivated Abdul Haq and Hamid Karzai.[60] Haq had, however, been killed after attempting an anti-Taliban insurrection.[60] Karzai almost met the same fate, barely escaping to Pakistan.[61] He returned with US support and was able to organise a tribal army.[61] This kept growing as he racked up victories.[62] The US also started backing another Pashtun leader advancing towards Kandahar, Gul Agha Sherzai.[63] The city was defended by 3,000 Taliban under the experienced command of Hafiz Abdur Rahim.[63]

Omar decided to defend Kandahar until the Afghan Arabs there had escaped and the Taliban who had surrendered in the north had returned home, despite pleas for surrender from other leaders.[63] On 5 December, Karzai met with top Taliban leaders close to him, and may have given him a letter signed by Omar offering peace.[64] On 6 December, a second meeting agreed for the Taliban to leave the city.[64] This was confirmed by their ambassador to Pakistan.[64] However, the deal fell through when US special forces entered the city before it was finalized and the US pressured Karzai to not negotiate.[65] Donald Rumsfeld publicly denounced any peace with the Taliban.[65] Taliban sources, on the other hand, say that Omar was not part of the deal and was not going to surrender Kandahar.[65] In any case, Omar disappeared, leaving either for another another part of Afghanistan or Pakistan.[65] Most leaders and thousands of fighters also escaped to the latter.[66] Karzai subsequently declared a general amnesty to them.[66]

After seeking bin Laden since 9/11, the CIA got a clue of him traveling through Jalalabad with hundreds of fighters towards the Spīn Ghar mountains around 10 November.[67] By late November, he was at a fortified training camp at the Tora Bora.[67] He had chosen this on the basis of its good defensive position, believing he could defeat the Americans the way he did the Soviets previously, despite opposition from those around him.[67] CIA teams working with tribal militias followed him there and began to call in air strikes, with special forces soon arriving in support.[67] While the tribal force numbered 1,000, it was not fighting eagerly during Ramadan, with some fighters also having sympathies towards the enemy.[68] While the CIA requested that United States Army Rangers be sent and Marines were ready to deploy, they were declined under the belief that the tribal fighters would be faster.[68] Bin Laden was however able to escape at some point of December to Pakistan.[69] Osama bin Laden was eventually killed by US Navy SEALs in Abbottabad, Pakistan in 2011.[70]

The Bonn Conference started on 27 November 2001 with the US, Pakistan, India, Russia, Iran, the Northern Alliance, theformer Afghan monarchy, and smaller Pashtun groups participating, while the Taliban were excluded.[71] In the conference, the Bonn Agreement was agreed to, establishing a process for setting up a new government.[72] An interim administration would be set up for six months, followed by a loya jirga to decide on a transitional government for 18 months to draft a constitution and hold elections for a permanent government.[72] Rabbani did not at first want to give up the presidency, but relented under international pressure and Karzai was chosen as the new leader.[62]

On 20 December 2001, the United Nations authorized an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), with a mandate to help the Afghans maintain security in Kabul and surrounding areas. It was initially established from the headquarters of the British 3rd Mechanised Division under Major General John McColl, and for its first years numbered no more than 5,000.[73] Its mandate did not extend beyond the Kabul area for the first few years.[74]

Following the battle at Shahi-Kot, al-Qaeda fighters established sanctuaries on the Pakistani border, where they launched cross-border raids beginning in the summer of 2002. Guerrilla units, numbering between 5 and 25 men, regularly crossed the border to fire rockets at coalition bases, ambush convoys and patrols and assault non-governmental organizations. The area around the Shkin base in Paktika province saw some of the heaviest activity.

Taliban fighters remained in hiding in the rural regions of four southern provinces: Kandahar, Zabul, Helmand and Uruzgan. After Anaconda the Department of Defense requested British Royal Marines, highly trained in mountain warfare, to be deployed. In response, 45 Commando deployed under the operational codename Operation Jacana in April 2002. They conducted missions (including Operation Snipe, Operation Condor, and Operation Buzzard) over several weeks with varying results. The Taliban avoided combat.[84]

In May 2002 Combined Joint Task Force 180 became the senior US military headquarters in the country, under Lieutenant General Dan K. McNeill. Later in 2002, CJSOFT became a single integrated command under the broader CJTF-180, which commanded all US forces assigned to OEF-A; it was built around an Army Special Forces Group (often manned by National Guard units) and SEAL teams. A small JSOC element (formerly Task Force Sword/11), not under direct CTJF command, embedded within CJSOFT and was manned by a joint SEAL and Ranger element that rotated command. It was not under direct ISAF command, although it operated in support of NATO operations.[85]

Nation-building had been forbidden by Rumsfeld and was not advocated by Bush.[86] Nevertheless, the status of women played an important policy role, with a bipartisan bill being passed by Congress to fund efforts to improve it.[87] This was also reflected in international development projects, which included the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and funding by the United States Agency for International Development.[87] Developing institutions was also a part of the effort, especially being pushed by European allies.[87] This eventually nudged the US towards nation-building efforts.[87]

Karzai had become the new president, with former Northern Alliance leaders such as Mohammed Fahim, Abdul Rashid Dostum, and Ismail Khan as ministers.[88] However, there were no other formal institutions.[88] The US representative Zalmay Khalilzad also played a major role.[88] The 2002 loya jirga was set up in June with 1,500 participants from across the country.[88] The Taliban were not invited.[89] The loya jirga argued over whether the former king Mohammed Zahir Shah should play a role in the government, but eventually the US supported Karzai and the king backed down.[89] Another conflict was between the Tajiks and Pashtuns.[89] The assembly also decided that sharia would play a role in the new judicial system.[90]

We clearly have moved from major combat activity to a period of stability and stabilization and reconstruction activities. . . . The bulk of the country today is permissive; it’s secure.” – US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld in early 2003.[81]

Map detailing the spread of the Taliban-insurgency in Afghanistan 2002–2006

Despite warnings by Karzai and Khalilzad that insurgent sanctuaries were forming in Pakistan, the Bush administration ignored them.[81] Meanwhile, Taliban leader Mullah Omar reorganized the movement, and in 2003 launched an insurgency against the government and ISAF.

Pamphlets by Taliban and other groups turned up strewn in towns and the countryside in early 2003, urging Islamic faithful to rise up against US forces and other foreign soldiers in holy war.[93] On 27 January 2003, during Operation Mongoose, a band of fighters were assaulted by US forces at the Adi Ghar cave complex 25 km (15 mi) north of Spin Boldak.[94] Eighteen rebels were reported killed with no US casualties. The site was suspected to be a base for supplies and fighters coming from Pakistan. The first isolated attacks by relatively large Taliban bands on Afghan targets also appeared around that time.

Operation Valiant Strike was a major United States military ground operation in Afghanistan announced on 19 March 2003 that involved 2nd and 3rd battalions of 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment,[95] Romanian and Afghan troops. The combined forces moved through Kandahar and parts of Southern Afghanistan with the objective of eliminating Taliban enemy forces and weapons caches while also attempting to gather intelligence on Taliban activity in the area.[96] At the conclusion of the operation on 24 March 2003, coalition forces had detained 13 suspected Taliban fighters and confiscated more than 170 rocket-propelled grenades, 180 land mines, 20 automatic rifles and machine guns, as well as many rockets, rifles, and launchers.

US troops board a helicopter

In May 2003, the Taliban Supreme Court's chief justice, Abdul Salam, proclaimed that the Taliban were back, regrouped, rearmed, and ready for guerrilla war to expel US forces from Afghanistan. Omar assigned five operational zones to Taliban commanders such as Dadullah, who took charge in Zabul province.[97]

Small mobile training camps were established along the border to train recruits in guerrilla warfare, according to senior Taliban warrior Mullah Malang in June 2003.[98] Most were drawn from tribal area madrassas in Pakistan. Bases, a few with as many as 200 fighters, emerged in the tribal areas by the summer of 2003. Pakistani will to prevent infiltration was uncertain, while Pakistani military operations proved of little use.[97]

As the summer of 2003 continued, Taliban attacks gradually increased in frequency. Dozens of Afghan government soldiers, NGO humanitarian workers, and several US soldiers died in the raids, ambushes and rocket attacks. Besides guerrilla attacks, Taliban fighters began building up forces in the district of Dai Chopan in Zabul Province. The Taliban decided to make a stand there. Over the course of the summer, up to 1,000 guerrillas moved there. Over 220 people, including several dozen Afghan police, were killed in August 2003.[96]

On 11 August 2003, NATO assumed control of ISAF.[74][99] Some US forces in Afghanistan operated under NATO command, while the rest remained under direct US command.

United States led-coalition forces carried out Operation Asbury Park on June 2, 2004, and June 17, 2004, of taskforce 1/6 BLT of the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit engaged in fighting with Taliban and other anti-coalition forces in both Oruzgan Province and Zabul Province culminating in the Dai Chopan region of Afghanistan. This operation was characterized by atypical fighting on the side of the tactics of the Taliban and the other guerillas encountered.[100] culminating in a large battle on June 8. During Asbury Park, the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit was faced with an opponent that frequently would dig in and engage the Marine forces, rather than the traditional hit and run (or "asymmetric attack") methods. As such, Marines, with the aid of B-1B Lancer, A-10 Warthog, and AH-64 Apache aircraft, engaged in "pitched battles each day,"[100] culminating in a large battle on June 8. The last of the fighting which took place near Dai Chopan on June 8 was decisive in that enemy forces were depleted to such an extent that no further contact was made with the enemy for the duration of the operation. What was meant by the enemy to be a three pronged attack June 8, 2004 resulted in over 85 confirmed kills, with estimates well in excess of 100 enemy dead, an estimated 200–300 wounded, with dozens captured. While throughout the entire operation a "handful" of US forces and Afghan Militia were injured.

A US Navy Corpsman searches for Taliban fighters in the spring of 2005.

In June 2004, United States Forces began Drone strikes in Pakistan along the Federal Tribal Areas against Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants.[101][102] These strikes began during the administration of United States President George W. Bush.

In late 2004, the then hidden Taliban leader Mohammed Omar announced an insurgency against "America and its puppets" (referring to transitional Afghan government forces) to "regain the sovereignty of our country."[103]

In late June through mid-July 2005, United States Navy Seals carried out Operation Red Wings as a joint military operation in the Pech District of Afghanistan's Kunar Province, on the slopes of a mountain named Sawtalo Sar,[104][105][106] approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Kunar's provincial capital of Asadabad, .[107][104][108] Operation Red Wings was intended to disrupt local Taliban anti-coalition militia (ACM) activity, thus contributing to regional stability and thereby facilitating the Afghan Parliament elections scheduled for September 2005.[107][104][108] At the time, Taliban anti-coalition militia activity in the region was carried out most notably by a small group, led by a local man from Nangarhar Province, Ahmad Shah, who had aspirations of regional Islamic fundamentalist prominence. He and his small group were among the primary targets of the operation.

An Apache helicopter provides protection from the air, October 2005

Between 13 August and 18 August 2005, the United States Marine Corps carried out a military operation, called Operation Whalers, that took place in the Kunar Province just weeks after the disastrous Operation Red Wings. Like Operation Red Wings, the objective of Operation Whalers was the disruption of Taliban Anti-Coalition Militia (ACM) activity in the region in support of further stabilizing the region for unencumbered voter turnout for the 2005 Afghan parliamentary election. Operation Whalers was planned and executed by the 2nd Battalion of the 3rd Marine Regiment (2/3). The emphasis of the operation was an Anti-Coalition Militia cell led by Ahmad Shah, which was one of 22 identified ACM groups operating in the region at that time, and was the most active. Ahmad Shah's cell was responsible for the Navy SEAL ambush and subsequent MH-47 shootdown that killed, in total, 19 US special operations personnel during Operation Red Wings. Operation Whalers, named after the Hartford Whalers professional hockey team, was the "sequel" to Operation Red Wings in that it was aimed at furthering stabilization of the security situation in the restive Kunar Province of Eastern Afghanistan, a long-term goal of American and coalition forces operating in the area at that time. Operation Whalers, conducted by a number of Marine infantry companies of 2/3 with attached Afghan National Army soldiers and supported by conventional Army aviation, intelligence, and combat arms forces units and US Air Force aviation assets, proved a success. Taliban Anti-Coalition Militia activity dropped substantially and subsequent human intelligence and signals intelligence revealed that Ahmad Shah had been seriously wounded. Shah, who sought to disrupt the parliamentary election, was not able to undertake any significant Taliban Anti-Coalition operations subsequent to Operation Whalers in Kunar or neighboring provinces.[104][109]

In late August 2005, Afghan government forces attacked, backed by US troops with air support. After a one-week battle, Taliban forces were routed with up to 124 fighters killed.

A US Army soldier with 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment, 10th Mountain Division, fires his weapon during a battle with insurgent forces in Barge Matal, during Operation Mountain Fire in 2009.

In response to the increased risk of sending supplies through Pakistan, work began on the establishment of a Northern Distribution Network (NDN) through Russia and Central Asian republics. Initial permission to move supplies through the region was given on January 20, 2009, after a visit to the region by General David Petraeus.[163] The first shipment along the NDN route left on 20 February from Riga, Latvia, then traveled 5,169 km (3,212 mi) to the Uzbek town of Termez on the Afghanistan border.[164] In addition to Riga, other European ports included Poti, Georgia and Vladivostok, Russia.[165] US commanders hoped that 100 containers a day would be shipped along the NDN.[164] By comparison, 140 containers a day were typically shipped through the Khyber Pass.[166] By 2011, the NDN handled about 40% of Afghanistan-bound traffic, versus 30% through Pakistan.[165]

A US soldier and an Afghan interpreter in Zabul, 2009

On 11 May 2009, Uzbekistan president Islam Karimov announced that the airport in Navoiy (Uzbekistan) was being used to transport non-lethal cargo into Afghanistan. Due to the still unsettled relationship between Uzbekistan and the US following the 2005 Andijon massacre and subsequent expulsion of US forces from Karshi-Khanabad airbase, US forces were not involved in the shipments. Instead, South Korea's Korean Air, which overhauled Navoi's airport, officially handled logistics.[167]

US soldiers fire mortars in Zabul.

Originally only non-lethal resources were allowed on the NDN. In July 2009, however, shortly before a visit by new President Barack Obama to Moscow, Russian authorities announced that US troops and weapons could use the country's airspace to reach Afghanistan.[168]

Human rights advocates were (as of 2009) concerned that the US was again working with the government of Uzbekistan, which is often accused of violating human rights.[169] US officials promised increased cooperation with Uzbekistan, including further assistance to turn Navoi into a regional distribution center for both military and civilian ventures.[170][171]

US Army soldiers patrol the Korangal Valley in Kunar province.

In January 2009, about 3,000 US soldiers from the 3rd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division moved into the provinces of Logar, Wardak, and Kunar. Afghan Federal Guards fought alongside them. The troops were the first wave of an expected surge of reinforcements originally ordered by President Bush and increased by President Obama.[172]

US Army soldiers fire mortar rounds at suspected Taliban fighting positions in Nuristan province.

In mid-February 2009, it was announced that 17,000 additional troops would be deployed in two brigades and support troops; the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade of about 3,500 and the 5th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, a Stryker Brigade with about 4,000.[173] ISAF commander General David McKiernan had called for as many as 30,000 additional troops, effectively doubling the number of troops.[174] On 23 September, a classified assessment by General McChrystal included his conclusion that a successful counterinsurgency strategy would require 500,000 troops and five years.[175]

In November 2009, Ambassador Karl W. Eikenberry sent two classified cables to Washington expressing concerns about sending more troops before the Afghan government demonstrates that it is willing to tackle the corruption and mismanagement that has fueled the Taliban's rise. Eikenberry, a retired three-star general who in 2006–2007 commanded US troops in Afghanistan, also expressed frustration with the relative paucity of funds set aside for development and reconstruction.[176] In subsequent cables, Eikenberry repeatedly cautioned that deploying sizable American reinforcements would result in "astronomical costs"—tens of billions of dollars—and would only deepen the Afghan government's dependence on the United States.

US Army soldiers watch the surrounding hills for insurgents during a three-hour gun battle in Kunar province.

On 26 November 2009, Karzai made a public plea for direct negotiations with the Taliban leadership. Karzai said there is an "urgent need" for negotiations and made it clear that the Obama administration had opposed such talks. There was no formal US response.[177][178]

On 1 December, Obama announced at the US Military Academy in West Point that the US would send 30,000 more troops.[179] Antiwar organizations in the US responded quickly, and cities throughout the US saw protests on 2 December.[180] Many protesters compared the decision to deploy more troops in Afghanistan to the expansion of the Vietnam War under the Johnson administration.[181]

In 2009, the Drone strikes in Pakistan increased substantially under the administration of United States President Barack Obama that previously began during the administration of United States President George W. Bush.[182] against Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants. Some in the media have referred to the attacks as a "drone war".[183][184]

In August 2009, Baitullah Mehsud, the leader of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan TTP was killed in a drone strike, which was one of the early successes of the Obama administration[185]

On 4 September, during the Kunduz Province Campaign a devastating NATO air raid was conducted 7 kilometers southwest of Kunduz where Taliban fighters had hijacked civilian supply trucks, killing up to 179 people, including over 100 civilians.[186]

US soldiers conduct an operation.

On 25 June US officials announced the launch of Operation Khanjar ("strike of the sword").[187] About 4,000 US Marines from the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade[188] and 650 Afghan soldiers[189] participated. Khanjar followed a British-led operation named Operation Panther's Claw in the same region.[190] Officials called it the Marines' largest operation since the 2004 invasion of Fallujah, Iraq.[188] Operation Panther's Claw was aimed to secure various canal and river crossings to establish a long-term ISAF presence.[191]

Initially, Afghan and American soldiers moved into towns and villages along the Helmand River[188] to protect the civilian population. The main objective was to push into insurgent strongholds along the river. A secondary aim was to bring security to the Helmand Valley in time for presidential elections, set to take place on 20 August.

A soldier on patrol

According to a 22 December briefing by Major General Michael T. Flynn, the top US intelligence officer in Afghanistan, "The Taliban retains [the] required partnerships to sustain support, fuel legitimacy and bolster capacity."[192] The 23-page briefing states that "Security incidents [are] projected to be higher in 2010." Those incidents were already up by 300 percent since 2007 and by 60 percent since 2008, according to the briefing.[193] NATO intelligence at the time indicated that the Taliban had as many as 25,000 dedicated soldiers, almost as many as before 9/11 and more than in 2005.[194]

Former Taliban fighters turn in their weapons as part of a reintegration program

On 10 August McChrystal, newly appointed as US commander in Afghanistan, said that the Taliban had gained the upper hand. In a continuation of the Taliban's usual strategy of summer offensives,[195] the militants aggressively spread their influence into north and west Afghanistan and stepped up their attack in an attempt to disrupt presidential polls.[196] Calling the Taliban a "very aggressive enemy", he added that the US strategy was to stop their momentum and focus on protecting and safeguarding Afghan civilians, calling it "hard work".[197]

The Taliban's claim that the over 135 violent incidents disrupting elections was largely disputed. However, the media was asked to not report on any violent incidents.[198] Some estimates reported voter turn out as much less than the expected 70 percent. In southern Afghanistan where the Taliban held the most power, voter turnout was low and sporadic violence was directed at voters and security personnel. The chief observer of the European Union election mission, General Philippe Morillon, said the election was "generally fair" but "not free".[199]

Western election observers had difficulty accessing southern regions, where at least 9 Afghan civilians and 14 security forces were killed in attacks intended to intimidate voters. The Taliban released a video days after the elections, filming on the road between Kabul and Kandahar, stopping vehicles and asking to see their fingers. The video went showed ten men who had voted, listening to a Taliban militant. The Taliban pardoned the voters because of Ramadan.[200] The Taliban attacked towns with rockets and other indirect fire. Amid claims of widespread fraud, both top contenders, Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah, claimed victory. Reports suggested that turnout was lower than in the prior election.[201]

After Karzai's alleged win of 54 per cent, which would prevent a runoff, over 400,000 Karzai votes had to be disallowed after accusations of fraud. Some nations criticized the elections as "free but not fair".[202]

In December, an attack on Forward Operating Base Chapman, used by the CIA to gather information and to coordinate drone attacks against Taliban leaders, killed at least six CIA officers.

Deployment of additional US troops continued in early 2010, with 9,000 of the planned 30,000 in place before the end of March and another 18,000 expected by June, with the 101st Airborne Division as the main source and a Marine Expeditionary Force in the Helmand Province. US troops in Afghanistan outnumbered those in Iraq for the first time since 2003.[212]

The CIA, following a request by General McChrystal, planned to increase teams of operatives, including elite SAD officers, with US military special operations forces. This combination worked well in Iraq and was largely credited with the success of that surge.[213] The CIA also increased its campaign using Hellfire missile strikes on Al-Qaeda in Pakistan. The number of strikes in 2010, 115, more than doubled the 50 drone attacks that occurred in 2009.[214]

The surge in troops supported a sixfold increase in Special Forces operations.[215] 700 airstrikes occurred in September 2010 alone versus 257 in all of 2009. From July 2010 to October 2010, 300 Taliban commanders and 800 foot-soldiers were killed.[216] Hundreds more insurgent leaders were killed or captured as 2010 ended.[215] Petraeus said, "We've got our teeth in the enemy's jugular now, and we're not going to let go."[217]

The CIA created Counter-terrorism Pursuit Teams (CTPT) staffed by Afghans at the war's beginning.[218][219] This force grew to over 3,000 by 2010 and was considered one of the "best Afghan fighting forces". Firebase Lilley was one of SAD's nerve centers.[219] These units were not only effective in operations against the Taliban and al-Qaeda forces in Afghanistan,[220] but also expanded their operations into Pakistan.[221] They were also important factors in both the "counterterrorism plus" and the full "counter-insurgency" options discussed by the Obama administration in the December 2010 review.[222]

In early February, Coalition and Afghan forces began highly visible plans for an offensive, codenamed Operation Moshtarak, on the Taliban stronghold near the village of Marjah. It began on 13 February and, according to US and Afghan officials, was the first operation where Afghan forces led the coalition. Led by the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade (US), the offensive involved 15,000 US, British, Canadian, Estonian, Danish, French, and Afghan troops. It was the biggest joint operation since the 2001 invasion that ousted the Taliban.[223] The troops were fighting over an area of less than 260 km² (100 sq mi), with a population of 80,000.

On 25 July 2010, the release of 91,731 classified documents from the WikiLeaks organization was made public. The documents cover US military incident and intelligence reports from January 2004 to December 2009.[224] Some of these documents included sanitized, and "covered up", accounts of civilian casualties caused by Coalition Forces. The reports included many references to other incidents involving civilian casualties like the Kunduz airstrike and Nangar Khel incident.[225] The leaked documents also contain reports of Pakistan collusion with the Taliban. According to Der Spiegel, "the documents clearly show that the Pakistani intelligence agency Inter-Services Intelligence (usually known as the ISI) is the most important accomplice the Taliban has outside of Afghanistan."[226]

Tensions between Pakistan and the US were heightened in late September after several Pakistan Frontier Corps soldiers were killed and wounded. The troops were attacked by a US piloted aircraft that was pursuing Taliban forces near the Afghan-Pakistan border, but for unknown reasons opened fire on two Pakistan border posts. In retaliation for the strike, Pakistan closed the Torkham ground border crossing to NATO supply convoys for an unspecified period. This incident followed the release of a video allegedly showing uniformed Pakistan soldiers executing unarmed civilians.[227] After the Torkham border closing, Pakistani Taliban attacked NATO convoys, killing several drivers and destroying around 100 tankers.[228]

The Battle of Kandahar was part of an offensive named after the Battle of Bad'r that took place on 13 March 624, between Medina and Mecca. The Battle followed a 30 April announcement that the Taliban would launch their Spring offensive.[229]

On 7 May the Taliban launched a major offensive on government buildings in Kandahar. The Taliban said their goal was to take control of the city. At least eight locations were attacked: the governor's compound, the mayor's office, the NDS headquarters, three police stations and two high schools.[230] The battle continued onto a second day. The BBC's Bilal Sarwary called it "the worst attack in Kandahar province since the fall of the Taliban government in 2001, and a embarrassment for the Western-backed Afghan government."[231]

On 2 May US officials announced that al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden had been killed in Operation Neptune Spear, conducted by the US Navy SEALs, in Pakistan.[232]

On 22 June President Obama announced that 10,000 troops would be withdrawn by the end of 2011 and an additional 23,000 troops would return by the summer of 2012. After the withdrawal of 10,000 US troops, only 80,000 remained.[233] In July 2011 Canada withdrew its combat troops, transitioning to a training role.

Following suit, other NATO countries announced troop reductions. The United Kingdom stated that it would gradually withdraw its troops, however it did not specify numbers or dates.[234] France announced that it would withdraw roughly 1,000 soldiers by the end of 2012, with 3,000 soldiers remaining. Hundreds would come back at the end of 2011 and in the beginning of 2012, when the Afghan National Army took control of Surobi district. The remaining troops would continue to operate in Kapisa. Their complete withdrawal was expected by the end of 2014 or earlier given adequate security.[235]

Belgium announced that half of their force would withdraw starting in January 2012.[236] Norway announced it had started a withdrawal of its near 500 troops and would be completely out by 2014.[237] Equally, the Spanish Prime Minister announced the withdrawal of troops beginning in 2012, including up to 40 percent by the end of the first half of 2013, and complete withdrawal by 2014.[238]

After Neptune Spear, ISAF forces "accidentally" attacked Pakistan's armed forces on 26 November, killing 24 Pakistani soldiers. Pakistan blocked NATO supply lines and ordered Americans to leave Shamsi Airfield. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said the attack was 'tragic' and 'unintended'. "This (regret) is not good enough. We strongly condemn the attacks and reserve the right to take action," said DG ISPR Major General Athar Abbas. "This could have serious consequences in the level and extent of our cooperation."[239]

Ahmad Zia Massoud (left), former vice-president of Afghanistan, shaking hands with a US Provincial Reconstruction Team at the ceremony for a new road

In late 2011 the National Front of Afghanistan (NFA) was created by Ahmad Zia Massoud, Abdul Rashid Dostum and Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq in what many analysts have described as a reformation of the military wing of the United Front (Northern Alliance) to oppose a return of the Taliban to power.[242] Meanwhile, much of the political wing reunited under the National Coalition of Afghanistan led by Abdullah Abdullah becoming the main democratic opposition movement in the Afghan parliament.[243][244] Former head of intelligence Amrullah Saleh has created a new movement, Basej-i Milli (Afghanistan Green Trend), with support among the youth mobilizing about 10,000 people in an anti-Taliban demonstration in Kabul in May 2011.[245][246][247]

In January 2012, the National Front of Afghanistan raised concerns about the possibility of a secret deal between the US, Pakistan and the Taliban during a widely publicized meeting in Berlin. US Congressman Louie Gohmert wrote, "These leaders who fought with embedded Special Forces to initially defeat the Taliban represent over 60-percent of the Afghan people, yet are being entirely disregarded by the Obama and Karzai Administrations in negotiations."[248] After the meeting with US congressmen in Berlin the National Front signed a joint declaration stating among other things:

We firmly believe that any negotiation with the Taliban can only be acceptable, and therefore effective, if all parties to the conflict are involved in the process. The present form of discussions with the Taliban is flawed, as it excludes anti-Taliban Afghans. It must be recalled that the Taliban extremists and their Al-Qaeda supporters were defeated by Afghans resisting extremism with minimal human embedded support from the United States and International community. The present negotiations with the Taliban fail to take into account the risks, sacrifices and legitimate interests of the Afghans who ended the brutal oppression of all Afghans.[249]

— National Front Berlin Statement, January 2012

US Army soldiers prepare to conduct security checks near the Pakistan border, February 2012

Beginning in January 2012, incidents involving US troops[250][251][252][253][254][255] occurred that were described by The Sydney Morning Herald as "a series of damaging incidents and disclosures involving US troops in Afghanistan."[250] These incidents created fractures in the partnership between Afghanistan and ISAF,[256] raised the question whether discipline within US troops was breaking down,[257] undermined "the image of foreign forces in a country where there is already deep resentment owing to civilian deaths and a perception among many Afghans that US troops lack respect for Afghan culture and people"[258] and strained the relations between Afghanistan and the United States.[251][252] Besides an incident involving US troops who posed with body parts of dead insurgents and a video apparently showing a US helicopter crew singing "bye-bye Miss American Pie" before blasting a group of Afghan men with a Hellfire missile[258][259] these "high-profile US military incidents in Afghanistan"[254] also included the 2012 Afghanistan Quran burning protests and the Panjwai shooting spree.

Afghan Army units neutralizes an IED in Sangin, Helmand province

On 2 May 2012, Presidents Karzai and Obama signed a strategic partnership agreement between the two countries, after the US president had arrived unannounced in Kabul on the first anniversary of Osama bin Laden's death.[260] The US–Afghanistan Strategic Partnership Agreement, officially entitled the "Enduring Strategic Partnership Agreement between the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the United States of America",[261] provides the long-term framework for the two countries' relationship after the drawdown of US forces.[262] The Strategic Partnership Agreement went into effect on 4 July 2012, according to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on 8 July 2012 at the Tokyo Conference on Afghanistan.[263] On 7 July 2012, as part of the agreement, the US designated Afghanistan a major non-NATO ally after Karzai and Clinton met in Kabul.[264] On 11 November 2012, as part of the agreement, the two countries launched negotiations for a bilateral security agreement.[265]

On 21 May 2012 the leaders of NATO-member countries endorsed an exit strategy during the NATO Summit.[92] ISAF Forces would transfer command of all combat missions to Afghan forces by the middle of 2013,[266] while shifting from combat to advising, training and assisting Afghan security forces.[267][268] Most of the 130,000 ISAF troops would depart by the end of December 2014.[266] A new NATO mission would then assume the support role.[267][269]

Karzai visited the US in January 2012. At the time the US Government stated its openness to withdrawing all of its troops by the end of 2014.[270] On 11 January 2012 Karzai and Obama agreed to transfer combat operations from NATO to Afghan forces by spring 2013 rather than summer 2013.[271][272] "What's going to happen this spring is that Afghans will be in the lead throughout the country", Obama said. "They [ISAF forces] will still be fighting alongside Afghan troops...we will be in a training, assisting, advising role."[272] He also stated the reason of the withdrawals that "We achieved our central goal, or have come very close...which is to de-capacitate al-Qaeda, to dismantle them, to make sure that they can't attack us again."[273]

Soldiers from the Michigan Army National Guard and the Latvian Army patrol through a village in Konar province.

Obama also stated that he would determine the pace of troop withdrawal after consultations with commanders.[274] He added that any US mission beyond 2014 would focus solely on counterterrorism operations and training.[273][274] Obama insisted that a continuing presence must include an immunity agreement in which US troops are not subjected to Afghan law.[275] "I can go to the Afghan people and argue for immunity for US troops in Afghanistan in a way that Afghan sovereignty will not be compromised, in a way that Afghan law will not be compromised," Karzai replied.[272]

Both leaders agreed that the United States would transfer Afghan prisoners and prisons to the Afghan government[272][276] and withdraw troops from Afghan villages in spring 2013.[276][277] "The international forces, the American forces, will be no longer present in the villages, that it will be the task of the Afghan forces to provide for the Afghan people in security and protection," the Afghan president said.[276]

On 18 June 2013 the transfer of security responsibilities was completed.[278][279][280][281] The last step was to transfer control of 95 remaining districts. Karzai said, "When people see security has been transferred to Afghans, they support the army and police more than before." NATO leader Rasmussen said that Afghan forces were completing a five-stage transition process that began in March 2011. "They are doing so with remarkable resolve," he said. "Ten years ago, there were no Afghan national security forces...now you have 350,000 Afghan troops and police."[278] ISAF remained slated to end its mission by the end of 2014.[281] Some 100,000 ISAF forces remained in the country.[279]

On 22 June 2015, the Taliban detonated a car bomb outside the National Assembly in Kabul, and Taliban fighters attacked the building with assault rifles and RPGs.[321][322] A Taliban fighter driving a car loaded with explosives managed to get through security checkpoints before detonating the vehicle outside the parliament's gates. Six Taliban insurgents with AK-47 rifles and RPGs took up positions in a construction site nearby.[323] Members of Parliament were evacuated to safety, while security forces engaged the insurgents in a two-hour gun battle. Afghan Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said all seven attackers were killed by police and no MPs were wounded.[324] The UN mission in Afghanistan said a woman and a child were killed in the attack and 40 civilians were injured.[325]

Heavy fighting has occurred in the Kunduz province,[326][327] which was the site of clashes from 2009 onwards. In May 2015, flights into the Northern city of Kunduz were suspended due to weeks of clashes between the Afghan security forces and the Taliban outside the city.[328] The intensifying conflict in the Northern Char Dara District within the Kunduz province led the Afghan government to enlist local militia fighters to bolster opposition to the Taliban insurgency.[329] In June, the Taliban intensified attacks around the Northern city of Kunduz as part of a major offensive in an attempt to capture the city.[330][331][332] Tens of thousands of inhabitants have been displaced internally in Afghanistan by the fighting. The government recaptured the Char Dara district after roughly a month of fighting.[333]

In late September, Taliban forces launched an attack on Kunduz, seizing several outlying villages and entering the city. The Taliban stormed the regional hospital and clashed with security forces at the nearby university. The fighting saw the Taliban attack from four different districts: Char Dara to the West, Aliabad to the Southwest, Khanabad to the East and Imam Saheb to the North.[334][335] The Taliban took the Zakhel and Ali Khel villages on the highway leading south, which connects the city to Kabul and Mazar-e Sharif through Aliabad district, and reportedly made their largest gains in the Southwest of Kunduz, where some local communities had picked up weapons and supported the Taliban.[334] Taliban fighters had allegedly blocked the route to the Airport to prevent civilians fleeing the city.[336] One witness reported that the headquarters of the National Directorate of Security was set on fire.[337] Kunduz was recaptured by Afghan and American forces on 14 October 2015.

On 22 September 2016, the Afghan government signed a draft peace deal with Hezb-i-Islami. According to the draft agreement, Hezb-i-Islami agreed to cease hostilities, cut ties to extremist groups and respect the Afghan Constitution, in exchange for government recognition of the group and support for the removal of United Nations and American sanctions against Hekmatyar, who was also promised an honorary post in the government.[437][438] The agreement was formalized on 29 September by both Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Hekmatyar who appeared via a video link in the presidential palace, signing the agreement.

Map showing insurgent and government-controlled areas of Afghanistan, as of 23 January 2019

In early January 2017, the Marine Corps Times reported that Afghan forces seek to rebuild, following an exhausting 2016 fighting season; 33 districts, which are spread across 16 Afghan provinces, are under insurgent control whilst 258 are under government control and nearly 120 districts remain "contested".[386]

On 9 February 2017, General John Nicholson told Congress that NATO and allied forces in Afghanistan are facing a "stalemate" and that he needed a few thousand additional troops to more effectively train and advise Afghan soldiers. He also asserted that Russia was trying to "legitimize" the Taliban by creating the "false narrative" that the militant organization has been fighting the Islamic State and that Afghan forces have not, he asserted Russia's goal, was "to undermine the United States and NATO" in Afghanistan. However, he said that the area in which Islamic State fighters operate in Afghanistan had been greatly reduced.[439] A US Special Forces soldier was severely wounded that day when the base he was at was attacked in Helmand province. Nicholson later indicated the soldier was wounded in Sangin.[440]

The Military Times reported that on 26 February 2017, a USAF airstrike that killed the Taliban leadership commander Mullah Abdul Salam in Kunduz province in a joint operation with Afghan security forces. The airstrike marked a renewed strategy by US forces under the Trump administration to remove the Taliban leadership/commanders from the battlefield. The Obama administration strategy had focused much of its efforts in pushing reconciliation between the Taliban and the central government of Afghanistan; although in June 2016, to turn back the tide of Taliban gains, President Obama changed the rules of engagement to give US commanders more flexibility to provide airstrikes and ground support to struggling Afghan forces, if those efforts were perceived to provide "strategic effects." It made a concerted effort to kill high-profile al-Qaeda and Haqqani terrorists-groups officially designated as terrorist organizations by the US State Department-while attempting to draw down US and NATO forces in the region, having a tangible successes.[441]

The Army Times reported that in early March 2017, American and Afghan forces launched Operation Hamza to "flush" ISIS-K from its stronghold in eastern Afghanistan, engaging in regular ground battles.[442] Stars and Stripes reported that General Dawlat Waziri, spokesman for Afghanistan's Defense Ministry, said that for four weeks before 13 April Nangarhar airstrike (which was part of the operation), Afghan special forces unsuccessfully attempted to penetrate the area because of the difficult terrain and improvised explosive device (IEDs) planted by ISIS-KP militants.[443] The governor of Achin province Ismail Shinwary, confirmed to the BBC that two weeks preceding the strike that Afghan special forces, with the US air support, had begun anti-IS operations in the area two weeks ago.[444]

In April 2017, the Washington Post reported that Captain Bill Salvin, a spokesman for NATO's mission to Afghanistan, said that Afghan and international forces had reduced ISIS-K controlled territory in Afghanistan by two-thirds and had killed around half their fighters in the previous two years. Since the beginning of 2017, 460 airstrikes against terrorists (with drone strikes alone killing more than 200 IS militants); he added that the affiliate has an estimated 600–800 fighters in two eastern Afghan provinces.[445]

US Secretary of Defense James Mattis speaks with Afghanistan's Minister of Defense Abdullah Habibi, Kabul, April 2017

On 13 April 2017, the United States dropped[446] the largest non-nuclear bomb, known as the GBU-43/B Massive Ordnance Air Blast (MOAB) Mother of All Bombs, at 34.073336, 70.631215 (latitude and longitude coordinates) near Momand village[447] upon a Nangahar's Achin District village in eastern Afghanistan to destroy tunnel complexes used by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant – Khorasan Province (ISIL-KP or ISIS-K).[448][449][450] The Guardian reported that following the strike, US and Afghan forces conducted clearing operations and airstrikes in the area and assessed the damage.[451]

On 21 April 2017, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan fighters along with Afghan security forces allied to them stormed 209th Corps military base near Mazar-e-Sharif, killing over 140 Afghan soldiers.[452][453][454]

On 28 April 2017, the Washington Post reported that the Taliban announced the beginning of their spring offensive dubbed "Operation Mansouri."[455] On 20 May, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan fully secured Waghaz District in the province of Ghazni, while at the same time stormed Dih Yak district center and blew up Governor of Ghazni compound in Ghazni city.[456] Another major assault took place on 22 May in Shah Wali Kot district, Northern Kandahar province, during which Taliban managed to capture large military base, while inflicting heavy casualties to the Afghan army, reportedly killing 35 and capturing four soldiers as well as three Armoured Personnel Carriers. During the same day they had overrun a border outpost in southern Shorabak district, killing 15 soldiers, in addition to another outpost in district of Khakrez, killing eight more. The next day rebels assaulted another military base in Shah Wali Kot and an outpost, killing four soldiers and injuring four more, while pro-government forces abandoned a village in northern district of Maruf. On 24 May, the Taliban assaulted a base in Maiwand district, killing 13 soldiers.[457] Taliban launched another attack in province of Kandahar on 26 May, killing at least 18 soldiers, injuring 16 more and capturing four, according to security officials, while the group itself claimed to have killed 35 soldiers and capturing seven more, while also seizing seven Armoured Personnel Carriers and an array of weapons.[458] On 27 May, 13 members of Khost Provincial Force, a CIA funded and equipped paramilitary group, known for torture and extrajudicial killings, were killed after a Taliban car bomb blew up in Khost city.[459]

On 31 May 2017, the German embassy in Kabul was attacked by a suicide truck, located in the heavily fortified area of Kabul, killing over 90 and injuring over 350.[460][461] No one claimed responsibility for the attack. The bomb went off at about 08:25 local time (03:55 GMT) during rush hour.[460] The fortified area is considered the safest area of Kabul, with 3 m (10 ft) tall blast walls.[460] India's foreign minister Sushma Swaraj said its embassy staff were safe.

The Guardian reported that following the announcement of Donald Trump new strategy in the country, More than 900 munitions were released in August and September, bringing the total number of munitions used in 2017 to nearly 3,000, more than twice the expended munitions in 2016.[462]

On 14 October 2017, The Guardian reported that there were then between 600 and 800 ISIL-KP militants left in Afghanistan, who are mostly concentrated in Nangarhar Province.[463] CNN reported that throughout October, US aircraft dropped 653 bombs, missiles and other munitions on Taliban and local ISIL targets in Afghanistan; military officials said that the success against ISIS in Iraq and Syria has freed up air assets to be deployed to Afghanistan and other theatres.[434]

The Washington Post reported that on 20 November 2017, General John Nicholson announced that US aircraft were targeting drug production facilities in Afghanistan under a new strategy aimed at cutting off Taliban funding, saying that the Taliban was "becoming a criminal organization" that was earning about $200 million a year from drug-related activities. President Ashraf Ghani strongly endorsed the new campaign of US and Afghan airstrikes against the Taliban-run narcotic centers; the following day, a spokesman for the Helmand governor's office said that the past week's air operations involving coalition forces and Afghan air force planes conducted "direct strikes on Taliban hideouts and narcotics centers" (eight strikes by the coalition and two by the Afghan Air Force), killing more than 40 Taliban fighters and that a "main processing center of narcotics was destroyed" along with about 2,200 pounds of drugs.[464] CNN reported that the campaign is known as Operation Jagged Knife, three of the strikes occurred in Kajaki district, four in Musa Qala and one in Sangin; a Pentagon spokesman said that the airstrikes were carried out by US F-16s and B-52s, General Nicholson told reporters at the Pentagon that a US F-22 Raptor and Afghan Air Force A-29s also participated in the strikes. Nicholson estimated that there are approximately 400 to 500 such facilities in Afghanistan and that "these operations will continue on in the coming days."[465] CNN also reported that General Nicholson said "our priority's been in Iraq and Syria and, as we continue to see success there, we hope to see more assets coming over to enable us to do more of these kinds of operations," the strikes marked the first time commanders used their newly granted authorities to target Taliban revenue sources.[434] Vice President Mike Pence announced on 21 December 2017 that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani told him that more senior Taliban leaders have been killed in 2017 than in all prior years of the war combined. Pence also stated that the USA was making great progress with the war in Afghanistan.[466]

US President Donald Trump with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani in October 2017

On 21 August 2017, US President Donald Trump stated that he would expand the American presence in Afghanistan, without giving details on how or when.[467] Trump did not formulate any timelines, troop numbers or specific purposes to be met; only that a US withdrawal was not an option now as it would play into the hands of terrorists and that publicizing deadlines and exact plans would only help those groups prepare.[468][469] Trump also said that 20 US designated terrorist organizations are active in Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to The Washington Post, this contradicts the official US Government list which only has 13 such organizations.[470]

The Guardian reported that Afghan government officials praised the new strategy, not only for increasing troop numbers and removing with strict timelines, but for increasing pressure on Pakistan-which they see as a main sponsor of the insurgency. In a televised address, President Trump said a new approach to Pakistan would be a "pillar" of the new strategy, adding that "we can no longer be silent about Pakistan's safe havens for terrorist organizations, the Taliban and other groups that pose a threat to the region and beyond;" Najibullah Azad, a spokesman for the Afghan president, said that "the strategy is made in accordance with realities on the ground", and that "this is the first time the US government is coming with a very clear-cut message to Pakistan to either stop what you're doing or face the negative consequences." Other statements by Afghan officials such as Davood Moradian, the director general of the Afghan Institute for Strategic Studies in Kabul, said that "the new strategy is premised on 'peace through strength', in contrast to Obama's failed approach, which was essentially 'peace through appeasement'." In response, Pakistani security officials accused Trump of shifting blame for its failures in the war against the Taliban and other armed groups in Afghanistan and of endangering the already fraught bilateral relations between the two countries.[471]

On 15 September 2017, the New York Times reported that the CIA was seeking authority to conduct its own drone strikes in Afghanistan and other war zones, according to current and former intelligence and military officials, and that the change in authority was being considered by the White House as part of the new strategy despite concerns by the Pentagon.[472] On 19 September 2017, the Trump Administration deployed another 3,000 US troops to Afghanistan. They would add to the approximately 11,000 US troops already serving in Afghanistan, bringing the total to at least 14,000 US troops stationed in Afghanistan.[473] On 4 October 2017, Fox News reported that Defense Secretary Jim Mattis approved a change in rules of engagement as part of the new strategy so that there is no longer a requirement for US troops to be in contact with enemy forces in Afghanistan before opening fire.[474]

US, British and Afghan security forces train together in an aerial reaction force exercise at Camp Qargha in Kabul, 16 January 2018.

In January 2018, the BBC reported that the Taliban are openly active in 70% of the country (being in full control of 14 districts and have an active and open physical presence in a further 263) and that Islamic State is more active in the country than ever before. Following attacks by the Taliban and Islamic State that killed scores of civilians, President Trump and Afghan officials decided to rule out any talks with the Taliban.[475]

On 15 February 2018, The New York Times reported the rise of Afghan civilians being intentionally targeted by the Taliban, based on an annual United Nations report released a week earlier. This report offered a detailed assessment of the 16-year Afghan war, showing the rise of complex bombing attacks deliberately targeting civilians in 2017, having 10,453 Afghan civilians wounded or killed.[476] As the US and Afghan government are publishing fewer statistics, the U.N. report is one of the most reliable indicators about the war's impact by 2018. The report emphasizes the rise of "complex attacks", a type of suicide assault that is becoming more deadly, described by the New York Times as the hallmark of the war in 2018. These attacks are referred to as the Taliban's ferocious response to US President Trump's new strategy of war (an increased pace of aerial bombardments targeting Taliban and Islamic State Militants), giving the message that the Taliban can strike at will, even in the capital city, Kabul. The U.N. report included a statement showing the Taliban's position, the Taliban blamed the U.S and its allies for fighting the war in Afghanistan, and it denied targeting civilians. The New York Times quoted Atiqullah Amarkhel, a retired general and military analyst based in Kabul, saying that the UN report proved the failure of peace talks, as the Taliban and the US government are both determined for victory rather than negotiating a settlement. He said "More airstrikes mean more suicide attacks," proving the intensification of the war by 2018.[477]

Curtis Scaparrotti, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, and Kay Bailey Hutchison with Brig. Gen. Wolf-Jürgen Stahl in Afghanistan in February 2018

In July the Taliban carried out the Darzab offensive and captured Darzab District following the surrender of ISIL-K to the Afghan Government.

In August 2018, the Taliban launched a series of offensives, the largest being the Ghazni offensive. During the Ghazni offensive, the Taliban seized Ghazni, Afghanistan's sixth-largest city for several days but eventually retreated. The Taliban were successful in killing hundreds of Afghan soldiers and police and captured several government bases and districts.

Following the offensives Erik Prince, the private military contractor and former head of Blackwater, advocated additional privatization of the war.[478][479] However, the then-US Defense Secretary James Mattis rebuked the idea, saying, “When Americans put their nation's credibility on the line, privatizing it is probably not a wise idea.”[480]

In September 2018, the United Nations raised concerns over the increasing number of civilian casualties due to air strikes in Afghanistan. The US air force dropped around 3,000 bombs in the first six months of the year, to force Taliban militants for peace talks. In a statement issued by the UNAMA, it reminded all the parties involved in the conflict "to uphold their obligations to protect civilians from harm.”[481]

On 17 October 2018, days before a parliamentary election, candidate Abdul Jabar Qahraman was killed in an attack by the Taliban. The Taliban issued a statement, warning teachers and students to not participate in the upcoming elections or use schools as polling centers.[482]

On 17 December 2018, US diplomats held talks with the Taliban in the United Arab Emirates on possibly ending the war. The Taliban gave conditions of a pullout date for US-led troops before any talks with the Kabul government and has demanded that Washington not oppose the establishment of an Islamist government. However, the US officials have insisted on keeping some troops and at least a couple of bases in the country. The meeting was described by US officials as “part of efforts by the United States and other international partners to promote an intra-Afghan dialogue aimed at ending the conflict in Afghanistan.”[483]

Ongoing armed conflicts in June 2019.

---

  Major wars, 10,000 or more deaths in current or past year

On 25 January 2019, Afghanistan's president Ashraf Ghani said that more than 45,000 members of the Afghan security forces had been killed since he became president in 2014. He also said that there had been fewer than 72 international casualties during the same period.[484] A January 2019 report by the US government estimated that 53.8% of Afghanistan's districts were controlled or influenced by the government, with 33.9% contested and 12.3% under insurgent control or influence.[485]

On 4 February 2019, the Taliban attacked a checkpoint in northern Baghlan province. 21 people, including 11 policemen were killed. The same day, another attack took place in northern Samangan province that killed 10 people.[486]

On 25 February 2019, peace talks began between the Taliban and the United States in Qatar, with the Taliban co-founder Abdul Ghani Barada notably present. US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad reported that this round of negotiations was "more productive than they have been in the past" and that a draft version of a peace agreement had been agreed upon. The deal involved the withdrawal of US and international troops from Afghanistan and the Taliban not allowing other jihadist groups to operate within the country. The Taliban also reported that progress was being made in the negotiations.[487]

On 1 March 2019, the Taliban led an assault against Shorab military base, in Helmand, killing 23 security forces and wounding 20.[488]

On 30 April 2019, Afghan government forces undertook clearing operations directed against both ISIS-K and the Taliban in eastern Nangarhar Province, after the two groups fought for over a week over a group of villages in an area of illegal talc mining. The National Directorate of Security claimed 22 ISIS-K fighters were killed and two weapons caches destroyed, while the Taliban claimed US-backed Afghan forces killed seven civilians; a provincial official said over 9,000 families had been displaced by the fighting.[489]

On 28 July 2019, President Ashraf Ghani's running mate Amrullah Saleh's office was attacked by a suicide bomber and a few militants. At least 20 people were killed and 50 injured, with Saleh also amongst the injured ones. During the six-hour-long operation, more than 150 civilians were rescued and three militants were killed.[490]

Military situation, as of 2019

  Under control of the Afghan government and NATO

  Under control of the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, and Allies

By August, the Taliban controlled more territory than at any point since 2001.[491] The Washington Post reported that the US was close to reaching a peace deal with the Taliban and was preparing to withdraw 5,000 troops from Afghanistan.[492] The same month, however, it was later confirmed that some Taliban leaders, including Taliban emir Hibatullah Akhunzada's brother Hafiz Ahmadullah and some other relatives,[493] were killed in a bomb blast at the Khair Ul Madarais mosque, which was located in the Quetta suburb of Kuchlak and had long served as the main meeting place of members of the Taliban.[494][493] In September, the US canceled the negotiations.[495]

On 3 September 2019, the Taliban claimed responsibility for the suicide attack in Afghanistan's capital, targeting the Green Village Compound in Kabul. According to the reports, nearly 16 civilians died, while 119 were reported to be injured.[496]

On 15 September 2019, 38 Taliban fighters, including two senior commanders, were killed in a joint US-Afghan military operation.[497]

On 17 September 2019, a suicide bomber attacked the campaign rally of President Ashraf Ghani, killing 26 people and wounding 42. Less than an hour later, the Taliban carried out another suicide bomb attack near the US Embassy and the Afghan Defense Ministry, killing 22 people and wounded around 38.[498]

On 27 October 2019, 80 Taliban fighters were killed as a result of joint Afghan-US military operations in Kandahar and Faryab.[499]

US representative Zalmay Khalilzad (left) and Taliban representative Abdul Ghani Baradar (right) sign the Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan in Doha, Qatar on 29 February 2020

Peace negotiations had resumed in December 2019.[500] This round of talks resulted in a seven-day partial ceasefire which began on 22 February 2020.[501] On 29 February, the United States and the Taliban signed a conditional peace deal in Doha, Qatar[502] that called for a prisoner exchange within ten days and was supposed to lead to US troops withdrawal from Afghanistan within 14 months.[503][504] However, the Afghan government was not a party to the deal, and, in a press conference the next day, President Ghani criticized the deal for being "signed behind closed doors." He said the Afghan government had "made no commitment to free 5,000 Taliban prisoners" and that such an action "is not the United States' authority, but it is the authority of the government of Afghanistan.”[505][506][507][508] Ghani also stated that any prisoner exchange "cannot be a prerequisite for talks" but rather must be negotiated within the talks.[509]

The Taliban resumed offensive operations against the Afghan army and police on 3 March, conducting attacks in Kunduz and Helmand provinces.[510] On 4 March, the United States retaliated by launching an air strike against Taliban fighters in Helmand.[511]

On 6 March, ISIS-K killed 32 people in a mass shooting in Kabul.[512] Between 3 and 27 March, the Taliban claimed 405 attacks against Afghan security forces.[513]

On 20 April 2020, Taliban in another attack killed at least 23 Afghan troops and nine civilians.[514]

In April 2020, the New York Times documented Afghan war casualties from 27 March until 23 April and informed that at least 262 pro-government forces, alongside 50 civilians have been killed in almost a month's time. Additionally, hundreds of civilians and Afghan forces also got injured.[515]

On 2 May 2020, Afghan authorities released at least 100 Taliban members from prison in Kabul. This came in response to the peace deal with the US, which the Taliban argues assured them their 5,000 inmates being released. However, the Afghan government, which denied release and any authority by the US over decision, has now agreed to free 1500 members of the militia organization.

At 10 am on 12 May 2020 in Kabul, three gunmen wearing police uniforms carried out a mass shooting in the maternity ward of a hospital in Kabul.[512] The hospital is located in the Shi'ite Hazara neighborhood of Dashte Barchi. The hospital is assisted by Médecins Sans Frontières personnel.[516] The attackers killed 24 people, including two newborn babies[517] and injured another 16. All of the attackers were killed by Afghan security forces and their mentoring Norwegian special forces.[518][519][512][520] According to Frederic Bonnot, Médecins Sans Frontières' head of programs in Afghanistan: "I went back the day after the attack and what I saw in the maternity (ward) demonstrates it was a systematic shooting of the mothers. They went through the rooms in the maternity (ward), shooting women in their beds. It was methodical. Walls sprayed with bullets, blood on the floors in the rooms, vehicles burnt out and windows shot through." Bonnot added: "It's shocking. We know this area has suffered attacks in the past, but no one could believe they would attack a maternity. They came to kill the mothers."[521] About an hour after the Kabul attack, a suicide bombing took place in Kuz Kunar District, Nangarhar Province at the funeral of Shaikh Akram, a police commander who died of a heart attack a day before, killing 32 people.[522][523] 133 others were injured, some severely.[524][525] Two days later, the Taliban carried out a retaliation attack near a court in Gardez, Paktia: a suicide truck bomber tried to explode himself outside a military compound, but exploded before its destination. The attack resulted in five civilians killed and at least 29 others injured. The Taliban claimed this as a revenge attack, after President Ashraf Ghani blamed the group for the attack at the maternity hospital; the Taliban denied responsibility for that attack.[526]

On 30 July, a suicide car bomber killed 17 people in Puli Alam, Logar Province.[527]

Taliban fighters in Kabul, 17 August 2021

The Taliban insurgency intensified considerably in 2021, as US armed forces completed their withdrawal from the country by September. On 30 April, a bombing in Puli Alam killed about 30 people. On 8 May, the bombing of a secondary school in west Kabul killed about 45 people. Most casualties were female students, who were leaving the school at the time. No group so far has claimed responsibility for those two attacks.[528][529] On 15 May, an ISIL bombing inside a mosque in Kabul killed 12 people.[530] On 1 June, two ISIL bus bombings killed 10 people in Kabul.[531] On July 5, 2021, Afghan soldiers were reported to have fled to Tajikistan to escape clashes with Taliban insurgents.[532] The Taliban gained control of various towns throughout June and July, eventually resulting in the Fall of Kabul on 15 August.[533] The war was declared over the same day, with the Taliban giving foreign forces until the 31st of August to leave the country.[534] A small resistance force led by Ahmad Massoud was formed in the Panjshir Valley on 16 August.[535] This led to a brief conflict with the new Taliban government, however, on 26 August, the two sides signed a peace treaty and agreed not to attack each other.[536][537]