Published: 11:48 AM, 30 September 2026
Fall of Communism and Rise of Militancy in Afghanistan
Mohammad Nurul Huda
Afghanistan's modern history is marked by political upheaval, foreign intervention, civil war, and the rise of armed movements. Among the most important turning points was the collapse of the communist government in 1992. Instead of bringing lasting peace, the fall of the regime was followed by intense fighting among rival mujahideen factions and the eventual rise of the Taliban. The process transformed Afghanistan from a battlefield of the Cold War into a center of regional militancy and international concern.
The fall of communism in Afghanistan cannot be understood as an isolated event. It was the result of years of political instability, the Soviet invasion, armed resistance, foreign assistance, and the weakening of the Afghan state. After the Soviet withdrawal in 1989, the communist government survived for several years, but its eventual collapse left a political and military vacuum. Rival armed groups then competed for power, creating conditions in which a new militant movement could emerge.
The Communist Revolution
Afghanistan's political crisis intensified in 1978 when the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, a Marxist political organization, seized power in the Saur Revolution. The new government introduced radical reforms, including changes affecting land ownership, education, and social structures.
The reforms encountered strong resistance, particularly in rural areas. Afghanistan was a deeply traditional society, and many communities viewed the government's policies as threatening religious customs and established social relationships. Rebellion spread across the country.
Political divisions within the communist leadership further weakened the government. In December 1979, the Soviet Union intervened militarily in Afghanistan and installed Babrak Karmal as leader. The Soviet intervention transformed an internal political crisis into an international conflict.
The Soviet War
The Soviet military presence produced a powerful armed resistance. Various Afghan groups, collectively known as the mujahideen, fought Soviet forces and the Afghan government.
The conflict became a major Cold War confrontation. The United States, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and other countries supported different elements of the anti-Soviet resistance. Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate played an important role in channeling assistance to Afghan resistance groups. The United States also provided substantial support through Pakistan.
For Afghanistan, however, the war was devastating. Villages were destroyed, millions of people became refugees, agriculture and infrastructure suffered, and large numbers of civilians were killed or displaced.
The Soviet Union eventually withdrew its forces, completing the withdrawal in February 1989. Yet the departure of Soviet troops did not bring an end to the war. The Afghan government of President Mohammad Najibullah continued fighting the mujahideen and remained in power until 1992.
The Collapse of the Communist Government
The communist government survived longer than many expected after the Soviet withdrawal. Najibullah attempted to establish a broader political base and relied on the Afghan armed forces and continuing Soviet assistance.
The situation changed dramatically as the Soviet Union itself weakened and collapsed in 1991. Moscow's capacity to support its Afghan ally diminished. In March 1992, the defection of General Abdul Rashid Dostam and his Uzbek militia contributed to the collapse of Najibullah's government.
Mujahideen forces entered Kabul in 1992, ending the communist period. Many Afghans hoped that the fall of the regime would open the way toward national reconciliation and reconstruction.
Instead, rival factions quickly began competing for power.
From Victory to Civil War
The mujahideen were not a single political organization. They represented different ideological, ethnic, regional, and military interests. During the Soviet war, their common opposition to Moscow had united them to some degree. Once that common enemy disappeared, their differences became increasingly difficult to manage.
An interim arrangement was established in 1992, with Burhanuddin Rabbani eventually becoming president. But rival commanders refused to accept a stable distribution of power.
Fighting broke out in Kabul between forces loyal to Rabbani and rival factions, including Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami. Attempts to establish political agreements repeatedly failed. Fighting intensified during 1993 and 1994, while different armed groups controlled various parts of the country.
Kabul suffered particularly badly. Artillery and rocket attacks destroyed neighborhoods, killed civilians, and displaced residents. Outside the capital, local commanders and warlords exercised substantial authority.
The collapse of central government institutions created an environment in which ordinary Afghans faced insecurity, checkpoints, extortion, kidnapping, and violence.
The Conditions for Militancy
The years between 1992 and 1996 were crucial to understanding the rise of the Taliban. Afghanistan had experienced more than a decade of war. Millions of people had grown up amid violence, while many young Afghans had received education in religious schools and refugee communities in Pakistan.
The Taliban emerged in the early 1990s from a combination of former mujahideen, younger Pashtun religious students, and other supporters. The word "Taliban" means "students" in Pashto. The movement developed in southern Afghanistan and presented itself as an alternative to the corruption, insecurity, and factional warfare associated with the post-Soviet political order.
In 1994, Taliban forces captured Kandahar. They expanded rapidly, promising to restore security and impose their interpretation of Islamic law. Their rise was aided by support and networks extending into Pakistan, while many Afghans in areas suffering from warlordism initially saw them as a force capable of restoring order.
The Capture of Kabul
The Taliban's military expansion continued through southern and western Afghanistan. In September 1996, Taliban forces captured Kabul, forcing President Rabbani and his allies to retreat toward the northeast.
The takeover marked a major transformation in Afghanistan's political landscape. By the end of the 1990s, the Taliban controlled most of the country, while the Northern Alliance and other opponents retained territory mainly in the northeast. Contemporary U.S. government reporting estimated that the Taliban controlled roughly 90 percent of Afghanistan by the end of 1998.
The Taliban established the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and introduced a highly restrictive interpretation of Islamic law. The movement's policies severely restricted women's education, employment, movement, and public participation. Minority communities, including the Hazara, United States Department of State's historical human-rights reporting documented political killings, torture, arbitrary detention, rape, looting, abductions, and indiscriminate attacks on civilians during the civil of communism was therefore only one chapter in Afghanistan's turbulent history. The more important story was what followed: a country exhausted by war, a political outside world for decades to come. They also left a lasting human legacy-millions displaced, communities divided, institutions weakened, and generations also faced serious abuses.
Afghanistan and International Militancy
The rise of the Taliban also created an environment in which foreign militant organizations could establish bases and training networks.
During the 1990s, Afghanistan became a destination for militants from different countries. Osama bin Laden returned to Afghanistan in 1996 and established a base there under Taliban-controlled territory. Al-Qaeda subsequently developed its organizational infrastructure in the country.
This development internationalized Afghanistan's conflict. What had begun as a struggle involving Afghan political factions increasingly became connected to transnational militant networks.
The presence of these organizations eventually had consequences far beyond Afghanistan. The September 11, 2001, attacks in the United States transformed international perceptions of Afghanistan and led to the U.S.-led military intervention that removed the Taliban government later that year.
The Human Cost
The transition from communist rule to militant rule came at an enormous human cost.
Afghans experienced repeated cycles of displacement, destruction, and political uncertainty. The Soviet war had already devastated much of the country's infrastructure. The civil war that followed destroyed large parts of Kabul and other urban areas.
The United States Department of State's historical human-rights reporting documented political killings, torture, arbitrary detention, rape, looting, abductions, and indiscriminate attacks on civilians during the civil-war period. It also documented severe restrictions and abuses under Taliban rule.
These experiences weakened state institutions and made reconstruction extraordinarily difficult.
Why Did Militancy Rise?
There was no single cause behind the rise of militancy in Afghanistan. Several factors interacted.
First, decades of war had weakened government institutions and destroyed much of the country's infrastructure.
Second, the Soviet occupation had militarized Afghan society and created large networks of armed groups.
Third, the collapse of the communist government did not produce a stable political settlement. Rival factions competed for control instead.
Fourth, regional and international actors continued to influence Afghan politics and provide resources to different armed groups.
Finally, ordinary Afghans' desire for security created an opportunity for the Taliban, who initially presented themselves as a movement capable of ending warlordism and restoring order.
Understanding these factors is important because Afghanistan's experience demonstrates how the collapse of a political system can produce instability when there is no effective mechanism for transferring power peacefully.
A Legacy That Continues
The fall of Afghanistan's communist government was not simply the end of one political system. It was the beginning of another stage in a long conflict.
The Soviet withdrawal had removed the principal foreign military force, but it did not resolve Afghanistan's internal political divisions. The communist government collapsed three years later, yet the factions that replaced it failed to establish a stable national settlement. Civil war created conditions for the Taliban's emergence, and the Taliban's rule subsequently provided space for international militant networks.
The history also demonstrates the long-term consequences of institutional collapse. When courts, police, schools, administrative structures, and political mechanisms become ineffective, armed groups can fill the vacuum.
Afghanistan's experience remains a significant subject of historical study because it illustrates how domestic conflict, foreign intervention, ideology, regional politics, and social instability can interact over several decades.
The fall of communism was therefore only one chapter in Afghanistan's turbulent history. The more important story was what followed: a country exhausted by war, a political order unable to consolidate itself, the emergence of the Taliban, and the transformation of Afghanistan into a center of international militancy.
The events of the 1990s ultimately shaped the country's relationship with the outside world for decades to come. They also left a lasting human legacy-millions displaced, communities divided, institutions weakened, and generations shaped by conflict.
For Afghanistan, the end of communist rule did not mean the end of war. It marked the beginning of a new and even more complicated phase in the country's modern history.
Afghanistan has long been a country of religious traditions, ethnic diversity, and competing interpretations of Islam. Yet decades of war, political instability, militant violence, and the return of Taliban rule have created an increasingly difficult environment for religious minorities and for Muslims whose beliefs differ from dominant interpretations.
The phrase "religious bigotry" covers a broad range of behavior, from social discrimination and harassment to restrictions on worship, intimidation, forced displacement, and violent attacks. In Afghanistan, religion and ethnicity are often closely connected, making it difficult to separate religious discrimination from ethnic persecution. The Hazara community, for example, is predominantly Shia Muslim, while other minority groups include Sikhs, Hindus, Christians, Ahmadis, and Baha'is.
Recent reports from international organizations and governments indicate that religious minorities continue to face serious insecurity and restrictions. At the same time, extremist groups such as Islamic State Khorasan Province, or ISIS-K, have carried out attacks against religious communities, particularly Shia Muslims. The result is a complex environment in which both state policies and militant violence affect religious freedom.
A Country of Religious Diversity
Afghanistan is overwhelmingly Muslim, with Sunni Muslims forming the majority and Shia Muslims constituting a significant minority. Smaller religious communities have historically included Sikhs, Hindus, Christians, Ahmadis, and Baha'is.
For generations, these communities contributed to Afghan commercial and cultural life. Kabul, Kandahar, Jalalabad, and other cities once had visible Hindu and Sikh communities, including temples and places of worship.
Years of conflict, however, dramatically reduced the size of these communities. Violence, insecurity, discrimination, economic pressure, and migration have caused many members to leave the country.
The U.S. State Department's 2023 International Religious Freedom Report noted that members of minority religious communities reported discrimination and fear of persecution under Taliban rule. It also reported that many Christians, Sikhs, Hindus, Baha'is, and Ahmadis had withdrawn from public life or left the country.
Taliban Rule and Religious Interpretation
The Taliban returned to power in August 2021 after the collapse of the previous Afghan government. Since then, the movement has sought to organize public life around its interpretation of Sunni Hanafi jurisprudence and Islamic law.
According to the U.S. State Department's 2023 report, Taliban authorities described Afghanistan as an "Islamic emirate" whose laws and governance should conform to their interpretation of sharia. The report also said that the country lacked a clearly defined and consistently applied legal framework and that Taliban policies were often communicated through decrees, guidelines, and instructions.
The Taliban has stated that its policies are intended to establish an Islamic system and maintain social order. Taliban officials have also said they are responsible for protecting citizens.
The question, however, is how such policies affect people whose religious practices or interpretations differ from those of the authorities.
Pressure on Shia Muslims
Shia Muslims, particularly ethnic Hazaras, have faced serious challenges. Religion and ethnicity overlap significantly in Afghanistan, so not every incident involving Hazaras can be classified solely as religious persecution. Nevertheless, reports from international organizations and human-rights bodies have documented discrimination and violence affecting the community.
The U.S. State Department reported that Hazara representatives described discrimination in areas including public-sector employment, university admissions, and access to services. It also reported allegations of property confiscation, forced displacement, physical abuse, and detention.
The problem is compounded by attacks from ISIS-K, which has repeatedly targeted Shia civilians.
In 2023, for example, the State Department reported several attacks against Shia communities for which ISIS-K claimed responsibility, including attacks on worshippers and Hazara civilians.
These attacks demonstrate that religious minorities face threats from more than one source. The existence of militant violence does not by itself establish government responsibility for those attacks, but the government's ability and willingness to protect vulnerable communities remains an important part of the religious-freedom debate.
ISIS-K and Sectarian Violence
ISIS-K has adopted an extremist ideology that rejects other religious interpretations and has repeatedly targeted civilians.
Shia Muslims, especially Hazaras, have been among its principal victims. Attacks on mosques, religious gatherings, educational institutions, and public transportation have caused numerous civilian casualties.
This violence has deepened fear among minority communities. People may avoid religious gatherings or public expressions of their faith because they fear becoming targets.
Such attacks also threaten the broader social fabric. When people begin to identify neighbors primarily through religious or sectarian categories, suspicion can replace coexistence.
Religious extremism therefore does not affect only those who are directly attacked. It can undermine trust between communities and encourage further isolation.
The Decline of Sikh and Hindu Communities
Afghanistan's Sikh and Hindu communities have experienced a particularly dramatic decline.
For generations, Sikh and Hindu families lived in Afghanistan and participated in trade and commerce. Years of war and insecurity, however, led many to leave.
The U.S. State Department reported in its 2023 religious-freedom assessment that Sikh and Hindu representatives described serious security concerns and that many had abandoned homes, shops, and other property before leaving the country.
The decline of these communities represents more than a demographic change. It also means the disappearance of religious institutions, cultural traditions, languages, businesses, and historical memories that once formed part of Afghanistan's diverse social landscape.
When a minority community becomes too frightened to practice its religion openly, religious freedom becomes largely theoretical.
Christians, Ahmadis, and Baha'is
Small Christian, Ahmadi, and Baha'i communities face particularly difficult circumstances because they constitute tiny minorities in an overwhelmingly Muslim society.
According to the U.S. State Department, Christians, Baha'is, and Ahmadis have often concealed their religious identities because of fear of persecution or social discrimination. Ahmadis have also reported difficulty practicing their faith openly.
Christian converts can face especially serious social and legal risks because conversion from Islam is viewed by many conservative religious authorities as apostasy.
The result is a climate in which some believers choose secrecy over public worship.
The Impact on Women and Girls
Religious restrictions in Afghanistan also intersect with restrictions on women and girls.
The Taliban's interpretation of Islamic law has been used to justify extensive restrictions on women's education, employment, movement, and participation in public life. The United Nations has documented the implementation of the Taliban's "law on the propagation of virtue and prevention of vice," which seeks to enforce the authorities' vision of an Islamic society.
These policies are broader than religious-minority issues, but they demonstrate how religious interpretation can become connected with state regulation of everyday behavior.
Critics argue that imposing one interpretation of religious practice through state power restricts freedom of belief and personal choice. Taliban authorities, by contrast, maintain that their policies are based on their interpretation of Islamic principles.
Social Discrimination
Religious bigotry is not limited to government policy or terrorist attacks. It can also appear in everyday social interactions.
Mohammad Nurul Huda is a
banker and a columnist.
