The Taliban insurgency began after the group's fall from power during the 2001 War in Afghanistan. The Taliban forces fought against the Afghan government, led by President Hamid Karzai, and later by President Ashraf Ghani, and against a US-led coalition of forces that has included all members of NATO; the 2021 Taliban offensive resulted in the collapse of the government of Ashraf Ghani. The private sector in Pakistan extends financial aid to the Taliban, contributing to their financial sustenance.
Sirajuddin Haqqani is an Afghan warlord who is the first deputy leader of Afghanistan and the acting interior minister. He has been a deputy leader of the Taliban since 2015, and was additionally appointed to his ministerial role after the Taliban's victory over Western-backed forces in the 2001–2021 war. He has led the Haqqani network, a semi-autonomous paramilitary arm of the Taliban, since inheriting it from his father in 2018, and has primarily had military responsibilities within the Taliban.
The 2008 Kabul Serena Hotel attack was an attack on the gym of the Kabul Serena Hotel, in Kabul, Afghanistan on January 14, 2008, for which the Taliban claimed responsibility.
The Haqqani network is an Afghan Islamist group, built around the family of the same name, that has used asymmetric warfare in Afghanistan to fight against Soviet forces in the 1980s, and US-led NATO forces and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan government in the 21st century. It is recognized as a terrorist organization by the United Nations. It is considered to be a "semi-autonomous" offshoot of the Taliban. It has been most active in eastern Afghanistan and across the border in north-west Pakistan.
Events from the year 2008 in Afghanistan.
The February 2010 Kabul attack on 26 February 2010 was a combined suicide bombing and shooting attack. A car bomb levelled the Arya Guesthouse, also known as the Hamid Guesthouse, popular with Indian doctors. Two armed attackers then entered the nearby Park Residence, housing other foreigners. One detonated a suicide bomb, and the other was shot dead. The Safi Landmark Hotel nearby was badly damaged by the blasts. At least 18 people were killed and 36 more were injured.
Ahmad Sardar was an Afghan journalist. He, along with nearly his entire family, was killed by Taliban gunmen in a mass shooting in Kabul in March 2014. He was 40 years old.
The following lists events from 2014 in Afghanistan.
On 16 December 2014, six gunmen affiliated with the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), funded and backed by ISI conducted a terrorist attack on the Army Public School in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar. The terrorists, all of whom were foreign nationals, comprising one Chechen, three Arabs and two Afghans, entered the school and opened fire on school staff and children, killing 149 people including 132 schoolchildren ranging between eight and eighteen years of age, making it the world's fifth deadliest school massacre. Pakistan launched a rescue operation undertaken by the Pakistan Army's Special Services Group (SSG) special forces, who killed all six terrorists and rescued 960 people. In the long term, Pakistan established the National Action Plan to crack down on terrorism.
On 13 May 2015, three gunmen stormed the Park Palace guesthouse in Kabul, Afghanistan. The attack is believed to be part of the Taliban's annual spring offensive against NATO's presence in the country.
On December 11, 2015, Taliban militants detonated a car bomb and stormed a guesthouse near the Spanish embassy in the Shirpour district of Kabul, Afghanistan—home to many foreign embassies and high-ranking government officials. Nine people died in the attack, including four Afghans, two Spanish military policemen and three Taliban fighters. Security forces, including Norwegian special forces, took more than ten hours to bring the area back under control.
The following lists events that happened during 2016 in Afghanistan.
On 28 June 2011, a group of nine gunmen and suicide bombers attacked the Inter-Continental Hotel, Kabul. The attack and an ensuing five-hour siege left at least 21 people dead, including all nine attackers. Responsibility was claimed by the Taliban.
Events in the year 2017 in Afghanistan.
On 20 January 2018, a group of four or five gunmen attacked the Inter-Continental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, sparking a 12-hour battle. The attack left 40 people dead including fourteen foreigners, while 14 were injured.
The Islamic State–Taliban conflict is an ongoing armed conflict between the Islamic State Khorasan Province (IS-KP) and the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. The conflict initially began when both operated as insurgent groups in Nangarhar; since the creation of the Taliban's emirate in 2021, IS-KP have targeted and assassinated Taliban members using hit-and-run tactics. The group have also caused incidents and attacks across the border in Pakistan.
In May 2020, a series of insurgent attacks took place in Afghanistan, starting when the Taliban killed 20 Afghan soldiers and wounded 29 others in Zari, Balkh and Grishk, Helmand on 1 and 3 May, respectively. On 12 May, a hospital's maternity ward in Kabul and a funeral in Kuz Kunar (Khewa), Nangarhar were attacked, resulting in the deaths of 56 people and injuries of 148 others, including newborn babies, mothers, nurses, and mourners. ISIL–KP claimed responsibility for the funeral bombing, but no insurgent group claimed responsibility for the hospital shooting.
On 12 December 2022, insurgents attacked a hotel popular with foreigners in Kabul, Afghanistan. At least 3 civilians were killed. 18 others, including foreigners, are reported to be among those injured. Islamic State – Khorasan Province claimed responsibility for the attack.
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