When the word “Taliban” is mentioned, most people immediately associate them with September 11, 2001 and the war in Afghanistan that broke out shortly thereafter. But the Taliban are much more than just terrorists who destroyed the Twin Towers. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The Taliban or “Students of Islamic Knowledge Movement” has a broader history than most people might assume (Hayes, http://www. infoplease.com/spot/taliban.html). In reality, the Taliban are a militia that has controlled Afghanistan since 1996. Their goal initially was to put an end to the war between factions that occurred after the Soviet war in Afghanistan. The war between these different factions has caused thousands of casualties. Although the Taliban are considered loose networks of more than a dozen terrorist organizations, they are all led by Mullah Muhammad Omar and are united by Osama bin Laden's pan-Islamic vision. Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization, al-Qaeda, is organized much like a business. The structure of the Taliban is a hierarchy that clearly sees Osama bin Laden at the top, as the general emir (McDougall Littell. Pg US10). Under bin Laden are his two top lieutenants, but since then the structure of the Taliban is unclear. There are several terrorist groups belonging to Islamic Jihad, Jihad or Hamas that carry out operations on behalf of the Taliban. It is important to know the history of Afghanistan to understand how the Taliban was formed. The first events that led to the creation of the Taliban began almost a century ago. In 1933, the last king, Muhammad Zahir Shah, came to power. In 1953 Dauod Khan, Zahir Shah's cousin, was appointed prime minister but was later dismissed in 1963. In 1973 Muhammad Zahir Shah was overthrown by Daoud Khan in a bloodless coup. In 1978, however, it was Dauod's turn to lose power. He was assassinated in a coup while trying to suppress political enemies (Ali 28). After Khan's death, leaders of the Communist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) took control of the country. Nur Mohammed Taraki became the President of the Prime Minister and also the Prime Minister of Afghanistan. Babrak Karmal was chosen as deputy prime minister (Ali 28). The PDPA was then split into two different factions. The Khalq was led by Taraki and Hafizullah Amin. Parcham was led by Karmal. Past conflicts between the two factions surfaced and violence erupted. Thousands of people were captured or killed. Radical land reforms and social reforms were also significantly changing Afghanistan's way of life (Ali 28). In 1978, Soviet troops came into conflict with Afghan guerrillas (mujahidin) after the coup that overthrew President Daoud Khan. The Soviet Union was again provoked into invading Afghanistan after Taraki was ordered killed by Hafizullah Amin in 1979. The War in Afghanistan, fought between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan, lasted from 1979 to 1992. Since the Soviet Union had the advantage in terms of strength and technological strength the Afghans were forced to fight a guerrilla war. With the help of the United States, Great Britain and China the Afghans managed to force the Soviet troops to withdraw by February 1989. In April 1992 the communist regime was overthrown by the mujahideen. After taking power in the country, rival mujahideen leaders fought each other for supremacy (Ali 30). During this period thousands of civilians were killed in the struggle for power. Around the early 90s among all the fighting and killings emerged theTaliban. At first the Taliban were a group of students who followed Mullah Muhammad Omar. Their aim was to restore order to this war-torn land and enforce their interpretation of Islamic law. The Taliban extended their influence by attacking local warlords and soon gained a reputation for their military prowess. Although many Americans consider the Taliban to be maniacal evils, they had a rather humble beginning. In the beginning they had many supporters for several reasons. The Taliban were mostly Pashtun, so much of their support came from Afghanistan's Pashtun community. However, ethnicity was not the only factor, many Afghans were tired of the constant fighting between the warring factions. These power battles had already caused many casualties; the Taliban brought hope and joy to the people by quelling violence and eliminating corruption in the government. The Taliban had begun their search in Afghanistan. Although the Taliban may have been popular at first, they soon lost many followers due to their harsh interpretation of Islamic law. Their policies have deprived women of many privileges. These policies prohibited women from working outside the home in activities other than health care. Women were also banned from attending universities, and all girls' schools were closed in Kabul and some other cities as well. Girls' primary schools continued to operate in many other areas of the country under Taliban control. The Taliban also imposed a strict dress code for women. Those convicted of certain crimes will face corporal punishment. Women we caught violating any of the laws were severely punished. In one incident a woman was publicly executed for the killing of her husband by the Taliban. The woman was first taken to a stadium where thousands of spectators had gathered to witness the brutal killing. Then she was shot three times by a Taliban soldier. Islamic law allowed the family of the murdered to forgive the murderer. Although the husband's family forgave the women, the Taliban did not pay attention to the pleas and killed the women anyway. In addition to women, the Taliban also targeted different factions or ethnicities in their conquest of Afghanistan. One group in particular, the Hazaras, have been targeted several times by the Taliban. In January 2001, the massacre of approximately 300 unarmed Hazaras took place. However, the most devastating mass killings occurred in 1997, when the Taliban killed over 2,000 civilians, most of whom were Hazara. In modern times the Taliban is considered an infamous organization that revolves around terrorizing and destroying others. Supposedly a group seeking religious knowledge, but now a society representing the pinnacle of military and political power. It is run by numerous famous leaders who order followers to kill, destroy, and betray their fellow Afghans by demolishing cities, killing hundreds of people, and rising to unjust power. The masterminds behind the Taliban are the ones who control power, the leaders who influence terror. Osama Bin Laden of Saudi Arabia is a prominent Taliban fugitive. He is supposedly linked to the planning of the attack on the World Trade Center more than three years ago after the incident with the same buildings in 1994. He was also the one who bombed the American embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam killing 224 people . . Its main objectives are to kill all Americans and their allies, civilian and military. He is currently on the run and there are doubts that he is dead. Many believe he is still alive,on the borders of Afghanistan and Pakistan and is rumored to have disguised himself. Many believe that Osama is the true mastermind of the Taliban, but Mullah Mohammed Omar is the important leader of the organization. A descendant of scholars, Mullah Mohammed Omar believed in God's judgment and religion is the key. Born into a poor family, he led a simple life and later became a fighter in the war alongside Osama Bin Laden against the Soviet Union. He required women to never leave the house, denied them work and school, and forced them to cover themselves completely. One famous attack he ordered was to destroy Buddha statues as a sign of discontent with religion. Ayman al-Zawahiri is second in command alongside Osama Bin Laden, having known him since the 1980s. Zawahiri helped found Islamic Jihad, the group that assassinated Egyptian President Anwar Sadat in 1981. He was then blamed for the attack on President Hosni Mubarak in 1995 and the massacre of foreign tourists in 1997. He was sentenced to death in an Egyptian court. Bin Laden's other commander-in-chief is Egyptian-born Mohammad Atef. Atef and al-Zawahiri are credited with bringing the most violent and carefully planned terrorist operations within the Al Qaeda movement. It gives military commands in Pakistan, Europe and other places around the world. He encouraged attacks against American troops in Somalia in 1993. He had remained in contact with bin Laden by satellite phone and fax, discussing orders for new attacks. Abdul Salam Zaeef is the Taliban ambassador and spoke on behalf of Osama Bin Laden, is a member of the Taliban inner circle and has committed crimes against humanity, around the world and in Afghanistan. It has greatly affected the region, attacks and engagement with the media and news. He is said to be dead, tortured to death, but it is proven that he had ties to the Taliban and is still very much alive. One of the main goals of the Taliban is to drive out everything that corrupts and hinders the creation of a pure Islamic state. Many of these things included what we use in the western part of the world. Sources of entertainment such as television, music and films do not exist in Afghanistan. The Taliban would take severe measures to keep their country as far away from influences from the outside world as possible. Terrible actions were done to express their ideas about what their idea of ​​the world should be. Their methods included public executions, following Islamic law, or attacks on important places. Not only did they target their own people, but they also targeted adversary forces outside of Afghanistan. Major attacks by the Taliban included attacks on US embassies, the Khobar Towers bombings, the attack on the World Trade Center in 1993 and 2001, and the hijacking of TWA Flight 847. US embassies in Nairobi, Kenya , and in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, were a key target for the Taliban. On August 7, 1998, these two embassies were attacked at exactly 10:30 am with the use of car bombs. The attack in Kenya caused the Ufundi cooperative building to collapse on top of the embassy. The attack in Tanzania occurred when a bomb was detonated next to an oil tank in front of the embassy. The bomb created a crater and completely destroyed the front of the building. The consequences of the bombings caused a total of 258 victims and 5000 wounded. The most recent attack may be the most surreal of all. On September 11, 2001, the second attack on the World Trade Center occurred. This time, instead of simply damaging it, it caused both towers to collapse. At 8:45 and 9:03, two hijacked airliners hit each tower. Shortly after, at.