Afghanistan: Behind the rise of the Taliban & Al-Qaeda (Ex-US State Dept official Barnett Rubin) E952

Going Underground Behind

On this episode of Going Underground, we speak to Barnett Rubin, ex-State Department official and author of ‘Afghanistan: What Everyone Needs To Know’. He discusses the rise of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda out of the Mujahideen after a brutal conflict with the Soviet Union, how the communist government fell to the Islamist forces following the collapse of the USSR, the role of Ayman al-Zawahiri, Richard Holbrooke and his role in the NATO intervention in Yugoslavia, the assassination of Osama Bin Laden under the Obama Administration and why it has not changed much on the ground, the Trump administration’s agreement with the Taliban, and why it has not yet guaranteed peace in Afghanistan despite a framework established for US withdrawal, and much more!

Watch: Here