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Article: Storm from the hills: Extremists take Afghan capital, control three-quarters of the country. (include related information about Islam)
- Article from:
- Current Events, a Weekly Reader publication
- Article date:
- November 4, 1996
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 Weekly Reader Corp. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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KABULA Afghanistan--They blew down from the hills like a desert sand storm, sweeping all before them into a cloud of darkness and sending a chill halfway around the world. They are the Taliban (Tahl-EE-banh), a word that means "students of religion" in Pushtu, one of the main languages of Afghanistan. The Taliban are led by a mysterious, one-eyed holy man named Mohammed Omar.
Last month, Taliban fighters captured Kabul, Afghanistan's capital, consolidating their rule over three-fourths of the country.
Afghanistan has been torn apart by nearly constant warfare since 1979, when Soviet troops invaded and fought a war with Afghans opposed to Soviet control. By ...