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Article: Anarchy in Afghanistan.
- Article from:
- Journal of International Affairs
- Article date:
- June 22, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Columbia University School of International Public Affairs. 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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Almost 20 years of war have shattered Afghanistan. Today e country is divided into several hostile fiefdoms and anarchy reigns in much of the countryside. Putting back the pieces has been difficult, and the prognosis for peace in the immediate future is bleak.
Although Soviet meddling sparked the conflict in 1978, their withdrawal in 1989 did not end Afghanistan's woes. Instead, war, anarchy and fragmentation followed the Soviet withdrawal, as fighting continued against the Soviet-installed Najibullah government. Mohammed Najibullah's overthrow in 1992 finally brought the anti-Soviet resistance groups--called the mujahedin--to power, but still the war did not ...