An Analysis of Political Governance in Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan: Post-US Withdrawal Era

Abstract

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has experienced a protracted war against its invaders and a civil war between its factions during the last three decades. Continuous war and repulsion of invaders have created a vacuum multiple times which has been filled by warring factions such as Mujahedeen after the withdrawal of the Soviets. However, these groups could not restore peace and stability in Afghanistan and such scenarios pushed the country into endless civil war. Subsequently, Mujahedeen groups were gradually replaced by the Taliban. They established and implemented the hardliner version of Islamic Sharia and especially targeted the female gender. Their connections with terrorist organizations such as Al-Qaeda made them unacceptable among the international community. The United States of America got approval from the international community and announced war against the Taliban, however, the Taliban fought back, and the US had to leave after ten years of combat operations. This research study is an effort to analyze the political governance of the Taliban Model, after the US withdrawal and focuses on the questions of determinants of political governance in the context of Afghan society, state, history, and culture. The methodology of this paper is centered on qualitative and thematic exploration. The study ends with recommendations for the Taliban government to improve political governance. The objective of the study is to highlight the importance of political governance, the challenges of the Taliban regime, and the prospects of its improvement, leading to the way forward for establishing a stable government in Afghanistan.