It has been one year since the last American forces left Afghanistan, ending a 20-year presence in the country and marking the longest war in U.S. history. Elliot Ackerman, author and Marine Corps veteran, joins Cheddar News to explain what the past 12 months have looked like in Afghanistan.

Cheddar's News Wrap

A Look at Afghanistan One Year Since Taliban Takeover

Welcome back to Chester's news round today marks one year since the last American forces left Afghanistan ending a 20-year presence in the country and marking the longest war in us history, Afghanistan's government collapsed in August of 2021 when the Taliban swept into power within just a few days. Today, the Taliban is celebrating the anniversary of its takeover. While the lives of ordinary Afghans are increasingly getting worse. Earlier today, I spoke with Elliot Ackerman, author and Marine Corps veteran to discuss what the past 12 months have looked like in Afghanistan. Take a listen, What you've seen in Afghanistan is is a pretty tough last 12 months. You've seen a 30% reduction in GDP and in addition to that, you've seen a real collapse of rights, particularly among women. Uh and I think that, you know, we've also seen that the Taliban are learning. It's it's one thing to wage an insurgency in Afghanistan, but it's something else to govern the entire country in more recent weeks, there's been a series of deadly attacks and bombings throughout the country, marking the highest number of casualties since the Taliban took over this time around. What do we know about the surge in violence, Elliot, I think the surge in violence is, you know, is obviously linked to the dissatisfaction of conditions inside of Afghanistan conditions there right now are untenable for far too many afghans and sadly this is already leading to heightened violence and I, you know, we should anticipate this is going to only lead to increased instability inside Afghanistan. We know the U. N. Is calling the Taliban takeover, the world's worst humanitarian disaster. What basic rights of Taliban leader stripped from the Afghani people, you mentioned women being impacted as well. Who is being impacted the most here? Well, all Afghans are are being impacted. I mean, we talk about rights just you know, the right to physical safety, the right to, you know, food security, economic security and and yes, you know, the rights of one half of the population to receive an education, to work to to to enjoy the human rights that so many people across the globe and joy all of that is affected. And it does make what's going on in Afghanistan a humanitarian disaster. We have to talk about the record levels of hunger in the country. Can you give us a snapshot of the economy in Afghanistan right now and how civilians, the true really the victims here are grappling with this crisis? Well, from an economic standpoint, one of the things that's very difficult is, you know, Afghanistan is a country that imports far more than it exports. But there is a lack of currency and cash inside of Afghanistan um that is making it very difficult for the Afghan economy to to sustain itself and again, provide is very basic things like like like food and so again, we're seeing that Afghanistan is tearing towards towards famine. So this is something that's important. Afghanistan is a strategically significant nation and the world cannot afford to have Afghanistan and free fall is Afghanistan? The people of Afghanistan fighting back in any way? If so, if they are, what is that looking like? Well, tragically, you know, we are seeing them fighting back against the Taliban. But this is only going to layer on more cycles of political violence onto a population that has known nothing but war since since 1979. And this is also a young population. So for all too many after, they've never seen their country at peace nor known peace and there is a cost at the end of the day with that, you know, a psychological cost when an entire country has known nothing but war. Do we have any sense of what the Taliban plans on doing next or maybe even plans to ban in the upcoming months or years? I, I think, I think who can say, I think the Taliban are faced right now with a whole host of short term crises is they try to govern Afghanistan. But the one thing that's been clear is any illusions that the international community had that this was a reformed Taliban one chastened by 20 years of war against NATO, that those illusions should be, should be pushed aside. This is this is the same old Taliban engaging in the same old repressive techniques and it's important that we see them clearly for who they are? We touched on this a moment ago. But do you think there's any hope that afghans will be able to get their freedom back from the Taliban? I I certainly hope so, but it's difficult to see how that is not a very long and circuitous path that descends Afghanistan into another cycle of civil wars. You know, civil wars that have been so costly for the afghan people. But you know, the world certainly needs to continue to pay attention to Afghanistan and where there are green shoots of liberalism, invest in those green shoots because afghans deserve better than Taliban rule. President biden has faced criticism that the administration failed afghans who actually assisted the US in their war efforts. What is the status of those afghans now, a year later? What and what is the administration doing to help have they held? I think it's very important as a country, you know, that that that we don't Meyer our American conversation about Afghanistan into partisan recrimination. I mean, listen, there's plenty of blame to go around for Afghanistan. It's a 20-year war that spanned four presidential administrations, both Republican and Democrat. Um that being said there is more that the Biden administration should be doing right now our attention and I would argue the administration's attention should be on making sure that the 80,000 Afghans, we were in fact able to get to the United States have a pathway to living here permanently towards citizenship right now? The status of those afghans is there here under humanitarian parole, a parole that will expire, and when it expires they will be subject to deportation. There's legislation in Congress right now the Afghan adjustment act that would adjust their status so they can receive green cards and be on the pathway to citizenship. And I believe every american should support that legislation. You know, these afghans, many of whom fought alongside us. You know, they might not be american citizens, but they are american heroes and we should be doing everything we can to help them as they begin their lives here, thanks to Elliot Ackerman, author and Marine Corps veteran.