The Taliban

Afghanistan's Most Lethal Insurgents

Mark Silinsky

• Publisher: Praeger
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9780313398988
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Politique et relations internationales
• Subtopic: Terrorisme

Understand the complexities of the most lethal insurgent group of America's longest war—the Taliban. Battle hardened, tribally oriented, and deeply committed to its cause, the Taliban has proven itself resourceful, adaptable, and often successful. As such, the Taliban presents a counterinsurgency puzzle for which the United States has yet to identify effective military tactics, information operations, and Coalition developmental policies. Written by one of the Department of the Army's leading intelligence and military analysts on the Taliban, this book covers the group's complete history, including its formation, ideology, and political power, as well as the origins of its current conflict with the United States. The work carefully analyzes the agenda, capabilities, and support base of the Taliban; forecasts the group's likely course of action to retake Afghanistan; and details the Coalition forces' probable counterinsurgency responses. Author Mark Silinsky also reviews the successes and failures of the latest U.S. counterinsurgency doctrine to extrapolate the best strategies for future counterinsurgency campaigns.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Foreword
• Preface
• Introduction
• Abbreviations
• 1. Afghanistan’s Landscape, the People, and Islamism
• 2. Enter the Taliban
• 3. The Taliban in Power
• 4. The Taliban in Defeat
• 5. The Taliban’s Recovery in Pakistan
• 6. The Taliban Improve Their Tactics and Firepower
• 7. Taliban Inc.
• 8. Affiliated Insurgent Groups and Foreign Connections
• 9. The Counterinsurgency in Afghanistan
• Afterword: Salafist Dystopia
• Appendix: Coalition Military Fatalities by Year
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index