Afghanistan

Much of the territory now known as Afghanistan was known as Khorasan during the Middle Ages and into the 19th century. Much of the region has been traditionally inhabited by tribal cultures, with their own distinctive languages, customs and spiritual values, although there were some major cities such as Herat and Balkh. The region was overrun by Mongols during the 13th century, marking the beginning of several centuries of dynasties and contending powers vying for control of the territories.

European attempts to gain control of Central Asia during the 18th and 19th centuries were largely unsuccessful in Afghanistan. The First Anglo–Afghan War (1839-1842) resulted in a highly unstable occupation and eventual withdrawal by British forces after heavy losses. Russia gradually advanced into the region over the next thirty years, but in 1878 Great Britain again invaded, sparking the Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878-1880). By terms of the Treaty of Gandamak, Britain was granted control of Afghan foreign affairs in exchange for protection, but the Afghans retained control of their internal sovereignty. The Third Anglo-Afghan War (6 May to 8 August 1919) resulted in an armistice and the resumption of control over their own foreign affairs to the Afghans.

Although unaligned to either the United States or the Soviet Union during the Cold War, both nations vied for political influence from the 1950s to late 1970s. In April 1978, the Saur Revolution resulted in a political takeover of the government by the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) after President Mohammad Daoud Khan was assassinated. A socialist agenda and radical modernization of traditional Islamic and tribal laws were adopted and support by the Soviet Union encouraged. By spring of 1979 large portions of the country were in open rebellion against the government and significant numbers of Afghan soldiers deserted to fight with the Afghan Mujahideen. At the request of the PDPA government, Soviet military units began entering Afghanistan on 31 October 1979, leading to a ten year occupation and the Soviet War in Afghanistan (1979-1989). Aided by several nations, particularly the United States, the various Mujahideen factions waged a relentless guerilla war against the Soviet and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) armed forces. Suffering heavy losses, a demoralized Soviet Army ultimately withdrew from Afghanistan between January 1987 and February 1989, leaving the government and infrastructure of Afghanistan in shambles.

A civil war then raged in Afghanistan from 1989 to 1992, pitting the forces of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Mujahideen forces. The Afghan government began to collapse in April 1992, and the nation became the Islamic State of Afghanistan for the next several years, but there was little stability as the remaining Mujahideen factions (supported by Iran, Pakistan and Uzbekistan) continued to wage war in an effort to wrest control of the country.

The Taliban (طالبان)

• From 1985 to the mid-1990s, Afghan Commando brigades wore uniforms made from imported Bulgarian splinter pattern camouflage fabric.

• Northern Alliance lizard pattern Northern Alliance on Wikipedia. Worn in 2001 when the Taliban regime was overthrown

• Northern Alliance spot pattern