Consequences of the Soviet War in Afghanistan
History: OCR A GCSE Cold War & International Relations, topic 1.3.2
Consequences of The Soviet War in Afghanistan
The Soviet War in Afghanistan led to the rise of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
Islam under threat
- After the end of the Cold War, there were many in Afghanistan, especially among the Mujahidin, who believed Islam was under threat from the West and other more moderate Islamic states.
- The movement to protect Islam was known as Al-Qaeda.
Al-Qaeda
- Osama Bin Laden was the most significant leader of Al-Qaeda.
- Bin Laden was from Saudi Arabia but turned against the USA when his country took the Americans’ support over his after the Kuwait invasion.
- The Taliban was a similar group, supported by Al-Qaeda, which was operating in Afghanistan.
- It ruled Afghanistan when the US invaded in the 2000s.
Al-Qaeda's Attacks
During the 1990s, Al-Qaeda launched a series of increasingly sophisticated attacks on Western targets.
1998
- Truck bombing outside the US Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, killed 213 and injured 4,600.
2000
- The US ship USS Cole was attacked by suicide bombers, with 17 crew killed.
2001
- When two planes struck the twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center on 9/11 (11th September), 2,606 were killed.
- A further 125 people died when a third plane hit the Pentagon (the US military headquarters in Washington, D.C.).
- A fourth plane, headed for the White House, crashed into woodland in Pennsylvania.
Test yourself on Consequences of the Soviet War in Afghanistan
Who was the most significant leader of Al-Qaeda?
What is the name of the group similar to Al-Qaeda that operates in Afghanistan?
Which of the following is true about the movement to protect Islam after the end of the Cold War?
Al-Qaeda's Attacks on Western Targets
What name is commonly given to the plane attacks on New York's World Trade Center, the Pentagon and attempted attack on the White House?