Bonn Agreement establishes interim political process

Taliban forces retook Yakaolang in Bamiyan. Human Rights Watch later documented witness accounts that civilians, including Hazara men and local aid workers, were rounded up and executed.

Ahmad Shah Massoud, a leading commander of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance, died after a suicide attack by assassins posing as journalists. His death weakened a major Afghan political-military...

Al-Qaeda carried out attacks in the United States, killing nearly 3,000 people. The attacks became the immediate trigger for the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, although most of the hijackers were not...

The United States and United Kingdom began air strikes in Afghanistan, launching Operation Enduring Freedom. Washington cited self-defence and demands that the Taliban hand over al-Qaeda leaders....

Northern Alliance forces entered Kabul as Taliban forces withdrew. The rapid collapse of Taliban control followed U.S. air power, local alliances, and the pre-existing Afghan opposition; it did not by...

The Security Council adopted Resolution 1386, authorizing the International Security Assistance Force to support the Afghan Interim Authority in Kabul and surrounding areas. The initial mandate was...

Delegates to the Emergency Loya Jirga chose Hamid Karzai to lead the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan. The assembly was an Afghan political institution, but was formed in a post-invasion...

NATO took command of the UN-mandated International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), initially operating in and around Kabul. The alliance’s first mission beyond the Euro-Atlantic area later...

The Constitutional Loya Jirga approved a new constitution establishing an elected presidency, a legislature and a formally Islamic republic. The process created institutions for the post-Taliban...

Hamid Karzai won Afghanistan’s first direct presidential election under the new constitution. The vote marked a major institutional change, while insecurity, unequal access to power and dependence...