NATO assumes command of ISAF in Kabul

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...

Afghan delegates at UN-sponsored talks signed an agreement creating an interim administration and a roadmap for a new political order. The Taliban were excluded, and representation among Afghan...

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...

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...

NATO announced that ISAF would expand into western Afghanistan, extending the international force beyond Kabul and the northern provinces. The expansion joined reconstruction and security operations...

Afghans voted in parliamentary and provincial council elections, the first fully representative legislature in three decades. The UN reported about 6.4 million voters and a 25 percent women’s seat...

NATO-led ISAF took command of the southern region from the U.S.-led coalition, adding six provinces including Helmand and Kandahar. The change expanded NATO’s direct role in areas where the Taliban...