Afghanistan
A childhood in old Kabul
They say the city you most fondly remember is the one you grew up in. In my case that’s Kabul.…
Panjshir valley and the last resistance to the Taliban
The Panjshir valley, about three hours’ drive north of Kabul, has a mythical hold on the Afghan imagination. It is…
Defence contractors were the real winners in Afghanistan
The fall of Kabul, like the fall of Saigon, will be taught in classrooms for decades to come. But the…
Afghanistan and the end of the American hegemony
We used to sneer at the way the Russians were chased out of Afghanistan by a ragtag of mujaheddin armed…
Is Theresa May in any position to criticise Boris?
When Theresa May told a joke at her own expense at a reception of Tory MPs held to celebrate Boris…
France is nervous about welcoming a wave of Afghan refugees
Emmanuel Macron has once more infuriated many in France, but this time it has nothing to do with Covid passports…
Afghanistan will once again become a breeding ground for terror
‘Bin Laden is dead and al Qaeda is degraded in Afghanistan and it’s time to end the forever war’. So…
The Afghan state was dying before the Taliban took over
To understand how Afghanistan is going to change in the future, you have to first understand what the ‘Islamic Republic’…
The Taliban’s lightning victory was no surprise
As the debacle in Kabul unfolds, in Washington and London the mud slinging about who is to blame is beginning.…
Afghanistan: The error of withdrawal
Like many veterans, this last week has been one that has seen me struggle through anger, grief and rage. The…
Harry and Meghan’s glib Afghan statement
Finally, some news to cheer us all up on this grim, relentless August. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have…
How did US intelligence get Afghanistan so wrong?
It may well go down as the understatement of the year. In a quite extraordinary address to the nation after…
Joe Biden’s shabby treatment of the Afghan army
Is a Taliban takeover of Afghanistan now inevitable? The President: No, it is not. Q. Why? The President: Because you…
How the UK failed the army interpreters stranded in Afghanistan
We lost. Whatever hope we had that we could help Afghanistan crawl out of its misery has been shattered. The…
For Afghan Christians, the Taliban takeover is a nightmare
Christians in Afghanistan have been paralyzed with fear at the news that the Taliban has taken control of the country.…
The Taliban’s win will unleash the next wave of global jihad
The Taliban retaking Kabul has been inevitable for almost the entirety of the 20 year war, and certainly since Barack…
Pakistan is the true winner from the Afghan debacle
‘Everyone is getting out – and fast’, the man tells me over a crackling line. He is tired, clearly subdued.…
Western deterrence now looks hollow
The efforts of a 20 year war took only a few weeks to overturn: the Taliban has completed its takeover…
A new world order will emerge from America’s humiliation
When America decided to save Afghanistan from the tyranny of the Taliban, it acted on two major beliefs. The first…
Biden risks undermining America’s moral authority
Joe Biden is facing what will likely be the defining event of his presidency. The gains made in Afghanistan are…
Boris faces a backlash from Tory MPs over Afghanistan
After the Taliban took over Kabul and announced victory in Afghanistan, a scramble is underway by diplomats and many Afghans…
The real reason Biden was prepared to let Kabul fall
The speed of the Taliban’s advance, culminating in Sunday’s capture of Kabul, has been widely put forward as proof that…
Where is our anger about Afghanistan?
This is an age of anger. Social media amplifies rage and exaggerates polarisation. Twitter isn’t Britain, but too many people…
Why Biden will not change tack on Afghanistan
Afghanistan will be a stain on the Biden presidency. His decision to continue with a US withdrawal from the country…
More diplomacy won’t stop the advance of the Taliban
On 11 August, at Russia’s initiative, an ‘extended troika’ will meet in Doha, Qatar to take stock of the Taliban’s…
