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145-593: In the 1970s Khairkot was a town of some 5,000 people, but that population decreased during the years of fighting after the Soviet invasion and the Afghan civil war . 32°50′50″N 68°26′45″E  /  32.84722°N 68.44583°E  / 32.84722; 68.44583 This Paktika Province , Afghanistan location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Soviet invasion of Afghanistan The Soviet–Afghan War took place in

290-656: A feudal system into a Communist society, while the moderate Parcham faction favored a more gradualist and gentler approach, arguing that Afghanistan was simply not ready for Communism and would not be for some time. The Parcham faction favored building up the PDPA as a mass party in support of the Daoud Khan government, while the Khalq faction were organized in the Leninist style as a small, tightly organized elite group, allowing

435-698: A succession crisis that has never been resolved. The following First , Second and Third Fitnas and finally the Abbasid Revolution (746–750) also definitively destroyed the political unity of the Muslims, who have been inhabiting multiple states ever since. Ghaznavids ' rule was succeeded by the Ghurid Empire of Muhammad of Ghor and Ghiyath al-Din Muhammad , whose reigns under the leadership of Muhammad Bakhtiyar Khalji extended until

580-517: A violent uprising in Herat , wherein a number of Soviet military advisers were executed. The ruling People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA), which had determined that it could not subdue the uprising by itself, asked for urgent Soviet military assistance; in 1979, over 20 requests were sent. Soviet premier Alexei Kosygin , declining to send troops, advised in one call to Afghan prime minister Nur Muhammad Taraki to use local industrial workers in

725-478: A "large minority" as being between 30% and 50%, which described nine countries in 2000, namely Eritrea , Ethiopia , Guinea-Bissau , Ivory Coast , Nigeria , North Macedonia , and Tanzania . As of 2024, however, Nigeria has become a Muslim-majority country. The two main denominations of Islam are the Sunni and Shia sects. They differ primarily upon of how the life of the ummah ("faithful") should be governed, and

870-492: A Vietnamese quagmire? ' " When asked to clarify this remark, Slocombe explained: "Well, the whole idea was that if the Soviets decided to strike at this tar baby [Afghanistan] we had every interest in making sure that they got stuck." Yet a 5 April memo from National Intelligence Officer Arnold Horelick warned: "Covert action would raise the costs to the Soviets and inflame Moslem opinion against them in many countries. The risk

1015-420: A broader notion of Islamism as a form of identity politics , involving "support for [Muslim] identity, authenticity, broader regionalism, revivalism, [and] revitalization of the community." Islamists themselves prefer terms such as "Islamic movement", or "Islamic activism" to "Islamism", objecting to the insinuation that Islamism is anything other than Islam renewed and revived. In public and academic contexts,

1160-745: A covert operation under MI 's Major-General Naseerullah Babar . In 1974, Bhutto authorized another secret operation in Kabul where the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the Air Intelligence of Pakistan (AI) extradited Burhanuddin Rabbani , Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and Ahmad Shah Massoud to Peshawar , amid fear that Rabbani, Hekmatyar and Massoud might be assassinated by Daoud. According to Baber, Bhutto's operation

1305-618: A fervent opponent of Westernization , Zionism and nationalism , advocated Sunni internationalism through revolutionary restoration of a pan-Islamic Caliphate to politically unite the Muslim world. Riḍā was a strong exponent of Islamic vanguardism, the belief that Muslim community should be guided by clerical elites ( ulema ) who steered the efforts for religious education and Islamic revival . Riḍā's Salafi - Arabist synthesis and Islamist ideals greatly influenced his disciples like Hasan al-Banna, an Egyptian schoolteacher who founded

1450-475: A majority of the Muslims in seven countries (and a plurality in three others): Albania (65%), Kyrgyzstan (64%), Kosovo (58%), Indonesia (56%), Mali (55%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (54%), Uzbekistan (54%), Azerbaijan (45%), Russia (45%), and Nigeria (42%). They are found primarily in Central Asia . Kazakhstan has the largest number of non-denominational Muslims, who constitute about 74% of

1595-739: A minority, and their Muslim communities are larger than many Muslim-majority nations: During much of the 20th century, the Islamic identity and the dominance of Islam on political issues have arguably increased during the early 21st century. The fast-growing interests of the Western world in Islamic regions, international conflicts and globalization have changed the influence of Islam on the world in contemporary history . Islamism refers to religious and political ideological movements that believe Islam should influence political systems, and generally oppose secularism . Its proponents believe Islam

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1740-546: A modern geopolitical sense, the terms 'Muslim world' and 'Islamic world' refer to countries in which Islam is widespread , although there are no agreed criteria for inclusion. Some scholars and commentators have criticised the term 'Muslim/Islamic world' and its derivative terms 'Muslim/Islamic country' as "simplistic" and "binary", since no state has a religiously homogeneous population (e.g. Egypt 's citizens are c. 10% Christians), and in absolute numbers, there are sometimes fewer Muslims living in countries in which they make up

1885-699: A number of variations, called schools of jurisprudence . The Amman Message , which was endorsed in 2005 by prominent Islamic scholars around the world, recognized four Sunni schools ( Hanafi , Maliki , Shafi'i , Hanbali ), two Shia schools ( Ja'fari , Zaidi ), the Ibadi school, and the Zahiri school. Eight Islamic states have adopted Islam as the ideological foundation of state and constitution. The following nineteen Muslim-majority states have endorsed Islam as their state religion , and though they may guarantee freedom of religion for citizens, do not declare

2030-536: A preemptive strike. What was envisioned in the fall of 1979 was a short intervention under which Moscow would replace radical Khalqi Communist Amin with the moderate Parchami Communist Babrak Karmal to stabilize the situation. Contrary to the contemporary view of Brzezinski and the regional powers, access to the Persian Gulf played no role in the decision to intervene on the Soviet side. The concerns raised by

2175-487: A pretext for the Red Army interventions in 1929 and 1930. The Soviet Union (USSR) had been a major power broker and influential mentor in Afghan politics , its involvement ranging from civil-military infrastructure to Afghan society. Since 1947, Afghanistan had been under the influence of the Soviet government and received large amounts of aid, economic assistance, military equipment training and military hardware from

2320-650: A propaganda campaign targeting the Soviet-backed leadership of the DRA, which (in the words of Steve Coll ) "seemed at the time a small beginning." The Amin government, having secured a treaty in December 1978 that allowed them to call on Soviet forces, repeatedly requested the introduction of troops in Afghanistan in the spring and summer of 1979. They requested Soviet troops to provide security and to assist in

2465-500: A propaganda victory to their opponents, and Afghanistan's overall inconsequential weight in international affairs, in essence realizing they had little to gain by taking over a country with a poor economy, unstable government, and population hostile to outsiders. However, as the situation continued to deteriorate from May–December 1979, Moscow changed its mind on dispatching Soviet troops. The reasons for this complete turnabout are not entirely clear, and several speculative arguments include:

2610-542: A separation of state and religion: Twenty-two Secular states in the Muslim world have declared separation between civil/government affairs and religion. According to the Pew Research Center in 2015 there were 50 Muslim-majority countries, which are shown in the Government and religion section above in the article. Apart from these, large Muslim populations exist in some countries where Muslims are

2755-624: A significant impact contributing the culture of the Middle East and North Africa and other areas. Pew Research Center estimates indicate that in 2010, more than 64 million Christians lived in countries with Muslim majorities (excluding Nigeria). The Pew Forum study finds that Indonesia (21.1 million) has the largest Christian population in the Muslim world, followed by Egypt, Chad and Kazakhstan. While according to Adly A. Youssef and Martyn Thomas, in 2004, there were around 30 million Christians who lived in countries with Muslim majorities, with

2900-786: A significant part of your own people. And the people would never forgive such things. – Alexei Kosygin, the Chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers, in response to Taraki's request for Soviet presence in Afghanistan Following the Herat uprising , the first major sign of anti-regime resistance, General Secretary Taraki contacted Alexei Kosygin , chairman of the USSR Council of Ministers and asked for "practical and technical assistance with men and armament". Kosygin

3045-510: A small fraction of their former sizes , with the largest communities of Jews in Muslim countries exist in the non-Arab countries of Iran (9,500) and Turkey (14,500); both, however, are much smaller than they historically have been. Among Arab countries, the largest Jewish community now exists in Morocco with about 2,000 Jews and in Tunisia with about 1,000. The number of Druze worldwide

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3190-407: A span of six months to one year. However, they were met with fierce resistance from Afghan guerrillas and experienced great operational difficulties on the rugged mountainous terrain. By the mid-1980s, the Soviet military presence in Afghanistan had increased to approximately 115,000 troops and fighting across the country intensified; the complication of the war effort gradually inflicted a high cost on

3335-456: Is home to some of the world's most ancient Christian communities , and some of the most important cities of the Christian world —including three of its five great patriarchates ( Alexandria , Antioch , and Constantinople ). Scholars and intellectuals agree Christians have made significant contributions to Arab and Islamic civilization since the introduction of Islam , and they have had

3480-582: Is innately political, and that Islam as a political system is superior to communism, liberal democracy, capitalism, and other alternatives in achieving a just, successful society. Islamism is generally considered anti-Zionist, anti-capitalist, anti-colonialist and anti-communist; Islamists support family values, sharia, reformation of interest-based finance, and the broad Quranic command of ' enjoining goodness and forbidding evil .' The advocates of Islamism, also known as "al-Islamiyyun", are dedicated to realizing their ideological interpretation of Islam within

3625-473: Is practiced. In a modern geopolitical sense, these terms refer to countries in which Islam is widespread , although there are no agreed criteria for inclusion. The term Muslim-majority countries is an alternative often used for the latter sense. The history of the Muslim world spans about 1,400 years and includes a variety of socio-political developments, as well as advances in the arts, science, medicine, philosophy, law, economics and technology during

3770-747: Is sometimes simply referred to as " Afgan " (Russian: Афган ), with the understanding that this refers to the war (just as the Vietnam War is often called "Vietnam" or just " 'Nam" in the United States ). It is also known as the Afghan jihad , especially by the non-Afghan volunteers of the Mujahideen. In the 19th century, the British Empire was fearful that the Russian Empire would invade Afghanistan and use it to threaten

3915-423: Is that countries need to have a Muslim population of more than 50%. In 2010, 73% of the world's Muslim population lived in countries where Muslims are in the majority, while 27% of the world's Muslim population lived in countries where Muslims are in the minority. India's Muslim population is the world's largest Muslim-minority population in the world (11% of the world's Muslim population). Jones (2005) defines

4060-490: The 1978 April coup in Afghanistan After the revolution, Taraki assumed the leadership, prime ministership and general secretaryship of the PDPA. As before in the party, the government never referred to itself as " communist ". The government was divided along factional lines, with Taraki and Deputy Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin of the Khalq faction pitted against Parcham leaders such as Babrak Karmal. Though

4205-770: The American embassy in Kabul and "was capable of reaching an agreement with the United States "; however, allegations of Amin colluding with the Americans have been widely discredited and it was revealed in the 1990s that the KGB actually planted the story; and the deteriorating ties with the United States after NATO's two-track missile deployment decision in response to Soviet nuclear presence in Eastern Europe and

4350-690: The Bengal , where South Asian Islamic missionaries achieved their greatest success in terms of dawah and number of converts to Islam . Qutb ud-Din Aibak conquered Delhi in 1206 and began the reign of the Delhi Sultanate , a successive series of dynasties that synthesized Indian civilization with the wider commercial and cultural networks of Africa and Eurasia, greatly increased demographic and economic growth in India and deterred Mongol incursion into

4495-841: The Caucasus campaign . Afterwards, the Soviet Army deployed around 120,000–160,000 troops in Central Asia, a force similar to the peak strength of the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan in size. By 1926–1928, the Basmachis were mostly defeated by the Soviets, and Central Asia was incorporated into the Soviet Union. In 1929, the Basmachi rebellion reignited, associated with anti- forced collectivization riots. Basmachis crossed over into Afghanistan under Ibrahim Bek , which gave

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4640-547: The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan from December 1979 to February 1989. Marking the beginning of the protracted Afghan conflict , it saw the Soviet Union and the Afghan military fight against the rebelling Afghan mujahideen . While they were backed by various countries and organizations, the majority of the mujahideen's support came from Pakistan , the United States (as part of Operation Cyclone ),

4785-526: The Dominion of Pakistan gained independence from British India and inherited the Durand Line as its frontier with Afghanistan. Under the regime of Daoud Khan, Afghanistan had hostile relations with both Pakistan and Iran. Like all previous Afghan rulers since 1901, Daoud Khan also wanted to emulate Emir Abdur Rahman Khan and unite his divided country. To do that, he needed a popular cause to unite

4930-702: The Islamic Golden Age . Muslims look for guidance to the Quran and believe in the prophetic mission of the Islamic prophet Muhammad , but disagreements on other matters have led to the appearance of different religious schools of thought and sects within Islam. The Islamic conquests , which culminated in the Caliphate being established across three continents ( Asia , Africa , and Europe ), enriched

5075-475: The KGB , Soviet leaders felt that Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin 's actions had destabilized the situation in Afghanistan. Following his initial coup against and killing of Taraki , the KGB station in Kabul warned Moscow that Amin's leadership would lead to "harsh repressions, and as a result, the activation and consolidation of the opposition." The Soviets established a special commission on Afghanistan, comprising

5220-600: The KGB chairman Yuri Andropov , Boris Ponomarev from the Central Committee and Dmitry Ustinov , the Minister of Defence . In late April 1979, the committee reported that Amin was purging his opponents, including Soviet loyalists, that his loyalty to Moscow was in question and that he was seeking diplomatic links with Pakistan and possibly the People's Republic of China (which at the time had poor relations with

5365-746: The Khyber Pass . The demarcation of the mountainous region resulted in an agreement, signed with the Afghan Emir, Abdur Rahman Khan , in 1893. It became known as the Durand Line . In 1947, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Afghanistan, Mohammad Daoud Khan , rejected the Durand Line, which had been accepted as an international border by successive Afghan governments for over half a century. The British Raj also came to an end, and

5510-700: The Muslim Brotherhood movement, and Hajji Amin al-Husayni , the anti-Zionist Grand Mufti of Jerusalem . Al-Banna and Maududi called for a " reformist " strategy to re-Islamizing society through grassroots social and political activism. Other Islamists (Al-Turabi) are proponents of a " revolutionary " strategy of Islamizing society through exercise of state power, or ( Sayyid Qutb ) for combining grassroots Islamization with armed revolution. The term has been applied to non-state reform movements, political parties, militias and revolutionary groups. At least one author ( Graham E. Fuller ) has argued for

5655-586: The Pyrenees . The Arab Muslims were unable to conquer the entire Christian Byzantine Empire in Asia Minor during the Arab–Byzantine wars , however. The succeeding Umayyad Caliphate attempted two failed sieges of Constantinople in 674–678 and 717–718 . Meanwhile, the Muslim community tore itself apart into the rivalling Sunni and Shia sects since the killing of caliph Uthman in 656, resulting in

5800-552: The Revolutionary Council and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the newly established Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. On 5 December 1978, a treaty of friendship was signed between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan. "We only need one million people to make the revolution. It doesn't matter what happens to the rest. We need the land, not the people." — Announcement from Khalqist radio-broadcast after

5945-692: The Soviet military , under the command of Leonid Brezhnev , moved into Afghanistan to support the Afghan administration that had been installed during Operation Storm-333 . Debate over their presence in the country soon ensued in international channels, with the Muslim world and the Western Bloc classifying it as an invasion, while the Eastern Bloc asserted that it was a legal intervention. Nevertheless, numerous sanctions and embargoes were imposed on

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6090-651: The Tajbeg Palace , where Amin was moving to. In Moscow, Leonid Brezhnev was indecisive and waffled as he usually did when faced with a difficult decision. The three decision-makers in Moscow who pressed the hardest for an invasion in the fall of 1979 were the troika consisting of Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko ; the Chairman of KGB, Yuri Andropov , and the Defense Minister Marshal Dmitry Ustinov . The principal reasons for

6235-635: The United Kingdom , China , Iran , and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf , in addition to a large influx of foreign fighters known as the Afghan Arabs . American and British involvement on the side of the mujahideen escalated the Cold War , ending a short period of relaxed Soviet Union–United States relations . Combat took place throughout the 1980s, mostly in the Afghan countryside, as most of

6380-437: The ummah , the community of Muslim believers, and invoking the imagery of the early warriors of Islam who lead the faithful from the darkness of jahiliyyah . By Sayyid Qutb 's definition of Islam , the faith is "a complete divorce from jahiliyyah". He complained that American churches served as centers of community social life that were "very hard [to] distinguish from places of fun and amusement". For Qutb, Western society

6525-582: The 15th century, colonialism by European powers profoundly affected Muslim-majority societies in Africa, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. Colonialism was often advanced by conflict with mercantile initiatives by colonial powers and caused tremendous social upheavals in Muslim-dominated societies. A number of Muslim-majority societies reacted to Western powers with zealotry and thus initiating

6670-410: The 1950s and 1960s. The USSR began to import Afghan gas from 1968 onwards. Between 1954 and 1977, the Soviet Union provided Afghanistan with economic aid worth of about 1 billion rubles. In the 19th century, with the Czarist Russian forces moving closer to the Pamir Mountains , near the border with British India, civil servant Mortimer Durand was sent to outline a border, likely in order to control

6815-524: The 20th century, the end of the European colonial domination has led to creation of a number of nation states with significant Muslim populations. These states drew on Islamic traditions to varying degree and in various ways in organizing their legal, educational and economic systems. The Times first documented the term "Muslim world" in 1912 when describing Pan-Islamism as a movement with power importance and cohesion born in Paris where Turks, Arabs and Persians congregated. The article considered The position of

6960-415: The Afghan Army, on the orders of Daoud Khan following his policy of Pashtun irredentism , made two unsuccessful incursions into Pakistan's Bajaur District . In both cases, the Afghan army was routed , suffering heavy casualties. In response, Pakistan closed its consulate in Afghanistan and blocked all trade routes through the Pakistan–Afghanistan border. This damaged Afghanistan's economy and Daoud's regime

7105-421: The Afghan people divided along tribal lines, and a modern, well equipped Afghan army which would be used to suppress anyone who would oppose the Afghan government. His Pashtunistan policy was to annex Pashtun areas of Pakistan, and he used this policy for his own benefit. Daoud Khan's irredentist foreign policy to reunite the Pashtun homeland caused much tension with Pakistan, a state that allied itself with

7250-434: The Afghans would use the weapons against Pakistan. As a consequence, Afghanistan, though officially neutral in the Cold War, drew closer to India and the Soviet Union, which were willing to sell them weapons. In 1962, China defeated India in a border war , and as a result, China formed an alliance with Pakistan against their common enemy, India, pushing Afghanistan even closer to India and the Soviet Union. In 1960 and 1961,

7395-439: The Americas . Most Muslims are of one of two denominations : Sunni Islam (87–90%) and Shia (10–13%). However, other denominations exist in pockets, such as Ibadi (primarily in Oman ). Muslims who do not belong to, do not self-identify with, or cannot be readily classified under one of the identifiable Islamic schools and branches are known as non-denominational Muslims . About 13% of Muslims live in Indonesia ,

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7540-509: The Amin/Taraki period in response to the revolts. The revolt began in October among the Nuristani tribes of the Kunar Valley in the northeastern part of the country near the border with Pakistan, and rapidly spread among the other ethnic groups. By the spring of 1979, 24 of the 28 provinces had suffered outbreaks of violence. The rebellion began to take hold in the cities: in March 1979 in Herat , rebels led by Ismail Khan revolted. Between 3,000 and 5,000 people were killed and wounded during

7685-443: The Amir; the effect of the Tripoli Campaign ; Anglo-Russian action in Persia ; and "Afghan Ambitions". A significant change in the Muslim world was the defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire (1908–1922), to which the Ottoman officer and Turkish revolutionary statesman Mustafa Kemal Atatürk had an instrumental role in ending and replacing it with the Republic of Turkey , a modern , secular democracy (see Abolition of

7830-402: The Chief of the Soviet Army General Staff, Marshal Nikolai Ogarkov who warned about the possibility of a protracted guerrilla war, were dismissed by the troika who insisted that any occupation of Afghanistan would be short and relatively painless. Most notably, though the diplomats of the Narkomindel at the Embassy in Kabul and the KGB officers stationed in Afghanistan were well informed about

7975-409: The Czechoslovak StB ; files from January 1979 revealed information that Afghanistan sent AGSA spies to Czechoslovakia to find and assassinate Karmal. In 1978, the Taraki government initiated a series of reforms, including a radical modernization of the traditional Islamic civil law, especially marriage law, aimed at "uprooting feudalism " in Afghan society. The government brooked no opposition to

8120-400: The Herat revolt. Some 100 Soviet citizens and their families were killed. By August 1979, up to 165,000 Afghans had fled across the border to Pakistan. The main reason the revolt spread so widely was the disintegration of the Afghan army in a series of insurrections. The numbers of the Afghan army fell from 110,000 men in 1978 to 25,000 by 1980. The U.S. embassy in Kabul cabled to Washington

8265-555: The Indian subcontinent (India, Bangladesh , Pakistan , etc.), Safavids in Persia and Ottomans in Anatolia , Massina Empire , Sokoto Caliphate of northern Nigeria , Toucouleur Empire , were among the influential and distinguished powers in the world. 19th-century colonialism and 20th-century decolonisation have resulted in several independent Muslim-majority states around the world, with vastly differing attitudes towards and political influences granted to, or restricted for, Islam from country to country. These have revolved around

8410-418: The Khalqis to eliminate their rivals so the Soviets would have no other choice but to back them. Within the PDPA, conflicts resulted in exiles , purges and executions of Parcham members. The Khalq state executed between 10,000 and 27,000 people, mostly at Pul-e-Charkhi prison , prior to the Soviet intervention. Political scientist Olivier Roy estimated between 50,000 and 100,000 people disappeared during

8555-505: The King in a bloodless coup , and established the first Afghan republic . Following his return to power, Daoud revived his Pashtunistan policy and for the first time started proxy warring against Pakistan by supporting anti-Pakistani groups and providing them with arms, training and sanctuaries. The Pakistani government of prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was alarmed by this. The Soviet Union also supported Daoud Khan's militancy against Pakistan as they wanted to weaken Pakistan, which

8700-436: The Middle East more than any trend since the modern states gained independence", redefining "politics and even borders". Central and prominent figures in 20th-century Islamism include Sayyid Rashid Riḍā , Hassan al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood ), Sayyid Qutb , Abul A'la Maududi , Ruhollah Khomeini (founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran), Hassan Al-Turabi . Syrian Sunni cleric Muhammad Rashid Riḍā,

8845-402: The Muslim community based on his teachings and guidelines of the Quran. The majority of Muslims consider the first four successors to be 'rightly guided' or Rashidun . The conquests of the Rashidun Caliphate helped to spread Islam beyond the Arabian Peninsula, stretching from northwest India, across Central Asia, the Near East , North Africa, southern Italy, and the Iberian Peninsula , to

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8990-430: The Muslim world, achieving the economic preconditions for the emergence of this institution owing to the emphasis attached to Islamic teachings. In the modern era, most of the Muslim world came under European colonial domination . The nation states that emerged in the post-colonial era have adopted a variety of political and economic models, and they have been affected by secular as well as religious trends. As of 2013 ,

9135-405: The Ottoman sultanate ). The secular values of Kemalist Turkey, which separated religion from the state with the abolition of the Caliphate in 1924, have sometimes been seen as the result of Western influence. In the 21st century, after the September 11 attacks (2001) coordinated by the Wahhabi Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda against the United States, scholars considered

9280-411: The PDPA government pursued a solo war effort against the mujahideen, and the conflict evolved into the Afghan Civil War . However, following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in December 1991, all support to the Democratic Republic was pulled, leading to the toppling of the government at the hands of the mujahideen in 1992 and the start of a second Afghan Civil War shortly thereafter. In Afghanistan,

9425-478: The PDPA split into two rival factions, the Khalq (Masses) faction headed by Nur Muhammad Taraki and the Parcham (Flag) faction led by Babrak Karmal . Symbolic of the different backgrounds of the two factions were the fact that Taraki's father was a poor Pashtun herdsman while Karmal's father was a Tajik general in the Royal Afghan Army. More importantly, the radical Khalq faction believed in rapidly transforming Afghanistan, if necessary even using violence, from

9570-493: The PDPA was sparked by the repression imposed on them by Daoud's regime and the death of a leading PDPA member, Mir Akbar Khyber . The mysterious circumstances of Khyber's death sparked massive anti-Daoud demonstrations in Kabul , which resulted in the arrest of several prominent PDPA leaders. On 27 April 1978, the Afghan Army , which had been sympathetic to the PDPA cause, overthrew and executed Daoud along with members of his family. The Finnish scholar Raimo Väyrynen wrote about

9715-405: The Politics of Nations (1731) The Great Divergence was the reason why European colonial powers militarily defeated preexisting Oriental powers like the Mughal Empire , starting from the wealthy Bengal Subah , Tipu Sultan 's Kingdom of Mysore , the Ottoman Empire and many smaller states in the pre-modern Greater Middle East , and initiated a period known as ' colonialism '. Beginning with

9860-420: The Soviet Union ). Of specific concern were Amin's supposed meetings with the U.S. chargé d'affaires, J. Bruce Amstutz , which were used as a justification for the invasion by the Kremlin . Information forged by the KGB from its agents in Kabul provided the last arguments to eliminate Amin. Supposedly, two of Amin's guards killed the former General Secretary Nur Muhammad Taraki with a pillow, and Amin himself

10005-452: The Soviet Union as military, economic, and political resources became increasingly exhausted. By mid-1987, reformist Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev announced that the Soviet military would begin a complete withdrawal from Afghanistan . The final wave of disengagement was initiated on 15 May 1988, and on 15 February 1989, the last Soviet military column occupying Afghanistan crossed into the Uzbek SSR . With continued external Soviet backing,

10150-472: The Soviet Union by the international community shortly after the beginning of the conflict. Soviet troops occupied Afghanistan's major cities and all main arteries of communication, whereas the mujahideen waged guerrilla warfare in small groups across the 80% of the country that was not subject to uncontested Soviet control—almost exclusively comprising the rugged, mountainous terrain of the countryside. In addition to laying millions of landmines across Afghanistan,

10295-416: The Soviet Union. Economic assistance and aid had been provided to Afghanistan as early as 1919, shortly after the Russian Revolution and when the regime was facing the Russian Civil War . Provisions were given in the form of small arms , ammunition, a few aircraft, and (according to debated Soviet sources) a million gold rubles to support the resistance during the Third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919. In 1942,

10440-417: The Soviets used their aerial power to deal harshly with both Afghan resistance and civilians, levelling villages to deny safe haven to the mujahideen, destroying vital irrigation ditches and other infrastructure through tactics of scorched earth . The Soviet government had initially planned to swiftly secure Afghanistan's towns and road networks, stabilize the PDPA, and withdraw all of their military forces in

10585-570: The Taraki–Amin period: There is only one leading force in the country – Hafizullah Amin. In the Politburo, everybody fears Amin. During its first 18 months of rule, the PDPA applied a Soviet-style program of modernizing reforms, many of which were viewed by conservatives as opposing Islam. Decrees setting forth changes in marriage customs and land reform were not received well by a population deeply immersed in tradition and Islam, particularly by

10730-614: The Third World, particularly beginning in mid-1979." In March 1979, "CIA sent several covert action options relating to Afghanistan to the SCC [ Special Coordination Committee ]" of the United States National Security Council . At a 30 March meeting, U.S. Department of Defense representative Walter B. Slocombe "asked if there was value in keeping the Afghan insurgency going, 'sucking the Soviets into

10875-619: The USSR again moved to strengthen the Afghan Armed Forces by providing small arms and aircraft and establishing training centers in Tashkent , Uzbek SSR . Soviet-Afghan military cooperation began on a regular basis in 1956, and further agreements were made in the 1970s, which saw the USSR send advisers and specialists. The Soviets also had interests in the energy resources of Afghanistan, including oil and natural gas exploration from

11020-662: The United Kingdom, such as using it as a base for a revolutionary advance towards British-controlled India . The Red Army intervened in Afghanistan to suppress the Islamic Basmachi movement in 1929 and 1930 , supporting the ousted king Amanullah, as part of the Afghan Civil War (1928–1929) . The Basmachi movement had originated in a 1916 revolt against Russian conscription during World War I , bolstered by Turkish general Enver Pasha during

11165-580: The United States. The policy had also angered the non-Pashtun population of Afghanistan, and similarly, the Pashtun population in Pakistan were also not interested in having their areas being annexed by Afghanistan. In 1951, the U.S. State Department urged Afghanistan to drop its claim against Pakistan and accept the Durand Line. In 1954, the United States began selling arms to its ally Pakistan, while refusing an Afghan request to buy arms, out of fear that

11310-537: The army was melting away "like an ice floe in a tropical sea". According to scholar Gilles Dorronsoro, it was the violence of the state rather than its reforms that caused the uprisings. Pakistani intelligence officials began privately lobbying the U.S. and its allies to send materiel assistance to the Islamist rebels. Pakistani President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq 's ties with the U.S. had been strained during Jimmy Carter 's presidency due to Pakistan's nuclear program and

11455-522: The combined GDP (nominal) of 50 Muslim majority countries was US$ 5.7 trillion. As of 2016 , they contributed 8% of the world's total. In 2020, the Economy of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation which consists of 57 member states had a combined GDP(PPP) of US$ 24 trillion which is equal to about 18% of world's GDP or US$ 30 trillion with 5 OIC observer states which is equal to about 22% of

11600-765: The context of the state or society. The majority of them are affiliated with Islamic institutions or social mobilization movements. Islamists emphasize the implementation of sharia , pan-Islamic political unity, and the creation of Islamic states . In its original formulation, Islamism described an ideology seeking to revive Islam to its past assertiveness and glory, purifying it of foreign elements, reasserting its role into "social and political as well as personal life"; and in particular "reordering government and society in accordance with laws prescribed by Islam" (i.e. Sharia). According to at least one observer (author Robin Wright ), Islamist movements have "arguably altered

11745-457: The country's cities remained under Soviet control. The conflict resulted in the deaths of approximately 3,000,000 Afghans, while millions more fled from the country as refugees ; most externally displaced Afghans sought refuge in Pakistan and in Iran . Approximately 6.5% to 11.5% of Afghanistan's erstwhile population of 13.5 million people (per the 1979 census) is estimated to have been killed over

11890-522: The course of the Soviet–Afghan War. The decade-long confrontation between the mujahideen and the Soviet and Afghan militaries inflicted grave destruction throughout Afghanistan and has also been cited by scholars as a significant factor that contributed to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991; it is for this reason that the conflict is sometimes referred to as "the Soviet Union's Vietnam " in retrospective analyses. In March 1979, there had been

12035-614: The crisis between Pakistan and Afghanistan was resolved and Pakistan re-opened the trade routes. After the removal of Daoud Khan, the King installed a new prime minister and started creating a balance in Afghanistan's relation with the West and the Soviet Union, which angered the Soviet Union. In 1973, Daoud Khan, supported by Soviet-trained Afghan Army officers and a large base of the Afghan Commando Forces , seized power from

12180-472: The developments in that country, such information rarely filtered through to the decision-makers in Moscow who viewed Afghanistan more in the context of the Cold War rather than understanding Afghanistan as a subject in its own right. The viewpoint that it was the United States that was fomenting the Islamic insurgency in Afghanistan with the aim of destabilizing Soviet-dominated Central Asia tended to downplay

12325-416: The effects of an unpopular Communist government pursuing policies that the majority of Afghans violently disliked as a generator of the insurgency and strengthened those who argued some sort of Soviet response was required to a supposed "outrageous American provocation." It was assumed in Moscow that because Pakistan (an ally of both the United States and China) was supporting the mujahideen that therefore it

12470-542: The enemies of the revolution, and millions of people had to be eliminated in order to secure the victory of the October Revolution . Taraki and Amin's regime even attempted to eliminate Parcham's leader Babrak Karmal. After being relieved of his duties as ambassador, he remained in Czechoslovakia in exile, fearing for his life if he returned as the regime requested. He and his family were protected by

12615-554: The execution of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in April 1979, but Carter told National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski and Secretary of State Cyrus Vance as early as January 1979 that it was vital to "repair our relationships with Pakistan" in light of the unrest in Iran . According to former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) official Robert Gates , "the Carter administration turned to CIA ... to counter Soviet and Cuban aggression in

12760-484: The failure of Congress to ratify the SALT II treaty, creating the impression that détente was "already effectively dead." The British journalist Patrick Brogan wrote in 1989: "The simplest explanation is probably the best. They got sucked into Afghanistan much as the United States got sucked into Vietnam, without clearly thinking through the consequences, and wildly underestimating the hostility they would arouse". By

12905-537: The fall of 1979, the Amin regime was collapsing with morale in the Afghan Army having fallen to rock-bottom levels, while the mujahideen had taken control of much of the countryside. The general consensus amongst Afghan experts at the time was that it was not a question of if, but when the mujahideen would take Kabul. In October 1979, a KGB Spetsnaz force Zenith covertly dispatched a group of specialists to determine

13050-446: The fight against the mujahideen ("Those engaged in jihad ") rebels. After the killing of Soviet technicians in Herat by rioting mobs, the Soviet government sold several Mi-24 helicopters to the Afghan military. On 14 April 1979, the Afghan government requested that the USSR send 15 to 20 helicopters with their crews to Afghanistan, and on 16 June, the Soviet government responded and sent a detachment of tanks, BMPs , and crews to guard

13195-473: The following months right up to December 1979. However, the Soviet government was in no hurry to grant them. We should tell Taraki and Amin to change their tactics. They still continue to execute those people who disagree with them. They are killing nearly all of the Parcham leaders, not only the highest rank, but of the middle rank, too. – Kosygin speaking at a Politburo session. Based on information from

13340-547: The government in Kabul and to secure the Bagram and Shindand air bases. In response to this request, an airborne battalion, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel A. Lomakin, arrived at Bagram on 7 July. They arrived without their combat gear, disguised as technical specialists. They were the personal bodyguards for General Secretary Taraki. The paratroopers were directly subordinate to the senior Soviet military advisor and did not interfere in Afghan politics. Several leading politicians at

13485-456: The government. They started their rebellion in the Panjshir valley , but lack of support along with government forces easily defeating them made it a failure, and a sizable portion of the insurgents sought refuge in Pakistan where they enjoyed the support of Bhutto's government. The 1975 rebellion, though unsuccessful, shook President Daoud Khan and made him realize that a friendly Pakistan

13630-478: The grave internal situation and inability for the Afghan government to retain power much longer; the effects of the Iranian Revolution that brought an Islamic theocracy into power, leading to fears that religious fanaticism would spread through Afghanistan and into Soviet Muslim Central Asian republics; Taraki's murder and replacement by Amin, who the Soviet leadership believed had secret contacts within

13775-522: The hands of our enemies – both yours and ours". Brezhnev also advised Taraki to ease up on the drastic social reforms and to seek broader support for his regime. In 1979, Taraki attended a conference of the Non-Aligned Movement in Havana , Cuba. On his way back, he stopped in Moscow on 20 March and met with Brezhnev, Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko and other Soviet officials. It

13920-706: The influence of perceived pan-Islamic propaganda . The Times described Pan-Islamism as a movement with power, importance, and cohesion born in Paris, where Turks, Arabs and Persians congregated. The correspondent's focus was on India: it would take too long to consider the progress made in various parts of the Muslim world. The article considered the position of the Amir, the effect of the Tripoli Campaign , Anglo-Russian action in Persia, and "Afghan Ambitions". In

14065-514: The invasion were the belief in Moscow that Amin was a leader both incompetent and fanatical who had lost control of the situation, together with the belief that it was the United States via Pakistan who was sponsoring the Islamist insurgency in Afghanistan. Andropov, Gromyko and Ustinov all argued that if a radical Islamist regime came to power in Kabul, it would attempt to sponsor radical Islam in Soviet Central Asia , thereby requiring

14210-645: The large British colonies in India . This regional rivalry was called the " Great Game ". In 1885, Russian forces seized a disputed oasis south of the Oxus River from Afghan forces, which became known as the Panjdeh Incident . The border was agreed by the joint Anglo-Russian Afghan Boundary Commission of 1885–87. The Russian interest in Afghanistan continued through the Soviet era, with billions in economic and military aid sent to Afghanistan between 1955 and 1978. Following Amanullah Khan 's ascent to

14355-637: The largest Christian population number lived in Indonesia, followed by Egypt. Nigeria is divided almost evenly between Muslims and Christians, with more than 80 million Christians and Muslims. In 2018, the Jewish Agency estimated that around 27,000 Jews live in Arab and Muslim countries. Jewish communities have existed across the Middle East and North Africa since the rise of Islam. Today, Jews residing in Muslim countries have been reduced to

14500-413: The largest Muslim population in the world. Because the terms 'Muslim world' and 'Islamic world' are disputed, since no country is homogeneously Muslim, and there is no way to determine at what point a Muslim minority in a country is to be considered 'significant' enough, there is no consensus on how to define the Muslim world geographically. The only rule of thumb for inclusion which has some support,

14645-491: The largest Muslim population outside Muslim-majority countries. Pakistan , Bangladesh , Iran , and Egypt are home to the world’s second, fourth, sixth and seventh largest Muslim populations respectively. Sizeable Muslim communities are also found in the Americas , Russia , India , China , and Europe . Islam is the fastest-growing major religion in the world partially due to their high birth rate, according to

14790-721: The largest Muslim-majority country; 31% of Muslims live in South Asia, the largest population of Muslims in the world; 20% in the Middle East–North Africa, where it is the dominant religion; and 15% in Sub-Saharan Africa and West Africa (primarily in Nigeria ). Muslims are the overwhelming majority in Central Asia, the majority in the Caucasus , and widespread in Southeast Asia. India has

14935-418: The latter to enjoy ascendancy over the former. In 1971, the U.S. Embassy in Kabul reported that there had been increasing leftist activity in the country, attributed to disillusionment of social and economic conditions, and the poor response from the Kingdom's leadership. It added that the PDPA was "perhaps the most disgruntled and organized of the country's leftist groups." Intense opposition from factions of

15080-479: The local military garrison in the Nuristan region of eastern Afghanistan and soon civil war spread throughout the country. In September 1979, Deputy Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin seized power, arresting and killing Taraki. More than two months of instability overwhelmed Amin's regime as he moved against his opponents in the PDPA and the growing rebellion. Even before the revolutionaries came to power, Afghanistan

15225-638: The majority than in countries in which they form a minority. Hence, the term 'Muslim-majority countries' is often preferred in literature. The history of the Islamic faith as a religion and social institution begins with its inception around 610 CE , when the Islamic prophet Muhammad , a native of Mecca , is believed by Muslims to have received the first revelation of the Quran, and began to preach his message. In 622 CE, facing opposition in Mecca, he and his followers migrated to Yathrib (now Medina ), where he

15370-696: The new regime promptly allied itself to the Soviet Union, many Soviet diplomats believed that the Khalqi plans to transform Afghanistan would provoke a rebellion from the general population, which was socially and religiously conservative. Immediately after coming to power, the Khalqis began to persecute the Parchamis, not the least because the Soviet Union favored the Parchami faction whose "go slow" plans were felt to be better suited for Afghanistan, thereby leading

15515-606: The ones who had supported his coup, and started replacing them with familiar faces from Kabul's traditional government elites. Daoud also started reducing his dependence on the Soviet Union. As a consequence of Daoud's actions, Afghanistan's relations with the Soviet Union deteriorated. In 1978, after witnessing India's nuclear test, Smiling Buddha , Daoud Khan initiated a military buildup to counter Pakistan's armed forces and Iranian military influence in Afghan politics. The Marxist People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan 's strength grew considerably after its foundation. In 1967,

15660-458: The original price; however, the Soviets were not pleased about the developments in Afghanistan and Brezhnev impressed upon Taraki the need for party unity. Despite reaching this agreement with Taraki, the Soviets continued to be reluctant to intervene further in Afghanistan and repeatedly refused Soviet military intervention within Afghan borders during Taraki's rule as well as later during Amin's short rule. Lenin taught us to be merciless towards

15805-722: The population. Southeastern Europe also has a large number of non-denominational Muslims. The Kharijite Muslims, who are less known, have their own stronghold in the country of Oman holding about 75% of the population. The first centuries of Islam gave rise to three major sects : Sunnis , Shi'as and Kharijites . Each sect developed distinct jurisprudence schools ( madhhab ) reflecting different methodologies of jurisprudence ( fiqh ). The major Sunni madhhabs are Hanafi , Maliki , Shafi'i , and Hanbali . The major Shi'a branches are Twelver (Imami), Ismaili (Sevener) and Zaidi (Fiver). Isma'ilism later split into Nizari Ismaili and Musta’li Ismaili , and then Mustaali

15950-399: The potential reaction from local Afghans to a presence of Soviet troops there. They concluded that deploying troops would be unwise and could lead to war, but this was reportedly ignored by the KGB chairman Yuri Andropov . A Spetsnaz battalion of Central Asian troops , dressed in Afghan Army uniforms, was covertly deployed to Kabul between 9 and 12 November 1979. They moved a few days later to

16095-476: The powerful landowners harmed economically by the abolition of usury (although usury is prohibited in Islam) and the cancellation of farmers' debts. The new government also enhanced women's rights, sought a rapid eradication of illiteracy and promoted Afghanistan's ethnic minorities, although these programs appear to have had an effect only in the urban areas. By mid-1978, a rebellion started, with rebels attacking

16240-638: The prosperous Indo-Gangetic Plain and enthroned one of the few female Muslim rulers, Razia Sultana . Notable major empires dominated by Muslims, such as those of the Abbasids , Fatimids , Almoravids , Gao Empire , Seljukids , largest contiguous Songhai Empire (15th-16th centuries) of Sahel , West Africa , southern North Africa and western Central Africa which dominated the centers of Islamic knowledge of Timbuktu , Djenne , Oualata and Gao , Ajuran , Adal and Warsangali in Somalia , Mughals in

16385-443: The province. This was apparently on the belief that these workers would be supporters of the Afghan government. This was discussed further in the Soviet Union with a wide range of views, mainly split between those who wanted to ensure that Afghanistan remained a socialist state and those who were concerned that the unrest would escalate. Eventually, a compromise was reached to send military aid, but not troops. The conflict began when

16530-424: The question of Islam's compatibility with other ideological concepts such as secularism , nationalism (especially Arab nationalism and Pan-Arabism , as opposed to Pan-Islamism ), socialism (see also Arab socialism and socialism in Iran ), democracy (see Islamic democracy ), republicanism (see also Islamic republic ), liberalism and progressivism , feminism , capitalism and more. Scholars often use

16675-409: The ramifications of seeking to understand Muslim experience through the framework of secular Enlightenment principles. Muhammad Atta , one of the 11 September hijackers , reportedly quoted from the Quran to allay his fears: "Fight them, and God will chastise them at your hands/And degrade them, and He will help you/Against them, and bring healing to the breasts of a people who believe", referring to

16820-568: The reforms and responded with violence to unrest. Between April 1978 and the Soviet Intervention of December 1979, thousands of prisoners, perhaps as many as 27,000, were executed at the notorious Pul-e-Charkhi prison , including many village mullahs and headmen. Other members of the traditional elite, the religious establishment and intelligentsia fled the country. Large parts of the country went into open rebellion. The Parcham Government claimed that 11,000 were executed during

16965-629: The reforms of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk . By contrast, the 1979 Iranian Revolution replaced a monarchial semi-secular regime with an Islamic republic led by the Ayatollah , Ruhollah Khomeini . Some countries have declared Islam as the official state religion. In those countries, the legal code is largely secular. Only personal status matters pertaining to inheritance and marriage are governed by Sharia law. In some places, Muslims implement Islamic law, called sharia in Arabic. The Islamic law exists in

17110-534: The rise of Pan-Islamism ; or affirmed more traditionalist and inclusive cultural ideals; and in rare cases adopted modernity that was ushered by the colonial powers. The only Muslim-majority regions not to be colonized by the Europeans were Saudi Arabia, Iran, Turkey, and Afghanistan. Turkey was one of the first colonial powers of the world with the Ottoman empire ruling several states for over 6 centuries. In

17255-601: The role of the imam . Sunnis believe that the true political successor of Muhammad according to the Sunnah should be selected based on ٍ Shura (consultation), as was done at the Saqifah which selected Abu Bakr , Muhammad's father-in-law, to be Muhammad's political but not his religious successor. Shia, on the other hand, believe that Muhammad designated his son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib as his true political as well as religious successor. The overwhelming majority of Muslims in

17400-527: The same study, religious switching has no impact on Muslim population, since the number of people who embrace Islam and those who leave Islam are roughly equal. China has the third largest Muslim population outside Muslim-majority countries, while Russia has the fifth largest Muslim population. Nigeria has the largest Muslim population in Africa, while Indonesia has the largest Muslim population in Asia. The term has been documented as early as 1912 to encompass

17545-523: The so-called "Saur Revolution": "There is a multitude of speculations on the real nature of this coup. The reality appears to be that it was inspired first of all by domestic economic and political concerns and that the Soviet Union did not play any role in the Saur Revolution". After this the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA) was formed. Nur Muhammad Taraki, General Secretary of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan, became Chairman of

17690-588: The term Age of the Islamic Gunpowders to describe period the Safavid , Ottoman and Mughal states. Each of these three empires had considerable military exploits using the newly developed firearms , especially cannon and small arms, to create their empires. They existed primarily between the fourteenth and the late seventeenth centuries. During the 17th–18th centuries, when the Indian subcontinent

17835-458: The term "Islamism" has been criticized as having been given connotations of violence, extremism, and violations of human rights, by the Western mass media, leading to Islamophobia and stereotyping. More than 24.1% of the world's population is Muslim, with an estimated total of approximately 1.9 billion. Muslims are the majority in 49 countries, they speak hundreds of languages and come from diverse ethnic backgrounds. The city of Karachi has

17980-591: The throne in 1919 and the subsequent Third Anglo-Afghan War , the British conceded Afghanistan's full independence. King Amanullah afterwards wrote to Russia (now under Bolshevik control) desiring for permanent friendly relations. Vladimir Lenin replied by congratulating the Afghans for their defence against the British, and a treaty of friendship between Afghanistan and Russia was finalized in 1921. The Soviets saw possibilities in an alliance with Afghanistan against

18125-461: The time such as Alexei Kosygin and Andrei Gromyko were against intervention. After a month, the Afghan requests were no longer for individual crews and subunits, but for regiments and larger units. In July, the Afghan government requested that two motorized rifle divisions be sent to Afghanistan. The following day, they requested an airborne division in addition to the earlier requests. They repeated these requests and variants to these requests over

18270-474: The war is usually called the Soviet war in Afghanistan ( Pashto : په افغانستان کې شوروی جګړه , romanized:  Pah Afghanistan ke Shuravi Jagera ; Dari : جنگ شوروی در افغانستان , romanized:  Jang-e Shuravi dar Afghanestan ). In Russia and elsewhere in the former Soviet Union, it is usually called the Afghan war ( Russian : Афганская война ; Ukrainian : Війна в Афганістані ; Belarusian : Афганская вайна ; Uzbek : Afgʻon urushi ); it

18415-632: The west, and Afghanistan would be forced into a closer relationship with the Soviet Union. The pro-Soviet Afghans (such as the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA)) also supported Daoud Khan's hostility towards Pakistan, as they believed that a conflict with Pakistan would induce Afghanistan to seek aid from the Soviet Union. As a result, the pro-Soviet Afghans would be able to establish their influence over Afghanistan. In response to Afghanistan's proxy war, Pakistan started supporting Afghans who were critical of Daoud Khan's policies. Bhutto authorized

18560-890: The world's GDP. Some OIC member countries - Ivory Coast , Guyana , Gabon , Mozambique , Nigeria , Suriname , Togo and Uganda are not Muslim-majority. As of 2020, 1.8 billion or more than 25% of the world population are Muslims. By the percentage of the total population in a region considering themselves Muslim, 91% in the Middle East - North Africa ( MENA ), 89% in Central Asia , 40% in Southeast Asia , 31% in South Asia , 30% in Sub-Saharan Africa , 25% in Asia , 1.4% in Oceania , 6% in Europe , and 1% in

18705-415: The world, between 87 and 90%, are Sunni. Shias and other groups make up the rest, about 10–13% of overall Muslim population. The countries with the highest concentration of Shia populations are: Iran – 89%, Azerbaijan – 65%, Iraq – 60%, Bahrain – 60%, Yemen – 35%, Turkey – 10%, Lebanon – 27%, Syria – 13%, Afghanistan – 10%, Pakistan – 10%, and India – 10%. Non-denominational Muslims make up

18850-546: Was "a militarily and politically neutral nation, effectively dependent on the Soviet Union." A treaty, signed in December 1978, allowed the Democratic Republic to call upon the Soviet Union for military support. We believe it would be a fatal mistake to commit ground troops. [...] If our troops went in, the situation in your country would not improve. On the contrary, it would get worse. Our troops would have to struggle not only with an external aggressor, but with

18995-439: Was an ally of both the United States and China. However, it did not openly try to create problems for Pakistan as that would damage the Soviet Union's relations with other Islamic countries, hence it relied on Daoud Khan to weaken Pakistan. They had the same thought regarding Iran, another major U.S. ally. The Soviet Union also believed that the hostile behaviour of Afghanistan against Pakistan and Iran could alienate Afghanistan from

19140-485: Was an excellent idea and it had hard-hitting impact on Daoud and his government, which forced Daoud to increase his desire to make peace with Bhutto. Pakistan's goal was to overthrow Daoud's regime and establish an Islamist theocracy in its place. The first ever ISI operation in Afghanistan took place in 1975, supporting militants from the Jamiat-e Islami party, led by Ahmad Shah Massoud, attempting to overthrow

19285-1147: Was divided into Hafizi and Taiyabi Ismailis . It also gave rise to the Qarmatian movement and the Druze faith, although Druzes do not identify as Muslims. Twelver Shiism developed Ja'fari jurisprudence whose branches are Akhbarism and Usulism , and other movements such as Alawites , Shaykism and Alevism . Similarly, Kharijites were initially divided into five major branches: Sufris , Azariqa , Najdat , Adjarites and Ibadis . Among these numerous branches, only Hanafi , Maliki , Shafi'i , Hanbali , Imamiyyah - Ja'fari - Usuli , Nizārī Ismā'īlī , Alevi , Zaydi , Ibadi , Zahiri , Alawite , Druze and Taiyabi communities have survived. In addition, new schools of thought and movements like Quranist Muslims and Ahmadi Muslims later emerged independently. There are sizeable non-Muslim minorities in many Muslim-majority countries, includes, Christians , Jews , Hindus , Buddhists , Baháʼís , Druzes , Yazidis , Mandaeans , Yarsanis and Zoroastrians . The Muslim world

19430-551: Was in his best interests. He started improving relations with Pakistan and made state visits there in 1976 and 1978. During the 1978 visit, he agreed to stop supporting anti-Pakistan militants and to expel any remaining militants in Afghanistan. In 1975, Daoud Khan established his own party, the National Revolutionary Party of Afghanistan and outlawed all other parties. He then started removing members of its Parcham wing from government positions, including

19575-594: Was invited to establish a new constitution for the city under his leadership. This migration, called the Hijra , marks the first year of the Islamic calendar . By the time of his death, Muhammad had become the political and spiritual leader of Medina, Mecca, the surrounding region, and numerous other tribes in the Arabian Peninsula . After Muhammad died in 632, his successors (the Caliphs ) continued to lead

19720-407: Was needed "to abolish the negative influences of jahili life." As the Muslim world came into contact with secular ideals, societies responded in different ways. Some Muslim-majority countries are secular. Azerbaijan became the first secular republic in the Muslim world, between 1918 and 1920, before it was incorporated into the Soviet Union. Turkey has been governed as a secular state since

19865-504: Was not heard. During meetings between General Secretary Taraki and Soviet leaders in March 1979, the Soviets promised political support and to send military equipment and technical specialists, but upon repeated requests by Taraki for direct Soviet intervention, the leadership adamantly opposed him; reasons included that they would be met with "bitter resentment" from the Afghan people, that intervening in another country's civil war would hand

20010-464: Was portrayed as a CIA agent. The latter is widely discredited, with Amin repeatedly demonstrating friendliness toward the various delegates of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan and maintaining the pro-Soviet line. Soviet General Vasily Zaplatin , a political advisor of Premier Brezhnev at the time, claimed that four of General Secretary Taraki's ministers were responsible for the destabilization. However, Zaplatin failed to emphasize this in discussions and

20155-438: Was pushed towards closer alliance with the Soviet Union for trade. However, these stopgap measures were not enough to compensate the loss suffered by Afghanistan's economy because of the border closure. As a result of continued resentment against Daoud's autocratic rule, close ties with the Soviet Union and economic downturn, Daoud Khan was forced to resign by the King of Afghanistan, Mohammed Zahir Shah . Following his resignation,

20300-534: Was ruled by Mughal Empire 's sixth ruler Muhammad Auranzgeb through sharia and Islamic economics , India became the world's largest economy, valued 25% of world GDP. "Why do the Christian nations, which were so weak in the past compared with Muslim nations begin to dominate so many lands in modern times and even defeat the once victorious Ottoman armies?"..."Because they have laws and rules invented by reason." Ibrahim Muteferrika , Rational basis for

20445-571: Was rumoured that Karmal was present at the meeting in an attempt to reconcile Taraki's Khalq faction and the Parcham against Amin and his followers. At the meeting, Taraki was successful in negotiating some Soviet support, including the redeployment of two Soviet armed divisions at the Soviet-Afghan border, the sending of 500 military and civilian advisers and specialists and the immediate delivery of Soviet armed equipment sold at 25 percent below

20590-581: Was that a substantial U.S. covert aid program could raise the stakes and induce the Soviets to intervene more directly and vigorously than otherwise intended." In May 1979, U.S. officials secretly began meeting with rebel leaders through Pakistani government contacts. After additional meetings Carter signed two presidential findings in July 1979 permitting the CIA to spend $ 695,000 on non-military assistance (e.g., "cash, medical equipment, and radio transmitters") and on

20735-582: Was the modern jahliliyyah . His understanding of the "Muslim world" and its "social order" was that, presented to the Western world as the result of practicing Islamic teachings, would impress "by the beauty and charm of true Islamic ideology". He argued that the values of the Enlightenment and its related precursor, the Scientific Revolution , "denies or suspends God's sovereignty on earth" and argued that strengthening "Islamic character"

20880-493: Was ultimately the United States and China who were behind the rebellion in Afghanistan. Muslim world The terms Muslim world and Islamic world ( Arabic : العالم الإسلامي , romanized :  Al-ʿĀlam al-ʾIslāmī ) commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah . This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam

21025-463: Was unfavorable to the proposal on the basis of the negative political repercussions such an action would have for his country, and he rejected all further attempts by Taraki to solicit Soviet military aid in Afghanistan. Following Kosygin's rejection, Taraki requested aid from Leonid Brezhnev , the general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union and Soviet head of state , who warned Taraki that full Soviet intervention "would only play into

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