Part 1 Chapter 2
Jay A. Degreenia
Part 1, Chapter 2
Malala tells of the history between Pakistan and Afghanistan and how the Russian invasion transformed General Zi from an international pariah to a great defender of freedom in the Cold War. She describes how Pakistan became a friend of the United States, whose biggest enemy at that time was Russia, as well as an ally of other Muslim nations, who viewed the Russian invasion as a war against Islam. She also talks about how money poured in from all over the Muslim world, particularly Saudi Arabia, which matched whatever the US sent, and volunteer fighters too, including a Saudi millionaire called Osama Bin Laden. Malala goes on to tell how Pakistan children were given math textbooks (written by an American University) which used war tactics to teach math. She says that local mosques held sermons supporting jihad, telling people it was their duty as Muslims to fight. She tells the story of how Malala’s father almost became a jihad. She tells how young men were recruited to fight against the Russians. They were told that becoming a jihad was their best option, as life in Pashtun was hard with little opportunity other than working in the coal mines. Malala’s father recalls thinking that death and heaven sounded like a better offer than such a hard life, so he began to embrace this path, studying and interpreting the Quran and the ways of jihad. Looking back he tells Malala that it was a kind of brainwashing. He goes on to tell her that he may have become a suicide bomber if such things existed at the time.
Looking back at the rise of the Taliban, the involvement of the US, Russia, and other Islam nations, can you see how certain events in our recent history have unfolded?
Part 1, Chapter 2
Malala tells of the history between Pakistan and Afghanistan and how the Russian invasion transformed General Zi from an international pariah to a great defender of freedom in the Cold War. She describes how Pakistan became a friend of the United States, whose biggest enemy at that time was Russia, as well as an ally of other Muslim nations, who viewed the Russian invasion as a war against Islam. She also talks about how money poured in from all over the Muslim world, particularly Saudi Arabia, which matched whatever the US sent, and volunteer fighters too, including a Saudi millionaire called Osama Bin Laden. Malala goes on to tell how Pakistan children were given math textbooks (written by an American University) which used war tactics to teach math. She says that local mosques held sermons supporting jihad, telling people it was their duty as Muslims to fight. She tells the story of how Malala’s father almost became a jihad. She tells how young men were recruited to fight against the Russians. They were told that becoming a jihad was their best option, as life in Pashtun was hard with little opportunity other than working in the coal mines. Malala’s father recalls thinking that death and heaven sounded like a better offer than such a hard life, so he began to embrace this path, studying and interpreting the Quran and the ways of jihad. Looking back he tells Malala that it was a kind of brainwashing. He goes on to tell her that he may have become a suicide bomber if such things existed at the time.
Looking back at the rise of the Taliban, the involvement of the US, Russia, and other Islam nations, can you see how certain events in our recent history have unfolded?