The myth of leadership and civil war in Afghanistan (1992-1994)

After the Mujahedin victory over the communist regime in Afghanistan in 1992, a civil war broke out between the Mujahedin armed groups. Most of these battles took place between Pashtun forces (Hekmatyar) and Tajiks (Massoud). The motivation that can be imagined for the beginning of this conflict and internal tension can be interpreted as the myth of leadership. The question is, how did the myth of leadership lead to the Civil War? To analyze this issue, the approach of political mythology and Schmidt's understanding of politics has been used. The conclusion of this study is that the myth of leadership led to the distinction between friend and foe and antagonism. This antagonism and alienation turned ethnic groups into political entities and led to war and military conflict. The conquest of Kabul was an icon reminiscent of the whole myth of leadership. Due to the symbolic significance of the conquest of Kabul, conflicts and political tensions have arisen, especially between the Tajiks and Pashtuns over the conquest of Kabul. Due to the symbolic significance of the conquest of Kabul, conflicts and political tensions have arisen, especially between the Tajik and Pashtun peoples over the conquest of Kabul. Once in 1929, with the conquest of Kabul by Habibullah Kalkani, the myth of the Pashtun leadership was questioned. In 1992, the conquest of Kabul was broken by the forces of Massoud and Rabbani. As one of the Pashtun leaders and elites, Hekmatyar felt the historic responsibility to revive this myth. The direct result of this was military tensions in Kabul.