wenty-four years ago, the world witnessed one of the darkest days in modern history. Nearly three thousand innocent lives were cut short on September 11, 2001. For Afghans, the tragedy carried a dual resonance: Our homeland had already become the staging ground for al–Qaeda under Taliban protection, and the attacks guaranteed that Afghanistan would again become the focus of global attention.
As we commemorate this solemn anniversary, it is not enough to mourn the victims. We must attend to the unfinished business of 9/11—ensuring that Afghanistan never again serves as a sanctuary for extremism that threatens global security. With the Taliban again in charge in Kabul, the country faces renewed instability, repression, and humanitarian catastrophe—with implications far beyond its borders.
In this September 2022 essay, I explored how four interconnected challenges (terrorism, narcotics, economic collapse, and humanitarian crisis) pose a grave danger not only to Afghanistan’s people but to international peace and security. These converging challenges raise the specter of another 9/11–scale tragedy. Recent UN Security Council resolution 2777 (2025) and the Secretary–General’s June 2025 report echo this warning: Terrorist groups remain entrenched, ISIL–K attacks continue, humanitarian needs escalate, and Afghanistan remains the world’s largest opium producer.
Afghanistan’s Humanitarian and Political Collapse
The collapse of Afghanistan under Taliban rule is not just material but also social and political. More than 16.8 million Afghans need urgent aid, yet only 15% of the UN’s $2.42 billion goal is funded. Around 75% of the population lives in subsistence insecurity, with women–headed households among the hardest hit.
Repression defines daily life. Girls remain barred from secondary and higher education. Women are denied the right to work, with female employment outside the home reduced to just 7%. The Taliban enforce this apartheid through their “Law on Virtue and Prevention of Vice,” while the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reports arbitrary detentions, public executions, and severe media suppression. Afghanistan’s society is being systematically dismantled, bringing not only domestic suffering but also regional instability through displacement, narcotics trafficking, and extremist recruitment.
Politically, the Taliban’s refusal to respect international norms has created paralysis. As the UN Security Council’s 2023–2025 records note, Afghanistan is once again a recurring agenda item for emergency meetings and sanctions deliberations. Yet fragmented international responses have failed to contain the threat.
A U.S.-Led Framework for Peace and Security
The lesson of 9/11 is unmistakable: instability in Afghanistan cannot be ignored. My July 2025 essay argued that the U.S. cannot afford disengagement. Today, reengagement must be purposeful, guided by a U.S.–led framework for peace, rooted in the harsh realities on the ground and anchored in global interests. Five pillars should guide this effort.
First, a UN–led political process must be inclusive and Afghan–owned, involving the Taliban, opposition groups, women, civil society, and ethnic minorities. The goal should be the formation of a transitional government supported by a multinational peacekeeping force. This body would oversee a constitutional review and lay the foundation for sustainable governance.
Second, the White House should appoint a Special Presidential Envoy for Afghanistan to coordinate U.S. and allied diplomacy. The U.S. should reclaim its role as Afghanistan’s penholder at the UN Security Council and support the key recommendations of the 2023 UN Independent Assessment. Joint coordination between U.S. and UN envoys would unify donors and regional actors behind a coherent strategy.
Third, Washington must deploy faith–based diplomacy to undermine the Taliban’s ideological legitimacy. By working with Muslim–majority countries and institutions like the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and engaging states such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, the U.S. can help promote Islamic principles that affirm education, rights, and peace—directly countering the Taliban’s distorted narratives.
Fourth, the U.S. should initiate a regional stability compact bringing together Pakistan, Iran, India, China, Russia, and the Central Asian republics. This compact would focus on non–interference, counterterrorism, refugee protection, and economic connectivity—shifting Afghanistan from a battleground of competition to a hub of cooperation.
Finally, until a political settlement is reached, calibrated pressure and civil society support must continue. Sanctions, visa bans, frozen assets, and withholding recognition should remain tools against repression, while phased incentives tied to progress can encourage reforms. Meanwhile, civil society—especially women’s groups and independent media—deserves robust international backing to preserve democratic values.
From Remembrance to Resolve
The 24th anniversary of 9/11 is both a moment of remembrance and of reckoning. The attacks revealed the cost of ignoring Afghanistan. Today, terrorism, narcotics, economic collapse, and humanitarian crisis again converge in ways that imperil not only Afghans but the wider world.
Twenty-four years after the towers fell, anniversaries must do more than recall the past—they must guide present action. On this solemn day, let us honor the victims of 9/11 not only with memory but with resolve. Afghanistan remains a threat to global security, just as I warned in 2022. The U.S. and its allies must act decisively: to reengage through diplomacy, pressure, and support; to lead a UN–backed framework for peace; and to ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes the epicenter of global terrorism.
This is the unfinished business of 9/11.
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24 years after 9/11, Afghanistan again threatens the world
World Trade Center Memorial in New York. Image by Foundry Co from Pixabay.
September 11, 2025
As we commemorate the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks, we must move beyond mourning. Today, we must attend the unfinished business of 9/11, ensuring Afghanistan never again acts as a sanctuary for extremism, writes M. Ashraf Haidari.
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wenty-four years ago, the world witnessed one of the darkest days in modern history. Nearly three thousand innocent lives were cut short on September 11, 2001. For Afghans, the tragedy carried a dual resonance: Our homeland had already become the staging ground for al–Qaeda under Taliban protection, and the attacks guaranteed that Afghanistan would again become the focus of global attention.
As we commemorate this solemn anniversary, it is not enough to mourn the victims. We must attend to the unfinished business of 9/11—ensuring that Afghanistan never again serves as a sanctuary for extremism that threatens global security. With the Taliban again in charge in Kabul, the country faces renewed instability, repression, and humanitarian catastrophe—with implications far beyond its borders.
In this September 2022 essay, I explored how four interconnected challenges (terrorism, narcotics, economic collapse, and humanitarian crisis) pose a grave danger not only to Afghanistan’s people but to international peace and security. These converging challenges raise the specter of another 9/11–scale tragedy. Recent UN Security Council resolution 2777 (2025) and the Secretary–General’s June 2025 report echo this warning: Terrorist groups remain entrenched, ISIL–K attacks continue, humanitarian needs escalate, and Afghanistan remains the world’s largest opium producer.
Afghanistan’s Humanitarian and Political Collapse
The collapse of Afghanistan under Taliban rule is not just material but also social and political. More than 16.8 million Afghans need urgent aid, yet only 15% of the UN’s $2.42 billion goal is funded. Around 75% of the population lives in subsistence insecurity, with women–headed households among the hardest hit.
Repression defines daily life. Girls remain barred from secondary and higher education. Women are denied the right to work, with female employment outside the home reduced to just 7%. The Taliban enforce this apartheid through their “Law on Virtue and Prevention of Vice,” while the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reports arbitrary detentions, public executions, and severe media suppression. Afghanistan’s society is being systematically dismantled, bringing not only domestic suffering but also regional instability through displacement, narcotics trafficking, and extremist recruitment.
Politically, the Taliban’s refusal to respect international norms has created paralysis. As the UN Security Council’s 2023–2025 records note, Afghanistan is once again a recurring agenda item for emergency meetings and sanctions deliberations. Yet fragmented international responses have failed to contain the threat.
A U.S.-Led Framework for Peace and Security
The lesson of 9/11 is unmistakable: instability in Afghanistan cannot be ignored. My July 2025 essay argued that the U.S. cannot afford disengagement. Today, reengagement must be purposeful, guided by a U.S.–led framework for peace, rooted in the harsh realities on the ground and anchored in global interests. Five pillars should guide this effort.
First, a UN–led political process must be inclusive and Afghan–owned, involving the Taliban, opposition groups, women, civil society, and ethnic minorities. The goal should be the formation of a transitional government supported by a multinational peacekeeping force. This body would oversee a constitutional review and lay the foundation for sustainable governance.
Second, the White House should appoint a Special Presidential Envoy for Afghanistan to coordinate U.S. and allied diplomacy. The U.S. should reclaim its role as Afghanistan’s penholder at the UN Security Council and support the key recommendations of the 2023 UN Independent Assessment. Joint coordination between U.S. and UN envoys would unify donors and regional actors behind a coherent strategy.
Third, Washington must deploy faith–based diplomacy to undermine the Taliban’s ideological legitimacy. By working with Muslim–majority countries and institutions like the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and engaging states such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar, the U.S. can help promote Islamic principles that affirm education, rights, and peace—directly countering the Taliban’s distorted narratives.
Fourth, the U.S. should initiate a regional stability compact bringing together Pakistan, Iran, India, China, Russia, and the Central Asian republics. This compact would focus on non–interference, counterterrorism, refugee protection, and economic connectivity—shifting Afghanistan from a battleground of competition to a hub of cooperation.
Finally, until a political settlement is reached, calibrated pressure and civil society support must continue. Sanctions, visa bans, frozen assets, and withholding recognition should remain tools against repression, while phased incentives tied to progress can encourage reforms. Meanwhile, civil society—especially women’s groups and independent media—deserves robust international backing to preserve democratic values.
From Remembrance to Resolve
The 24th anniversary of 9/11 is both a moment of remembrance and of reckoning. The attacks revealed the cost of ignoring Afghanistan. Today, terrorism, narcotics, economic collapse, and humanitarian crisis again converge in ways that imperil not only Afghans but the wider world.
Twenty-four years after the towers fell, anniversaries must do more than recall the past—they must guide present action. On this solemn day, let us honor the victims of 9/11 not only with memory but with resolve. Afghanistan remains a threat to global security, just as I warned in 2022. The U.S. and its allies must act decisively: to reengage through diplomacy, pressure, and support; to lead a UN–backed framework for peace; and to ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes the epicenter of global terrorism.
This is the unfinished business of 9/11.
