Ghost Wars

Ghost Wars: The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001 (2004) is a non-fiction political book by journalist Steve Coll. Coll explores the history of American intervention in Afghanistan, beginning with the Soviet Invasion in 1979 and ending just before the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in the United States. In 2005, a slightly revised and expanded edition of Ghost Wars was released that included the findings of the 9/11 Commission.

The book begins in 1979 with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Several factions in Afghanistan revolt against Soviet authority, waging guerrilla warfare against the troops stationed in the region. As part of its global proxy war against the Soviet Union, the United States backs the rebel Afghan troops. The CIA provides the rebels with money, weapons, and training to use in their fighting.

Part of the US training program involves building camps for the Afghanis and volunteer troops from other countries that had come to help them fight. Through the course of this program, US intelligence comes into contact with Osama bin Laden, a wealthy Sheik acting as an intermediary between Saudi Intelligence and the Afghan rebels. The Saudis also have a stake in ensuring an Afghan victory over the Soviets, and bin Laden funds several charities that provide financial support to the rebels and humanitarian aid to the civilian population.



One of the fastest growing Afghan factions is the Taliban. In addition to serving as a militia force, the Taliban also has political ambitions, pushing a platform of strong opposition to corruption in the government. The group grows quickly. It receives support from Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The United States reaches an agreement with Pakistan to have no contact with the Taliban, but the CIA provides it with funding without Pakistan’s knowledge.

In 1986, the Soviets plan to begin pulling troops out of Afghanistan. Premier Gorbachev is frustrated because the Americans are committed to remaining in the region even if the Soviets leave. There is concern among both the Americans and Soviets that the rebel groups will rise up against the Afghan government without Soviet support.

When Soviet troops withdraw from Afghanistan in 1989, civil war breaks out in Afghanistan between the central Afghan government and some of the rebel groups. The U.S., declaring neutrality, withdraws the vast majority of its intelligence operatives. Eventually, a faction led by the pro-democracy Ahmad Shah Massoud is pushed into the north where Massoud becomes the leader of the Northern Alliance. Massoud attempts to maintain good relations with the United States, but it refuses to support him in fighting the Taliban.



Soon after, bin Laden is expelled from Saudi Arabia for criticizing the royal family. He sets up the new al Qaeda headquarters in Sudan but soon moves to northern Afghanistan where he makes contact with Taliban leaders. The facilities in the region that the US government set up to train anti-Soviet forces are now used to train members of both radical groups.

Between the U.S. and the Soviets, hundreds of Stinger anti-aircraft missiles have also been left behind in Afghanistan. The various forces at work in the country begin to vie for possession of them, and eventually, US agents once more get involved in the country as the U.S. attempts to buy the missiles back. During this time, the US government sets up a new intelligence network in the region, this one dedicated to monitoring radical groups such as the Taliban and al Qaeda.

Throughout the 1990s, bin Laden, the Taliban, and al Qaeda grow stronger. Using his family fortune, bin Laden continues to fund the travel and training of anyone from any country who wants to come to Afghanistan to join his organization. More and more terrorist acts begin to be traced back to the group, including hotel bombings in Yemen in 1992 and the bombing of US embassies in Africa in 1994.



The United States attempts several times to capture or kill bin Laden, but he manages to elude them. In 1999, he is seen as a serious threat, but nuclear proliferation is more serious still, and so the U.S. decides to commit more resources to stop the spread of nuclear weapons. In late 1999, bin Laden begins to plan the operation that will become the September 11 attacks.

A number of intelligence fragments come through, but the CIA fails to put together a coherent picture to stop the attacks. By June 2001, the U.S. is sure a big attack is imminent; however, all the members of the terrorist cell are already in the country awaiting orders. After the assassination of Massoud in Afghanistan, the United States sends a delegation to see how best to overthrow the Taliban. However, it is already early September 2001, and too late to do anything about the impending attacks.