Hybrid Extremism: Ethnonationalism and Territorialized Islamic Fundamentalism in Afghanistan

The US withdrawal, coupled with the instantaneous collapse of the Afghan government, brought the radical Islamists, the Taliban, and the Haqqani Network back to power in August 2021, making them the first militant fundamentalist group to regain power and ascent to a ruling status. For Afghanistan, burdened with politicized ethnic divisions, ethnic mobilization, and fragmented political culture and social structure, the failure of the post-2001 political process and its retrograding impact has proved destructive and devastating. While both ethno-nationalist and radical Islamist passions are active in Afghanistan’s socio-ecological system, the Taliban has introduced a hybrid version of extremism that is built upon the long-standing Pashtun ethnonationalism and the Taliban’s radical Islamism. This article examines the historical roots of the complex Islamism-nationalism/ethno-nationalism problématique and their intermittent resurgence and explores how the Taliban’s hybrid extremism has resulted in an “impossible state,” and the dynamics for change and transformation toward more inclusive and participatory governance.