Missteps Defined Every Aspect of the Afghan War

FEATURING RAHUL MAHAJAN - President Joe Biden remains under fire for a botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. Reports of mass crowds and violence at Kabul airport underscore the desperation of those who are being seen as collaborators with the U.S. and the Western-backed Afghan government. The Taliban has warned of dire consequences if U.S. troops remain beyond August 31st in their evacuation efforts.

Meanwhile there are reports of the warlord resistance to the Taliban in the northern Panjshir Valley and fears of a new civil war breaking out. Former U.S. backed Afghan president Hamid Karzai is in talks to hand over power to the Taliban.

The U.S. war in Afghanistan cost more than 200,000 lives and 2 trillion dollars. As an expert and author on Afghanistan, Rising Up host Sonali Kolhatkar explored how the war was doomed from the start with her colleague and long-time foreign policy expert Rahul Mahajan. Rather than an interview style format, Rahul and Sonali engaged in a dialog about the war.

An extended 30-minute conversation between Rahul and Sonali can be found here.