In the Name of My Father: A Veteran’s Take on Commander Ahmad Massoud’s New Book

by Mikael Cook

When I first met the leader of the National Resistance Front (NRF) in a small Vienna hotel room in 2023, he did not seem to fit the archetype of an Afghan warlord I had heard tales about during my deployment to Afghanistan two years prior. Instead, Commander Ahmad Massoud exuded kindness, composure, and sincerity. Our conversation centered on his aspirations for a free Afghanistan and how American politics could impact the future of the resistance.

Over the course of my three-day visit, I observed Commander Massoud’s interactions with supporters, journalists, and political figures from around the globe. It was evident Massoud commanded deep respect among the attendees. At 35, the son of the legendary “Lion of Panjshir” is seen as Afghanistan’s last hope for achieving peace, equality, and freedom—much like his father, who led the Mujahideen to defeat Soviet forces in the 1980s and established a formidable resistance against the Taliban from the Panjshir Valley in the Hindu Kush mountains. Over 20 years later, Commander Massoud “is heir to the battles waged by his father” in the fight against the Taliban’s tyrannical rule.

While the international community’s attention was primarily focused on the evacuation efforts at Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, which culminated in the US leaving behind billions of dollars in military equipment—including over 100 helicopters—Commander Massoud chose to journey to the Panjshir mountains. Aware of the impending Taliban takeover for over two years, he declined several offers for evacuation from France, the only country that extended such assistance. In his newly published book, “In the Name of My Father,” Massoud articulates his commitment: “I intend to stay in my country and defend my values, my rights, and my freedom, through peaceful or armed resistance.”

In the foreword of Massoud’s book, Peter Bergen, CNNs National Security Advisor, whom I also met in Vienna, confirmed what we all knew at the time, that “Taliban 2.0 was a mirage, and the Taliban today is Taliban 1.0 with one major difference: They are far better armed than the Taliban that ruled over most of Afghanistan from 1996 to 2001.”

Reflecting on two decades of American intervention in Afghanistan, it is evident that while there were some notable successes, they were ultimately overshadowed by recurring missteps and inefficiencies. The Mujahideen, under the leadership of the Lion of Panjshir, were able to defeat the Soviet forces and their Afghan communist allies in just seven years. In contrast, NATO forces struggled to eliminate the Taliban over the course of 20 years. The resurgence of the Taliban has resulted in the creation of a top sanctuary for international terrorism, Massoud argues. In both his writings and our discussions, he has emphasized that the Taliban, al-Qaeda, and ISIS are “two sides of the same coin.”

Two days before 9/11 and a month before US troops would step foot into the country, al-Qaeda assassinated the Lion of Panjshir, assuring bin Laden protection by the Taliban. Ahmad Shah Massoud had been a target of al-Qaeda for some time, especially after his visit to France earlier in 2001 to warn the west an attack was coming.

In the early years of the war, the US “lacked a clear political and military strategy.” Commander Massoud recounts. “Every time the US commander changed, a new strategy was implemented” and “arrived with high expectations, without a full understanding of Afghanistan’s society and people.” he writes. “This led to the US government training a “high-tech, low-mobility” force in the Afghan National Army (ANA). Massoud explains this was “A mistake in a country where literacy and education are limited.” The US spent Billions of dollars training the Afghan security forces only for them to become “highly dependent on foreign advisors unaccustomed to contingencies in the field.” Once news spread of a possible US withdrawal, Massoud explains “it became impossible for them to continue the fight” and “our army could not effectively maintain order in the long term without foreign presence in Afghanistan.” This became evident as the Taliban swept across the country in less than a week to seize control once US boots had left the ground, despite US intel officials estimating the Afghan security forces would hold out much longer.

Today the Taliban rules with an iron fist, hunting down and making examples of anyone that worked with US forces. Numerous reports detail the brutalities committed by the Taliban, including executions and sexual violence towards women. “How many war crimes will have to be counted before the international community finally agrees to react?” Massoud questions. Despite their control, the Taliban “have proved incapable of ensuring social order.” Massoud writes. Their exclusive government has no plans of including any ethnic minorities that have been persecuted by the Taliban for many years. Women, who make up half of the country’s population, now suffer the harshest consequences. Massoud points out “there is no moderate rational Taliban.” He writes that their version of Islam “is a classic feature of extremism and radical movements that hijack our sacred values,” and argues that “Radical Islam is anti-Islam.”

Women in Afghanistan have seen many of the freedoms they gained over the past 20 years stripped away. They are barred from attending school or owning businesses, and many cannot work at all. Women are required to have a male escort to leave their homes and cannot appear in public without covering their faces. Recently, the Taliban has imposed additional restrictions, including banning women from speaking in public and prohibiting them from receiving medical care from male doctors. This raises a serious question: if women are forbidden from becoming doctors and cannot be treated by male doctors, what will become of women’s healthcare in Afghanistan? As Massoud recounts, Taliban 2.0’s “vague promises of moderation serve only as a smokescreen.”

Shortly following the Taliban’s rise to power, the terrorist organization offered Massoud a position in their new government, Massoud, not hell-bent on war, considered the offer under the condition that the Taliban hold open elections to represent all people of Afghanistan. Like his father, Massoud says he “preferred the pen to the Kalashnikov.”  The Taliban rejected this condition.

Commander Massoud and the National Resistance Front (NRF) continue to fight for a free Afghanistan, resisting the Taliban’s oppressive regime. Their mission is to unite the diverse ethnic groups of Afghanistan and form an inclusive government. Massoud advocates for a system inspired by Switzerland’s decentralized government model, which seeks to distribute power more evenly and mitigate the extreme corruption that has plagued Afghanistan for years. Massoud outlines the core pillars of such a government:

• Promote democracy and pluralism
• Establish justice and equality through a decentralized political system and power structure
• Establish the rule of law
• Fight rampant corruption
• Promote multiculturalism
• Preserve the independence, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the country
• Preserve Afghanistan’s neutrality in regional and world affairs
• Promote rational Islam
• Facilitate economic growth and end Afghanistan’s dependence on foreign aid

However, there is a significant obstacle standing in the way of these aspirations: the Taliban. The NRF is the only group actively resisting the Taliban through combat operations. Despite their warnings that attacks on Western interests are imminent, these threats have largely gone unheeded, just as Massoud’s father’s warnings were disregarded before his assassination.

The last time Kabul was liberated from the Taliban, in November 2001, girls returned to school, and residents celebrated in the streets with music and other activities previously banned by the Taliban. Now, without international support, Commander Massoud faces the same challenge his father described: “My son, I can take Kabul again if I want to, by breakfast tomorrow, but we wouldn’t be able to keep the city safe.” Until the international community recognizes the NRF as an ally and stops abandoning former partners, Commander Massoud and the NRF will continue to push the boulder uphill for a free Afghanistan.

The threats to him and his family’s lives will continue, but in his own words “A lion never dies. The Lion of Panjshir is eternal”

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Mikael Cook is a former U.S. Army Staff Sergeant and veteran of the war in Afghanistan. During the August 2021 evacuation of Afghanistan, Mikael was a part of the #DigitalDunkirk team that saved thousands of Afghan allies who had been left behind. He was personally responsible for the evacuation of 20 of our allies, most of whom have now joined him in Michigan. Mikael is an active member of the veteran community and continues his advocacy work for the Afghan allies left behind.

As the Voice of the Veteran Community, The Havok Journal seeks to publish a variety of perspectives on a number of sensitive subjects. Unless specifically noted otherwise, nothing we publish is an official point of view of The Havok Journal or any part of the U.S. government.