The Afghan people continue to suffer as they are targeted by imperialist powers such as Russia and the United States. It has suffered enormous damage due to terrorist attacks, Soviet imperialism and the current problem of American military occupation. In 1992, the pro-Soviet government of Mohammad Najibullah collapsed and US-backed rebels took power. The Taliban finally took Kabul after a violent civil war that left thousands dead. He ruled under a strict interpretation of Islamic law until he was ousted by the U.S.-led invasion. Although the Taliban's power has since weakened, the US military occupation has further increased the country's economic instability and the number of Afghan civilians suffering from emotional illnesses. The ongoing war has led millions of Afghans to leave the country and settle in foreign countries like Iran and Pakistan, where they have felt displaced. The country itself, once blessed with magnificent monuments, lost many of its historical treasures as they were stolen by neighboring countries and shipped to the United States. An entire generation has grown up without knowing peace, and many Afghans are struggling to cope with the psychological, economic, social and physical consequences of past and present conflicts. American society views Afghanistan only as a combat zone and a source of re-engagement with the neighboring country, Iran. They refuse to look beyond the war zone and realize that there are real individuals who lost their country to years of war and that Afghanistan has history, culture, literature and rich arts as well as magnificent landscapes that are being destroyed. problems are not immediately resolved with the right middle of paper......throwing them out like they originally intended. Works Cited Feroozi Abdul W. "Untitled." Cultural property training resource: Afghanistan. Department of Defense Legacy Resource Management Program, May 16, 2014. Web. May 16, 2014Arbour, Louise. Women and conflicts in Afghanistan. Belgium: International Crisis Group Asia Report, January 1, 2013. PDF. Hopkins, Nancy. Afghanistan in 2013: a survey of the Afghan population. Kabul: Asia Foundation, January 1, 2013. PDF. Southworth, Matt. Cost of the war in Afghanistan: in figures. N/A: Friends Committee on National Legislation, June 6, 2013. PDF.Jackson, Ashley. PDF. N/A: Afghan Civil Society Forum, October 6, 2011. Crawford, Neta C. PDF. Boston: Cannon Caucus Room, October 6, 2011 Achakzai, Sitara. SILENCE IS VIOLENCE: Ending the abuse of women in Afghanistan. Kabul: Human Rights, United Nations Assistance to Afghanistan, July 8, 2009. PDF.