Northern Alliance (The Eagle Looks to the Right)

The Afghan Northern Alliance, officially known as the United Islamic Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan (Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islāmi-yi Millī barāyi Nijāt-i Afghānistān), was a military front that came to formation in late 1996 after the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan lead by the Taliban took over the Afghan capital of Kabul. The United Front was assembled by key leaders of the Islamic State of Afghanistan, particularly president Burhanuddin Rabbani and former Defense Minister Ahmad Shah Massoud, the latter a war hero from the Soviet-Afghan war. Initially it included mostly Tajiks but by 2000, leaders of other ethnic groups had joined the Northern Alliance namely Abdul Rashid Dostum, Mohammad Mohaqiq, Abdul Qadir, Asif Mohseni among many others.

History
After the Fall of Kabul on September 27, 1996, the Northern Alliance was formed in the northern provinces of Afghanistan. Notably, the alliance had different ethinicities such as Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Harazas. The Northern Alliance fought a defensive, guerrilla war against the Taliban - of which the Taliban gained more territory between 1996 and 2001. The faction received covert military support from Iran, Russia, Turkey, India, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

By 2001, the Northern Alliance was pushed to the northeast region of Afghanistan, as the Taliban controlled roughly 90% of the country. Two days before the September 11, 2001 Attacks, Massoud was assassinated by Al-Qaeda operatives posing as journalists. Hearing of this, Russian President Vladimir Putin phoned U.S. President George W. Bush about the assassination of Massoud. Putin further warned Bush that the assassination is a predecessor of something bigger.

On September 11, 2001, the United States witnessed the largest terrorist attack conducted in its history. Two hijacked planes crash into each of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City. A third hijacked plane crashes on the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia. A fourth hijacked plane, United Airlines 93, crashes to the Capitol building in Washington, D.C. after a failed passenger revolt. The attacks shocked Bush who was visiting an elementary school in Sarasota, Florida. Bush suffered a heart attack as a result and died on the spot. Dick Cheney, the Vice President, was immediately sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

Suspicion quickly fell to Osama bin-Laden, of which the Taliban denied having harbored the terrorists. The U.S. demanded that the Taliban surrender bin-Laden but they refused. On the weeks leading up to September 29, 2001, the CIA had already inserted Special Activities Division paramilitary teams to assist the Northern Alliance. U.S. Navy SEALs and Delta Force operators were also alleged to have operated alongside these CIA operatives and were reported fighting alongside the Northern Alliance. On September 29, the United States started its invasion of Afghanistan. The Northern Alliance, backed by U.S. airstrikes and Special Forces, overran the Taliban in Kabul on October 7, 2001. With the Taliban on the retreat, the Northern Alliance mounted an offensive to retake Taliban-held territory.