The Afghanistan Papers

A Secret History of the War

By: Craig Whitlock, The Washington Post

Narrated by: Dan Bittner

A Washington Post Best Book of 2021

The number-one New York Times best-selling investigative story of how three successive presidents and their military commanders deceived the public year after year about America’s longest war, foreshadowing the Taliban’s recapture of Afghanistan, by Washington Post reporter and three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Craig Whitlock.

Unlike the wars in Vietnam and Iraq, the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 had near-unanimous public support. At first, the goals were straightforward and clear: Defeat al-Qaeda and prevent a repeat of 9/11. Yet soon after the United States and its allies removed the Taliban from power, the mission veered off-course and US officials lost sight of their original objectives.

Distracted by the war in Iraq, the US military become mired in an unwinnable guerrilla conflict in a country it did not understand. But no president wanted to admit failure, especially in a war that began as a just cause. Instead, the Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations sent more and more troops to Afghanistan and repeatedly said they were making progress, even though they knew there was no realistic prospect for an outright victory.

Just as the Pentagon Papers changed the public’s understanding of Vietnam, The Afghanistan Papers contains “fast-paced and vivid” (The New York Times Book Review) revelation after revelation from people who played a direct role in the war, from leaders in the White House and the Pentagon to soldiers and aid workers on the front lines. In unvarnished language, they admit that the US government’s strategies were a mess, that the nation-building project was a colossal failure, and that drugs and corruption gained a stranglehold over their allies in the Afghan government. All told, the account is based on interviews with more than 1,000 people who knew that the US government was presenting a distorted, and sometimes entirely fabricated, version of the facts on the ground.

Documents unearthed by The Washington Post reveal that President Bush didn’t know the name of his Afghanistan war commander - and didn’t want to meet with him. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld admitted that he had “no visibility into who the bad guys are”. His successor, Robert Gates, said: “We didn’t know jack shit about al-Qaeda.”

The Afghanistan Papers is a “searing indictment of the deceit, blunders, and hubris of senior military and civilian officials” (Tom Bowman, NRP Pentagon Correspondent) that will supercharge a long-overdue reckoning over what went wrong and forever change the way the conflict is remembered.

©2021 Craig Whitlock and The Washington Post (P)2021 Simon & Schuster Audio

Critic reviews

"Craig Whitlock has forged a searing indictment of the deceit, blunders, and hubris of senior military and civilian officials, with the same tragic echoes of the Vietnam conflict. The American dead, wounded, and their families deserved wiser and more honorable leaders.” (Tom Bowman, NPR Pentagon correspondent)

“At once page-turning and rigorous, The Afghanistan Papers makes a lasting and revelatory contribution to the record of America's tragic management of our longest war. In transparent and nuanced detail, Whitlock chronicles how American leaders and commanders undermined their country's promises to the Afghans who counted on them and to the US troops who made the ultimate sacrifice after 9/11.” (Steve Coll, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Ghost Wars and Directorate S)

“The Afghanistan Papers is a gripping account of why the war in Afghanistan lasted so long. The missed opportunities, the outright mistakes, and more than anything, the firsthand accounts from senior commanders who only years later acknowledged they simply did not tell the American people what they knew about how the war was going.” (Barbara Starr, CNN Pentagon correspondent)

Very important book

This book should be read by anyone looking for more information about what happened in Afghanistan. There is no party politics, no glowing words for one side or the other. This book delivers the harsh reality of how this war was mismanaged from inception to its end.

Jawdropping

I, like many Americans, considered the war like wallpaper until I actually went on an assignment to Kabul in 2014. My job was to be a policy advisor to the Afghan government on certain economic development matters. What I experienced was a surreal blend of incompetence, corruption and perfidy that poisoned the entire system which included the Afghans, the Americans, the Europeans, the Pakistanis and a host of others. I couldn't understand how things could be so bad after 13 years of engagement and billions of dollars spent, but now that I have heard Craig Whitlock's account it has all become clear. The 'war on terror' and the 'hunt for Osama bin Laden' had morphed into a long-running ponzi scheme for military generals to get promotions and combat ribbons (and pay); for military contractors to make a bundle and keep the funds flowing to congressional people who supported the continuation of the war; and for one US president after another to lie to the American people about what exactly was going on. We thought it would never happen again after Vietnam. The lying that took place in Afghanistan makes Vietnam look like a model of transparency. Yet there has been no accountability. No big shake-up at the Pentagon. Many of the worst offenders have gone off to lucrative careers in the defense industry while thousands of young veterans deal with the scars of war and thousands of families grieve lost ones. The beauty of Mr. Whitlock's account is that he doesn't editorialize. Most of the words are taken from transcripts by the involved parties. It should be required reading for every citizen. It will be a painful exercise, perhaps even a shameful one but a necessary one to understand that even the military is not above the worse instincts of an increasingly corrupt and cynical public sphere.

An Shakespearean comedy of dunces

This would easily be the funniest book of the year, if not for all the brave lives lost for what has amounted to be a completely pointless war. Oh, and let’s not forget the two TRILLION dollars spent, which could’ve put a sizable dent in America’s epidemic of poverty, as well as raised much of the lower class up to the middle class ranks. Or, it could’ve been used to just give a bunch of very deserving people a much needed living wage, but….

I’m more pissed about the lives needlessly lost.

Don’t get me wrong, we (‘Merica) were totally right in our declaring war on Al Qaeda. However, the countless missteps, unmitigated arrogance, and downright idiocy of three consecutive administrations turned this into a complete and utter catastrophe. How the main architects of this war, that later fabricated “reasons” to invade Iraq were never charged with war crimes is a mystery I may never understand.

As for this book, it’s a must read. It’s tedious in places, but it’s well researched and well narrated. Every American needs to know the truth behind the 20 year quagmire that cost so many lives and so much treasure.

Unforgiving history

I try to stay informed about politics and war. This is a deep dive that makes one question anything that is reported by our military and the administrations that guide them. What a disaster from 2 months in. Well written. Thoughtful. Real.

Excellent Book

This is an excellent book. It makes me think what we could achieve with 2 trillion dollars.

Understand what happened to us

If you want to understand what was done to us in Afghanistan, watch Ken Burns' The Vietnam War and then read this book. History doesn't repeat, but it often rhymes.

Informative, Well-organized and A Lack of Bias

It’s easy to have seen 20 years of war in your lifetime through a certain, possibly more positive lens from what was portrayed in the media and by govt officials. However, this book details the insider accounts that really help you see the other side. For anyone looking for truth on what happened during America’s time in Afghanistan, I’m confident this book will shed light without agenda or framing “how” you should think.

Clear and concise

This was a great book documenting the US presence in Afghanistan and took a much needed "here's the truth" approach to what has gone on with our involvement. I believe that the average American knows only 5% of this story, and I think I'm being generous. Amazingly well put together book.

Surprised (Not)

Craig Whitlock has penned an outstanding summary of his incredible investigative work for the Washington Post concerning the USA’s longest war. Anyone wishing for a solid background on the decades of mismanagement and deception that helped keep the US involved in Afghanistan should listen to or read this book.

Very Informative but a bit redundant

fantastic information highlights the shortcomings of officials and leadership, but a bit repetitive at times. Overall a real eye opener