A leading US journal has warned that the Taliban’s ideological and educational strategy under supreme leader Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada closely resembles the operational and doctrinal approaches of Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, cautioning that the group’s growing links with multiple terrorist organisations and its reshaping of Afghanistan’s education system could generate serious security threats for the region and the wider world.
According to an analysis published by The National Interest, the United Nations has documented that the Taliban maintain connections with more than 20 regional and international terrorist organisations. The report states that these linkages, combined with the group’s long-term ideological planning, raise concerns that Afghanistan could once again become a hub for transnational extremism.
The journal warns that the world may soon face a generation that views global jihad not as a political choice but as a religious obligation. It notes that under Taliban rule, the madrassa and broader education system has been transformed into an ideological weapon, where learning is no longer centred on intellectual development but is instead used to promote obedience, radicalisation and militancy.
The report further states that since 2021, madrassa curricula have been systematically redesigned to train students in a global jihadist worldview. It argues that the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam does not represent a continuation of Afghan or Pashtun traditions, but rather reflects an imported, rigid and authoritarian ideology. According to the assessment, the Taliban’s educational vision is not aimed at education in the conventional sense, but at enforcing ideological conformity and unquestioning loyalty.
Highlighting the impact on women’s education, The National Interest notes that the Taliban have made it clear that girls’ schools will only be reopened once curricula are deemed ideologically compatible with their doctrine. Leaked documents cited in the report reportedly indicate that Sheikh Haibatullah Akhundzada subscribes to the concept of a broader global jihadist mission, reinforcing concerns about the regime’s long-term intentions.
The journal concludes that the Taliban’s ideological restructuring of the education system could pose a serious threat to regional and global security in the future. It warns that the group’s strategy of systematic ideological indoctrination has the potential to destabilise South and Central Asia, with consequences extending far beyond Afghanistan’s borders.
