Afghanistan Pashtuns Involved in Fight Against Taliban Shown in Movie From Hollywood

Nadene Goldfoot                                          

Last night I watched the movie, Lone Survivor, that takes place in Afghanistan.  "In 2005 Afghanistan, Navy SEALs Marcus Luttrell (Mark Wahlberg), Michael Murphy (Taylor Kitsch), Danny Dietz (Emile Hirsch) and Matthew "Axe" Axelson (Ben Foster) deploy on a mission of surveillance and to take out Taliban leader Ahmad Shah. Though spotted by goatherds, Luttrell and his team decide not to kill them. But one of the Afghans alerts a group of Taliban fighters to the invaders, and a terrible battle ensues, in which the SEALs find themselves hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned.  The movie came out in 2013.  Here it is 4 years later and I believe we're still fighting the Taliban.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoLFk4JK_RM

The lone seal is rescued off the battle field by villagers that are Pashtuns.  Their code of honor is that if they take someone into their village, they protect them, and these did.  This practice is a very serious one for Pashtuns.  They were attacked for their good deed by the Taliban.  The leader of these Pashtuns was shot at in 2010 by the Taliban.  They're still trying to punish him for going against the Taliban.    

The star of the movie that is the survivor, Mark Wahlberg,  commented, ""What makes this story so special is the bond and the camaraderie between the guys, but also the state of where we are in the world today. The act of heroism by Gulab and his fellow villagers moved me the most. I found it so inspiring, and it gave me so much hope for the world."
—Mark Wahlberg                                                                   

Pashtun religious leaders in conference

The protection of the American by the Pashtun villagers is called Pashtunwali.    Pashtuns live in Afghanistan and Pakistan.  "Pashtunwali (Pashto: پښتونوالی‎) or Pakhtunwali is a non-written ethical code and traditional lifestyle which the indigenous Pashtun people follow.   It is a system of law and governance that is preserved and still in use today, mostly in the rural tribal areas.  Its meaning may also be interpreted as "the way of the Pashtuns" or "the code of life". 
                  Pashtunwali promotes self-
respect, independence, justice, hospitality, love, forgiveness, revenge and tolerance toward all (especially to strangers or guests).   It is considered to be the personal responsibility of every Pashtun to discover and rediscover Pashtunwali's essence and meaning.
They have 11 principals to live up to.  One is "Pat, Wyaar aw Meṛaana (respect, pride and courage) - Pashtuns must demonstrate courage [مېړانه]. Their pride [وياړ] , has great importance in Pashtun society and must be preserved. They must respect themselves and others in order to be able to do so, especially those they do not know.  Respect begins at home, among family members and relatives. If one does not have these qualities they are not considered worthy of being a Pashtun.
I noted in the movie their awe of the braveness of the American Seal.  The Pashtun leader has a little boy with him who helps the American and one can see that he is becoming his idol.  When under attack, the American seal is running in the village and protecting this child with his own body.  These Seals had to go through the most strenuous training imaginable.  Most men had dropped out, so only the exceptionals make it to graduation, and then the risking of their lives when in battle as they take on the most dangerous of jobs.                                                                        

Pashtuns visiting Jerusalem's Wall
Many believe they are from the tribe of Benjamin.

The native Pashtun tribes, often described as fiercely independent people, have inhabited the Pashtunistan region (eastern Afghanistan and north western Pakistan) since at least the 1st millennium BCE. It is believed that most of them are from one or more of the 10 Lost Tribes of Israel.  It was in 721 BCE that 

the Assyrians had attacked Israel and carted off the best of their citizens for slavery. 

 Then in 597 -586 BCE, the Babylonians repeated this attack and the  taking of captives.  

 During that period, much of their mountainous territory has remained outside government rule or control. This is perhaps the main reason why indigenous Pashtuns still follow Pashtunwali, which is a basic common law of the land or "code of life".

Pashtunwali rules are accepted in Afghanistan and Pakistan (mainly in and around the Pashtunistan region), and also in some Pashtun communities around the world.

The Taliban, a terrible terrorist group,  are practicing Deobandi Islam. "

Taliban                                            

This is a Taliban terrorist.  If he terrorizes others,
looks and acts like one, he is a terrorist.  

Taliban are not recognized as a terrorist group by USA-yet. They are
seen as doing the same things, however.  They don't need to cover
their faces to be a terrorist.  

The Taliban ("students"), is an Islamic fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan. It spread into Afghanistan and formed a government, ruling as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan from September 1996 until December 2001, with Kandahar as the capital. While in power, it enforced its strict interpretation of Sharia law.  While many leading Muslims and Islamic scholars have been highly critical of the Taliban's interpretations of Islamic law,  the Darul Uloom Deoband has consistently supported the Taliban in Afghanistan, including their 2001 destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan, and the majority of the Taliban's leaders were influenced by Deobandi fundamentalism.   Pashtunwali, the Pashtun tribal code, also played a significant role in the Taliban's legislation.  The Taliban were condemned internationally for their brutal treatment of women.

The Taliban see themselves as the policemen of Islam and force people to follow every iota of their law or die.  "

In the Malakand region of Pakistan, the Taliban have started correcting the "moral wrongs" of society by banning women from shopping in public areas, as it is believed to be obscene. They have have punished men by shaving their hair and moustaches for listening to music, seen as un-Islamic.   As non-Muslims living under sharia law, the Sikh community in Orakzai Agency is being forced to pay 15m rupees, approximately £130,000, in tax to live in peace. If Sikhs refuse, then the Taliban will occupy their properties."  Chances are that no one in thi society will ever watch an American movie, and certainly not "Lone Survivor." 

"Deobandi (Pashto and Persian: دیو بندی‎‎, Urdu: دیو بندی‎, Bengali: দেওবন্দী, Hindi: देवबन्दी) is a revivalist movement within Sunni (primarily Hanafi) Islam.   It is centered in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, has recently spread to the United Kingdom, and has a presence in South Africa.  The name derives from Deoband, India, where the school Darul Uloom Deoband is situated. The movement was inspired by scholar Shah Waliullah Dehlawi (1703–1762)  and was founded in 1867 in the wake of the failed Sepoy Rebellion a decade earlier.

Deobandis are strong proponents of the doctrine of Taqlid. In other words, they believe that a Muslim must adhere to one of the four schools (madhhabs) of Sunni Islamic Law and generally discourage inter-school eclecticism. They themselves are predominantly followers of the Hanafi school.  "The Hanafi (Arabic: حنفي‎‎ Ḥanafī) school is one of the four religious Sunni Islamic schools of jurisprudence (fiqh).The Hanafi fiqh is the fiqh with the largest number of followers among Sunni Muslims.  It is predominant in the countries that were once part of the historic Ottoman Empire, Mughal Empire and Sultanates of Turkic rulers in the Indian subcontinent, northwest China and Central Asia.

 In the modern era, The Hanafi school of thought is prevalent in the following regions: Turkey, the Balkans, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, parts of Iraq, the Caucasus, parts of Russia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, parts of India and China, and Bangladesh.

"The four schools of thought are schools of thought only, and considered by each other's scholars and founders to all be correct. So they will never count as sects. Why the differences then? The different schools of thought were founded customized for different groups of people, based on the traditions, tendencies, culture, evils, and pagan rituals of particular societies. Imam Abu Hanifa's teachings' adoption in South Asia are a reflection of South Asian culture and ways. Imam Malik's teachings' adoption in North Africa was a response to a much more different arena, and so on. (Source: Dr. Osama Eisa, Shariah scholar)." 

I cried throughout the movie.  It is so realistic.  You'll love our soldiers and you'll love the Pashtun villagers who defend the Seal.  You'll fall in love with the sad little boy as well who has to grow up in such a violent environment.  

Resource: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lone_Survivor
http://www.newsweek.com/2016/06/10/mohammad-gulab-marcus-luttrell-navy-seal-lone-survivor-operation-red-wings-458139.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deobandi
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hanafi
https://www.quora.com/What-are-the-major-differences-between-the-Hanafi-and-Shafii-Fiqh-jurisprudence-schools-of-Islam
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2009/may/03/taliban-sharia-pakistan