A Thousand Splendid Suns Timeline

King Zahir Shan is overthrown

Jul 17, 1973

Afghanistan overthrownIn the Summer of 1973 King Zaqhir Shah was overthrown by General Mohammad Daud Khan who was also his cousin.

Mariam's 15th birthday

Apr 1, 1974

When Marium turned 15 she went to Herat to visit Jalil. Jalil ignors her and she returns home to find Nana dead. A week later Mariam marries Rasheed and moves to Kabul.

Akbar Khyber Murdered

Apr 17, 1978

Akbar Khyber was murdered, and there was a large demonstration against the the rule of Mohammed Daoud Khan.

Laila is born

Apr 27, 1978

AfghanistanLaila is born on the same day that the rebels attacked the Presidential Palace and the loyalist forces were defeated.

USSR Sends troops to Afghanistan

Sep 1, 1979

Video of Tanks going into AfghanistanUSSR sends troops
Shortly after Taraki was killed in September of 1979 the USSR sent troops to Afghanistan and executed Amin. The Soviet-supported Babrak Karmal became president.

Tariq gets hurt

Jan 1, 1981

Tariq steps on a land mine when he is five and loses his left leg.

Mohammad Najibullah elected president.

Jan 1, 1986

Mohammad Najibullah was elected presiden of Afghanistan and continued to serve as president until he was assassinated on September 26, 1996.

Treaty of Geneva signed

Apr 14, 1988

Source
Representitives of Pakistan and Afganistan signed agreements which intended to end the war in Afghanistan. The war ended within 9 months and Najibullah was installed as the Soviet's puppet president.

Laila eleventh birthday

Jan 1, 1989

On Laila's birthday, Laila and her family watched the last Soviets leave their city.

The War in Afghanistan Ends

Apr 1, 1992

Najibullah finally surrendered ending the war in Afghanistan which caused Fariba to finally get out of bed.

Bombing of Laila's House

Jun 1, 1992

Laila's house gets bombed and her parents die, and Rasheed takes Lails in and marries her. In response to this the CIA armed Commander Massoud's Tajik troops.

Fighting at the Presidential Palace

Jan 1, 1994

Dostem and Gulbaddin Heckmatyar fought against Massoud and Rabbani's forces at the Presidential Palace. During which, they did terible things to civilians. This caused Rasheed to stay home.

Taliban

Oct 1, 1994

The taliban were making their way towards Kabul taking cities from the Mujahideen. Rasheed believed the taliban would bring peace and order.

The Taliban Arrives

Sep 1, 1996

The Taliban Arrived in Kabul and Rasheed took Laila and Mariam to welcome them.

Drought

Jan 1, 1998

Afganistan suffers a severe drought and Laila and Marium have to wait for water for hours.

Rasheed Dies

Jun 1, 2001

Rasheed was beating the women and Mariam took a shovel and hit Rasheed in the head. Mariam is killed for killing Rasheed.

9/11

Sep 11, 2001

Second Plane HitsThe 9/11 terrorist attacks happen and Laila and Tariq watch them on TV. President Bush declares war on Afghanistan and starts to bomb them. This gives Laila hope that they might be able to go back soon.

Taliban collapse

Nov 1, 2001

Mullah Omar surrenders Kandahar which signals the begining of their collapse.

They Go Back!

Jul 1, 2002

Laila and Tariq go back to Kabul. Laila is eager to see the changes that the city has gone through. She also wants to return so she can see Marium's childhood home.