. the war in afghanistan was, at first, a big success. the united states avenged september 11, and even though bin laden escaped, he was on the run, and al qaeda's protectors, the taliban, were overthrown. afghans were grateful their country was no longer occupied by religious fanatics. >> the afghan people were turning to the international community. within a month and a half, the people of afghanistan were freed from a creeping extremism, and then we began to flourish. >> hamid was the darling of the west, he was called the chiccest man on the planet. helped by the cia, karzai rode into afghanistan on the back of