Albert
Define 'bigger mess' - there are an awful lot of women in Afghanistan that would disagree! The take down of Taliban senior leadership by kinetic strikes has proven very effective in shaping the environment for allowing education, amongst other things, to flourish. Yes, it's not an instant solution, but taking bad people away for good can have a significant effect and help those struggling to hold, or get, power to get a grip.
"Between 2001 and 2010, primary school enrolment rose from around 1 million to nearly 7 million (a sevenfold increase in eight years) and the proportion of girls from virtually zero to 37%. It was reported in May 2013 that there were 16,000 schools across Afghanistan, with 10.5 million students. Education Minister Wardak stated that 3 million children remained deprived of education and requested $3 billion to construct 8,000 additional schools over next two years."