by Batko Milacic for the Saker Blog
During the 20 years of Afghan occupation, which was initially quick and successful, the Americans and their allies failed to give Afghanistan anything. The impression is that successive US administrations initially had no strategy to pacify the country. After the withdrawal of Soviet troops from Afghanistan, the country’s secular regime, abandoned by the Russians, held out for three years and collapsed only after being completely deprived of all assistance from Moscow. The allied international forces were still in the country when the government of President Ghani, which they controlled, left the capital at the mercy of the Taliban. Why?!
When Russians were in Afganistan, they not only fought, but taught the Afghans, sending one of them into space and building hospitals, roads and factories. Therefore, the Afghans, who fought on the side of the country’s last truly secular government, knew what they were fighting for.
What did the soldiers of the current Afghan army, let alone ordinary Afghans, have to die for? For the president who stole so much money that it didn’t fit into his plane? For kickbacks from US arms manufacturers who supplied Afghanistan with the equipment, all of which was inherited by the Taliban? Maybe for freedom and universal human values, which had allegedly been promoted for 20 years by numerous NGOs that squandered the money of American and European taxpayers?!
Ordinary Afghan people lives by the same rules as their distant ancestors; they don`t understand the advantages of Western culture. Two decades of US rule have cost Afghans nearly a million lives. They faced killings of civilians “by mistake,” cleansing of villages, forced prostitution and humiliation. And a small sliver of “Europeanized Afghans,” supporters of women’s rights, religious tolerance and freedom, are just as alien to ordinary Afghans as are the arrogant US military. Therefore, some Afghans greet the Taliban as liberators, while others have learned to tolerate them and believe that life will not get any worse than it is now!
However, there are still others, who have no other choice than to fight! These are representatives of ethnic minorities. Nine percent of the country’s population are ethnic Uzbeks, and 27 percent – Tajiks. Pashtuns make up 42 percent of the Afghan population and they are the main source of the support for the Taliban`s. The Pashtuns are backed by neighboring Pakistan, and provide most of the volunteers for the militants. As for the Tajiks and Uzbeks, they were the main pillars of the secular state. Their leaders, Ahmad Shah Massoud, Sr. and Marshal Dostum, fought the Taliban throughout the initial period of their rule. They are less religious and not all of them are willing to spend the rest of their lives living according to strict Sharia law. Fully aware of this, the Taliban were all set not to repeat the mistakes they made in 1996-2001. The ethnic minorities must not only submit; they must be deprived of any chance to rebel. Given the fact that the country’s new rulers are divided into several groups, this goal was even easier to achieve. For example, the Haqqani Network, which is even more radical than the Taliban themselves (impossible as it may seem), and has in its ranks a large number of Arabic-speaking immigrants from ISIS and al-Qaeda, has sent out its militants to Panjshir and other northern provinces, while the Taliban still pretended to negotiate with them.
Panjshir is a small mountain valley in the north of the country, which has never really submitted to any conqueror. The passes leading to it are easy to block, and the terrain of the province itself is very conducive to guerrilla warfare. At the same time, routes go through the province to China and the former Soviet republics of Central Asia, making it an important logistics hub. In addition, the sparsely populated valley (around 100,000 inhabitants) is rich in minerals, including emeralds, which actually allowed Massoud Sr. to hold out there for five years. This is why the Taliban are so eager to nip the local resistance in the bud. The only reason they needed negotiations was to improve their image in the world. In Washington, they have already been recognized as a “different” Taliban, not those who are responsible for the attacks on and killings of civilians. Well, you demonstrate to the outside world your flexibility and readiness for dialogue, and, who knows, maybe one day they will also give you diplomatic recognition! Naturally enough, Ahmad Massoud Jr. and Amrullah Saleh (also an ethnic Tajik), who had declared himself the legitimate head of Afghanistan, had no desire to leave the autonomy, give up their ability to maintain self-defense units and exercise real control over part of the government. Meanwhile, the “Haqqani Network” has already put the defense capability of the “lion cub of Panjshir” to the test.
The rest we know from news reports. After the Taliban and their allies suffered their first setbacks, drones suddenly appeared in the air, flown by Pakistani operators. According to numerous reports, Pakistani special OPs helped the Taliban break into the valley, resulting in videos from its center and from the mausoleum of Ahmad Shah Massoud being posted online on the morning of September 6. The “Lion” announced the continuation of the resistance and went into the mountains. Fearing for their life (and with good reason too) most of the local civilian population left with him. Well, the pro-Soviet forces in Afghanistan once also controlled the valley, while Massoud Sr. fought and eventually defeated them in the surrounding mountains. There is a big difference though. The best anti-guerrilla tactic is to deprive the militants of any support – in other words, “scorched earth” or genocide. With Panjshir completely cut off from the outside world, the Taliban simultaneously solve two problems – they will get rid of the disloyal population by killing them or squeezing them out to Tajikistan, and reward their supporters by handing them the houses and property left behind by the escaped local residents, thereby ensuring their loyalty and creating a formidable base against Massoud’s supporters. All of this comes as very good news for Pakistan, which has given the Taliban full control over the country and received access to the resources of the potentially very rich Panjshir.
Massoud Jr., who represents Afghanistan’s eight million Tajiks, will apparently be forced to fight to the bitter end. However, it looks like he will not be getting any outside help now that the White House has apparently decided to leave the region completely and has clinched some kind of secret deals with the Taliban or their patrons from the neighboring countries. How else to explain the position of Dushanbe? The Tajik authorities obviously ignore the situation, refusing to support their fellow country folk. Have the Americans allegedly guaranteed the Central Asian republic security against the Taliban if Dushanbe does not interfere in the process of Afghan unification? But how can one believe an old fox telling the sheep that the wolf will not touch them? All the more so, if the wolves have just bitten the red-haired deceiver?
A much similar situation has developed in Uzbekistan – the country that Marshal Dostum, an ethnic Uzbek and a graduate of Soviet military schools, who is considered a man of great courage, has fled to. However, this brave man with all his associates, including loyal fighters, has crossed the Uzbek border and disappeared. Unusual behavior for a combat-hardened general who fought for 35 years and never accepted Islamists. What was he promised? Security for the Uzbek minority? Or was he simply bought out? Or blackmailed? In any case, the last hero of all wars disappeared from the media radar without firing a single shot.
The information vacuum will allow the Taliban to quickly take control of the whole country. The world media will not write about the millions of victims of ethnic and religious cleansing simply because it will know nothing about that. If the “young lion of Panjshir” and Saleh do not receive real support in the coming days, they are doomed, along with their compatriots. Back in 1975, the world was blissfully unaware of the insane atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge, who killed a third of their own population, simply because there was no one to write about this in a country shuttered from the outside world. In 2021, they will also try to hide the death of several million people, if only this is what Washington wants. And the White House does want a dialogue with the Taliban, forgetting about the victims of September 11, forgetting about the terrorist attacks across Europe and the hundreds of young men and women who died for “democracy” in Afghanistan. But what will the Taliban do after they crack down on Afghan minorities? Will it be peaceful construction? No, because radical Islam presupposes an eternal struggle against infidels in the name of a global caliphate and constant expansion. Its supporters have no need for music, literature, cinema – all these wonderful things created by mankind. They go to God through blood and violence, and they will go beyond their immediate neighbors. With a solid base and money from the sale of resources to China and Pakistan, the new Afghan authorities will become a unifying center for all like-minded Islamists – the holdovers from al-Qaeda and ISIS. As for the Taliban’s promise to get rid of the sprawling drug industry, which, during the 20 years of US occupation spiked from 120 tons a year to a whopping 10,000 tons, it is hardly credible. Indeed, why destroy what can be sold to infidels with profit and then be spent on a “holy war” bombing peaceful American and European cities. This is exactly what the Western world will get if it fails to figure out (and fast!) how to check the triumphant advance of terrorism from Afghanistan. True, judging by its escape from Kabul, the world policeman now urgently needs to talk this over with Moscow and Beijing. Otherwise, a new 9/11 may not be too far off.
Extremely paranoid and an attempt to plant thoughts in others minds. An attempt to persuade west to invade Afghanistan again or sanction Afghanistan.
It made me wonder what Uzbekistan and Tadjikistan’s positions were regarding the situation in Afghanistan. Their behaviour seems strange; how quiet they are about their fellow countrymen, as stated in the article. Maybe they are hoping for the ‘bigger’ players to take care of the issue or they fear an influx of refugees could bring islamist to their countries
Some sources would do! Or is this intended as a mere opinion piece?
”the world policeman”
No such entity exist ,only the naked dead body of the satanic empire remains.
https://newsmedia.tasnimnews.com/Tasnim/Uploaded/Image/1400/06/21/1400062113172165023576284.jpg
https://newsmedia.tasnimnews.com/Tasnim/Uploaded/Image/1400/06/21/1400062113175690023576294.jpg
These are pictures of a group of Afghan elders and religious scholars, meeting with Hamid Karzai yesterday.
The topic of discussion was the transition from the Taliban’s interim cabinet, to an inclusive cabinet.
Everyone at the meeting stressed that peace and stability must return to Afghanistan, and all those present expressed hopes that an inclusive government would be formed, wherein all the people of Afghanistan would be represented.
Utter nonsense. Who is this writer? Taliban may be radicals but they have faith and are believers. They are not takfiris or wahhabi.
They can never subject another muslim or human being to genocide or ethnic cleansing. They simply fought for their freedom from foreign occupation.
As for Pakistani drones and those fake stories they are video game clips. Besides pakistan does not dare raise a finger with its secular pacifist leadership which has no clue or idea. They are simply lucky.
Besides what have Taliban got to do with 9/11
I am surprised Saker blog has even allowed this writer
I doesn’t make sense for the Taliban to threaten their neighbors. That said they are going to have their work cut out for them to get a working system in place. Respecting minorities is a key requirement for any hope for stability. Their rule can’t be any worse than 20 years of occupation by US/NATO who did not give a rat’s ass about the welfare of the common Afghan citizen. As far as another 9-11 false flag attack if that happens it will be the work of the people who were behind the first attack not the Taliban.
“Besides what have Taliban got to do with 9/11”
Exactly. Everybody should laugh at the idea of “the Taliban and all like-minded Islamists” authoring the European attacks in 2004-2017 alone…
Of course a deal was made with the U.S. government. To my understanding there were discussions taking place back when Trump was in office. (Biden just carried out the orders.) Also to my understanding, the Taliban’s perspective on religon is close to that of the Saudi’s, and the Saudi government was/is financing the Taliban back to power. Reason being that the Taliban will not be friends with Iran. Hence Iran will have foes on two sides. One to their front, and another to their rear, and that is to the liking of not only the Saudis, and the U.S. government, but also to Israel. I believe all the overt reservations being pronounced, and sanctions being levied against the Taliban by the U.S. is just a front so as not to reveal the true machinations. Watch, it will be interesting to see what country will endure future Taliban attacks, if any. My guess it will be Iran that gets the brunt. China may also have a problem given their Muslim populations residing in their west. The U.S. and Israel will be spared.
Or perhaps we are looking for problems where none exist except in the mind, perhaps it’s best to wait and see just what develops between the new government of Afghanistan and its neighbors China Iran Pakistan and Russia, the Taliban has never had problems with Iran, so I rather doubt you will see any now.
My guess is that you will see all these countries giving the new government all the help they can, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Russia sending in wheat and other food products to the Afghanistan people with China propping them up with loans and other financial assistance, so before we condemn the new government, let’s just give them a chance to see what they can accomplish for it sure beats drone strikes, bullets and dead wedding parties.
A peculiar one sided perspective. It certainly lost credibility when it gave a notorious warlord Dostum a ‘hero’ status.
Even multitude western sources cannot hide his notorious nature.
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/17/afghan-warlord-abdul-rashid-dostum-power-sharing-war/
When Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Abdullah Abdullah, his main political opponent, signed a power-sharing deal in May, it ended eight months of bitter post-election dispute. It also came with a disturbing price tag, one hashed out among rounds of backroom deals, tense negotiations, and desperate U.S. attempts to keep the government from imploding. Abdul Rashid Dostum, Ghani’s vice president until last year and one of the country’s most notorious warlords, demanded a promotion to the rank of marshal, only awarded twice before in Afghan history. Ghani, who’d long vowed to clean out the warlords, complied.
Dostum, whose militias are believed to have carried out one of the most notorious war crimes in modern Afghan history during the early days of the U.S.-led invasion, embodies much of what’s gone wrong in contemporary Afghanistan—and especially the failed promise that the U.S. invasion would help create a cleaner, more transparent, more democratic state. Dostum still stands accused of torturing and ordering the rape of a political rival while in office as recently as 2016. After swift Western condemnation, Dostum fled to Turkey, where he enjoys a good relationship with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. It wasn’t his first flight to Turkey: In 2008, too, he’d sheltered in Ankara amid similar accusations that his men had abducted, beaten, and sexually assaulted a political opponent.
But instead of being prosecuted, Dostum is being promoted: His ascent to marshal became effective this week. While many critics, both Afghans and non-Afghans, observed the ceremony with indignation, Afghan media shrugged, while the warlord’s supporters celebrated the promotion.
“I send congratulations to all of Afghanistan,” said Mawlavi Baharuddin Jowzjani, a cleric and high-ranking official of Dostum’s party, in an interview with Tolo News about the warlord’s promotion. On social media, Dostum’s son Batur Dostum bristled at criticism and said, “such accusations will not harm the Marshal.”
The crimes referred to under the cover of the US invasion Post Dec 2001 were numerous rape and murder allegations his militia perpetrated in Taliban supported areas. It was raw opportunism under the natoo invasion which gave impunity to almost any anti talib forces.
More disturbingly but not unsurprising. The 2017 exile to Trky was a result of ghani caving into local pressure to set a judicial hearing for alleged crimes. Yet in 2018 the embattled ghani was still prepared to recall and utilise Dostum for support and raising his rank to Marshall. The corruption in the Proxy afghan govt simply knew no bounds.
It is no surprise that dosttum fled during the taliban takeover. He probably realised his chances of being included in a general amnesty might be wishful thinking.
Unbelievable this article promoted such an individual as a courageous hero. This is the problem now. So much is being written about the talibs. Its getting difficult to discern truth from dissimulation. Western media and so many others including Arab media are so seriously threatened by a Taliban takeover. It makes one wonder. Not to mention these so called heroes played no part in ousting or fighting the barbarous illegal US occupation. Many in fact profited from it. And they are still wanting to stake their claims.
There is no danger from the Taliban. They might cause some disturbances in Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan but that is it. All Russia needs to do is send their Chechens in to train some men from those various nations then together with the new Russian UAV’s they can make life very, very difficult for anyone living within 300km of the Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan or Tajikistan borders.
Think of lighting fast raids under UAV cover, those guys in those Stans need work, raiding was always their occupation, and they don’t really like each other or the Pashtuns so the total cost to Russia will be very low. Most of the job would probably just be as spotters directing munitions fired from across the border onto target, like what is the case on Donbas / Russian border now, and with the mountains in that area the spotters can probably do their job without even crossing the border. Even anti-personnel mines and other area denial munitions can be delivered via artillery and missiles these days. So no problem with Afghanistan.
The drug industry? I can agree on this. Anybody who has been exposed to drugs knows the unbelievable power of not only the addiction to it but the money involved. The extant to which those who want it is something to marvel at really or of course be afraid of. Drugs is a scourge, a terrible all consuming scourge upon all of humanity. And we haven’t even begun to mention its sisters of alcohol and tobacco? There is no stopping any of it until the users themselves start treating it as abhorrent themselves and flee for their lives in the presence of it. That some would think of weaponizing it is only human nature.
While there is some very good, useful information in this article, I disagree (vehemently) that Afghanistan under Taliban leadership is bound to: commit ethnic genocide of Uzbeks and Tajiks, maintain the world’s largest opium and heroin industry, sponsor worldwide terrorism, and invade other countries.
To the contrary, what the people of Afghanistan are REALLY being harmed by are the sanctions (including multi-billion-dollar bank theft) and economic blockade imposed by the U.S., which plans to literally STARVE the Afghan people into submission. Sanctions are a proven potent hybrid war weapon.
Mullah Hasan Akhund – acting PM – singlehandedly took credit for destroying Bamiyan Buddha’s
Sirajuddin Haqqani – interior minister – more conservative than Taliban
Need I say much, that this is the same old taliban with an iphone and an ipad in hand?
For all that think 2.0 gotto be better than 1.0, I give you an analogy. Take the newest Intel chip and keep peeling it all the way. You will find the original 16bit microcode.
Some things just cannot change. Nor will these talibans. If anything, they’ve learnt to be savvy with the media and to outsource the worst deeds to you know who — ISIS, IS-K, AQ and TTP
This author seems to have bought the 9/11 fable hook, line, and sinker. Hate to break it to you, Batko, but Israel attacked the USA on 9/11 and got away with it. Every intelligence agency on the planet knows that Mossad was the main perpetrator of that awful attack. After 20 years of the USA destroying nation after nation, all for Israel, and killing millions of Muslims, it’s hard to believe that anyone still thinks these invasions were about nation-building. Nation-destroying is more like it.
Afghanistan was invaded to bring back the heroin trade which the Taliban has just about shut down by 2001. By 2005 the CIA had ramped up production so that Afghanistan was again supplying 90% of the world’s heroin. Where the Russians helped build infrastructure and educate Afghans, the US bombed everything that moved. There was no good way for Biden to end this carnage except by simply pulling the plug on it. Just like with Vietnam, would someone please shut off the light at the end of the tunnel?
The occupation of Afghanistan was conceived as a new round in the ‘Great Game’ against Russia and China.
Apparently a lot of people have a very romanticized view about the Taliban. Do you know what it means to have a government operating with Sharia laws? This is not about how ‘European’ Afghans have to be, or weather women are allowed to wear mini skirts or not. This is about weather or not basic human rights are granted to Afghans, which will be very unlikely with a Taliban government. NONE of the Afghans I have talked to supported the Taliban, in fact they are the very reason they fled the country. In fact, neighbouring Uzbekistan and Tadjikistan are very concerned about the Taliban, as can be read in recent news. For decades now revolutions have tried to establish secular countries in central Asia, the most prominent example being the Soviet Union. It’s everybody’s choice what they want to believe in, but please keep religion out of politics and respect human rights.
I wonder while it seems most people always look at the negative sides of things, is it simply human nature or are they simple programmed that way, now human rights is a tricky item for with the U.S. our human rights don’t extend to others for we really only care about what’s in our best interest and forget democracy which was worn out long ago, now ask yourself a question do you believe that Afghanistan would just love our godless society homosexuals and everything else that destroys a nation. I rather doubt it.,
It’s everybody’s choice what they want to believe in, but please keep religion out of politics and respect human rights.
Slight contradiction there, Lenard: ‘Everybody’s choice…but…’
More to the point, this demand that the Talibs keep religion out of politics betrays a fundamental misunderstanding or rather ununderstanding, of the Taliban worldview — something that blights many opinions ever since the French Revolution.
The Talibs view politics as instrinsic to their religious practice, ie there’s no separation between powers spiritual and temporal. They’re not unique in that worldview — it is common among unsecularised Muslims. And — surprise — it is not unknown in Europe as well. The chief satrapy in the AZEmpire, the UK, has a head of state who’s ‘Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith’ [italics mine]. It’s mainly lip service now of course in the CS — and much of the ‘Enlightened’ world — where God, the prophets and religion are mocked with the ‘Defender of the Faith’ lifting nary a finger to put her subjects right but to the Talibs, it is serious business. The sooner we can understand that fact, the sooner the rest of the world can deal properly with the Taliban and help the Afghans.
“O People, it is true that you have certain rights with regard to your women, but they also have right over you. If they abide by your right then to them belongs the right to be fed and clothed in kindness. Do treat your women well and be kind to them for they are your partners and comitted helpers. And it is your right that they do not make friends with any one of whom you do not approve, as well as never to commit adultery.” — Prophet Muhammad, Farewell Sermon.
https://sourcebooks.fordham.edu/source/muhm-sermon.asp
The current and past mistreatment of women by the Talibs — who presumably have mothers, sisters and daughters — demonstrate a profound lack of sophistication in their understanding of their religion.
Beautiful words by the seal of the Prophecy, peace and blessings upon him!
The real danger is that what is perceived as a victory of Islam would inflame the ‘true believers’ everywhere to continue their struggle for the Caliphate and reinforce their demands for introduction of sharia law everywhere.
It’s none of your business how they’re going to govern their country. Is it going to be sharia law? So much the better.
As for “human rights”, they do not exist: those are sillinesses invented by western moralists for political reasons, namely to justify their interventions and aggressions where they do not belong.
As for “religion out of politics”, who cares? Separation between church and state is a western stance of the Enlightenment, having nothing to do with other different traditions. If they want a religious state, so be it: again, it’s none of your business.
I’m tired of moralists teaching others how to live and how to die.
Good points.
We had a recent discussion on this mindset of the elites of the Yankees/Puritans/globalists on the short post entitled, ” Dissenting Voices in the USA.”
The mindset to dominate and impose will on entire peoples originates much earlier, since at least the medieval Crusades. Before those laborious missions are sent, the brainwashing started with learning to hate the target.
For example, this mindless refrain of “sharia” with respect to Muslims. Sharia is the arabic word for religious law. Every people have one, without exception, even if it’s to follow satanic law. It is like hating/declaring war on terror (sic)!
I was taught in high school of the 3 G’s (Guns, Gold, and God) as the civilizing principle of the Conquistadores and other Europeans. So each ship or expedition had at least 3 cohorts – one to plunder, another to subdue, and the third to bring religion.
Little of this mindset has changed, except the new god is Mammon or LGBT+++. Truly weird evolution of messianism.
Yeah, thank you AHH. I wouldn’t underestimate the responsibility of christianity about this messianism, especially in the USA (its founders were just christian fanatics from Europe). Unfortunately monotheism is crooked, its roots are bigger than the pagan ones – but not as deep, at least in Europe. But yeah, mixed with jewish behaviors and leading a multi-cultural country, it is a weird evolution indeed! And in this process, some have even had success by playing victim (yeah, I’m talking to you, rainbow gang)… if that’s not the land of opportunity… :) Cheers from Italy!
@’The mindset to dominate and impose will on entire peoples originates much earlier’ than the Crusades. With Islam!
Of course the Afghans you met don’t support the Taliban, they are exiles and don’t count. I live in USA and never met a Cuban supporting the island government, or a Venezuelan supporting Maduro. Yet I have seen videos in Russian and Chinese media of Afghan women supporting the taliban and waving their flag.
the Taliban faces major challenges. The evil empire is seeing it all, and its tentacles have been doing great propaganda inside Russia. Check out what Russians think about Navalny in this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VtUreq8pZ0A&ab_channel=Vemamiml%C3%ADnguarussa
The fact that Russia and China remains in Afghanistan and talks to the new government is a sign that this is wrong:
QUOTE
Otherwise, a new 9/11 may not be too far off.
UNQUOTE.
Besides what has Afghanistan to do with 09/11?
Cheers from France
“Otherwise, a new 9/11 may not be too far off.” Really – this guy has not understood that nobody outside the US had anything to do with 911 – excapt their exclave in Palestine.
A comment on the general tone of the commentators.
Bear in mind that we know little yet, except we know the history of the Taliban. Can anyone spell Deobandi?
Will The Taliban become human overnight? I hope so, but there is nothing hard under our feet that militates for my forlorn hope (or an overinflated expectation). These people come from many years of hard warfare and their religious and legal roots are from the stone age.
The writer has given us an opposite view to the very romantic views that we’ve seen up to now from other writers on The Saker blog. For that, we should be grateful and not sound like a bunch of Tabaquis,
It is head-spinning to see the abject failure of the hegemon. But be aware, we have nothing excepting talk so far that tells us that we have anything to be really bullish about. We do not know these people, so an alternative view should be welcomed and not derided.
Every true analyst that I know (and we know a few around The Saker Blog) are skeptical, but hopeful – I actually happen to be the most hopeful one.
The only hope that I see for The Taliban to try and build a country, is if they absolutely work with both China, Russia and Iran (and neighbors too, when required) – almost like apprentices. They fell into a victory by default, because of the other guy’s utter incompetence. That does not usually make excellent governmental administrators given the tremendous problems that they face. They’re rookies and newbys in the government and country-building business.
We hope, and we are truly happy that the hegemon had to roll out, but a false feeling of euphoria will just maybe leave everyone with their faces in the dust This is early days. They’ve already walked into a stone wall … and that was Russia. Bring us a representative government, says Russia or you do not have our support.
Note that in the Lebanon it has taken + a year and now only are they managing to form a real government, and the problems are major. One does not do country building in a few weeks.
Thanks writer, for an alternative view that deals with overinflated expectations.
Point taken
Cheers from France.
When the ‘mullahs’ took control of Iran in 1979, they were also rookies, and many labelled them much worse than what the Taliban are being called today.
The major differences between the two are that the Iranian mullahs had near universal support among the Iranian public, and the Iranian mullahs are Shia.
The Taliban leadership are also a bunch of mullahs, but they are not as highly educated as the Iranian Ayatollahs and Revolutionary leadership were, and they are Sunni, Hanafi Sufi, to be precise, so they lack many of the ideals which have been the key to Iranian success, and they also don’t have popular support among the Afghans, not the same way Khomeini had support among Iranians, not even close.
So, the odds are heavily stacked against them.
But they also have it a lot easier than the Iranians had it. Iran was invaded by Iraq the year following the revolution. Iraq was getting weapons from everyone, while Iran was under an arms embargo and other sanctions, and with no friends in the world, and no one who shared Iran’s anti-Zionist anti-US ideals — not even the Soviet Union, who sold a massive amount of weapons to Iraq.
Nobody in the neighborhood is going to invade Afghanistan and fight them for 8 years starting in November. And if the Taliban share Iranian sentiments towards the US and Israel, then there is an entire network of states and non-state actors which will be sympathetic towards them, and support them, the same way Iran has supported Syria, Lebanon, Iraq, Yemen, and Palestine (and Venezuela.)
At the very least, sanctions and siege will not work on Afghanistan, because Iran is right next door, and it produces absolutely everything, and will not hesitate to break any siege and sanctions.
If the Taliban can then also gain favor from Moscow and Beijing, they will be well on their way to making Afghanistan a real modern state, that isn’t a total joke.
https://tinyurl.com/nmzyp4ra — this is the situation right now
The Taliban really have their work cut out for them. They will have to delegate a lot, which means forming a more inclusive government. They cannot hope to run the country otherwise. But they are lucky that figures like Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah are around.
We will see what we see in the days and weeks ahead.
I do not know what degree of religious education a mullah denotes in iran, but afghans usually apply the title of mullahs to those who enrolled but could not complete their religious education. It is not hard to guess why they would not complete their religious education and other forms of education, because they took up arms to fight.
But not all of them are uneducated or only took religious education. Maulvi shiahabudin dilawar, member of IEA political office, is fluent in arabic, english, dari and pashto. He authored an explanation of the prophet’s teachings in 4 volumes. Mawlawi abdul hakin haqqani also is the author of multiple religious, historical and jurisprudence books in arabic. Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai graduated from the indian military academy and used to be an officer in the afghan army.
I know what you want to point out. But you need to look at islamic history to know that many of the successful empires were built by sunnis.
Claiming that the taliban is Hanafi Sufi is ridiculous. There are talibs who consider sufis as grave worshipers and there are talibs who do some of the sufi practices. Some of them are salafis too.
They are open to work with US unofficially and have officially said that they do not want any relations with israel
right now afghanistan is under sanctions and the situation is deteriorating
russia and china did not close their embassies unlike the last time when taliban came to power. Many countries are also in talks with the taliban but would not want the public to know.
These guys took orders from someone else, they were puppets. Taliban gave them very appropriate roles in the cabinet, nothing.
Okay, but what does Afghanistan have to do with September 11? And, if we believe in multilateralism, why should we care about the customs and traditions of a country or nation accepted by the majority? (because apparently cultural dissent would come from those co-opted by western propaganda)
How can I suppose that the apparent freedoms that we have (especially women) in the West, are based on a “civilization” of four centuries already (Anglo-USA) guilty of genocide of millions of innocent people?
Are the Aztecs, Mayans and others superior civilizations because of their “amazing” pyramids or astronomical knowledge, since they were genocidal from the adjacent communities? (which cost them defeat by a few Spanish invaders because they had the support of the other communities)
I believe that we cannot judge the Taliban and those who support them, and any other culture or tradition, as long as there is no agreement on what is the paradigm that defines a civilization, understood as a higher stage of human development and not only as the amount of stacked materials.
“and their religious and legal roots are from the stone age”
like those of Chimpanzees and Bonobos? We use to declare
the child-age of mankind as ‘primitive’ in the meaning of brutal
the soft conduct of animals to their children, of Bonobos
to their mating-crowd should give us a different fantasy of
primeval social condition
Are the Bonobos so frequently given as examples of ‘soft conduct’ because they are the only species known for engaging in homoerotic practices?
Yes, the tone of many comments is deplorable indeed.
You can disagree with the author without simply name calling and baseless suppositions about the author or his motives.
Folks, you know whom I am referring to, please stop this.
As for those who think that the Taliban are the best thing since sliced bread, I remind you that past behavior is a often the best predictor of future behavior. I also agree that the new Taliban-2021 are more savvy, and seem to have learned from mistakes. But, alas, their Deobandi ideology and Pashtun nationalism is not helpful. Nor is the fact that while the Taliban had nothing to do with 9/11, they are “bad characters” on their own right (just remember the destruction Bamiyan Buddhas, the street stoning, the ban on music, etc. etc. etc. and all the rest of the insane crap these folks seem to hold very dear to their hearts.
Anyway, please change tone or refrain from posting!
Thanks
Andrei
Pashtun nationalism? That is absolutely the last thing the Pakistanis will tolerate…the Durand Line being an existential red-line issue for them. Why do you think the Pakistanis have always supported in Afghanistan the religious nuts over the nationalist nuts?
“Pashtunistan” is a project for many in the region.
And,
Afghanistan is an totally artificial country, whether Pakistan likes it or not.
Last, but not least, the Pakistanis have *A LOT* of “sins” by themselves, they know it, and countries like Russia and Iran know it. They better make darn sure that they don’t become a rear-base for Takfiri types or the war will come to them faster than they think (both Russia and Iran have very accurate long range weapons and the Pakistanis cannot even think of using a nuke again either one before being obliterated (and blamed by the entire planet).
Finally, religious and nationalist nuts are often one and the same. This goes for plenty of Pashtuns too.
I don’t think Russia or Iran have such concerns with Pakistan as you state.
Times are changing and the interesting development of Pakistan over the years has shifted from a disastrously pro Western alignment to a more balanced one that regards China as more sincere in its relationship. One should not forget that the birth of this land has only been 70+ years. In its infancy it was highly vulnerable and inexperienced. The West exploited this immaturity to its ends and the elite in pakistan was rather comfortable in this arrangement. What does seem to be transpiring as we move along are the objectives clearly stated by David Ben gurion.
The world Zionist movement should not be neglectful of the dangers of Pakistan to it. And Pakistan now should be its first target, for this ideological State is a threat to our existence. And Pakistan, the whole of it, hates the Jews and loves the Arabs. This lover of the Arabs is more dangerous to us than the Arabs themselves. For that matter, it is most essential for the world Zionism that it should now take immediate steps against Pakistan. Whereas the inhabitants of the Indian peninsula are Hindus whose hearts have been full of hatred towards Muslims, therefore, India is the most important base for us to work there from against Pakistan. It is essential that we exploit this base and strike and crush Pakistanis, enemies of Jews and Zionism, by all disguised and secret plans.
-David Ben Gurion, the first Israeli Prime Minister.His words, as printed in the Jewish Chronicle,9 August 1967:
Not helpful? So what? Also your being christian is not helpful to your rationality, but this doesn’t prevent you from having a good informative blog. By this I mean that “Deobandi ideology” has been helpful, too: helpful to stick to their principles, helpful to be the less corrupted political actor in the country, helpful to not accept too many compromises, helpful to be determined soldiers, helpful to not behave as traitors nor just freeloaders.
As for “ban on music” and other similar things, they are 100% right: they want to develop their own way. The great Mullah Omar had a famous fresco depicting a rural environment with few, highly technological, installations, clearly symbolizing the type of society he craved for: traditional, but not retrograde. Their aim is not to cut out music altogether, nor movies, they just don’t want to be flooded rapidly with western garbage, because they know those are means to own the population and become corrupted. As for the destruction of the idols, yes, that is always a wrong choice (ancient Greeks and Romans knew that well and taught us), and I hope it’s been just the over-excitement of a warlike movement in its infancy. If Omar was still alive, it could have been a major help to the Taliban wisdom; unluckily he is no more, but had faithful fellows and left unforgettable lesson behind him. What a great leader, Allah may bless him.
Is this a Romantic point of view? Yes, it is, because Talibans incarnate nowadays, in the world, the romantic fight par excellence.
“their religious and legal roots are from the stone age”. Not the stone age, Islam started well within the Christian calendar.
And what are your beliefs, may I Inquire? Liberal cult, LGBTQ, feminism and critical race theory?
“These people come from many years of hard warfare and their religious and legal roots are from the stone age.”
(Removed insulting statement.Do not insult fellow posters,MOD) “Stone age” people were hunter gatherers. They did not practice war, for the simple reason that they did not believe that they owned their land…it owned them.
The Pashtuns, like just about everybody else in Central Asia and the Middle East, are pastoralists, nomadic to varying degrees. This lifeway emerged some time after about 10,000 years ago, that is, by definition, after the Stone Age. They worship sky gods (male) and absolutely loath female spirits (such as the snake, which, by the way, is still thought sacred amongst rural Indian people) and their young men spend their lives, away from the good influences of elders and women, staring at the arses of their herded goats. It’s boring work, so they thieve from others’ herds hoping to increase their wealth.
There is nothing admirable about the pastoralist lifestyle and its ideological and religious apologies and rationalisations. The Stone Age, by comparison, looks to me to have embodied the good sacred life for humans.
The Middle East and Central Asia were the cradle of civilization.
Starting around 6000 years ago, numerous large city-states appeared in the region, starting with the Sumerian and Elamite city-states, and the Jiroft civilization, Tepe Sialk, and the Burnt City in Eastern Iran, followed by the Indus Valley civilization, Bactria, and Egypt.
Note the word civilization. Anywhere else in the world, at that time, you only find ‘cultures’, not civilizations.
These civilizations rose from the foundations of farming communities, not pastoralists. There were farming communities in Iraq and the Zagros mountains, by at least 6000 BC, and perhaps even earlier.
The Zagros mountains of Iran are where the grapevine came from. And the epithet of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, who came to Greece from the East, is Zagreus.
Iraq and Iran are also where wheat, barley, beer, walnuts, almonds, figs, and many other fruits, herbs, and vegetables originated.
All the basics of civilization, ie. farming, clothing, shelter, money, etc, originated in the Middle East and Central Asia.
And if you had lived among the Iranian nomads, you would never say there is nothing admirable about them.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grass_(1925_film) — get a hold of this old documentary, and watch it. If you don’t feel admiration for those people, come back here and tell me that I was wrong.
And what happened to those city states and their so-called civilization? How long did they last and where are they now? All of them drowned in the silt accumulted because of their deforestation for firewood and soil erosion caused by their herds. The entire Middle-East and many parts of Central Asia are a monument to ecological catastrophe on a grand scale. The farmers and pastoralists were equally culpable. And the men on horseback who fought the never-ending wars for the city-state farmers were pastoralists. Am I supposed to admire the pastoral nomads in “Grass” for their toughness and fortitude? All I see is a lifeway that made itself marginal by the desertification that it inflicted on the land. Why did this happen? Because pastoral nomadism’s central unsustainable principle was and is wealth accumulation by enlarging the herd, whether by breeding or by theft.
I cannot speak for Iraq, but Shush (Susa, founded 6000 years ago) is still a city today, in Iran.
Google “Shush Iran” — the ancient pyramid still stands after untold ages, as does the ancient hydraulic system.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shushtar_Historical_Hydraulic_System
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chogha_Zanbil
The Middle East has been a desert for thousands of years. The oldest qanat in Iran is 2800 years old, and it still provides fresh water. If Iran wasn’t a desert, why would they have constructed qanats?
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qanat
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qanats_of_Ghasabeh
The ancient people of the Middle East weren’t pastoralists, they were farmers. Two separate groups of pastoralists invaded the region in ancient times.
1. The Semites, who were sheep- and goatherds
2. The Aryans, who were cowherds and horse-people
The reason some people reverted back to nomadism in the Middle East and Central Asia, was because the Mongols destroyed most of the old cities, and massacred all the living inhabitants.
Iran is one of the largest producers of fruit in the world today, even though it is mostly desert.
My ancestors chose this desert to settle, to harm as little life as possible, and they constructed qanats to bring water to the desert and turn it green.
Many cities in Iran are thousands of years old.
You pass judgement on a documentary that you clearly haven’t watched, and you spew veiled hate towards Middle Eastern people, in the guise of ecological criticism, which only demonstrates your total ignorance.
The mass extinctions which began after the last glacial period, affected most of the planet, and Iranians and other Middle Eastern people can hardly be blamed for any of it.
During the last glacial period, most of Iran was covered in ice. As the ice melted, the biome changed, and many creatures that once thrived here, went extinct.
The Zagros mountains still contain millions of hectares of oak forests, where wild pistachio, wild almond, wild figs, wild grapevines, and wild cherries grow, and while overgrazing is definitely nothing to condone, the fact that those forests are still there, points to the fact that overgrazing was not as big of a problem in the past as it was now.
The population of the Middle East has never been even a fraction of what it is now, and ditto for the sheep and goat population. Modern medicine, modern technology, and modern means of transportation, have all come together to make the number of sheep and goats so large now, that for the first time in Iranian history, they have the potential to cause serious ecological damage.
In the past, too many factors limited the populations of livestock, and for example, in 1925, as is attested in the movie, an entire tribe of Bakhtiaris had a mere few hundred thousand livestock, together with 80,000 people (iirc), while their grazing lands covered two Iranian provinces.
How many livestock sustain a Western country today? And just because they aren’t grazing free range, doesn’t mean land isn’t allocated for growing their fodder. How much biodiversity has been destroyed in Western countries (or wherever you are from) to make way for Alfalfa and other plants grown to feed livestock?
Perhaps your time would be better spent criticizing your own country, people, and government, rather than giving incorrect opinions about other parts of the world.
Watch that movie, you still might change your mind.
My friend, I have no wish to quarrel with you. I come here to say what I believe to be true. If anyone wants to engage in conversation and try to persuade me otherwise, well, I welcome it. I do not hate Middle-Eastern people and I do not blame any ethnic or national groups for the environmental mess the planet is in today. I spoke of Middle-Eastern and Central Asian pastoral nomadism. That is where it began. But my criticisms of that lifeway extend to the cowboys of the North American great plains, the gauchos of the South American grasslands and the cow cockies of the Australian savannah. It is the way of life that I am criticising, from an ecological and spiritual perspective, not particular groups of people. So yes, I am criticising a lifeway practised in my own country – google my nom de plume and it will be obvious immediately where I am from. You, I am guessing, are Iranian. If that’s correct then, for what it’s worth, I admire and respect Iran’s political and social achievements since 1979. Perhaps if we were ever to meet in the street, we might enjoy an hour or two over coffee in a cafe. Since you are clearly knowledgeable about the climatic, ecological and cultural changes that occurred during the transition from the Pleistocene to the Holocene, and because you seem to have a nurturing perspective towards the land, I am sure I would enjoy that. But since you think that my thoughts display, in your words, total ignorance, well, perhaps it could never happen. What a shame.
Alright, I was harsh. I apologize. I can be a bit of a shitc*nt sometimes, mate.
No hard feelings.
No drama. I will watch the video you recommend.
What the Super power couldn’t achieve in 20 years, Afghans-Talibans are expected to deliver in 2 months? Instead of speculating, identify the signals to monitor and their development.
What are nation’s guiding principles and forces? Nation’s vision, values and the economic system define its guiding or gravitational forces. Let’s hope Afghans can work towards building their nation, economy and being a good neighbor.
China’s relationship with Afghanistan is a function of opportunities, terrorism and narcotics. Russia sees the latter two as the important factors. What factors are driving the Financial Empire’s future plans? Destabilize the Eurasian region using terrorism and narcotics? The U$A needs to make Afghanistan’s funds immediately available so the situation doesn’t deteriorate.
The best way to understand a nation is to understand its core values and the monetary system. Follow the money (who creates money) and the history of its central bank. What type of monetary system was put in place in Afghanistan in the last twenty years? A private debt-based monetary system with usury (15% interest). Afghanistan has a Shadow Financial Network… “Sarai Shahzada – Hawala.” Afghans have been exploited and enslaved. Will they end Usury according to the Sharia system?
The following signals will reveal Afghanistan’s future:
– The governing principles/values and the constitution
– Monetary structure: sovereign money or private money (private credit). Who will create money?
– Economic Development: How will the money supply be allocated?
– Security: Internal & external stability
– Relationships with neighbors & global powers (SCO?)
Please understand the key differences between the monetary and economic system. The monetary system deals with money creation, allocation and the cost of capital. The economic system drives the value creation within a nation and its various sectors.
What additional signals will reveal Afghanistan’s reality and future?
https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/09/05/afghanistan-economic-crisis-taliban-takeover-banks-money-exchangers
Same old playbook, try to draw neighbouring countries into the conflict. American proxies will be murdering Uzbeks and tajiks and the Taliban will be blamed. Leaving all those weapons was no mistake. Hopefully the Russians will be given Bagram so they can start securing the country’s airspace from terrorists.
…’Ordinary Afghan people lives by the same rules as their distant ancestors; they don`t understand the advantages of Western culture.’…
To be quite honest, looking at the idiocracy around me I too am having difficulty understanding the advantages of Western culture.
This article is full of conjecture, the conclusion is unsupportable based on the information in the article.
The US wants to make Taliban rule a failure, like they did with Cuba. Chinese, Russians and Iranians want to keep Afghans in Afghanistan, and if this can be done through profitable trade and reconstruction, so much the better. The Europeans are offering Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan money to accept Afghan refugees – the EU cannot swallow another 2015. And the Taliban have opened all prison doors and released all prisoners just when Americans and Europeans evacuated all refugees. These are interesting times.
If the Taliban decide to ban poppy production, as they did briefly, when they were previously in power, it would be hugely disruptive not just for their country but for the entire region..
30% of Tajikistan’s GDP comes from the heroin trade (most of which is destined for the Russian market). https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/02/tajikistan-the-narcostate-103886/
Pakistan is also a major heroin conduit.
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/prospects-pakistans-opium-farmers-relief-or-oppression
With what will Russia and China displace this entrenched drug industry?
Personally, I was elated to see the Americans with their malign NATO hanger-ons getting kicked out of Afghanistan. I am now, however, dismayed to see the Taliban cosying up to NATO Turkey and Qatar.
If the whole point of this exercise was to replace the US regime with Turkish- Qatari Jihadi regime, then there is nothing to celebrate, there is only a lot to be worried about.
I like your comment Serbian girl.
I too have concerns about this backdoor attempt to influence the talibs. Coming out of the isolation they suffered. Meaning they were left to fend for themselves against a sophisticated technological military alliance of 57 countries. Even Pakistan, who many claim, are the reason for talibs success is pretty disingenuous, played a dubious game with them. They arrested many talib leaders and handed them over to the Americans.They even handed over an innocent young bright Pak lady by the name of Aafia Siddiqui who has been held without representation and suffered tragically in Bagram and now in the US. These crimes of Pak cannot be forgotten. Mullah Omar rejected the so called safe haven of Pak. He lived a spiritual life in his home town close to the US military presence. He raised his hands and implored the Lord that verily you have made the earth spacious for a believer and against all risks put his trust in his Lord. The US were never able to cross his path. When Allah protects his servants the whole of humanity put together is incapable. Not just the imperial West but the muslim nations provided them with little assistance. So in the spaciousness of victory they may be eager for recognition and agreements. This is fraught with danger. I think they will hold.
I think its more dangerous that Trky is getting somewhat closer to Pak. They can have an influence on the talibs together with others working around that. Like Qatar as you mentioned. The recent military drills between Trky, Azer and Pak cause further concern. This may be a overt display of friendship rather real alliances being established. The antidote is that Pak is most attached to China at present which balances these other, possibly nefarious overtures.
I am an Indian brother living in Mumbai. Glad you are remembering Aafia Siddiqui. Very evil and very puzzling, what happened to her. Pak army sold out to the US long ago. If I know the CIA, it may not be so easy for PAK to switch horses frm USA to China, thouygh that is the line that the Pak army is presenting to the Pak people to appear to remain relevant. True, India has switched from nonalignment to the American lapdog in the time of Modi. But , our challenge is to throw out , at the next few elections (state-level and national), the bigoted , islamophobic BJP.
In 1977, the communist regime executed faculty members of the kabul university made them flee to other countries. Many students were abducted and killed. The communists destroyed more than half of the total training institutions. Noor taraki, the soviet agent killed about a 10000 afghans. Another communist, hafizullah amin killed and tortured thousands including the rival communist factions using electrocution, castration, impalement, slow freezing and burning, which made even the soviets think that he was a CIA agent. najib (name was najibullah but he did not like god’s(allah) name in his own name so he preferred to becalled najib) another communist tortured people with electrocutions, red hot skewers and mock executions. Najib’s secret police used sexual violence by inserting bottles and bullets in the victim’s private parts but his favorite method was to beat his victims and kick them to death.The mass graves near the puli charaki prison had about 2000 bodies of those killed by the communists. The soviet occupation killed 30000 afghan civilians in 1985 and the entire soviet occupation built up a body count of 2 million afghans.
Advantages of western culture? materialism, racism, militant feminism, legalized homosexuality, LGBTQ+, moral corruption, lying and thieving politicians, massive media propaganda machinery, an urge to impose their own will and ideologies over the others, constant invasion of weaker nations, genocidal armies targeting civilians for fun and making minorities out of people in their own lands who were natives.
The afghans that resisted the foreign occupiers very well understood the ‘advantages’ of foreign occupation.
The silver Europeanized afghans = afghan diaspora on the payroll of previous foreign occupiers, most have never been to afghanistan before and they are the most vocal on social media. They perfectly represent the western values, like former afghan ambassador to UN called on international community to sanction afghanistan(http://english.shamshadnews.com/index.php/afghanistan/77-news/2077-former-afghan-government-ambassador-to-u-n-called-on-international-community-to-sanction-afghanistan), despite knowing that it would cause widespread hunger in an already war ravaged nation whose foreign assets are frozen by the western powers.
Indeed a very brave man.
The liberal dostum who treated surrendered enemy fighters with utmost respect as opposed to the taliban savages.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dasht-i-Leili_massacre)
the liberal dostum, who doesn’t want to live under shariah and also doesn’t rape and torture like the stone age taliban.
(https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/22/world/asia/afghanistan-general-abdul-rashid-dostum-rape.html)
So the taliban savages have now deprived those taking help from foreign countries and occupiers to rebel and bring ‘freedom’ to afghanistan. Taliban was started by pashtuns but isn’t an exclusive pashto organisation, qari fasihuddin, the taliban defense minister and the man who conquered panjshir is a tajik.
Check the taliban official statements, in which they are saying that there is nothing called haqqani network and the haqqanis are an integral part of the taliban.
The TTP has foreign IS-K and al qaeda fighters. writer is confused between the afghan taliban and the TTP. TTP doesnt fight in panjshir, their focus is the liberation of pak pashtun territories. The split happened when mullah omar ordered the faction of taliban that was in war with pak to stop fighting immediately. The faction didn’t listen to mullah omar. It had 50000 foreign fighters including chechens, ozbeks and arabs. This defiance by the rebel taliban faction led to fights between the foreign fighters and mullah nazir(taliban commander of wana) loyalists. The rebels in order to avoid further internal conflict split and organized themselves as the TTP (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan). While the writer gave no proofs of foreign fighters in panjshir, he can find a lot of proof on pro-taliban social media showing pashto and persian speaking taliban fighters in panjshir.
Negotiations are part of the afghan culture. The taliban attacked when the negotiations failed. How will it succeed when masoud jr. is going to listed to amrullah saleh, who ran away at the fist opportunity. Saleh is a war criminal whose actions caused the death of thousands of civilian afghans.
washington has been receptive to the idea of ‘good taliban’ and ‘bad taliban’ since a decade, it is not something new.
(https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna35202374)
Ah the clips from ARMA3 game! surprisingly, no one has authentic drones footage but plenty of ‘eyewitnesses’ and ‘reports’. There were plenty of witnesses too, when the iraqi invasion had to be done.
The taliban announced amnesty to the panjshiri resistance fighters and even gave each of them some money.
Pakistan cannot win wars decisively against its neighbors, got split into two nations by india (bangladesh liberation war), still has insurgency inn multiple regions and you want people to believe that it was able kick out the NATO and help taliban take control of the whole country.
The writer accepts that the tajiks in afghanistan do not identify themselves as afghans but as tajikistan nationals who want to control a region of afghanistan, which actually means tajiks are invaders and the taliban, being natives, did the right thing by getting rid of invaders. So the taliban is not wrong when ‘they will get rid of the disloyal population by killing them or squeezing them out to Tajikistan’.
Is the world not seeing multiple mainstream media reporters reporting live from afghanistan about taliban beating women, firing at protesters, coverage of anti-pak protests? The same world media hid the genocide of million of afghans carried out by the soviet sponsored communists and the NATO sponsored puppet regime.
The have been doing it since the occupation, does any media show the thousands of people killed by the NATO and puppet government? And if the people care so much about the afghan civilians, they should press their own government to release the frozen afghan money, which will help alleviate the hunger and crumbling afghan health infrastructure.
Very much appreciate your dissection of the immense propaganda that is inflicted on the taliban. We do not say they are perfect by any means. But the way writers and a vast majority of people’s have a seriously skewed view of the the taliban and their views and the obfuscation is sometimes too much to take.
In the end it will be to their detriment.
Those who make grand claims about themselves and casually resort to calumnies against others will be exposed even in their own homes. The contradictions, hypocrisy and lies are truly coming back to haunt, particularly, in the Western sphere of influence, the reality of their actions (the regimes and the silent majorities who ignored said crimes). Its not pleasant to see. Its also the reason why severe totalitarianism and the infringement of personal liberty and rights is under serious threat in said zones. May the good people band together to slowly effect the environment around them.
In 1977, the communist regime executed faculty members of the kabul university made them flee to other countries. Many students were abducted and killed.
All true! What did the Soviet do to Amin again?
Also
This was war and, yes, anybody crazy enough to fight the Soviet military (even a limited a rather small contingent most of the time) has to expect a formidable response and deaths/wounded in huge numbers.
BUT!
Besides fighting, the Soviets DID try, often successfully, to develop Afghanistan. Many Afghans today owe their education to Soviet institutions, both in Afghanistan and even in the USSR (still A LOT of Afghans in Russia today).
Look, I am not defending the Soviets, or justifying anything.
But any objective comparison with what the US did (in double the time, by the way!) shows that we are dealing with two fundamentally different phenomena. We can (and should!) condemn them both.
But conflating them is just not analytically helpful.
Kind regards
I wrote a big paragraph about the murderous afghan communists but it only has last two lines about the soviet occupation. I also agree that the soviets built many institutions, but even the most ‘primitive’ tribes would not accept any hegemony, no matter how many perks and technologies the invaders bring along. If my comment felt like comparing US and soviet occupations, I did not intend to so. I also apologize to the writer and did not intend on targeting him personally.
I understand that the writer sees afghanistan from a western point of view, but I felt that the article was painting a good picture of the occupations, afghan communists, politicians like saleh and warlords like dostum. My intention was to point out the exaggeration like taliban killing all minority religious groups, ethnic groups and political oppositions, citation of unverified news and giving predictions without any explanations.
Too many predictions what Talibs would do. Alas, in different world.
In this timeline, US is in decline, while oponent forces are rising.
At the end of the last millennia, global situation was just the opposite. Talibs were darlings of the west. Not anymore, because perfidious westerners betray, frame and bomb them into the stone age. Taking their country for a ride as opium mule. For what? Maybe there was some bold plans to cut asian continent in half northwards, in a chain of color revolutions/bombings? Who knows? USSR was dismanteld, China was weak, transitioning to capitalism, so why not to try. Opium trade was booming and payed off all expenses. (Not to taxpayers, of course).
Today, almost everything is just the opposite. Talibs are not CIA assets anymore. It’s very hard time for those who still are to cover their tracks. If there are any left.
Many noticed that Islamic extremism is trademark of western suported factions. The reason is that by encouraging public executions, oppresion of women etc. West manufacture leverage for future control of asset. If asset try to exercise free will, someday.
Judging by their recent actions, New Talibs are perfectly aware of this. They will try not to repeat mistakes from the past.
Opium was banned even then, as not allowed by Sharia. It will be double banned today, as in Talibs mind it is symbol of occupation and Quisling mafia. It is common delusion that Afghanistan reaps the huge income from Opium. In reality, they got ~1% from what CIA and friends profited. China will cover that losses for fun, just to get even for Huawei. Or Opium wars. Chinese are known to have elephants memory.
As for Massoud and such. He accepted to be western last stand foolishly. He also not realised that enviroment changed and still dance at the old music. His people will profit from BRI much more than from being western Trojan horse. Massoud@Co, probably, won’t. Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are silently aware too.
Author is concerned that Talibs will do exactly what Anglos would, if they are in their place.
Luckily, they are not.
The comparison this author makes about what the 1980s, 1990s pro government afghans were fighting for, before and after the SU left(infrastructure, universities, hospitals, power stations, schools etc), and what todays afghans had to fight for(a ruined country and infrastructure, and a man who deserted them, and stole more cash than he or is jet could carry) while most afghans live in abject poverty, sums it all up perfectly as to why there was so little resistance. Much of the rest, like hailing notorious war criminals such as dostum as a heroes, or trying to tie the talibs to flooding the world with heroin, leaves a lot to be desired.
I don’t agree with everything in this paragraph
The information vacuum will allow the Taliban to quickly take control of the whole country. The world media will not write about the millions of victims of ethnic and religious cleansing simply because it will know nothing about that. If the “young lion of Panjshir” and Saleh do not receive real support in the coming days, they are doomed, along with their compatriots. Back in 1975, the world was blissfully unaware of the insane atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge, who killed a third of their own population, simply because there was no one to write about this in a country shuttered from the outside world. In 2021, they will also try to hide the death of several million people, if only this is what Washington wants. And the White House does want a dialogue with the Taliban, forgetting about the victims of September 11, forgetting about the terrorist attacks across Europe and the hundreds of young men and women who died for “democracy” in Afghanistan. But what will the Taliban do after they crack down on Afghan minorities? Will it be peaceful construction? No, because radical Islam presupposes an eternal struggle against infidels in the name of a global caliphate and constant expansion. Its supporters have no need for music, literature, cinema – all these wonderful things created by mankind. They go to God through blood and violence, and they will go beyond their immediate neighbors. With a solid base and money from the sale of resources to China and Pakistan, the new Afghan authorities will become a unifying center for all like-minded Islamists – the holdovers from al-Qaeda and ISIS. As for the Taliban’s promise to get rid of the sprawling drug industry, which, during the 20 years of US occupation spiked from 120 tons a year to a whopping 10,000 tons, it is hardly credible. Indeed, why destroy what can be sold to infidels with profit and then be spent on a “holy war” bombing peaceful American and European cities. This is exactly what the Western world will get if it fails to figure out (and fast!) how to check the triumphant advance of terrorism from Afghanistan. True, judging by its escape from Kabul, the world policeman now urgently needs to talk this over with Moscow and Beijing. Otherwise, a new 9/11 may not be too far off.
Is the author implying the Taliban was responsible for 9/11 ?
“the world policeman needs to talk about this urgently with Russia and China, otherwise a new nineleven might not be far away”
I think Russia and China know much more about nineleven than this author presupposes.
He also claims the world Is under a serious threat of terrorism from the taliban. Completely overlooking that the terrorism was blamed on them which offered no proof and that they were the victims of untold terrorism and aggression.
Staggering!
This author could get a highly paid job in Washington or London.
I think you are wrong about the new Taliban, a quite different animal than 20 years ago after Khamenei, Putin and Xi extracted most of its teeth before the fall of Kabul.
yes, and Uncle Shmuel gave them BILLIONS of dollars in “teeth”….
“the world policeman ” says all you need to know about the author’s perspective.
Ridiculous article, supposes that 9/11 was a job by “Islamists”, hey it’s Muslims, nothing farther from truth, 9/11 was an inside job, the new Pea Harbor, a casus belli to go to war and conquer nations. This has been proven beyond reasonable doubt,
The Taliban 2.0 are indeed not the same, they know they have to engage the outside world to prosper, they are bent on business mostly with China, that will ensure prosperity, they need it to enjoy permanent support.
Batko Milacic is either a Serbian or Crostian name, more like Croatian due to fascist tendencies.
That is plain bigotry.
Last warning, one more comment like that and I will eject you.
Don’t EVER try again to discredit a person for its origins, place of birth, last name or anything else that person never got to chose.
Also
An apology to Milacic would be nice.
Your move.
Andrei
Your ad hominem must not stand. Your surname is a Western Byelorussian Uniate distortion of Kozlov. Oh, you should be “Baris”.
Hahahaha!
Yup, Baris he is :-)
thanks for a good laugh!
Cheers
Andrei
“Otherwise, a new 9/11 may not be too far off.”
There will only be another 9-11 if the Americans, Israelis, and Gulf Jihadist kingdoms (like Saudi Arabia and Qatar) decide to stage this attack.
All of these countries been sponsoring terrorist groups like ISIS and Al-Queda for years such as their jihadist terror war against Syria.
Why not think outside the box?
1. Stop the funding of jihadists. It seems to me that there is more than enough evidence.
2. If Afghanistan becomes unstable, redraw the borders.
What’s the point of announcing the fall of the empire if it is to continue to accept its turpitudes? If it falls, something new can be built. Otherwise it has not fallen.