The uncertainty in the Taliban dilemma
PEACE agreement that was singed between the Taliban and US is slowly becoming obsolete, especially the clauses that state: No terror outfit should be allowed to carry out its activities using Afghanistan and that Taliban will cut off all their links with terror organizations.
Recent events indicate that Afghanistan is not still just a safe haven for terror outfits but there have been multiple terror attacks launched on Pakistan using the Afghan territory.
The peace agreement is the only tool on the basis of which the international community is engaging with the Taliban government.
If Taliban are unable to hold the stick from their end, things can go south really fast. Assassination of Al-Zawahriin has raised many questions.
The agenda to drag Pakistan into the matter is merely to divert the attention from the actual point of contention.
The important thing is, what was Al-Zawahriin doing in Afghanistan? Also keeping in mind that no scientific evidence was produced by Mullah Yaqoob and he himself admitted Afghanistan doesn’t have a radar.
It is not possible that the government of Afghanistan was unaware of his presence this whole time.
This also shows the Taliban seems to have learned absolutely nothing. From a neutral point of view, it seemed as if the Taliban government was giving refuge to Al-Zawahriin, just as they gave refuge to Osama Bin Laden in the past.
This fact alone is a pretty fair reason for the US to withdraw the peace accord with the Taliban let alone Taliban’s lost credibility in the international community.
The intensity of ISKP’s attacks in Afghanistan have significantly increased compared to last year.
ISKP’s attacks are not limited to Afghanistan therefore Afghanistan’s neighbors seem very cautious of the security situation there.
Pakistan too has concerns regarding ISKP’s activities. Taliban govt will further lose its authority if ISKP’s attacks export into Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries.
TTP has over the years used the Afghan territory against Pakistan with the help of regional powers.
TTP is still continuing its terror attacks on Pakistan even under the Taliban government’s umbrella.
TTP’s terror activities has also created a troublesome situation for the Taliban government. TTP is not a singular entity which operates like a regular army.
It is based on different terrorist groups with their own commanders and their political objectives.
Such as Jamat-Ul-Ahrar, Al Qaeda, IMU and TIM. TTP is facing discord from within at the moment.
In Swat, some Taliban have requested the security forces for their return to Pakistan. TTP is neither getting refuge in Pakistan nor Afghanistan.
TTP leadership is killing its own people by making them fight among themselves and is getting money for this.
It’s due to this that the members of TTP and their families are befuddled. Even the TTP Shura is trying to talk to Pakistan’s officials regarding their return.
It has been opened up on this group of some thousand people that it is impossible to fight the State.
Whereas in Pakistan some extremist groups are doing propaganda by sharing old videos and pictures that TTP is functional again in Pakistan but in reality TTP itself isn’t getting any hideout.
So now Pakistan has no threat from this extremist organization. TTP and Pakistan’s relations with Afghanistan are two topics which are the centre of speculation.
Post US-withdrawal has further intensified the complexity of the already entangled scenario.
—The writer has a master’s degree in Mass Communication from the National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad.
