The US, Afghan Taliban and Pakistan
UNLESS this apparent US Senate inquest wasmeant to re-establish American democratic credentials, putting their Generals in the dock and pouring belated Parliamentary wisdom upon them looks a bit sham.
One finds no analogy, as propounded by Imtiaz Rafi Butt in his column (19 Oct), between General Mark Milley CJCS American Armed Forces likened to Rome’s Julius Caesar whose Senate had sought to eliminate him, since the US General unlike Caesar the conqueror, represented a defeated Army due to imprudent political decisions precipitated by the Pentagon advising troop surge instead of political engagement, their political leadership then failing to grasp the opportunity to change course; something Pakistan always advised and now seeking to scapegoat its Armed Forces.
Massive suicide attacks upon Friday congregations in mosques, first in Kunduz in the north and a week later in southern Kandahar in Afghanistan both Shiite places of worship; first one claimed by the Khorasani Group of Daesh and the other by another Muslim-sounding coinage; the Islamic State, none of them can claim to be Muslims.
Islam being an epitome of goodness, compassion and forgiveness, whosoever takes a human life anywhere, leave alone targeting and killing worshipers in mosques, churches and religious seminaries and shrines, certainly does not belong to the Islamic faith; no matter what he ostensibly professes.
Such people are agents working for forces out to destabilize countries and regions not submitting and toeing their line.
That the super domo would seek to compensate for its consternation by making inroads through mercenaries was a foregone conclusion.
Without mincing words; something that Lt Gen (R) Khalid Naeem Lodhi, a former Pakistani Defence Minister, often does; a poor ploy seeking to unnerve a people refusing to submit, by none other than the United States under whose command the Allied NATO authorized blindly by the UN, attacked Afghanistan and had to pull a retreat after pumping in over two trillion Dollars of American taxpayer’s money for 20 years in a thoroughly unjustified and ill-advised assault.
This is no small humiliation, though time and again suffered by the big brother; starting Vietnam where it scapegoated Cambodia, the Middle East blaming Saddam for possessing non-existent WMDs in Iraq, failing to bend Bashar Al-Asad in Syria, and now blaming Pakistan for its debacle in Afghanistan.
Be it Daesh, ISIS, Al-Qaeda, or rebel movements in various Islamic countries, it is now established beyond doubt that they are mercenaries trained, funded and working for foreign powers for a price.
The deadly attack inside a Shia Mosque in Kunduz, Afghanistan readily owned by the Daesh Khorasani Group killing over 60 and wounding hundreds was clearly designed to stir up sectarian violence in an already battered Muslim Afghanistan.
The mercenaries and their sponsors deserve the contempt and condemnation of the entire civilized world.
Time had come for all peace-loving nations big or small to get together, track down and expose the spoilers masked as saviours of humanity but themselves the worst perpetrators of crimes against it for such brash terrorism, and whose only aim is to destabilize the Islamic world, examples of which are seen in totally uncalled for actions and sanctions against Muslim Iraq, Syria, Iran, Pakistan and now Afghanistan.
The ruling Afghan Taliban being sought to be pushed to the wall by the retreating US, are now faced with the prospects of a proxy war and ploys such as sanctions, and arm twisting by way of economically strangling Afghanistan.
But resorting to seizure of Afghanistan’s rightful foreign reserves is not just illegal but sheer banditry and a matter of shame for the US which deserves universal condemnation.
The Taliban knowing that it was the US behind Daesh, have rightly refused to fall into the trap of customary US pressure tactics and refused any joint operations with it against the mercenary outfit which they were quite capable of handling on their own.
In their recent interaction, the Afghans like all self-respecting sovereign people, have squarely warned the US to refrain from interfering in Afghan Affairs, stop drone attacks in their country cautioning repercussions, and urged them to respect the Doha Peace Agreement.
Salutations to the self-respecting jealously Independent Nation of Afghanistan, for holding fast even in adversity compared to Pakistan which took slaying of its 24 men in uniform in the US attack on its Slala Check-post with a mere temporary suspension of transit facilities for American munitions and goods rather than extract a public apology from it, if not compensation.
Pakistan unable to execute an Active Service Indian Naval Officer KalbhoshanYadev; captured in Pakistan, tried for masterminding sabotage, killings and blasts inside the country and confessing his crimes, has chosen to stay the execution respecting an injudicious ruling by the International Court of Justice which it ought to have disregarded.
Pakistan instead of pressing for implementation of the UN Security Council-mandated plebiscite in Kashmir has for long looked like abandoning its stated position; either putting forward Musharraf’s status quo normalization formula as a third option or lately, Pakistan’s Prime Minister offering India to settle Kashmir by allowing it Independence instead of opting to join either India or Pakistan; Whoever gave this cricketing skipper the right to barter away the blood and honour of hundreds of thousands of Kashmiris, which was an affront to the martyred Souls of Burhanuddin Wani and the Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Geelani who for life remained wrapped in the Pakistani flag.
Pakistan at this critical juncture in Afghanistan’s history can make amends for its frivolities of the past by taking the lead in proactively engaging with the Taliban Government along with Afghanistan’s immediate neighbours including China and Russia without further loss of time and recognize their regime in exchange for sovereign guarantees of wiping out terrorist safe havens in Afghanistan and allowing female education and representation in all sectors including politics within Islamic social norms, in order to blunt the Western tirade against the Taliban.
The Immediate task of the neighbourhood should be to help reconstruction of Afghanistan collectively; which will not only bring peace but also recognition of the regime by those waiting in the wings.
—The writer is a media professional, member of Pioneering team of PTV and a veteran ex Director Programmes.
