Taliban attacks signs of time to come in Afghanistan
Recent attacks a preview of unfortunate reality that will prevail following US withdrawal
As the US pull-out from Afghanistan nears, few outside the Biden White House actually believe that the Afghanistan government will remain intact as Taliban intensifies its attacks on government forces and civilians.
While American and other foreign bases seem to be safe for now, protected by the Taliban movement itself, as per its deal with the US in February last year, the Afghan civilians and government entities unfortunately don’t have that protection. They are being targeted on daily basis by the extremist group and its terrorist allies.
In the past three weeks, Taliban fighters have killed more than 100 Afghan security personnel in a surge of attacks that followed President Joe Biden’s announcement that the US withdrawal would be completed by September 11, the 20th anniversary of the terror attacks on New York and Washington, which were planned and initiated from Afghanistan by Taliban’s allies, Al Qaeda terror network.
The reality is that the Biden administration, which made disagreement and withdrawal from the region a priority, is leavings Afghanistan too early
The attacks propelled the US into invading them and for the past two decades, the US and Nato have been engaged in ‘nation-building’- training, arming and funding Afghanistan’s police, army and air forces, in an attempt to build government security forces that can safeguard the country and prevent terror group from using its mountainous terrain as a launchpad to attack western interests.
However, the latest attacks on Afghan security personnel are simply a preview of the unfortunate reality that will prevail following the US withdrawal, Afghan officials and experts have warned.
A United Nations report said last week that civilian casualties, because of militant attacks, were up 45 per cent in the last three months of 2020 compared to a year earlier. The Taliban already control large parts of the country, even with American and Nato military power on the ground.
Those concerns have been validated over the weekend by the top US general warned, the Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Milley who warned of the potential for “bad possible outcomes” following the US pull-out. He and others refer to the deadlocked talks between the government and Taliban, which started in September.
Other experts warn of a bloody civil war that could be ignited by the US withdrawal, although General Milley said the US tries to broker “a responsible end to the conflict in Afghanistan, … through a negotiated outcome” between the government and Taliban. People in the know say that that is wishful thinking.
The reality is that the Biden administration, which made disagreement and withdrawal from the region a priority, is leavings Afghanistan too early. Washington knows very well that the Taliban is not keen in sharing power. Countless rounds of talks between the group and the government on that subject failed because the Taliban insisted on monopolising power. The US hasty decision to leave gives them that power on a silver plate.