Afghanistan- Targeting Civilians A Lukewarm Response to Peace

(MENAFN- Daily Outlook Afghanistan) The Taliban leadershipcontinues its talks with the US representatives and its war against Afghanstate and nation. It has adopted an equivocal policy which triggers mixedfeelings. The Taliban's war-war and talk-talk approach narrows down thepossibility for peace. If the current round of peace talks, ongoing in Qataricapital of Doha, does not mitigate violence in Afghanistan, people will losetheir hope and trust in the process.
Civilian death tollhas increased in the wake of the Taliban's deadly attacks, includingWednesday's heavy suicide attack in Kabul which killed and wounded dozens ofnon-combatants – for which the Taliban claimed responsibility.
The Taliban, as havethreatened earlier, seek to mar electoral campaigns and send threateningmessage to Afghans not to participate in the presidential elections, slated forlate September. They are unlikely to be able to reconcile their fundamentalideology with democratic principles.
The Taliban have toadopt an unequivocal policy. If they are sincere in the peace talks, they haveto show their sincerity through reducing violence, mainly against civilians.The ambiguity in their policy is highly frustrating.
In the wake of theongoing peace talks between the Taliban and US negotiators and the Taliban'swords for reducing violence against civilians, Afghans felt a gleam of hope forpeace and remain optimistic to some extent. But their daily attacks and suicidebombings against civilians leave people with despair and distrust.
On the one hand, theTaliban claim that their ideology had been moderated, but on the other hand,they carry out large-scale attacks to bar Afghans from participating in theelections. The Taliban have to clarify it if the view of their politicalleaders are in contrast with those of their military commanders. And they haveto assure that they will disarm all their militants in case of reaching peaceagreement with their negotiators.
It is self-evidentthat the Taliban have paid respect neither to the rights and dignity of Afghanpeople nor to their demands. For instance, in Loya Jirga (Grand Council) heldin late April, Afghan representatives urged the Taliban to reduce violence andnegotiate with the Kabul government. Moreover, President Muhammad Ashraf Ghanialso called on the Taliban to listen to the voice of the public and stopviolence. But the Taliban turned a deaf year and continued their militancy.
It is also believedthat the Taliban have recruited a number of thugs and mercenary fighters,rather than ideologues, to fight against the Afghan government. The Talibanleadership is unlikely to lose anything when their fighters are killed sincethere are many other mercenary fighters and thugs. The Taliban leaders residein luxury and heavily-guarded apartments in foreign states, along with theirfamilies. They feel neither the pain and sufferings of Afghan civilians northat of their rank and file.
I believe that theTaliban are not undefeatable. The 'war on terror should not be compared tothat of Soviet Union. In the war against the Taliban, both Afghan governmentand people support foreign forces and the Taliban are known as a militant groupnot 'Mujahidin.
The Taliban group isnot stronger than Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a guerrilla forcefighting against the Sri Lankan government and designed as terrorist by 32states. The LTTE was using women and children in combat and carried out anumber of high-profile assassinations.
The LTTE was involvedin four unsuccessful rounds of peace talks with Sri Lankan government and itwas in control of 76 percent of the landmass in the Northern and Easternprovinces of Sri Lanka. But the Sri Lankan government intensified its attacksand defeated the group.
With this in mind, ifthe Taliban continue their militancy and refuse to strike a deal with theAfghan government, the US-led NATO states should resume their militaryoperations and increase the number of their troops in Afghanistan so as todefeat it similar to LTTE in Sri Lanka and IS group in Iraq. In other words,the Afghan government has left no stone unturned to bring the Taliban to thenegotiating table, but if the Taliban still continue their militancy, allregional states have to support Afghanistan in dismantling the Taliban group.The regional countries should also share intelligence to defeat this group. Ifany countries are found or suspected to support the Taliban in one way oranother, they must be pressured and sanctioned by all regional and globalstakeholders.
In short, the Talibaneither have to reduce violence and reach an agreement or face the consequences.

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