Afrasiab Khattak via Prothomalo: Pakistani focus on Pashtun Taliban is to weaken Pashtun nationalism on both sides of the Durand Line. That’s what motivates the predominantly Punjabi generals of Pakistan army in supporting Talibanization of Pashtuns. But the exclusion of other important ethnic groups will deepen the ethnic fault lines in Afghanistan leading to serious
Michael Hughes: The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan has certainly bolstered Islamabad’s position vis-à-vis its rivalry with New Delhi, yet troubling signs are already emerging that Frankenstein monsters could end up uniting against the Pakistani state. According to a post in the Indian Defense Research Wing, New Delhi is certainly concerned that Pakistan will attempt to leverage
Politico:‘Graveyard of Empires’ is an old epitaph that doesn’t reflect historical reality — or the real victims of foreign invasions over the centuries – Afghanistan, in its long existence, has sadly been more like the roadkill of empires — a victim to their ambitions. Click here to read more (external link).
NYT: For months, on social media, the Taliban have sought to project an image of strength and moderation, an aura of inevitability within Afghanistan and an air of legitimacy to the outside world. Through text messages and encrypted apps, they have targeted government soldiers directly, depicting them as mercenaries and urging them to surrender or
Ahmad Massoud via The Washington Post: I write from the Panjshir Valley today, ready to follow in my father’s footsteps, with mujahideen fighters who are prepared to once again take on the Taliban. We have stores of ammunition and arms that we have patiently collected since my father’s time, because we knew this day might
Michael Hughes: U.S. Defense Department Secretary Lloyd Austin believes the United States mission is not over in Afghanistan – a declaration that comes with nearly all American troops gone, the Taliban on a rampage, and the U.N. sounding alarms over human rights abuses. The insurgents over the past few days, with near impunity, have been
The Week: The war itself created the moral hazard Bush now decries. If we could not change the facts on the ground in Afghanistan with the world’s most powerful military there for 20 years and without any plans to do so in the next 20 years, the war cannot go on forever. Click here to
Press TV July 12, 2021 Syed Zafar Mehdi After 20 long years of costly and futile military adventurism, Americans are retreating from war-ravaged Afghanistan, the ‘graveyard of empires’, as the Taliban make rapid gains across the country. Militaristic meddling in developing nations – or in other words ‘foreign military invasions’ – has been a defining feature of American
Press TV July 11, 2021 By Sa’adollah Zarei for Kayhan A notable number of Afghan towns’ fall into the hands of the Taliban has given rise to many discussions on the international and regional levels, including in Iran. The main question here is what will be the fate of Afghanistan as a result of these