For Afghan women, their worst nightmare seems to have come true with the return of the Taliban. Women, who were one of the worst victims of Taliban oppression, are scared all the more this time around.

Afghan women fear return to dark days

As the world is watching horrifying visuals of Afghan locals trying to escape the country by hanging to airplanes, the US Joint Chiefs Chairman said the Taliban are allowing all US citizens to reach Kabul airport to leave the country.

"The&nbsp;Taliban&nbsp;are&nbsp;facilitating&nbsp;the safe passage to the airport for American citizens. That is US passport holders," US Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Miley said on Wednesday.

<h2><a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/live-afghanistan-crisis-taliban-may-not-last-long-says-afghan-delegation-in-pakistan-406687" hreflang="en">LIVE Afghanistan: Taliban may not last long, says Afghan delegation in Pak</a></h2>

This statement came a little before the Pentagon announced that nearly 7,000 civilians have been taken out of Kabul till now.

Talking to local media in the US, Army Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor said that 12 C-17 aircrafts have departed with nearly 2,000 refugees in the past 24 hours.

In addition to this, the US now has aircrafts to bring at least 5,000 to 9,000 civilians out of Afghanistan in the next few days. However, the conditions such as their process and weather still remain huge factors in the evacuation process.

Take a look :&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/afghani-women-call-for-help-as-taliban-takes-over-the-country-406946" hreflang="en">Afghani women call for help as Taliban takes over the country</a>

As the US soldiers stand guard of the Kabul airport, horrifying videos have surfaced on social media in which people can be seen throwing their small children over the wired walls in hopes that the American troops will save them and take them away from Taliban’s regime.

In such a video, the US troops can be seen helping a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/watch-woman-child-lifted-over-kabul-airport-wall-by-us-soldiers-406985">woman and a child</a> cross a tall wall as the two struggle to leave the country on any possible flight.

As the world is watching horrifying visuals of Afghan locals trying to escape the country by hanging to airplanes, the US Joint Chiefs Chairman said the Taliban are allowing all US citizens to reach Kabul airport to leave the country.

As the world is watching horrifying visuals of Afghan locals trying to escape the country by hanging to airplanes, the US Joint Chiefs Chairman said the Taliban are allowing all US citizens to reach Kabul airport to leave the country. "The Taliban are facilitating the safe passage to the airport for American citizens. That is US passport holders," US Joint Chiefs Chairman General Mark Miley said on Wednesday. LIVE Afghanistan: Taliban may not last long, says Afghan delegation in Pak This statement came a little before the Pentagon announced that nearly 7,000 civilians have been taken out of Kabul till now. Talking to local media in the US, Army Maj. Gen. Hank Taylor said that 12 C-17 aircrafts have departed with nearly 2,000 refugees in the past 24 hours. In addition to this, the US now has aircrafts to bring at least 5,000 to 9,000 civilians out of Afghanistan in the next few days. However, the conditions such as their process and weather still remain huge factors in the evacuation process. Take a look : Afghani women call for help as Taliban takes over the country As the US soldiers stand guard of the Kabul airport, horrifying videos have surfaced on social media in which people can be seen throwing their small children over the wired walls in hopes that the American troops will save them and take them away from Taliban’s regime. In such a video, the US troops can be seen helping a woman and a child cross a tall wall as the two struggle to leave the country on any possible flight.

Taliban allowing US passport holders to reach Kabul airport: US general

With the Taliban emerging as the dominant force in Afghanistan, including capital <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/live-afghanistan-crisis-us-says-taliban-has-pledged-safe-passage-406423">Kabul</a>, according to Indian assessment Pakistan based terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) have made their&nbsp;presence in parts of the country.

According to sources, "Pakistani terror groups like LeT have built check posts in some parts of Kabul. There have been reports of looting in Afghanistan's villages".

Sources pointed out that it's too early to say anything since "assumptions can go wrong". The state of flux in Afghanistan&nbsp;after the fall of the previous Ghani government and the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/taliban-want-free-media-but-suggestions-apply-406381">Taliban</a> entering into the capital, the big question is what next in terms of the governance structure.

Sources highlighted that&nbsp;"<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/taliban-say-they-seek-no-revenge-in-press-conference-will-respect-womens-rights-406379">Afghanistan </a>could become the epicentre of Islamic radicalism, which could have a state which is recognized. IS also had territory but that was geographically far".&nbsp;While the Indian government's priority is bringing back its nationals, the political development in Afghanistan is also dominating the Indian government's thought process on the crisis.

India has been hoping for an inclusive government in Kabul&nbsp;with sources saying&nbsp;that it is "not dominated by Pashtuns". So far, no power-sharing pact has been agreed to with leaders like Dr&nbsp;Abdullah Abdullah or Hamid Karzai.

On Tuesday,&nbsp;Abdul Ghani Baradar reached Kandahar, the traditional capital of the Taliban. And while this development is taking place Amrullah Saleh, former vice president of the country declared himself as the president.

Asked how does India see&nbsp;the Taliban as a political force, the sources said, "India's conduct depends on how other democracies deal with Taliban".

While no one has recognised the Taliban, Beijing has been sending feelers and other regional countries have had contacts with the grouping. Taliban off course has been regular in Islamabad&nbsp;and in the past few months has been visiting Tehran, Moscow&nbsp;and Beijing for legitimacy.

With the Taliban emerging as the dominant force in Afghanistan, including capital Kabul, according to Indian assessment Pakistan based terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) have made their presence in parts of the country.

With the Taliban emerging as the dominant force in Afghanistan, including capital Kabul, according to Indian assessment Pakistan based terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) have made their presence in parts of the country. According to sources, "Pakistani terror groups like LeT have built check posts in some parts of Kabul. There have been reports of looting in Afghanistan's villages". Sources pointed out that it's too early to say anything since "assumptions can go wrong". The state of flux in Afghanistan after the fall of the previous Ghani government and the Taliban entering into the capital, the big question is what next in terms of the governance structure. Sources highlighted that "Afghanistan could become the epicentre of Islamic radicalism, which could have a state which is recognized. IS also had territory but that was geographically far". While the Indian government's priority is bringing back its nationals, the political development in Afghanistan is also dominating the Indian government's thought process on the crisis. India has been hoping for an inclusive government in Kabul with sources saying that it is "not dominated by Pashtuns". So far, no power-sharing pact has been agreed to with leaders like Dr Abdullah Abdullah or Hamid Karzai. On Tuesday, Abdul Ghani Baradar reached Kandahar, the traditional capital of the Taliban. And while this development is taking place Amrullah Saleh, former vice president of the country declared himself as the president. Asked how does India see the Taliban as a political force, the sources said, "India's conduct depends on how other democracies deal with Taliban". While no one has recognised the Taliban, Beijing has been sending feelers and other regional countries have had contacts with the grouping. Taliban off course has been regular in Islamabad and in the past few months has been visiting Tehran, Moscow and Beijing for legitimacy.

Pak terror groups now present in Kabul, finds Indian assessment

Life under Taliban in Kabul & the Pakistan connection

As US officials prepared to leave <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/war-is-over-in-afghanistan-says-taliban-as-us-is-stunned-by-ghani-govts-collapse-405864">Afghanistan</a>, locals thronged the Kabul airport to catch any flight after the Taliban gained&nbsp;control of the capital.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/live-chaos-at-kabul-airport-as-us-troops-fire-in-the-air-hundreds-gather-amid-international-evacuation-405858">Live: As it happens - Hundreds gather amid international evacuation in Kabul</a>

Newswire Reuters quoting eyewitnesses reported that at least five people were killed in Kabul airport amid the confusion. US troops had earlier fired in the air to disperse the crowd.

However, it is not confirmed how the people were killed inside the airport.

Watch:

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/mass-exodus-underway-in-kabul-after-taliban-capture-majority-of-provincial-cities-405919/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The Pentagon had earlier authorised 1,000 troops to help in evacuation efforts as US officials were airlifted from the embassy in Kabul and transported to the international airport.

A joint statement released by 60 countries said <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/more-than-60-countries-say-afghans-others-must-be-allowed-to-leave-afghanistan-405917">Afghans</a> and international citizens who want to leave the country should be allowed the leave Afghanistan&nbsp;with airports and border crossing required to remain open.

Large number of people in Kabul were out on the streets as they made their way to the airport on foot on Monday even as the Taliban said there was relative peace in Afghanistan.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/how-taliban-emerged-seized-afghanistan-despite-us-involvement-405931">In Pics: How Taliban emerged &amp; seized Afghanistan despite US involvement</a>

The militant group had swept into the capital on Sunday as Afghan troops continued to get pushed back suffering reverses across the country as provincial capitals kept falling to the Taliban in the last one week.

Reports say former president <a href="https://www.wionews.com/photos/taliban-have-won-rise-and-fall-of-afghan-president-ashraf-ghani-405867">Ashraf Ghani </a>who had fled to Dushanbe in Tajikistan will be travelling to the US even as the Taliban's political team is expected to arrive in Kabul on Monday.

France said it will evacuate its personnel from Monday and they will be transported to a base in the United Arab Emirates which will reportedly serve as a military hub to ensure the back and forth between Abu Dhabi and Kabul during the repatriation operation.

Meanwhile, Russia said its ambassador to <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/afghan-students-in-indian-varsity-fear-for-safety-in-home-country-want-visa-extension-405934">Afghanistan</a> will meet with the Taliban in Kabul on Tuesday while adding that Moscow will decide on recognising the new government based on its "conduct".

(With inputs from Agencies)

As US officials prepared to leave Afghanistan, locals thronged the Kabul airport to catch any flight after the Taliban gained control of the capital. Live: As it happens - Hundreds gather amid international evacuation in Kabul Newswire Reuters quoting eyewitnesses reported that at least five people were killed in Kabul airport amid the confusion.

As US officials prepared to leave Afghanistan, locals thronged the Kabul airport to catch any flight after the Taliban gained control of the capital. Live: As it happens - Hundreds gather amid international evacuation in Kabul Newswire Reuters quoting eyewitnesses reported that at least five people were killed in Kabul airport amid the confusion. US troops had earlier fired in the air to disperse the crowd. However, it is not confirmed how the people were killed inside the airport. Watch: The Pentagon had earlier authorised 1,000 troops to help in evacuation efforts as US officials were airlifted from the embassy in Kabul and transported to the international airport. A joint statement released by 60 countries said Afghans and international citizens who want to leave the country should be allowed the leave Afghanistan with airports and border crossing required to remain open. Large number of people in Kabul were out on the streets as they made their way to the airport on foot on Monday even as the Taliban said there was relative peace in Afghanistan. In Pics: How Taliban emerged & seized Afghanistan despite US involvement The militant group had swept into the capital on Sunday as Afghan troops continued to get pushed back suffering reverses across the country as provincial capitals kept falling to the Taliban in the last one week. Reports say former president Ashraf Ghani who had fled to Dushanbe in Tajikistan will be travelling to the US even as the Taliban's political team is expected to arrive in Kabul on Monday. France said it will evacuate its personnel from Monday and they will be transported to a base in the United Arab Emirates which will reportedly serve as a military hub to ensure the back and forth between Abu Dhabi and Kabul during the repatriation operation. Meanwhile, Russia said its ambassador to Afghanistan will meet with the Taliban in Kabul on Tuesday while adding that Moscow will decide on recognising the new government based on its "conduct". (With inputs from Agencies)

At least 5 dead at Kabul airport as US officials leave Afghanistan: Report

As the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, the women across the country are now fearing for their own safety and rights.

While the Taliban claims the situation regarding women's safety and rights will be different this time, scenes from a few days ago narrate a different story.

<h2><a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/live-taliban-take-control-of-afghanistan-presidential-palace-as-ghani-exits-country-405579" hreflang="en">LIVE: Taliban take control of Afghan presidential palace as Ghani exits country</a></h2>

Women of Afghanistan recalled that a few days ago groups of Taliban insurgents marched in the&nbsp;Azizi Bank in the southern city of Kandahar and ordered all women working in the bank to leave the premises immediately.

A gunman was sent along with those women to escort them back home. These female employees of the bank were threatened to never return to their jobs again.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/dont-be-afraid-of-us-taliban-take-over-kabul-as-president-ghani-leaves-afghan-405780">'Don't be afraid': Taliban take over Kabul as President Ghani leaves Afghan</a>

"It's really strange to not be allowed to get to work, but now this is what it is," Noor Khatera, a 43-year-old woman who had worked in the accounts department of the bank told Reuters. "I taught myself English and even learned how to operate a computer, but now I will have to look for a place where I can just work with more women around."

A similar incident took place in Herat a few days after the first incident. Three armed insurgents entered the&nbsp;Bank Milli and verbally attacked the female employees for showing their faces. All women in the bank were sent home and their male relatives were asked to report to duty instead.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/taliban-in-kabul-hcnr-head-abdullah-abdullah-addresses-ghani-as-former-president-405786">WATCH |</a>

<iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/taliban-in-kabul-hcnr-head-abdullah-abdullah-addresses-ghani-as-former-president-405786/embed" width="560"></iframe>

On Sunday, as the Taliban took control of Kabul&nbsp;the social media went abuzz with images that showed Taliban members painting over advertisements that featured women, the Taliban claimed that women will be given more freedom this time.

"We will respect rights of women...our policy is that women will have access to education and work, to wear the hijab," Taliban Spokesman Suhail Shaheen said on a live BBC report.&nbsp;

However, the truth will only be revealed a few days after the Taliban has completely taken over the capital city. While the Taliban claim they will be more respectful towards women and minorities this time, whether or not that is the truth remains to be seen.

As the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, the women across the country are now fearing for their own safety and rights. While the Taliban claims the situation regarding women's safety and rights will be different this time, scenes from a few days ago narrate a different story.

As the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, the women across the country are now fearing for their own safety and rights. While the Taliban claims the situation regarding women's safety and rights will be different this time, scenes from a few days ago narrate a different story. LIVE: Taliban take control of Afghan presidential palace as Ghani exits country Women of Afghanistan recalled that a few days ago groups of Taliban insurgents marched in the Azizi Bank in the southern city of Kandahar and ordered all women working in the bank to leave the premises immediately. A gunman was sent along with those women to escort them back home. These female employees of the bank were threatened to never return to their jobs again. Also read | 'Don't be afraid': Taliban take over Kabul as President Ghani leaves Afghan "It's really strange to not be allowed to get to work, but now this is what it is," Noor Khatera, a 43-year-old woman who had worked in the accounts department of the bank told Reuters. "I taught myself English and even learned how to operate a computer, but now I will have to look for a place where I can just work with more women around." A similar incident took place in Herat a few days after the first incident. Three armed insurgents entered the Bank Milli and verbally attacked the female employees for showing their faces. All women in the bank were sent home and their male relatives were asked to report to duty instead. WATCH | On Sunday, as the Taliban took control of Kabul the social media went abuzz with images that showed Taliban members painting over advertisements that featured women, the Taliban claimed that women will be given more freedom this time. "We will respect rights of women...our policy is that women will have access to education and work, to wear the hijab," Taliban Spokesman Suhail Shaheen said on a live BBC report. However, the truth will only be revealed a few days after the Taliban has completely taken over the capital city. While the Taliban claim they will be more respectful towards women and minorities this time, whether or not that is the truth remains to be seen.

Insurgents send female bank employees home as Taliban take control of Kabul

As the Taliban took control of Kabul on Sunday, the women across the country are now fearing for their own safety and rights.

While the Taliban claims the situation regarding women's safety and rights will be different this time, scenes from a few days ago narrate a different story.

<h2><a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/live-taliban-take-control-of-afghanistan-presidential-palace-as-ghani-exits-country-405579" hreflang="en">LIVE: Taliban take control of Afghan presidential palace as Ghani exits country</a></h2>

Women of Afghanistan recalled that a few days ago groups of Taliban insurgents marched in the&nbsp;Azizi Bank in the southern city of Kandahar and ordered all women working in the bank to leave the premises immediately.

A gunman was sent along with those women to escort them back home. These female employees of the bank were threatened to never return to their jobs again.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/dont-be-afraid-of-us-taliban-take-over-kabul-as-president-ghani-leaves-afghan-405780">'Don't be afraid': Taliban take over Kabul as President Ghani leaves Afghan</a>

"It's really strange to not be allowed to get to work, but now this is what it is," Noor Khatera, a 43-year-old woman who had worked in the accounts department of the bank told Reuters. "I taught myself English and even learned how to operate a computer, but now I will have to look for a place where I can just work with more women around."

A similar incident took place in Herat a few days after the first incident. Three armed insurgents entered the&nbsp;Bank Milli and verbally attacked the female employees for showing their faces. All women in the bank were sent home and their male relatives were asked to report to duty instead.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/taliban-in-kabul-hcnr-head-abdullah-abdullah-addresses-ghani-as-former-president-405786">WATCH |</a>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/taliban-in-kabul-hcnr-head-abdullah-abdullah-addresses-ghani-as-former-president-405786/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

On Sunday, as the Taliban took control of Kabul&nbsp;the social media went abuzz with images that showed Taliban members painting over advertisements that featured women, the Taliban claimed that women will be given more freedom this time.

"We will respect rights of women...our policy is that women will have access to education and work, to wear the hijab," Taliban Spokesman Suhail Shaheen said on a live BBC report.&nbsp;

However, the truth will only be revealed a few days after the Taliban has completely taken over the capital city. While the Taliban claim they will be more respectful towards women and minorities this time, whether or not that is the truth remains to be seen.

The European Union is no position to deal with a repeat of the 2015 migration crisis and must try to keep people from fleeing conflict in Afghanistan, Greece said on Wednesday, as unity between EU member states over deportations crumbled. 
 
Greece, which last week co-signed a letter with five other EU countries saying deportations of failed asylum-seekers should continue despite the fighting, said ending such returns "would send the wrong message". 
 
"It would lead to more people trying to leave and come to the European Union," Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi told Reuters. 
 
However, two other signatories to the letter, the Netherlands and Germany, abruptly reversed course on Wednesday, saying they would not, for now, deport Afghan citizens who are seeking asylum, given the rapidly escalating conflict there. 
 
Among other signatories, Austria said it was sticking to its position and Denmark and Belgium declined to comment. But German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said a state based on the rule of law had a responsibility to ensure any deportations did not put people in danger. 
 
"The security situation is changing so rapidly that we cannot meet this responsibility," he said. 
 
DIFFERENCES 
 
The disagreement underlined the differences over the issue within the EU, which Mitarachi said was unprepared for a repeat of the 2015 migrant crisis when more than a million people, most of them Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis, arrived seeking refuge. 
 
"Absolutely not, the EU is not ready and does not have the capacity to handle another major migration crisis," he said. 
 
For now, the issue is largely theoretical as returns have not been possible due to the Afghan situation. Last week Germany cancelled a flight due to deport six Afghans convicted of criminal offences to Kabul because of security risks. 
 
Fears of a new migrant crisis have escalated as Taliban fighters have made sudden, strong gains in their campaign to defeat the Kabul government following the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign forces after a 20-year presence. 
 
Mitarachi said the EU should offer more support to help Greece`s neighbour Turkey handle more arrivals from Afghanistan. 
 
A European Commission spokesperson said on Tuesday it was for member states to determine their approach to deportations. However, a senior EU official said it was "hard to imagine" forced returns would go ahead in current conditions.

The European Union is no position to deal with a repeat of the 2015 migration crisis and must try to keep people from fleeing conflict in Afghanistan, Greece said on Wednesday, as unity between EU member states over deportations crumbled.

The European Union is no position to deal with a repeat of the 2015 migration crisis and must try to keep people from fleeing conflict in Afghanistan, Greece said on Wednesday, as unity between EU member states over deportations crumbled. Greece, which last week co-signed a letter with five other EU countries saying deportations of failed asylum-seekers should continue despite the fighting, said ending such returns "would send the wrong message". "It would lead to more people trying to leave and come to the European Union," Migration Minister Notis Mitarachi told Reuters. However, two other signatories to the letter, the Netherlands and Germany, abruptly reversed course on Wednesday, saying they would not, for now, deport Afghan citizens who are seeking asylum, given the rapidly escalating conflict there. Among other signatories, Austria said it was sticking to its position and Denmark and Belgium declined to comment. But German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said a state based on the rule of law had a responsibility to ensure any deportations did not put people in danger. "The security situation is changing so rapidly that we cannot meet this responsibility," he said. DIFFERENCES The disagreement underlined the differences over the issue within the EU, which Mitarachi said was unprepared for a repeat of the 2015 migrant crisis when more than a million people, most of them Syrians, Afghans and Iraqis, arrived seeking refuge. "Absolutely not, the EU is not ready and does not have the capacity to handle another major migration crisis," he said. For now, the issue is largely theoretical as returns have not been possible due to the Afghan situation. Last week Germany cancelled a flight due to deport six Afghans convicted of criminal offences to Kabul because of security risks. Fears of a new migrant crisis have escalated as Taliban fighters have made sudden, strong gains in their campaign to defeat the Kabul government following the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign forces after a 20-year presence. Mitarachi said the EU should offer more support to help Greece`s neighbour Turkey handle more arrivals from Afghanistan. A European Commission spokesperson said on Tuesday it was for member states to determine their approach to deportations. However, a senior EU official said it was "hard to imagine" forced returns would go ahead in current conditions.

European Union countries at odds on migrant returns as Afghan conflict grows

Since international troops began withdrawing from Afghanistan in May, the Taliban have carried out a sweeping military campaign and gained control of much of the country’s rural areas. But for months, the insurgents failed to capture major cities — until now.

Over the past six days, the insurgents have overrun nine provincial capitals across the country, most of them clustered in the north, in a major escalation of their military offensive and a devastating setback for the Afghan government.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/us-wants-afghanistans-neighbours-not-to-recognise-govt-imposed-by-force-as-taliban-capture-9th-provincial-capital-404659" hreflang="en">US wants Afghanistan's neighbours not to recognise govt imposed by force as Taliban capture 9th provincial capital</a>

The Taliban’s rapid victories have put enormous pressure on <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/afghanistan">Afghan</a> political leaders and the country’s beleaguered security forces, which have been overwhelmed by the insurgents’ unrelenting advance. The collapse of cities particularly in northern Afghanistan — once the heart of resistance to the Taliban’s rise to power in 1996 — has stoked fears that the insurgents could encircle the country’s capital, Kabul, in a complete military takeover.

Now, the Afghan government must decide whether to reconstitute its forces around the territory it holds — including Kabul — or try to retake its fallen cities. Here’s what we know and what questions will need to be answered in the coming days.

What areas do the Taliban now control?

Since the Taliban began their military offensive in May, the insurgents have captured more than half of Afghanistan’s 400-odd districts, according to some assessments. In recent weeks, after sweeping through much of Afghanistan’s countryside, the insurgents started besieging multiple provincial capitals simultaneously for the first time in the 20-year war.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/us-wants-afghanistans-neighbours-not-to-recognise-govt-imposed-by-force-as-taliban-capture-9th-provincial-capital-404659" hreflang="en">US wants Afghanistan's neighbours not to recognise govt imposed by force as Taliban capture 9th provincial capital</a>

Then on Friday, those front lines broke: The Taliban captured Zaranj, a provincial capital near the border with Iran, after facing little resistance from Afghan security forces upon entering the city. A day later, they captured another capital, Sheberghan, the northern stronghold of warlord Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum, whose militia forces were overrun.

On Sunday, Taliban forces seized three more northern capitals. They captured Taloqan, the capital of Takhar province, and Sar-e-Pul, the capital of the province with the same name. They also seized Kunduz, the largest city captured to date and a vital commercial hub that the group has long coveted as both a strategic and symbolic prize.

The Taliban continued their relentless drive Monday, overrunning Aybak, the capital of Samangan province that sits on the main highway that connects Kabul to Afghanistan’s northern provinces. Then on Tuesday, insurgents seized three more capitals: Farah city in the western province of the same name; Pul-e-Khumri, the capital of the northern Baghlan province; and Faizabad, the capital of remote and rugged Badakhshan province in the country’s far northeast.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/india-brings-back-50-nationals-from-mazar-e-sharif-amid-talibans-surge-404585" hreflang="en">India brings back 50 nationals from Mazar-e-Sharif amid Taliban's surge</a>

The simultaneous sieges on provincial hubs overwhelmed Afghan security forces and stretched military resources dangerously thin. Resupply lines to government forces are severed. The cities and districts still under the government’s control are even more cut off and isolated. And Afghan security forces are exhausted from the brutal offensive.

How is the Afghan government responding?

Amid all the defeat, the administration of President Ashraf Ghani refused to acknowledge the falling capitals. Instead, the Afghan Ministry of Defense continued to promote its official talking points that emphasized Taliban deaths and the strength of the Afghan security forces.

The country’s acting finance minister, Khalid Payenda, resigned and left the country as the security situation deteriorated. Although he said on Facebook that he was leaving because of family issues, his departure was a sign to many Afghans that their political leaders had all but accepted a complete Taliban takeover.

The Afghan government strategy to slow down the Taliban’s advance aligns with long-standing US&nbsp;recommendations that the Afghans consolidate their remaining forces around key roads, cities and border crossings, and abandon most of the districts already seized by the Taliban, according to American and UN&nbsp;diplomats.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/grave-concern-taliban-advance-towards-mazar-e-sharif-after-weekend-blitz-404348" hreflang="en">'Grave concern': Taliban advance towards Mazar-e-Sharif after weekend blitz</a>

But it is not clear how that plan addresses the capture of now nine provincial capitals around the country — or accounts for the exhaustion of the country’s air force and commandos.

For months, those elite forces have been the backbone of the country’s defence against the Taliban. As the insurgents besieged cities, they have shuttled from one vulnerable position to another to flush the Taliban out of urban centres, hold territory under government control and retake some districts from the Taliban.

But that strategy is only a stopgap measure. There are simply not enough troops to defend all 34 of the country’s provincial capitals and 400-odd districts, and after months of nonstop fighting, those forces have been battered.

By Tuesday evening, Afghan security forces had not carried out any earnest operations to retake the seized capitals. In Kunduz, where military leaders had vowed to begin an operation to retake the strategic hub, Taliban forces on Wednesday captured Kunduz’s airport, the last pocket of government control on the outskirts of the city.

In a bid to rally government troops and militia forces, Ghani flew to Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of the northern Balkh province and the only major northern city still under government control. If the insurgents manage to capture the city, it would represent the near complete collapse of northern Afghanistan to the Taliban.

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Could the Taliban stage a complete military takeover?

The Taliban’s breakthrough victories in northern Afghanistan, in particular, have stoked fears that the insurgents could envelop the nation’s capital, Kabul — opening the possibility for a complete military takeover.

After the Taliban emerged in the 1990s, the southern and predominantly ethnic Pashtun insurgency faced fierce resistance from militia groups in the north known as the Northern Alliance. Even when the Taliban seized control of Kabul in 1996, the Northern Alliance deprived the group of a complete takeover for the course of their five-year rule.

But now with the capture of seven northern cities in just five days, experts warn that if the insurgents are able to conquer the north — squashing the country’s best hope for a grassroots resistance strong enough to take on the Taliban — the country could fall in their hands completely.

“The north is strategic for the Taliban, because they believe if they can capture these non-Pashtun areas,” said Ramish Salemi, a political analyst in Kabul, “then they can easily take control of the south and the capital, Kabul.”

Will the Taliban’s advance affect the US&nbsp;military withdrawal?

The US&nbsp;military presence in Afghanistan is set to end by the end of the month, and the recent string of Taliban military victories has not moved <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/joe-biden">President Joe Biden</a> to reassess that plan, officials said.

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Still, the escalating violence is a predicament for Biden, who has toed the line between extracting the United States from the war while insisting that he is not abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban.

The US&nbsp;withdrawal is already 95 per cent complete, officials say. But over the past three weeks, as the Taliban pushed their front lines deep into urban areas, the US&nbsp;military has carried out some airstrikes in Afghanistan to try to buy time for Afghan security forces to rally a defence around the major cities under siege.

Administration officials say the Pentagon will likely request authorisation from the president for additional airstrikes in the next months, should the key southern city of Kandahar or the nation’s capital, Kabul, appear on the verge of falling.

But on Sunday, as three northern cities fell to the insurgents, the US&nbsp;response was muted. It sent a clear message to Afghan leaders: In no uncertain terms, America’s 20-year war in Afghanistan is over, and the Afghan forces will have to retake the cities on their own or leave them to the Taliban for good.

Since international troops began withdrawing from Afghanistan in May, the Taliban have carried out a sweeping military campaign and gained control of much of the country’s rural areas.

Since international troops began withdrawing from Afghanistan in May, the Taliban have carried out a sweeping military campaign and gained control of much of the country’s rural areas. But for months, the insurgents failed to capture major cities — until now. Over the past six days, the insurgents have overrun nine provincial capitals across the country, most of them clustered in the north, in a major escalation of their military offensive and a devastating setback for the Afghan government. Also read | US wants Afghanistan's neighbours not to recognise govt imposed by force as Taliban capture 9th provincial capital The Taliban’s rapid victories have put enormous pressure on Afghan political leaders and the country’s beleaguered security forces, which have been overwhelmed by the insurgents’ unrelenting advance. The collapse of cities particularly in northern Afghanistan — once the heart of resistance to the Taliban’s rise to power in 1996 — has stoked fears that the insurgents could encircle the country’s capital, Kabul, in a complete military takeover. Now, the Afghan government must decide whether to reconstitute its forces around the territory it holds — including Kabul — or try to retake its fallen cities. Here’s what we know and what questions will need to be answered in the coming days. What areas do the Taliban now control? Since the Taliban began their military offensive in May, the insurgents have captured more than half of Afghanistan’s 400-odd districts, according to some assessments. In recent weeks, after sweeping through much of Afghanistan’s countryside, the insurgents started besieging multiple provincial capitals simultaneously for the first time in the 20-year war. Also read | US wants Afghanistan's neighbours not to recognise govt imposed by force as Taliban capture 9th provincial capital Then on Friday, those front lines broke: The Taliban captured Zaranj, a provincial capital near the border with Iran, after facing little resistance from Afghan security forces upon entering the city. A day later, they captured another capital, Sheberghan, the northern stronghold of warlord Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum, whose militia forces were overrun. On Sunday, Taliban forces seized three more northern capitals. They captured Taloqan, the capital of Takhar province, and Sar-e-Pul, the capital of the province with the same name. They also seized Kunduz, the largest city captured to date and a vital commercial hub that the group has long coveted as both a strategic and symbolic prize. The Taliban continued their relentless drive Monday, overrunning Aybak, the capital of Samangan province that sits on the main highway that connects Kabul to Afghanistan’s northern provinces. Then on Tuesday, insurgents seized three more capitals: Farah city in the western province of the same name; Pul-e-Khumri, the capital of the northern Baghlan province; and Faizabad, the capital of remote and rugged Badakhshan province in the country’s far northeast. Also read | India brings back 50 nationals from Mazar-e-Sharif amid Taliban's surge The simultaneous sieges on provincial hubs overwhelmed Afghan security forces and stretched military resources dangerously thin. Resupply lines to government forces are severed. The cities and districts still under the government’s control are even more cut off and isolated. And Afghan security forces are exhausted from the brutal offensive. How is the Afghan government responding? Amid all the defeat, the administration of President Ashraf Ghani refused to acknowledge the falling capitals. Instead, the Afghan Ministry of Defense continued to promote its official talking points that emphasized Taliban deaths and the strength of the Afghan security forces. The country’s acting finance minister, Khalid Payenda, resigned and left the country as the security situation deteriorated. Although he said on Facebook that he was leaving because of family issues, his departure was a sign to many Afghans that their political leaders had all but accepted a complete Taliban takeover. The Afghan government strategy to slow down the Taliban’s advance aligns with long-standing US recommendations that the Afghans consolidate their remaining forces around key roads, cities and border crossings, and abandon most of the districts already seized by the Taliban, according to American and UN diplomats. Also read | 'Grave concern': Taliban advance towards Mazar-e-Sharif after weekend blitz But it is not clear how that plan addresses the capture of now nine provincial capitals around the country — or accounts for the exhaustion of the country’s air force and commandos. For months, those elite forces have been the backbone of the country’s defence against the Taliban. As the insurgents besieged cities, they have shuttled from one vulnerable position to another to flush the Taliban out of urban centres, hold territory under government control and retake some districts from the Taliban. But that strategy is only a stopgap measure. There are simply not enough troops to defend all 34 of the country’s provincial capitals and 400-odd districts, and after months of nonstop fighting, those forces have been battered. By Tuesday evening, Afghan security forces had not carried out any earnest operations to retake the seized capitals. In Kunduz, where military leaders had vowed to begin an operation to retake the strategic hub, Taliban forces on Wednesday captured Kunduz’s airport, the last pocket of government control on the outskirts of the city. In a bid to rally government troops and militia forces, Ghani flew to Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of the northern Balkh province and the only major northern city still under government control. If the insurgents manage to capture the city, it would represent the near complete collapse of northern Afghanistan to the Taliban. Could the Taliban stage a complete military takeover? The Taliban’s breakthrough victories in northern Afghanistan, in particular, have stoked fears that the insurgents could envelop the nation’s capital, Kabul — opening the possibility for a complete military takeover. After the Taliban emerged in the 1990s, the southern and predominantly ethnic Pashtun insurgency faced fierce resistance from militia groups in the north known as the Northern Alliance. Even when the Taliban seized control of Kabul in 1996, the Northern Alliance deprived the group of a complete takeover for the course of their five-year rule. But now with the capture of seven northern cities in just five days, experts warn that if the insurgents are able to conquer the north — squashing the country’s best hope for a grassroots resistance strong enough to take on the Taliban — the country could fall in their hands completely. “The north is strategic for the Taliban, because they believe if they can capture these non-Pashtun areas,” said Ramish Salemi, a political analyst in Kabul, “then they can easily take control of the south and the capital, Kabul.” Will the Taliban’s advance affect the US military withdrawal? The US military presence in Afghanistan is set to end by the end of the month, and the recent string of Taliban military victories has not moved President Joe Biden to reassess that plan, officials said. Still, the escalating violence is a predicament for Biden, who has toed the line between extracting the United States from the war while insisting that he is not abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban. The US withdrawal is already 95 per cent complete, officials say. But over the past three weeks, as the Taliban pushed their front lines deep into urban areas, the US military has carried out some airstrikes in Afghanistan to try to buy time for Afghan security forces to rally a defence around the major cities under siege. Administration officials say the Pentagon will likely request authorisation from the president for additional airstrikes in the next months, should the key southern city of Kandahar or the nation’s capital, Kabul, appear on the verge of falling. But on Sunday, as three northern cities fell to the insurgents, the US response was muted. It sent a clear message to Afghan leaders: In no uncertain terms, America’s 20-year war in Afghanistan is over, and the Afghan forces will have to retake the cities on their own or leave them to the Taliban for good.

Could the Taliban take over Afghanistan? Here’s what we know

As the US troops withdraw from Afghanistan, experts fear the Taliban’s return to the South Asian country will undo all the progress made in women’s rights and equality over the years.

These fears were noted in a two-page National Intelligence Council document that claims the views of the Taliban leaders and members have not changed since 2001 — when the US intervened to restore peace in Afghanistan.

"The Taliban remains broadly consistent in its restrictive approach to women's rights and would roll back much of the past two decades' progress if the group regained national power," the report claims.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/india-and-eu-call-for-immediate-and-comprehensive-ceasefire-in-afghanistan-382831" hreflang="en">India and EU call for 'immediate and comprehensive' ceasefire in Afghanistan</a>

Taliban was infamous for imposing old-age unequal decisions on women and keeping them away from studies and not allowing them to step out even for work.

The declassified report by the US intelligence warns that there has been very little, if any, change in Taliban’s leadership and the group still remains "inflexible" for any such negotiations and "enforces strict social constraints in areas that it already controls".

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/small-afghanistan-attacks-have-no-significant-impact-on-troop-pullout-us-382753" hreflang="en">'Small' Afghanistan attacks have no significant impact on troop pullout: US</a>

"If the Taliban were again Afghanistan's dominant power, we assess that any prospect for moderating the group's policies toward women would lie with ethnic minorities' ability to maintain local variation and technological development," the report said.

While some groups have publically announced plans to respect women's&nbsp;rights, they have also added the condition of doing so only as a condition of Taliban’s fundamentalist interpretation of Sharia law, or Islamic law, the report claimed.

The US intelligence feels international pressure is crucial to maintain the progress of women’s rights in the country, with or without the return of Taliban in the area.

"The Taliban's desires for foreign aid and legitimacy might marginally moderate its conduct over time,"&nbsp;the report read. However, if the group returns back to power in Afghanistan, it will prioritise "extending control on its own terms".

As the US troops withdraw from Afghanistan, experts fear the Taliban’s return to the South Asian country will undo all the progress made in women’s rights and equality over the years.

As the US troops withdraw from Afghanistan, experts fear the Taliban’s return to the South Asian country will undo all the progress made in women’s rights and equality over the years. These fears were noted in a two-page National Intelligence Council document that claims the views of the Taliban leaders and members have not changed since 2001 — when the US intervened to restore peace in Afghanistan. "The Taliban remains broadly consistent in its restrictive approach to women's rights and would roll back much of the past two decades' progress if the group regained national power," the report claims. Also read | India and EU call for 'immediate and comprehensive' ceasefire in Afghanistan Taliban was infamous for imposing old-age unequal decisions on women and keeping them away from studies and not allowing them to step out even for work. The declassified report by the US intelligence warns that there has been very little, if any, change in Taliban’s leadership and the group still remains "inflexible" for any such negotiations and "enforces strict social constraints in areas that it already controls". Also read | 'Small' Afghanistan attacks have no significant impact on troop pullout: US "If the Taliban were again Afghanistan's dominant power, we assess that any prospect for moderating the group's policies toward women would lie with ethnic minorities' ability to maintain local variation and technological development," the report said. While some groups have publically announced plans to respect women's rights, they have also added the condition of doing so only as a condition of Taliban’s fundamentalist interpretation of Sharia law, or Islamic law, the report claimed. The US intelligence feels international pressure is crucial to maintain the progress of women’s rights in the country, with or without the return of Taliban in the area. "The Taliban's desires for foreign aid and legitimacy might marginally moderate its conduct over time," the report read. However, if the group returns back to power in Afghanistan, it will prioritise "extending control on its own terms".

Return of Taliban in Afghanistan harmful for women's rights: US report

Rahmatullah Andar was once a feared Taliban commander, locked in bloody skirmishes against American and Afghan government troops in the rugged landscape of eastern Afghanistan.

In 2007, a U.S. Special Operations team captured him during a night raid on a house in his ancestral village in Ghazni province. He spent two years in a U.S.-run prison at Bagram Airfield outside Kabul.

Today, Commander Andar is Spokesman Andar — the official spokesman for the National Security Council of the U.S.-backed government of Afghanistan. The story of how a former Talib became a high-ranking government security official is also a chronicle of the endless Afghan war itself: Allegiances shift. Enemies become allies. The players change roles, but the war endures.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/khalilzad-urges-taliban-to-stay-committed-to-us-deal-335614">Also read|&nbsp;Khalilzad urges Taliban to stay committed to US deal</a>

The 19-year-old conflict is as fiercely contested today as when Andar commanded Taliban fighters for several years, only to break with the militants and lead one of Afghanistan’s first local uprisings against the Taliban in 2012. He lost his father, 75, his brother, an uncle and two cousins — all killed by the Taliban out of revenge, he said.

Today Andar is a religious scholar with two master’s degrees who serves a government he once vowed to overthrow. And he remains a target of his former comrades in arms, who regard him as a turncoat.

“The Taliban intend to assassinate me,” Andar, 41, said during an interview inside the presidential palace complex in Kabul. “Whether I’m a member of the government or not, they will never leave me alive.”

Andar, alternating among Pashto, Persian and English, was relaxed and voluble as he recounted a life spent on battlefields, on the run, in universities and in prisons. He is a consummate survivor.

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He described withstanding Taliban kidnapping attempts and ambushes, interrogations by American captors, and two stints in Afghan government prisons — accounts born out by official records and by those who fought alongside him.

With his tangled beard and long hair, he might still be mistaken for a Talib, though he insists that he regards the militants with contempt — and hopes to serve as an example of how the insurgents hold no monopoly on Afghan piety.

He was appointed to his National Security Council position by President Ashraf Ghani on Sept. 25, in large part because of both his religious credentials — he has earned the religious honorific of Mawlawi, meaning Islamic scholar — and his reputation as a fighter against the Taliban.

His appointment was a clear statement from the Afghan government, as a central idea behind the Taliban’s criticism is that the government remains insufficiently Islamic, and is a puppet of the Americans.

A single appointment cannot polish the religious image of an entire government, Andar acknowledged. “But the government can show by its actions that the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is more than just a name,” he said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/afghanistan-in-a-nutshell-peace-talks-in-doha-and-war-at-home-335580">Also read|&nbsp;Afghanistan in a nutshell: Peace talks in Doha and war at home</a>

And he said the Taliban, by signing a troop withdrawal agreement with the United States in February while freezing out the Afghan government, had undercut its own claims of Islamic purity.

“They say government officials are infidels, but they have an agreement with the Americans, whose troops invaded Afghanistan,” he said. “So now they have no logic for this war” against fellow Afghans and Muslims.

The Taliban have said that any new government arising from negotiations with Afghan representatives in Doha, Qatar, must be based on Islamic principles. Some analysts have interpreted that to mean the same harsh Shariah law that was imposed when the Taliban governed Afghanistan in the late 1990s.

Andar said the Taliban could not change Afghanistan’s Constitution without the consent of a loya jirga, a traditional gathering where matters of national importance are debated. And Article 3 of the Constitution already stipulates that no law “can be contrary to the beliefs and rules of the holy religion of Islam,” he said.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/afghan-defence-minister-flies-to-embattled-helmand-after-taliban-gains-335201">Also read|&nbsp;Afghan defence minister flies to embattled Helmand after Taliban gains</a>

Many Afghan women have expressed fears that a return to government by the Taliban would erase gains they have made since the militants were overthrown in 2001. The Taliban beat women, confined them to their homes and banned them from going to school.

Andar said those prohibitions were not properly rooted in Islam, as the religion does not forbid girls and women from attending school. In fact, he said, the closing of schools by the Taliban in his home district is what precipitated his split from the movement three years after his release from American custody.

“The Taliban closed the schools and opposed reconstruction, kidnapping and killing engineers,” said Amanullah Kamran, deputy of the provincial council in Ghazni. He said Andar, who supported women’s education and the U.S.-led reconstruction effort, took up arms against the Taliban and helped form one of the country’s first local uprisings against the insurgency.

Kamran said the fighting left nearly 500 Afghans dead in the district and another 500 wounded. Andar himself was wounded in battles that ultimately killed his closest male relatives, he said.

“Finally there was no man left in Rahmatullah’s family except Rahmatullah,” Kamran said.

Andar said he now cares for 21 children and widows. Asked whether he still carried an AK-47 rifle from his combat days, he laughed and said he had only a pistol for personal protection.

In recent months, the Taliban have mounted a series of targeted attacks against government officials and those perceived to be government supporters. But Andar explained his shifting allegiances by blaming both the government and the Taliban. He said he joined the Taliban after the government jailed him for two months in 2003 upon his return from religious studies in Pakistan.

“The government pushed me to the Taliban by its actions against me,” he said.

Years later, he said, he turned against the Taliban once the militants began closing schools and terrorizing the residents of his district — violations of Islamic strictures. “Even fighting has rules under Islam, and the Taliban broke those religious rules,” he said.

A Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said Andar and his male relatives were legitimate targets because they had collaborated with Americans while commanding pro-government militias.

After the Taliban burned the homes of Andar and his relatives — torching his personal Quran and killing their livestock — Andar said he fled to Kabul. There, he earned a second master’s degree, in educational management, to supplement a previous master’s in Islamic studies. He later served as a religious adviser for the National Security Council.

In his current position, Andar encounters former enemies. Asadullah Khalid, the acting defense minister, was governor of Ghazni province when Andar was arrested and jailed there.

“I see him in meetings now and he tells me he’s my friend. We respect each other,” Andar said.

The spokesman’s job also requires an alliance with American and Afghan military commanders. Asked whether his fighters had killed or wounded American and Afghan troops, Andar shrugged. “It was a war,” he said. “Of course there were casualties.”

Rahmatullah Andar was once a feared Taliban commander, locked in bloody skirmishes against American and Afghan government troops in the rugged landscape of eastern Afghanistan.

Rahmatullah Andar was once a feared Taliban commander, locked in bloody skirmishes against American and Afghan government troops in the rugged landscape of eastern Afghanistan. In 2007, a U.S. Special Operations team captured him during a night raid on a house in his ancestral village in Ghazni province. He spent two years in a U.S.-run prison at Bagram Airfield outside Kabul. Today, Commander Andar is Spokesman Andar — the official spokesman for the National Security Council of the U.S.-backed government of Afghanistan. The story of how a former Talib became a high-ranking government security official is also a chronicle of the endless Afghan war itself: Allegiances shift. Enemies become allies. The players change roles, but the war endures. Also read| Khalilzad urges Taliban to stay committed to US deal The 19-year-old conflict is as fiercely contested today as when Andar commanded Taliban fighters for several years, only to break with the militants and lead one of Afghanistan’s first local uprisings against the Taliban in 2012. He lost his father, 75, his brother, an uncle and two cousins — all killed by the Taliban out of revenge, he said. Today Andar is a religious scholar with two master’s degrees who serves a government he once vowed to overthrow. And he remains a target of his former comrades in arms, who regard him as a turncoat. “The Taliban intend to assassinate me,” Andar, 41, said during an interview inside the presidential palace complex in Kabul. “Whether I’m a member of the government or not, they will never leave me alive.” Andar, alternating among Pashto, Persian and English, was relaxed and voluble as he recounted a life spent on battlefields, on the run, in universities and in prisons. He is a consummate survivor. × He described withstanding Taliban kidnapping attempts and ambushes, interrogations by American captors, and two stints in Afghan government prisons — accounts born out by official records and by those who fought alongside him. With his tangled beard and long hair, he might still be mistaken for a Talib, though he insists that he regards the militants with contempt — and hopes to serve as an example of how the insurgents hold no monopoly on Afghan piety. He was appointed to his National Security Council position by President Ashraf Ghani on Sept. 25, in large part because of both his religious credentials — he has earned the religious honorific of Mawlawi, meaning Islamic scholar — and his reputation as a fighter against the Taliban. His appointment was a clear statement from the Afghan government, as a central idea behind the Taliban’s criticism is that the government remains insufficiently Islamic, and is a puppet of the Americans. A single appointment cannot polish the religious image of an entire government, Andar acknowledged. “But the government can show by its actions that the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is more than just a name,” he said. Also read| Afghanistan in a nutshell: Peace talks in Doha and war at home And he said the Taliban, by signing a troop withdrawal agreement with the United States in February while freezing out the Afghan government, had undercut its own claims of Islamic purity. “They say government officials are infidels, but they have an agreement with the Americans, whose troops invaded Afghanistan,” he said. “So now they have no logic for this war” against fellow Afghans and Muslims. The Taliban have said that any new government arising from negotiations with Afghan representatives in Doha, Qatar, must be based on Islamic principles. Some analysts have interpreted that to mean the same harsh Shariah law that was imposed when the Taliban governed Afghanistan in the late 1990s. Andar said the Taliban could not change Afghanistan’s Constitution without the consent of a loya jirga, a traditional gathering where matters of national importance are debated. And Article 3 of the Constitution already stipulates that no law “can be contrary to the beliefs and rules of the holy religion of Islam,” he said. Also read| Afghan defence minister flies to embattled Helmand after Taliban gains Many Afghan women have expressed fears that a return to government by the Taliban would erase gains they have made since the militants were overthrown in 2001. The Taliban beat women, confined them to their homes and banned them from going to school. Andar said those prohibitions were not properly rooted in Islam, as the religion does not forbid girls and women from attending school. In fact, he said, the closing of schools by the Taliban in his home district is what precipitated his split from the movement three years after his release from American custody. “The Taliban closed the schools and opposed reconstruction, kidnapping and killing engineers,” said Amanullah Kamran, deputy of the provincial council in Ghazni. He said Andar, who supported women’s education and the U.S.-led reconstruction effort, took up arms against the Taliban and helped form one of the country’s first local uprisings against the insurgency. Kamran said the fighting left nearly 500 Afghans dead in the district and another 500 wounded. Andar himself was wounded in battles that ultimately killed his closest male relatives, he said. “Finally there was no man left in Rahmatullah’s family except Rahmatullah,” Kamran said. Andar said he now cares for 21 children and widows. Asked whether he still carried an AK-47 rifle from his combat days, he laughed and said he had only a pistol for personal protection. In recent months, the Taliban have mounted a series of targeted attacks against government officials and those perceived to be government supporters. But Andar explained his shifting allegiances by blaming both the government and the Taliban. He said he joined the Taliban after the government jailed him for two months in 2003 upon his return from religious studies in Pakistan. “The government pushed me to the Taliban by its actions against me,” he said. Years later, he said, he turned against the Taliban once the militants began closing schools and terrorizing the residents of his district — violations of Islamic strictures. “Even fighting has rules under Islam, and the Taliban broke those religious rules,” he said. A Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said Andar and his male relatives were legitimate targets because they had collaborated with Americans while commanding pro-government militias. After the Taliban burned the homes of Andar and his relatives — torching his personal Quran and killing their livestock — Andar said he fled to Kabul. There, he earned a second master’s degree, in educational management, to supplement a previous master’s in Islamic studies. He later served as a religious adviser for the National Security Council. In his current position, Andar encounters former enemies. Asadullah Khalid, the acting defense minister, was governor of Ghazni province when Andar was arrested and jailed there. “I see him in meetings now and he tells me he’s my friend. We respect each other,” Andar said. The spokesman’s job also requires an alliance with American and Afghan military commanders. Asked whether his fighters had killed or wounded American and Afghan troops, Andar shrugged. “It was a war,” he said. “Of course there were casualties.”

This ex-Taliban commander is now the face of Afghan security

Taliban fighters killed four civilians on Thursday during clashes with Afghan forces in the central province of Parwan, amid rescue work after flash floods claimed more than 150 lives, officials said.

It was the latest violence amid peace talks between the warring sides that have been delayed over the issue of prisoner releases, as part of efforts to end the US-led war in Afghanistan, which has spanned nearly two decades.

“Taliban fighters opened fire on civilians fleeing areas worst hit by the flash floods,” said Abdul Shukoor Qudoosi, a district official in Bagram, home to the country’s biggest U.S. military base and the site of the clashes.

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/afghan-floods-rescue-operation-resumes-authorities-call-for-international-help-323479">Also read|&nbsp;Afghan floods: Rescue operation resumes; authorities call for international help</a>

“Taliban were clashing with Afghan forces and they killed civilians who were in an autorickshaw near an army checkpoint,” Qudoosi said, adding that it appeared as if the Islamist militants mistook the passengers for Afghan soldiers.

One Afghan soldier was killed and two were injured.

A Taliban spokesmen was not immediately available to comment.

The death toll from the floods rose to 150, with at least 250 people injured, as survivors and rescue workers sifted the debris of more than 1,500 homes destroyed to the north of the capital, Kabul.

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Authorities moved more than 900 families out of parts of the mountainous province that had been devastated by the floods, which were triggered by exceptionally heavy rain this week.

“The search is still on, as many people, we fear, are still buried under the rocks and rubble,” said Tamim Azimi, a spokesman for the ministry of disaster management.

“The situation is very grim, the scale of loss is intense.”

Security forces, officials and survivors have trudged through deep mud in the search for survivors while the effort to clear the disaster area has stretched more than 28 hours, hampered by blocked and damaged roads.

The dead included many children, survivors said. The death toll was expected to rise as families prepared for mass burials, while mounds of rubble remain to be cleared.

Afghanistan regularly suffers from drought but can be lashed by very heavy rain during the south Asian monsoon season.

Taliban fighters killed four civilians on Thursday during clashes with Afghan forces in the central province of Parwan, amid rescue work after flash floods claimed more than 150 lives, officials said.

Taliban fighters killed four civilians on Thursday during clashes with Afghan forces in the central province of Parwan, amid rescue work after flash floods claimed more than 150 lives, officials said. It was the latest violence amid peace talks between the warring sides that have been delayed over the issue of prisoner releases, as part of efforts to end the US-led war in Afghanistan, which has spanned nearly two decades. “Taliban fighters opened fire on civilians fleeing areas worst hit by the flash floods,” said Abdul Shukoor Qudoosi, a district official in Bagram, home to the country’s biggest U.S. military base and the site of the clashes. Also read| Afghan floods: Rescue operation resumes; authorities call for international help “Taliban were clashing with Afghan forces and they killed civilians who were in an autorickshaw near an army checkpoint,” Qudoosi said, adding that it appeared as if the Islamist militants mistook the passengers for Afghan soldiers. One Afghan soldier was killed and two were injured. A Taliban spokesmen was not immediately available to comment. The death toll from the floods rose to 150, with at least 250 people injured, as survivors and rescue workers sifted the debris of more than 1,500 homes destroyed to the north of the capital, Kabul. Also read| US starts investigating 9 Pakistani terrorists held in Syria Authorities moved more than 900 families out of parts of the mountainous province that had been devastated by the floods, which were triggered by exceptionally heavy rain this week. “The search is still on, as many people, we fear, are still buried under the rocks and rubble,” said Tamim Azimi, a spokesman for the ministry of disaster management. “The situation is very grim, the scale of loss is intense.” Security forces, officials and survivors have trudged through deep mud in the search for survivors while the effort to clear the disaster area has stretched more than 28 hours, hampered by blocked and damaged roads. The dead included many children, survivors said. The death toll was expected to rise as families prepared for mass burials, while mounds of rubble remain to be cleared. Afghanistan regularly suffers from drought but can be lashed by very heavy rain during the south Asian monsoon season.

Taliban kill four survivors of Afghanistan flash floods

Ahead of an upcoming release of Taliban detainees held in Afghan prisons, the insurgent group warned the government in Kabul on Tuesday against any attacks on those released, saying such incidents would jeopardise the peace talks.

A Taliban spokesman said there have been at least 11 such attacks in the past several months&nbsp;instances when freed Taliban figures were killed, harassed and re-arrested by government forces.

Kabul officials denied unwarranted attacks on freed Taliban. The prisoner release is part of a deal the insurgents signed with the United States earlier this year. A final 400 Taliban prisoners remain in government prisons.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/afghan-president-signs-off-on-taliban-prisoner-release-peace-talks-expected-in-days-319572" hreflang="en">Afghan president signs off on Taliban prisoner release</a>

Over the weekend in Kabul, an Afghan traditional council, known as the Loya Jirga, agreed to free the final 400 imprisoned Taliban, paving the way for an early start to negotiations between Afghanistan's warring sides.

The council agreed to an immediate release of Taliban prisoners but by Tuesday, they had not been freed. Negotiations between Kabul's political leadership and the Taliban are expected to begin within weeks and will be held in the Mideast state of Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office. The Taliban said the talks could begin within a week of the final prisoner releases.

Taliban political spokesman Suhail Shaheen warned that attacks on newly freed prisoners will drive them back to the battlefield despite orders from their leaders to stay at home, with their families.&nbsp;Attacks on their homes will ?make it impossible for them to stay in their homes," Shaheen said.

''Such incidents have happened that they have been re-arrested and also killed," she added.

In recent months, both sides have freed prisoners in line with the deal the Taliban signed with Washington on February 29 to bring an end to decades of war. The government was to free 5,000&nbsp;and has already released all but the last 400. The Taliban freed the 1,000 members of the government forces and Afghan officials they had held captive.

Ahead of an upcoming release of Taliban detainees held in Afghan prisons, the insurgent group warned the government in Kabul on Tuesday against any attacks on those released, saying such incidents would jeopardise the peace talks.

Ahead of an upcoming release of Taliban detainees held in Afghan prisons, the insurgent group warned the government in Kabul on Tuesday against any attacks on those released, saying such incidents would jeopardise the peace talks. A Taliban spokesman said there have been at least 11 such attacks in the past several months instances when freed Taliban figures were killed, harassed and re-arrested by government forces. Kabul officials denied unwarranted attacks on freed Taliban. The prisoner release is part of a deal the insurgents signed with the United States earlier this year. A final 400 Taliban prisoners remain in government prisons. Also read: Afghan president signs off on Taliban prisoner release Over the weekend in Kabul, an Afghan traditional council, known as the Loya Jirga, agreed to free the final 400 imprisoned Taliban, paving the way for an early start to negotiations between Afghanistan's warring sides. The council agreed to an immediate release of Taliban prisoners but by Tuesday, they had not been freed. Negotiations between Kabul's political leadership and the Taliban are expected to begin within weeks and will be held in the Mideast state of Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office. The Taliban said the talks could begin within a week of the final prisoner releases. Taliban political spokesman Suhail Shaheen warned that attacks on newly freed prisoners will drive them back to the battlefield despite orders from their leaders to stay at home, with their families. Attacks on their homes will ?make it impossible for them to stay in their homes," Shaheen said. ''Such incidents have happened that they have been re-arrested and also killed," she added. In recent months, both sides have freed prisoners in line with the deal the Taliban signed with Washington on February 29 to bring an end to decades of war. The government was to free 5,000 and has already released all but the last 400. The Taliban freed the 1,000 members of the government forces and Afghan officials they had held captive.

Taliban warn against attacks on freed prisoners going home

Two separate attacks in Afghanistan have killed at least 18 people amid a wave of violence across the country, local Afghan officials said on Saturday.

A local police chief in western Ghor, Fakhrudin, said Taliban insurgents stormed a police checkpoint late Friday night and killed ten police officers.

He added that one policeman was wounded and another one was still missing after the attack in the remote village in the Pasaband district.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/four-killed-in-kabul-mosque-blast-several-wounded-305428" hreflang="en">Four killed in Kabul mosque blast; several wounded</a>

The police officials blamed the Taliban for the attack who have a strong presence in the area, especially in the Pasaband district. The Taliban have not commented on the attack in Ghor.

Meanwhile in the eastern Khost province, unknown gunmen targeting a former warlord killed at least eight people in the province's Ali Sher district, said Adel Haider, spokesman for the provincial police chief.

The police spokesman said that the target of the attack was among the dead. Abdul Wali Ekhlas, a candidate in last year's parliamentary elections who didn't win a seat.

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks in Khost province. Violence has spiked in recent weeks in Afghanistan with most of the attacks claimed by the local Islamic State group affiliate.

On Friday, a bomb explosion inside a mosque in the capital, Kabul, killed at least four people, including the prayer leader. 
The Taliban strongly condemned the mosque attack.

The United States blamed the IS affiliate for a horrific attack last month on a maternity hospital in the capital that killed 24 people, including two infants and several new mothers.

The IS group, which reviles Shiites as heretics, has declared war on the country's minority Shiite Muslims, but has also attacked Sunni Muslim mosques.

Two separate attacks in Afghanistan have killed at least 18 people amid a wave of violence across the country, local Afghan officials said on Saturday. A local police chief in western Ghor, Fakhrudin, said Taliban insurgents stormed a police checkpoint late Friday night and killed ten police officers.

Two separate attacks in Afghanistan have killed at least 18 people amid a wave of violence across the country, local Afghan officials said on Saturday. A local police chief in western Ghor, Fakhrudin, said Taliban insurgents stormed a police checkpoint late Friday night and killed ten police officers. He added that one policeman was wounded and another one was still missing after the attack in the remote village in the Pasaband district. Also read: Four killed in Kabul mosque blast; several wounded The police officials blamed the Taliban for the attack who have a strong presence in the area, especially in the Pasaband district. The Taliban have not commented on the attack in Ghor. Meanwhile in the eastern Khost province, unknown gunmen targeting a former warlord killed at least eight people in the province's Ali Sher district, said Adel Haider, spokesman for the provincial police chief. The police spokesman said that the target of the attack was among the dead. Abdul Wali Ekhlas, a candidate in last year's parliamentary elections who didn't win a seat. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks in Khost province. Violence has spiked in recent weeks in Afghanistan with most of the attacks claimed by the local Islamic State group affiliate. On Friday, a bomb explosion inside a mosque in the capital, Kabul, killed at least four people, including the prayer leader. The Taliban strongly condemned the mosque attack. The United States blamed the IS affiliate for a horrific attack last month on a maternity hospital in the capital that killed 24 people, including two infants and several new mothers. The IS group, which reviles Shiites as heretics, has declared war on the country's minority Shiite Muslims, but has also attacked Sunni Muslim mosques.

Attacks on checkpoint in various Afghan regions leave scores of terrorists dead, injured

Two members of Afghan security forces and 24 terrorists were killed in an armed conflict between the two sides in Afghanistan's northern province of Jowzjan, the provincial government said on Saturday.

The clashes occurred in Darzab district during a "cleanup operation" by the Afghan security forces on Friday night and also left 16 terrorists wounded, provincial government spokesperson Maruf Haazar told Xinhua news agency.

Eight terrorists killed in the operation belonged to Taliban's commando force Sara Qeta, the spokesperson said, adding that no civilians were hurt during clashes.

The Taliban has not made any comment on the report yet.&nbsp;

Two members of Afghan security forces and 24 terrorists were killed in an armed conflict between the two sides in Afghanistan's northern province of Jowzjan, the provincial government said on Saturday.

Two members of Afghan security forces and 24 terrorists were killed in an armed conflict between the two sides in Afghanistan's northern province of Jowzjan, the provincial government said on Saturday. The clashes occurred in Darzab district during a "cleanup operation" by the Afghan security forces on Friday night and also left 16 terrorists wounded, provincial government spokesperson Maruf Haazar told Xinhua news agency. Eight terrorists killed in the operation belonged to Taliban's commando force Sara Qeta, the spokesperson said, adding that no civilians were hurt during clashes. The Taliban has not made any comment on the report yet.

Afghanistan: 2 soldiers, 24 terrorists killed during clashes in Jowzjan

Afghanistan as the pawns to the devastating international and regional power games has been caught in uninterrupted civil and proxy wars since 1978. With the collapse of the Taliban regime and the establishment of a new political system in 2001, a mood of optimism and expectations for a better future swept the country. But, with the re-rise of the Taliban as an insurgent group in 2005 and the triple transitions (security, political and economic) unfolded in the country in 2014, the situation once again turned dreadful. Heightened insurgency, increased crime rates and the destructive activities of the terrorist groups ravaged every nook and corner of the country. Alongside, the economic turmoil, brain drain and emigration become the major social dilemmas affecting the everyday life of the citizens.&nbsp;

Over the last decade, the international community’s agendas of ending the conflict in Afghanistan have been focused on either rigorous military campaigns or abortive peace negotiations. Unfortunately, the fact that the conflict in the country is more of an economic phenomenon has been mostly degraded in the national and international agendas of conflict resolution in Afghanistan. The cost of war on terror as well as the cost of seeking peace and negotiated settlement with the Taliban through various mechanisms e.g., the high peace council, numerous peace processes in different countries and the substantial tribute payments to the terrorist networks and tribal chieftains through various formal and informal channels have been massive over the past years. On an average every year, 60 per cent of the national budget of Afghanistan and a significant portion of the off-budget funds and the foreign aid have been channelled to defence and security sectors and peacemaking projects. With rare resources, remaining for developmental programmes.&nbsp;

Similarly, According to a recent report by Pentagon, out of an estimated $45 billion cost of Afghanistan war for the US in 2018, just 1.7 per cent is the economic aid the rest all have been spent on bullets and probably gifts to local and external peace brokers. In this way, over the past 17 years, the situation in Afghanistan has turned worst, and the Afghan war has become a nightmare for the US and international allies. &nbsp;Did the international community and the government of Afghanistan degrade the more significant remedy (i.e., better economic opportunities) as a viable path for conflict resolution in Afghanistan? Yes, they did. &nbsp;

A moment of deliberation on nature and the dynamics of the ongoing war in Afghanistan would indicate that among the many factors that fuel the conflict and political instability in the country, one decisive factor is the socioeconomic crisis, particularity massive unemployment, poverty, and adult illiteracy. Based on the recent household survey data of the central statistic organisation of Afghanistan, more than half the population of the country, i.e., 54.5 per cent are living below the poverty line and 24 per cent of the active labour force is unemployed. In addition, inequitable distribution of wealth, income and rent is also remarkably high. &nbsp;

While, it is acknowledgeable that there is a hard-core ideology (at the leadership level) that the terrorist movements like the Taliban, ISIL-KP, and other such groups, carry. But at the grass root levels, a large number of people fighting for the Taliban and other insurgent groups are the non-ideological – employed soldiers, who do not fight for the cause of an ideology or the international Jihad propaganda as such but for mere a subsistence livelihood, in a situation where no alternative is available for them. Further, due to an overall chaotic situation in the country, there is a considerable gap between legal and illegal earning opportunities, which have enormously boosted incentives for the later. On a nutshell, the political economy of group access to resources (mines, minerals, and opium trade) at the top levels and the socio-economic ills like poverty, adult illiteracy, and unemployment at micro levels are the significant contributing factors to the perpetuating conflict in Afghanistan. &nbsp;

Indeed, the government of Afghanistan and the international community have failed to tackle the root causes of conflict; increasing poverty, alarming levels of unemployment, widespread corruption and the weak rule of law in the country. The provision of better opportunities for sustainable employment and income, which could have essentially encouraged hundreds of thousands of people to put down their guns and procure their livelihoods through dignified jobs, has not only not been in equal footing with other remedies (war and peace negotiations) part of national and international agendas. But such opportunities have enormously been reducing over the last years. The dearth of legal and sustainable sources of income and employment has compelled thousands to either personally take-up illegal activities; drug producing and trafficking, abductions, assassinations, robbery, illegal mining and various other forms of crimes or be easily recruited by the organised terror networks to carry destructive activities. &nbsp;

Due to the very problem of insecurity, on the other hand, the private and foreign investments, which are the primary sources of jobs in many countries, are insignificant in Afghanistan. The loss of the confidence of the investors and producer, the flight of the capital and brain drain have been growing over the past years, more so since 2014. Peace negotiations with few tourists’ leaders here and there and the counterterrorism strategies cannot go successful in Afghanistan unless the remedy is sought in grass root levels. When a large number of the population is impoverished and deprived of a dignified source of living, they can easily fall prey in the hands of terror groups other than the current ones, anytime in the future. Therefore, the provision of sustainable sources of jobs and income need to be seriously taken into considerations for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan. One such feasible means at the moment is the public investment in the establishment of small and medium scale labour-intensive factories and the reactivation of the country’s state-owned enterprises. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Public sector enterprises have a long history in Afghanistan. For the first time, during the second term reign of Amir Sher Ali (1868-79) few factories were established in Kabul. The decades of planning (1953-1973) were comparatively a period of significant industrialisation, infrastructure building, and economic progress in Afghanistan. A wide variety of firms from cotton mills to large-scale public transportation enterprises, construction firms, electricity-generating factories, arms-producing factories, public utilities, agricultural cooperatives, and insurance firms, were built. These enterprises at times could provide up to 60 per cent of the revenues of the governments, and their products could to a reasonable extent fulfill the demands of the government institutions and the domestic markets (MoF, Afg).&nbsp;

The government of Afghanistan had fully owned 64 fully or semi-operational public sector enterprises, locally known as Tasady in 2004 (MoF, Afg). Though not in good shape and full operation, still few SOEs have a significant market share in their relevant sectors, like the electrical utility company (Sherkat-e-Breshna), Afghan Telecom, and the Ariana Airlines, etc. However, on the one side, most of these enterprises were damaged during the wars of the 90s and on the other side, with the adaptation of Afghanistan to the neoliberal economic ideology these enterprises were impelled to privatization and dissolution. Since 2005 when the privatisation plan was approved, some 26 of the SOEs were either privatized, changed to public companies or dissolved (MoF, Af).&nbsp;

In the absence of a progressing private sector, the government is obliged to play the role of the entrepreneur in the economy. At the moment, to prevent a larger humanitarian crisis caused by war, drought, and economic turmoil, the government of Afghanistan needs to undertake a robust social security system. Under the current critical situation, the state-owned enterprises could be the best policy instruments in the hands of the government to fight unemployment, inflation, and poverty in the country. If the half-remained Skeleton of the SOEs in Afghanistan are rescued from the looting under the labels of privatisation and if enough investments are made for their re-operationalization and capacity expansion, they would, directly and indirectly, provide a sustainable source of living for a significant portion of workers, who are otherwise easy preys in the hands of the terrorist groups. &nbsp;

Currently, along with the US and Russia, almost every country in the region from Pakistan to Iran, China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and recently Turkey are trying to have their share of play in the ongoing peace negotiations with the Taliban, often by circumventing the people and government of Afghanistan; scattered initiatives that can only make the peace process more complex and challenging. 
 
However, few of these countries have something tangible to offer for the betterment of the situation in Afghanistan, rather than the pursuance of their strategic interests. It should not go unacknowledged that few countries like India on the other hand, have been the most reliable partners to the development of Afghanistan over the past years. They can continue to win people’s hearts and minds through their soft policies of developmental interventions. Such assistance as infrastructural development and job creation for the ordinary people can best lead Afghanistan towards lasting peace and stability by boosting the capabilities of the people and eternally stimulating the grassroots’ voices for peace and cooperation with the government. &nbsp;

As India has a long history of running public sector enterprises, the government of Afghanistan can seek technical assistance from India and other such countries for the re-operationalisation of its SOEs and establishment of additional labour-intensive processing and manufacturing units in Afghanistan. The need for the robust participation of the government and the assistance of the international community for countering economic downturn, unemployment and poverty are inevitable for the resolution of the uninterrupted 50 years of conflict and the establishment of lasting peace in Afghanistan. At the end of the day, it would be more of sustainable jobs and income, not bullets and complicated peace rounds that will persuade a large number of people to stand alongside the democratically elected government of Afghanistan against the terrorist oppositions.&nbsp;&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

&nbsp;

Afghanistan as the pawns to the devastating international and regional power games has been caught in uninterrupted civil and proxy wars since 1978. With the collapse of the Taliban regime and the establishment of a new political system in 2001, a mood of optimism and expectations for a better future swept the country.

Afghanistan as the pawns to the devastating international and regional power games has been caught in uninterrupted civil and proxy wars since 1978. With the collapse of the Taliban regime and the establishment of a new political system in 2001, a mood of optimism and expectations for a better future swept the country. But, with the re-rise of the Taliban as an insurgent group in 2005 and the triple transitions (security, political and economic) unfolded in the country in 2014, the situation once again turned dreadful. Heightened insurgency, increased crime rates and the destructive activities of the terrorist groups ravaged every nook and corner of the country. Alongside, the economic turmoil, brain drain and emigration become the major social dilemmas affecting the everyday life of the citizens. Over the last decade, the international community’s agendas of ending the conflict in Afghanistan have been focused on either rigorous military campaigns or abortive peace negotiations. Unfortunately, the fact that the conflict in the country is more of an economic phenomenon has been mostly degraded in the national and international agendas of conflict resolution in Afghanistan. The cost of war on terror as well as the cost of seeking peace and negotiated settlement with the Taliban through various mechanisms e.g., the high peace council, numerous peace processes in different countries and the substantial tribute payments to the terrorist networks and tribal chieftains through various formal and informal channels have been massive over the past years. On an average every year, 60 per cent of the national budget of Afghanistan and a significant portion of the off-budget funds and the foreign aid have been channelled to defence and security sectors and peacemaking projects. With rare resources, remaining for developmental programmes. Similarly, According to a recent report by Pentagon, out of an estimated $45 billion cost of Afghanistan war for the US in 2018, just 1.7 per cent is the economic aid the rest all have been spent on bullets and probably gifts to local and external peace brokers. In this way, over the past 17 years, the situation in Afghanistan has turned worst, and the Afghan war has become a nightmare for the US and international allies. Did the international community and the government of Afghanistan degrade the more significant remedy (i.e., better economic opportunities) as a viable path for conflict resolution in Afghanistan? Yes, they did. A moment of deliberation on nature and the dynamics of the ongoing war in Afghanistan would indicate that among the many factors that fuel the conflict and political instability in the country, one decisive factor is the socioeconomic crisis, particularity massive unemployment, poverty, and adult illiteracy. Based on the recent household survey data of the central statistic organisation of Afghanistan, more than half the population of the country, i.e., 54.5 per cent are living below the poverty line and 24 per cent of the active labour force is unemployed. In addition, inequitable distribution of wealth, income and rent is also remarkably high. While, it is acknowledgeable that there is a hard-core ideology (at the leadership level) that the terrorist movements like the Taliban, ISIL-KP, and other such groups, carry. But at the grass root levels, a large number of people fighting for the Taliban and other insurgent groups are the non-ideological – employed soldiers, who do not fight for the cause of an ideology or the international Jihad propaganda as such but for mere a subsistence livelihood, in a situation where no alternative is available for them. Further, due to an overall chaotic situation in the country, there is a considerable gap between legal and illegal earning opportunities, which have enormously boosted incentives for the later. On a nutshell, the political economy of group access to resources (mines, minerals, and opium trade) at the top levels and the socio-economic ills like poverty, adult illiteracy, and unemployment at micro levels are the significant contributing factors to the perpetuating conflict in Afghanistan. Indeed, the government of Afghanistan and the international community have failed to tackle the root causes of conflict; increasing poverty, alarming levels of unemployment, widespread corruption and the weak rule of law in the country. The provision of better opportunities for sustainable employment and income, which could have essentially encouraged hundreds of thousands of people to put down their guns and procure their livelihoods through dignified jobs, has not only not been in equal footing with other remedies (war and peace negotiations) part of national and international agendas. But such opportunities have enormously been reducing over the last years. The dearth of legal and sustainable sources of income and employment has compelled thousands to either personally take-up illegal activities; drug producing and trafficking, abductions, assassinations, robbery, illegal mining and various other forms of crimes or be easily recruited by the organised terror networks to carry destructive activities. Due to the very problem of insecurity, on the other hand, the private and foreign investments, which are the primary sources of jobs in many countries, are insignificant in Afghanistan. The loss of the confidence of the investors and producer, the flight of the capital and brain drain have been growing over the past years, more so since 2014. Peace negotiations with few tourists’ leaders here and there and the counterterrorism strategies cannot go successful in Afghanistan unless the remedy is sought in grass root levels. When a large number of the population is impoverished and deprived of a dignified source of living, they can easily fall prey in the hands of terror groups other than the current ones, anytime in the future. Therefore, the provision of sustainable sources of jobs and income need to be seriously taken into considerations for lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan. One such feasible means at the moment is the public investment in the establishment of small and medium scale labour-intensive factories and the reactivation of the country’s state-owned enterprises. Public sector enterprises have a long history in Afghanistan. For the first time, during the second term reign of Amir Sher Ali (1868-79) few factories were established in Kabul. The decades of planning (1953-1973) were comparatively a period of significant industrialisation, infrastructure building, and economic progress in Afghanistan. A wide variety of firms from cotton mills to large-scale public transportation enterprises, construction firms, electricity-generating factories, arms-producing factories, public utilities, agricultural cooperatives, and insurance firms, were built. These enterprises at times could provide up to 60 per cent of the revenues of the governments, and their products could to a reasonable extent fulfill the demands of the government institutions and the domestic markets (MoF, Afg). The government of Afghanistan had fully owned 64 fully or semi-operational public sector enterprises, locally known as Tasady in 2004 (MoF, Afg). Though not in good shape and full operation, still few SOEs have a significant market share in their relevant sectors, like the electrical utility company (Sherkat-e-Breshna), Afghan Telecom, and the Ariana Airlines, etc. However, on the one side, most of these enterprises were damaged during the wars of the 90s and on the other side, with the adaptation of Afghanistan to the neoliberal economic ideology these enterprises were impelled to privatization and dissolution. Since 2005 when the privatisation plan was approved, some 26 of the SOEs were either privatized, changed to public companies or dissolved (MoF, Af). In the absence of a progressing private sector, the government is obliged to play the role of the entrepreneur in the economy. At the moment, to prevent a larger humanitarian crisis caused by war, drought, and economic turmoil, the government of Afghanistan needs to undertake a robust social security system. Under the current critical situation, the state-owned enterprises could be the best policy instruments in the hands of the government to fight unemployment, inflation, and poverty in the country. If the half-remained Skeleton of the SOEs in Afghanistan are rescued from the looting under the labels of privatisation and if enough investments are made for their re-operationalization and capacity expansion, they would, directly and indirectly, provide a sustainable source of living for a significant portion of workers, who are otherwise easy preys in the hands of the terrorist groups. Currently, along with the US and Russia, almost every country in the region from Pakistan to Iran, China, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and recently Turkey are trying to have their share of play in the ongoing peace negotiations with the Taliban, often by circumventing the people and government of Afghanistan; scattered initiatives that can only make the peace process more complex and challenging. However, few of these countries have something tangible to offer for the betterment of the situation in Afghanistan, rather than the pursuance of their strategic interests. It should not go unacknowledged that few countries like India on the other hand, have been the most reliable partners to the development of Afghanistan over the past years. They can continue to win people’s hearts and minds through their soft policies of developmental interventions. Such assistance as infrastructural development and job creation for the ordinary people can best lead Afghanistan towards lasting peace and stability by boosting the capabilities of the people and eternally stimulating the grassroots’ voices for peace and cooperation with the government. As India has a long history of running public sector enterprises, the government of Afghanistan can seek technical assistance from India and other such countries for the re-operationalisation of its SOEs and establishment of additional labour-intensive processing and manufacturing units in Afghanistan. The need for the robust participation of the government and the assistance of the international community for countering economic downturn, unemployment and poverty are inevitable for the resolution of the uninterrupted 50 years of conflict and the establishment of lasting peace in Afghanistan. At the end of the day, it would be more of sustainable jobs and income, not bullets and complicated peace rounds that will persuade a large number of people to stand alongside the democratically elected government of Afghanistan against the terrorist oppositions. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

A viable path for boosting peace in Afghanistan

US President Donald Trump has&nbsp;<a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41008116" rel="noopener" target="_blank">drawn battle lines</a>&nbsp;in South Asia that are likely to have a ripple effect across Eurasia: a stepped-up war against the Taliban in Afghanistan; a tougher approach toward Pakistan&rsquo;s selective support of militancy; and closer cooperation with India &mdash; moves that are likely to push Islamabad closer to China and Russia.

There is little doubt that Trump had few good choices some 16 years into an Afghanistan War in which the Taliban and other militant groups are holding their ground, if not making advances, buffeted by Pakistani policies that are rooted in the fabric of the country&rsquo;s military and society. Similarly, there is little doubt that Pakistan&rsquo;s convoluted relationship to militancy poses serious challenges to US foreign policy in South Asia, as well as a global effort to contain political violence.

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<h5>Pakistan&rsquo;s convoluted relationship to militancy poses serious challenges to US foreign policy in South Asia, as well as a global effort to contain political violence.</h5>
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Nonetheless, President Trump could find that his newly announced South Asia policy will fail to achieve his goal of an &ldquo;honorable and enduring outcome worthy of the tremendous sacrifices&rdquo; made by the United States. The silver lining is that Pakistan may temporarily engineer a stay of execution but ultimately will find itself in a cul-de-sac from which there is no escape.

Despite refusing to disclose details of his strategy in Afghanistan, the US president made clear in a&nbsp;<a href="http://www.npr.org/2017/08/21/545038935/watch-live-trump-s-address-on-afghanistan-next-steps-for-u-s-engagement" rel="noopener" target="_blank">speech on August 21 outlining his South Asia policy</a>&nbsp;that he hopes an increased US military presence will force the Taliban to come to the negotiating table. Yet achieving that would require the kind of military and political engagement in Afghanistan that Trump seems unwilling to embrace.

US media reported that Trump envisioned only a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-expected-to-announce-small-troop-increase-in-afghanistan-in-prime-time-address/2017/08/21/eb3a513e-868a-11e7-a94f-3139abce39f5_story.html?utm_term=.5b49c9a86f55" rel="noopener" target="_blank">modest increase of several thousand troops</a>&nbsp;in a country wracked&nbsp;by corruption and whose military is largely incapable of standing its ground on its own.&nbsp;Political and security analysts&nbsp;<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/troop-surge-wont-save-afghanistan_us_59492e26e4b0f7875b83e5f8" rel="noopener" target="_blank">suggest&nbsp;</a>that it would take a far greater commitment to militarily turn the tables on the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Moreover, President Trump&rsquo;s exclusive focus on defeating insurgents militarily or bombing them into submission ignores the broader economic, social and political problems that fuel militancy in Afghanistan and drive Pakistan&rsquo;s support for the Taliban and a selection of other groups. &ldquo;We are not nation building again. We are killing terrorists,&rdquo; Trump said.

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<h5>Announcing a tougher approach toward Pakistan, the president insisted that the South Asian nation&rsquo;s partnership with the US would not survive if it continued to harbor and support groups that target the United States.</h5>
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Announcing a tougher approach toward Pakistan, the president insisted that the South Asian nation&rsquo;s partnership with the US would not survive if it continued to harbor and support groups that target the United States. Adding fuel to the fire, the president emphasised Washington&rsquo;s strategic partnership with India, calling on it to support the administration&rsquo;s policy with increased Indian economic assistance to Afghanistan. In doing so, Trump challenged a pillar of Pakistani policy toward Afghanistan: limiting Indian influence in the country at whatever cost.

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CHINESE AND RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY IN SOUTH ASIA

Trump&rsquo;s approach to South Asia puts to the test two assumptions: that Pakistan will want to preserve its partnership with the US at whatever cost and that it has few alternatives. The president could well find that at least in the short term those assumptions are incorrect.

Pakistan&rsquo;s relationship to militancy is engrained in a deeply-rooted, zero-sum-game approach toward India within the military, as well as empathy for Sunni Muslim ultra-conservatism that is woven into the fabric of the security forces, parts of the government bureaucracy and significant segments of society.

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<h5>Pakistan&rsquo;s relationship to militancy is engrained in a deeply-rooted, zero-sum-game approach toward India within the military, as well as empathy for Sunni Muslim ultra-conservatism.</h5>
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Islamabad&rsquo;s use of militant groups to counter India in Afghanistan and Kashmir, as well as an antidote to nationalist insurgents in the restive province of Baluchistan, is tacitly endorsed by&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fairobserver.com/region/central_south_asia/pakistani-news-china-pakistan-india-south-asian-world-news-97581/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">China&rsquo;s repeated vetoing</a>&nbsp;of the designation of Masood Azhar, an anti-Indian militant, former mujahideen fighter in the 1980s, and Islamic scholar who graduated from a Deobandi madrassa &mdash; Darul Uloom Islamia Binori Town in Karachi &mdash; that is the alma mater of numerous Pakistani militants.

With an investment of more than $60 billion in Pakistani infrastructure and energy that would turn the country into a key node &mdash; if not the crown jewel of its&nbsp;<a href="https://www.fairobserver.com/region/central_south_asia/one-belt-one-road-china-india-trade-news-61521/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">One Belt, One Road initiative</a>&nbsp;&mdash; China is a logical escape for a government and military that lacks the political will to confront its own demons. Similarly, Russia, long eager to gain access to warm water ports and expand its influence in Central and South Asia, is certain to see opportunity in further estrangement between Pakistan and the US.

Closer ties to China and Russia may offer Pakistan a temporary escape from dealing with structural problems. Ultimately, however, Islamabad&rsquo;s relationship to militancy is likely to also complicate its relations with Beijing and Moscow amid escalating violence in Baluchistan and no end in sight to the insurgency in Afghanistan. A series of devastating attacks in Baluchistan over the past year that has targeted Pakistani cadets, decimated the legal profession in the capital Quetta, and targeted Chinese nationals as well kidnappings and drive-by shootings&nbsp;pose a serious obstacle to China&rsquo;s strategic ambition&nbsp;to extend its maritime power across the Indian Ocean and turn the sleepy Baloch fishing port of Gwadar into a gateway to its troubled northwestern province of Xinjiang.

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<h5>China has too much at stake for Pakistan&rsquo;s selective support of militancy to ultimately get in the way of achieving its geopolitical goals vested in its One Belt, One Road initiative.</h5>
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Pakistan has, moreover, in the past year&nbsp;turned a&nbsp;<a href="https://mideastsoccer.blogspot.sg/search/label/Pakistan?updated-max=2017-06-05T14:37:00%2B08:00&amp;max-results=20&amp;start=10&amp;by-date=false" rel="noopener" target="_blank">blind eye to Saudi funding</a>&nbsp;of anti-Shia, anti-Iranian militants&nbsp;in Baluchistan, including Pakistani cleric Maulana Ali Muhammad Abu Turab, who remains a member of the Council of Islamic Ideology &mdash; a government advisory body tasked with ensuring that legislation does not contradict Islamic law &mdash; despite having been designated a global terrorist by the US Treasury.

China has too much at stake for Pakistan&rsquo;s selective support of militancy to ultimately get in the way of achieving its geopolitical goals vested in its One Belt, One Road initiative. As a result, Pakistan&rsquo;s refusal to confront its demons could, in the final analysis, leave it out in the cold: its relationship with the US severely damaged; India strengthened by closer cooperation with Trump administration; and China and Russia demanding that it do what Washington wanted in the first place.

Pakistan is likely to have fewer options and no escape routes once Beijing and Moscow come to the conclusion President Trump has already articulated.

&nbsp;

The views expressed in this article are the author&rsquo;s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer&rsquo;s editorial policy.

Photo Credit:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/secdef/">Jim Mattis</a>

This <a href="https://www.fairobserver.com/region/north_america/donald-trump-afghanistan-policy-speech-pakistan-india-policy-news-headlines-97120/">article</a> was originally published on&nbsp;<a data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://www.fairobserver.com/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1503723352966000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHmFLLQ4MoeLQPQr96cx59taj9n4w" disabled="disabled" href="http://www.fairobserver.com/" target="_blank">Fair Observer</a>.&rdquo;

Trump challenged a pillar of Pakistani policy toward Afghanistan: limiting Indian influence in the country at whatever cost.

US President Donald Trump has drawn battle lines in South Asia that are likely to have a ripple effect across Eurasia: a stepped-up war against the Taliban in Afghanistan; a tougher approach toward Pakistan’s selective support of militancy; and closer cooperation with India — moves that are likely to push Islamabad closer to China and Russia. There is little doubt that Trump had few good choices some 16 years into an Afghanistan War in which the Taliban and other militant groups are holding their ground, if not making advances, buffeted by Pakistani policies that are rooted in the fabric of the country’s military and society. Similarly, there is little doubt that Pakistan’s convoluted relationship to militancy poses serious challenges to US foreign policy in South Asia, as well as a global effort to contain political violence. Pakistan’s convoluted relationship to militancy poses serious challenges to US foreign policy in South Asia, as well as a global effort to contain political violence. × Nonetheless, President Trump could find that his newly announced South Asia policy will fail to achieve his goal of an “honorable and enduring outcome worthy of the tremendous sacrifices” made by the United States. The silver lining is that Pakistan may temporarily engineer a stay of execution but ultimately will find itself in a cul-de-sac from which there is no escape. Despite refusing to disclose details of his strategy in Afghanistan, the US president made clear in a speech on August 21 outlining his South Asia policy that he hopes an increased US military presence will force the Taliban to come to the negotiating table. Yet achieving that would require the kind of military and political engagement in Afghanistan that Trump seems unwilling to embrace. US media reported that Trump envisioned only a modest increase of several thousand troops in a country wracked by corruption and whose military is largely incapable of standing its ground on its own. Political and security analysts suggest that it would take a far greater commitment to militarily turn the tables on the Taliban in Afghanistan. Moreover, President Trump’s exclusive focus on defeating insurgents militarily or bombing them into submission ignores the broader economic, social and political problems that fuel militancy in Afghanistan and drive Pakistan’s support for the Taliban and a selection of other groups. “We are not nation building again. We are killing terrorists,” Trump said. Announcing a tougher approach toward Pakistan, the president insisted that the South Asian nation’s partnership with the US would not survive if it continued to harbor and support groups that target the United States. × Announcing a tougher approach toward Pakistan, the president insisted that the South Asian nation’s partnership with the US would not survive if it continued to harbor and support groups that target the United States. Adding fuel to the fire, the president emphasised Washington’s strategic partnership with India, calling on it to support the administration’s policy with increased Indian economic assistance to Afghanistan. In doing so, Trump challenged a pillar of Pakistani policy toward Afghanistan: limiting Indian influence in the country at whatever cost. Embed from Getty Images CHINESE AND RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY IN SOUTH ASIA Trump’s approach to South Asia puts to the test two assumptions: that Pakistan will want to preserve its partnership with the US at whatever cost and that it has few alternatives. The president could well find that at least in the short term those assumptions are incorrect. Pakistan’s relationship to militancy is engrained in a deeply-rooted, zero-sum-game approach toward India within the military, as well as empathy for Sunni Muslim ultra-conservatism that is woven into the fabric of the security forces, parts of the government bureaucracy and significant segments of society. Pakistan’s relationship to militancy is engrained in a deeply-rooted, zero-sum-game approach toward India within the military, as well as empathy for Sunni Muslim ultra-conservatism. × Islamabad’s use of militant groups to counter India in Afghanistan and Kashmir, as well as an antidote to nationalist insurgents in the restive province of Baluchistan, is tacitly endorsed by China’s repeated vetoing of the designation of Masood Azhar, an anti-Indian militant, former mujahideen fighter in the 1980s, and Islamic scholar who graduated from a Deobandi madrassa — Darul Uloom Islamia Binori Town in Karachi — that is the alma mater of numerous Pakistani militants. With an investment of more than $60 billion in Pakistani infrastructure and energy that would turn the country into a key node — if not the crown jewel of its One Belt, One Road initiative — China is a logical escape for a government and military that lacks the political will to confront its own demons. Similarly, Russia, long eager to gain access to warm water ports and expand its influence in Central and South Asia, is certain to see opportunity in further estrangement between Pakistan and the US. Closer ties to China and Russia may offer Pakistan a temporary escape from dealing with structural problems. Ultimately, however, Islamabad’s relationship to militancy is likely to also complicate its relations with Beijing and Moscow amid escalating violence in Baluchistan and no end in sight to the insurgency in Afghanistan. A series of devastating attacks in Baluchistan over the past year that has targeted Pakistani cadets, decimated the legal profession in the capital Quetta, and targeted Chinese nationals as well kidnappings and drive-by shootings pose a serious obstacle to China’s strategic ambition to extend its maritime power across the Indian Ocean and turn the sleepy Baloch fishing port of Gwadar into a gateway to its troubled northwestern province of Xinjiang. China has too much at stake for Pakistan’s selective support of militancy to ultimately get in the way of achieving its geopolitical goals vested in its One Belt, One Road initiative. × Pakistan has, moreover, in the past year turned a blind eye to Saudi funding of anti-Shia, anti-Iranian militants in Baluchistan, including Pakistani cleric Maulana Ali Muhammad Abu Turab, who remains a member of the Council of Islamic Ideology — a government advisory body tasked with ensuring that legislation does not contradict Islamic law — despite having been designated a global terrorist by the US Treasury. China has too much at stake for Pakistan’s selective support of militancy to ultimately get in the way of achieving its geopolitical goals vested in its One Belt, One Road initiative. As a result, Pakistan’s refusal to confront its demons could, in the final analysis, leave it out in the cold: its relationship with the US severely damaged; India strengthened by closer cooperation with Trump administration; and China and Russia demanding that it do what Washington wanted in the first place. Pakistan is likely to have fewer options and no escape routes once Beijing and Moscow come to the conclusion President Trump has already articulated. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Fair Observer’s editorial policy. Photo Credit: Jim Mattis This article was originally published on Fair Observer.”

Will Trump's closeness with India push Pakistan towards China and Russia?

A suicide bomber killed at least 18 people in Afghanistan on Saturday and fighting between militants and security forces left at least 36 people dead on the first day of Islam&#39;s holy Month of Ramzan.&nbsp;

&quot;A suicide car bomb in Khost province has killed 18 people and wounded six others, including two children,&quot; ministry spokesman Najib Danish said on Twitter.

In the north-western province of Badghis, militants attacked security forces in Qadis district, sparking fighting that killed 22 insurgents, six security forces personnel, and eight civilians, said Zahir Bahand a spokesman for the provincial governor.

The fighting also left 33 militants and 17 civilians wounded, he said.

The Western-backed Afghan government is battling both Taliban and Islamic State militants around the country.&nbsp;

Taliban forces have increased their attacks in the weeks before Ramzan, with a string of strikes in Kandahar, Paktia, and Helmand, among other provinces.

Muslims around the world typically mark Ramzanwith fasting, prayers, and other observances, although the holy month can begin on different days in different countries.&nbsp;

 
(Reuters)

&nbsp;

Taliban forces have increased their attacks in the weeks before Ramzan, with a string of strikes in Kandahar, Paktia, and Helmand, among other provinces

A suicide bomber killed at least 18 people in Afghanistan on Saturday and fighting between militants and security forces left at least 36 people dead on the first day of Islam's holy Month of Ramzan. "A suicide car bomb in Khost province has killed 18 people and wounded six others, including two children," ministry spokesman Najib Danish said on Twitter. In the north-western province of Badghis, militants attacked security forces in Qadis district, sparking fighting that killed 22 insurgents, six security forces personnel, and eight civilians, said Zahir Bahand a spokesman for the provincial governor. The fighting also left 33 militants and 17 civilians wounded, he said. The Western-backed Afghan government is battling both Taliban and Islamic State militants around the country. Taliban forces have increased their attacks in the weeks before Ramzan, with a string of strikes in Kandahar, Paktia, and Helmand, among other provinces. Muslims around the world typically mark Ramzanwith fasting, prayers, and other observances, although the holy month can begin on different days in different countries. (Reuters)

At least 18 killed in car bomb blast in eastern Afghanistan on first day of Ramzan