Northern Alliance and Taliban

[Adux]

Daredevil,

Just peeved off at his "eerrrm" and condescending attitude. That is all.

 

[pmaitra]

It was Benazir Bhutto who wanted to rein in the independent warlords of Afghanistan post the soviet war. And yes, ISI did that nicely.




It was the Mujahideens whom US supported. Taliban was formed in 1994, IIRC.

Many Mujahideens who fought against the DRA Army and the Soviet Army later became part of the Taliban. They have a lot of overlap.

 

[Tronic]

Many Mujahideens who fought against the DRA Army and the Soviet Army later became part of the Taliban. They have a lot of overlap.

Yes they did. But what Adux here is implying is that the Taliban are the successors of the Mujahideen, when infact, majority of the Mujahideen enrolled in the anti-Taliban militias.

 

[Tronic]

You have been qouting Farhat Taj, while to hold uncontested land is quite easy, while the terrorist stay in Lower Khurram.



There are enough and more reports of Collateral damage, which is fine by me since they arent my people nor is it American fault that these people have muddled themselves in and out and back in again into jihad.



You keep on saying about him, he is all but one man.

Farhat Taj is not a man.But ofcourse, you don't give two damns about who's who, as long as your bland narrative is satisfied. Your response to DD shows what has really got your goat, and it has nothing to do with the topic.

Errrm, Not really, You might have to do a bit more than that, to achieve what I have.

I'm burning with envy. Really. Anything to help you boost your self esteem.

But then again, you are the kind of man who believes Ahemed Shah Masood as a man of civilized values, while he was nothing but yet another isalmist. Quite simple of you.

Give me sources. I gave you mines.

Now Taliban is a foreign force? wow!
Now I get it, Taliban are non-pashto people being led by pashto leaders, yup makes sense.
Taliban - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mohammed Omar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Abdul Ghani Baradar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Obaidullah Akhund - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have no idea how fiercely independent and competitive tribes are with each other. Taliban Mehsud's ruling over Orakzai, Tarakzai, Mullagori, Shilmani, Shinwari, Khwaizai, Baizai, Halimzai and Turi tribes are indeed perceived as a non-local "foreign" force by the respective tribes. Ofcourse you having zero proximity to the region, and yourself admitting having zero interest in learning about the Pashtun society is probably what leads you to such shallow opinions.

For a more local perspective, Punjabi clans were little different; Bhullars waged war against the Brars, Bhangis fought the Faizalpurias, Nakais fought the Kharals and the Sials, and the Kharals are historically known to have a blood feud with the Baloch. They were only united in a confederacy when facing a foreign threat. Although the Punjabi clans have evolved out of it, the Pashtuns are still quite backwards and deeply steeped in their tribal culture. So yes, the Taliban is far from being a confederacy of tribes, it is an authoritarian organization with the power resting with a few. The Taliban are resented by most of the tribes who have little connections with the leadership.

South Waziristan alone busts your theory that all Pashtuns are Taliban. Since the Taliban there are mainly from the large Mehsud tribe, the other tribes have retained their independence. If all Pashtun tribes paid allegiance to the Taliban, such treaties would be redundant: Daily Times - Leading News Resource of Pakistan. And that is only an example from South Waziristan, how can all Pashtuns be one with the Taliban when in Taliban headquarters, Waziristan, alone the Taliban have had to sign 'treaties' with the other tribes to function in the area?

]PS: The local tribal elders were killed by their own tribesmen.

Whats your source?

 

[The Messiah]

Daredevil,

Just peeved off at his "eerrrm" and condescending attitude. That is all.

Don't be peeved because he is a knowledgeable person

 

[Tronic]

Daredevil,

Just peeved off at his "eerrrm" and condescending attitude. That is all.

Errrmmm???

For a man who freely calls other people "our bastards", you are one sensitive little grouch.

 

[bhogta]

Masood was far better man then the any other person. If he was alive today then we could have better chance of a peaceful Afghanistan.

 

[Adux]

Errrmmm???

For a man who freely calls other people "our bastards", you are one sensitive little grouch.

Chicoms and Paki's are fair game son, its how it is going to be., and regarding Masood, in a literal interpretation of what a secular person was, he was nothing but a bastard.

 

[ejazr]

For those who are still confused about Taliban support among Afghans, they have consitently polled very low even among Pashtoons. Here is a WorldPublicOpinion.org survey from 2006

The main reason for the Taliban resurgence can basically be blamed on the Bush administration's useless and counterproductive war in Iraq. Instead of focusing on Afghanistan, culling of the Taliban remnants by either integrating or arresting them and making sure the Tribal areas of Pakistan are kept under a strict watch, the US let the game slip and allowed them to re-emerge.

The Taliban continue to have low levels of support but when the central govt. can't provide security, why would the locals support the govt. This is why the time wasted in not forming a Afghan national army and police is the first 4-5 years and funding of Afghan war lords instead by Rumsfeld can all be directly held responsible for the ensuing mess in Afghanistan and basically letting Pakistan play its games in the tribal areas that would allow them to re-organise the Taliban and relaunch them later.

 

[Adux]

Opinion Polls in Afghanistan is worth less than Mcalay Culkin's market value. Though I agree with your opinion on Iraq, but it isnt as sinister as some people think. Saddam played a bluff, the Americans took it, but rather to cow down about it, they attacked. Another thread maybe

 

[ejazr]

^^^This particular opinion poll is just an example. But almost all have consistently shown that the Taliban would have support in the low teens or single digits if there was an election and the Taliban was a political party. That is why they are so vary of actually contesting elections and would prefer a direct powersharing deal where they get defacto control of part of Afghanistan.

I wouldn't call it sinister from the Indian pov. But it was a security disaster for us. Although I don't see what bluff Saddam played. It was in our interests that the US focused laser like on the Af-Pak region post 9/11. This is where the planning happened, this is where the masterminds were and this is where the future threats were coming from. By attacking Iraq, the US diverted its attention and left that region. Pakistan/Musharraf were overjoyed ofcourse and they expected that things will be back to the good old 90s where we can again launch a proxy war with the regrouped Taliban. And that is exactly what has happened to a large extent.

The US/NATO should not be leaving Afghanistan for atleast another 5 years but unfortunately domestic politics means that by 2014, most of the surge will be gone and the Taliban will certainly be emboldened.