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| Afghanistan |
| Afghans uneasy over Taliban violence |
| 2006-05-23 |
| The Taliban regime was toppled more than four years ago, but the rebels still continue to spread violence and terror in Afghanistan, as is shown by the most recent fighting which claimed scores of lives. The battle earlier this week that reportedly claimed over 100 lives was the worst since the US-led coalition removed the Taliban from power at the end of 2001 and shows that the rebels are far from being defeated. On the contrary, they appear to have gained in strength, and the security situation in Afghanistan is deteriorating steadily. The situation in the south, where the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) is deploying this summer, is particularly dramatic. Along with the violence, dissatisfaction among the Afghan people is also on the rise. The statement released by the US military after the battle Thursday in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar expressed confidence that the insurgency could be defeated. There is justification for this view. Wherever there are clashes with the coalition forces the Taliban always suffer considerably higher casualties. But the offensives and bombings are beginning to look like a struggle against a multi-headed Hydra. Whenever one head is cut off several grow in its place. The rebels evidently do not lack replacements for their fallen fighters. They do not give up, but merely change tactics. The increasing number of suicide attacks in Afghanistan - there were two on Thursday alone - is "serious cause for concern" according to a top Western diplomat in Kabul. Even in the relatively peaceful north of the country, where ISAF has been operating since the end of 2003, the situation is seen as "definitely not peaceful and not stable." "People in the provinces are increasingly dissatisfied and subject to threats and temptations," the European diplomat says. "More money, more development and more visible improvement are all needed," he says. The anticipated peace dividend in the provinces where violence reigns has not come about, and a vicious cycle has developed. The unsafe situation has forced the aid organisations to withdraw, particularly from the south, with the result that reconstruction is not progressing as hoped. Frustration at the lack of progress is driving the local people into the arms of the rebels, and this serves only to destabilise the region further. The Afghan government and the international community are not coming to grips with the country's problems despite their best efforts. Progress is slow, the diplomat says. Corruption has become "endemic", he says. And he adds another worrying factor: "The slow but systematic progress of Islamist ideas frightens me." Opium poppy production has increased once again this year, and the Taliban is said to be securing funds from the drugs trade. The international community is now facing a new and dangerous test. The ISAF reconstruction mission is being extended into the south, where US-led troops have been fighting the Taliban and Al Qaeda. The most recent clashes in Kandahar and the neighbouring province of Helmand should provide a foretaste of what the ISAF troops from Canada, Britain and the Netherlands could encounter when the US starts cutting its troop strength in the south. The Taliban is reported to have announced that it intends to target the ISAF forces. Political circles in Kabul believe this strategy is aimed at driving up the number of casualties and thus applying political pressure on the respective governments for their troops to be brought home. Should the rebels see any success in this strategy, this would be the worst-case scenario, according to the European Union's special representative to Afghanistan, Francesc Vendrell. "The message must be very clear. We will not withdraw," he says. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |