Reema Shaukat
THE news of Afghanistan unrest is not new. Every other day the Afghanistan morass is getting denser. The implications of war against terrorism are quite visible in Afghanistan which instead of clearing up seeds of terrorism is generating new sprouts of terror in country. But tactlessly this war knockout country is facing many challenges including political instability, economic variability, social turbulence and security uproars. In the holy month of Ramzan, Afghanistan again is not exempted from terror attacks. While the fresh attack in the great mosque of Herat which has claimed around dozen lives, Afghanistan is grappling with a wave of terrorism that has killed more than 150 in just the past week. On May 31, 2017 Kabul’s diplomatic quarter was jolted with an enormous blast which took 150 lives. It was one of the deadliest attacks in the country since the start of the war in Afghanistan in 2001, which was triggered by the US invasion is search of al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden after 9/11. According to reports, a tanker truck believed to be carrying either water or human waste exploded near Zanbaq Square in Kabul’s 10th district, close to shops and restaurants as well as government offices and foreign embassies. The location of the attack was very significant, as it hit one of the Afghan capital’s busiest and most secure parts. This deadliest attack ever in Afghanistan history has raised many security questions in Kabul, noting that many still wonder how a truck full of explosives could manage to get to that highly secure part of the Afghan capital. Heavily-loaded vehicles are checked thoroughly, and usually they are not allowed to pass through these areas without prior clearance from the security forces but still that transport managed to hit its target. Initially after this terrible happening.The so-called Islamic State (IS or Daesh) claimed responsibility for several recent bombings in the Afghan capital, including a powerful blast targeting an armoured NATO convoy that killed at least eight people and wounded 28 on May 03, 2017. However, the Taliban denied involvement in the Kabul attack, but Afghan intelligence said in a statement that they believe the Haqqani Network, a Pakistani group aligned with the Taliban, was behind it. It is highly unfortunate that Afghan officials without any verifications always put the muddle of their security hiatus on Pakistan. It is now typical of Afghan government to blame Pakistan for any kind of unrest in Afghanistan despite claims of incident by other sources. But the fact is now Afghan people who are always victims of such terror foiled attacks are getting frustrated with their government and security institutions and they blame their government for mishandling affairs of state. Noticeably, President Ghani with his prepared remarks in a press conference after this attack mentioned that Taliban sponsored terrorism is creating a platform that is bringing terrorists and criminals from all over the region to Afghanistan. Further Afghan President while denying blame game, did call out Pakistan, saying that despite attempts at negotiations to bring an end to conflict and terror, we have made little progress. He smartly ignored the Indian factor in Afghanistan and pointing indirectly towards Pakistan said that Afghanistan’s other Asian neighbours must also play a role. He said that “in the past there has been a misperception that this was ‘America’s War, by now that illusion should be finishedâ€. Later he called for peace talks with the group. But a Taliban spokesman after Ghani’s remarks said that talks are pointless while foreign troops remain in the country. Although the United States officially withdrew from Afghanistan in 2014, but it maintains a presence of about 8,400 troops there. Consequently, Afghanistan has become a chess board of the great game and crammed between altered strategic interests of global players. Pakistan being an ally in war against terrorism and a neighbour of Afghanistan suffers most for any kind of unrest through blame game. Pakistan, strongly rejected these baseless allegations that any of its institution was involved in the Kabul attack.
The stranded Afghan government which looms around political instability and mistrust among government and masses, is unable to tackle with Taliban insurgents and other attacks by IS in past few months.
The easiest way is to blame foreign hand and an escape to answer involvement of inner hand. The terrorist attacks are not limited to civilians but often military and government is target too. UN mission in Afghanistan in a report in April mentioned that Kabul is proving deadlier for civilians and had the highest number of civilian casualties due to suicide and complex attacks in Kabul city. So Afghanistan should aptly scrutinize its security subtleties and identify its friends and foes in order to have long term peace and stability in country.