Is The Taliban Regaining Strength In Afghanistan?

A series of increasingly bold moves are now being made in Afghanistan by Taliban militants. Is The Taliban Regaining Strength In Afghanistan?By Cliff Montgomery – Nov. 7th, 2007A bomb attack killed several Afghan lawmakers Tuesday as they talked with children while visiting a sugar factory in the country’s normally subdued north. At least 28 Afghans lost their lives in the blast, including five members of parliament and several children.American-backed President Hamid Karzai said the “the enemies of peace and security” are to blame for the explosion–it is an understandable euphemism which Karzai regularly employs when referring to the Taliban.While the Taliban has denied direct involvement, it may well be the work of their militant allies,  al-Qaeda. In any case, such apparent increased activity from those groups responsible for the September 11th, 2001 attacks on America poses a frightening question: Is the Taliban regaining its former strength throughout Afghanistan?Shortly before the blast, schoolchildren, government officials and tribal elders lined the streets as they greeted 18 lawmakers about to enter a sugar factory in the town of Baghlan, which is about 95 miles to the north of Kabul, Afghanistan’s capital.”The children were standing on both sides of the street, and were shaking the hands of the officials, then suddenly the explosion happened,” Mohammad Yousuf Fayez, a doctor at Baghlan’s main hospital, told Associated Press (AP).Reports from officials did not agree on whether the attack had been a planted bomb, or the work of a suicide bomber. If indeed a suicide bomber performed the massacre, it would strongly indicate that al-Qaeda or the Taliban were responsible.No one acknowledged responsibility for the bombing, and a declared Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, claimed the Islamist group was not involved.”The Taliban doesn’t target civilians,” he lied.In fact, the Taliban typically targets security forces and government leaders–Afghan and otherwise–and gladly kills any civilians standing nearby. But the majority of those attacks occur in Afghanistan’s east or south.If this is a Taliban bombing, it would be largest number of public officials the Islamist group has ever killed at once.The Ministry of Interior has said that at least 28 individuals were killed by the blast, making it one of the most heinous attacks this year.More than half of those wounded were schoolchildren, Dr. Fayez told AP. No one could immediately verify the number of children killed by the blast.Lawmaker Shukria Barakzai told AP that 18 of the 249 officials who make up Afghanistan’s lower parliamentary house were in Baghlan at the time of the explosion, and that 13 of the attacked members were dead or “in danger.”Afghan President Hamid Karzai acknowledged the deaths of five parliament members. Department of Agriculture officials and police officers also were among the dead.”This heinous act of terrorism is against Islam and humanity and I condemn it in the strongest possible terms,” said Karzai in a statement.”It is the work of the enemies of peace and security in Afghanistan,” he added.But this appears to be only one of many bolder moves now being made in Afghanistan by those associated with either the Taliban or al-Qaeda.On Nov. 1st, Afghan officials admitted to The New York Times that hundreds of Taliban militants had been clashing with security forces near Kandahar, the largest city in southern Afghanistan, for two days before being beaten back.Villagers told the Times that Taliban fighters left the area on Wednesday night, after proclaiming that they were only trying to spread their ideas.“They told us, ‘We are here for two days. We are not here to fight; we are here to preach…to make the people aware to not help the infidels and their cronies,’ ”  Abdul Samad, an farmer living around Kandahar, told the Times.The battle with NATO and Afghan forces occurred just 15 miles to the north of Kandahar. It was the biggest threat this major Afghan city had seen from Taliban forces since 2001. Many villagers fled the area, afraid of a major battle.Abdullah Jan, one of the villagers who stayed in the area, told the Times that many Taliban militants looked to be about 18-20 years old. A few wore scarves over their faces, a sign that “they were not Afghans,” he said.Taliban fighters also took control of two districts in western Afghanistan’s Farah Province earlier last week,  Afghan officials admitted to the Times on Nov.1st. The Taliban militants drove off local police forces; they torched a police station, and may have similarly destroyed others.Like what you’re reading so far? Then why not order a full year (52 issues) of thee-newsletter for only $15? A major article covering an story not being told in the Corporate Press will be delivered to your email every Monday morning for a full year, for less than 30 cents an issue. Order Now!