Kabul using assassination as survival tactic

by: Muhammad Jalal

Ever since direct negotiation between the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and the United States about the withdrawal of invading troops began, a fearful Ashraf Ghani surrounded himself with warlords, mafia kingpins, notorious human rights abusers and war criminals. Asadullah Khalid and Amrullah Saleh were the first of these anti-peace and power-hungry individuals. Those occupying presidential palace are ethically and morally corrupt individuals who will do anything to prolong their illegitimate rule. In particular Amrullah Saleh, who is not shy about torturing and killing thousands of Afghans when he was serving as NDS chief, will try to remain in power at any cost. When children as little as 6 years old were killed in an airstrike on a madrassa in Takhar, he publicly justified it as revenge for the regime’s military losses. Subsequently, he fired the regime governor spokesperson who reported the killings. Later Ashraf Ghani issued a decree ordering the local spokespersons not to talk to the media.

Kabul administration’s forces have been badly defeated in Afghanistan by the forces of the Islamic Emirate. The battlefield losses for the Kabul administration are staggering and the rate of attrition of its forces rising steeply, fact widely acknowledged by the regime’s foreign advisors. Ashraf Ghani and his team are using two pronged approach to remain in power. Firstly, they are trying to sabotage the current peace process by creating obstacles throughout the process, with the saga of prisoner exchange serving as an example. Secondly, they use terror and target killing to create fear within their American and European backers so that they remain in Afghanistan indefinitely. The reason they are resorting to such tactics is because they have no roots and support within the society and without the presence of foreign troops, they will not remain in power.

It is happening at a time when multiparty team including members of Kabul administration have been negotiating with the Islamic Emirate to resolve the current conflict through peaceful means. As the talks are progressing because of the political maturity and will of the leadership of the Islamic Emirate, the Kabul regime is failing in its attempt to sabotage the process. Consequently, the regime is now resorting to tactics of assassinations and fear mongering. The regime has been killing every individual who were and are criticizing the leadership of  Kabul regime. They target journalists, civil society activists, and peace activists and then blame the Mujahidin of Islamic Emirate for it and silence anyone who reveals their crimes.

For Kabul administration, peace and stability mean the loss of the power as well as their political demise in Afghanistan. Therefore, the regime will continue to foment fear so that they can gain foreign military support and presence, which means prolonging the war at the cost of many Afghan lives.