The World Abandons the Afghans Again

Source: AP

Let’s move beyond the idea of Afghanistan being a mysterious mountainous country in Central Asia. Let’s move beyond the idea that is an unconquerable, unscalable terrain where superpowers go to die. Let’s even move beyond the idea that it was where Osama Bin Laden was taking refuge during the Mullah Omar Taliban regime.

Let’s think about the Afghans for a minute. What they have gone through for the last five decades.

Think about the women and children stranded outside Kabul To many Airport as the city was falling to the Taliban. Think about the others throwing their babies over the fence to US soldiers. Think about the men clinging on to the landing gear of the escaping B-57s and falling into the abyss of death. Nobody with a will to live or any hope for a future would do any of that.

Biden responds to his administration's recent crises: "Take a look at what I inherited when I came into office, the state of affairs and where we were. We had 4 million people vaccinated, we had no plan — I could go down the list…I'm not complaining, it's just the reality." pic.twitter.com/xPT6TfOn4J

— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 24, 2021

Perhaps all the considerations for Afghan human rights were overlooked when President Biden decided to evacuate the military in the most bizarre fashion. To many, it seemed that it has undone all the hard work that the United States and its allies had put in to return Afghanistan to civilization. President Bush called the withdrawal a mistake, and while you can blame all the ills of the world on him, he deserves credit for dismantling the Mullah Umer Taliban regime in Kabul, which is back under occupation now.

First of all, even the idea of negotiating with the medieval-minded Taliban was an abomination, I guess nobody is surprised that the Taliban while the Americans conveniently made a deal with them for their exit. The role Pakistan has played in this transition has been disgusting to say the least. Pakistan has been using the Afghan people for its supposed strategic depth to fend off foreign threats from Afghanistan. Its policy of funding and supporting Islamic fundamentalism in Afghanistan has only made its Western border more insecure instead of secure, while also destroying Afghan society in the process. With their mixed signalling of both urging the US not to leave and facilitating the Taliban to the gates of Kabul, with Pakistani ISI chief praying alongside them, is a new low even for a morall bankrupt regime like Pakistan.

https://twitter.com/MeetMalcom/status/1427389139188658178

It is perhaps not enough cost to pay that the Taliban are searching house to house looking for the allies who served the US forces and international organizations. It is perhaps not enough cost to pay that the Taliban are beheading sportswomen and murdering comedians. It is perhaps not enough cost that the Afghan society has been condemned into dark ages for the foreseeable future again. But of course, you had to stop forever wars.

There is no wonder that the United States could not fund Afghanistan forever. There is no wonder that the Afghan government and its bureaucracy were rife with corruption. There is no wonder that the allied forces had to exit at some stage. But like this? It has been the greatest disgrace for the United States since the Capitol riots, if not since Vietnam or ever.

The worst nightmare of the people of the Taliban has come true. Perhaps the moment Donald Trump and Joe Biden were elected.