Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan, after a decade of war against terrorism in the region is stilled deemed to be one of the vulnerable cities of the country. The city has been under massive Taliban insurgent raids during the last two weeks. On Monday, Jan 21, 2013 the capital was the stage of eight hours of gunfight following several bomb blasts in the early morning. The incident left at least three Kabul traffic police and five Taliban attackers dead.
Moreover, similar attacks had been taken out by the Taliban militants on Wednesday, Jan 16, 2013 nearby NDS gate which left behind many dead and several injured. On January, 16 when suicide bombers targeted National Directorate of Security (NDS) and killed and injured at least 20 people, questions were raised about alertness of the security forces and intelligence guys. Questions were raised because last month a suicide bomber successfully targeted Assadullah Khalid, NDS chief inside his guest house. Although he was lucky to survive and is currently under treatment in the United States, question that how the Taliban easily reach their targets still remains unanswered.
Kabul is not a big city but highly fortified. Security check posts have been established almost at every square. Police keep eye on vehicles and search the suspected ones.
Kabul is targeted from time to time and therefore the government struggles to keep its forces on high alert. That is vital as Kabul hosts more than four million of people and a single act of terrorism can result in high civilian causalities. Also, a noteworthy portion of population living in this city is formed by foreign civilians and army, high ranking government officials and VIPs.
All of them work and reside by hiding themselves behind thick security walls and their safety is conceived the foremost reason for the comparatively tighter security in Kabul. Security arrangements are always strict. Despite all these, yesterday a group of insurgents could carry their weaponry, explosives and suicide jackets to Traffic Department at Dehmazang square and launched attacks.
Since the last several months, the initiation of peace negotiations with Taliban is the topic of every talks and conferences around the globe like Turkey, Dubai and London. Pakistan continuously releases the Taliban detainees based on Afghan High Peace Council recommendations, but unfortunately what we observe on the ground is rather different than the reports published on the media channels.
Pakistan is releasing Taliban detainees up on the recommendations of Afghan officials, Afghan authorities are hopeful that these Taliban will have an influence on current Taliban soldiers on battleground and hope they can convince them to get along on negotiation table. Since the last two months around 25 Afghan Taliban detainees have been released out of Pakistani jails, but unfortunately no one knows whether they will take Afghan government’s side or will rejoin Taliban on battleground.
A senior Pakistani diplomat said on Friday that his government would release all Afghan Taliban prisoners in its custody, bolstering hopes for peace negotiations with the insurgents. But the diplomat, Jalil Jilani, a high-ranking Foreign Ministry official, did not specify when the detainees would be released, and a Western diplomat in Islamabad, speaking on the customary condition of anonymity, noted that Pakistan had previously stated its intention to eventually release all Afghan Taliban detainees.
Mr. Jilani declined to specify whether Abdul Ghani Baradar, a former Taliban deputy leader who was captured in Pakistan with American help, would be among those released, saying only that all prisoners would be freed and that “2013 will see concrete outcomes in the peace process.”
Afghan government has been trying to get the Taliban on negotiation table for a peaceful conclusion of the ongoing war, but Taliban have several times rejected negotiating with government and have usually responded with attacks on civilians and government properties. The last two most recent suicide attacks and rocket raids by militants are the clear prove of their intention and response to peace negotiations. The initiation of peace negotiation with Taliban insurgents by Afghan government along not being productive has even encouraged the insurgents to laugh at Afghan officials’ reaction and label it their victory of a decade of war. It is quite distressing that after slaughtering thousands of innocent lives, Afghan government is still eager to negotiate with Taliban.
The ideology of Taliban is based on pure Islamic Empire which is way different than Islamic constitution, for example, “Education is mandatory for both men and women which has been boldly stated in Holy Quran” but Taliban during six years of their government had closed all girls’ schools and had en-jailed the women behind the walls of misfortunes. They are still fighting on the bases of their ill and frustrating ideologies. Approaching to a peaceful end with Taliban whose constitution is based on ill ideologies is nothing more than day-dreaming.