Security officials have not confirmed whether the bomber of the suicide attack on vehicle of foreigners near airport was a female, as Hizb-e-Islami Gulbuddin (HIG) had claimed. A car filled with more than 400 pounds explosives was rammed into the bus carrying staff of a private air company contracted by the US Embassy. Eight foreigners, mostly South African, were killed. HIG claimed responsibility, saying the female bomber was named Fatima from Kabul. Engineer Haroon Zarghoon, HIG spokesman had called Kabul media from a Pakistani cell number saying the attack was in reaction to the anti-Islam film.

Those innocent civilian expats had nothing to do with the anti-Islam film. It is a rare attack in recent months claimed by HIG. The group has been in negotiations with Kabul off and on. But nothing has come out of the process. It was Hekmatyar's green signals in 2009 that encouraged President Karzai for the policy shift about talks with insurgents. Efforts were started since then.
Below is a glimpse of Hekmatyar's post-9/11 profile.

On February 19, 2003 the United States State Department and the United States Treasury Department jointly designated Hekmatyar a "global terrorist". The US Government also requested the United Nations Committee on Terrorism to follow suit, and designate Hekmatyar an associate of Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden. In May 2006, Hekmatyar released a video to, Al Jazeera, the only media network that all international terrorists are fond of, in which he said to be ready to fight alongside Osama Bin Laden and blamed the ongoing conflicts in Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan on US interference. Later in December 2006, another video of Hekmatyar was released in Pakistan, where he claimed "the fate Soviet Union faced is awaiting America as well."

In January 2007 CNN reported that Hekmatyar claimed "his fighters helped Osama Bin Laden escape from the mountains of Tora Bora five years ago." In another interview to Pakistani news channel Geo TV Hekmatyar said "we helped them [Osama Bin Laden and Zawahiri] get out of the caves and led them to a safe place.

Hizb-e-Islami has also claimed responsibility for the attempt on life of President Karzai on April 7, 2008 that killed three Afghan civilians and a member of parliament. HIG is also thought to be behind the January 2, 2008 shooting down of a helicopter containing foreign troops in the Laghman province and the shooting and forcing down a U.S. military helicopter in the Sarubi district of Kabul on January 22 and blowing up a Kabul police vehicle in March 2008, killing 10 soldiers.

Seeing this background, it was deemed a breakthrough when they showed serious willingness of talks when their delegation visited President Karzai and talks were held in Presidential Palace. It was interesting how Hekmatyar showed willingness for talks with the Government. The split-away of his many important commanders making a different faction of Hizb-e-Islami and joining the political mainstream was thought to be primary reason behind. Being underground, Gulbadin Hekmatyar's practical influence on his field commanders has become less influential. He was born in Kunduz and belongs to Kharoti tribe. Tribalism is an important factor that plays vital role in the ranks of insurgents. Hekmatyar does not have influential tribal roots.

An interesting, though irrelevant here, fact is that Hekmatyar before joining the radical Islamic militant fundamentalism was a communist ideologically! In 1972 he was jailed for killing a member of a Maoist group in Kabul University and was a pro-Soviet militant of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan.

When Taliban took over Kabul and most parts of Afghanistan, Hekmatyar fled to Iran in 1997 where he was living for over six years. He wrote some Jihadi books calling his fellow Muslims to join Jihad against the US. Tehran used to support his insurgent group for seven consecutive years. Under extreme international pressure, on February 10, 2002 all the offices of Hezb-e-Islami were closed in Iran and Hekmatyar was expelled by his Iranian hosts. Since then he has been leading the group from Pakistan.

There are reports of trilateral talks among Washington, Islamabad and Kabul to start soon and include negotiations with insurgents. In an interview with AP, Hina Rabbani Khar has said a key element of the talks will be to determine which militant groups can be persuaded to lay down their arms as part of Afghan reconciliation efforts. "This has to be a joint effort to determine who is a threat ... to determine how do we deal with those who are a threat, and how do we bring in those which are not"

U.S. officials are reported to be optimistic about the revival of trilateral talks, which broke off after the Salala attack on Pakistani check post by US troops. The US must pressurize Pakistan to change course regarding the safe havens for Haqqani Network. Hekmatyar is hiding there for several years and runs his bloodthirsty group. Islamabad should ask him to leave the country, which of course they will not by denying his presence. But Kabul and Washington should use all their options to persuade Pakistan to make the breakthrough with militant safe havens and support. It is the only way out of the current conflict. Talks with Taliban alone cannot be helpful unless Pakistan plays a positive role in the process.