In a statement released today on Voice of Jihad, the Afghan Taliban’s official website, the group criticizes the US and NATO for destroying combat outposts and other bases built over the years, claiming that the “Afghans hold due right of these installations because they are built on the land of the Afghans and with money collected in their name.”
The Taliban clearly have an interest in having the bases left behind. They state that “[l]eaving these installations is very beneficial for the persecuted Afghan people,” and ask if the dismantling of the bases is the “re-construction of re-destruction.” The Taliban call these bases “infrastructure,” and want them intact, which is ironic given that the Taliban have blocked and sabotaged the building of schools, medical clinics, roads, dams, and other “infrastructure” projects.
In the past, the Taliban have occupied abandoned US combat outposts, and have even issued videotapes of Taliban forces touring the sites. Two of the more prominent videos were produced after the Taliban took control of Combat Outpost Tangi in Wardak province, and another base in the Pech Valley in Kunar province.
Also of note is the final paragraph, in which the Taliban urge the Afghan government to switch sides. Clearly, the Taliban are beginning to step up their propaganda in an effort to get elements of the Afghan government and military to join them as US and NATO forces begin drawing down at the end of the summer:
They [the Afghan government] should now understand the realities, recognize the nation’s friend from foe, instead of still standing behind the occupiers and killing its own people, it should help its people in kicking them out. Whatever you did is past, now is high time you focused on the future of this country and its people.
The Taliban statement is reproduced in full below:
Statement of Islamic Emirate regarding the destruction of infrastructure by NATOThe wrapping up of occupation is indeed a proud moment for the Afghans. It is hoped that our beloved country frees itself from the accursed clutches of this invasion. There should be no doubt that none of this would be possible if not for the help of Allah Almighty and the innumerous sacrifices of this proud nation.
Although the withdrawal of the invaders is a positive step however the destruction of infrastructure is absolutely irrational. The Afghans hold due right of these installations because they are built on the land of the Afghans and with money collected in their name.
Firstly the occupiers invaded the Afghan nation in violation of all established rules, constructed military installations without the consent of its people and now they are being destroyed in yet another act of violation. The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, besides condemning this act, calls on the invaders and their allies to withhold from breaching any further rights of the Afghans.
Leaving these installations is very beneficial for the persecuted Afghan people. It can clearly be seen from this that the occupiers do not care about the interests of the Afghans. They shouted empty slogans of reconstruction but are now openly carrying out destruction of facilities built with the money of the Afghan people. Is this re-construction of re-destruction! It is a common rule that money be spent on development however they are spending millions on destruction of this country!! which if were instead spent on reconstruction, would eliminate a lot of the problems of the people. They have always chosen destruction for other nations. All they ever do is annihilation. They came in with destruction and are now leaving with destruction. The stooge Kabul administration, which toiled in the lap of the invaders for the past decade and is still at it, is so worthless to them that they won’t even give them a few outposts. Is this the repayment for ten year slavery?
Even the stooge Kabul administration has to now realize that their masters were neither beneficial for them nor for the nation. They should now understand the realities, recognize the nation’s friend from foe, instead of still standing behind the occupiers and killing its own people, it should help its people in kicking them out. Whatever you did is past, now is high time you focused on the future of this country and its people.
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3 Comments
Given that they like to occupy our abandoned bases, I have never understood why we don’t booby-trap, or better yet bug the bases. It seems like a missed opportunity. At least have some drones overhead to wait for the inevitible “tour” of the base, and then blast ’em.
The Taliban need to work on their skills of persuasion a little more. You can’t expect someone to join your cause after you insult them in one long diatribe, calling them “stooges”, and basically sellouts. As well as calling them “apostate puppets”, daily, in other articles.
The Taliban lie through their teeth in their statements, claiming Afghanistan is “only for Afghan Muslims”. But what about the foreign fighter extremists streaming into the country still? It’s ironic the Taliban say they hate foreigners in their lands but yet they openly welcome foreigners with an extremist ideology that is mostly Arab in nature and goes against some local traditions that Afghans hold dear.
If the Taliban want people to listen to them, they need to get their information right if anything. If anything, *THEY* are the puppets of foreigners, doing anything an Arab or a Chechen in a long beard tells them to do, as long as he points his finger in the air and spouts verses from the Quran. These foreigners tread on local traditions of the people and they never get punished for it, because they apparently know the “true Islam” better than anybody else.
“One should examine oneself for a very long time before thinking of condemning others.” ~Moliere
Responding to both the article and the post above me by Sundoesntrise
The flowery rhetoric is something the Afghans have heard many timesand identify with. Invaders, bandits, hooligans,gangsters for the out of town boys. Traitors, stooges apostates for the local boys. We heard this talk in Chechnya (via the kavkazcenter). It denotes those who will feel the hand of Allah. By warning the alleged apostates (local afghans who have sided with the government forces) they are giving notice of the grievance against them as the Koran demands be done. They are both putting the accused on notice ( again) and warning of the consequences (the fate of apostates). The message also goes out to other Muslims so that they can see the Taliban are following Koranic principles. Steps you take before battle, in this case perhaps a final battle to settle the score that will result in the deaths of not only many Muslims but also almost exclusively Muslims. This will require explanation to many devout Muslims.
They are also extending an olive branch to those who have decided that they have cast their last “die” in the game and will be persecuted to the end and cannot switch sides by pulling a Dostum”. That they may seek redemption by turning on the “invaders” gives them one last hope to redeem themselves before the fate of the apostates is meted out by the victorious Mujaheddin in the Taliban view.
I have never been to Afghanistan but my understanding of the people is that they are very tribal, a place where the sins of the father really do get passed along 7 generations both up and down the family tree. With that in mind I found this line from the Taliban statement very disturbing,
‘Whatever you did is past, now is high time you focused on the future of this country and its people’.
I fear that many Afghans will see the predicament they are in, perhaps their family lives in Pushtu areas, perhaps worse yet they were a Pushtu that joined with the government. They will worry about the safety of their families and will seek some form of redemption for their actions even at the cost of their own lives. If they cannot get their families to safety then they must do something. I fear they will follow the trend line developing now (green on blue attacks) and this type of conciliatory message from the Taliban IMO is a disaster for ISAF forces. I can very easily see another potential “flash over” event like the burning of a Koran or a massacre in a defenseless village, rape of a child, sport killing of innocent Afghans by packs of sadistic soldiers actually flashing over before the ISAF forces can pull off a graceful ( lucky) exit as the Soviets did in the late 80’s. What needed to be done in Afghanistan has been accomplished. Lets bring our citizens and warriors home to their families. TIME NOW!