Browsing among news of Afghanistan in the internet the other day, I came across an article headed: Rival Warlords Control Afghan City. It bothered me much and a thought came to me that we may be again facing what the Afghans have been praying to get rid of once and for all time. Factional rule, whether in a city or a province or a region of Afghanistan such as there was until the hated Taliban removed the threat during their five-year rule. This is a scary new development and I sincerely hope the Americans know of its damages to the country soon enough. Afghanistan has been the one country where many tribes and races have lived under one rule without much trouble until the rule of Mujahedeen after the Russian expulsion by them. What seemed nouveau feudalism was done away with by Taliban. If they had not sheltered Osama ben Laden and if Osama had not moved his Al Qa'eda followers into Afghanistan, they might have ruled over the entire country in spite of their strict pursuit of what they thought Islamic law was. They had, at one time, said that they would open schools for girls and higher education for all when the country was completely under their control.

Nothing happened and their actions became unbearable by members of the Afghan nation not only on the subject of education for girls, work outside the home for women, their unfounded understanding of Islam, and their stubborn adherence to a tradition of sheltering someone who claimed he had no where else to go. And not only that, but aiding him, or at least, maintaining a " don't see, don't hear" attitude about ben Laden's destructive activities outside Afghanistan.

September 11 changed all that. The American declaration of war on terrorists, on December 22nd, and those who shelter them, ended Taliban for good. At least we, who are interested in their total downfall, hope so.

What is now bothering well-wishers of Afghanistan is that the American Special Forces seem to be playing "the old game of power-brokering with Afghan warlords." Kathy Gannon, an Associated Press writer says about Khost, where two persons are carrying on an act of rivalry with the quiet knowledge of the American authorities: "The rampant lawlessness threatens to explode into tribal warfare--which could shift local loyalties back toward the Taliban, creating an even more hostile environment for U.S. forces operating in the region." She goes on to claim that the American forces are paying $200 a month to men they have recruited for Bacha Khan Zadran, a local warlord, and Khost's police commander, Mohammad Mustafa, to help secure the area. But these two leaders have been embroiled in a battle of their own for control of Khost. In just one day five people had lost their lives in gun battles. Men with rocket-launchers have taken to Khost rooftops. And "coalition forces have been forced to call in an AC-130 helicopter and a bomber to respond to machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars fired on their positions." Does not anyone know what more loss of life and property this sort of activity would cause?

This has to be remedied and soon. What if similar situations erupt elsewhere in the country? Already the loyalties of some of provincial governors are in doubt. It was said of Ismail Khan who was anxious to know whether he was recognized as the governor of Heart or that he may continue calling himself the Ameer of five provinces in western Afghanistan. The same way it is not known whether Dostum takes his appointment as the Deputy Defense Minister of Hamid Karzai's government in transition, or he is busy expanding his rule of the Mazar Province and building new residences and offices there for himself. One hopes that the coalition forces carry on their work of searching for Osama ben Laden, the remaining Taliban and Al Qa'eda terrorists and let Hamid Karzai carry on his duties as the Head of transition government in Afghanistan.

03/25/2002