First Person: Why I Joined the Taliban

[Maiwand]

The AP spoke to a Taliban soldier about why he joined the group, and why he thinks the Taliban is winning the now 10-year-old war in Afghanistan. (Oct. 5)

”Hope” of better security and peace broken into pieces by illegal invasion of NATO.

“In the beginning when the Americans came and attacked Afghanistan, the Afghan nation was thinking that we would have a new life and we will have security and America will rebuild our country. That is why the whole nation stood by America and government. Now the nation has seen so much oppression from Americans, their night raids, searching homes killing the women and children and the old men. They are going around in the name of rebuilding but instead they are killing. Now the nation is with Taliban.”

[sanman]

If he didn't want invasion by NATO, maybe he should ask AlQaeda why they blew up WTC.
It seems AlQaeda did want invasion by NATO.

[kakargirl]

Thats exactly what i saw back home people were cursing nato, in the name of build they have destroyed so much, nato hardly investigates night raids or the facts how many kids or women have died by chance if theres a reporter from outside hidden, news gets out, and they pretend to brush it aside by saying yes it happened but taliban were in the house when really it was women and kids, to them those civilians are nothing.

[sanman]

shut UP.
we asked for prove's WHERE ARE your mum prove's ?
it was an inside job you ahmaq.

ignorance is bliss - that's why you hope to reach paradise

"moon-landing was fake! they filmed it in a studio!"

[randolph85]

If he didn't want invasion by NATO, maybe he should ask AlQaeda why they blew up WTC.
It seems AlQaeda did want invasion by NATO.

aq are nobodies, even at the height of their power their numbers were no more than a couple thousand scattered fighters. according to more recent figures, they are no more than a couple dozen in afghanistan. the taliban-aq relationship was not exactly friendly prior to 9/11 according to talib and aq associates, not to mention one of bin ladens own sons. its the taliban who offered to give up bin laden prior to the bombing of afghanistan. it was also abdul haq who begged the westerners not to bomb afg because he thought he could cause a coup in the government. both sides were ignored because the US wanted a shock and awe. if aq wanted a nato invasion, nato was more than happy to be played by them and oblige. like the russians though, nato thought this war would be quick, swift, and cheap.

[sanman]

No, my recollection is quite clear. Taliban were not willing to give up Bin Laden (hell, even Pakistan was not willing to give up Bin Laden, and kept him sheltered near their national military academy)

Taliban did try to play a game like Jamaludeen, where they said "We will consider your extradition request IF YOU GIVE GOOD PROOF" They stupidly thought they could keep others jumping through hoops trying to satisfy them. What stupid children they were, attempting a child's game.

Coup in the govt? Coup against whom? Emir-ul-Momineen?

AlQaeda certainly wanted a Western invasion, but NATO wasn't more than happy to oblige. As you know, many NATO member govts imposed restrictions on where their troops could be deployed in Afghanistan, in order to keep them away from fighting.
Given the history of previous Afghan Wars, none of the NATO members thought the war would be a cakewalk.

Only reason war has been cheap for Pakistan/ISI is because they suckered the West into paying them for shooting their own troops.
But that charade cannot go on forever, and has worn out. In the future, Pakistan will have to pay for its own war, and it cannot match the rest of the world. Heck, Pakistan can't even keep its own economy above water anymore. The strain from playing all these games will eventually break them.

[randolph85]

your recollection skips by the months. the taliban were not going to give up bin laden. first of all, why would they when there is no extradition treaty? the taliban for years tried to gain US and UN recognition to no avail. after that, prior to when the war was imminent the taliban offered to give up bin laden with no strings attached according to people like mutawakil and zaeef.

do u really think the US government wanted to talk to people they thought they could steamroll over in a few weeks, not knowing this war would be their longest and most complicated?

e-Ariana - Todays Afghan News

It didn't matter how remarkable Haq's plan was, because the Bush administration wasn't interested in anything short of "shock and awe". Edwards quotes UK parliamentarian Paddy Ashdown explaining to a colleague why Haq's peace plan had to be deferred: "... you must accept there has to be a fireworks display, a significant fireworks display, the Americans are demanding it and not until after the firework display can we continue the debate."

the US could of taken out the aq leadership and foot soldiers with their drones and special forces based in pakistan and the central asian states. this war was not just about some arabs in afghanistan.

[randolph85]

Coup in the govt? Coup against whom? Emir-ul-Momineen?

Haq had struck deals with moderate elements at the highest levels of the Taliban military and government, many of whom he commanded during the Soviet jihad. After 9/11 the Taliban's Eastern Corps Commander, three divisional commanders in Kabul and three others in Hezarac, Gardez and Ghazni all agreed to turn over their entire units upon Haq's command.
At this point Edwards seems to experience an epiphany of sorts, realizing how close Haq really was to decapitating the Taliban overnight, and with little bloodshed. It's hard not to be gripped by this scene, as Edwards writes:

My eyes widened as Gunston went on: "Do you understand? He'd broken the back of the Taliban. Just look at the map!" It was true. The places he'd mentioned -- Ghazni, Gardez and Hezarac -- were all former Taliban strongholds, lying in an arc throughout the southern part of the country.

Although Haq was on the verge of breaking the key vertebrae of the Taliban movement, he knew a U.S. bombardment would foil his entire strategy. The Afghans would unite against any invader, despite their differences, as they have for centuries. To understand why, Gunston tells Edwards one only has to remember Churchill's quote from the Malakand Campaign, 1898: "Khan assails Khan, valley against valley, but all unite against the foreigner".
Haq's tragic flaw was that he was his own man. He drew the CIA's ire when he denounced their outsourcing of Afghanistan's future to Pakistan's spy agency, the ISI, during the war against the Soviets. The ISI funneled millions in CIA cash to the most radical elements of the mujahideen while neglecting traditional tribal leaders like Haq. Pakistan did everything in its power to thwart the establishment of a nationalist moderate government in Afghanistan, preferring to install messianic extremists beholden to Islamabad. Sadly, the ISI was so threatened by Haq they killed his wife and children in 1999.

[sanman]

your recollection skips by the months. the taliban were not going to give up bin laden. first of all, why would they when there is no extradition treaty? the taliban for years tried to gain US and UN recognition to no avail. after that, prior to when the war was imminent the taliban offered to give up bin laden with no strings attached according to people like mutawakil and zaeef.

Extradition treaty?? Are you kidding me? Somebody bombs their largest city and the pentagon, and you're looking for an extradition treaty to hand him over??
"And wait - you didn't say 'Please'"

After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, nobody asked them for an extradition treaty. The treaties were all written after 2 of their cities were glowing in the dark.

do u really think the US government wanted to talk to people they thought they could steamroll over in a few weeks, not knowing this war would be their longest and most complicated?

Do you really see anyone who's benefited from talking to the Taliban?

US casualties in Afghanistan are barely 3% of what they were in Vietnam War. Please don't make comparisons you can't validate.
I guess Taliban wish they had jungles to fight in, but if wishes were horses then beggars would ride.

the US could of taken out the aq leadership and foot soldiers with their drones and special forces based in pakistan and the central asian states. this war was not just about some arabs in afghanistan.

As I recall, at the time the US hadn't really started using predator drones in earnest as an efficient tool to destroy enemy targets. It's only with all the practice over the past 10 years that the predator drones have become efficient weapons.

As you may recall, prior to 9-11 the US wanted nothing to do with Afghanistan. But now you'll have me believe there's suddenly something secretly special for them to want there? Sorry, but it was 9-11.

Most countries I know don't like suffering major attacks like that. Call me a dreamer, but I'm pretty sure about that. if you don't believe me, go call up some govt of your choosing, and say you want to give them a 9-11 type of attack -- see what they say.

[khushal]

sanman,
so do you have any evidence of why you beleive the Taliban were trained by brezinski and how brezinski had mind control over them.

[Soldat_Amir]

No, my recollection is quite clear. Taliban were not willing to give up Bin Laden (hell, even Pakistan was not willing to give up Bin Laden, and kept him sheltered near their national military academy)

Taliban did try to play a game like Jamaludeen, where they said "We will consider your extradition request IF YOU GIVE GOOD PROOF" They stupidly thought they could keep others jumping through hoops trying to satisfy them. What stupid children they were, attempting a child's game.

Coup in the govt? Coup against whom? Emir-ul-Momineen?

AlQaeda certainly wanted a Western invasion, but NATO wasn't more than happy to oblige. As you know, many NATO member govts imposed restrictions on where their troops could be deployed in Afghanistan, in order to keep them away from fighting.
Given the history of previous Afghan Wars, none of the NATO members thought the war would be a cakewalk.

Only reason war has been cheap for Pakistan/ISI is because they suckered the West into paying them for shooting their own troops.
But that charade cannot go on forever, and has worn out. In the future, Pakistan will have to pay for its own war, and it cannot match the rest of the world. Heck, Pakistan can't even keep its own economy above water anymore. The strain from playing all these games will eventually break them.

Not just that, what about the "operation airlift of evil" whereby Paksitan airlifted 1000s of ISI officers with Taliban leaders and Alqueda figures from Kunduz. Goes to show once again, ISI and Taliban are one and people who disagree with that, need to ask themselves why was so many ISI officers tolerated in Afghanistan, for what purpose and reason?

Plus Maiwand, why dont you join the Taliban and burn your Dutch passport since you are living on the land of the kuffur.

same with Kakargirl, another one who enjoys their cosy beds while Taliban blow up markets, schools and terrorise innocent people.

At times, i really dont blame far right european groups about people like Maiwand and Kakargirl, they have no consideration towards the evil the Alqueda and Taliban do, while they themselves live and never been to Afghanistan or Pakhtunkhwa themselves, and given the option, they would live in the Kuffur West instead of under Mullah Omar.

Taliban and Alqueda, sheltered a man responsible for blowing up many things and many innocent people, he himself confessed to his Arab glory many times.

instead of taking the innocent Afghan into consideration, they declared ISI Jihad on America and now reaping the consequences.

Sadly, the Taliban hide in Pakistan, and do hit and runs in Afghanistan, Nobody in Afghanistan likes the Taliban or Supports them.

The taliban terrorise people into supporting them, but spend most of their time in Karachi,Quetta etc.

The only support they have, is from wealthy rich Arabs, ISI and confused Muslims living in the West.

[al-arab]

Why is this Sanman not banned?

He clearly tries to divide us Muslims. He is either a American or hindu Indian living in the west.

As everybody apart from you and your communist friend, soldat-amir has told you, there were few hundred Al Qaeda fighters at the highest before 9/11. The same is truth now.

[randolph85]

Extradition treaty?? Are you kidding me? Somebody bombs their largest city and the pentagon, and you're looking for an extradition treaty to hand him over??
"And wait - you didn't say 'Please'"

After Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, nobody asked them for an extradition treaty. The treaties were all written after 2 of their cities were glowing in the dark.

yes, its called what states do when dealing with people who are responsible for crimes against the other state while living in another. and btw, it was not the taliban who attacked america, and there is no evidence in 10 yrs that shows the taliban had anything to do with the attacks, much less know about them.

Do you really see anyone who's benefited from talking to the Taliban?

US casualties in Afghanistan are barely 3% of what they were in Vietnam War. Please don't make comparisons you can't validate.
I guess Taliban wish they had jungles to fight in, but if wishes were horses then beggars would ride.

who have talked to the taliban and for what reasons? the fact that no one has talked to them is probably the issue here.

the issue is not casualties. kill 10,000 US soldiers, and u can replace those meatheads with no problem. the issue is the cost of the war. taking inflation into consideration, afghanistan has cost about the same, if not more, than the war in vietnam.

As you may recall, prior to 9-11 the US wanted nothing to do with Afghanistan. But now you'll have me believe there's suddenly something secretly special for them to want there? Sorry, but it was 9-11.

US oil companies who invited taliban delegations to texas and elsewhere in the US may beg to differ. there are also bases in most of the central asian states which americans can't find on the map or have even heard of.

[kakargirl]

Not just that, what about the "operation airlift of evil" whereby Paksitan airlifted 1000s of ISI officers with Taliban leaders and Alqueda figures from Kunduz. Goes to show once again, ISI and Taliban are one and people who disagree with that, need to ask themselves why was so many ISI officers tolerated in Afghanistan, for what purpose and reason?

Plus Maiwand, why dont you join the Taliban and burn your Dutch passport since you are living on the land of the kuffur.

same with Kakargirl, another one who enjoys their cosy beds while Taliban blow up markets, schools and terrorise innocent people.

At times, i really dont blame far right european groups about people like Maiwand and Kakargirl, they have no consideration towards the evil the Alqueda and Taliban do, while they themselves live and never been to Afghanistan or Pakhtunkhwa themselves, and given the option, they would live in the Kuffur West instead of under Mullah Omar.

Taliban and Alqueda, sheltered a man responsible for blowing up many things and many innocent people, he himself confessed to his Arab glory many times.

instead of taking the innocent Afghan into consideration, they declared ISI Jihad on America and now reaping the consequences.

Sadly, the Taliban hide in Pakistan, and do hit and runs in Afghanistan, Nobody in Afghanistan likes the Taliban or Supports them.

The taliban terrorise people into supporting them, but spend most of their time in Karachi,Quetta etc.

The only support they have, is from wealthy rich Arabs, ISI and confused Muslims living in the West.

I really think you need a hair cut i think its getting in the way of your eyes ,so i will repeat my self like a pathetic parrot, although my science teacher use to say don't boil your cabages twice, but any way here it goes,i left my cosy bed to go and live in helmand where you wouldn't even put a foot in but its my home i love it ,my family my relatives are there ,unlike you i stay awake with all that i saw back home i lost my sanity for a good while, so the cosy bed is useless, my heart jumps at the telephone call , who's dead now and again i will repeat the taliban in Helmand are born bread helmand pure pashtuns more are joining them , they want revenge they have lost familys to drones the night raids rapes they really don't care anymore , and alot good soldiers know the truth that its a unjust war on civilians, when you kill some ones family you want revenge, my last post to you soldat i have nothing against you, but i'v seen too much right now my minds on the orphans you see no one raises you like your own parents do, and no one loves you like your own parents do. so khodai pa aman soldat

[Catya Sher]

^ Powerful post, Kakargirl !

What's all this about Abdul Haq all of a sudden?
Maybe I've missed out on previous discussions.

I met him during the anti-Soviet jihad when he was
a Jamiat commander much favored by ...Americans and British
in fact. Reporters that I knew really doted on him.
I didn't like him that well myself. He was OK, but did not
seem as stellar as they all raved about him as being.

So the ISI killed his wife and daughter in 1999 ?
That sounds like an unsubstantiated claim if there ever was one.

Is this all coming from the e-Ariana link?

Apparently the article is referring to John Gunston, who wrote about the
military side. I didn't know he was still involved in Afghan politics that much later.