Taliban: Seven years of missing the obvious

taliban. More British-born Muslims ...In his interview to Time magazine on December 29, 2008, President-elect Obama has spelt out his foreign policy priorities. He has said, among other things, “Managing a more effective strategy in Afghanistan will be a top priority. Recognising that it is not simply an Afghan problem but it’s an Afghanistan-Pakistan-India-Kashmir-Iran problem is going to be a priority.” It is strange that neither terrorism nor jihadi extremism figures in this formulation. Prima facie it would suggest that the incoming administration looks at the issue as a regional interstate problem.

Let us remind Obama and his team that this phase of the Afghan problem started with ‘Operation Enduring Freedom’ in October 2001 following the refusal of the Taliban regime in Kabul to surrender Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda cadres. The Taliban regime was cleared out of Afghanistan by the US Special Forces and troops of the Northern Alliance supported by US air power. As the operation was coming to a close and Osama bin Laden and remnants of Al Qaeda were cornered in the Torah Borah mountains, terrorists with links to Pakistan’s ISI attacked the Indian parliament. That compelled India to mobilise its forces on the border. Pakistan countered that move and by vacating its western borders permitted Al Qaeda and Taliban leadership to find safe havens in Pakistan. It is now quite clear that the attack on the Indian Parliament was a provocative ruse to trap India into a military move which would justify Pakistan’s convenient troop withdrawal.
K. Subrahmanyam
Posted: Jan 02, 2009 at 2222 hrs IST
Read more...Seven years of missing the obvious by K.Subrahmanyam

Two decades of incessant bleating about terrorism radiating from pakistan and over analysiing the same has left us in a state of frozen inaction. Need of the hour is resolute action, action and more action. Gita says do your duty do not worry or expect fruits.
g.chandra mohan on 2009-01-02 15:28:53.177699+05:30