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Afghans’
hopes for a better future evaporating |
Posted By Emile Tayyip
Another war dilemma is taking place in
Afghanistan these days as civilians'
dreams of building a new future for
themselves and their children are
melting away in front of their own
eyes.
Almost six years after Afghanistan was
invaded by the U.S. under the pretext
of destroying Al Qaeda and removing
the Taliban, the war-ravaged country
is left in utter chaos due to
increased warlord and Taliban
activity, growing illegal drug
production, and a fragile government
with limited control outside of Kabul.
After all these years, Afghans want
one thing; peace; however, the
foreign-led military operations are
not helping the civilians. According
to the Agence France-Presse (AFP),
violence has claimed the lives of at
least 600 Afghan civilians since the
start of this year, about half of them
killed in Taliban attacks.
Surprisingly, the United Nations
reported that the other half has been
killed by foreign and Afghan troops
who are there to protect civilians in
the first place!
"We were initially thinking that
maybe we would have schools for our
children, for their future. But now we
are afraid for our lives,” said
Khair Mohammed, a 49 year-old Afghan
civilian who lives in a district in
the southern province of Helmand that
was pounded by deadly air strikes last
week.
The British-run Helmand was bombed
last week for three hours after what
UK officials said was a Taliban ambush
on a joint U.S.-Afghan army convoy.
According to the Guardian Unlimited,
Mohammad Hussein, the provincial
police chief, said the rebels fled to
a nearby village for cover. Foreign
planes then targeted the village of
Hyderabad. Mohammad Khan, a resident
of the village, said seven members of
his family, including his brother and
five of his brother's children, were
killed in the bloody attacks.
Kandahar; a city located in southern
Afghanistan, is not stable either,
facing the same destiny as the rest of
the war-torn country. Zia-Allah, a
22-year-old taxi driver spoke of the
fear that his city is facing as four
civilians were shot; one of whom died,
last week by Afghan troops. Nato’s
International Security Assistance
Force (ISAF) claimed that the men had
ignored warnings to keep away from a
convoy and only two were wounded.
Concerns have been raised recently
that the American General Dan McNeil,
who took command of the 32,000 Nato
troops in Afghanistan, was 'a fan' of
the massive use of air power to defeat
insurgents and that his favored
tactics could be counter-productive.
Such brutal tactics prompted many
Afghans to consider abandoning their
own country instead of drawing up new
plans for their children, their
schools, or healthcare programs.
Although southern Afghanistan suffer
as much as the east, most Afghans
blame U.S. soldiers for the mounting
civilian death toll, especially after
they opened fire on locals on the 19th
of March after a bomb explosion.
ISAF and U.S. officials admit that
civilian killings are always a
mistake. But Afghans wonder whether an
apology is enough for the grieving
families who thought the U.S. was
there to help?
According to Nader Nadery, from the
Afghanistan Human Rights Commission,
civilians are starting to be filled
with frustration as they watch the
foreign-led army sacrificing civilian
lives to catch militants. "Unless
there is more coordination, unless
this is immediate compensation to
families affected and proper
investigations, we will not be able to
win this war against the
Taliban," Nadery said.
The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon
also said last week that “civilian
casualties, no matter how accidental,
strengthen our enemies and undermine
our efforts."
Waheed Mujdah, a political analyst,
agreed, warning against possible
mobilizing against U.S. and Nato
forces. "Afghanistan is at the
edge a severe crisis. We will face an
uprising if this continues.”
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