Muhammad Sharif Otho
Taliban reclaimed power over Kabul without firing a bullet as they vowed to become tolerant and inclusive this time. Contrary to their promises , women and ethnic minorities were not given their share in power and promised rights. With this , US marines and many civilians were killed and Afghanistan remained a battleground between US and different militant groups. Keeping in mind the current situation, sanctions and isolation seem inevitable for the people of Afghanistan which is likely to deteriorate the conditions of Afghanistan. Making Afganistan a pariah state will make it “safe heaven” for terrorists but hell for its citizens and neighbors.Noam Chomsky argued that US withholding Funds policy and of isolating Afghanistan will only harm laymen as it did in Iraq & Iran. Economic sanctions and military operation didn’t curb terrorism rather spread it across muslim world. The world only had Al-Qaeda to fight two decades ago but the US’s unwitting policies gave birth to ISIS , Taliban , TTP , ISS-K and many other terrorist organizations. Another point to ponder over is that the Taliban already have a Heroin and opium trade networks with many countries, including European , which helped them finance their insurgency . Hence the sanctions won’t do much harm to them but would be a havoc for common people who have suffered double yoke of extremist militants and imperialist US. Moreover , it was the US military action which killed and still kills scores of civilians making Taliban their messiah, although out of fear and unavailable of options. This led to refugee influx into Pakistan and the West creating an economic and social crisis. Many Fundamentalist reactionary groups were formed in the aftermath of mass migration and feelings of revenge from the West ; it spread and aggrandized Islamophobia . The West folded its sleeves against muslims and humanity fell into a vicious cycle of revenge . The US is ,thus, responsible for Afghanistan in tatters and terrorism in Muslim world. The Afghanistan issue should be sorted out diplomatically as intellectuals like Noam Chomsky suggest. It was the only solution two decades ago and it still applies to the current situation. It is impossible to take place untill Western leaders cease to play the Politics of Fear to convince their people and world for any military action once again. Furthermore, China seems the prominent stakeholder in Afghanistan which needs peaceful Afghanistan to pursue its economic goals . However, a joint effort from world leaders is required to settle the situation in Afghanistan and not let it become a cauldron of proxy else it would poison would spread globally.
