*Sources: DTN News / AFP
(NSI News Source Info) ASTANA, Kazakhstan - June 25, 2009: NATO forces in Afghanistan cannot prevent insurgents from moving to Central Asia as their fight against the Taliban intensifies, outgoing NATO chief Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said Wednesday. 
In reaction to the anarchy and warlordism prevalent in the country, and the lack of Pashtun representation in the Kabul government, a movement arose called the Taliban. Many Taliban had been educated in madrasas in Pakistan and were largely from rural Pashtun backgrounds. This group was made up of mostly Pashtuns that dedicated itself to removing the warlords, providing law and order, and imposing the strict Islamic Sharia law on the country. In 1994 it developed enough strength to capture the city of Kandahar from a local warlord and proceeded to expand its control throughout Afghanistan, occupying Herat in September 1995, then Kabul in September 1996, and declaring the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (although there was no Emir). By this time Afghanistan was in its 17th year of war. It had the highest infant, child and maternal mortality rates in Asia. An estimated 10 million landmines covered its terrain. Two-million refugees were in camps.
Pakistan recognized the Taliban as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan in 1997. By the end of 2000, the Taliban occupied about 95% of the country, limiting the opposition to a small corner in the northeast Badakhshan Province. Efforts by the UN, prominent Afghans living outside the country, and other interested countries to bring about a peaceful solution to the continuing conflict came to nothing, largely because of intransigence on the part of the Taliban.
The Taliban sought to impose an extreme interpretation of Islam—based in part upon rural Pashtun tradition—upon the entire country and committed human rights violations, particularly directed against women and girls, in the process. Women were restricted from working outside the home or pursuing an education, were not to leave their homes without an accompanying male relative, and required to wear a traditional burqa.
The Taliban repressed minority populations, particularly the Shia, as a retaliation in which approximately 2,500 Taliban soldiers were massacred by Abdul Malik and his Shia followers; attacked the Iranian embassy, killing eight diplomats and a television reporter, claiming them as spies.
In 2001, as part of a drive against relics of Afghanistan's pre-Islamic past, the Taliban destroyed two large statues of Buddha outside of the city of Bamiyan and announced destruction of all pre-Islamic statues in Afghanistan, including the remaining holdings of the Kabul Museum.
In addition to the continuing civil strife, the country suffered from widespread poverty, drought, a devastated infrastructure, and ubiquitous use of landmines. These conditions led to about a million Afghans facing starvation. In 1998, a series of earthquakes killed thousands of Afghans in the northeast Badakhshan Province.
Some Afghan leaders have accused Pakistan of failing to do enough to stop infiltration, or even of continuing to support its former protege, the Taliban in September 2006. "I am very happy today that...the president of Pakistan assured me that he will try to get rid of this disease from the region," Hamid Karzai told a joint news conference at his palace.
In an interview with AFP on the eve of a regional security conference, Scheffer said it was unclear if a spate of recent militant attacks in Central Asia were linked to escalated military operations in Afghanistan or Pakistan.
"It might well be that as we take on the Taliban in more places they'll go other places," the secretary general said.
"If people want to cross borders, NATO cannot prevent that. If militants and extremists want to cross borders into Central Asia to do their horrific work there, NATO cannot possibly stop that."
Experts have long been concerned that the violence that has convulsed Afghanistan and Pakistan could spread into the ex-Soviet republics of Central Asia, with their volatile ethnic and religious divisions.
Indeed, the weeks since intense fighting between Pakistani security forces and Taliban militants began have seen attacks here that local governments have blamed on Islamist fighters.
On Tuesday, five members of a radical Islamist group and one special-forces officer were killed when a "counter-terrorist operation" in Kyrgyzstan turned into a running gunbattle with militants, officials said.
The suspected insurgents were said to have been members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a group with links to Al-Qaeda.
The operation came just weeks after officials in neighbouring Uzbekistan said a suicide bomber had detonated himself in the Uzbek city of Andijan, killing a police officer.
Scheffer said that NATO, which does not have a mandate to conduct operations in Central Asia, had no information linking the attacks here to coalition operations in Afghanistan.
On Afghanistan, Scheffer said a military review currently being undertaken by US General Stanley McChrystal, who took command of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan a week ago, would not result in drastic policy changes.
"We have now, as you know, the 60 day review which is going to be made by General McChrystal, the new commander," he said.
"I do not think by the way that you'll see a fundamental change in strategy. What you see... is more attention to avoid civilian casualties."
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has long complained about civilian casualties resulting primarily from strikes by unmanned Predator drones which operate both in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He added that "the NATO military mission is fundamentally sound, but it is always good to look critically at yourself."
Additionally, Scheffer said it was too soon to tell whether a resent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan was linked with recent Pakistani military operations in that country's lawless tribal areas.
Afghan insurgents have stepped up their use of bombs in recent weeks with deadly roadside blasts and suicide attacks reported nearly every day.
"If it's enough that's difficult to say for me but I do see that the Pakistani government... is taking the extremists seriously, are doing a lot in fighting them and I think that's a welcome development," he said.
"If this will be the end of the problems, I don't know. It's too early to say. But it is crystal clear that we should see the problems in stabilizing Afghanistan in a regional context where Pakistan plays an important role."
In reaction to the anarchy and warlordism prevalent in the country, and the lack of Pashtun representation in the Kabul government, a movement arose called the Taliban. Many Taliban had been educated in madrasas in Pakistan and were largely from rural Pashtun backgrounds. This group was made up of mostly Pashtuns that dedicated itself to removing the warlords, providing law and order, and imposing the strict Islamic Sharia law on the country. In 1994 it developed enough strength to capture the city of Kandahar from a local warlord and proceeded to expand its control throughout Afghanistan, occupying Herat in September 1995, then Kabul in September 1996, and declaring the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (although there was no Emir). By this time Afghanistan was in its 17th year of war. It had the highest infant, child and maternal mortality rates in Asia. An estimated 10 million landmines covered its terrain. Two-million refugees were in camps.
Pakistan recognized the Taliban as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan in 1997. By the end of 2000, the Taliban occupied about 95% of the country, limiting the opposition to a small corner in the northeast Badakhshan Province. Efforts by the UN, prominent Afghans living outside the country, and other interested countries to bring about a peaceful solution to the continuing conflict came to nothing, largely because of intransigence on the part of the Taliban.
The Taliban sought to impose an extreme interpretation of Islam—based in part upon rural Pashtun tradition—upon the entire country and committed human rights violations, particularly directed against women and girls, in the process. Women were restricted from working outside the home or pursuing an education, were not to leave their homes without an accompanying male relative, and required to wear a traditional burqa.
The Taliban repressed minority populations, particularly the Shia, as a retaliation in which approximately 2,500 Taliban soldiers were massacred by Abdul Malik and his Shia followers; attacked the Iranian embassy, killing eight diplomats and a television reporter, claiming them as spies.
In 2001, as part of a drive against relics of Afghanistan's pre-Islamic past, the Taliban destroyed two large statues of Buddha outside of the city of Bamiyan and announced destruction of all pre-Islamic statues in Afghanistan, including the remaining holdings of the Kabul Museum.
In addition to the continuing civil strife, the country suffered from widespread poverty, drought, a devastated infrastructure, and ubiquitous use of landmines. These conditions led to about a million Afghans facing starvation. In 1998, a series of earthquakes killed thousands of Afghans in the northeast Badakhshan Province.
Some Afghan leaders have accused Pakistan of failing to do enough to stop infiltration, or even of continuing to support its former protege, the Taliban in September 2006. "I am very happy today that...the president of Pakistan assured me that he will try to get rid of this disease from the region," Hamid Karzai told a joint news conference at his palace.
In an interview with AFP on the eve of a regional security conference, Scheffer said it was unclear if a spate of recent militant attacks in Central Asia were linked to escalated military operations in Afghanistan or Pakistan.
"It might well be that as we take on the Taliban in more places they'll go other places," the secretary general said.
"If people want to cross borders, NATO cannot prevent that. If militants and extremists want to cross borders into Central Asia to do their horrific work there, NATO cannot possibly stop that."
Experts have long been concerned that the violence that has convulsed Afghanistan and Pakistan could spread into the ex-Soviet republics of Central Asia, with their volatile ethnic and religious divisions.
Indeed, the weeks since intense fighting between Pakistani security forces and Taliban militants began have seen attacks here that local governments have blamed on Islamist fighters.
On Tuesday, five members of a radical Islamist group and one special-forces officer were killed when a "counter-terrorist operation" in Kyrgyzstan turned into a running gunbattle with militants, officials said.
The suspected insurgents were said to have been members of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a group with links to Al-Qaeda.
The operation came just weeks after officials in neighbouring Uzbekistan said a suicide bomber had detonated himself in the Uzbek city of Andijan, killing a police officer.
Scheffer said that NATO, which does not have a mandate to conduct operations in Central Asia, had no information linking the attacks here to coalition operations in Afghanistan.
On Afghanistan, Scheffer said a military review currently being undertaken by US General Stanley McChrystal, who took command of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan a week ago, would not result in drastic policy changes.
"We have now, as you know, the 60 day review which is going to be made by General McChrystal, the new commander," he said.
"I do not think by the way that you'll see a fundamental change in strategy. What you see... is more attention to avoid civilian casualties."
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has long complained about civilian casualties resulting primarily from strikes by unmanned Predator drones which operate both in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He added that "the NATO military mission is fundamentally sound, but it is always good to look critically at yourself."
Additionally, Scheffer said it was too soon to tell whether a resent upsurge in violence in Afghanistan was linked with recent Pakistani military operations in that country's lawless tribal areas.
Afghan insurgents have stepped up their use of bombs in recent weeks with deadly roadside blasts and suicide attacks reported nearly every day.
"If it's enough that's difficult to say for me but I do see that the Pakistani government... is taking the extremists seriously, are doing a lot in fighting them and I think that's a welcome development," he said.
"If this will be the end of the problems, I don't know. It's too early to say. But it is crystal clear that we should see the problems in stabilizing Afghanistan in a regional context where Pakistan plays an important role."
