Faustian Pact with the Devil
The peace deal that the US signed with the Taliban on February 29, 2020, in Doha, Qatar had two main tenets: the first one stated that in 135 days, the “United States, its allies, and the Coalition…will reduce the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan to eight thousand six hundred (8,600) and proportionally bring reduction […]
US Peace Deal with the Taliban: An Ethnic Dimension
The US deal with the Taliban has had several dimensions but one dimension that is overlooked is the ethnic or tribal one. All sides involved in promoting the deal, have had an element of the ethnic contribution that facilitated or coalesced into a deal or in effect triumph of the Taliban and Pakistan. Firstly Pakistan, […]
The Escape of a High Value Terrorist from Pakistan: Who was Behind?
On January 18, 2020, India’s Sunday Guardian Live published news of former Tehreek Taliban Pakistan (TTP) spokesperson, Ehsanullah Ehsan, escaping from the custody of elite Pakistani security forces. Initially doubts were raised over the authenticity of the news since it was published in a magazine in India, the arch-rival of Pakistan. However, soon the news […]
Qassem Soleimani – a Villain or a Savior
Early on Friday morning, January 3, 2020, US rocket attacks in Baghdad International Airport killed Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Quds forces of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), with his small entourage. Among those killed was Jamal Jafar Mohammad Ali al Ibrahim, a.k.a. Abu Mahdi al Muhandis, the leader of Kata’ib Hizbullah and deputy chief […]
US Deal with the Taliban will not Bring Peace to Afghanistan
Nine rounds of talks between the US and the Taliban delegations ended in early September in Doha, Qatar. According to the statements made by US envoy, the two sides are “at the threshold of an agreement.” US talks with the Taliban were part of an effort to facilitate US withdrawal from Afghanistan before the 2020 […]