Afghanistan: “Taliban in the middle of a power struggle”

After the capture of Afghanistan, a power struggle raged inside the Taliban. The IS and other militias are also active in the country, says author Ahmed Rashid and explains what conclusions the West should draw from this.

ARD: Is there a power struggle among the Taliban in Afghanistan?

Ahmed Rashid: I think the Taliban are in the middle of a power struggle. This was already evident in the cabinet formation of the transitional government – in the way the hardliners positioned themselves in the forefront of the Taliban government and pushed the moderates aside. Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar negotiated the Doha agreement between the US and the Taliban. But he himself no longer appears when foreign delegations visit Kabul. He is actually Deputy Prime Minister. The Haqqanis are in the cabinet (You lead a militant network that prepared and committed terrorist attacks, editor’s note) gained the upper hand. The moderate Taliban forces fear being killed or imprisoned. You have no real protection. That is also one reason why Afghanistan does not receive any direct external aid from western countries.

ARD: What are the consequences when the extremely militant Taliban wing is so influential?

Rashid: The moderates are more willing to engage in dialogue. You can put pressure on them. The hardliners don’t accept that. But they are the ones who hold the strings in their hands. The Americans and the NATO countries have a real problem with the Haqqanis, who are on wanted lists as terrorists. To their leader Sirajuddin Haqqani (Afghan interior minister, editor’s note) The United States has offered a bounty of ten million dollars: According to the warrant, he is responsible for the murder of dozen of Afghan civilians and soldiers and for the kidnapping of foreigners. How should the Taliban government be accepted internationally if the Haqqani group is still in the cabinet and remains in power?

“No measures against acts of terrorism abroad”

ARD: There have been a number of suicide bombings in Afghanistan. The regional offshoot of the so-called Islamic State, ISIS-Khorasan, has taken on responsibility. How do you rate that?

Rashid: ISIS Khorasan was a very small and insignificant group in Afghanistan before. Then the Taliban signed a withdrawal agreement with the United States in Doha. ISIS says that by doing so, the Taliban betrayed the principle of jihad and made a pact with the West and NATO. Many ISIS Khorasan suicide bombers have received training from the Haqqanis. Their network is the largest suicide bomb factory in Afghanistan. It doesn’t just train young people to be assassins. It also makes bombs and mines and everything you need for an attack. It looks like part of the Taliban is apparently taking action against ISIS-K, but the other part is working with ISIS-K and also providing logistical support in suicide bombings. So far, the Taliban have not been able to stop increasing ISIS activities.

ARD: What role do other militant groups play in Afghanistan?

Rashid: There are dozens of extremist groups that are very active in Afghanistan. There are groups from Pakistan that are very powerful. These include the Pakistani Taliban, who have found refuge in Afghanistan. There are militant groups from the Central Asian countries of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan – as well as fighters who fought in Syria and learned fighting tactics and building bombs there. There are Uighurs. The Chinese government is persecuting the Uyghurs in China and is sending many of them to prison camps for re-education – and is demanding that the Taliban extradite the Uyghurs in Afghanistan to China. They would likely be executed there.

The Taliban assure that they would not allow any group to carry out acts of terrorism against neighboring countries from Afghanistan. But so far we have not seen any measures taken by the Taliban to prevent this. Many of these groups fought with the Taliban; they are their allies.

“The question of recognition should be postponed”

ARD: What would Afghanistan happen if the Haqqani network took full power?

Rashid: I think people would starve to death. I do not see that the West or other great powers are providing the necessary humanitarian aid when the Taliban become more militant and warlike.

I hope that the Taliban will recognize this too, so that more food will come into the country. We have already seen a flood of refugees – but if humanitarian aid ends, we will see another flood. Even more will make their way to Europe. Pakistan and Iran have largely closed their borders and are refusing to accept any more refugees.

I firmly believe that the West should have a dialogue with the Taliban so that humanitarian aid can be provided. The question of recognizing the Taliban regime should be postponed, even if the Taliban demand it. And internationally frozen funds should be released to pay the salaries of doctors, nurses, teachers and government employees that have been outstanding for months.

The interview was conducted by Sibylle Licht, ARD Studio New Delhi