The Taliban Smell Blood The terror group launches attack after attack, but the U.S. still hasn’t suspended Afghan peace talks. By Husain Haqqani
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-taliban-smell-blood-11563318903
Even when the Taliban talk peace, they make war. Discussions in Doha, Qatar, have not stopped their attacks in Afghanistan. One killed a U.S. serviceman Saturday. A July 7 car bomb killed at least 14 people and wounded more than 180, including scores of children. This talk-and-shoot approach reflects the Taliban’s belief that the talks concern only the orderly withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. That won’t do. The U.S. should now suspend talks with the Taliban to drive home the point that peace, not simply withdrawal, is America’s goal.
The two sides seem to have been working at cross-purposes since the negotiations began last October. Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. special envoy for Afghan reconciliation, described the goal of his first meeting with Taliban representatives as exploring the prospect of “a peaceful Afghanistan where all Afghans see themselves included.” The Taliban insisted in their statement that the talks were about “the end of occupation and a peaceful resolution for the Afghan issue.”
After eight rounds of direct talks, and several side meetings aimed at facilitating dialogue among Afghan political factions, the Taliban’s stance on the scope of discussions remains the same.
The head of the Taliban delegation to Doha, Abbas Stanikzai, explained last week that “there is no word of reducing violence.” He argued that the Taliban’s actions could not even be described as violence, since they were part of “a fight against foreign occupation.” In May, when Mr. Khalilzad publicly broached the subject of halting the violence, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid snapped back with tweets describing the idea of the insurgents putting down arms as “fantasies.” CONTINUE AT SITE
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