The Taliban…how divided?
The Taliban “won” their war in Afghanistan, and handed the GOP a victory in the US by making President Biden look ineffectual. But having won the war, can the Taliban win the peace?
According to a recent article in Al Jazeera the Taliban’s attempts to form a government and rule the country have been kind of disastrous.(1) The Talibani themselves are divided between “moderates,” who favor some kind of an alliance with Pakistan and the Pakistani spy operation, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency, and “hardliners” who dislike and distrust Pakistan and favor some sort of relationship with Iran instead.
Meanwhile, individual Talibani are said to be less concerned with forming a government and more with looting the homes and businesses of Afghanistan’s civilians.(2)
And, as if that all weren’t bad enough, the Taliban’s most determined and bloody-minded rival, the Islamic State, still seems to be capable of striking at will within Afghanistan.(3)
In the long run, none of this bodes well for the Taliban’s future. It’s a good guess that eventually, some sort of ruling body, calling itself “Taliban,” will govern the country. The question is, who will be in that government, and what will it look like in practice.
Sources:
1. “How deep are divisions among the Taliban? Sources tell Al Jazeera the discord is very real and if disharmony grows, it will spell trouble for the people,” By Ali M Latifi, Al Jazeera, 23 Sep 2021, https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/9/23/how-deep-are-divisions-among-the-taliban
2. See Latifi, above.
3. “Afghanistan: Several dead as blasts rock Jalalabad and Kabul: ISKP claimed responsibility for the series of explosions that left at least seven dead,” Al Jazeera, 18 Sep, 2021
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