A US peace envoy was yesterday back in the Middle East to warn the Taliban not to pursue a military victory on the ground and deliver a blunt message: A Taliban government that comes to power through force in Afghanistan will not be recognized.
The US Department of State said that US special envoy Zalmay Khalilzad was in Doha, Qatar, where the Taliban maintain a political office, to “help formulate a joint international response to the rapidly deteriorating situation in Afghanistan.”
The development comes amid a weekslong, relentless Taliban offensive as US and NATO forces finalize their pullout from war-torn Afghanistan.
Photo: AP
The insurgents have captured five out of 34 provincial capitals in the country in less than a week. They are now battling the Western-backed government for control of three others, including the city of Lashkar Gah, the capital of southern Helmand Province, and the city of Kandahar, the capital of neighboring Kandahar Province.
The militants’ sweep comes despite condemnations by the international community and the Taliban’s refusal to return to the negotiating table.
Khalilzad would “press the Taliban to stop their military offensive and to negotiate a political settlement, which is the only path to stability and development in Afghanistan,” the state department said.
Meanwhile, the Taliban military chief yesterday released an audio message to his fighters, ordering them not to harm Afghan forces and government officials in territories they conquer. The recording was shared on Twitter by the Taliban spokesman in Doha, Mohammad Naim.
In the nearly five-minute audio, Mohammad Yaqoob, the son of late Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, also tells the insurgents to stay out of abandoned homes of government and security officials who have fled, leave marketplaces open and protect places of business, including banks.
It was not immediately clear if Taliban fighters on the ground would heed Yaqoob’s instructions. There have been reports by civilians who have fled Taliban advances of heavy-handed treatment by the insurgents — schools being burned down and repressive restrictions on women.
The intensifying war has increased the number of civilian casualties. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said that its staff has treated more than 4,000 Afghans this month in their 15 facilities across the nation, including in Helmand and Kandahar.
“We are seeing homes destroyed, medical staff and patients put at tremendous risk, and hospitals, electricity and water infrastructure damaged,” Eloi Fillion, the ICRC’s head of delegation in Afghanistan, said in a statement.
“The use of explosive weaponry in cities is having an indiscriminate impact on the population,” Fillion added. “Many families have no option but to flee in search of a safer place. This must stop.”
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