US NATO War Coalition In Afghanistan Ends -Taliban has finally declared a ‘defeat’ for U.S. and its allies even as the NATO troops have ended the combat mission on a positive note.
The most violent and bloodiest for the Afghan and US led troops, the year 2014, has also marked the official end of the 13-year long war between the NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and the Taliban troops as NATO lowered its flag in Kabul, Afghanistan on Sunday, December 28.
However, deeming the U.S. – NATO joint mission to be nothing but a failure with an achievement of nothing substantial, the Taliban declared its victory on Monday, December 29th.
The latter has been claimed to be the day of ‘defeat’ for the ISAF by Taliban and not only an end to their combat mission.
The 13,000 troops left out of the massive 1,30,000 soldiers from 50 different countries across the world posted during the start of war in 2001, will now have to focus on training the police and army personnel, abiding the two-year mission called ‘Resolute Support’, set to begin January 1 onwards.
These troops will have to stay back in Afghanistan to complete this mission, now that the Taliban has proclaimed the defeat and disappointment for the US-led troops.
While ISAF commander General John Campbell ended their combat mission saying that the latter “lifted the Afghan people out of the darkness of despair and given them hope for the future”, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid firmly stated, “ISAF rolled up its flag in an atmosphere of failure and disappointment without having achieved anything substantial or tangible.” (As reported to Reuters)
The war that started after the 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers and Pentagon in U.S. that was allegedly planned by the Taliban, eventually led to a promise of reinstallation of Islamic government in Afghanistan, following the expulsion of a huge number of soldiers from the remaining troops. Now the U.S.-NATO combat mission has been shifted to nothing but a training and support mission to equip the local security forces to fight the insurgents with fight tactics, even as NATO, the international alliance had ousted the Afghanistan government from being a part of the treaty after the Taliban was accused of sheltering the masterminds behind the Sept. 11 attack on America.
The insurgents have certainly progressed in their combat of the Afghans and the coalition troops with nearly 3200 Afghan civilians, 4600 Afghan army and police and nearly 3500 foreign soldiers (including 2200 Americans) dead in the armed encounter between the militant group and the army this year itself, thus exceeding all levels of violence and bloodshed this year since its inception in 2001.
Monday also witnessed two separate attacks in Afghanistan, one on a checkpoint in Sangin, injuring three Afghan army men and the second in Helmand province, killing four soldiers.
Not to mention the colossal political unrest that has been caused as a result of the conflict, where both presidential elections have been protested against. Votes were casted in two rounds of elections, where the European Union report noted electoral frauds. The opposition leaders hurled fake accusations as soon as the former President Hamid Karzai dissolved his political powers at the seat. Ashraf Ghani took the President’s position while his strong competitor Abdullah Abdullah assumed the chief executive’s position. Ghani would now have to strive to achieve better security and aim to keep Afghan territories under his rule and control.
The outburst of violence in recent months in Afghanistan will now lead to an addition in the number of US soldiers who will work on counter-terrorism activities. Though US and its allies believe that Taliban has not been able to gain complete control over Afghan security forces, the fact remains that only eight insurgents have been killed so far while the count of Afghan and coalition troops cross thousands.
Are the Western troops truly demoralised by the war consequences as the Taliban established? Will the U.S. and its allied forces be “dealt defeats just like their masters”, as Mujahid vowed? Will the New Year see any betterment of the situation or set a new standard of terrorism?
Only time can tell.
