The suicide attack on governor office's compound in Takhar province of Northern Afghanistan on Saturday May 28, 2011 has added another question mark to the mutual security arrangements of Afghan Forces and NATO. The attack was carried out after a meeting in governor office complex among the security officials and governor officials regarding the security concerns in the north. It has killed three German and Four Afghan Personnel, including 303rd Pamir Zone Police Commander, General Dawood Dawood. He was a former deputy interior minister for counter-narcotics and a former bodyguard of Ahmad Shah Massoud. Among the others killed there was a provincial police Chief Gen. Shah Jahan Noori, a secretary to the governor; while among the nine who were injured included Gen. Markus Kneip the NATO Forces Commander for northern Afghanistan and the governor, Abdul Jabbar Taqwa, himself.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid has already claimed responsibility and has called it an attack to counter the planning by Afghan National Army to launch offensive operations in the north.
Security situation in northern Afghanistan had just started improving after the appointment of Gen. Dawood Dawood as the Commander of Pamir Zone police. But recently, Taliban have targeted this particular part of Afghanistan to prove their penetration in the areas not previously dominated by Taliban. Only few days earlier there was a clash between protestors and security forces in the same region that killed almost 12 people and injured many others. The same incident gave a hint that Taliban militants were among the protestors who turned violent. But this very incident on Saturday has killed very important figures, which may cause a vacuum in the security arrangements of Afghan Forces for a long time to come. It should also make Afghan Forces and especially American and NATO forces to handle the situation seriously.

This is not just a meager retaliatory response by the Taliban but turning out to be a start or rather a continuation of a long-lasting movement. The security concerns that have erupted after this assault have added another alarm on the capacity of Afghan forces to guarantee security on their own, with NATO forces still on their side. What can happen after they start leaving is another story. The situation in hand also makes a mockery of the endeavors of government and Western Allies to bring Taliban to table and negotiate with them the future of the country.

The penetration by Taliban in important government and security offices and in the areas that have been secure from them can really prove to be a spark that can start the fire of terrorism through very secure regions including the capital. The Afghan people have really started bothering about their security as they watch such important figures and offices being victimized with great ease.