The Taliban proudly claimed responsibility for bloodshed of over 50 innocent Afghans in Farah. Most of the victims were civilians, including many judges. Detailed account of the attack is a gruesome tale of room-to-room killing of every person present. These atrocities merit to be declared war crimes at international forums.
The Government is persistent to follow a cowardly policy of appeasement in the guise of the so-called ‘peace’ and reconciliation efforts that has brought nothing so far but bloodbath for Afghans. Wrath of the people of Afghanistan against the Taliban is near the edge of explosion, an episode of which we saw in parliament yesterday.
MPs did not condemn the Taliban, but the current administration in strongest terms possible. Osmani from Farah declared the government traitor for failure to save people from Taliban attacks. Ordinary Afghans on social media expressed extreme anger against Taliban and sorrow for victims.
Most shameful and disappointing of all was President Karzai’s radio interview after the attack in which he expressed concerns about the prisoner release process at Bagram, saying the continued Taliban attacks could affect release of their men from the prison.
The social media pages of Arg were under attack with anger and call for the President to show serious leadership and abandon the apologetic Taliban appeasement. Following are the words of President, “We went another step towards preserving national sovereignty and providing peace in the country, the responsibilities of Bagram Prison were handed over to the government of Afghanistan and many of the innocent Taliban or those who were imprisoned under the name of the Taliban were released. For this humanitarian act, the Taliban attacked Farah so that people would become pessimistic about the release of those prisoners.”
The public anger against the government’s flawed policy towards reconciliation and talks has reached its edge and can explode if the rulers continue the ridiculous process, the price paid with blood of innocent Afghans. The President says Taliban are playing the hands of ‘foreigners’. He cannot dare name those foreigners.
On the other hand, the UN Security Council strongly condemned the merciless attack on civilians, calling for perpetrators, organizers and financiers to be brought to justice. UNSC on Thursday expressed its ‘serious concern at the threats posed by the Taliban, Al-Qaida and illegal armed groups to the local population, national security forces, international military and international assistance efforts in Afghanistan’.