The war on terror, which was declared immediately in the wake of 9/11 tragic and dreadful attacks, has not earned the real goals of fighting terrorists. The growing insurgency in Afghanistan is symptomatic of the failure in cracking down on the Al-Qaeda and terrorist –linked militants in the country. There comes dire need for policy overhaul and change to get the country rid of militants and do not let them pose further threat to the government and people of Afghanistan and to the world in general.

Afghan government has time and again called on Taliban militants to come to the negotiation table as a political group. This shows the ups and downs of political process, failures and accomplishments in post-Taliban era if Taliban hold the same religiously rigid and politically unilateral position; it is, of course, a certain failure for Afghan government and international coalition to negotiate with them. In a short period of ruling Afghanistan, Taliban proved that they never respect a political solution to end up Afghanistan’s hampered political and national-building process. The news of negotiation with Taliban was often heard with no practical follow-ups. The militant group had rejected negotiation with government as long as it was supported by foreign forces. The terrorists should not win, that is the vital requirement of the country and world, but has it been met or are the struggles on the right direction to at least not allow the terrorists and extremist militants win the declared war. It is well conceived that the world created by terrorists is darker than anyone can predict, but unfortunately more than 11 years after 9/11 hijacking, Al-Qaeda and like minded terrorists yet to be battered and dispersed in Afghanistan and other places, and the idea it stands for is spreading its poison far and wide. The people feel thrust into realm of uncertainty. The meaning and significance of the 9/11 attacks and their aftermath more than 11 years after they occurred has not been realized and the challenges that it portended have not been met rather multiplied. 

In the broader world context threat posed by terrorists and Taliban militants raise many issues that need to be solved. But unfortunately, still US-led intervention in Afghanistan, the Taliban are making a remarkable comeback, regrouping with new strength. It is true that Afghanistan is a veritable catastrophe of cataclysmic implications for the entire region and world, but no effective strategy has been applied to dispose this county of terrorist-linked groups.

It is said that the US and its allies have contributed to the current gloomy situation in Afghanistan by failing to fathom and pay heed to the underlying dynamics of the problems in the country. It is a matter of thought-provoking that the surge in fighting takes place in defiance of the presence of tens of thousands of international security forces and Afghan troops.

The Afghan police are subject to a terrifying onslaught by the Taliban. The country does not pass a week without some disastrous and terrible attack in which Afghan police and ANA are slaughtered, killed and to which civilian populations fall victim.

One obvious reason is that the fighting is not producing any results, and the casualties are mostly civilian. The government understands the fact that it can no more accept and justify military operations in which civilian lose their lives. Civilian casualties, which have sparked widespread anger against the government and foreign forces, could not be avoided when “the Taliban go inside the homes of local people and Afghan forces target them.”  It seems that battle fatigue is setting in. After more than 11 years of war which has inflicted tremendous suffering mostly on the civilians, peace is nowhere on the horizon. The people have distanced from the government, owing to the fact that it has control only over the capital and the rural areas are under the control of Taliban.

If, therefore, the government and the Taliban are thinking in terms of finding a negotiated solution they should be encouraged. Both parties think that the bloodshed should come to an end. It is necessary to state that there are clear indicators, showing Taliban will finally lose the ongoing war with government and coalition forces, so logic suggests that government should attend the negotiations with forceful strategy, persuading Taliban to accept and join the democratic process. Afghanistan’s young democracy is the most value accomplishment and it should not be sacrificed at any cost.