7/11 Op-Ed by Taliban ambassador to Pakistan

It is common knowledge that American imperialism is the custodian of
global capitalism. Safeguarding the interests of this menace that has
crossed national boundaries in search of greener pastures around the
world.

American Imperialism, emerging as the most savage power after the World
War II in which it reduced to ashes two big islands of Japan, had proven
its credentials as
candidate to play the role of international mercenary for the global
capital. Thus, the capitalist world selected the Americans as their
watchdog on the basis of their savageness in World War II. Barbarism and
tyranny are hallmarks of American life and history. The native Americans
labeled, as Red Indians are reminiscent of the American savages who
committed ethnic cleansing through the length and width of an entire
continent. After wiping out the native American, they heaped
unparalleled miseries on the people of another continent, Africa, to
build their newfound pastures. The entire edifice of their so-called
civilization was, thus, laid upon the most atrocious form of tyranny.

Pragmatism, the philosophy of American life that they are brazenly proud
of means nothing more than pure selfishness and opportunism.
Their entire history is a testimony to the fact that they have no
permanent foes and friends, jumping into the fray whenever the
environment is found to be entirely conducive but running for cover
whenever the stakes are high. These fair-weather friends,
notwithstanding the spurious and opportunistic war-time promises of
standing through thick and thin to their allies, have an impeccable
record of not even looking back to inquire about these allies at the
time of their misery. One should not be bewildered, therefore, to find
their allies left in the lurch licking their wounds with the American
'master' enjoying the scene from a safe distance.

The bright slogans of freedom and human rights raised by these
mercenaries of the global money are mere propaganda tools to make
inroads in the Third World and use them as a pretext of interfering in
the affairs of other nations for their own petty and selfish goals. To
further their Capitalist objectives, Free Market Economy has been
imposed on the world through carrot and stick policy, bullying adamant
nations into submission and bulldozing their way all over the world
through their puppet international organizations and monetary
institutions like UNO, IMF, World Bank etc.

The Americans were given tough time by the Communist Bloc for more than
seven decades. Both the Communist and the Capitalist blocs were fiercely
competing to grab the lion's share of the natural resources of the
world, particularly the oil-rich region of the Gulf and the
international navigation routes in the warm waters. The American defeat
at the hands of the Vietnamese was a great setback to their leadership
claims and qualities in the eyes of the capitalist world due to its
utter failure to deliver the goods despite its extreme savageness in the
war. Had there been any formidable candidate for the leadership of the
capitalist world, the American gangster would have been ditched and a
new 'Rambo' would have been crowned. Hence, the want of a suitable
candidate allowed the ageing and dying leader to remain in the driving
seat but with little grip over the shaky balance of power.

The Afghan Jihad provided the dying capitalism and the ailing leader
with a golden opportunity not only to avenge its humiliating defeat in
Vietnam but also to get rid of its archrival without offering any
sacrifice in flesh and blood. The Muslim and freedom loving Afghan
nation, in line with the tenets of its faith and true to its invincible
record, not only gallantly defended the motherland but also fatally
wounded the Polar Bear breaking the myth of its invincibility and
exposing the hollowness of Communism. The world came to realize that the
Islamic faith is mightier than modern technology as it is the only
religion that can make its followers encounter the aggressors as a
formidable wall sacrificing their souls for the better reward of the
Hereafter.

The Islamic reawakening due to the Afghan Jihad send shudders down the
spines of the colonial West and alarm bells rung in the anti Muslim
camps which had plotted to perpetuate their rule of terror and loot in
the Muslim world. With the collapse of the Communist Bloc and the
much-celebrated demise of the Soviet Union, the arrogant American
started feeling to be the sole masters of the world. Arrogance and
stupidity combined made the Americans believe that the entire world is
theirs to rule and loot the way they like. Soon, they "informed" their
to-be-subjects that they had laid out a New World Order for them to
follow. Under the New World Order capitalism, the economic doctrine of
the materialistic West, was to be practiced by all and the claim of the
American supremacy and sovereignty over the entire world euphemized as
the leadership of the civilized world had to be acceded to without
raising even an eyebrow. They were sure that it was only a question of
time for their dream of becoming the sole masters of the entire world to
come true.

The American came to know that their ambition could not be realized
unless they directly control the life line of the modern world the
oil-rich Gulf, not only to manoeuver the prices of oil keeping them low
to serve the interests of the capitalist world but to also ensure that
the region does not fall in the hands of the Muslim masses who drew
inspiration from the gallant struggle of their Afghan brothers. The
drama of the invasion of Kuwait, which was undoubtedly orchestrated by
the Americans, provided them with the necessary pretext for military
intervention. With the bill footed by the Arab countries they were not
only able to test their new weapons and revive their recession-hit
economy, but also made sure that the entire region remained under their
firm control.

These mercenaries of global capitalism also wanted to gain access to the
mostly untapped natural resources of Central Asia, but a truly Islamic
Afghanistan could prove an impregnable barrier in the way of fulfillment
of this goal. Through their own machinations and the wheeling and
dealing of their agents in and around Afghanistan, the Americans
succeeded in pitting the Mujahideen groups against each other to ensure
their mutual elimination and complete destruction of the arm stockpiles
left by the Russians.

Last but not the least they aimed, through fuelling the intra-Afghan
fighting, at portraying Jihad solely responsible for all the miseries of
the Afghan nation so that no other Muslim nation attempts to emulate the
Afghan model. The celebrated appearance of Taliban in the gloomy
horizons of Afghanistan was a true embodiment of the wishes and a
befitting reward for the oppressed Afghan nation on one hand and the
death nail in the coffin of the enemies of Islam on the other.

The Taliban, truly conceived by the nation as the custodians of the
fruits of Afghan Jihad and welcomed by the nation fed up with the
intra-fighting gained control of more than 95 per cent of the country
with little or no resistance. Aghast at this new development, the
Americans tried to exploit the situation. With peace restored to
Afghanistan under the Taliban rule, the American tried to start trade
and business with Central Asia via Afghanistan. American oil and gas
companies such as UNOCAL came to the region with great pomp and show,
making overtures to the new government in a bid to secure a foothold for
their oil and gas companies.

In this noble pursuit, they even overlooked the protestations of their
European allies over some of the policies of the Islamic Emirate. But to
their dismay, they found that they are faced with a new leadership which
does not bend to the so-called superpower and is not ready at any price,
to mortgage the future of its country to anyone. They also realized that
despite their efforts to block the way of an Islamic government in
Afghanistan, the sacrifices of the Afghan nation has come to fruition in
the shape of a pure Islamic government which has decided to implement
the Shariah of Allah in total.

Therefore, the Americans decided to unleash media war against
Afghanistan finding faults and criticizing the purely Islamic policies
of the Islamic Emirate. The Americans were not only enraged at the
prospect of losing a promising region but were also wary of the Islamic
system being truly implemented on the soil of Afghanistan as it could
serve as a model for other Muslims. No stone was left unturned to
tarnish the image of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and isolate it in
the world community. To pressurize us, Mr Rabbani, the ousted President,
who spent most of his time in Tajikistan and other countries continued
to be recognised as the legitimate head of Afghan government which had
quasi control over less that 5 per cent of Afghan territory. Further,
the Americans dubbed as a terrorist Osama bin Laden who was living in
Afghanistan before the advent of Taliban and demanded from the Islamic
Emirate to hand him over to the Americans.

Despite our persistent demands of any evidence against his involvement
in any terrorist activities, the so-called champions of freedom and
justice failed to provide us with any proof. Our desire to find a
solution to this problem through negotiations was rebuffed time and
again.
The Americans used all tactics to browbeat the Muslims of Afghanistan
but in vain.

The Clinton administration embroiled in the humiliating sexual scandals
of Clinton authorised, as a diversion tactic, the terrorist act of
bombarding Afghanistan with cruise missiles killing dozens of innocent
civilians. As a proof of our claim that no body is allowed to use the
Afghan soil for any hostilities against any country, we placed strict
restrictions on communications and activities of Bin Laden. The
Americans felt that their plans in the region could be seriously
jeopardised by the rapprochement between the resurgent Russians under
Putin and the Chinese.

The launching of Shanghai V forum was a clear indication that a new
alliance to counter the American hegemonic designs was crystallising in
the region. The Americans hastened to win over the Indians as a counter
balance to this emerging alliance and to preempt any attempts by the
Indians to join the forum or by the members of the forum to woo them to
their side. Eyeing the huge Indian market was undoubtedly another
objective for this newfound love between the erstwhile antagonistic
parties during the Cold War era. The Americans as a gesture of their
sincerity to the Indians, felt no hesitation in not only abandoning
Pakistan for greener Indian pastures but also squarely blamed the former
for its alleged help to the Mujahideen in the occupied Kashmir. The
players in this regional game entered into a highly pitched diplomatic
battle with the Americans trying to break the alliance with
unprecedented offers of economic and military assistance to the
Russians. (They reportedly made an incredible offer of buying the
obsolete SAM missiles of the Russians at exorbitant prices).

The Chinese on the other hand, rushed to assist the Pakistanis in
stabilising their economy and cutting the routes of the Americans to the
Central Asian region. The unprecedented promise of the Chinese to build
Gwadar Port can be seen in this backdrop. However, the Americans
realised that they could not remain in the driving seat unless they
gained effective control of the Central Asian riches before the Chinese
make a foothold in the region or the Russians can reclaim their lost
leverage. The American strategists convinced that the only viable path
to the Central Asia for them lies through Afghanistan, pressed for early
Action.

Having found that the bandits in the north of Afghanistan are not able
to topple the government of the islamic Emirate, the Americans dragged
the deposed king to the counter stage in a bid to create division in the
southern and western regions of Afghanistan against the Islamic Emirate.

They planned to install a puppet regime in the areas under the control
of the Northern Alliance and to push their mercenaries towards Kabul
under American air cover. This is a fact known by all and sundry well
before the incidents off 11 Sep in New York and Washington.

The statements emanating from Washington immediately after the attacks
of 11 Sep made it clear that the Americans wanted to exploit their
tragedy for promotion of their colonial designs. The American
belligerence and their refusal to provide any evidence against Osama bin
Laden or enter into negotiations with the Islamic Emirate left no doubt
in the minds of the same people in the world that the proposed American
attack on Afghanistan was not a retaliatory act aimed at seeking revenge
from those behind the incidents in New York and Washington, but a
pre-planned action aiming at occupation of Afghanistan, toppling its
Islamic government and installing a puppet regime in its place. Francese
Vendrell, the personal envoy of UN Secretary General had been brazenly
involved in paving the way for the Americans since his appointment.

It is common knowledge that Mr Vendrell tried to allure many Afghans,
much before the incidents in New York and Washington, to participate in
this American game impressing upon them that the Americans were actively
working to install the deposed king in Afghanistan through military
intervention before the winter of 2001. And, therefore, he used to tell
them that they should support the plan and reserve a place in the coming
set up lest they miss the train. Mr Niaz A Naik, a well-informed
Pakistani diplomat, has also disclosed this fact in one of his
interviews with BBC some time ago.

In the light of these facts, it is crystal clear that the American
attack on Afghanistan has nothing to do with the 11 Sep incidents in New
York and Washington. It is a Crusade against the Muslim world in general
and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in particular. The confession of
Mr Bush that he is waging a Crusade and the assertions of the Italian
Prime Minister in which he boasted of the West's capability to defeat
the Islamic civilization should serve as timely eye-openers to those who
are still burying their heads in the sand.

The Muslims of the world have realized that the Americans' sole purpose
is to annihilate a Muslim nation that has chosen to live according to
the law of Almighty Allah so that no one else dare commit this crime.
They even want to snatch the right of interpretation of Qur'an and
Sunnah from the Muslims as true teachings of Qur'an are terrorizing the
West.

The Americans have failed to show any credible evidence to the world
that can prove involvement of Osama in these incidents. It is amazing
to see the AMERICANS have come to our region with greater designs and
for a long period to stay. The American game plan is, therefore,
unfolding in stages. In the beginning, they started talking in terms of
days and possibly weeks and now they are speaking of years. The
controlled attack of anthrax is the handiwork of the US intelligence
organizations to pave the way for chemical attack on Afghanistan and
Iraq.

The Indian belligerence and its troops build up are pressure tactic
against Pakistan to yield more to the American demands Irresponsible
reports about the security of Pakistan's atomic installation and
maddeningly foolish allegations that atomic weapons might have been
transferred to Afghanistan are all pointers to the real designs of the
Americans in the region. Many armchair critics, oblivious of the
American designs in the region and blaming us for not thinking
strategically, advised us to surrender Osama and commit what they called
the lesser evil. We refused to compromise on our principles shared by
all the sane and just people of the world as surrendering a suspect,
against whom there is not even an iota of evidence, to the accusing
party is clearly tantamount to sacrificing justice at the altar of
expediency. Such pragmatism has no place in our religion and the
time-tested traditions of the freedom loving and guest honouring people
of Afghanistan. The American planners started counting their chickens
before they were hatched.

The 'great minds', in an hour of wishful thinking, thought that the
government of the Islamic Emirate would break up under the American air
bombardment. Plans for the 'future set-up' under the deposed king who
needs physical aid even to stand on his feet were drawn in spectacular
haste only to be contested and disputed by different groups of the
all-talk-no-action mercenaries. But, to their utter dismay and sheer
disgust the Americans found that even shaking the popular and formidable
Islamic government is a tall order. The islamic Emirate is standing as a
rock in the face of the most savage and criminal bombardment as the
overt attacks of the Americans and the covert they were forced to
'update' their plans and started forecasting a long battle and calling
for patience at home. Deeply frustrated at their failure to dislodge the
Islamic Emirate's government, the criminal terrorists started hitting
civilian targets in a calculated way to avenge their failure and to show
some 'results'.
After almost two weeks of relentless and barbaric bombardment, the
American officials had to publicly admit that the Afghans are tough
customers and they are faced with a battle-tested and formidable enemy.

The "chocolate soldiers" could not stay on the land of the lions for a
full night and had to beat a hasty retreat in the dark of the night
leaving behind a downed helicopter and suffering scores of casualties.
This made the master terrorists shy away from committing ground forces
and instead look for mercenaries from within and around Afghanistan to
do the dirty work for them. To salvage their battered and bruised ego,
they have started carpet bombing of Afghan villages and cities. Their
'elite troops' fear direct encounter with the Mujahideen and therefore
they are 'operating' from behind the lines of Northern bandits.

The Americans must confess that they have lost the first round of the
war not only morally and politically but also in the battlefield.
Today and particularly after the attack on Afghanistan, the American
hypocrisy and double standards with regard to freedom and human rights
have been clearly exposed. The American threat to the whole world that
either they follow them or be ready to be dubbed as terrorists proved
them to be the biggest terrorists in the world intimidating nations to
fall in line or get punished by the international terrorist. Many of
those who sided with the Americans confessed to have done so under the
dangling American sword. The huge demonstrations in the Western and
Islamic countries against the American war mongering have clearly shown
that the freedom loving people of the world are tired of American
terrorism.

Saner voices and respectable writers have declared the American attack
on Afghanistan as terrorism. Michael Mandel a professor of law in
Toronto wrote: "The bombing of Afghanistan is the legal and moral
equivalent of what was done to the Americans on Sept 11. We may come to
remember that day, not for its human tragedy, but for the beginning of a
headlong plunge into a violent, lawless world,"

George Galloway, a British MP, spoke on the double standards of the West
and discrimination against the Muslims where one American life is valued
as those of ten Europeans and hundreds of Asians and Muslims. Many
others called for a sincere rethinking of the American policies in the
Muslim world and demanded an end to their criminal support to the
terrorist government of Israel.

It is in the interest of these imperialists to learn a few lessons from
the history. They should immediately cease their terrorist activities in
the region and pack up before they are forced to leave in disgust and
complete humility. It is high time that they see the writing on the wall
and desist from provoking the Muslim Ummah further, otherwise they will
have to taste their own medicine sooner or later.

We are sure that the Americans will gain one thing in Afghanistan-they
will certainly learn a few lessons very much beneficial for their future
generations.

Published in the The Frontier Post, Peshawar

arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)