Afghan president appeals for help as Taliban close in on capital

[mystery-ak]

Afghan president appeals for help as Taliban close in on capital
By Celine Castronuovo - 08/14/21 07:49 AM EDT

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani is calling on the international community to aid in the country’s fight against the Taliban, which has closed in on Kabul as fears grow that the capital could soon be overrun by the insurgent group.

The U.S.-backed leader said in a televised address Saturday, his first public appearance in days as the Taliban has made significant territorial gains, that he has spoken with world leaders and local political figures, though he did not provide specific details on the conversations, according to Bloomberg.

Ghani said he wished to “stop the civil war imposed on Afghans and prevent more innocent deaths and the loss of 20 years of achievements,” since U.S. troops first arrived in Afghanistan to topple the Taliban in 2001.


“We have started consultations, inside the government with elders and political leaders, representatives of different levels of the community as well as our international allies,” he said, according to The Associated Press.

more
https://thehill.com/policy/international/567855-afghanistan-president-appeals-for-help-as-taliban-close-in-on-capital

[corbe]

https://youtu.be/jDaJVc_d4o8



Will Arming ‘Public Uprising Forces’ Stop the Taliban’s Advance?

Which is the lesser of two evils? A potentially fractured country drawn along ethnic lines? Or an Islamic Emirate domineered by the Taliban with close ties to terrorist groups?

by Hollie McKay

MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan—It’s something of a grim domino effect. Afghanistan is rapidly falling back to Taliban control, as the bulwark insurgency advances into cities across the embattled nation, killing hundreds and displacing hundreds of thousands more.

While much of the U.S.-led, almost two-decade war has focused on Afghanistan’s southeast border with Pakistan, the Taliban this time around has been able to storm through the once iron-clad, anti-Taliban pockets of the northern resistance—dishing up a massive morale blow.

However, all is not lost.

It was the conglomerate of northern warlords dubbed the “Northern Alliance” that the United States relied upon to enter Afghanistan in the immediate aftermath of September 11, 2001, and to then quickly usurp the Taliban government from power.

Today, that rag-tag amalgamation of homegrown, volunteer militias led by hardened anti-Soviet commanders is returning as scores of able-bodied men, not part of the traditional military, flock toward the fight after cradling whatever arms may be lingering on the black market or home closet.

<..snip..>

https://nationalinterest.org/feature/will-arming-%E2%80%98public-uprising-forces%E2%80%99-stop-taliban%E2%80%99s-advance-191732

[PeteS in CA]

Yeah, well, where was Ashraf Ghani in the years when the Afghan government was harassing and demonizing US military people?! What sane country would be fool enough to come running into that?

Scroom, and periodically bomb any terrorist training camps into the Stone Age.

[GtHawk]

Maybe Afghanistan's soldiers shouldn't have thrown down their weapons and run? Why should Americans die for:
A: Someone else's religious war which will never end until one side is either dead or forever subjugated.
B: People who have shown neither the courage or ability to defend themselves.
C: Supposed allies who often have turned on and slaughtered American soldiers.

They wanted us out, we wanted us out, and now that we are getting out it's all crocodile tears and won't someone please save us. I say let the Chicoms have them.

[Cyber Liberty]

Maybe Afghanistan's soldiers shouldn't have thrown down their weapons and run? Why should Americans die for:
A: Someone else's religious war which will never end until one side is either dead or forever subjugated.
B: People who have shown neither the courage or ability to defend themselves.
C: Supposed allies who often have turned on and slaughtered American soldiers.

They wanted us out, we wanted us out, and now that we are getting out it's all crocodile tears and won't someone please save us. I say let the Chicoms have them.

That's odd.  A, B and C are exactly why I would not lift a finger to help the people in the big cities of the US.