Prepping for a backlash

Stung by the April 19 bombings in Kabul, which claimed 64 lives and injured 350 others, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has hardened his stance against the Taliban, prioritising war over reconciliation. One broad indication of this altered strategy came in the execution of six Taliban inmates on May 8, the first instance of capital punishment being awarded since the Afghan leader came to power in 2014. He even rebuffed calls from Amnesty International, which only days earlier had urged him not to sign death warrants of prisoners convicted of terror offences, and went ahead with the hangings. The executed men are said to be those who had a hand in the deadly Kabul rampage, and Mr Ghani ostensibly must have been under pressure to place them under the hangman’s noose.

However, now the Afghan government will have to watch out for a furious backlash sooner or later. Not only Amnesty International, which had argued that by hastily seeking retribution for the horrific Kabul bombings, the executions will neither bring the victims the justice they deserve nor Afghanistan the security it needs, but even former Afghan president Hamid Karzai had opposed the move, saying this approach could bring disastrous consequences for the country. Given how the Taliban have been increasing the intensity of their attacks, and given that the Afghan forces seem to be on the back foot, the Taliban may up the ante even more so now. That will bring further pain to the already beleaguered Kabul government. The suspicions with which the Afghan government eyes Pakistan’s handling of the fragile peace process will do no good, and the two governments must take measures to build trust. Only then can the two administrations craft a coordinated strategy to push the peace process forward. If things don’t pan out that way, the security situation could become worse in Afghanistan, and as a consequence in the region at large, what with the Taliban vowing to press ahead with their notorious spring offensive.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 12^th, 2016.

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