The other war, Karzai and ("esteemed") Mullah Omar

[ProSense]

December 6, 2001:

Q Ari, what's your understanding of the deal that's been struck to hand over Kandahar? And is it acceptable to the President to allow Mullah Omar to stay in Kandahar and live under the protection of the local authorities?

MR. FLEISCHER: Secretary Rumsfeld just concluded a briefing in which he addressed that question. I have nothing to add, beyond what the Secretary said. The situation on the ground remains fluid. As for Mullah Omar, the President has made it plain that those who harbor terrorists need to be brought to justice. That statement directly applies to Mullah Omar.

December 9, 2001:

CHENEY: The people of Afghanistan feel a great sense of liberation, having the opportunity to get out from under the heavy hand of the Taliban.

And at the same time I think there's a real sense of outrage on the part of many Afghans about what Mullah Omar and Osama bin Laden brought down on the heads of the Afghan people.

The fact that they did become a sanctuary for terrorist, of course, has been devastating from the standpoint of what we've had to do to go rout them out. And they blame Mullah Omar and Osama bin Laden for that. So they're eager to wrap them up.

RUSSERT: If either are captured alive, we will insist that they be turned over to the American authorities?

CHENEY: Yes.

RUSSERT: No international court?

CHENEY: No. We made it very clear we want Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar and their senior leadership. And if they're taken alive we expect to take custody of them.

Six Years Later:

Karzai offers Taliban government office

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - President Hamid Karzai offered Saturday to meet personally with Taliban leader Mullah Omar for peace talks and give the militants a high position in a government ministry as a way to end the rising insurgency in Afghanistan.

Update (the next day, 9/30), just so we're clear on how completely and utterly the war in Afghanistan has been lost:

After the president of Afghanistan begs this terrorist leader, hat in hand, to please accept a role in the government, he is turned down:

Taliban reject overture from Afghanistan's government

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) - The Taliban will "never" negotiate with the Afghan authorities until U.S. and NATO forces leave the country, a spokesman for the group said Sunday, again rebuffing an overture for peace talks from President Hamid Karzai.

Karzai had said Saturday that he would be willing to meet personally with the Taliban leader, Mullah Omar, and give militants a position in the government in exchange for peace.

"If I find their address, there is no need for them to come to me, I'll personally go there and get in touch with them," Karzai said. "Esteemed Mullah, sir, and esteemed Hekmatyar, sir, why are you destroying the country?" he said...

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