Afghanistan: - The West is Caught in a 'Tribal Civil War' Propped Up by Karzai et al

[laststeamtrain]

Afghanistan: - The West is Caught in a 'Tribal Civil War' Propped Up by Karzai et al

If there is no shift away from the paradigm of Muslim radicalism, certainly a re-emergence of the old bitter civil war between the two powerful Pashtun tribal groups—“Durranis” and “Ghelzais”— will explode upon us today.

Khalil Nouri

(KANDAHAR) - The United States is on a trajectory to lose the war in Afghanistan because its foreign policy has become entangled with President Hamid Karzai’s reprobate regime. Now, U.S. objectives are contingent upon Karzai’s willingness and ability to rid the endemic corruption within his administration, and – more importantly – within his own family. And despite intense pressure from the United States and the international community, Mr. Karzai still shows no appetite to rein in his half-brother Ahmed Wali Karzai, who is not only jeopardizing the entire tribal balance – this corrupt powerbroker is actually fueling the insurgency. We natives believe it is no longer an “Islamic fundamentalist war” but instead a “Pashtun civil war”, thus the upcoming offensive in the Pashtun-dominated southern city of Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban, will shape the final outcome of the war.

The average Kandahari is confused and disappointed with the twists and turns of U.S. strategy, specifically with regards to embracing and empowering Karzai’s crooked sibling, who has consolidated power and is now the “King” of Kandahar. Well-known as a drug trafficker, Wali Karzai controls a network that pushes over $3.5 billion worth of heroin each year, and controls politics at the regional and district levels.

“I think it’s in our best interest to figure out how to harness that leadership potential that Ahmed Wali Karzai has,” said Brig. Gen. Ben Hodges, the director of NATO operations in Southern Afghanistan. If the U.S. changes course and develops a more prudent strategy, there are still no guarantees. However, if the U.S. maintains the status quo the only things that can be guaranteed are that death on both sides and Afghans will never see peace.

Afghanistan is evidently on life support, with severe preexisting symptoms (constantly flaring-up) of ailments ranging from corruption, drug trafficking, and so forth (echoed repeatedly in the media) to recent swelling traumas of tribal feuds, instigated by Karzai family et al in Kandahar. This predicament is rattling all of Southern and Eastern Afghanistan and has doomed, or will cripple, the very foundation of tribal structure and nationalism in the country.

If there is no shift away from the paradigm of Muslim radicalism, certainly a re-emergence of the old bitter civil war between the two powerful Pashtun tribal groups—“Durranis” and “Ghelzais”—that was fought over three centuries ago, will explode upon us today.

This is a complex indigenous phenomenon that requires a versatile perception that is beyond the comprehension of many in the West, and it is fueled and manipulated by the Karzai’s “Popalzai” clan of Durrani confederacy tribe, headed by Hamid Karzai’s half brother, Ahmad Wali Karzai, who is the head of the Kandahar provincial council and has assumed for himself the role of absolute monarch in this Southern Afghan city.

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http://www.salem-news.com/articles/may232010/karzai-kn.php
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Detailed, info-heavy article. Maybe bookmark & save for later.

[madrchsod]

1. no...we are going to win in Vietnam....

if we do`t win there the whole region will fall like dominoes!



oh sorry i mean afganistan...i must have had one of those acid flashbacks.




funny they always occur when one of our presidents thinks they are going to "win"

[jaxx]

2. The war was already lost/abandoned before Obama came onboard.

Dubya just left troops there so he wouldn't cut and run on his watch. And, if you'll remember, the bushies put Karzai in power just like they did Saddam. Now it's some civil war from 300 years ago....didn't we already play that scenario in Iraq? There is no 'win' in Afghanistan, there is putting the ducks in a row and getting out.