|
|
Article: Comment.(CURRENT AFFAIRS)(Talibans and Afghanistan)
- Article from:
- The Middle East
- Article date:
- January 1, 2008
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2008 IC Publications Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]
WITH AFGHAN TROOPS ousting the Taliban from the strategic southern town of Musa Qala, backed by Nato forces last month, a new western initiative has begun--to bolster the beleaguered regime of President Hamid Karzai.
A lacklustre town in the north of Helmand province, the importance of Musa Qala is more symbolic than strategic, hinging on the fact that British forces took the town from the Taliban in 2006 and handed it over to the tribal elders who pledged to keep it free of Taliban fighters.
It was always a long shot, tribal elders are no match for the tough, resilient, determined forces of the Taliban and, without the ...