Global Research

All Global Research articles can be read in 51 languages by activating the “Translate Website” drop down menu on the top banner of our home page (Desktop version).

Visit and follow us on Instagram at @crg_globalresearch.

***

The situation in Afghanistan has dramatically changed over the past week. After the recent impetuous attacks, militants of the Taliban captured the entire territory of Afghanistan with the exception of Panjshir province, where the main pro-government forces were concentrated under the leadership of the self-proclaimed head of state Amrullah Saleh.

According to regional and international media reports, clashes between the Taliban and resistance forces in the Panjshir province have increased in the Islamic Republic. The fighting is accompanied by a large number of civilian casualties, which, in turn, caused an exodus of the population to the northern borders of the country.

Members of the former Afghan government and the Taliban leaders recently held negotiations through the intermediary of China, Pakistan, Russia and the US in Qatar related to the aggravation of the situation. During the meeting, the Chairman of the Supreme Council for National Reconciliation of Afghanistan, Abdullah Abdullah, proposed a roadmap to form an inclusive government, involving representatives of all political forces and ethnic groups of the country. In addition, the participants discussed the prospects for a peaceful resolution of the Afghan crisis.

However, despite the efforts made by Afghan politicians and the international community, the lives of civilians are under threat. In particular, according to the leader of the Democratic Party of Tajikistan Saidjafar Usmonzoda, actions of the Taliban’s militants against the non-Pushtun peoples of Afghanistan, especially Tajiks, are considered as “genocide”. At the same time, Usmonzoda added that he and his party fully support the resistance to the Taliban regime.

It should be noted that the issue of maintaining the security of the non-Pashtun population of Afghanistan was one of the topics discussed at the recent negotiations in Doha city. In considering this issue, Abdullah Abdullah made clear the readiness of Amrullah Saleh to call on foreign leaders to support national minorities living in Afghanistan. According to the source close to the former Afghan government, Saleh, an ethnic Tajik, plans to seek help from Tajik President Emomali Rahmon to save Tajiks living in Afghanistan.

It is becoming clear that clashes between the resistance forces and the Taliban will intensify in the near future. The international community can witness another ethnic cleansing in the newly burning Islamic Republic in the absence of support from Afghanistan’s neighbouring countries.

*

Note to readers: Please click the share buttons above or below. Follow us on Instagram, @crg_globalresearch. Forward this article to your email lists. Crosspost on your blog site, internet forums. etc.

Featured image: An Afghan man and children, suffering hardships from America’s longest war, pose for a portrait in Kabul, Afghanistan, on March 19, 2021. [Source: theintercept.com]