Look who came to dinner ...
By Syed Saleem Shahzad
KARACHI - Although the Taliban and al-Qaeda have consistently rejected
overtures to make peace with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) forces
until they leave Afghanistan, the latest initiative led by Saudi Arabia, and
approved by Washington and London, is on track.
Reports emerged this week that King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia recently hosted
high-level talks in Mecca between representatives of the Afghan government and
the Taliban. If a middle road is found, next year's elections in Afghanistan
could be held under the supervision of peacekeeping forces from Islamic
countries, rather than those of NATO.
The first move in the peace process was made by Saudi Arabia
last year when a Saudi consul based in Islamabad secretly visited the North
Waziristan tribal area and met the al-Qaeda leadership. His mission was to
convince them of the necessity of a peace process in Afghanistan and provide
them with assurances of an amnesty. (See
Military brains plot Pakistan's downfall Asia Times Online, September
26, 2007.) Al-Qaeda refused the consul access to its senior leaders, and anyway
rejected the initiative.
Undeterred, Riyadh pitched the idea to the Taliban rank and file that if the
forces of Islamic countries were involved in peacekeeping operations for the
elections, it would create a climate of reconciliation in which both the
Taliban and NATO would not lose face. The Taliban also did not accept this
idea, but the proposal did generate low-profile debate and in this sense a
peace process had begun.
Like the Taliban, the Western coalition was divided over peace formulas but
decided to at least initiate a political process to resolve the seven-year
conflict in Afghanistan. The British Embassy in Kabul sent some people to
Helmand province to initiate talks with the Taliban, but the procedure
backfired as the Taliban dismissed their commanders involved in the
negotiations. And the Afghan government, under instructions from the US Embassy
in Kabul, expelled European Union officials from Afghanistan for their
involvement in the dialogue process.
Pakistan, meanwhile, despite American pressure, kept open channels of
communication with the Taliban. All the while, the conflict in Afghanistan
escalated, reaching new heights this year.
Kabul is virtually under siege and the Taliban have established pockets in
Wardak (30 kilometers from Kabul) and Sarobi (50 km from Kabul) as well as in
neighboring Kapisa and Parwan provinces. More ominously, the Taliban-led
insurgency has spread to Pakistani territory where vast areas have been brought
under its control, especially in the tribal areas that border Afghanistan. From
a military standpoint, this is particularly worrying for NATO as most of its
supplies pass through this area.
Against this backdrop of a seemingly unwinnable war, as Britain's senior
commander in Afghanistan has commented, the stalled pace process was revived.
The Muslim holy month of Ramadan was used as a cover for revived backchannel
diplomacy in the Saudi holy city of Mecca. Afghan officials, former Taliban
leaders and leaders of mujid Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan
shared an Iftar fast-breaking meal with King Abdullah. Separate meetings
were held with other top Saudi officials, including Saudi intelligence chief
Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz.
One person who was present at the king's table was former Taliban foreign
minister Wakeel Ahmed Muttawakil. He spoke to Asia Times Online by telephone
from Kabul.
Asia Times Online: Did you meet King Abdullah?
Wakeel Ahmed Muttawakil: I traveled to Saudi Arabia to perform umra
[pilgrimage] in the holy month of Ramadan ... and it is true [I met King
Abdullah]. You know, the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan [as the Taliban's
regime was known from 1996 to 2001] had good relations with Saudi Arabia and
therefore I know everybody over there.
ATol: Your meeting with Saudi intelligence chief Muqrin bin Abdul
Aziz is believed to be the real beginning of a dialogue process between the
Taliban and Saudi Arabia over a truce between the Taliban and the Afghan
government.
WAM: As I said, I met with many people during my stay in Saudi
Arabia, but it had nothing to do with politics. Our reason to travel was to
perform pilgrimage and prayers in Ramadan. Since I am known to the Saudi
government, they invited me for Iftar.
ATol: Then was it a coincidence that immediately after your
visit, Afghan President Hamid Karzai stepped up efforts to engage the Taliban
and mentioned a Saudi role in that regard?
WAM: I said earlier that Saudi Arabia had very good relations
with the Taliban in the past, therefore the Afghan government expects the Saudi
government to play a role. Not only with the Taliban, Saudi Arabia had very
good relations with Sheikh Osama bin Laden and other jihadi movements. So its
role would be very effective.
ATol: Hizb-e-Islami Afghanistan has also been approached by the
Saudis. Do you have any knowledge in this regard?
WAM: I don't know anything in this regard, but I can guess that
since the Taliban and Hizb-e-Islami are both part of the present insurgency,
but still keep separate commands, Hekmatyar would have been approached
separately. Like the Taliban, Hekmatyar also keeps very good relations with
Saudi Arabia and with his connections with the Ikwanul Muslemeen [Muslim
Brotherhood] he is even closer to the Saudis.
An earlier Taliban statement said:
The mainstream media is reporting
about a "peace process" between the Taliban and the Kabul puppet administration
which is being sponsored by Saudi Arabia and supported by Britain, and that
there are "unprecedented talks" involving a senior ex-Taliban member who is
traveling between Kabul and the alleged bases of the Taliban senior leadership
in Pakistan. The Afghanistan Islamic Emirate leadership council considers such
as baseless rumors and as failed attempts of the enemy to create mistrust and
concerns among Afghans and other nations and mujahideen.
No official member of the Taliban is currently or has in the past negotiated
with the US or the puppet Afghan government. A few former officials of the
Taliban who are under house arrest [Mullah Zaeef, former Taliban ambassador to
Pakistan] or have surrendered [Wakeel Ahmed Muttawakil] do not represent the
Islamic Emirate.
The Taliban's denial and Muttawakil's
reticence apart, it cannot be denied that something is afoot. This is no better
illustrated than by Washington-backed Karzai at the weekend asking "terrorist"
Mullah Omar to join the political process and saying that he would convince the
international community about him.
Syed Saleem Shahzad is Asia Times Online's Pakistan Bureau Chief. He can
be reached at saleem_shahzad2002@yahoo.com
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