News Right Now: Pakistan Works to Strengthen US Occupation

Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu. Welcome to News Right Now -Pakistan Works to Strengthen US Occupation.

Afghanistan is a landlocked nation. it is composed of a multitude of tribes and ethnicity with a penchant for resisting foreign occupations that dates back hundreds of years. Afghanistan has rightfully earned the title, “graveyard of empires.”

As the US enters its 18th year in Afghanistan, the Trump administration is contending with Afghanistan’s reputation, and growing increasingly frustrated that the occupation has still failed to deliver measurable results... namely the defeat of the Taliban.

Running out of options, and giving in to the inevitability of a US surrender, the US is now wooing the Taliban to the negotiating table.

After the recent visit of Alice Wells, from the US Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs to Pakistan’s Army Chief, General Qamar Bajwa at the General Headquarters in Islamabad, both the US and Pakistan,

“reaffirmed the commitment towards the common goal of peace and stability in the region and discussed measures towards that end. Both also agreed on continued engagement at multiple levels.”

As the US comes to grips with the reality that it will never be able to find an acceptable solution in Pakistan, the Pakistani government eagerly does its masters bidding and reaffirms its diplomatic, political, and military commitment to the US occupation of Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the Afghan central government controls very little territory outside the capital, as a resurgent Taliban still controls most of the country and has increased attacks on both the central government and the occupying forces.

As the US senses the futility of increased military operations, it realizes the importance of a long term political solution that could justify a quiet withdrawal from Afghanistan.

To that end, it is working to ensnare the Taliban into the political process so that the US may force the Taliban to compromise and accept the authority of the US backed central Afghan government.

Speaking of dialog, Wells stated that the refusal of the Taliban to join the political process is “unacceptable”.

Muslims, however are well aware of Pakistan’s dubious role in facilitating the nearly 20-year long occupation of Afghanistan.

There’s a well known military adage that states: “Amateurs discuss strategy. Professionals discuss logistics.” Nowhere is this clearer than in the US occupation of Afghanistan, which relies heavily on Pakistan for logistical support.

Without the help of Pakistan’s political and military leadership, America could neither have attacked Afghanistan, nor occupied it, nor be able to fight such a long war.

To paint a picture of how much the US relies on partners like Pakistan for logistical support, Max Boot, in his 2006 LA Times article described the state of affairs of large US bases that occupy Iraq and Afghanistan:

“Modern militaries cannot fight without a lengthy supply chain, and the success or failure of major operations can turn on the work of anonymous logisticians...

growing numbers of troops live on giant installations complete with Wal-Mart-style post exchanges, movie theaters, swimming pools, gyms, fast-food eateries (Subway, Burger King, Cinnabon) and vast chow halls offering fresh-baked pies and multiple flavors of ice cream. Troops increasingly live in dorm-style quarters complete with TVs, mini-refrigerators, air conditioning/heating units and other luxuries unimaginable to previous generations of GIs.”

None of this would ever be possible without the logistical support and political cover provided by Pakistan.

As the Pakistani government uses its resources and troops to protect a foreign occupation of Muslim land in neighboring Afghanistan. It is the Muslims of Pakistan who pay the price.

It’s baffling that a country with a rich Islamic heritage and ferocious fighting force would allow itself to be governed by the dictates of a foreign power. Even more baffling is that while Pakistan serves US interests in Afghanistan, Pakistan’s mortal enemy, India, has been defiantly conducting operations on Afghan soil against Pakistan!

Clearly, the Pakistani government enables the occupation by providing logistical, military, and political support to the occupation of Afghanistan - all while the Muslims of Pakistan suffer economic crisis after economic crisis, rolling power outages, weak industry, and chronic political corruption.

If Pakistan were to leverage its military, diplomatic, and political might under a sincere, mature, capable Islamic leadership, it could establish Islam, unify the Muslim lands, and make the Deen supreme, radically transform its situation, and that of neighboring Afghanistan from chaos to stability.

Jazakum Allahu khairan for joining us. Wassalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.