The
news that the Afghan president Ashraf Ghani fled to Tajikistan on Sunday, the world came to know that the capital was under the rule of the
insurgents again after 20years, all within the span of ten days. Following the
Taliban's rise to power, many scared Afghans escaped the country as soon as
possible while they still had the chance and airport was under the US military
however, evacuation was rushed while shots were fired at the airport. With Taliban
now in control of the airport, chaos has broken out, while the remaining people
are trying to figure out how to stay alive. The former president took to social
media to post, that he escaped the country to avoid bloodshed, his slip away has come under heavy criticism from members of his country.
Ghani said, “If there were still
countless countrymen martyred and they would face destruction and destruction
of Kabul city, result would have been a big human disaster in this 6-million
city. The Taliban have made it to remove me, they're here to attack all Kabul
and the people of Kabul.”
As soon as reports came in that the
Presidential Palace had been vacated, the Taliban started marching in. The
reason — to ensure the law and order situation was under control and there was
no loot. That was what Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujaihid told India Today
in an exclusive conversation from Doha, Qatar.
All the
while foreign missions make desperate attempts to airlift their diplomatic
staff and personnel out of the country, with US and UK have already done so.
With India planning to completely evacuate within 48hours, meanwhile Russia
said it saw no need to evacuate its embassy right now and China has yet to
start evacuating its staff. Iran has offered to set up camps along the Afghan
border to provide temporary refuge for Afghans fleeing the country. Food, water
and basic essentials scarcity was experienced, along with overcrowded tents
were prevalently observed around the country. However, hospitals and chemist shops
were functional, so was the internet and telecom.
What now?
President Hamid Karzai has announced
that a coordinating council was being formed to ensure a smooth transition of
power. Karzai, along with Abdullah Abdullah, chairman of the
Afghan delegation to peace talks, and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of the
Hesb-i-Islami party, were likely to manage a peaceful transfer of power.
Mullah Baradar could play a
leadership role. The Taliban are already deciding cabinet portfolios. The
Taliban have said there will be no interim government in Afghanistan.
Impact on India
Failure of to have a diplomatic relationship between New Delhi and Kabul in the long term. Taliban’s
close/ strong ties with Pakistan can’t be overlooked, right now all eyes are on
Taliban and their next move towards governance.
Speaking to Indian Today when asked
about the status of ties with India, the Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid
said, “We hope to maintain good relations with all countries, including India.
We will work towards the betterment of Afghanistan. While ties have not been
good in the past, we will strive for better ties.”
Further
stating that “There are issues between
India and Pakistan which the two have to resolve. We do not want to take sides.
Afghanistan is connected to both countries. We want all countries to have good
relations.”
Future of India’s
investments in that country is quite questionable and strong connections of Afghanistan
with China and Pakistan, with whom India shares a strenuous relationship might
have adverse effect in the future. All anyone can do right now is wait and watch.
