Afghanistan has hanged six Taliban inmates in the face of increasing violence in the country. The six hanged were found guilty of crimes against national security. These are the first hangings since the current government took office in 2014, as government officials during Hamid Karzai’s tenure had stopped executing imprisoned insurgents in hope of peace negotiations. But in the wake of a suicide bombing in Kabul last month that killed 64 people and left hundreds injured, President Ashraf Ghani said that he was no longer interested in negotiating with the Taliban leaders. The current executions come amid the increased violence in the country after the Taliban had announced the spring offensive at the time of poppy harvest, which is their primary source of financing. Moreover, in the past few days, 43 insurgents have been killed in clashes with the Afghan forces. After the executions, the Taliban leaders have responded with a severe threat of violence.
President Ghani had promised to deal harshly with the insurgents after the negotiations with the Taliban did not bear any fruit. During the recent Pakistan-brokered talks, Afghan officials and the Taliban were unable to reach any consensus. Moreover, the Afghan government was irked by the continued violence even during the peace negotiations. They were of the opinion that talks and violence cannot go ahead together. Among those executed were two Taliban members who were involved in the executions of senior Afghan officials. One of them facilitated a 2011 suicide attack on Burhanuddin Rabbani, who served as country’s temporary president after the US forces helped topple the Taliban government. The other inmate was involved in 2009 assassination of the deputy chief of the Afghan National Directorate of Security, Abdullah Laghmani. The toughening of stance from the Afghan government is the right move, as it cannot afford to succumb in the wake of widespread violence in the country. Government should take a systematic approach to the issue rather than an all-out offensive on the battlefield. It should maintain a harsh stance on the violence but should try the criminals under due process of law.
Pakistan has been at the forefront of negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban representatives. Since taking office, the Afghan president has cooperated with the Pakistan government and taken measures to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table. Pakistan should maintain its stance for a peace process through negotiations and should not support any insurgency in the neighbouring country. Even in the past, fingers have been raised towards Pakistan for allegedly funding and supporting the Taliban. President Ghani had also expressed his reservations regarding the links of Taliban in Pakistan. A recent meeting of the Taliban representatives with Pakistan’s government officials had irked the Afghan government. Pakistan government should take the Afghan government on board before taking any step, and support the Afghan government in all its efforts to bring peace to the war-ravaged countryhttp://dailytimes.com.pk/editorial/11-May-16/the-taliban-hangings
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