×

Taliban’s might has increased

Not long after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, American troops spearheaded a military coalition that forced the Taliban government out of power in Afghanistan. As hosts of Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida terrorists, the Taliban had sided with the enemies of civilization.

Then Barack Obama became president. His stated goal was to end U.S. combat involvement in both Iraq and Afghanistan. We have been reaping the bitter fruit of his version of “mission accomplished” in Iraq.

Now it seems even worse may happen in Afghanistan. According to a published report, the Taliban resurgence there has been so successful that the group controls more territory than it has in 15 years.

That is bad news for both Americans and Afghans. For us, a new Taliban regime in that country could mean a new home base for Islamic terrorist organizations. The situation could deteriorate to the point it would be necessary to form a new coalition of countries and re-conquer Afghanistan to eliminate the safe haven.

For Afghans, the outlook would be much worse. During their reign of terror, the Taliban enforced a vicious interpretation of Islam -especially brutal toward girls and women.

When Obama began pulling U.S. troops out of Afghanistan and limiting the involvement of those remaining, we were among those warning Taliban leaders would capitalize on the policy. Knowing they had only to wait the United States out, until whatever pullout deadline Obama set had passed, the Taliban would be more dangerous than ever.

News of their successes has prompted the Obama administration to allow the 9,800 U.S. troops left in the country to resume offensive operations against the Taliban. Here’s hoping our forces can at least hold out until a new president – hopefully one with a more realistic outlook – can take office.

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *
   

Starting at $4.39/week.

Subscribe Today