In recent days, in fact, the country has seen a huge increase in attacks on civilians, with the last one being a bombing on a bus that killed at least 11 people. The blast took place on the night of May 9, in the country’s southern Zabul province. Similarly, two days before that another bloody attack on Sayed-ul-Shuhada school in Dasht-e-Barchi district took place which killed 55 young female students. More than a dozen people including women and children were injured in those attacks as reported by the interior ministry. The Afghan officials said that such attacks are occurring after US President Joe Biden announced a drawback of American and coalition troops from Afghanistan by September 11.
However, amid the continuous growth of attacks, on Monday, May 10, Taliban spokesman Mohammad Naeem announced the group’s decision for a ceasefire on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, the Muslim’s religious holiday. “In order that the Mujahideen again provide a peaceful and secure atmosphere to our compatriots during Eid-ul-Fitr so that they may celebrate this joyous occasion, all Mujahideen … are instructed to halt all offensive operations”, Naeem said, as reported by Reuters news agency. The Taliban also warned that they were ready to fight back if aggravated.
This shows us Afghanistan’s complex situation of security and its struggle to achieve peace. US and coalition troops’ withdrawal has created a very difficult position, where each of the two contending parties (the Taliban and the national Afghan government) will try to reserve space for themselves and demonstrate who is stronger than the other. However, both contenders will find it much more advantageous to end the war that neither of the two can win. The country’s rich and completely untouched underground minerals can be explored. This exploitation of natural resources can lead to massive employment of Afghans in mines, thus providing a great amount of wealth that can be used to stabilize the country and invest in the development of the society. All this, coupled with a proper political and economic development program, can lead to a complete stabilization of Afghanistan.
To know more, please read:
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/5/10/at-least-11-killed-in-afghanistan-bus-bombing
https://www.aljazeera.com/opinions/2021/5/5/peace-is-possible-in-afghanistan
Author: Pasquale Candela; Editor: Shrabya Ghimire
