President Ghani has reiterated on reaching a “political settlement” as the only solution in his recent remarks delivered at two separate events held yesterday and today at the Presidential Palace.
The only solution for the Taliban is to agree on a political settlement which is satisfactory to all Afghans, said President Ghani on Wednesday, July 28, at a meeting of Joint Coordination and Monitoring Board. He added that the Taliban are waging an illegitimate war to grab the power and it hasn’t any religious legitimacy.
“The consensus of prominent Islamic scholars from all over the world including Pakistani scholars expressed in Saudi Arabia that the war by Taliban has no religious justification is crystal clear and heartening. This is not a fight for Islam. It is a fight for monopolistic power,” Ghani said.
Speaking at the commemoration of the National Flag Day today, July 29, he noted that measures would be taken to make it clear for the Taliban that use of force will not yield result. “If the Taliban believes in sword, the defense and security forces will respond to the group with sword.”
Moreover, he underlined that the Taliban continue to violate human rights in their campaign by targeting civilians and detonating landmines.
“To have a tomorrow, we must be counted today. Allah’s injunction is clear. Those who refuse peace must be faced with full determination. Our diverse and united country is now determined to defend the gains of the past twenty years and the generations that have gone before that,” he detailed, noting that the Afghan people will continue to defend their homes and country with strong determination.
Ghani called on the international community to review the narrative of the Taliban and their supporters’ willingness to accept a political solution.
On the other hand, Ghani said that the war in Afghanistan is not a civil war, but a war between terrorist networks. “At least, 10,000 members of these groups plus others have entered our country and have given themselves the right to kill our innocent civilians and bring disruption,” he explained. According to him, the widespread invasion of regional and international terrorist networks, especially Jaish-e-Mohammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba and ISKP in Afghanistan, are adding new regional and international dimensions to the country’s war.
If peace is established, the Afghan government will accept the exemption of the group’s militants, he said.
Deborah Lyons, Special Representative of the UN Secretary General and Head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), said at the Joint Coordination and Monitoring Board meeting that the international community would not see the Taliban as a “viable partner” without progress in peace talks and the prevention of human rights abuses by the Taliban.
She then stressed that peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban should begin as soon as possible to resolve Afghanistan’s long-standing problems.
“The world is watching closely how they are acting, especially towards civilian populations, women, and minorities. The Taliban have gained a certain legitimacy in recent years through their negotiations in Doha, but this legitimacy is premised on their commitment to a political negotiation with the Government of Afghanistan, a commitment which their battle-focused strategy casts into doubt,” She warned the group.
According to her, the major donors never support the oppression of women, discrimination against minorities, neglect of girls’ education, and the functioning of an authoritarian government.
The UNAMA head detailed that 18 million people in Afghanistan are in need of urgent humanitarian needs which should be given priority.
She said the United Nations would remain in Afghanistan and continue its assistance to the country.
