One year on - terrorists still a threat

One year after US warplanes began a massive bombing assault that sparked the overthrow of the Taliban and forced al-Qaida fighters to retreat, terrorists still pose a threat to the stability of the government, Afghanistan’s foreign minister said today.

Dr Abdullah also said US and other foreign troops allied to the administration of President Hamid Karzai should remain in the country until that threat no longer exists.

Speaking nearly a year to the day the United States launched Operation Enduring Freedom, Abdullah said the campaign against terrorism had been a success.

“It is a big achievement, and those achievements were made because of the determination of the Afghans as well as the international community to continue the fight against the biggest menace of our time,” he said.

One year ago, al-Qaida was able to operate freely in Afghanistan, training fighters and planning attacks. That situation has “reversed totally,” Abdullah said.

“Now al-Qaida, their leaders, could be considered as people on the run, in hiding here and there,” he said.

“Still they are capable of carrying out some terrorist actions in our country or in our region ... but their capacity has diminished to a large extent, and it is a big change.”

Abdullah said security in Afghanistan had generally improved since last year, but he conceded stability was threatened by continued clashes between warlords in the provinces and a series of unexplained bomb blasts in the capital.

He also pointed to the assassination of Vice President Abdul Qadir in July, the killing of Tourism Minister Abdul Rahman in February and the failed assassination attempt against Karzai last month.

There have been “incidents throughout, but the pace of positive change in the security was not altered at any second” since the new government came to power late last year, he said.

Asked how long US-led coalition troops should stay in Afghanistan, Abdullah said until “we all believe the situation is stable enough, and al-Qaida is not a threat anymore to stability in Afghanistan or elsewhere. One cannot give a timetable.”

Thousands of American and other coalition troops conduct regular missions in search of al-Qaida terrorists and Taliban hold-outs believed to be operating in small groups along the border with Pakistan.

Abdullah said the authority of the central government should be strengthened throughout the countryside, much of which is still the realm of local warlords who have their own private militias.

A multi-ethnic national army is supposed to eventually supersede the power of warlords, but Abdullah said a new army would take three to five years to fully establish.

So far, the process has been slow. About 1,200 recruits have graduated from 10-week basic training courses given by French troops and US special forces since April.

The overthrow of the Taliban paved the way for an interim government to take power. Karzai was appointed president for 18 months at a loya jirga, or grand council, in June. Abdullah said the new government was the first that had ever been committed to democracy.

The Taliban’s ousting has also led to the re-emergence of basic activities common all over the world but banned under their hardline Islamic regime - including listening to music and watching television.

“What are the changes which were made after October 7? Briefly I would say that hope has been created for the people of Afghanistan,” Abdullah said.