There are times when everything loses focus, clarity and significance to descent into a chaotic state as in the case of the present long war fought by a myriad of forces against a myriad of militant groups with a predictable yet unacceptable zero sum that has led to nothing but frustration and embarrassment in both the military and civilian quarters of the US.
Apparently, the news of how an simple shopkeeper fooled the entire US, NATO and Afghan officials into believing he was Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour for two years is rather embarrassing and speaks of the unproductiveness of the war and the unprofessionalism of the US and its intelligence apparatus.
After being engaged in the peace process for such a long duration, the CIA and other intelligence machinery operating in Afghanistan remained unable to establish the true identity of the imposter. This revelation can be instrumental in deciphering the ground reality in Afghanistan as the path upon which this war proceeds becomes clear as it can be rendered multiple interpretations.
Firstly, the sheer failure of the US and its unfaltering spying skills casts doubts on all previous ventures undertaken by it. If a mere shopkeeper can be believed to be a Taliban leader second only to Mullah Omar, no matter how clever he is, then how does one believe and validate that the thousands killed and targeted by the US were actually what we were made to believe? Maybe they too had a striking resemblance. With the terror network almost as strong as it was in 2001, the entire war becomes a hoax, a complete waste of precious lives, time, resources and energy.
Secondly, it may be taken as a clever US manoeuvre to prolong the peace process into a never ending cyclical one to serve geo-political ambitions in the region as reconciliation seems to be dependent upon foreign troops drawdown which in turn depends upon peace through dialogue.
Thirdly, it can be taken as a reactionary punch from the Taliban that aims to hit below the US belt as it symbolizes how flimsy the US claim to an eventual victory in Afghanistan is.
But one thing is for sure that the US brokered peace process, like the GWOT is a sham, a tiresome and futile venture as true peace in the region is linked with the decision of the Afghan people and leaders with aid only from regional players with converging strategic interests instead of hegemonic ones.
LUBNA UMAR
Islamabad
