Handle it now
So it turns out that famed Afghan warlord since the Soviet jihad days, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, has not ‘converted’ to Da’ish, contrary to news widely circulated a few days earlier. Yet someone had floated the idea. And considering the significance of such a move, it cannot be simply dismissed as mischief. Hekmatyar was once the darling of the international jihad that bled the evil empire ‘by a thousand cuts’. His Hizb-e-Islami is strong on the Kunar-Nooristan side of the border; an arrangement that worked perfectly considering the supply lines of the old war. He is two-time former Afghan prime minister, even though briefly both times, and can still raise a storm if and when needed.
The US found him a particularly aggravating thorn in their side for much of the war. He was quite the favoured ‘candidate’ to rule over Afghanistan till the Taliban suddenly appeared and upset the mechanics. He spent much of the later years in Iran, but returned and encouraged anti-Nato attacks for years. Whoever wanted people to believe in his sudden turn to IS clearly understood the impact of such a move. It will unnerve Pakistan, because Da’ish showing up on the other side of the border, where TTP sanctuaries have long troubled Pakistan, will surely reset the entire course of Zarb-e-Azb. Whoever funds and arms radical outfits like al Qaeda and IS tend to route their largesse to those more effective on the ground. And Da’ish has surely been on a roll. Its emergence so close can only mean bad news for Pakistan.
It can also send the Afghan peace process in a tailspin. Recently the Afghan Taliban, having had serious clashes and lost a good 200 men to IS, issued a written warning to Da’ish. Should the clashes continue, the Taliban’s negotiating position will weaken – which owes primarily to the most spirited Spring Offensive on record so far. That, in turn, could put a spanner in the works, impacting Kabul, Islamabad, Washington and Beijing. It is pretty clear why someone would float the Hekmatyar rumour. But it is more important to find out who. Someone is sabotaging the peace process. It must be checked now.