On February 29, 2020, a significant historical event with profound implications for U.S. counter-terrorism efforts and the future of South/Central Asian states occurred. Mr. Zalmai Khalilzad, the Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Beradar of the Taliban signed "The Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan1." The agreement outlined detailed conditions that the U.S. had to meet before, during, and after the withdrawal of its forces from the country. However, there were no stipulated conditions for the Taliban to meet prior to U.S. withdrawal from the country. The agreement did not specify any mechanisms by which to hold the Taliban accountable if they failed to fulfill their promises to the U.S. or uphold obligations towards the people of Afghanistan. — a favorable arrangement for the Taliban.
Proponents of the accord argue that it ended armed conflict with the Taliban, heralding a peaceful Afghanistan. However, Afghan women, former government employees, and the impoverished majority under Taliban rule would likely disagree. Despite reduced incidents of suicide bombings and guerilla warfare, the Taliban, especially under Mr. Haybatullah's leadership, continues to instill fear and prevent peaceful living in Afghanistan.
The signing of the agreement and the hasty withdrawal of international security forces dealt a severe blow to Afghan security forces' morale while bolstering that of the Taliban fighters. It helped provide it with an opportunity, an opening to make a push and sweep through the country. Although the Special Representative was appointed to help facilitate the reconciliation process among Afghans, a provision that would have required or at least facilitated this phenomenon between the Afghan government and the Taliban did not exist in this document. Subsequently, as the U.S. forces began to withdraw, minimizing their support of their Afghan counterparts, Taliban intensified its attacks on the Afghan security forces across the country, capturing one district after another until it seized the capital.
Since then, despite Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid's repeated assurances that women's right will not be violated as did during the group's rule in 1990s, Mr. Heybatullah Akhondzada, the Taliban leader has stripped away their basic human rights 2. Afghan women are denied education, employment, public appearances without male accompaniment, and basic freedoms, leading to psychological distress and human rights abuses.3. As evident by reports about human rights abuses, in this environment anyone holding personal views that reflect a different understanding of the teachings of Islam from that of the Taliban can be persecuted. Harsh rules, based on Taliban's misunderstanding of Islam on the way in which Afghans conduct their daily life, has turned this beautiful country into an open-air prison. Additionally, most Afghans live in extreme poverty, with reports indicating a rise in malnourishment and dire living conditions since Kabul's fall. According to a 2022 U.N. report, poverty has risen to 97% since the fall of Kabul, leaving millions of children severely malnourished4. it does not seem likely that the parents of those starving children in dire need of medicine and food can be enjoying life in this so-called peaceful environment that the Doha Agreement supposedly helped "bring" to Afghanistan5.
The Taliban has also failed to meet its obligations toward the United States as outlined in this accord, particularly in preventing terrorist activities. This is mainly due to the lack of any provisions that it would face specific consequences if it did not fulfill the promises made in the accord. Although worded in several ways, essentially the main and arguably the only demand that the U.S. made in the publicly available version of this document was that the Taliban disallow any entity "to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies." It stipulated that the group refrain from hosting and remain committed to preventing "any party or individual . . . from recruiting, training, and fundraising" on the Afghan soil." However, it did not outline any consequences if the demand to do so was not satisfied by the Taliban. As a result, while the U.S. fulfilled its promise of withdrawing from the country, the Taliban did not and to date has not met any of its obligations as promised. Since coming to power, it has hosted and supported Al Qaeda and several other radical Islamist organizations that could pose a threat to regional stability and the security of the United States and its allies anytime in the future6.
Reflecting on the events since January 29, 2020, it's evident who benefited from the Doha agreement and who did not. The Taliban has failed to meet its obligations outlined in the agreement, particularly in preventing terrorist activities. Despite the U.S. withdrawal, the Taliban continues to host and support groups like Al Qaeda, posing threats to regional stability and international security. Moreover, while the "Bringing Peace" agreement ended immediate conflict, it did not bring the lasting peace desired by Afghans, leaving broken promises and a resurgence of terrorist organizations in the country. Meaningful dialogue and reconciliation efforts with the Afghan government should have been prerequisites for troop withdrawal, potentially altering Afghanistan's social, political, and economic trajectory and international security landscape.
Proponents of the accord argue that it ended armed conflict with the Taliban, heralding a peaceful Afghanistan. However, Afghan women, former government employees, and the impoverished majority under Taliban rule would likely disagree. Despite reduced incidents of suicide bombings and guerilla warfare, the Taliban, especially under Mr. Haybatullah's leadership, continues to instill fear and prevent peaceful living in Afghanistan.
The signing of the agreement and the hasty withdrawal of international security forces dealt a severe blow to Afghan security forces' morale while bolstering that of the Taliban fighters. It helped provide it with an opportunity, an opening to make a push and sweep through the country. Although the Special Representative was appointed to help facilitate the reconciliation process among Afghans, a provision that would have required or at least facilitated this phenomenon between the Afghan government and the Taliban did not exist in this document. Subsequently, as the U.S. forces began to withdraw, minimizing their support of their Afghan counterparts, Taliban intensified its attacks on the Afghan security forces across the country, capturing one district after another until it seized the capital.
Since then, despite Taliban spokesperson, Zabihullah Mujahid's repeated assurances that women's right will not be violated as did during the group's rule in 1990s, Mr. Heybatullah Akhondzada, the Taliban leader has stripped away their basic human rights 2. Afghan women are denied education, employment, public appearances without male accompaniment, and basic freedoms, leading to psychological distress and human rights abuses.3. As evident by reports about human rights abuses, in this environment anyone holding personal views that reflect a different understanding of the teachings of Islam from that of the Taliban can be persecuted. Harsh rules, based on Taliban's misunderstanding of Islam on the way in which Afghans conduct their daily life, has turned this beautiful country into an open-air prison. Additionally, most Afghans live in extreme poverty, with reports indicating a rise in malnourishment and dire living conditions since Kabul's fall. According to a 2022 U.N. report, poverty has risen to 97% since the fall of Kabul, leaving millions of children severely malnourished4. it does not seem likely that the parents of those starving children in dire need of medicine and food can be enjoying life in this so-called peaceful environment that the Doha Agreement supposedly helped "bring" to Afghanistan5.
The Taliban has also failed to meet its obligations toward the United States as outlined in this accord, particularly in preventing terrorist activities. This is mainly due to the lack of any provisions that it would face specific consequences if it did not fulfill the promises made in the accord. Although worded in several ways, essentially the main and arguably the only demand that the U.S. made in the publicly available version of this document was that the Taliban disallow any entity "to use the soil of Afghanistan to threaten the security of the United States and its allies." It stipulated that the group refrain from hosting and remain committed to preventing "any party or individual . . . from recruiting, training, and fundraising" on the Afghan soil." However, it did not outline any consequences if the demand to do so was not satisfied by the Taliban. As a result, while the U.S. fulfilled its promise of withdrawing from the country, the Taliban did not and to date has not met any of its obligations as promised. Since coming to power, it has hosted and supported Al Qaeda and several other radical Islamist organizations that could pose a threat to regional stability and the security of the United States and its allies anytime in the future6.
Reflecting on the events since January 29, 2020, it's evident who benefited from the Doha agreement and who did not. The Taliban has failed to meet its obligations outlined in the agreement, particularly in preventing terrorist activities. Despite the U.S. withdrawal, the Taliban continues to host and support groups like Al Qaeda, posing threats to regional stability and international security. Moreover, while the "Bringing Peace" agreement ended immediate conflict, it did not bring the lasting peace desired by Afghans, leaving broken promises and a resurgence of terrorist organizations in the country. Meaningful dialogue and reconciliation efforts with the Afghan government should have been prerequisites for troop withdrawal, potentially altering Afghanistan's social, political, and economic trajectory and international security landscape.
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