In this year’s Eid al Fitr message to the Afghan people, Taliban supremo Mullah Omar addressed the issues of the green-on-blue attacks (Afghan forces attacking ISAF troops) and the infiltration of the Afghan security forces.
The statement was released by the Taliban and obtained by the SITE Intelligence Group (Voice of Jihad has been out of sorts the past couple of days). The lengthy statement (nearly seven pages long, with 33 points) included his views on the war (the Taliban is winning, he says); negotiations (they are strictly for prisoner exchanges and furthering the Taliban’s goal of international recognition); the reestablishment of sharia (he of course wants that); and other issues.
But the statements on infiltration, green-on-blue attacks, and the call for Afghan forces to defect are interesting in light of recent developments. Last week, there were five green-on-blue attacks, resulting in the deaths of seven US soldiers. This year, such attacks have made up 13 percent of ISAF’s total casualties [see LWJ report, 2 more ISAF troops wounded in latest green-on-blue attack, for more details on the green-on-blue attacks].
Omar claims that the Taliban “cleverly infiltrated in the ranks of the enemy according to the plan given to them last year.” He urges government officials and security personnel to defect and join the Taliban as it is their religious duty to do so, and then warns that “the day is not far away that the invading enemy will flee Afghanistan.” He also notes that the Taliban have created the “Call and Guidance, Luring and Integration” department, “with branches … now operational all over the country,” to encourage defections. Below are excerpted portions of Omar’s statement:
3. Mujahideen have cleverly infiltrated in the ranks of the enemy according to the plan given to them last year. Many conscious Afghans in the rank and files of the enemy have shown willingness to help the Mujahideen in a shrewd and astute manner after having come around to know the reality. As a result, the foreign invaders and their allies in their military centers and bases do come under crushing blows of these heroic soldiers. We appreciate these brave and historical heroes and the entire nation pays them great tributes. We expect others to display the same boldness and spirit. Thanks to the infiltration of the Mujahideen, they are able to (safely) enter bases, offices and intelligence centers of the enemy. Then, they easily carry out decisive and coordinated attacks, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy both in life and equipment. Furthermore, a great number of soldiers join the ranks of Mujahideen, carrying their heavy and light weapons and ammunition, after leaving the ranks of the enemy. The Mujahideen honor them and provide them protection. In the recent days, you and we were witness of such frequent incidents.
29. I invite all personnel of the Kabul Administration, particularly, the personnel of police and army, their officers and the employees of the intelligence department to abandon support of the invaders against your religion and country; join the ranks of Mujahideen like your heroic colleagues– those who deal crushing blows at the invaders from time to time. Join the current struggle aimed at liberating your country and ousting the foreign usurpers– a struggle which is on the verge of victory, if God willing. This will give you a successful and proud life here and in the Hereafter, you will be among the pious men of the Creator and the Master (of all Beings).
30. It is more proper for you to take advantage of this opportunity because the day is not far away that the invading enemy will flee Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate has added in its organizational charter a department by the name of Call and Guidance, Luring and Integration. Its branches are now operational all over the country so that, in addition to other services, they may provide you facilities to leave the ranks of the enemy and join the Mujahideen.
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19 Comments
Hate to break it to this “one eyed butt plug”… but the Taliban nor the haqqanis are winning anything.
We have killed far more of them, then they have of us, and taken away their territory that they used to operate in openly. They are still in the East and South, but have had to resort to guerilla tactics and IED’s and suicids assaults to kill Americans. straight up gunfights get them wasted in large numbers. The surge did waht it was intended to do.
The key will be using Spec Ops to kill Taliban and Haqqanni leaders and insurgents in enough numbers so as to keep them from taking back over, and I am confident that can be done, because I know thae calibur or or Spec Ops boys…having had the privalige to serve as one of them. Now what we need to do is send a Tier 1 unit into Pakistan and smoke this punk Omar like we did his butt buddy Bin Laden!
u are winning nothing after 10 years nothing has being achieved the government corrupt, afghan soldiers are useless. And US NATO are coming home
Devin,
Really,???
The US and NATO are pulling out, but they are still there, and the Afghan government looks unable to stand up to them. Most people would count that as winning.
A video inving Turkish Mujahideen to Afghanistan:: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2byVttgsSE
It is high time now for US to get this guy. Every time I here this man’s name I see a video made by BBC journalist with a hidden camera. Any guess about his whereabouts? Where is he?
@ David & My2Cents
Well it depends how you define winning. ISAF has destroyed the camps that were trained terrorists to be exported to the West. They have decimated the ranks of the Taliban to the extent that it is no longer really recognisable as the organisation it once was. There is a Government which unfortunately for the average Afghan is corrupt, but with regards to NATO is an ally in a very strategic location.
This isn’t a War with a quantifiable end point like WW2, no peace treaties will be signed. As another commentor stated Spec Ops will be there for many years taking out Taliban Leaders et al.
IMO ISAF clearly have not lost this war, it’s not even over, the Taliban will not run straight back into power after ISAF leave there are too many Afghans who now have too much to lose from a Taliban resurgence.
His is gravely sick for last two months in Pakistan may be Karachi search hospitals, doctors, nursing homes, medicine shops etc and you will find him – but will you kill him – nay!
The “Call and Guidance, Luring and Integration” department? Not the catchiest title for a guerilla unit! Nobody seriously believes the “green on blues” were all carefully planned from day one surely! Many happened after incidents, or were the results of of arguments or vendettas and were not ideologically or politically motivated.
Time and again, I’m surprised that so many people confuse tactical and strategic gains. Killing insurgents is a tactical gain, not necessarily a strategic gain. In insurgencies and counterinsurgencies, the battlefield is the population: see, e.g. the wonderful book “The Insurgency in Chechnya and the North Caucasus” by (Green Beret) Robert Schaefer. Whoever wins the will of the population wins the war. In Afghanistan, it increasingly looks like NATO/ISAF/corrupt Afghan government are on the road to defeat, because they are losing the Afghan population. And the Haqqanis totally undermine the counterinsurgency strategy of NATO/ISAF by repeatedly attacking the NATO/ISAF headquarters. The message of those attacks? NATO/ISAF cannot even protect themselves – how could they protect you, the average Afghan. I’m pretty sure the average Afghans got the message. The green-on-blue attacks are an indicator – among others.
Britain gets all worked up if Ecuador is hiding Assange in plain sight.
How come they not only not get worked up but they, and their American cousins, continue to pour billions into the PaqMIL terror-machine who has been hiding this terrorist Mullah from the world, for 11 years!
Keep the gravy train flowing and the Mullah riding on it!
Btw, to my American friends here, i’m not anti-American. Just find this money strategy very strange. Am also not for a war with Paqistan per se, but Balochistan has the added advantage of freeing a people from decades of brutality. PAQMIL is THE devil here and eventually Pak peoples need t be freed from that suicidal hold.
The question now is simply can GIRoA backed with ISAF/US special forces and advisers continue to deny Afghanistan as safe territory to international terrorists after the inevitable drawdown in the future. The answer is most likely yes and I refer you to the phrase “Afghan good enough”. The US didnt enter the war to build a nation (arguably nation building was the right COIN strategy but adopted far too late); it invaded to remove the threat international terrorists posed to the rest of the world by using AFG as a safe haven with impunity. Central Asian Al-Qaeda, IMU, etc are on the run.
For all the tough talk about fighting for freedom, the insurgents and terrorists are only hanging a noose around the necks of their own countrymen and neighbors. Their bloody actions are not a victory for Islam, but a vicious defeat for the Afghani and Pakistani people who want what everyone else in the world who has accepted international standards of behavior enjoy: the ability to live peaceful, prosperous lives in harmony with society.
When the life expectancy of your country is HALF that of the rest of the developing world and everyone you know ekes out an existence in poverty, it should be obvious to any rational person that a change of course is needed. The definition of insanity is to repeat the same action over and over again and expect a different result.
In the 1980s, the Russian were on the verge of ERADICATING these Afghan Taliban Muslim rats had it not for the CIA and Charlie Wilson. Now the US military is paying for their mistakes with lives while America is burning $7 billion a month in this Islamic cesspool. Any other country would have just NAPALMED every single Taliban held village from the air and declared VICTORY. Our Morale High Ground is what make the US Military the WEAKEST in the World.
Actually, the best thing that could occur for US now is to somehow lure this guy into Afghan territory, then use him as bait to eliminate as many of his followers as possible before finally nixing him too.
They can’t win head to head major conventional battles.
If we could somehow create such a scenario it would be a major help.
They have no uniforms of their own. They must constantly pretend to represent other entities to pull off their attacks.
Like the Germans during the Battle of the Bulge, they are committing war crimes in doing so.
I say somehow try to lure this guy back into Afghanistan, surround and trap him, then use him as bait to eliminate as many of his followers as possible before finally eliminating him in the end.
Of course, maybe I’m just dreaming.
Thnx for interesting artcile. According to my sources up to more than 60 % of green on blue is due to personal grievances. Clash of culture between various ISAF soldies and their Afghan counterparts. I not writing this to minimize what ever Taliban might think they are accomplishing but just to offer a nuanced fremawork. Best Niels
Supremo?
Shadow…I respect your opinion…but I stand by the facts and what I said. When I served we were killing a hell of alot of Taliban/Al Qaida…and I don’t see anything in the last three years I have been out of the Corps to signal a defeat of history’s most potent military force. The Taliban/Haqqanis/Al Qaida are capable fighters, but capable ain’t a match for the US. Have we made some wrong moves…HELL YES!
But our Spec Ops forces are the best in the world, and the above mentioned scumbags will have a hell of a time overcoming them in the years ahead IMHO.
Amen Garrett. Killing anyone who dares to contradict you and ruling by fear of brutal oppression is not “winning”.
Omar is a sick man with sick ideas and he has lots of sickos that follow him. There are many more who do not subscribe to the kind of horrific life he wants to impose on Afghans and anybody else that doesn’t agree with him. He is a brutal monster who can never “win”. One day, he will die as the loser he is and find out his true reward for all the evil and hate he has wrought on the world.
I suspect most of these are infiltrators. I am not sure what is meant by ‘personal grievences.’ I am sure they are avenging family members killed in combat, probably were already Taliban. The Taliban are closer to a criminal gang than a guerilla army. However, it is a brilliant tactic as it is driving a wedge between ISAF and ANSF.
The Taliban are not close to defeating ISAF or even GIRoA. They don’t have to. Since the US and ISAF have already committed to leaving in 2014, all they have to do is get credit for causing us to leave. This is a large scale version of their ‘victory’ over FOB Keating in 2009.
As in Iraq, it is our choice, not that of the Taliban, whether we win or lose.