Many Afghans fear the landmark US-Taliban deal will not lead to peace without firm commitments from the Taliban to protect human rights and sever ties with terrorist groups.
A peace deal with the Taliban has been signed. But rebuilding Afghanistan after three decades of conflict will take much more than an accord, says a scholar of peacebuilding.
Trump recently warned Iran that the US could target its cultural sites. Many of Iran’s cultural sites carry deep religious meaning for a global Shii community and such a threat risks alienating them.
Gordon Adams, American University School of International Service
US officials have consistently lied over decades about progress in the Afghanistan war. The lies are no surprise, writes a foreign affairs scholar – but they have profound consequences.
Building a lasting peace in Afghanistan will take much more than an accord with the Taliban. In post-conflict nations, economic development and job creation are critical to national security.
According to a recent survey, Afghans rate their lives worse than anyone else on the planet. The election is unlikely to be a game changer considering the magnitude of challenges facing the country.
A ceasefire and peace agreement in Afghanistan may mean that the Taliban would have to lose their “terrorist” classification and turn from despised outlaws to legitimate powerbrokers.
The US has been at war in Afghanistan since a few weeks after 9/11. Now we are negotiating a peace with the Taliban, the same insurgents who sheltered Osama bin Laden.
The US is negotiating a peace agreement with the Taliban, so it can safely withdraw its troops. But how can peace last in Afghanistan if women aren’t at the negotiating table?
Though more consequences are likely to develop in the post-9/11 era, the war on terror, heightened government surveillance and Islamophobia are notable legacies of this early 21st century tragedy.