Kabul attack

The horrifying 10-hour siege at the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul, which left at least 16 people dead and another 53 wounded, has provoked the usual response from the Afghan government. At an extraordinary meeting of the country’s National Security Council, the government claimed the attack was orchestrated from Pakistan and called on us to do more in the fight against militancy. This statement came despite the fact that no group has claimed responsibility for the attack and the Afghan government itself has not named anyone responsible. To hurl accusations at Pakistan before there is any evidence has become par for the course for Afghanistan. Army Chief Raheel Sharif has offered his condolences and assured President Ghani that Pakistani soil will not be used to launch attacks against Afghanistan. So far, Pakistan even seems to be cooperating with Afghanistan into the investigation. According to an ISPR press release, the Afghan authorities handed Pakistan a list of three phone numbers related to the attack which had used Afghan SIMs and cell phone providers but their signal could apparently reach the border. Even if one were not to take the ISPR on face value, it is now up to Afghanistan to show this information is false rather than level unsubstantiated allegations.

It is, of course, undeniable that Pakistani territory has frequently been used to launch attacks across the border. But the reverse is equally true as well, with the TTP’s Mullah Fazlullah among the militants who are still hiding in Afghanistan. Pakistan had tried to clamp down on movement across the border by sealing the Torkham border while it tried to build a gate and institute a system of checking for valid identification before letting anyone cross. The Afghan response was to complain bitterly and even fire shots across the border. It is convenient for Ashraf to scapegoat Pakistan since he is pursuing an even closer relationship with India than it already has, which would include the transfer of lethal weaponry from India. Afghanistan has also had a negative influence on the Quadrilateral Coordination Group trying to pursue negotiations with the Afghan Taliban. It has sabotaged meetings either by refusing to appear or using them as a platform to denounce Pakistan’s supposed patronage of the Taliban. This course of action is not sustainable for Afghanistan as it doesn’t attack the crux of the problem, which is that its war against the Taliban is unwinnable. Blaming Pakistan for every attack is not going to change this ugly reality.