Pakistan free child-warriors from Taliban
This morning the Washington Times reports that Pakistani security forces freed several children that had been sold to the Taliban, apparently by their parents, to serve as soldiers or suicide bombers;
“It seems that there are some 300 to 400 such children who the Taliban had taken forcibly or who they were training,” Gen. Ahmed said.
The Washington Times, citing Pentagon and Pakistani officials, reported July 2 that the top Pakistani Taliban leader, Baitullah Mehsud, has been buying children as young as 7 to serve as suicide bombers, and that the going price for child bombers was between $7,000 and $14,000.
Maj. Nasir Ali, spokesman for the forces in Swat, said most of the several children who had been rescued were taken from a Taliban training camp in Swat after a firefight, although some had turned themselves in later. He did not say when the rescue occurred.
One sixteen-year-old claims he was abducted while playing cricket with his friends.
I don’t understand how folks can say that we need to leave Afghanistan and abandon the fight against the Taliban. They are clearly one of the most evil forces in the world. Granted, the war against them has left much to be desired, but that’s certainly no reason to let them regain a seat of power in the region.
I read something the other day from the Left that claims we’re not helping the Afghan people, that the Taliban throw acid on young girls’ faces, murder teachers, use children as warriors and that’s why we should leave. That makes absolutely no sense to me. Especially since it was imperative that we run the Serbs out of Kosovo for doing much tamer stuff.
Category: Foreign Policy, Terror War
I agree, I just do not understand how people can take that view that we should just leave and things will suddenly get better.
This just re-confirms Golda Meir’s message, until the Islamic world learns to love its children more than war, there will never be peace.
We saw some that were sold as catamites. Worst thing I can even imagine.
How anyone in a semi-stable mindset can make the argument that we should leave, and the people there will be better off, is way beyond me. But then, I guess they aren’t really in a semi-stable mindset.
I guess the Left doesn’t mind children being murdered or maimed, as long as they think that everyone will sit around the campfire and sing Kumbaya, after the pull-out.
They need to save themselves. It’s not our job to be globo-cop. When does the globo-cop beat end, and at what price? The tribes of Afghanistan are a barbaric lot, which is NOT to say they are stupid and by God I know they aren’t, but they as a people need to take charge of their own affairs.
The Aug/Sep edition of Military History has a wonderful quote that illustrates the mindset of those behind the Hindu-Kush:
“In 1809 a diplomat named Mounstuart Elphinstone led Britan’s first fact-finding mission to Afghanistan. In a land filled with strife and riven by independent factions, he met an elderly tribal leader and tried to convince him of the benefits of a firm central government. The leader’s response? “We are content with discord, we are content with alarms, we are content with blood,” the Afghan replied. “But we will never be content with a master.” How many do we kill “for their own good” to get them to give up barbarism?
Should we have invaded after 3,000 civilians were murdered on 9/11 and stomped Al Quaida, and attempt to kill/capture Bin Tarded? YES. Should we maintain a presence in Hazarajat to launch raids from as Al-Q resurfaces, YES. Attempt to force them to relinquish their barbarian ways and attempt nation building? HELL NO!
BTDT Kosovo, the Albanians were no angels and that war was none of our business. They are among the worst of the organized criminals in Europe and our meddling in the Balkans gave them a larger reach. Seems we’ve had a few incidents of them biting our hands with terror plots to boot.
Brilliant, JuniorAG, we should occupy the country and make our troops perform 360 degree security for their rotations in out of their fortress every year. We can just keep a base in perpetuity to counter AQ attacks – like we stationed equipment in Kuwait to repel Hussein’s attacks for 12 years. And defend the whole custerf*** with a 200-year-old quote.
Absolutely brilliant.
Jonn, have you ever met any Pashtuns? Ever spoke to them about how they realy feel about women & other cultural matters?? AQ aren’t native to Afghanistan, it isn’t their homeland. We can destroy them by atrittion. Civilising the native barbarian tribes of Afghanistan are another story.
“we should occupy the country and make our troops perform 360 degree security for their rotations in out of their fortress every year.”
NO, we would only need bases to operate out of in the Hazarajat region. The Hazara, Mongol leftovers, are the least poular ethnic group in Afghanistan & most pro-American. Operating from their territory would be roughly about as safe as operating from Kurdistan. FYI our guys do perform 360 degree security from the bases they operate in anyways.
You rightwing-nuts aren’t that different from the unicorns & kumbaya blinded leftwing-nut crowd when it comes to missionary nation building. We’re still in the Balkans and we’ll bleed for a while in Afghanistan before we figure out saving it was as stupid as the Somalia debacle. Some places like Afghanistan or Somalia cannot be fixed because the people who live there simply won’t step up to the plate.
The Serbs of course were white Christians-that’s why it was imperative to “do something” for the “besieged” muslims. After all, if we left those people to suffer who can blame them for becoming radicalized…..? sarc/off
Junior AG,
The same was said about the Japananese during WWII.