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Another blow to Northern Alliance (A tribal commander switches to Taliban)
Gulf News ^ | November 4, 2001 | Nissar Hoath

Posted on 11/03/2001 4:46:46 PM PST by HAL9000

The Northern Alliance in Afghanistan is set to suffer another blow as one of the key commanders of Gulbadin Hikmatyar's Hizb-e-Islami is negotiating to join Taliban forces along with hundreds of his armed men.

Amir Mohammed Akbar Khan Barech, former Mujahideen commander of Shorawak who recently made overtures to join the Taliban following American attacks on the country told Gulf News in an exclusive interview that he has started negotiations with the Taliban in Kandahar about two weeks ago.

He belongs to the Barech, a powerful tribe in southern Afghanistan.

"The negotiations have come after a Jirga of the chieftains of the Barech tribe and their ulema in the district of Kandahar in the south," said Barech, while speaking to Gulf News in a small musafirkhana, a motel room, outside Quetta city.

He said the decision has been taken due to foreign interference and outside attack on the country.

"We have political differences with the Taliban, but when it comes to direct foreign attack on the country, it is ours and every Afghan's, responsibility to join hands. That is what brings us close to the Taliban," he said.

The Hizb-e-Islami commander has decided to return to the political arena after a silence of seven years when Taliban swept through Afghanistan and captured Kabul.

Asked if he and his junior commanders would quit former Rabbani's Prime Minister Hikmatyar's party, Khan's reply was in the negative.

"We would be affiliated with Hizb-e-Islami even after joining Taliban ranks in the war against U.S. We will be fighting the Americans and their Afghan partners (referring to Northern Alliance) in the frontline, but our political affiliations will remain with our party," he explained.

Asked if the party leadership approves of this, he responded: "Simply, we will quit the party and join Taliban in the war. Because, here the country is at risk, and if our leadership tries to become an obstacle to protect the country, we will fight them as well."

Khan also said that Hikmatyar is a mujahid, and a mujahid will have no objection to protect the country from outside attack.

Referring to the talks with the Taliban, he said the negotiations started about two weeks ago.

"We started the negotiations with Maulvi Ghulam Haider Barech, Maulvi Noor Shah Barech and Maulvi Faizullah, all Taliban officials in Kandahar and Quetta. And we have given the authority to all these three officials to negotiate for us with their senior leaders in Kandahar," he said.

Haider is the chief of Kandahar city police, while Noor Shah is the chief judge of Taliban Spin Boldak district while Faizullah runs the Taliban madrassa here in Quetta.

"Several rounds of talks have been held with these Taliban officials, who hail from Shorawak, and we are expecting the result so that we could send our men from Shorawak and various refugee camps in Balochistan to join the battle field," he said.

On the supply of weapons, he said: "Weapon is the ornament for an Afghan. Though silent and living in Pakistan, we will get our hands on weapons. It is not a problem for the Afghan people. The most important thing is faith. We have faith in Almighty Allah."

He also claimed 70 per cent of 50,000 Barech people are with him and all the men will go to the frontline and "fight both Americans and their agents in Afghanistan".

The Barech tribal commander also strongly condemned the Northern Alliance, said: "We condemn them, because they are killing their own people with foreign aid."

But when it was pointed out that the Mujahideen have also killed their own people with American and other countries' support, he said things were different. "Before, we fought the communists and their Russian patrons. But today Northern Alliance forces are killing their people with the help of our extreme enemy Russia," he maintained.

About differences with Taliban, he said the major difference is that they were on opposite sides when they were gathering momentum in 1995. He and his men took the support of former President Dr Najibullah's former militiamen and rose against Mujahideen who threw out Russians from Afghanistan.

"We have no problem with religious thoughts, teachings and Shariah laws," he replied when asked if Taliban brand of Islam was also one of the reasons for the differences.

Commenting on the issue of Osama bin Laden and American attacks, he said Osama is just an excuse.

"The real target is Afghanistan and its rich minerals as well as the Central Asian oil reservoirs. Americans want to invade Afghanistan and stay there under the pretext of Osama and international terrorism," the Hizb commander alleged, adding that even after the capture or the death of Osama they (the U.S.) won't leave Afghanistan.

About Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf's policies, he said Pakistan is "trying to hold two watermelons in one hand" and vowed that if American ground troops move in, he would not wait for a signal from the Taliban but gather his men and go to battle.

Khan's overtures to the hardline militia have been acknowledged by the Governor of Kandahar, Maulvi Mohammed Haq.

He told Gulf News that even while the Hizb were the enemies of the Taliban, "any Afghan, whatever his political affiliation was welcome as he was a Muslim and a mujahid."



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To: rebdov
I don't expect Paki to hold on much longer. Who'll get to their nukes first?

The U.S., or Israel, I presume. If India doesn't beat us to it first...

I have a sick feeling, we are about to witness a world changing event.

21 posted on 11/03/2001 6:17:27 PM PST by Dallas
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To: HAL9000
Ig uess he and his hundreds will be future "civilian" casualties.
As long as we're not sharing G2 with the NA, no harm done.
22 posted on 11/03/2001 6:17:34 PM PST by bubbafree
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To: HAL9000
If this story is true, this tribal commander has got to know he is going to die.
23 posted on 11/03/2001 6:20:08 PM PST by dalebert
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To: dalebert; *taliban_list
Must be some money going into his pocket or special favors for the tribe!
24 posted on 11/03/2001 6:35:19 PM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
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To: HAL9000
Just anoter raghead trying to commit suicide for satan.
25 posted on 11/03/2001 6:37:52 PM PST by US_MilitaryRules
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To: US_MilitaryRules
And those black eyed virgins! Are those black eyes from clenched fists?
26 posted on 11/03/2001 6:39:42 PM PST by US_MilitaryRules
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To: HAL9000
Anyone that joins the Taliban is another less than intelligent enemy we won't have to deal with in the future. The collective IQ in Afghanistan will be much higher when there are no more of these morons. Keep em’ coming.
27 posted on 11/03/2001 6:41:18 PM PST by WRhine
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To: HAL9000

Great!! He and his men can join all the thousands of idiot fanatics heading out of Pakistan. They will all quickly become nothing more than biological material for the local vultures to nibble on!</font color>


28 posted on 11/03/2001 6:45:21 PM PST by CurlyBill
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To: CurlyBill

29 posted on 11/03/2001 6:46:36 PM PST by CurlyBill
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To: HAL9000
The Northern Alliance in Afghanistan is set to suffer another blow

"Another" blow? What was the first one?

30 posted on 11/03/2001 6:57:06 PM PST by M. Thatcher
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To: HAL9000
About Pakistan President General Pervez Musharraf's policies, he said Pakistan is "trying to hold two watermelons in one hand"

He may be a suicidal idiot, but he certainly has a colorful way with metaphors... Maybe we could make him an honorary Southerner. Posthumously, of course...

31 posted on 11/03/2001 7:01:41 PM PST by Dan Day
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To: Dallas
I just hope someone does a preemptive move with those nukes and not wait until all hell breaks out. I'm getting real bad vibes out of all this. The Pakis I have known were all professional people who were nominally Islamic as a family culture thing. And I was more concerned after talking to them. They are worried about the crazies. There is no talking to them. They are in dread that the mad muslims will ruin the good deal all the normal Pakis have worked so hard and for so long to build.

The last place my wife contracted at she was the only one who could truly speak American English. The whole unit of thirty something people were either Indian, Paki, and 1 Sikh. They all got along in the office. Very pleasant work place. I'll bet none of them want to go back to the cultural home 'paradise' for much longer than 1-2 week visit.

32 posted on 11/03/2001 7:25:06 PM PST by rebdov
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To: F-117A
Gulbuddin was a fanatical taliban before the taliban was created. He is a pashtun extremist who during the soviet occupation, was just as happy killing mujahadeen as he was killing soviets and their afghan puppets.
33 posted on 11/04/2001 4:49:23 AM PST by AdvisorB
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To: CurlyBill
They will all quickly become nothing more than biological material for the local vultures to nibble on!
Not to mention fertilizer that the terrain seems desperately in need of.
34 posted on 11/04/2001 11:55:43 AM PST by a_Turk
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