Fighting has intensified in Afghanistan as peace talks between the United States and Taliban to end the Afghan conflict have entered a new phase. Although the militants seem to have halted suicide and complex attacks in major Afghan cities supposedly based on a covert deal between Americans and the Taliban — a move that has contributed to a decline in civilian casualties, the operations and airstrikes carried out by pro-government forces on the contrary continue to cause record number of deaths and injuries among civilians. There have recently been reports of heavy civilian causalities caused by airstrikes and ground operations in many provinces of the country. A US drone strike targeted civilians, who were employees of a pharmaceutical company, last week in the Sangin district of southern Helmand province, killing four of them. Separately, tens of civilians, including women and children, have reportedly suffered casualties in an operation conducted by pro-government forces in the Shultan district of eastern Kunar province on Thursday night.
Civilian casualties are always condemnable, no matter who the culprits, but they are completely intolerable, especially now as peace efforts have intensified. If pro-government forces are aiming to maximize leverage and speak from a position of strength at the negotiating table by exerting more pressure on the militants, they should not do things that backfire on them. Military operations causing casualties to civilian populations widen the distance between people and government, and therefore weaken the government’s position. The government can only achieve a position of strength in peace talks when it has public support and when people accept the government as their representative, not by alienating people through “blind” airstrikes.
Government leaders either underestimate the threat of continued civilian casualties or do not want peace in the country. The continuation of civilian casualties, especially caused by foreign troops, can scuttle the ongoing peace parleys. The government leadership, particularly President Ghani, has to break the silence by putting an end to his carelessness. He has to come forward and thwart the potential conspiracy of derailing peace talks, by speaking out against the killing of Afghans at the hands of foreign troops if he really wants peace in the country.
