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Afghani
Secret Army Claims Responsibility For Anti-U.S. Attacks
By
Mutiullah Taeb, IOL Staff
DOHA,
August 28 (IslamOnline) – An Afghani group sent a statement to
IslamOnline (IOL) on Tuesday, August 27, claiming responsibility for a
string of attacks targeting U.S. troops in Afghanistan and promising
to continue its attacks in revenge for the innocent civilians killed
during the U.S. war in Afghanistan.
The
group, calling itself the Secret Army of the Afghan Fighters (Mujahideen),
said their attacks against the Americans in Afghanistan will continue
until the last U.S. soldier leaves the country and a “free Islamic
Afghanistan” is established.
The
statement - which provides the details of 30 attacks against U.S.
troops in Kabul, Bagram military base, and six towns in eastern and
southern Afghanistan during the period from March 4, to August 23 - is
apparently the first one issued by this new group whose name has never
been mentioned previously.
“These
attacks were not launched by the Taliban or Al-Qaeda, instead they are
the work of those heroes and fighters who decided to establish a
Jihadi group under the name of the Secret Army of the Afghan Fighters
following the unjust U.S. attacks against Afghanistan,” the
statement said.
According
to the statement, these attacks resulted in the deaths of 59 American
soldiers, in addition to three Canadian soldiers and 15 Afghani
soldiers described in the statement as “spies” or “agents.”
The
Pentagon, has continuously denied any news about the killing of its
soldiers in Afghanistan.
The
statement, written in Pushtu on a computer, starts with a long
introduction explaining that a U.S.-Russian plan to end Taliban rule
and bring to power the former king Mohamed Zahir Shah with a new
government was ready even before the September 11 attacks.
“But
the September attacks changed the plan and made the U.S. the exclusive
leader of the terror war. And the U.S. attacked Afghanistan with
international blessings,” it said.
One
year after the U.S. launched its attacks on Afghanistan, the Americans
are far from ending this war and they have no full control of the
country. In addition they are not able to secure any areas, including
the capital Kabul and the U.N. offices and employees, as murders and
thefts are common all over the country, the statement aid.
“One
year after the attack, after the end of Taliban rule, the new pro-U.S.
Afghan government coming to power, the stabilization of more than 20
thousand U.S. soldiers in the country, the spending of U.S. $17
billion in this campaign and the killing of 25 thousand Afghan
civilians, the U.S. is still unable to end the war,” it said.
The
message was sent to IslamOnline by email, Husbanullah Motawakil,
IOL’s Peshawar correspondent said, adding that although the message
was undated, the mention of the latest attacks meant it was probably
written recently.
The
statement may have been released to mark the anniversary of Afghan
independence from British occupation on August 18, to remind the
Afghans of their ancestors’ fight against occupation and encourage
them to launch Jihad against foreign troops in the country, he said.
The
statement was written in a simple style and addressed Afghans only,
Motawakil said, adding that the language of the statement resembles
the dialect of the residents of eastern and central Afghanistan.
“The
style of the speech of this statement is totally different from those
of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda,” he said.
The
long list of operations against the U.S. the group claimed it is
responsible for means that members of the secret army are spread out
in all parts of the country, including Kabul, northern, northeastern,
and eastern Afghanistan, he said.
“I
think the timing of sending this statement aims at scaring the enemy
on the one hand, and encouraging the Afghans to resist U.S. presence
on the other,” he said.
Forty
percent of Afghans are Pashtuns and live in northern and eastern
Afghanistan. The Taliban was a Pashtun movement, and currently, their
areas are under attack by U.S. forces who are still searching for
members of the Taliban or Al-Qaeda.
An
Afghani source, who asked for anonymity, said that it is hard to
believe that a new group is able to launch all these attacks without
being backed by the Taliban, Al-Qaeda or any of it supporters, or any
other opposition groups such as the Islamic Party, headed by Gulbudin
Hekmatyar.
“Most
probably this group is newly established and is using these events to
highlight itself, give hope to the resistance and win more public, as
well as regional and international support,” the source said.
More
small groups like this one may surface in the coming period, as it is
obvious that the Taliban movement has collapsed and divided into small
factions acting each according to its capabilities, he added.
Another
Afghani source said that such statements are probably sent by
individuals, not groups, who want to send messages to the Afghan and
Islamic populations about the necessity of resisting the American
invasion.
These
messages are used as media and psychological tools coming at a time
when public resentment against the U.S. is increasing, especially
among the Pashtuns who were not offered a position in the new
government, and who are paying for their support of the Taliban, he
said.
“On
the other hand, this statement could be issued by a new group which
may settle down in Pakistan and receive funds from Pakistani sources
who are secretly helping them so that they will not lose connections
with other forces in Afghanistan,” he said.
“Dealing
with all conflicting sides at the same time is a game Islamabad has
been playing with Afghanistan during the last quarter of the
century,” he added.
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