Following are excerpts from an Al-Jazeera TV report on the Taliban in Kandahar, Afghanistan. The report aired May 23, 2010.
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memri.org/legacy/clip/0/0/0/0/0/0/2498.
Reporter: "The route to the Panjwai region is rough, just like the fate of its inhabitants has been for many years. There is no trace here of the Kabul regime or its allies – at least not in the streets we passed through. The Taliban rules here. They cover their faces and brandish their weapons. Kandahar remains their stronghold – even if it has not been impenetrable for nine years. Nobody can say for sure how many regions are under the control of the Taliban militants, and whether the regions' loyalty to them is out of choice or is bred from fear.
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One of them talked to us. For reasons of safety, the speakers appear here under assumed names."
"Madani" (Taliban official in charge of civilian institutions in Panjwai): "Their loyalty lies with the shari'a. As you know, this country has two governments – one is the government of the shari'a, the Islamic Emirates, and the other is the corrupt administration. The people want to be ruled by the shari'a."
Reporter: "It is no secret that south Afghanistan is a pain in the neck of those who hoped for the destruction of the Taliban ideology. Even though their weapons are many decades older than the weapons of the NATO forces, the confrontation between the two parties continues, and the war of words precedes the military operation to cleanse the region of Taliban militants."
"Khadam" (Taliban official in charge of military operations in Panjwai): "The next military operation in Kandahar will be a very difficult one. The [NATO forces] will bring modern weapons in order to try them out. But the Taliban will not sit idly by. Taliban militants have already planted road mines on the routes of the convoys of the forces participating in the operation. These mines are ready to explode. We have also prepared ambushes in various places, and they will be defeated in Panjwai, just like they were defeated in Marja."
Reporter: "The balance of power between the two sides has never been equal, but it has not resolved the conflict in favor of either side. The talk about laying down arms and turning to negotiations, as hoped by the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, is considered taboo here. Here, they speak only two languages: Pashtun and 'Weaponese."'
