Afghanistan's northern Takhar province, bordering Tajikistan, is an area that has seen a marked increase in insurgent activity in the last few years. Takhar was most recently in the news when, on September 4, 2010, the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) announced that it had captured the Taliban's deputy shadow governor for the province. The govemor had just taken over from the previous one, an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) commander named Muhammad Amin, who had been killed in a coalition airstrike on September 2.[1]
That airstrike reportedly also killed a number of election campaign workers and wounded the candidate himself, Abdul Wahid Khurasani,[2] leading to some uncertainty as to the coalition's claims, or, alternatively, to questions as to the relation between Khurasani and the IMU. Following an internal probe, the ISAF stood by the operation: "We are very confident that the targeted individual was in the vehicle struck by the air weapons team and was killed. The question remains why an election official or candidate was traveling with a known terrorist."[3]
The Taliban, in the Shawwal 1431 edition of their official Arabic-language magazine Al-Sumud, published an article devoted to developments in Takhar. The article, titled "The Jihad in Takhar Province has Become a Tremendous Popular Movement," claims that the Taliban is on the rise in Takhar and that it receives widespread cooperation from the population, including former commanders from the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance.
The following are excerpts:
"The Mujahideen of Takhar Province Operate Openly and Carry Out Their Jihadi Operations in Eight Districts Out of A Total of Fifteen"
After providing some basic geographical and demographical background on Takhar, the author, Irfan Balkhi, discussed the role of the province during the Soviet invasion, and then addressed its status in the current war:
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"During the American invasion of Afghanistan, the Khwaja Bahauddin district [of Takhar province] was a strategic base from which the Crusader invasion directed and planned operations in Afghanistan. It was the first place where the CIA spies, the commandos, and the American advisors landed. But today, by Allah's grace, this district has become one of the bases from which the mujahideen's operations are launched, and it plays a large role in inflicting damage on the Crusaders and their lackeys.
"When we asked one of the jihadi commanders in the province about districts in Takhar province that have seen an increase in jihadi activity, he mentioned first the districts of Khwaja Bahauddin, Darqad, and Yangi Qala. These areas were important bases for the Soviet forces, and later for the lackeys of the Americans in the forces of evil and corruption [i.e. the ruling Northern Alliance]. The major artery connecting Tajikistan and Afghanistan passed through these areas.
"The jihadi commander added that the population of Takhar have understood the facts and have come to realize the nature of the American occupier and his evil aims, and they are not fooled by the self-serving propaganda spread by the Crusaders and their lackeys in the region. They have stood by the mujahideen and are supporting them, offering them whatever help and aid they can.
"The mujahideen of Takhar province operate openly and carry out their jihadi operations in eight districts out of a total of fifteen: Darqad, Khwaja Bahauddin, Yangi Qala, Khwaja Ghar, Baharak, Ishkamish, Kalafgan, and Taluqan. In the remaining districts, they have units through which they conduct clandestine guerilla warfare operations…"
"We Can Say that the [Use of] Militias [as a] Spearhead, which was an American Project in Northern Afghanistan, Has Been a Resounding Failure"
"Takhar was a strong base for the Northern Alliance, and some of its commanders were from this province. But today, this strategic province has turned into a strong base for the mujahideen. Out of fear of the new leadership which has emerged on the scene and is conducting jihad against the Crusaders, the commanders of the Northern Alliance are trying to establish ties with the mujahideen, are contacting them, and are demonstrating their hostility to the American administration.
"The majority of the commanders of the former [i.e. anti-Soviet] jihad have kept silent, and are providing the weapons in their possession to the mujahideen. Some have joined the jihadist movement. A small number of them enlisted in the [anti-Taliban] militias project. Of these, some have been killed, and some have fled the area out of fear of the sword of punishment that hunts down every traitor who wishes to betray Islam and the Muslims. One of those who joined the militias project was the commander Ruzuddin from Darqad, but he was killed in a confrontation with the mujahideen, and his unit was crushed and fell apart. Also, the commander 'Isa, who had commanded mercenary militia units, handed himself in to the mujahideen and repented.
"We can say that the [use of the] militias [as a] spearhead, which was an American project in northern Afghanistan, has been a resounding failure, by the grace of Allah, and at present the militias do not present any challenge worth mentioning to the jihadist movement in this province.
"The activities of the mujahideen in Takhar have increased in a palpable manner this year; and have even doubled and significantly improved, by the grace of Allah. Anyone who browses the [Taliban's] Emarah website can see this truth with his own eyes, in the news reports from Takhar province. The mujahideen in Takhar province enjoy good relations with their brothers the mujahideen in the other provinces, such as Badakhshan, Kunduz, and Baghlan. They coordinate with them in order to conduct jihad operations that are more comprehensive and that have a greater effect in the area, so that northern Afghanistan, like the Afghan south, will turn into a holocaust for the Crusaders and their lackeys."
[1] http://www.isaf.nato.int/article/isaf-releases/senior-taliban-military-commissioner-captured-in-takhar.html, September 4, 2010.
[2] http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/03/world/asia/03afghan.html?_r=1, September 2, 2010.
