Following are excerpts from a report on the Taliban in Pech Valley, Afghanistan, which aired on Al-Jazeera TV on March 8, 2011:
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/2882.htm.
Reporter: "The route through Pech Valley, in the Kunar province of East Afghanistan, has [recently] been opened to the Taliban armed fighters. Their deployment along the main route connecting Kunar with the neighboring Nuristan province is no longer a secret. This development took place only two days after NATO forces evacuated their military base in Manugay, East Afghanistan."
Taliban field commander Khaled Khan: "They have left, thanks to Allah and to the sacrifices of the mujahideen. When they began to withdraw from Nuristan, they reached this region. They were forced to do so by our continuous military operations, as well as the explosive devices and the missile attacks on the U.S. base."
Reporter: "The tension is evident on the faces of the Afghan soldiers, to whom the former U.S. base was handed over. They fear a possible attack by the Taliban militants, trying to take over the base, as well as the government institutions in its environs, including the residence of the district governor. The local authorities have turned to the region's tribal leaders for mediation, in what appears to be an effort to prevent an attack by the Taliban."
Afghan Army officer Rahmat Ghal: "Things are fine, as you can see. The tribal elders have given us assurances that no harm will come to us in this region. The military police forces are in a state of alert. They are in coordination to control the approaches to the region, and to take the necessary [security] measures."
Reporter: "Without an official ceremony, but with great joy on the part of the local residents, Manugay base has been handed over to the Afghan authorities. They replace the U.S. military bases, which fell in the past into the hands of the Taliban. This step, taken by the NATO forces, appears to an attempt to placate the fury of the locals, which was exacerbated by the killing of nine children in an attack launched from the base, two days before it was evacuated." […]
