Son of killed Afghan commander Massoud warns of “civil war” if US troops move quickly
Ahmad Massoud, the son of Afghan commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, who was assassinated by al Qaeda two days before the 9/11 attacks, gave an interview to Jowharin Paris. Massoud expressed concern about the prospect of US troops leaving the country in May and warned that a hasty exit would lead to a “civil war” in Afghanistan. He also condemned last year’s agreement between the United States and the Taliban and called it a mistake.
Ahmad Massoud, son of the assassinated Afghan commander Ahmed Shah Massoud, told Jowharthat the Paris Council’s decision to honor his father by designating a square in the French capital after him was deeply significant, not only for his family but also for the fight against terrorism. Worldwide.
He said the agreement between the former US government and the Taliban a year ago was a mistake, especially because it had excluded the Afghan government, saying it “completely destroyed the balance of negotiations and the balance of power in Afghanistan”.
Massoud stressed that he believed the subsequent intra-Afghan talks were a failure and warned that if the United States decided to withdraw troops quickly, Afghanistan would “end up in a new chaos, violence and civil war”. On the issue of the May 1 withdrawal date set by the United States in its agreement with the Taliban, Massoud called on the Biden government to show “patience”.
He said he favored US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s proposal to form a transitional government that would lead the country to elections. Massoud blew up President Ashraf Ghani’s refusal to accept such a government and his counter-proposal to hold early elections instead. He claimed that Ghani was only trying to hold on to power and said that the president should leave.
He said: “We need to talk to [the] Taliban, we must make peace with the Taliban, “but warned the insurgency must accept core values such as democracy and women’s rights. However, he insisted that” we will not sacrifice the values we fought for. “
Finally, he confirmed that his late father’s vision of a decentralized country after Switzerland was even more relevant today than it was 20 years ago and the only way to finally bring peace to Afghanistan.
