Kabul blame game: Why Taliban would need Pakistan soil when they control 70 percent of Afghanistan

KABUL: Afghanistan has enhanced it’s blame game against Pakistan to hideits failure in war against terrorism and to please it’s partners India andUS without realising that Afghan Taliban doesn’t need Pakistan soil as theycontrol 70 percent of Afghanistan as per the latest BBC report.

Kabul has said it has handed ‘undeniable’ evidence to Pakistan showing thata recent spate of deadly attacks were planned on Pakistani soil, Afghanofficials said on Thursday, amid growing public anger over their impotenceto protect civilians.

Kabul is on edge after militants stormed a luxury hotel, bombed a crowdedstreet and raided a military compound in the past two weeks.

Afghan authorities have blamed the January 20 attack on theIntercontinental hotel and Saturday’s ambulance bombing on the HaqqaniNetwork. Both attacks have been claimed by the Taliban. The Haqqani leader,Sirajuddin Haqqani, is deputy chief of the Taliban.

Afghanistan’s spy agency chief Mohammad Masoom Stanekzai, while talking toreporters on Thursday, alleged it was clear that the attacks were ‘plannedfrom across the border’.

“We asked Pakistan to hand over the culprits of the attacks in Afghanistanand we shared undeniable evidence that the attacks were planned there,”Stanekzai said, a day after meeting with top Pakistani officials inIslamabad.

Afghan Interior Minister Wais Barmak said the Afghans submitted a list ofquestions during Wednesday’s ‘constructive’ one-hour meeting, asking amongother things what action Pakistan would take against Taliban leaders andtraining centres on their soil.

The Pakistani embassy in Kabul said the information provided by Stanekzaiwas “being examined for its authenticity”.

Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif described the talks with the Afghandelegation as ‘productive’, a ministry statement said.

Meanwhile in Kabul, anger is growing after attacks, which together killedmore than 130 people in the capital, with many people taking to socialmedia to express their grief and rage.

A number of small protests were held on Thursday, including outside thePakistani embassy, but few people turned out as the city remains on highalert for further assaults.