Disgracing the nation

Sir: After helplessly watching the mayhem and destruction Kabul has been facing for the last two weeks, I wonder whether its neighbours are really serious about their tall claims of bringing peace and prosperity to this war-ridden unfortunate country. On one side, the Afghan government banned mourning ceremonies for Taliban leader Mullah Omar, who died two years back, while Pakistan’s right-wing religious-cum-sectarian parties openly arranged funeral prayers-in-absentia for Mullah Omar in different cities. We saw no attempt from the government to stop such gatherings that were obviously sending a different message to the outside world. Perhaps Afghan Taliban Mullahs are still considered ‘good Taliban’.

But I was amazed to see an announcement from Akora Khatak’s infamous Darul-Uloom-Haqqania that its head, Maulana Samiul Haq, has sworn allegiance to the newly appointed chief of the Afghan Taliban, Mullah Akhtar Mansour. I wonder what is going on here — how come a Pakistani is allowed to extend his loyalty to a foreign warlord? Earlier, Lal Masjid clerics also did the same when they announced their loyalty to IS leader Abu Bakr Baghdadi. By closing our eyes to these developments, do we think the storm will go away? No, it will not as it is against nature; it is going to haunt us the same way as the ghosts of the Soviet-US war in Afghanistan are still after us.
It is time to come clean and do a real clampdown on all such characters who openly defy Pakistan’s sovereignty and shamelessly disgrace the nation by standing next to the terrorists of the international cadre who have taken their countries to the dark ages.
MASOOD KHAN
Jubail
Saudi Arabia