A group of gunmen carried out a major attack in the Kabul neighborhood of Dasht-e Barachi on Friday, targeting a rally attended by self-proclaimed President-elect Abdullah Abdullah.
The rally was a commemoration for Abdul Ali Mazari, a Shi’ite politician who was killed by the Taliban in 1995. The rally was heavily attended by Shi’ite Hazaras, and they were the bulk of the casualties. The Interior Ministry reported 32 people killed and 81 wounded.
Coming amid a very tenuous peace deal, the Taliban was quick to deny responsibility. They’ve regularly denied strikes on Shi’ites recently. ISIS, however, has continued to target the Shi’ites, and issued their own statement taking credit for the attack.
There would be plenty of potential complicating factors, from the Taliban peace deal and the contested election. Abdullah and President Ghani have both claimed victory in the last election, and both plan to be inaugurated on Monday.
In such an unstable situation violence could’ve come from any number of sources for any reason. Ultimately, ISIS attacking Shi’ites just for the sake of attacking Shi’ites was probably the most likely explanation, and all evidence suggests that is once again the case.
ISIS, what ISIS?
Whose ISIS?
When will the idiocy end, but I guess, it will not for as long as there are divisions to be sawn, and stupid people to believe.
ISIS is whoever the marketing boys at Langley say it is. Perhaps this release is “new and improved”
Just like Al-Qaeda. Origin not difficult — US/ Saudi partnership in Afghanistan. ISIS — US partnership with former Saudi Interior Minister who set up Syria committee and Wahhabi movements under Salafi brand everywhere — Mohammed Bin Nayef. Who then, having ousted his rival Muqrin, became all powerful Crown Prince in April 2015. Once in power, unleashed mayhem in Yemen, ISIS menace went into overdrive, and garden variety Islamist movements flourished. Until Russia entered Syria by the end of 2015. Coordinated intelligence between Russia, Syria, Iraq, Turkey and Iran — reversed Islamist gains, Iraq mounted its own offensive often against US generals advice, and Mosul was surrounded. In Syria, ISIS was beat by Syrian Army, and assorted Islamists fled. What remained of ISIS, Trump wisely resolved not to figure out how to defend.
This was the end of ambitious Crown Prince partnership with Western “anti-terrorist” excellent adventures. Trump’s first visit was Saudi Arabia, to deliver MBN bad news — ISIS will become US top priority, especially as ISIS already was doomed in Iraq, and in Syria was only alive and well in US air controlled areas. Trump’s suggestion to blame Qatar for terrorism and Iran ties, backfired big time.
So by June 2017 — a court coup resulted in Allegiance Council appointing King’s son a new Crown Prince. There is one condition — MBS as a King cannot name his successor. The right reverts to Allegiance Council.
In neocon media, all the deeds of our ally MBN were sent to memory hole, and MBS was declared to do all those things.
But latest news are very revealing. While MB Nayef was sent to retirement — it looks like he (with his sponsors) was planning a comeback. So, yesterday, he was arrested along with King’s younger brother. For planing a coup with foreign governments.
I never believed that US establishment was going to give up on total control of Saudi Arabia that they had through the reign of Mohammed Bin Nayef? The usurper, King’s son, is implementing Saudi establishment new orientation — more flexible and open to China and Russia. Returning to pre-Iranian revolution Saudi moderation in social arena. And putting an end to funding Islamic movements that peaked in an attempt of creating a Sunni state carved out from Iraq and Syria.
Saudis need money themselves for economic diversification projects and for protecting budget in the face of global economic decline and reduced need for energy.
Well, unhappy Nayef clan, with the help of disappointed rivals, hooked up with unhappy foreign powers in hope of toppling MBS.
Since now it is no longer a family affair, with cushy retirement — it will result in internal clash of clans. And — usually King does not undertake such a move without being sure of the outcome.
ISIS has not received money from Saudis ever since MBS challenged the all mighty Wahhabi establishment over social issues, from women driving to women attending public entertainment and sports venues. But it was all about the money, and control over Wahhabi international spending.
So, with ISIS and Al-Qaeda brands being kept for future use, it is now wholly Western owned. It is costly business to keep up various subversives funded.
I do not doubt that the attempt to bring Mohammed bin Nayaf back into power is linked to the gapping hole in the funding of Middle Eastern designs and plans.
When I read this news of MB’S going somewhat rogue and wholsale arrests, I thought immediately of, Who else but Bianca, and what she deduces from this more than a little pre- mature ushering out of the king
and various royals who posses any shred of a claim to assession OR possess any REAL influence on succession events, timing or viability. And happy to see I was correct about her interest. Most of the time she seems to me miles ahead of these unfolding sagas of royal intrigue and such.
ISIS, what ISIS? Whose ISIS? Good questions. Here’s the answer. Actually, 26 of them…
https://www.globalresearch.ca/twenty-six-things-about-the-islamic-state-isil-that-obama-does-not-want-you-to-know-about/5414735
“23) The Terrorists R Us: While the US is the unspoken architect of the Islamic State, Obama’s holy mandate is to protect America against ISIL attacks.”
This one caught my eye. I like Terrorist R Us more than wars r u.s. More accurate.
The sad truth about the USA is stated in one of the concluding paragraphs…
“The ultimate objective of the ‘Global War on Terrorism’ is to subdue the citizens, totally depoliticize social life in America, prevent people from thinking and conceptualizing, from analyzing facts and challenging the legitimacy of the inquisitorial social order which rules America.” So, true.
I know, of course. It simply gets tiresome listening to media droning on and on about ISIS, and the many starred generals keep on straight face talking about non-existent threat, other then a threat to our wallets. But beware Israeli “intelligence”, that discovered how Turkey organized all those terrorist infiltrations. Besides Iran, Israel wants to see Turkey undone, as no strong states re to exist in its region. And the internal machinations to undo the current system have been going on for decades. From political bribery, to military coups — and still at it. The newest hope is former Prime Minister Davutoglu. It is no problem for Israel, their ideas our money.
90% of all militant infiltration into Syria came from Iraq and Jordan. Majority Saudi funded — that is until funds dried up in 2018.
Those that came from Turkey were smuggled in by Kurds — whose rebellion against Turkey West still finances, with Israel’s help. Kurds were trading oil with ISIS. Our media conveniently considers it Turkey. Keep in mind that Turkey is in Israel’s crosshairs for a long time, and now even more — after confrontation about gas pipeline from Eastern Mediterranean. A great, great pinch of salt required when it comes to our tilt of information about Turkey.
Correct, the labels are irrelevant.
It’s just competing factions in the religion of peace, that’s all.
Do you think that was her point?
Irrelevant, it is the truth.
No, it wasn’t irrelevant. I responded to your post which WASN’T relevant to what Bianca said. Just you and your bigoted beliefs again. Muslims bad.
Dispute the fact with facts.
The perps and victims, in this case, follow the same cult.
That’s the inconvenient fact for you.
Truth is never “bigoted”
it’s just the truth you are afraid to confront.
Bank robbers bad.
Liars bad.
Homicidal cult followers bad,
yes.
Do you think that was her point?
Still no answer. Just more jiberish.
My comment was not about her “point”,
it was about the truth you avoid with your head constantly in the sand.
The cult attacked another faction of the cult,
like they have continued to do since Mohammad’s passing.
And that’s all I asked. So you admit it wasn’t about her point. Was that so hard?
I don’t have my head in the sand. I questioned if you understood her point since you replied to her comment with unrelated jiberish.
Her comment was gibberish, that was my point.
Her PC word salad is designed to camouflage the facts,
I presented the facts.
While you dodge away from those facts in every post.
Because: “You can’t handle the truth.”
“It’s just competing factions in the religion of peace”..
Your words stokr…you imply that militant factions in the ME represent Islam. Does the Pentagon represent christianity ? Your racist statements about Islam, and or arabs, are well known here, despite your bloviating about how you have ” been there” and so you know.
I offer you this…the greatest discovery in science, was, ignorance. The fact, that humans have limited knowledge about, practically everything. When you make blanket statements about people you don’t know, you only prove how awful you are. Go pray or get therapy or something.
“Correct, the labels are irrelevant.”
That is what you said. CORRECT = gibberish? You missed her point completely.
Sunnis and Shia kill each other,
they did here and have for centuries, facts.
Prove me wrong or move on.
Yes, Sunnis and Shia kill each other.
As do pretty much every other religious, cultural, ethnic, and political group located in the same areas.
The idea that killing each other is something unique to Islam is fucking stupid.
Name any other “religion” that has done so with
more longevity, consistency and lethality than the “religion of peace”,
I’ll wait.
Denying reality is insanity.
“Denying reality is insanity.” ????How about Denying insanity is reality… at least it seems to be in your case. How many innocents has the U.S. murdered since 1937.. Don’t omit the 150 000 or so it cooked in Nagasaki and Hiroshima: Or their hapless victims of their savage bombing in Korea.. the millions killed in Vietnam for an attack which never occurred. You can go to YouTube and search, Gulf of Tonkin attack was- text book false flag event.
MacNemara admit it there on youtube… what are we up to now…..??????? Probably a couple of million in Vietnam alone…????? And how many were murdered in Indonesia, under Carter???. And let’s not forget the little configuration between Iran & Iraq that killed a good part of a generat ion of young men on both side, instigated by the U.S. to send a message to Iran about the embassy seig by their students. Add it all up and tell me how many the “religion of peace killed just since the embassy seige… Let us know…..!!!!!!!!!!
“Denying reality is insanity.”
And making shit up is dishonesty.
“Denying reality is insanity.”
And making shit up is dishonesty.
So you can’t, that’s my point.
No other “religion” acts like the one in this story.
Murdering perceived “infidels” as an article of faith sets them apart.
That’s not “making” it up, it’s required in their “holy” books.
OK, so I tried a gentler approach and know better now.
Slurs or supremacist claims based on race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation or gender identity, or to link to sites promoting such material are not permitted in Antiwar.com’s comments area.
You’ve been notified. Behave accordingly or you’ll be shown the door.
I commented that the attack against Shia followers,
by Sunni followers,
as stated in the article, has a long history.
That is not a “slur” or “supremacist”, it is merely factual.
Lying about the content of your previous comments doesn’t change the content of your previous comments. But as long as you don’t go back to saying the stuff you actually said, you’re golden.
And by comparison, the US is responsible for 20 million deaths since WW2. This being done whilst not fighting in a single justifiable war. The Sunnis and the Shia can’t touch those numbers.
But you remain, can’t find a better place, interesting.
Not looking. Hoping this place gets better. Leave. And you remind me of the rednecks of the 60’s and their “America, love it or leave it” slogan as an answer to the patriots bitching about our butchery back then. The last resort.
Yes, “not looking”, perfect.
Most people “looking” want to come here, warts and all.
Which makes the USA the least bad place on the planet, by popular vote.
Logic really isn’t your strong suit, is it?
That he hates the US,
but nevertheless stays,
while the US is the number one destination for most immigrants in the world, makes for an interesting contrast. So where is the logical error?
Me pointing out what our corrupt brutal government does translates into me hating the US? Christ, you’re a walking cliché.
You, unable to point out anything but condemnation for the country,
BUT still maintaining you can’t find a better place,
by the simple act of remaining,
is hilarious!
Some people are born to complain.
I condemn my country when it deserves condemnation. Like when the subject is our unmatched brutality. You think that our brutality should make me look elsewhere to live. You are a moron. By the way, I’ve heard you bitch about our foreign policy on some rare occasions when it doesn’t coincide with your neocon point of view. Why don’t you leave?
When ALL you do is bitch, it says more about you than the country.
I bitch about our foreign policy. Guilty. When our foreign policy changes, I’ll stop bitching.
EXAMPLE ONE:
You’re looking at two cars: A 1980 Dodge Dart, and a 2020 Lamborghini Aventador.
You have $500.
Which one do you buy?
Does the fact that you buy the car you can afford mean that you prefer it to the car you can’t?
EXAMPLE 2:
You’re in a cold, dark, concrete room.
Outside your window, you see grass, trees, beautiful women, etc.
Do you stay in the room, or go outside?
If you stay in the room, does that establish that you prefer the room?
Note: The door to the room is made of steel bars, is locked, and an uniformed guard is walking back and forth periodically, looking at you with suspicion.
In each case, wars birthright, by being lucky enough to be born in the US, gives him the Lamborghini and elision field with babes, compared to every other country. Plus he has the freedom to bitch about his good fortune!
What’s your point? We suck less than everyone else? That’s your argument? And that means I must leave or accept that fact? Again, you are a fu**ing tool.
Yup, in spite of your best efforts,
you chose to live in the US of A and that is spectacular!
What “best efforts”? You’re not even making sense.
Exactly, you bitch because it’s your joy, to bitch.
I see you respond for the sake of responding. You obviously enjoy being a neocon troll on an anti-war site. Go away.
Again, not the point. But for you, always the point regardless of the subject.
Her point was to obfuscate, mine to clarify.
Now I know you didn’t get her point. And the only thing you clarified is that you are a raging bigot.
“Bank robbers bad. Liars bad. Homicidal cult followers bad.”
All true.
Doesn’t seem to have anything to do with Islam as such, though.
Fucking idiots (like stokr) bad.
Have a nice day.
You too ..
Christianity ? You do realize that ISIS is an American creation, right ?
As Bianca pointed out, the names change but the factions continue to
murder each other and have for centuries.
It’s just an inconvenient truth for you.
Sunni/Shia homicide existed before the US was founded, Pitts.
“As Bianca pointed out, the names change but the factions continue to
murder each other and have for centuries.”
That ISN’T what Bianca pointed out.
That ISIS is an American creation goes right along with the actual truth of 9/11. It will never be acknowledged by the MSM, or by Likudniks and Zionists like stokr, who are most likely the real perps of 9/11.
I wish it were so! But unfortunately those names do not make any difference as they are all funded by our money. It was mostly Saudi, but it was cut mud 2017, and dried up by 2018. This is why Mosul was done by fall of 2017 and once we figured out how to use Kurds in Syria — Raqqa fell in 2018. Kurds were to inherit alm those ISIS occupied Arab lands in Syria. It took some ninnies a ling time to figure out that another Israel is not likely, that Kurds being a 1% minority in the lands they “controlled” was not going to work.
Whatever passes for ISIS today, or other brands of militants in Asia or Africa is now in our dime.
And in Idlib -/ we are funding HTS — not anybody else. We are doing it in plain sight by funding White Helmets, a respectable arm of Al-Qaeda. And fir as ling as we do it — and for as long as HTS has money to fund its groups, Turkey cannot do a thing. But that will change. With more military being brought in — militants will start melting into refugee wallpaper, and HRS will have no willing dupes to fight for them. Will they pack up bags and be whisked out by Turkey — or have some other ace to play, we shall see.
Hope of ousting Erdogan are slim. He may have lost cities and their local governments, but no nation will undermine a leader when in a war.
Whatever pundits have to say on Russia-Turkey deal, the key to public opinion in Turkey is REFUGEES. He has stopped the danger of refugees flooding Turkey. And public there is furious at EU that constantly promises to take some refugees, but it does not, constantly promises to help pay for refugees support — but it does not.
The sooner our darling “rebels” fold in Idlib — the better for our wallet.
I don’t disagree with any of that.
The sooner the US cuts all ties to Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the ME in general, the better, not holding my breath.
“I don’t disagree with any of that.”
Except when you do. Gad, you’re a tool.
Seek help wars.
Ghani needs to tried and executed as a traitor–along with many of our Afghan pals.
Jason, your earlier article about Afghan Shias, some who have been fighting ISIS in Syria is relevant here: https://news.antiwar.com/2020/02/07/us-frames-afghan-shiite-militias-as-an-immediate-threat/
Indeed. That the U.S. may consider the Shia militias Iranian proxies is more relevant.
‘US Frames Afghan Shi’ite Militias as an ‘Immediate Threat’ Fatemiyoun are being presented as Iranian ‘proxies” – Jason Ditz, Feb. 7, 2020.
Ironically, Hazaras also live in Iran, many having moved there to escape Afghan turmoil, where they complain of Iranian discrimination.
The U.S. MIC may actually be cultivating that community, with the usual coercive tools. Although that would suggest a greater level of cultural awareness than is usually expressed.
Many Hazara also live in Pakistan too and they have been attacked there by Sunni extremists.
President Trump made a very revealing statement a couple of days ago when he is quoted as “He also appeared to give the militant group a green light to undertake attacks against unspecified terrorists: “We’ll be very much hoping that they will be doing what they say they’re going to be doing: They will be killing terrorists. They will be killing some very bad people. They will keep that fight going.”
As I wrote in my recent first-person article on antiwar.com, the Talian does not like nor support jihadists (OBL was only there to fight the Soviet invaders.) Thus, peace deal or not, the Taliban will do all they can to drive jihadists out of their country — no need to keep US troops around to do this.
But the prowar Washington political/military establish keeps pushing the false narrative that the Taliban are still harboring and giving safe haven to al-Qaeda jihadists — as Jason recently reported. One can hope that Trump overrides the “forever war” crowd knowing from the intel he’s getting that there is no threat to America if all US and NATO soldiers leave as the peace deal calls for them to do.
I expect to see Pompeo and his fellow neocons try to undercut the president on the withdrawal plan after the elections.
The U.S. also doesn’t want Iran in Afghanistan. Taliban-Iran ties have mostly been far from warm.
Unlike his predecessors, Trump looks for deals that can be done, not
just imposed. A deal with the Taliban against Iran for ‘peace’ may not
be outside the realm of the possible.
For all that the U.S. accuses Iran of arming the Taliban, Iran initially supported the Northern Alliance against the Taliban, and there is a water rights dispute between Afghanistan and Iran over the Helmand River.
Its not like Afghanistan and Persia have always gotten along in history, Herat, for example, has been disputed territory between Persia and Afghanistan.
The Great Game, is still on.
The Taliban attacked the rally of the guy more friendly to Iran, the Shiite minority guy.
The US was of course shocked and surprised, and never imagined anything anti-Iran in its deal with the Taliban.
Ditz is probably correct; Sunni IS militants would never have gotten along with the Shia, except, they were too busy killing Sunni to notice.
The disturbing part of this news, is that IS, invariably backed by Western interventionists, is sufficiently grounded in Afghanistan to launch its own attacks.
The ultimate target would be Iran in Afghanistan, as Afghan the Shia are on the surface natural allies of Shia Iran.