In a major development, a large gathering of Taliban-aligned religious scholars in Kabul has issued a new resolution barring the use of Afghan soil for hostile activities against any country. According to Afghan media, over 1,000 scholars from all 34 provinces took part in the religious conclave, which also declared that no Afghan citizen would be allowed to travel abroad for “jihad.”
The announcement has been received positively in Pakistan as it is seen as the recognition of the long-standing call of Pakistan to end the cross border terrorism and the use of the Afghan ground as a means of launching attacks by militants. The wording of the resolution is encouraging according to the officials, however, the actual meaning can be realized based on the seriousness with which it is applied on the ground.
It is also being interpreted as a moral and diplomatic boost to Pakistan that has been continuously urging the Taliban to reel back militant activity. Analysts consider that the Taliban state might be trying to be offered an off-ramp by its own policies by the Taliban government and that this edict is some face-saving room upon which a course correction can be made.
With proper enforcement, the resolution would aid in stabilization of the poor border area and the two neighbours would be open to economic cooperation. Observers however warn that such promises have been made in the past but hardly ever kept.
For now, the expectation remains that the Taliban government must “walk the talk” by putting in place verifiable mechanisms to demonstrate that no cross-border terrorism is occurring. Only then, experts say, will the resolution carry real weight.
