Just What is Brewing in Afghanistan?

NATO has acknowledged that it's fighting not just the Taliban but also drug lords, warlords and basic criminals in Afghanistan.

Rumours are increasing of a major, anti-government offensive planned for the spring or summer.

The Asia Times' reporter Sayed Saleem Shahzad travelled with Taliban agents who claim to be operating freely in NATO-controlled Kandahar:

"Abdul Jalil lives in a middle-class neighborhood of Kandahar, although he is regarded as a true son of the soil. He was a middle-ranking official during the Taliban regime of 1996-2001.

After the fall of Kandahar he chose to lie low; when he did visit his family he did so in secret. Over time he started to move around Kandahar more openly, but always declined any renewed association with the Taliban. In the past few months, though, the situation changed dramatically.

"We used to avoid visiting public places. We were afraid of speaking in favor of the Taliban. Now you can see I move all around. I go to the marketplaces and openly introduce myself as a Talib," Abdul Jalil told Asia Times Online at his home, where several other Taliban also live.

"But these men are not fighters. They have been assigned by the Taliban's command center in Panjwai district to provide logistical support.

"For obvious reasons, Abdul Jalil was not prepared to go into too much detail about precise Taliban activities. But what can be gleaned is that hundreds of others in Kandahar like Abdul Jalil have been drawn back into the ranks of the Taliban.

"The main reason for this is the change in mood in the Pashtun areas, from being ambivalent - if not even hostile - toward the Taliban, to fully supporting them.

"Almost all the tribes of the Pashtun heartland of Kandahar, Helmand and Uruzgan provinces, the traditional rulers of modern Afghanistan since the 18th century, feel that they are now politically deprived and that the occupying forces do not trust them.

"Repeated aerial bombings of civilians have also played right into the Taliban's hands and ordinary people, tired of being innocent targets over the years, now welcome the Taliban's foot soldiers.

"Thus people like Abdul Jalil, who had been prepared to abandon the Taliban, are once again active in the movement.

"Over endless cups of tea, Abdul Jalil, Mehmood and Hamid discussed the various colors of the Taliban-led resistance.

"'The Taliban will be ready to mobilize next summer, but the lead role will be played by local tribes and pro-government warlords. All tribes, including the one Hamid Karzai belongs to [Durrani], do not support the Kabul government. The Taliban will be a leader, but the main engine will be dissatisfied tribes and warlords,' said Abdul Jalil.

"The three men stressed that during the winter lull in fighting, the Taliban would focus on establishing better coordination among their rank and file and in improving their links in the government. Secret arms dumps would also be restocked."

This report and other recent accounts are ominous. What they depict is something greater than a looming Taliban offensive. Instead they're outlining a much broader, general uprising, a revolt against the troubled Kabul government.

There's no way of telling at this point whether these accounts are true or perhaps merely Taliban propaganda. However NATO needs to decide whether its forces are in Afghanistan to repel the Taliban or if they're also there to put down popular uprisings. This could be a case of "mission creep" at its worst. How far do we go to prop up the Karzai government?