"Zahir arrived in Marja aboard a US Marine MV-22 Osprey helicopter with a contingent of Marine officers.... He stayed in Marja for only about two hours, not venturing more than 100 yards from where his aircraft landed."
And then he choppered right back out again.
Yeah, and IF THERE WERE a VOTE the TALIBAN CANDIDATE would WIN!
"the Taliban still enjoys deep support here, while the Afghan government is almost universally loathed....
We aren't going to win these people over, America -- especially bombing them into oblivion and killing their families.
“The Taliban provided us with a very peaceful environment,’’ said Fakir Mohammed, 32, a tractor driver. “They did not bother us. We were very happy with them here.... They were not corrupt like the police....
Related: Afghans Need Taliban Return
Yeah, I would say so!
Your government drops bombs on us.... residents said they were less interested in government services than being left alone’’
See? Taliban are just like everyone else, 'murkn!!!!
Related: Why Can't AmeriKa Leave Afghans Alone?
Yeah, why can't we, sob?
And this is the "success" of Marjah!
"With Taliban gone, residents lukewarm to new mayor’s visit; He tries telling them mission is good for the town" by Rajiv Chandrasekaran, Washington Post | February 23, 2010
MARJA, Afghanistan - The Afghan official named to govern a Taliban-free Marja paid his first visit to this strife-torn community yesterday, imploring residents to forsake the Taliban and promising employment programs as an inducement for local men to put down their weapons.
Haji Zahir, the newly appointed mayor of Marja, told about 50 elderly men who had gathered at a gas station near the main bazaar that the large US and Afghan military operation that was launched last week to flush out the Taliban was intended to bring positive changes.
“They’re not here to occupy our country,’’ Zahir said of the US Marines who now control key commercial and residential sections of Marja. “They’re just here to bring you peace.’’
Oh, is THAT what all the KILLING and DESTRUCTION is doing?! Silly me!
But Zahir, a native of southern Afghanistan who spent the past 15 years in Germany, elicited only a tepid endorsement from the men who gathered to meet him.
Unreal!
We run these exiles in to run things and the people there say WhoTF is this guy and where has he been?
Think Ahmed Chalabi and Iraq, readers!
Their questions made clear that the Taliban still enjoys deep support here, while the Afghan government is almost universally loathed, illuminating the deep challenge facing US Marines and civilian stabilization specialists as they try to establish basic civic administration.
And the MISSILE MURDERS have NOT HELPED!!!!
“The Taliban provided us with a very peaceful environment,’’ said Fakir Mohammed, 32, a tractor driver. “They did not bother us. We were very happy with them here.’’
Mohammed said police corruption and malfeasance led residents to support the insurgents. “They were not corrupt like the police,’’ he said.
One man accused US and Afghan troops of disproportionate use of force for responding to fire from AK-47 assault rifles, a weapon commonly used by the insurgents, with rocket-propelled grenades and mortars.
“Your government drops bombs on us,’’ another said.
“I understand some of your houses have burned,’’ said Brigadier General Mohayden Ghori, who commands the Afghan forces involved in the operation and joined Zahir at the meeting. “But let’s solve our problems with negotiations, not with weapons.’’
Tell it to the MASS-MURDERING NATO OCCUPATION!!!!
Ghori said he was open to reconciling with insurgents who stop fighting. “Those Afghan Taliban who have shot at my soldiers, I can tolerate them,’’ he said. “They are my sons. They are my brothers. They are Afghans.’’
They are BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE who NEVER DESERVED ANY of this!
He delivered a far more impassioned plea for support than Zahir, raising his voice almost to the point of screaming as he asked them to persuade other residents to stop fighting.
“Let’s start supporting each other,’’ Ghori said. “We will have schools, a hospital, good roads. Tell me the truth: When the Taliban was here, did they do anything for you? Did they even give you a water pump?’’
But several residents said they were less interested in government services than being left alone. The principal cash crop in Marja is opium-producing poppy, and many farmers are wary that the establishment of local governance and a police force will put an end to what has been a lucrative way of life.
Yeah, right, when that is what the U.S. occupation is protecting.
What, after they flattened the town?
--more--"
Also see: Taliban I Told You So
Oh, they are JUST the PEOPLE WHO LIVE THERE and who are TIRED of FOREIGN OCCUPIERS KILLING THEM, 'eh?
