While hardly any developments were visible in the state of affairs of Afghanistan in the duration of two decades that it was under the US invasion, it was nonetheless, in the interest of most nations to not alter the status quo. However, what was a dreaded nightmare for almost all the nations, including India, has now become a reality with Afghanistan becoming that conflicted region of South Asia which has set course to the road leading to the dark pre-historic times under the Taliban regime. This regime has sweepingly and violently come up with the aim of implementing its ideology that is set on establishing the orthodox Sharia dogma across Afghanistan and eventually across every nation in the world.
Moreover, no one anticipated this rapid defeat of Kabul, the capital city which was once beautiful and prosperous, into the destructive hands of Taliban forces. This is a failure not just for Afghanistan and the United States but also for the United Nations as an organisation that is dedicated to “peace operations” across the globe. The world today blames the US and the UN for their incompetence which has left Afghanistan to crumble under the Taliban regime.
With the withdrawal of the last remaining few US soldiers, havoc continues to be wrecked on the streets of Afghanistan, the victim of which are none other than the civilian population. This also comes at the time when civilian population continues to be at the suffering end of the on-going Israel-Palestine conflict. However, when all hope seemed lost with the former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani’s escape to Oman with enough fortune to fill a chopper and with no extension of help being offered from any of the 56 Islamic nation in the world to Afghan refugees, the Indian government had already sent two of its own military aircrafts to evacuate not only the thousands of Indians stuck in the Indian Embassy at Kabul, just 3 kilometres short of the airport, but was also successful in evaluation of several prominent Afghan politicians.
Unfortunately, we know from past experiences of war, genocides and massacres that during such situations the matters turn all the more grim for women. Yet at a time where prompt actions are needed, the only words the Afghan refugees hear coming from the “first world” countries like the United States is that of promises of resettling them into the US.
Similarly, Canada has only laid down plans of rescuing 20,000 women leaders and activists from Afghanistan as thousands of young girls and women have already fallen prey to the hands of Taliban “soldires”, sexually assaulting and enslaving these women in the name of protection and marriage. Overall, it is a sad state of affair to see footage of hundreds of thousands of already displaced Afghans that are desperate for an escape from their homeland falling from over-flowing aircrafts while the US’s Secretary of States, Antony Blinken, declared their mission in Afghanistan as a “success”.
India, on the other hand, while being criticised on the global platform over a year ago for its controversial Citizenship Amendment Act is yet again under the watchful eyes of global journalists but this time in good faith for its active participation in fight against terrorism, whether in Pakistan or Afghanistan and for the quick response by the Indian Airforce in dispatching aircrafts like the C-17 globe master, a transport aircraft, for emergency evacuation. The world has placed its hope on India, rather than the US, in providing a safe haven to the Afghan journalists. In this sense, it can undoubtedly be credited to India that it has always stepped forth in the matter of any rescue operation across the world since the creation of the United Nations. Thus, India’s credibility lies in the fact that it is a doer despite all of its “wait and watch” policies.
by Rhea Chaudhary, student of political science Masters at JNU
