KANDAHAR THREATENED: Last week Taliban soldiers entered Afghanistan's Arghandab district, 12 miles north of Kandahar, the area's largest city. Conflicting accounts reported anywhere from 500 to 1,200 insurgents took control of 7 to 18 villages.

The Afghani army responded by relocating its troops from Kabul, and NATO forces in Kandahar province redeployed to better positions to counter any attacks. The Taliban have long used Arghandab, a lush farming area of orchards and vineyards, as the staging ground for their attacks on Kandahar. Last year an Arghandab's tribal leader who kept the peace between insurgents and civilians died. Since then, violence has escalated between Taliban and NATO.

Taliban Free More than 350 Taliban Prisoners from Kandahar

The Taliban's military activity in Arghandab follows a well-planned attack on Kandahar prison on Friday:

• suicide bomber detonated truck full of explosives
• main prison gate blown open
• guards killed
• up to 1,200 prisoners set free

More than 350 of the freed prisoners are Taliban.

NATO spokesman Mark Laity said of the attack, "Obviously it is a very serious breach of security in a carefully planned attack, and the outcome is very dismaying." He also said there have been "significant successes putting the Taliban on the back foot operationally in many areas, and this does not set all that aside." (The Christian Science Monitor, 6/16/08)

Taliban spokesman Qari Mohammad Yousuf, speaking in Pakistan, said the Taliban are watching Kandahar. "After occupying Arghandab," Yousuf said, "the Taliban's next target will be Kandahar. But, we will not attack Kandahar with rockets and heavy mortars. We will hit specific targets in the city." (Reuters, 6/17/08)

Tension Increases between Afghanistan and Pakistan

After U.S.-led coalition forces removed the Taliban from power in Afghanistan in 2001, they moved their operations to the mountains along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Since then, tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan have grown with every insurgent attack.

It's unclear if the Pakistani government is unable, or unwilling, to control the Taliban's movements across its rugged border into Afghanistan. After Friday's prison attack, political posturing between the two countries ensued:

Sunday—Afghanistan said it will avenge Pakistan's alleged harboring of Taliban.

• Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that because the insurgents come from Pakistan, "to come and kill Afghan and kill coalition troops, it exactly gives us the right to do the same.... We will complete the journey, and we will get them and we will defeat them. We will avenge all that they have done to Afghanistan for the past so many years," (The Christian Science Monitor, 6/16/08)

Monday—Pakistan said it does its best to patrol the mountainous Afghan border for Taliban with about 100,000 troops. It will defend its sovereignty if Afghanistan invades in search of insurgents.

• The Pakistan Foreign Office summoned the Afghan ambassador to complain about Karzai's statement.
• Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the comments were "threatening" and "regrettable," and that he wanted to make it "absolutely clear that Pakistan shall defend its territorial sovereignty." (Associated Press, 6/16/08)
  
  

Tuesday—Afghanistan said it does not intend to go to war with Pakistan.

• Afghan spokesman Homayun Hamidzada said, "The president used that strong language to convey a message. Pakistan is a sovereign state and should behave responsibly. As a sovereign nation you would not allow any other elements to use your territory against another sovereign state and Pakistan is a sovereign state." (AFP, 6/17/08)

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Question for Readers:

Do you think Pakistan should make more of an effort to control the Taliban?