• Latest
  • Trending
Afghans fleeing

Bitter fruits of the War on Terror

September 11, 2021
Electricity

Power cut schedule for today in Sri Lanka: February 9th

February 9, 2023
Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

February 8, 2023
Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

February 8, 2023
Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

February 8, 2023
Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

February 8, 2023
Dollars

Sri Lanka’s reserves cross USD 2bn

February 7, 2023
India hasn’t travelled to Pakistan since 2008

Pakistan refuse to travel to India for World Cup if Asia Cup 2023 moves out of Pakistan

February 7, 2023
Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

February 7, 2023
Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

February 7, 2023
ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

Google unveils its ChatGPT rival

February 8, 2023
Doing justice to Slave Island

Doing justice to Slave Island

February 7, 2023
The hardest choice Gen. Musharraf had to make

The hardest choice Gen. Musharraf had to make

February 7, 2023
  • About Us
  • Advertisements
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
Thursday, February 9, 2023
No Result
View All Result
NewsIn.Asia
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • All
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
    Electricity

    Power cut schedule for today in Sri Lanka: February 9th

    Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

    Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

    Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

    Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

    Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

    Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

    Dollars

    Sri Lanka’s reserves cross USD 2bn

    India hasn’t travelled to Pakistan since 2008

    Pakistan refuse to travel to India for World Cup if Asia Cup 2023 moves out of Pakistan

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

    Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Doing justice to Slave Island

  • World
    • All
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    Google unveils its ChatGPT rival

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Earthquake

    Death toll in Turkey, Syria earthquake soars past 3,700

    Sri Lanka offers rescue services to Turkey

    Sri Lanka offers rescue services to Turkey

    7.8 magnitude earthquake shakes central Turkey

    Second powerful earthquake hits Turkey and Syria; international aid efforts underway

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    7 ways to use ChatGPT at work to boost your productivity

  • Business
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Books
    • Gaming
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Series
    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    "Avatar: The Way of Water" has soared into the $2 billion club of top grossing movies worldwide.

    ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ crosses $2 billion mark in worldwide box office

    Pathaan

    Posters of Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan torn down and burnt outside cinemas in India

    Oscars 2023

    Oscars 2023: ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ leads nominations

    Much-awaited Sri Lankan 3D animation movie “Gajaman” coming to theatres

    Much-awaited Sri Lankan 3D animation movie “Gajaman” coming to theatres

    Prince William and Prince Harry arrive at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in Vimy, France on April 9, 2017.. Image credits - Jack Taylor/Getty Images/File

    Prince Harry’s ‘Spare’ creates world record, becomes fastest selling non-fiction book

    Cocaine Bear (Credit: Universal Pictures)

    20 of the best films to watch in 2023

    Avatar

    Avatar: The Way Of Water passes USD 1B at the global box office

    (Image credit: Alamy)

    The 20 best films of 2022

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Science
    • Travel
    Vaping

    Researchers uncover new negative effects of vaping

    Clashes in the educational field over Darwin’s theory of evolution

    Clashes in the educational field over Darwin’s theory of evolution

    Child. Image credits - Filip Mroz @mroz / Unsplash

    Your child’s academic success may start with their screen time as infants

    Chief pilot Ian Porter with wife Michelle, daughters Samantha and Sydney, who act as his co-pilots, and son Christopher.. Image credits - Samantha Porter

    The family of five flying around the world in a tiny plane

    Paris. Image credits - Alexander Kagan allewollenalex / Unsplash

    World’s ‘most powerful’ tourism city revealed

    Image credits - NASA nasa / Unsplash

    Earth’s inner core may have started spinning other way

    Global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners has released its quarterly report on the world's most desirable passports. Click on to find out which passport offers the most access in 2023. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    The world’s most powerful passport for 2023 revealed

    Image credits - Tetiana Bykovets tetiana_bykovets / Unsplash

    New research reveals reason why chocolate tastes so good

    NASA’s Webb telescope

    Extraterrestrial wonders: Webb Telescope detects its 1st exoplanet

    Asafoetida plant. Photo via Adobe Stock.

    The most controversial ingredient in Indian food

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Tech
    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    Google unveils its ChatGPT rival

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    7 ways to use ChatGPT at work to boost your productivity

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp working on Calling shortcut feature for Android

    Child. Image credits - Filip Mroz @mroz / Unsplash

    Your child’s academic success may start with their screen time as infants

    Donald Trump

    Meta says it will restore Donald Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts

    Trending Tags

    • Sillicon Valley
    • Climate Change
    • Election Results
    • Flat Earth
    • Golden Globes
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Mr. Robot
  • Coronavirus
  • Videos
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • All
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
    Electricity

    Power cut schedule for today in Sri Lanka: February 9th

    Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

    Lankan PM asks Indian companies to invest in Sri Lanka

    Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

    Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

    Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

    Income tax: Circular issued announcing several exemptions

    Dollars

    Sri Lanka’s reserves cross USD 2bn

    India hasn’t travelled to Pakistan since 2008

    Pakistan refuse to travel to India for World Cup if Asia Cup 2023 moves out of Pakistan

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

    Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Doing justice to Slave Island

  • World
    • All
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United Kingdom
    • United States
    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    Google unveils its ChatGPT rival

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Doing justice to Slave Island

    Earthquake

    Death toll in Turkey, Syria earthquake soars past 3,700

    Sri Lanka offers rescue services to Turkey

    Sri Lanka offers rescue services to Turkey

    7.8 magnitude earthquake shakes central Turkey

    Second powerful earthquake hits Turkey and Syria; international aid efforts underway

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    7 ways to use ChatGPT at work to boost your productivity

  • Business
  • Politics
  • Sports
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Books
    • Gaming
    • Movie
    • Music
    • Series
    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

    "Avatar: The Way of Water" has soared into the $2 billion club of top grossing movies worldwide.

    ‘Avatar: The Way of Water’ crosses $2 billion mark in worldwide box office

    Pathaan

    Posters of Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan torn down and burnt outside cinemas in India

    Oscars 2023

    Oscars 2023: ‘Everything Everywhere All At Once’ leads nominations

    Much-awaited Sri Lankan 3D animation movie “Gajaman” coming to theatres

    Much-awaited Sri Lankan 3D animation movie “Gajaman” coming to theatres

    Prince William and Prince Harry arrive at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial in Vimy, France on April 9, 2017.. Image credits - Jack Taylor/Getty Images/File

    Prince Harry’s ‘Spare’ creates world record, becomes fastest selling non-fiction book

    Cocaine Bear (Credit: Universal Pictures)

    20 of the best films to watch in 2023

    Avatar

    Avatar: The Way Of Water passes USD 1B at the global box office

    (Image credit: Alamy)

    The 20 best films of 2022

  • Lifestyle
    • All
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Health
    • Science
    • Travel
    Vaping

    Researchers uncover new negative effects of vaping

    Clashes in the educational field over Darwin’s theory of evolution

    Clashes in the educational field over Darwin’s theory of evolution

    Child. Image credits - Filip Mroz @mroz / Unsplash

    Your child’s academic success may start with their screen time as infants

    Chief pilot Ian Porter with wife Michelle, daughters Samantha and Sydney, who act as his co-pilots, and son Christopher.. Image credits - Samantha Porter

    The family of five flying around the world in a tiny plane

    Paris. Image credits - Alexander Kagan allewollenalex / Unsplash

    World’s ‘most powerful’ tourism city revealed

    Image credits - NASA nasa / Unsplash

    Earth’s inner core may have started spinning other way

    Global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners has released its quarterly report on the world's most desirable passports. Click on to find out which passport offers the most access in 2023. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

    The world’s most powerful passport for 2023 revealed

    Image credits - Tetiana Bykovets tetiana_bykovets / Unsplash

    New research reveals reason why chocolate tastes so good

    NASA’s Webb telescope

    Extraterrestrial wonders: Webb Telescope detects its 1st exoplanet

    Asafoetida plant. Photo via Adobe Stock.

    The most controversial ingredient in Indian food

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Tech
    Microsoft has announced a new version of Bing

    Microsoft unveils new Bing with ChatGPT powers

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    Google unveils its ChatGPT rival

    ChatGPT. Image credits - Getty

    7 ways to use ChatGPT at work to boost your productivity

    Whatsapp. Image credits - AARN GIRI / Unsplash

    WhatsApp working on Calling shortcut feature for Android

    Child. Image credits - Filip Mroz @mroz / Unsplash

    Your child’s academic success may start with their screen time as infants

    Donald Trump

    Meta says it will restore Donald Trump’s Facebook and Instagram accounts

    Trending Tags

    • Sillicon Valley
    • Climate Change
    • Election Results
    • Flat Earth
    • Golden Globes
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Mr. Robot
  • Coronavirus
  • Videos
NewsIn.Asia
No Result
View All Result
Home Around South Asia Afghanistan

Bitter fruits of the War on Terror

P.K. Balachandran by P.K. Balachandran
September 11, 2021
in Afghanistan, History, Human Rights, Politics, Strategic Affairs, Terrorism, Top Story, United States
Reading Time: 6 mins read
11 0
A A
Afghans fleeing

Afghans fleeing

21
SHARES
Share on WhatsApp

By P.K.Balachandran

Colombo, September 10 (Counterpoint): Saturday September 11, 2021 marks the 20 th. Anniversary of the Twin Towers attack by the Al-Qaeda which led to the long-drawn-out US-led “War on Terror”. The 8 trillion-dollar war was launched ostensibly to put an end to the scourge of terrorism. But it has neither ended terrorism nor indicated that it will be ended in the foreseeable future.

President Joe Biden came to power posing as a “dove” in contrast to his rival Donald Trump who went as a “hawk”. But Biden himself has said that he will continue to pursue terrorists where ever they may be. The only difference will be that the US will stop putting its troops “on the ground” but will use “over the horizon” methods. In other words, the targeted countries will continue to suffer damage and loss of lives while US lives won’t be lost.  

ADVERTISEMENT

For similar articles, join our Whatsapp group for the latest updates. – click here

The War on Terror has brought no benefits either to the US or the world (barring the US military, its suppliers and contractors). Tellingly, the war’s 20 th. Anniversary in 2021 is marked not by victory but by a monumental defeat in Afghanistan, the war’s first target. And the defeat has been at the hands of the original enemy, the Taliban.

Some Americans justify the war saying that because of it, there has not been a single terrorist strike in the US since October 2001. What is ignored is that several countries in West Asia, South Asia and Africa have had to pay an unprecedentedly heavy price in terms of human lives, territorial displacement and economic damage.  The US itself lost 15,000 lives in the global campaign.

In Afghanistan alone, US$ 2.6 trillion went down the drain. According to www.gzeromedia.com US$ 19 billion was lost in Afghanistan due to corruption. US$ 88.3 billion went into the Afghan army and police which eventually collapsed. US$ 36 billion was spent on governance which was universally condemned as corrupt and inefficient. The Afghan war took the lives of 171, 336 Afghan civilians (including 71 media persons); 66,000 Afghan troops; 51,191 insurgents; 6,294 US military personnel and 1144 US military contractors’ personnel. 2.1 million Afghans had to flee from the country and 3.2 million were internally displaced.

In the wider War on Terror, 315,000 died; 255,000 insurgents and 173,000 government troops were killed; and 9.2 million were displaced in Iraq (which the US attacked in 2003). Attacks on Syria drove 7.1 million out of their homes; 4.6 million in Yemen; 4.3 million in Somalia; 3.7 million in Pakistan and 1.8 million in the Philippines.

Noam Chomsky in his recent interview to Truthout says that what worries the US ruling class is the financial cost. “Next time we should assess the costs to us more carefully, and do better,” is the thinking, Chomsky says.  The US targeted Afghanistan in 2001 not because it was interested in Afghanistan or the Taliban, but in keeping the West Asian region as a  whole against inroads by the Russians, he points out.

In the first war in Afghanistan, when the US collaborated with the Mujahideen to drive the Russians out, its aim was to kill as many Russians as possible and not to liberate the Afghans. “The policies of the coalition were brought to the public in New York Times correspondent Tim Weiner’s history of the CIA. The CIA station chief in Islamabad declared that the goal was to kill Soviet soldiers, making it clear that the mission was not to liberate Afghanistan.”

And to achieve its aims, the US encouraged the Mujahideen to campaign for and impose the Shariah law. “The achievements in women’s rights in Russian-controlled cities in the late ‘80s, and the threats they faced from the CIA-mobilized radical Islamist forces, were reported at the time by a highly credible source, Rasil Basu, a distinguished international feminist activist who was UN representative in Afghanistan in those years, with special concern for women’s rights, Chomsky recalls.  

Basu wrote in Asian Age: “During the (Russian) occupation, in fact, women made enormous strides: illiteracy declined from 98% to 75%, and they were granted equal rights with men in civil law, and in the Constitution. This is not to say that there was complete gender equality. Unjust patriarchal relations still prevailed in the workplace and in the family with women occupying lower level sex-type jobs. But the strides they took in education and employment were very impressive,”.

The American interest was not in Afghanistan’s progress but its regression, to serve its narrow geopolitical interest. Even Biden showed the same mentality when he said that the US was not in Afghanistan to develop the country.

According to Chomsky, before it started the war in Afghanistan in October 2001, the Taliban had offered to send away Osama bin Laden, (the main suspect in the Twin Towers case) abroad, for trial. But the US rejected it with the sole intention of unleashing war and frightening the world into submission. “That’s the Bush Doctrine. Rule the region, rule the world, show our muscle so that the world knows that what we say goes, as George H.W. Bush put it,” Chomsky commented.

According to Abdul Haq, a leading figure in the anti-Taliban Afghan resistance and a former leader of the US-backed Mujahideen resistance to the Russian invasion, Afghans wanted to liberate the country themselves and would not put up with US bombing. Haq told Asia scholar Anatol Lieven: “The US is trying to show its muscle, score a victory and scare everyone in the world. They don’t care about the suffering of the Afghans or how many people we will lose.”

Iraq

In March 2003, the US initiated a war against Iraq even though it knew that Saddam Hussein had nothing to do with the 9/11 terrorist attacks, possessed no Weapons of Mass Destruction and posed no threat to the US. America’s real interest behind the killing hundreds of thousands of Iraqis at a cost of more than U$3 trillion, was to take control of the oil-rich country. When the excuse of Saddam’s possessing Weapon of Mass Destruction failed to wash, the US switched to “democracy promotion,” which Chomsky describes as a “transparent fairy tale”.

Eying another oil-rich country, Libya, the US in 2010-11 used the Arab Spring uprising to support rebels fighting Muammar Qaddafi.  When Qaddafi’s forces were converging on Benghazi, there were loud cries of impending genocide, leading to a UN Security Council resolution imposing a no-fly zone and calling for negotiations. Gaddafi accepted to negotiate but the rebels refused. The US provided air cover to the rebels who went on to “sadistically” murder Gaddafi.

“Libya then collapsed into total chaos, with sharp escalation in killings and other atrocities. It also led to a flow of Jihadis and weapons to other parts of Africa, stirring up major disasters there. Intervention extended to Russia and Turkey, and the Arab dictatorships, supporting warring groups. The whole episode has been a catastrophe for Libya and much of West Africa,” Chomsky says.

However, despite the heavy cost of the War on Terror and the humiliating denouement in Afghanistan, the US still has a lot of muscle to flex, the American intellectual warns. “Its military spending eclipses rivals — in 2020, $778 billion as compared to China’s $252 billion and Russia’s $62 billion. The US military is also far more advanced technologically. US security is unrivalled. The alleged threats are at the borders of enemies, which are ringed with nuclear-armed missiles in some of the 800 US military bases around the world.” 

END

Subscribe to our Whatsapp channel for the latest updates from around the world

Tags: AfghanistanAl QaedaIraqLibyaTerrorrismTwin TowersUSWar on terror

Related Posts

Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation
Economy

Between the devil and deep sea: Lankan government’s dilemma on taxation

February 8, 2023
Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment
Disaster

Modi gets emotional over Turkiye quake, sends relief team with equipment

February 7, 2023
Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka
Around South Asia

Paris Club gives financing assurances to support IMF’s approval of EFF to Lanka

February 7, 2023
The hardest choice Gen. Musharraf had to make
Around South Asia

The hardest choice Gen. Musharraf had to make

February 7, 2023
Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards
Around The World

Beyoncé Wins Her 32nd Grammy, Making History at the Awards

February 6, 2023
The hardest choice Gen.Musharraf had to make
Governance

The hardest choice Gen.Musharraf had to make

February 6, 2023
  • Electricity

    Power cut schedule for today in Sri Lanka: February 9th

    59294 shares
    Share 23740 Tweet 14814
  • Registration open for National Fuel Pass

    6628 shares
    Share 2688 Tweet 1642
  • Foreign Currency Official Exchange Rates from Central Bank of Sri Lanka

    1690 shares
    Share 683 Tweet 420
  • WATCH : Yohani’s first live performance in India

    789 shares
    Share 328 Tweet 192
  • Power interruption schedule released: Check your area power cut time

    742 shares
    Share 320 Tweet 176
  • About Us
  • Advertisements
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact

© 2022 All rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Around South Asia
    • Afghanistan
    • Bangladesh
    • Bhutan
    • China
    • India
    • Maldives
    • Myanmar
    • Nepal
    • Pakistan
    • Sri Lanka
  • Around The World
  • Breaking News
  • Business
    • Exchange
  • Climate Change
  • Governance
    • Crime
    • Diplomacy
    • Defense
    • Human Rights
    • Politics
    • Strategic Affairs
  • Lifestyle
    • Books
    • Entertainment
      • Arts
      • Cinema
      • Gaming
      • Music
      • Movie
      • Series
      • TV
    • Health
    • Fashion
    • Food
    • Travel
  • Culture
    • Ethnicity
    • Gender
  • Development news
  • Economy
  • Education
  • Environment
  • Coronavirus
  • History
  • National
  • Offbeat
    • Media
    • Music and arts across South Asia
  • Recommended
    • Headlines
    • Highlights
    • Top Picture
    • Top Story
  • Religion
  • Science
  • Sports
    • Football
    • Cricket
      • LPL
      • IPL
    • Tennis
    • Formula 1
    • NBA
  • Tech
    • Instagram
  • United Nations
  • Weather
  • World
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • United States
  • Videos

© 2022 All rights reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist

eskisehir escort -

https://www.vudols.com/

- Sağlık Personeli - mersin escort - Antalya korsan taksi