Karzai Calls for a Shift in Battle Against Taliban

After last weekend’s mainly peaceful vote for parliament, Afghanistan is ready for new tactics against the Taliban-led insurgency that would rely less on military operations in the country, President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday.

Now that Afghanistan has democratic institutions, Karzai said, the fight should be directed against those who support and train the insurgents.

He was careful not to identify any country by name, but his officials frequently accuse Pakistan’s military intelligence service of providing clandestine support to the Taliban and its extremist allies in Afghanistan. Pakistan denies the claims.

“We do not think that there is a serious terrorism challenge emanating from Afghanistan,” Karzai said. “Rather, we believe that we should now concentrate on where terrorists are trained, on their bases, on the supplies to them, on the money coming to them.”

The battle against the Taliban requires “a stronger political approach now,” added Karzai, who has offered amnesty to most Taliban members who join the democratic process. Several former senior Taliban ran for seats in parliament Sunday.

The count in the parliamentary and local council races will be completed in about two weeks, and results finalized next month.

“I don’t think there is a big need for military activity in Afghanistan anymore,” Karzai said. “When there is a need for it, we conduct it. But I believe the use of air power is something that may not be effective now because we have moved forward.

“And similarly, searching Afghan homes without the authorization of the government of Afghanistan is something that should stop now.”

Karzai acknowledged that his nation would depend on foreign forces “for many years to come,” but was sharply critical of some unilateral military actions by U.S. forces.

Afghans in rural areas of the south and east where the fighting is concentrated often complain that tactics used by U.S. forces, such as searching homes where women are supposed to be sheltered from the eyes of outsiders, are heavy-handed.

“Some incidents still occur, but the effort is to try to stop that as well,” Karzai said.

In Washington, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld responded to Karzai’s comments but did not speak directly about the continued U.S. presence in Afghanistan.

“Now, are there still people being killed? Sure,” Rumsfeld said. “Is there lethality? Yes. Do we coordinate closely with the Afghan security forces and with the Afghan government in terms of the counter-terrorism activities? You bet.”

He appeared to agree that airstrikes were less warranted without massed hostile targets, but he did not rule them out.

He noted that Afghan security forces had grown to more than 76,000. About 17,000 U.S. troops, as well as about 14,000 from other nations, remain on Afghan soil, he said.

On Tuesday, American forces found a large quantity of explosives, including an antitank mine and 10 mortar rounds, used to make remote-controlled bombs near the eastern city of Khowst. Insurgents fired two rockets at a cultural center and a home in the eastern city of Jalalabad, injuring a girl and a police officer, the U.S. military said.

In a wide-ranging news conference after Sunday’s election, Karzai added that foreign donors should be focusing their aid on infrastructure projects such as new roads and power plants that strengthen Afghan industry and trade.

Only 6% of Afghans have electricity in their homes, he added, and their service is intermittent.

Karzai also said his government was in a stronger position to deliver on a promise to combat official corruption and a multibillion-dollar heroin trade.

New measures will include using the Afghan intelligence agency to root out corrupt officials, who will be prosecuted, the president said.

“But we must be realistic as well on that,” he added. “We will not be able to uproot corruption in a day or two, or in a year or two.”

Karzai also said he hoped to build a consensus among Afghans on how best to bring war criminals to justice. But he indicated that war crimes suspects who won seats in parliament would be safe from prosecution.

“Whoever they are, they are the representatives of the people, so they are not criminals,” Karzai said.

Some Afghan analysts predict that the new parliament will get bogged down in disputes among numerous factions. But Karzai said he welcomed a strong parliament that challenged his government to do better.

“Fearing the parliament will ask questions at any moment is going to be a great asset for Afghanistan,” he said.