For years, Afghanistan has been the scene of major political upheavals, the victim of power games that are undermining its economic and social development.
One of the key players in the latest events in the country has been Zalmay Khalilzad, an Afghan-born diplomat, the US Special Representative for Reconciliation in Afghanistan, who played a significant role in the negotiations with the Taliban, and was responsible for mediating the talks that led to the chaotic US military withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, and who seemed to be working for peace and stability in Afghanistan. However, his decisions backfired, as they played a role in the fall of the previous Afghan government, which paved the way for the return of the Taliban, with devastating consequences also for the future of future generations.
Khalilzad, “the key negotiator in one of the biggest diplomatic disasters of the United States in recent history”, as the Independent called him, could return to play the role of Donald Trump’s mediator with the Taliban, the same ones who have been condemned by the International Criminal Court for the repeated violations of the rights and personal freedom of Afghan women and girls, violations recognized as a crime against humanity, in particular for having deprived them of the right to education and self-determination. The fundamentalist government has literally segregated them, deprived of their freedom to decide on their own lives. For this reason, the chief prosecutor Ahmad Khan has issued arrest warrants for the Taliban leaders, including Hibatullah Akhundzada, their supreme leader.
Last week, Zalmay Khalilzad was photographed in the Afghan capital accompanying George Glezmann, an American hostage who was freed after two years in captivity. Glezmann, a Delta Airlines mechanic, was captured by the Taliban in December 2022 while traveling in Afghanistan. According to an official statement, Glezmann was released in a deal brokered by Qatari negotiators, but it was Khalilzad who traveled to Kabul, met with officials from the Taliban foreign ministry, and then accompanied the American citizen to the United States.
Another American hostage, Faye de Hall, also seems to be about to be released, while two British citizens and other foreign prisoners remain in Afghan prisons.
It is unclear what the Taliban got in exchange for the release of these American citizens, but it appears that the Taliban are using the release of the American hostages in Afghanistan as a way to get closer and gain credibility with the Trump administration, after the president had threatened to withdraw the American weapons remaining in Afghanistan from the Taliban. “The Taliban government agreed to release him as a gesture of goodwill to the president of the United States and the American people. George is returning home to his family,” Khalilzad added.
Now it seems that President Trump could turn to Khalilzad again to start a new approach with the fundamentalist regime.
On the other hand, Afghanistan is a country rich in raw materials, especially those rare earths that Trump is so interested in. And
certainly the Americans cannot let the Chinese take advantage of them, with whom the Taliban instead have consolidated commercial relations.
Local journalists also speak of signs of discussion to reopen the US embassy in Kabul, closed after the Taliban took power, which would represent a first form of recognition for a regime that has been condemned globally for its repeated violations of women’s rights.
Yesterday I discussed the serious crisis that is gripping the country with W.M., a prominent Afghan journalist, who is currently under heavy threat from the Taliban regime, like many journalists, and who said me:
“Until three years ago, when the Taliban returned to power, Afghan girls could hope for a bright future. However, that hope was suddenly extinguished when the doors of universities were closed to them. This tragedy has left thousands of Afghan girls in a state of unprecedented despair and crisis. But the problem extends beyond education; without any options, without jobs, without independence, many girls have been forced to marry Taliban fighters, while others, due to the lack of hope for the future, have tragically resorted to suicide.”
These developments that see Khalilzad back on the field could have a heavy role in Afghan politics. On the one hand, it means normalizing and recognizing the role of a regime that is crushing its people, depriving them of fundamental freedoms; on the other, it could mark the beginning of a change. Today, Afghanistan faces an uncertain future, deeply influenced by these political decisions; what is clear is that the hypothesis of new agreements with the fundamentalist regime could have an influence on the serious situation that Afghans, especially women, are facing.
Is it just an agreement for particular interests or does it really concern peace and the future of Afghanistan?
