Taliban regrouping, says Khowst governor

Hakim Taniwal, the governor of Afghanistan’s volatile eastern province of Khowst, told IRIN on Friday that the country’s former hardline Islamist Taliban rulers were regrouping in an effort to step up anti-government militancy. There are fears that this could further harm security in the region and impact on aid work and reconstruction. "We know that they are preparing, but they will not be able to achieve anything," he told IRIN from the Afghan capital, Kabul, adding that although a lot of reports were being received about Taliban activities, little movement had been seen on ground. ''The reality is that there are increased Taliban-related security incidents compared to the past,” he said. Officials in Khowst maintain that recently two Taliban fighters and two government soldiers died in a gun battle in Zhawara District of the province. At the end of March, US-led Coalition forces concluded operation Valiant Strike, the third-largest operation they had conducted this year against the remnants of Al-Qaeda and Taliban rebels in the south. With the killing of an International Committee of the Red Cross delegate in Oruzgan Province and regular skirmishes with Coalition troops in the south and southeast, elements suspected to be remnants of the Taliban and forces loyal to the Afhan renegade warlord, Gulbuddin Hikmatyar, with possible help from Al-Qaeda, have clearly stepped up their attempts to destabilise Kabul. Regional experts recently said that the lack of promised reconstruction work in the country was not helping the problem of renegades. This was particularly true of the Pashtuns in the south who abandoned the Taliban in return for a better future. “Afghans want to see quick results, they had difficult times because of the drought and fighting, and now the state machinery is unable to meet their expectations,” Taniwal explained. He went on to say that most of the projects the government was undertaking were quick impact, only addressing humanitarian relief and recovery, but not tackling reconstruction. “A lot of time is being wasted and there is no pragmatism,” he said. Over the winter, many roads in Khowst were surveyed for reconstruction, but work on them has yet to begin. However, he maintained that the province was under control. “I do not buy the impression that Taliban can stage a massive comeback, despite their recent attacks,” he maintained. "They brutalised ordinary people, and it’s impossible to win back popular support," he added.