Good news from Pakistan is rare. So it was a particular relief to hear of the capture in Karachi of the Taliban’s top military commander, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar. The joint raid by American and Pakistani intelligence forces is a sign that President Obama’s investment in better relations with Pakistan is bearing fruit. It is also a reminder of how much more could be done if the Pakistanis fully committed to the fight against the extremists.
Like most Americans, we are also closely watching the news from Afghanistan, as United States, NATO and Afghan troops battle to gain control of Marja, a Taliban stronghold in Helmand Province. The campaign is the first real test of Mr. Obama’s top commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, and his ambitious counterinsurgency strategy.
By Monday, three days into the assault, American commanders said at least half of the estimated 400 Taliban fighters in Marja had been killed or had fled. But as General McChrystal has rightly made clear, what matters most is what happens after the fighting ends to win — and keep — the allegiance of Marja’s residents.
Afghanistan’s government has failed to provide security and even the most basic services to the residents of Marja and most of the rest of Afghanistan. That fact, more than any, has pushed Afghans back into the arms of the Taliban. Once the fighting ends, General McChrystal’s plan is to install a functioning government in Marja.
President Hamid Karzai has appointed a new district governor who is expected to move in soon. About 400 Afghan police officers will be brought in to patrol until a local force can be recruited and trained. Plans for projects to create jobs and provide services have been drawn up. American and British diplomats are ready to set up an office in Marja to help them move forward.
The goal is then to replicate the Marja experience in Taliban strongholds across the country. It is an ambitious strategy that will need the sustained attention of Washington and other NATO allies and the solid backing of Mr. Karzai.
Many important details of Mullah Baradar’s capture are still secret, including why Pakistan decided to cooperate now in seizing him. What is clear is that the Pakistani Army and intelligence service — which helped create and nurture the Afghan Taliban — can deliver bad guys when they want to.
Neither Mullah Baradar’s capture nor the Marja campaign is likely to break the Taliban’s will to fight. But we hope that the mounting pressure will make some members start questioning their allegiance. General McChrystal and Afghan leaders have been drafting a plan to offer jobs and other incentives to persuade insurgents to put down their weapons and renounce the Taliban’s brutality and medieval ideas. Guaranteeing their security from reprisals — from their former comrades or their neighbors — will be essential.
It is also unlikely that the Taliban’s hard-core leaders will ever want to reconcile with Kabul. Or if they do, their price will be far too high. Frankly, we are concerned about President Karzai’s overly eager determination to hold a tribal council on reintegrating Taliban leaders, including the chief, Mullah Muhammad Omar. As president, Mr. Karzai has the right to try. But for the sake of his own people, he must make clear that the government will not cede an inch, especially when it comes to education for women and girls.
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