Today the Taliban announced the beginning of their yearly spring
offensive, in an official statement released on their propaganda
website, Voice of Jihad.
The Taliban statement, which was released in English and other
languages, said that the "Al Farooq Jihadi spring operation" offensive
will begin on May 3, and will target foreign and Afghan security forces,
Afghan political and government officials, the Afghan High Peace
Council, and anti-Taliban militias. The statement is attributed to "The
Leadership Council of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan," which is better
known as
the Quetta Shura.
"It must be stated that the primary target of Al-Farooq operation
will be the foreign invaders, their advisors, their contractors and
members of all associated military, intelligence and auxiliary
departments," the Taliban announcement said.
"And similarly, the high ranking officials of the stooge Kabul
regime; members of Parliament; those associated with Ministries of
Defense, Intelligence and Interior; members of the so called High Peace
Council; Militia under the name of 'Arbaki' and all those people who
work against the Mujahideen, toil to pave ground for the occupation of
Afghanistan and become the cause for the strength of the invaders will
also be targeted in Al-Farooq operation," the statement continued.
The Taliban claimed they will employ "new and tested war tactics,"
and that "top priority will be given to safeguarding the lives and
wealth of civilians."
"It is hoped that civilians stay away from the bases of invaders and
their hirelings, their military convoys and refrain from going close to
explosion sites as the enemy intentionally targets civilians to avenge
the caused death/injury and attributes it to the Taliban," the statement
said.
Despite the Taliban's claim that they seek to protect civilians, the
Taliban continue to cause the vast majority of civilian casualties.
According to statistics compiled by the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan and released in February,
the Taliban were responsible for nearly 77 percent of the civilian deaths in the country in 2011, while Coalition and Afghan forces were responsible for just 14 percent.
Each spring, the Taliban have issued similar statements about their
planned offensives, and the targets of the operations have also been
similar. In an April 30, 2011
announcement of the Al Badar spring offensive,
the Taliban said they would would focus on "military centers, places of
gatherings, airbases, ammunition and logistical military convoys of the
foreign invaders in all parts of the country." The Taliban said that
their tactics would include "group and martyrdom seeking attacks," or
suicide attacks and assaults; "group offensives," or massed assaults;
and "city attacks," ambushes, and IED attacks.
The Taliban announcement today coincided with a complex suicide
assault in Kabul that targeted a civilian compound frequented by foreign
and UN personnel. Five Taliban fighters and five civilians were killed
in the attack [see
LWJ report,
Taliban launch suicide assault in Kabul following Obama's departure].
The Taliban launched today's attack in Kabul just hours after
President Obama left Afghanistan, where he had given a speech on "ending
the war in Afghanistan" and called for negotiations with the Taliban.
The Taliban have publicly rejected peace overtures in the past,
most recently in an official statement released at Voice of Jihad on Jan. 27, and have refused to sever ties with al Qaeda.
Today's Taliban announcement occurred three weeks after Brigadier
General Carsten Jacobson, the top spokesman of the International
Security Assistance Force, stated that ISAF sees no evidence of
"cohesive action" by the Taliban to carry out a spring offensive. The
Taliban conducted several coordinated attacks and assassinations of
Afghan officials both before and after Jacobson made his statement [see
LWJ report,
Taliban suicide bombers kill 17 in attacks in south, west].
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Kabul Time
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