Opposition Groups Stress on Elections, Reject Taliban’s Ulema Gathering
The National Resistance Front (NRF) and the Supreme Council of National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan rejected the gathering of Ulema and tribal elders that started in Kabul today.
The two leading opposition groups stated that the gathering is aimed at gaining legitimacy for the Taliban whose reign is based on fear, force, and reluctance.
The statements from the two main opposition groups of the Taliban emphasized on the formation of an inclusive interim government and elections as the solution for a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan.
The Supreme Council of National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan, with politicians included as members, such as Marshal Abdul Rashid Dostum, Atta Mohammad Noor, Mohammad Mohaqiq, and Salahuddin Rabbani, announced in a statement that the Taliban's goal of convening the Ulema and the tribal elders’ gathering is to approve the group’s proposed "constitution and appointment of the group’s supreme leader or Amir al-Mu'minin".
The leaders of the National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan, who are mainly living in Turkey after the fall of the Republic, expected that under domestic and international pressures, the Taliban would give in to the formation of an inclusive government with their own participation.
The National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan’s statement added that through the gathering, the Taliban wants to send a message globally that they enjoy a national support base, however, the council stressed that the only acceptable option ahead for a peaceful settlement in Afghanistan is the "initiation of peace negotiations and the formation of an all-inclusive provisional government, followed by an elected political system."
The National Resistance Front, led by Ahmad Masoud, has also announced its opposition to the Taliban's gathering.
However, the NRF accuses the Taliban of an "instrumental use of religion" to deceive domestic and foreign public opinion.
These two main groups opposing the Taliban, asked the Afghan people and foreign countries, to not be deceived by such efforts of the group.
Meanwhile, the Taliban started the Ulema and tribal elders’ gathering in Kabul without the presence of prominent Afghan politicians, even though they had confirmed in the Doha talks that after the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan, the group would start an intra-Afghan dialogue with all Afghan political figures and fronts.
