Taliban to Trump: Pull out troops or face 'shameful defeat'
Taliban militants in Afghanistan have called on the new US president, Donald Trump, to withdraw American forces from the "quagmire" of the war-torn country or face “shameful defeat".
In an open letter to Trump published on one of its official webpages, the group said nothing has been achieved in 15 years of occupation except bloodshed and destruction.
"So, the responsibility to bring to an end this war also rests on your shoulders," it said, adding the US has lost credibility after spending a trillion dollars on a fruitless entanglement.
Some 8,400 US troops remain in Afghanistan and Washington says they are there to train and support local forces and fight terrorists. However, the Taliban have gone from strength to strength and even Daesh terrorists have now found a foothold in the country.
Trump has said little publicly about Afghanistan but two of his top military appointments - General James "Mad Dog" Mattis as Pentagon chief and former General Michael Flynn as national security adviser - formerly commanded US occupation of the Central Asian country.
Trump has also sharply criticized past presidents for failed policies and the mishandling of conflicts in the Muslim world, Afghanistan included.
In their letter, the Taliban warned Trump against relying on the kind of "unrealistic" reports presented to former presidents by their generals.
"They would emphasize continuation of war and occupation of Afghanistan because they can have better positions and privileges in war," the letter said.
The group said the US was occupying Afghanistan while Washington would not accept foreign forces on its territory or even in a neighboring country.
"You have to realize that the Afghan Muslim nation has risen up against foreign occupation," it said.
The Taliban have made steady inroads against the government in Kabul since occupation forces said they ended their main combat mission in 2014, with troops now in control of only two thirds of the country.
The Taliban warned that if the US "insists on continuing her failed arrogant policies, one can foresee that she will ruin herself beyond repair due to a historically shameful defeat."
Fifteen years after the occupation, the economic and security situation across Afghanistan has become even worse than it was before the American invasion.
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