Karzai angry at US role to combat terrorism in Afghanistan

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai speaking to Al Jazeera’s UpFront on the 14^th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, said the U.S. and International troops existence could not bring security to Afghanistan.

Karzia said the U.S. and International Forces presence in Afghanistan could not defeat extremism, but rather increased extremism in the region.

“The presence of the International Forces in Afghanistan and of the United States in Afghanistan and the region did not bring security or defeat of extremism rather we see more of it.”

He says he is “grateful for the [US] liberation of Afghanistan as it occurred in 2001″ but is unhappy with subsequent behavior.

But as always he criticized US military negligence to target terrorist’s safe heavens outside Afghanistan and their role for civilian causalities in the Afghan remote areas.

He claims, “what they [the US military] did to civilians and villages was wrong, that why I raised my voice”.

When questioned about Karzia calling Taliban his ‘brothers’ and about the death of the Taliban’s Supreme Leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, said: “I never feel happy for the death of anybody even if that person has caused me personnel harm or even that person caused harm to our country; therefore, I neither celebrate it Mullah Omar’s death nor did I send him a condolence.”

Karzai rejects his return back to the power as the president of Afghanistan saying I will ‘definitely’ not return back in ‘absolute terms’ and I want this country to move forward, to be a flourishing democracy where Afghan people will have a happy, peaceful and prosperous life.

He calls Al-Qaeda a myth in Afghanistan and ISIL a baseless group. Adding, ISIL are Pakistani militants in the eastern Nengarhar province of Afghanistan operating under the name of ‘Daesh’ and are well equipped.

Reported by: Fahim Noori