TALIBAN LEADERSHIP SURVIVED: SO, WHO THEN WERE KILLED OR CAPTURED?

ICHEOKU says it appears that all the Taliban leaders who American troops went to Afghanistan to hunt down, kill or capture, survived after-all. They are doing well and now readying themselves to resume their power holding venture in Afghanistan. Taliban spiritual leader Mullah Halbatullah Akhundzada, co-founder and political leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Khalil Haqqani of the Haqqani Network, fearsome mujahideen Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, Adbul Qatar and other well known Taliban top heavies apparently survived the 20 years hunt for them. So, who then was killed in the American led "search and kill"  of Taliban mission to Afghanistan since even the one-eyed Mujahideen Mullah Mohammed Omar died of natural causes. What happened in Afghanistan since the proverbial head of snake was not cut off; or has American people been had all this past twenty years, lied to, fed with propaganda and absolutely brainwashed about the American military and intelligence exploits in Afghanistan. 

With this background, is it then possible that conspiracy theorists who maintain that 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden is still alive might after-all be right or have strong basis for their assertion? As a disclaimer, ICHEOKU says believes that he is dead based on that telling released photograph of a flinching Hillary Clinton. With this many Taliban leaders still alive and left unscathed, what then has America troops been doing the last twenty years, "fighting" the Taliban in Afghanistan. Was it by design or did the Taliban outsmart American military and intelligence operatives in Afghanistan. Without decimating the Taliban leadership, how did America leadership not know that the group might eventually resurrect, regroup and make a bid back to power in Kabul. 

Is there something which we are not being told or was it the plan from the get go, just in case the experiment with democracy did not turn out right and America did not want to leave Afghanistan without some form of a controlling authority. Is it possible that the Taliban coming back to power was meticulously orchestrated by the same forces who went to Afghanistan to put them out of commission? A report out of Pakistan claims that Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar was once arrested and imprisoned by the Pakistani authorities but that Washington DC pressured  Pakistan president to release him and then put him in a safe asylum in Qatar. So, is the Taliban the eventual backup plan by America when they leave Afghanistan, aware that the government in place was inept  to secure Afghanistan. 

ICHEOKU says does not have sufficient information to make a conclusion one way or the other; but maintains that the fact that all these Taliban leaders survived after twenty years of manhunt for them, with all the sophisticated listening gadgets and surveillance capabilities of America on the ground, is an indication that possibly some backroom deals were made with the understanding that they will eventually step in and take over once America leaves. This equally possibly explains the easy with which the negotiation with the Taliban was established as channels of cooperating were already in place and the Taliban leadership was willing and able to meet America half way. It also possibly explains why the Afghanistan government of President Ashraf Ghani was sidelined and totally shut out throughout the negotiations. 

What is going on people? Why are they not sharing with the world the real reason Taliban was allowed to return back to power in Afghanistan, disguised as a successful Taliban military routing of Afghanistan National Army (ANA). Why was the withdrawal mission short-circuited by over one month, with those charged with the withdrawal process abandoning Afghanistan more than one month earlier on July 6th before the scheduled August 31st date of final withdrawal. Why did they leave Afghanistan by stealth and in the middle of the night, without even notifying the Afghanistan commander who took over or was to take over Baghram military base, at least as a courtesy that they were leaving? Was their relationship and lack of trust and respect for the Ashraf Ghani's government so low that they considered him unworthy.

ICHEOKU says saw a documentary on British Camp Bastion where Afghanistan new commander was complaining that the British army stripped bare the camp; and that if the concrete barriers were not too heavy for their plane, that it was possible they would also taken them as they left. Even some vehicles and equipments on the base were destroyed and blown up by the departing British army, leaving only generators and some officers dwelling portakabins and watch towers, but without the things which would aided the new Afghanistan soldiers to effectively maintain a hold on the base. There are just so many moving parts, whirling at such a dizzying high speed, that nobody actually knows what exactly really happened in Kabul. Stuff as were captured on video in Kabul airport do not necessarily happen with advanced military forces, which normally plans and provides for every imaginable contingencies, except it was part of a a grand scheme which they didn't know will be televised.

Hopefully, these are not too intrusive questions; but the videos and pictures of an unmanaged pandemonium at Kabul airport were otherwise avoidable, and if only those charged with the task  of completing the withdrawal had done their jobs as expected. But they were rather penny wise pound foolish, as they cut and ran with still more than one month time frame left in their schedule. They could have gotten it right at one try, instead, they are now back to try and clean the mess which they created by their action. The more than thirty days which they shaved off would have been more than enough for an orderly complete evacuation of even hundreds of thousands of people (9k per day), including the twenty thousand plus minus Americans in Afghanistan. 

It calls for accountability and since none of them have fallen on their sword just yet, hopefully Joe Biden will man up and ask for their resignations or rather just fire them for failing in their mission to execute his order on the final withdrawal from Afghanistan. It is also possible that they intentionally sabotaged the mission to discredit America's withdrawal from Afghanistan and use it to push for an extension. But thankfully, Joe Biden is standing squarely firm to ensure that the Afghanistan mission was finally ended. It is what majority of American people want and Joe Biden serves at their behest; and acts based on what is in their best interest. As for all those countries in Europe and Britain mouthing off, how many of their country men and women were lost in Afghanistan and what amount of resources did they expend in Afghanistan. 

The combined total loss in blood and treasure of all the NATO members combined are less than one half of the total loss by America. It is not fair nor equitable and they have no moral grounds to condemn or even question America's withdrawal from Afghanistan. They should know that they are also free to continue with the mission on their own if they so chooses. The population of Europe and United Kingdom put together is close to a billion people (801 million); as opposed to America's mere 350 million people, yet America bore most of the burden involved. This explains their mouthing off because they are not the one doing the heavy lifting and merely rode shotgun alongside America. They should therefore hush as America has smartened up not to be used and abused any longer by our so called allies in name only. 

Good enough the Taliban are gradually securing their country and very soon, law and order will be fully restored in Afghanistan so that they can continue a smooth running of operation build back better of Afghanistan. With it done, the orchestrated mess at the Kabul airport will become a thing of a distant past, left in the rearview memory where it rightly belongs. With that done, the  curtain on the overextended mission in Afghanistan will finally be drawn shut, closed for good. Once again, ICHEOKU says the decision to end the Afghanistan mission was a right one and Joe Biden will be favorably remembered for having the guts to finally do what other past presidents wanted to do, but were pressured out of doing. Afghanistan is for Afghanis and the Talibans too are Afghanis. Let them be allowed and supported as they run their country.