Afghanistan's killing fields

Some of my church friends and I have been mourning the tragic death of Gayle Williams, who was shot dead by Taliban gunmen in Kabul early this week.

She was in the war-torn country as an aid worker with Serve Afghanistan, a UK charity group.

According to Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesperson, she was killed for” working with an organisation that preached Christianity”.

Last year, 23 South Korean Christians were kidnapped in Afghanistan. Two of them did not survive, and the rest were eventually returned to their home country through diplomatic mediation.

This sparked heated debate in South Korea as to whether religious organisations should refrain from engaging in excessive missionary activities in risky areas, especially where opposing religious forces are strong.

While much of the world’s attention is on the latest brutal killing of a loving and caring person, one must not lose sight of the tremendous challenges confronting Afghanistan since the collapse of the Taliban regime in late 2001.

Like it or not, many Christian communities continue to believe it was the US-led invasion that “opened up” the opportunities for churches around the globe to do “God’s work” - proselytising to Muslims in the repressive country.

Although I am not disputing the right of my fellow believers to reach out to the poor and the needy in such a manner, Christians should always bear in mind many more innocent lives were lost over the last seven years in Afghanistan, and they were not necessarily victims of Taliban militancy.

In May, Philip Alston, the UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, noted in his report on Afghanistan that US secret services tended to rely on dodgy and questionable sources and information in carrying out air strikes against the Taliban, which led to the death of numerous Afghan civilians, not to mention the destruction of homes and properties and the internal displacement that ensued.

On Aug 22, an air raid by US forces on the village of Azizabad in Herat province killed up to 90 civilians, 60 of them being children according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. The US government first argued it was a legitimate strike against the Taliban, and then changed track by acknowledging losses of innocent lives.

Still an unpopular war

Recent developments clearly indicate that the war against the Taliban is becoming deeply unsettling and unpopular, a raw fact that Barack Obama is acutely aware as he campaigns for US presidency.

Even a draft report by US intelligence agencies notes that Afghanistan is in a “downward spiral” despite the presence of American and Nato forces. The ability of the Karzai administration, itself corrupt to the core, to stem the crisis is in doubt.

As hundreds of thousands of helpless refugees are running for cover and fending for themselves, pessimism has surfaced within the allied forces. Gen John Craddock, a Nato commander, has described the war against the Taliban was disjointed as Nato failed to supply enough troops to fight the insurgency.

Aggravating the situation is the fact that militants cross the porous borders between Afghanistan and Pakistan at will, with many of them now operating beyond Taliban strongholds in the south and east, which explains the increased level of attacks on civilians and aid workers, including Williams.

All this naturally foments resentment towards within and without Afghanistan towards reckless military adventure, particularly when the US and Nato are generally perceived to have violated the principles of proportionality in acting against non-combatants.

The failure of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) to highlight the issue and to apply pressure on the allied forces in Afghanistan to reduce civilian casualties will only give more ammunition to Taliban militants constantly on a lookout to strike again.

The continued inertia of the OIC no doubt reinforces the negative impression that it is tolerating terrors against the ummah (faithful) even when it condemns the heinous crimes committed by Muslim extremists worldwide.

I fully understand the agony and sorrow of my friends - some of whom have in fact served and given sacrificially in Afghanistan - over Williams, whose caring hands have touched many.

I, too, reject in no uncertain terms violence in any name. However, it is also time to remind ourselves that many who have perished in Afghanistan are those who do not call Jesus their Lord.