Afghanistan: ‘We have won the war, America has lost’, claims Taliban

Afghanistan

A new historical exhibit sections of blast walls from a former US military base is unveiled before a rapt audience of Taliban fighters in the governor’s compound of Ghazni province, Afghanistan.

The names and regiments of US troops who served in the province during America’s longest war are inscribed on one concrete slab.

US troops, like soldiers throughout history, drew their names on the walls of the bases and fixed positions they occupied.

However, the colossal structure is now on public display, bolstering the Taliban’s narrative that they have defeated US-led forces after 20 years of fighting.

Taliban provincial culture chief Mullah Habibullah Mujahid told AFP, “We have to show this so that Afghans, the world, and future generations know that we beat the Americans.”

“Even if they claimed to be the world’s greatest power.”

Three days before the capital fell on August 15, Taliban forces took Ghazni, a city 150 kilometres (95 miles) south of Kabul.

The region has a 3,500-year history, and the Taliban are currently writing the latest chapter, complete with proof of their military victory.

The propaganda campaign comes as Afghanistan’s new rulers struggle to transition from insurgency to governing power in a country on the verge of economic collapse, with the UN estimating that more than half of the population is starving.

Another informal exhibition commemorating the Taliban victory has been erected on the outskirts of the nearly 200,000-strong city.

Rusting hulks of destroyed American armoured vehicles, their weapons removed and tyres flat and frayed, are on display.

Children clamber around and over the wreckage, which includes the skeletons of abandoned Soviet tanks from Afghanistan’s decade-long occupation.

The Soviet invasion ended in humiliation, and Afghans are quick to point out that, along with the defeat of British troops in the nineteenth century, the country has now triumphed over three foreign empires.

“When we see this, we are proud of our accomplishment,” said 18-year-old Taliban fighter Ozair, who, like many others in the country, goes by only one name.

He added, surveying the crumpled humvees and charred personnel carriers, “We showed that Afghans born here could beat America, a powerful country.”

There are reminders and relics of the US-led occupation of Afghanistan scattered across the country, some of which can be used.

During the last chaotic days of the US-backed government in Afghanistan, much military hardware given to Afghan police and armed forces ended up in the hands of the Taliban.

The new rulers of Kabul have tangible spoils of victory thanks to a windfall of weapons, vehicles, and uniforms.

However, turning those trophies into a credible tribute to the Taliban’s re-accession to power remains a difficult task.

Mullah Habibullah Mujahid, standing near the blast walls, boasted that the 20 or so names inscribed included “important commanders and generals” killed in combat.

The ranks listed, however, were all junior, and none of the names appear in wartime American casualty databases.

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