The Pakistanis were very unhappy that Ahmad Massoud did not come to Islamabad, especially Muhammad Sadiq Khan, Pakistan's special representative for Afghanistan.
Author: Fakhriddin Kholbek, member of the Sangar Advisory Board
Part 1: Plane of death: how did the plan to kill Ahmad Massoud fail?
Part 2: Plane of death: how did the plan to kill Ahmad Massoud fail? - 2
Part 3: ISLAMABAD MEETINGS
Fruitless trip
The anti-Taliban delegation in Islamabad learned of Ghani's escape. This news was very unpleasant since it made no sense to talk about peace and reconciliation with the winner and from the position of the vanquished, especially with the mediation of Pakistan, the patron of the Taliban.
Previously, the Pakistanis asked the anti-Taliban leaders to “negotiate with the Taliban because Ghani is an obstacle to peace, he is not ready to share power. Tell us your opinion so we can put pressure on the Taliban.”
But when the Taliban captured Kabul, the plan was thwarted. Now the Taliban owned Afghanistan, and there were no anti-Taliban forces anywhere except Panjshir, everyone fled, according to the logic of things, no one will sit down at the negotiating table with them.
The Pakistanis told the delegation to stay in Islamabad for 15 days so they could get the opinion of the countries of the region and the Taliban and tell them what to do. On August 16, the delegation met with Foreign Minister Quraishi and on August 17 with Prime Minister Imran Khan, Chief of the Army General Staff Qamar Bajwa, and Intelligence Chief Faiz Hamid.
Meetings and conversations were protocol. Especially Imran Khan and Faiz Hamid (who arrived in Kabul before the Taliban attack on Panjshir on September 4 and, according to some reports, incited the Taliban to march into the valley) dryly uttered common words. But General Bajwa said in essence: “Now the situation in Afghanistan has changed. We didn't think Kabul would fall so soon. We thought that after the fall of the provinces, a bitter war would break out in Kabul. We thought you should form a coalition and engage in dialogue with the Taliban. We wanted a coalition or provisional government to be set up. But now the situation has changed. The Taliban are in a dominant position. Return to Kabul and we will guarantee your safety.”
At the same time, General Bajwa asked the delegation to wait for at least six, a maximum of 18 months, which would determine the viability of the Taliban. He said, “The Taliban are not capable of running the country. In the meantime, you must show mutual agreement so that we can make a middle decision between you so that a common and inclusive government can be established.”
Yunus Qanuni told him: “If we are talking about 6 months, then we leave to consult with other brothers and state our position". Bajwa said that in two days we will tell you whether to stay here or leave.
Two days later, the Pakistani hosts came and told the members of the anti-Taliban delegation that whoever wants to can stay, and if whoever leaves, we will get tickets for them.
This fruitless trip lasted four days. Everyone left anywhere, some to Turkey, some to London, some to Dushanbe. Ahmad Wali Massoud and several young people remained, who also left Islamabad a few days later.
Muhammad Sadiq Khan
However, the Pakistanis were very unhappy that Ahmad Massoud did not come to Islamabad, especially Muhammad Sadiq Khan, Pakistan's special representative for Afghanistan. He asked the members of the delegation several times in private why Ahmad Massoud did not come and asked if he wants to leave Panjshir, we are ready to cooperate. He said: “We will do everything ourselves. If you need a helicopter, we will provide a helicopter, if you need a plane, we will send a plane as you see fit. We will prepare everything and get him out of Panjshir. We are ready to cooperate.”
Two days later, Sadiq Khan struggled to reach Ahmad Massoud by phone. In the past, he met Massoud twice. He said no matter how much I call Ahmad via WhatsApp, his phone does not work. And he asked the members of the delegation to connect him with Ahmad at least once.
But no one could find him in those days. Only Vadudkhan Zareh and Fahim Dashti, spokesman for the National Resistance Front, were contacted, both of whom were killed during a Taliban campaign in Panjshir. They also failed to do anything to connect Sadiq Khan with Massoud.
At the end of August last year, when the press service of the Resistance Front under the leadership of Fahim Dashti began to work, the author of these lines had a conversation with him. We talked about many things. During the conversation, the late Dashti remarked that the Pakistanis were doing their best to prevent resistance. I asked him: How? He said they were trying to contact Emir Sahib and convince him to stop resisting and negotiate with the Taliban through their mediation. He added: “We are also afraid that the whereabouts of Emir Sahib will be established by his phone. On the other hand, he himself has no desire to talk to Pakistanis. What should he talk to them about? Nothing to say. The point is clear: the US and Pakistan surrendered power to the Taliban, and now they want us to surrender too.”
The Pakistanis tried their best to "bring" Ahmad Massoud out of Panjshir. They said that we want to bring Ahmed, and save him because the situation is very dangerous. But Ahmad refused to talk to them. And he never got in touch.
These talks about Massoud in Islamabad made a deep impression on Ahmad Wali Massoud. He said: "The Taliban are savages and God forbid something happened to Ahmad".
Qanuni asked Bajwa for two things: "Use your influence with the Taliban so they don't attack the Panjshir. Secondly, some of our commanders and leaders remained in Kabul, asking the Taliban not to disrespect them and break into their homes.”
Bajwa promised that he would try. The Pakistanis said they were pressuring the Taliban not to attack Panjshir. But Faiz Hamid, the head of the ISI, one of those who said those words, came to Kabul before the attack on Panjshir and gave the Taliban a green light. Pakistani drones and officers were also sent to Panjshir.
But the Pakistanis did not stop there, they also pursued Ahmad Massoud in Panjshir. To locate it before the Panjshir War and after its fall in September 2021, they sent reconnaissance drones there that constantly flew over the valley.
According to the hypothesis, Ahmad Massoud's phone was in the hands of Fahim Dashti in those days. His car was being chased by Pakistanis from the same phone number that was very cryptically shown during Fahim Dashti's interview on British BBC TV in those days, making it, some believe, an accomplice of the Taliban. They thought that Ahmad Massoud was also where that phone number was. This is said to have been the reason for the capture and later murder of Fahim Dashti and General Wadudkhan Zarah.
AFTERWORD
The author of these lines heard about the plot to assassinate Ahmad Massoud and the main Tajik and Hazara anti-Taliban leaders back in October 2021 from the mouth of one of the prominent figures in Afghan politics, who, in turn, learned from a source in the intelligence services of one of the European countries. This plan was implemented in cooperation with the intelligence agencies of the US, Pakistan, the Afghan government, and the Taliban.
The plan was that when the plane carrying Ahmad Massoud and the anti-Taliban leaders took off, it would be blown up or fired upon by military aircraft. Implementing this plan against the fact that the unexpected surrender of Afghanistan to the Taliban caused a global shock, the assassination of the most prominent Tajik and Hazara leaders, especially Ahmad Massoud, the young leader of the anti-Taliban and anti-terrorist resistance, would increase this shock tenfold.
This meant that there would be no resistance. And there was no obstacle left in the implementation of a larger plan - a "great leap" of terrorist organizations toward Central Asia. History has shown that the resistance of Massoud became the main obstacle to the implementation of this plan, as was the case with his father.
It can be seen from the above story that when Ahmad Massoud refused to fly to Islamabad, his plane was attacked in the airspace of the Bagram region in northern Kabul. Pakistani drones were looking for him in Panjshir. At the same time, the representative of Pakistan in Afghanistan tried to "rescue" him. He probably wanted to confirm the whereabouts of Ahmad Massoud by phone so that Pakistani drones could destroy him.
The conspiracy plan failed. Afghan resistance has rebounded and continues under the leadership of Ahmad Massoud. As they say, man proposes and God disposes of.
