A long line of Humvee, American all-terrain vehicles, idled, Wednesday 1er September, on a major road outside of Kandahar, Afghanistan’s second largest city and the spiritual cradle of the Taliban movement. The Islamists marched with military equipment donated by the United States to the previous Afghan government, defeated after twenty years of war.
Taliban parade at Kabul airport after Americans leave ? #AFP https://t.co/GcrVXhlqPu
Many of the vehicles carried white and black Taliban flags attached to their aerials, a reporter from Agence France-Presse noted. Fighters sat at the controls of trucks used by US forces, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Afghan forces during the twenty years of conflict, while others rode these vehicles to Ayno Maina, on the outskirts of Kandahar. At least one Blackhawk helicopter has been seen in flight over the city, suggesting that a former Afghan army pilot is in command.
Kandahar is the birthplace of the Taliban. In 1996, they left the capital of southern Afghanistan before quickly conquering the rest of the country, which they held until 2001, when they were ousted from power by an international coalition led by the United States. Taliban leader Haibatullah Akhundzada lives there, the movement said Sunday.
“America has trampled our economy”
In Kandahar cricket stadium, white-bearded Taliban officials were seen sipping coffee, in the shade of shelters normally reserved for players and coaches. Others, dressed in white, sat cross-legged on the lawn. Hundreds of supporters waited on the stands. Armed combatants, in camouflage uniforms, stood in front of the crowd.
“Our common enemy, who had sworn to bring economic prosperity to our country, did not succeed., underlines Maulvi Saqeb, a recruiter of the Taliban movement. America didn’t just attack our young soldiers, America corrupted our media, it wiped out our culture, it trampled our economy. “ Rumor had it that Mr. Akhundzada appeared in public, but he did not show up. Only the new governor of the area addressed the crowd.
Already Tuesday, thousands of supporters had flocked to the streets of Kandahar, in a concert of horns and ” Allahu Akbar “ (“God is the greatest”), welcoming the departure of the last American soldiers from Afghanistan.