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Saturday, May 8, 2021. A car bomb and two mines explode near a girls' school in Kabul.
At least 85 people die and more than 100 others are injured.
According to eyewitnesses, many young girls under the age of 16 are among the victims.
Relatives of a victim:
“There is no government, nobody has looked at the scene of the attack. No ambulances took the martyrs away. Nobody from the government came here to investigate. I don't know what kind of country we are in. We want peace and security. "
A day later, there is a bomb attack on a bus.
At least eleven people die and at least 28 are injured.
It is not clear who was behind the attacks.
The Taliban deny any responsibility for the attack near the school.
Some experts suspect the "Islamic State" behind this act.
The terrorist militia has been very strong on the ground for a few years.
In any case, the incidents show how dangerous the situation is in Afghanistan, especially for civilians.
Nevertheless, a new era begins in the country - a time without Western troops.
Joe Biden, US President:
“I've decided it is time to end America's longest war. It is time for our troops to come home. "
After almost 20 years, the US is withdrawing from Afghanistan.
The other NATO countries are also bringing their troops home.
The withdrawal has already started and should be completed by September 11th at the latest.
That has consequences for the country.
Markus Kaim, Science and Politics Foundation:
"The price that one now has to accept or is obviously prepared to accept is a deterioration in the security situation."
At the end of April, 10,000 soldiers were still there, around 1,100 from Germany.
If they leave now, they will leave a power vacuum.
Two decades have not been enough to build an army in the torn country that could keep the Islamic extremists in check.
Markus Kaim, Science and Politics Foundation:
“After everything we know, and even more so after everything we suspect, we have not succeeded by a long way. The latest military advances against the Afghan army, against the Afghan security forces, point in precisely this direction. "
For a long time, a possible NATO withdrawal was tied to conditions - for example, progress in the peace process.
Not any longer longer.
Markus Kaim, Science and Politics Foundation:
“Ultimately, the USA and, with it, NATO gave the signal that we are giving up Afghanistan. Nobody formulated that so clearly. And German politicians also emphasize that they would continue to feel obliged to Afghanistan. But in the end you give up all the levers. "
The tension in the country is increasing - the withdrawal divides the people in Afghanistan.
Mehruddin Wasiq, resident of Kabul:
“The Americans have not fulfilled their responsibility towards Afghanistan. It is their responsibility to ensure a strong government, rule of law and democracy in Afghanistan, and that people's concerns about terrorism, drugs and interference by other countries are alleviated. I believe the US shouldn't leave until it has fulfilled its responsibilities. "
Sayed Ahad Azizi, resident of Kabul:
»Peace is the one thing that all people want. But if foreign troops stay here, it will be impossible to achieve peace in Afghanistan. Your presence will continue to cause problems. "
In fact, however, the security situation is likely to deteriorate further. Peace negotiations between the Afghan government under Ashraf Ghani and the Taliban are stalling. The radical Islamists already control almost 40 percent of the country - and should gain ground against the Afghan security forces if they no longer have any support from NATO forces.
Markus Kaim, Science and Politics Foundation:
“If the prognoses about the weakness of these security forces are really correct, then it is to be feared that we will have at least one form of military stalemate, that the insurgents will make progress, where perhaps one or The Afghan government can throw other units into the field so as not to be completely overrun. That would be, for example, a return to the civil war in the 1990s or - that would be the worst scenario, so to speak, which the American government once suggested - Kabul would fall and the Taliban would take full power again. "
The USA and NATO are now emphasizing that they will not leave Afghanistan alone without military intervention.
Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State:
“I am here to show that we continue to commit ourselves to the Islamic Republic, to the people of Afghanistan. Our partnership is changing, but it will continue. "
Kaim thinks that this is symbolic politics.
Markus Kaim, Science and Politics Foundation:
“Because the alternative is very uncomfortable: Then you would have to explain to the German, British and American people that you had been involved in Afghanistan for 20 years and that ultimately nothing would have been achieved that the mission - as hard as it sounds - it was in vain. "
And what has been achieved in the past is now threatened.
The girls' schools, the rights of Afghan women - should the Taliban regain strength, it is likely that this progress will fall again.
And that should also slow down the country's development.
After 20 years, Afghanistan is facing a new era.
And currently it is to be feared that it could be even more bloody than the last one.
