[Peace-discuss] Chomsky on Afghanistan

[C. G. Estabrook]

Q: What are your thoughts regarding Afghanistan? Was the US right in invading 
Afghanistan following 9/11?

Chomsky: I felt that was a major crime and still do. The United States invaded 
Afghanistan for a very explicit reason. It was made public, but there has been a 
lot of lying about it since, but it was very public. The reason was that the 
Bush Administration demanded that the Taliban hand over Osama Bin Laden to the 
United States, and they asked for evidence of his crime. Well, the Bush 
Administration wouldn’t provide any evidence so they invaded.

The reason they didn’t provide any evidence, it later turned out, was because 
they didn’t have any. Eight months later the FBI conceded that after the most 
major international investigation in history, they simply didn’t have any 
evidence. They believed the plot for 9/11 was hatched in Afghanistan, but was 
probably implemented in the Arabian Peninsula and in Europe.

So they invaded, and they invaded with the knowledge that they were putting 
several million people at risk of starvation. They were right at the edge of 
starvation and an invasion might have driven them over the edge. Their estimate 
was 2.5 million people. In fact, the aid agencies and others were infuriated by 
this and they had to pull out their support and so on. Fortunately the worst 
didn’t happen, but to carry out an invasion on that assumption, when your sole 
goal is to get the government to hand over somebody when you can’t provide 
evidence is just a major crime and the invasion has had a horrible effect on 
Afghanistan.

Some of the current studies of public opinion reveals that one of the most 
popular figures in Afghanistan right now seems to be Najibullah, the last 
Communist ruler of the country after the Russians had withdrawn. Since then the 
US has turned the country over to warlords who tore it to shreds, then invaded, 
and now the country is heading towards disaster.

As for current policies, I think Obama looks more aggressive and violent than 
Bush. The first acts to occur under his administration were attacks on 
Afghanistan and in Pakistan, both of which killed many civilians and are 
building up support for the Taliban and terror. He wants to extend the military 
side of the war.

There is an Afghan peace movement, which is calling for a reduction or an end of 
terror. President Karzai has pleaded with the United States not to carry out 
attacks that will hit civilians and, in fact, has demanded a timetable for the 
withdrawal of foreign forces, American forces, but that’s just totally 
disregarded and the opportunities for a peaceful settlement are just ignored.

There are reasons for that I won’t go into, but I think it’s a terrible policy. 
They’re ruinous for the Afghans and maybe for the Americans as well. It’s also 
spilling over into Pakistan, naturally, which is really dangerous. Pakistan, by 
now, is partially under the control of the radical Islamist elements that Reagan 
helped install there. It’s an extreme danger for Pakistan and actually for the 
world, since Pakistan has nuclear weapons...

<http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2009/02/professor-chomsky-on-sri-lanka-and.html>