PESHAWAR: Afghan resistance leader Ahmed Massoud has hired services of a US lobbying group to gain Washington’s support in his war against the Taliban in Afghanistan, a US newspaper report claims.
The New York Times has reported that Ahmed Massoud hired the lobbying firm ‘Robert Strike’ in bid to get American military and financial support. The newspaper reported that this lobbying firm works for free. The report added that the main goal of Massoud is to prevent the Taliban from being recognised by the United States as the legitimate ruler of Afghanistan.
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The Taliban are trying to get the international recognition after capturing Afghanistan by force on 15 August, this year. But due to sanctions and their leadership’s names on the United Nations black list of terrorists, it would be a daunting task for the group to succeed in their efforts.
Last month, Ahmed Massoud in an American newspaper had requested the United States to help in the fight against the Taliban. Massoud has asked for the supply of arms, claiming that he has the effective force to fight the Taliban, but his militia needs weapons and ammunition.
The Afghan resistance leader was determined to stop the Taliban’s occupation of Panjshir, Afghanistan’s last stronghold, but in recent days the Taliban have also claimed control of the valley. However, the leader of the National Resistance Front in Panjshir, said the people of the province were fighting hard against the Taliban and not ready to withdraw from their legitimate rights.
Meanwhile, media has reported that the Taliban are facing daunting task to maintain peace in their ranks and running the country which is already on the brink of disaster. According to the French news agency AFP, like any other major political organisation, the decades-old Islamist group has its own divisions, animosities, loyalties and factions.