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Dealing with the Taliban – how top brass views the West's defeat in Afghanistan
Taliban fighters stand guard during women's protest in Kabul, Afghanistan
by Roger D Harris and John Perry
VINCE MILLS says Scottish Labour has adopted better positions than its Westminster counterpart — but unless it starts to fight for them that will count for nothing
Labour MSP CAROL MOCHAN calls for Britain to follow France’s lead and recognise the Palestinian state as part of efforts to end this war
A Chilean court ruled that funds were illegally taken by the dictator to accumulate family wealth that is now disputed among his heirs, writes PABLO MERIGUET
The shock suspension of socialist MPs and Diane Abbott’s re-suspension reveals a leadership intent on crushing internal debate — but MERCEDES VILLALBA MSP warns against surrendering party democracy without a fight
MAJOR GENERAL James Cowan, who led the British Army operation in Afghanistan as the head of Task Force Helmand in 2009-10, says Britain needs to “swallow our pride and support a moderate wing of the Taliban” to avert a “catastrophe,” a “humanitarian disaster” and a “civil war.”
Major General Cowan now runs the Halo Trust, a de-mining charity, which has over 2,000 staff still working in Afghanistan removing deadly mines and “IEDs” planted during decades of war.
The fact that the man who led the life-and-death fight against the Taliban for Britain now argues this suggests that a British deal with the Taliban is inevitable – it’s just a question of when. Major General Cowan’s argument is that sooner is better than later.
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