Interim Government Installed in Afghanistan
On December 5th rival Afghan factions meeting in Bonn signed an agreement to end 23 years of civil war. A 30-member interim government was announced, with 18 of the cabinet posts going to members of the Northern Alliance, 11 to the rival Rome group and one to the Peshawar group of warlords. Hamid Karzai, from the Rome group was selected as Chairman of the government. Karzai is a member of the Pashtun majority ethnic group and a supporter of ex-king Zahir Shah. The Northern Alliance were given the three most powerful ministries: interior, defence and foreign affairs.
The new government is scheduled to take over on December 22nd and will rule for six months. After the expiry of the six-month period, former king Zahir Shah will call for a Loya Jirga (grand assembly) to appoint a transitional government for the next 18 months.
The agreement acknowledges the need for UN peacekeeping forces to guarantee security in Kabul. The remainder of the country will be off limits to peacekeepers unless the interim government specifically requests their assistance.
While talks were going on between the rival victorious factions in Bonn, negotiations were also in process to arrange for the peaceful surrender of Taliban forces trapped in Kandahar. Those negotiations were apparently concluded on December 6th and the Taliban soldiers evacuated the city on December 7th and 8th, many carrying their weapons. The Taliban leadership is reported to have disappeared, with some reports claiming that they were granted safe passage by the victorious forces, against the expressed demands of the United States. The Americans claim to be at a loss as to the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden and are now downplaying the significance of his capture, although they still have over 2,000 soldiers combing the deserts and mountains for him.
The are also reports that large numbers of American agents have now been dispatched to other countries in Africa and Asia to prepare for possible U.S. military strikes against those countries. The list of possible next targets includes Sudan, Somalia, Iraq, Yemen, Indonesia and the Philippines, among others.