The proposed construction of a US helipad in Afghanistan’s Kunar province near Pakistan’s border is creating tension in Bajaur Agency as the Taliban have vowed to block the construction, tribal sources told Daily Times on Saturday. The sources said that Taliban militants and tribesmen viewed the helipad’s construction as a “threat to Pakistan, particularly Bajaur Agency”. “The Taliban are spreading the word that they will resist the construction of the helipad. They are urging the local tribes to resist the US designs,” the sources said asking not to be named.
Sources in Afghanistan said the coalition forces were constructing the helipad in Tarkhey Obey in Maroz tehsil of Kunar province to improve supply lines since the area was a frequent scene of Taliban attacks. They added that the helipad would serve as the coalition forces’ forward base. Residents of Khar, regional headquarters of Bajaur Agency, told Daily Times over the phone that the situation is “quite tense” and the Taliban were asking tribal elders to urge the Pakistani government to stop the helipad’s construction. “As far as we know, the political administration has alerted the security forces to keep the situation under control,” the tribal sources said. Thousands of volunteers crossed the Pak-Afghan border from Bajaur to join the Taliban against the US-backed Northern Alliance in 2001 after Washington decided to attack Afghanistan in revenge for the 9/11 terrorist attacks. “We will not stay unmoved if the US comes closer to our areas,” the tribal sources quoted some Taliban leaders as reacting to the helipad’s construction. “After Afghanistan and Iraq, the US is now eyeing Pakistan to capture it.”
The sources said that the Taliban battled the coalition forces last week inside Kunar province and suffered a few casualties, including the son of local Taliban leader Dr Ismail.