Insurgents under the Taliban flag are expanding influence across Afghanistan setting up training camps and establishing "shadow governments" at district and provincial level, Afghan members of Parliament said in debate on law and order situation.Killing of innocent Afghans in NATO and US airstrikes during operations was seen as main reason for the Taliban to attract ordinary people to their rank, front-page lead story "Taliban threat growing" in independent Kabul Weekly reported in its latest edition. "The security situation in Uruzgan (province) is not under control," MP Muhammad Hashim Watanwal told the Parliament, according to the weekly.
Growing Taliban threat report comes when meeting 700-member Afghan-Pak Peace Jirga was inaugurated without President Gen Pervez Musharraf. Hashim told the Afghan Parliament: "(The) Taliban training camps have been established in the districts of Char Chino, Gayzab and Chora."
"The Taliban recruit young people, and every time civilians are killed in (NATO and Coalition) air strikes, it represents additional incentive to encourage them (civilians) to join the Taliban." Media reports say more than 600 civilians were killed this year in NATO and US airstrikes and Afghan President Hamid Karzai fumed at the UN-sanctioned foreign forces' continued collateral damage.
The Kabul Weekly report quoted local leaders in western Badghis province as saying that the Taliban "form a shadow government there. They collect taxes and extort money from people in the province." Afghan MPs also blasted the security officials for "not doing enough" to prevent insurgents-led activities.