History from 2001:
The Taliban weren't involved with 9/11. A council of 600 senior AfPak Muslim clerics – essentially the Taliban's governing body – expressed dismay at the 9/11 attacks and offered to expel bin Laden from the country.
Bush said no. edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asi…
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The Taliban weren't involved with 9/11. A council of 600 senior AfPak Muslim clerics – essentially the Taliban's governing body – expressed dismay at the 9/11 attacks and offered to expel bin Laden from the country.
Bush said no. edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asi…
1/
The Taliban acknowledged that 9/11 violated Islamic law – but remember, bin Laden initially denied being behind the attacks. At the time, even the U.S. only labeled him a "prime suspect," stopping short of saying we were sure he did it.
That uncertainty was VERY significant.
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That uncertainty was VERY significant.
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Muslim ethics require protecting guests from their enemies – UNLESS the guest has done something to bring trouble on the host. The Taliban COULDN'T surrender bin Laden without evidence he was behind 9/11 (ie, committed a crime while in sanctuary).
usip.org/publications/2…
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usip.org/publications/2…
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Even after the bombing started, the Taliban offered to turn bin Laden over to a neutral third country for trial if the U.S. would simply provide evidence of his guilt. Any diplomat even vaguely familiar with Muslim law would see that as a legit request. theguardian.com/world/2001/oct…
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Again, Bush said no: "There's no need to discuss innocence or guilt. We know he's guilty." Id.
Again, this was GUARANTEED to force the Taliban to defend bin Laden under Islamic law.
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Again, this was GUARANTEED to force the Taliban to defend bin Laden under Islamic law.
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I have strong memories of this, because I'm a professional mediator. I'm good at this stuff. And it pained me at the time to see that there absolutely was a path to avoiding war AND bringing bin Laden to justice, but that Bush, probably knowingly, chose war over justice.
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Back in 2001, we didn't need to invade Afghanistan to get bin Laden. All we had to do was proffer evidence he was behind the attacks, so the Taliban could expel him without violating Islamic law and Afghan custom.
But peace doesn't make $ for Halliburton + Blackwater.
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But peace doesn't make $ for Halliburton + Blackwater.
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So beware stories that say "we HAD to invade Afghanistan back then, even if we shouldn't have stayed so long," or (conflating the Taliban and Al Qaeda) pretend that the Taliban are terrorists who endanger the U.S.
We didn't, and they weren't (+ probably still aren't).
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We didn't, and they weren't (+ probably still aren't).
8/8
PPS: A couple of times above, I wrote "Muslim" when I should have written "Islamic." Apologies.
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