Thread by @KyleWOrton

#Pakistan's ruler from 1999 to 2008, General Pervez Musharraf, wrote in his memoir: "It is true that we had assisted in the rise of the #Taliban after the Soviet Union withdrew from #Afghanistan" (p. 202).

Even after #Pakistan's General Musharraf disparages the "obscurantist" nature of the #Taliban and the "peace of the graveyard" they brought, he writes: "Nevertheless, we still supported them, for geostrategic reasons", to minimise Indian influence in #Afghanistan (p. 203).

Musharraf tries to create a narrative where #Pakistan was not engaged with the #Taliban at inception, even though the Saudis and UAE were (p. 201-11), which is absurd, and that the ISI had lost its "leverage" over the Taliban after it came to power (pp. 203, 209), equally absurd.

Musharraf knows he has the problem of #Pakistan's Gen. Naseerullah Babur having openly called the #Taliban "my children" and Benazir Bhutto's government claiming credit for creating the Taliban, but plays this down as Pakistani domestic politics (p. 211).

https://twitter.com/KyleWOrton/status/1435982611692797952

#Pakistan's Musharraf, even while telling a narrative of "uncomfortable" relations with the #Taliban, notes that Pakistan offered to pay for the founder, Mullah Umar, to make pilgrimage to Mecca and Umar "always met delegations from our intelligence agency [#ISI]" (p. 211).

Musharraf: "#Pakistan's first official interaction w [#Taliban founder] Mullah Omar took place in the last week of October 1994 ... to seek safe passage for a Pakistani humanitarian and relief convoy". Al-Rasheed Trust provided key support from Karachi after UBL arrived (p. 212).

Musharraf says the #Taliban destroyed the Bamiyan Buddhas because "[v]irtually the entire world made the mistake of not recognising the Taliban regime ... so that we could put collective pressure on them to change" (p. 215).

Same argument #Pakistan is making this time.

#Pakistan's ruler (1999-2008), General Musharraf, in his memoir says that the #Taliban leader Mullah Umar could not possibly be in Pakistan (p. 217), which is exactly where Umar was, as Musharraf must have known, since his Army was protecting Umar until Umar died in 2013.

#Pakistan's former ruler General Musharraf says that Jalaluddin Haqqani was key to Usama bin Laden escaping at Tora Bora in December 2001 (p. 220)

It's an interesting admission, given that the Haqqani Network is a tool of Pakistan's Army and secret police bit.ly/2YP5C8v