Friend and Ally Update: “Pakistan accused of supporting Taliban,” by Alisa Tang for Associated Press, :
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – President Hamid Karzai directly accused Pakistan’s government Tuesday of supporting the Taliban insurgency in his country, hours after a suicide attacker exploded himself in an Afghan governor’s compound, killing eight.
Taliban militants have increasingly targeted government officials. Since September, they have killed one provincial governor, narrowly missed another, and killed several district-level police, intelligence and administrative chiefs.
The attacks are aimed at undermining the government of Karzai, who on Tuesday employed some of his toughest rhetoric yet against Pakistan,
Afghanistan’s eastern neighbor and a U.S. ally.“The problem is not Taliban. We don’t see it that way. The problem is with Pakistan,” Karzai told foreign journalists during a trip to Kandahar, the Taliban’s former stronghold.”
He said the Taliban took power with support from Pakistan, calling it “more than a boss.”
“The state of Pakistan was supporting the Taliban, so we presume if there is still any Taliban, that they are being supported by a state element.”