Musharraf's pro-Taliban stances proved double-edged sword for Pakistan

Pervez Musharrafs Afghan policy of siding with the US in its war on terror after the 911 attacks while also going soft on the Taliban proved a doubleedged sword for his country as the extremist group turned against him and carried out terrorist attacks inside PakistanMusharraf the 79yearold bespectacled mustachioed fourstar general of the Pakistan Army died at the American Hospital in Dubai on Sunday following a protracted illness The former military dictator of Pakistan and the architect of the Kargil War in 1999 seized power after a bloodless military coup in 1999 and remained in charge until 2008Musharrafs time in power was shaped by the 911 attacks and their aftermath The attacks were masterminded by alQaedas deceased leader Osama bin Laden who the Taliban were sheltering in Afghanistan a country that shares a long border with Pakistan America was sure to react violently after 911 like a wounded bear If the perpetrator turned out to be alQaida then that wounded bear would come charging straight toward us Musharraf wrote in his autobiography titled In the Line of FireAccording to the book the thenUS Secretary of State Colin Powell told Musharraf after the 911 attacks that Pakistan would either be with us or against usMusharraf alleged later that another US official whom he did not name had threatened to bomb Pakistan back into the Stone Age if it went against the US policy in AfghanistanIrrespective of the nature of US messaging the invasion of Afghanistan might not have come at a more appropriate time for Musharraf who after the military coup was still groping in the dark for legitimacy He jumped on the US bandwagon opening Pakistans door for the US dollars and its border for the fleeing militants including those belonging to the Taliban and alQaeda groupsAlso read Pervez Musharraf Architect of Kargil War brought Pakistan and India to the brink of warThe decision had farreaching consequences The extremist groups in Pakistan turned against him and not only provided support to the Afghan militants but also started attacks inside the country Due to the local dynamics and porous border with Afghanistan Musharraf could not stop thisThe western nations cried foul and blamed him for the double game but they failed to break the nexus between Pakistan and the Taliban The latter ultimately returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021 long after Musharraf had vanished from the political scenePakistan was used as a transit for NATO and US forces in Afghanistan And Musharraf tolerated attacks launched by US forces against suspected militants in Pakistans rugged border areasMusharrafs Afghan policy exposed the vulnerability of Pakistan to militant outfits like TehreekiTaliban Pakistan TTP that emerged on the scene in 2007 According to various estimates Pakistan has suffered economic losses to the tune of more than USD 125 billion and lost over 80000 in the USled war on terrorMusharrafs death coincides with the resurgence in terrorism With the Afghan Taliban demurring to take action against the TTP Pakistan is feeling a sense of betrayalThe TTP has been blamed for several deadly attacks across Pakistan including an attack on army headquarters in 2009 assaults on military bases and the 2008 bombing of the Marriott Hotel in IslamabadIn 2012 Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai was attacked by TTP In 2014 the Pakistani Taliban stormed the Army Public School in the northwestern city of Peshawar killing at least 150 people including 131 students The TTP which is believed to have close links to alQaeda has threatened to target top leaders of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifs PMLN and Foreign Minister Bilawal BhuttoZardaris PPP if the ruling coalition continued to implement strict measures against the militantsMusharraf has said in the past that under his regime Pakistan had tried to undermine the Afghan government led by expresident Hamid Karzai for helping India stab Pakistan in the backThe former military ruler said in an interview in 2015 that spies in Pakistans InterServices Intelligence ISI had given birth to the Taliban after 2001 because the Karzai government had an overwhelming number of nonPashtuns and officials who were said to favour IndiaMusharraf was accused of complicity in the assassination of former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto in 2007 He stepped down in 2008 He was later charged with treason for imposing emergency rule and fled Pakistan in 2016 spending his final years in exile in the UAE He tried a comeback in 2012 which failedMusharrafs years in power have his defenders The economy grew during his leadership while the country was seen as strategically importantMusharraf who was born in New Delhi in 1943 and fled to Pakistan in 1947 was the last military dictator to rule PakistanThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom 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