A Pakistani newspaper, the ****Frontier Post****, announced Thursday that the Swiss government is sponsoring a seminar on the peace process in Afghanistan in Kabul. Among those attending the seminar will be U.S. diplomat Peter Thompson, Pakistani Information Minister Mushahid Hussein, and Changiz Pahlavan a pro-U.S. Iranian who had close ties to the former Shah.

The Taleban suddenly appeared on the scene in the mid 1990s. They were not one of the militias who fought the Soviets. They seized Kabul in 1996 and now control approximately 90% of Afghanistan. They were created by three groups - the U.S. CIA, one faction of the Saudi Arabian government, and Pakistani military intelligence, Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). All seem to have different motives for helping the Taleban.

The CIA supported the Taleban in order to discredit the Islamist movement, even though the Talaban is not part of the worldwide Islamist movement. This is why the CIA decided to replace President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was Afghan president from 1992 to 1996. His independence and his close ties to Iran and the worldwide Islamic movement were thwarting the CIA plan. The United States and its allies don't want Sheikh Rabbani to become president of Afghanistan again because he refuses to cooperate with them. The CIA plan envisioned the Taleban as an interim government to be replaced after the objective of discrediting Islamic governments was achieved. The current peace process is part of this plan. The Westerners are hoping to create a new pro-Western Afghan government.

The Saudi Arabian government faction supported them because the Taleban are Wahhabi, as are the Saudi royal family, although this faction is having second thoughts about this support because of the actions of certain Arab groups in Afghanistan. The Saudis have been funding the establishment of Wahhabi schools and mosques around the world. The Taleban studied in Wahhabi schools in Pakistan which were funded by the Saudis. Somehow, though, many of these "students" are illiterate.

Pakistan is the main link in the chain. The Taleban supply lines go through Pakistan. If Pakistan broke off relations, the Taleban supply lines would be cut, since all the other neighboring countries either support Rabbani's Northern Alliance or are neutral. It is unclear exactly why Pakistan is helping the Taleban. Perhaps they are trying to please the West. Pakistan is one of only three nations that diplomatically recognize the Taleban. The other two, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, do not share borders with Afghanistan, so they can not supply them directly.

If General Parvez Musharraf, the chief executive of Pakistan, changes this policy, things could improve. If he continues the policies of the former Pakistani governments, the situation will become more difficult for the people of Afghanistan.

The Taleban are doing serious damage to the Islamic movement. They are causing division in the ****ummah****. They have killed many Muslims and have brought suffering to the people. The true situation must be known. After all these years of war, it is time to work for real peace in Afghanistan.