Architect of Doha agreement wrongly claims: ‘Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent has been dismantled’

[Valin]

FDD's Long War Journal

Bill Roggio

May 3, 2024

Zalmay Khalilzad, the former Special Repressive for Afghanistan Reconciliation and the key architect of the Doha Agreement which aided the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, claimed that Al Qaeda’s branch in Afghanistan “doesn’t exist anymore” during his closed-door interview with the House Committee on Foreign Affairs in Nov. 2023. Khalilzad’s interview also shed light on both the Trump and Biden administrations’ desire to withdraw from Afghanistan at all costs, their failure to understand the Taliban and its intent to manipulate negotiations to facilitate a U.S. withdrawal, as well as the United States’ unhealthy reliance on enemies and adversaries to achieve impossible foreign policy goals.

Khalizad was interviewed by the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on Nov. 8, 2023. The transcript of the interview was released on May 1, 2024.

“Al Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent has been dismantled”

Since the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in Aug. 2021, Khalilzad has maintained that “the Taliban are delivering on their commitment in the Doha Agreement to fight ISIS and prevent al-Qaida from using Afghan soil to threaten the security of the US and our allies.”

(Snip)