Unity deal has just been signed and Ashraf Ghani is the president-elect of Afghanistan!!..

[The Noble Lord]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-29299088

Truly a great news, we have been waiting for this news for the past 5 months and many have been dreading about this
for the past few years. But now, finally the deal has been reached where Ashraf Ghani would be president and Dr Abdullah
Abdullah would be the government CEO, somewhat of a prime minister. Everyone is happy and content and people are so relieved
to find out that there will be a new president and a unity government and all that without a new civil war and pointless blood
letting!

Its still too early to celebrate because there is a huge task ahead, but the celebrations are not premature, all of this is a proof
that Afghanistan will not return into the 1990s and finally country can move ahead. Also, those that oppose any peace like the
Taliban for example, they are left without any ammunition, because until now they have been saying that only they can provide
the government, which is nonsensical of course!!

Let's see how the situation develops, but the situation on the ground is very positive and optimistic and everyone is genuinely
happy about this!!

[Geronimo2006]

The election results sortof make sense as Ghani is a Pashtun and a Sunni like the majority of the population. Abdullah is a Shia of mixed Tajik/Pashtun parentage. So it wouldn't have had to be fraud for Ghani to get elected necessarily.

[The Noble Lord]

The election results sortof make sense as Ghani is a Pashtun and a Sunni like the majority of the population. Abdullah is a Shia of mixed Tajik/Pashtun parentage. So it wouldn't have had to be fraud for Ghani to get elected necessarily.

It was tricky, because the fact is that Dr Abdullah Abdullah won the popular vote and then there were allegations of a massive ballot stuffing and fake voter cards, plus immediately
the Pashtun-Tajik/Hazar/Uzbek divide came into the game and even regionalism differences were being fired up. We were really, I was really afraid at one point, the rhetoric was
from the 1990s so it wasn't hard to imagine going back into those terrible years. But fortunately cooler heads prevailed and old Afghan tradition of backroom politics and dealing
behind the close doors saved the day. With the helpful and constructive encouragement from the International community as well, that was also crucial that Afghans see how they
are not being abandoned again!!

Great day, really!!

EDIT:
And as far as I know Dr Abdullah Abdullah is not Shia, he is Half Pashtun half Tajik Sunni who was always inclined towards the Tajiks, especially the Panjshiris.

[Captain Jin]

Glad to see this. Hopefully there are more good things to come.

[hellheaven1987]

Want to bet how quick this "Unity Deal" would be broken?

[Azog 150]

This is of course good news. But I have also heard that the security situation is rapidly worsening around hard-fought-for areas such as Sangin. Is this unity deal likely to last?

[The Noble Lord]

This is of course good news. But I have also heard that the security situation is rapidly worsening around hard-fought-for areas such as Sangin. Is this unity deal likely to last?

There is always some sort of low-medium level fighting in Helmand and Kandahar and it would remain for some time unfortunately! Sangin is in the south and besides the Taliban there
are also drug dealers, kidnapers and criminal gangs who are competing for territory! That could be contained by ANA ANP helped by some foreign assistance, mainly air force and logistical
support, not very big, just so that they know that they have support!

Let's hope that "the goverment" gets crushed by our brothers and sisters from Taliban, you know "the citizens of Afghanistan".

They are not what they used to be, there is at least 16 small to large groups that are calling themselves "Taliban", plus Hezbi e-Islami fighters in Kunar and Kunduz.
But they are not organized, there is no single command and control structure, they lack medium and heavy artillery and they don't have almost any grassroots support.
At least not in Kabul, Herat, Mazar e-Sharif, Jalalabad, Bamiyan and in Pashtun provinces of Paktia and Paktika. They are not like the Taliban in their heyday when they
marched into Kabul in 1996 and conquered almost the entire country! Those days are finished and long gone, they can come back here and there and attack a small outposts and such,
but not to be a major threat to the unified government!!

[Otto von Bismarck]

There is always some sort of low-medium level fighting in Helmand and Kandahar and it would remain for some time unfortunately! Sangin is in the south and besides the Taliban there
are also drug dealers, kidnapers and criminal gangs who are competing for territory! That could be contained by ANA ANP helped by some foreign assistance, mainly air force and logistical
support, not very big, just so that they know that they have support!



They are not what they used to be, there is at least 16 small to large groups that are calling themselves "Taliban", plus Hezbi e-Islami fighters in Kunar and Kunduz.
But they are not organized, there is no single command and control structure, they lack medium and heavy artillery and they don't have almost any grassroots support.
At least not in Kabul, Herat, Mazar e-Sharif, Jalalabad, Bamiyan and in Pashtun provinces of Paktia and Paktika. They are not like the Taliban in their heyday when they
marched into Kabul in 1996 and conquered almost the entire country! Those days are finished and long gone, they can come back here and there and attack a small outposts and such,
but not to be a major threat to the unified government!!

who is that new force :Hezbe: group, didn't know about them. afghanistan dont need another groups now, they had enough of taliban!

[The Noble Lord]

who is that new force :Hezbe: group, didn't know about them. afghanistan dont need another groups now, they had enough of taliban!

Its Hezb e-Islami party and they are not the newcomers, they have been on the Islamist right of the Afghan political spectrum since the mid 1970s, during the 1980s they were THE
biggest recipient of the US aid for the mujahedin factions, plus in the 1990s this party is mainly responsible for the destruction of Kabul! Now they are not as big and strong as they once were,
but are still active in Kunar, Kunduz and some other provinces! They are semi-allied to the Taliban but not under their command!

[Sphere]

Ghani is a technocrat who managed to become popular with the masses which is a very rare thing.

[Kraut]

A good day for Afghanistan. Now let´s hope more good days follow.

[gastovski]

Let's hope that "the goverment" gets crushed by our brothers and sisters from Taliban, you know "the citizens of Afghanistan".

[Papay]

I heard that the result was hiden from public eye. I wonder why

[mrmouth]

Logic and reason are in short supply. That is why.

[Heinz Guderian]

I bet his brothers and other relatives have started to browse the "luxury cars for sale" section of the Dubai dailies.

[Shambloc]

I bet his brothers and other relatives have started to browse the "luxury cars for sale" section of the Dubai dailies.

There more likely to look in the Virginia care sales. His children and wife are US Citizens, no need for them to go to Dubai.