Distantly, the shape of peace

摘要

Just over a week after the liberation of Kabul from Taliban rule, the future of Afghanistan remains far from clear. Although optimism prevails in Kabul itself, as citizens once again enjoy music, films, shaved chins and the occasional glimpse of female beauty, the war is not yet over, and the shape of peace is far from planned.rnThe Northern Alliance has cleared the Taliban out of most of the non-Pushtun north of the country, and the active fighting has shrunk to two spots, Kunduz and Kandahar. In Kunduz, in the north-east, the Taliban and members of their foreign legion of Arabs, Pakistanis and others were holding out on November 22nd, and surrender talks seemed to have broken down. The foreigners fear they will be killed either by the Northern Alliance or by the authorities back home if they are deported. With no option, in their view, but to fight to the death, they have been executing Afghan Taliban who want to surrender.