Word: omar
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...Harvard doesn’t spend much time asking what person you are,” says Palfrey. “Students like hearing why my wife and I made certain choices in life.” Indeed, the seminars seem to be making a lasting impression. Omar M. Abdelsamad ’09, Adams HoCo Co-Chair says, “Ten years from now I’ll be hanging a picture on the wall and think back to Sean Palfrey’s majestic rendition of how to fix portraiture to a dry wall...
...insurgency gains a stronger foothold in Afghanistan, there has been growing debate both inside and outside the country about the possibility of reconciling with some moderate elements of the Taliban. Until now, however, Omar has always been considered one of the "irreconcilables," a key leader unacceptable because of his extremist ideology and alliance with al-Qaeda. Omar, through Taliban spokesmen, has repeatedly asserted that he has no interest in peace talks unless all foreign forces leave the country. Karzai, for his part, asserted in the same speech that any militant seeking reconciliation must be willing to respect the Afghan constitution...
Karzai, on the other hand, may see some political advantage in extending an offer that most likely will be refused. Coupled with his offer to the Taliban was an admonishment to his international backers, who have bristled at the idea of negotiating with Mullah Omar in the past. "If I say I want protection for Omar, then the international community has two choices: remove me or leave if they disagree," said Karzai. "If I am removed [by force by the western alliance] in the cause of peace for Afghanistan ... then I'll be very happy...
Wadir Safi, a professor of international relations at Kabul University, says Karzai's speech directly contradicts his platform of several months ago, when he called on lower-ranking Taliban to reconcile but ruled out negotiations with avowed enemies of Afghanistan, like Omar. Karzai's recent trips to both the U.S. and London, where the Afghan president was criticized for his inability to stabilize his country, crack down on corruption and stop the narcotics trade, may have precipitated the about-face, says Safi. "What he said [on Sunday] was not based on analysis but political survival. He knows he is losing...
...standing with his defiant statement. "When he said the international community has two choices, he clearly discredited himself," Noorani said. "All along he has been saying that he was elected by the Afghan people, and now he says if the international community does not accept his offer to Mullah Omar, then they can remove him or leave. How can the international community remove him if he is elected?" Safi agrees: "This just proves that the whole election was a farce, and that Karzai is President not by the will of the people but of the West." But if Karzai keeps...