Former Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani Killed

Rabbani was President of Afghanistan prior to the Taliban taking control of the country in the mid 1990s. He eventually became the leader of the Northern Alliance, which joined forces with U.S. and NATO troops when they invaded and toppled the Taliban following the September 11 attacks on the U.S. Under the new Afghan regime, Rabbani was the head of a peace council that was attempting to find diplomatic solutions to achieve peace with Taliban fighters and insurgents who continue to attack U.S. and NATO forces.

If confirmed, Rabbani’s assassination is yet another tremendous set-back for U.S. and NATO forces who are struggling to contain a Taliban-led insurgency that seems to be gaining momentum. With major economic and domestic issues at home and throughout Europe, the Obama Administration has turned its focus away from the ongoing military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. In practical terms, the killing of Osama Bin Laden may ultimately prove to be the end of Afghanistan remaining a top priority for U.S. officials.

At this point, regardless of conditions on the ground, the prudent move might be to simply continue moving in a direction that brings U.S. troops home. The political commitment has already been made to do so – and few U.S. voters are going to clamor to send “more” troops back into harm’s way to fight for what is increasingly becoming a lost cause. Osama Bin Laden is dead. Many Taliban and al Qaeda fighters were killed. Terrorist training facilities have been destroyed and disrupted. Some missions were accomplished. That may have to be enough.