The Jihad Strikes Back

In the May 1 speech in which he declared that major combat operations in Iraq had ended, U.S. President George W. Bush went on to say that on his watch as Commander in Chief, "we destroyed the Taliban in Afghanistan." Events of the last couple of weeks, however, make the second statement seem as overly optimistic as the first.

After nursing their wounds and regrouping across the border in Pakistan, Afghanistan's former rulers have found both a fresh strategy and renewed vigor to cause trouble back home. A bus bombing that killed 15 people (including six children) in Helmand province on Aug. 13 kicked off perhaps Afghanistan's bloodiest week since the Taliban fell in late 2001. Four days later, hundreds of guerrillas attacked a police station in Paktika province and killed seven Afghan policemen. Four more cops were taken hostage during another raid nearby, and last Monday, nine policemen were murdered by heavily armed gunmen in Logar province, west of Kabul.

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The Taliban is attacking Afghans who collaborate with the Americans or the new government of President Hamid Karzai, particularly members of the security forces. These are the far-flung scouts of the new regime; by killing them, the Taliban hopes to leave the Americans "blinded," a Taliban recruit in the Pakistani border town of Chaman told TIME. Furthermore, a Taliban logistics officer tells TIME that the Taliban has established cells inside Afghanistan to carry out smaller-scale attacks, distribute propaganda and burn down schools. Afghan leaders want Pakistan to crack down on blatant Taliban activity in its tribal areas. U.S. officials may consider the war over, but the Taliban's jihad is not.