Taliban field manual: A kinder, gentler militant?

The Taliban is mounting a public-relations campaign to try to win the hearts and minds of Afghans with their own version of a field manual that urges efforts to limit civilian casualties.

The little book with a blue cover, Rules for Mujahedeen, directs Taliban militants on how to behave while on deployment and how to deal with enemy combatants, treat prisoners of war and interact with civilians.

The manual, which has been given extensive coverage on Al Jazeera’s Arabic service, appears aimed at renewing popular support among Afghans in the face of a U.S.-led offensive against the militants.

The directive also could be an attempt by Mullah Muhammad Omar, the Taliban leader, to reassert himself as the uncontested chief of an entire flock of Taliban subgroups.

“This is part of their strategic thinking,” said Yonah Alexander, a specialist on counterterrorism with the Potomac Institute in Washington. “This is an old trick to play both ends of the stick and to gain time.”

The booklet was issued in May and is the first of its kind in the history of the Taliban, according to a State Department report on counterterrorism.

The report, which was made available to The Washington Times, said the emphasis is on “improving their image and winning over civilians.”

The manual also aims to transform the group into a more disciplined and organized political force by centralizing decision-making and discouraging formation of unauthorized factions.

The Taliban, especially with its recent expansion in Afghanistan, has not been monolithic but an amalgam of splinter groups.

In keeping with its religious teachings, the Taliban stresses that the new rules are based on Islamic law. The manual admonishes fighters to:

c Avoid civilian deaths, civilian injuries and damage to civilian property.

c Restrict suicide attacks to “high value” targets.

c “Behave well” to win over the “hearts of Muslim civilians.”

c Avoid discrimination based on tribe, language or geography.

The booklet also says that enemy soldiers should not be killed if they surrender and that prisoners should not be harmed. Only the Taliban leader or his deputy can decide to trade or execute a prisoner.

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