Very few know of the still-growing terror of the Taliban in the Middle East, dominant in Afghanistan. Following the 9/11 Al Qaeda attacks, former President Bush issued an order to the Taliban regime of Afghanistan: sever all ties with Osama bin Laden. 

Then, in 2002, U.S. forces and rogue Afghani groups pushed the Taliban government out of official power. However, the Taliban forces in the Middle East are growing again. This increasing danger should be America’s new No. 1 priority to deal with.

Now stronger than ever, the Taliban is establishing its new power and pull in the world through vicious acts of violence. In February, President Obama sent 17,000 troops to further the War on Terror in Afghanistan. 

In recent news, the Taliban can be linked to several bombings, killings and abductions in various regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan. 

In April, Taliban forces pushed themselves into the Pakistan region of Buner, giving them access to a neighboring Pakistani region of Mardan, and establishing themselves as a growing threat to American peacekeeping efforts in the Middle East. 

Last month, another bombing took place, killing a NATO soldier and two UN officials. The Taliban took responsibility. 

Recently, the Taliban has been especially active. A car bombing near Kabul Airport in Afghanistan killed two civilians and wounded six. Again, the Taliban took responsibility. After Taliban forces hijacked two jet fuel tankers, German forces in Afghanistan called for a NATO air strike on the hijackers. 

Also, a New York Times journalist and his Afghani translator were abducted while reporting on the air strike that had occurred only days earlier. Such attacks are ones we need to start dealing with on a larger scale, and not just a case-by-case basis.

The New York Times reported from an interview with President Obama, “ … the United States was not winning the war in Afghanistan and opened the door to a reconciliation process in which the American military would reach out to moderate elements of the Taliban, much as it did with Sunni militias in Iraq.” Is Obama now considering dealing with Taliban forces? While seeming barbaric, peace through superior firepower seems to be a fairly valuable strategy here. 

Perhaps in a situation such as this we should consider the words of Elizabeth Dole, “We have learned that power is a positive force if it is used for positive purposes.”