The enemy of my enemy is my friend ?
I remember the USA recruiting the poppy processing tribes kicked out by the Taliban in order to retake Afghansistan and and therefore supposedly reassert control of a different sort ( more amenable to the USA except for the heroin that comes from the poppies ) . There have been some problems with this ( just as there were eventually problems with the Mujahideen that were recruited to kick out the Russians ) but apparently the powers that be prefer the anti-Taliban tribes because they are not currently in league with al Quaida.
Just as nomads move across the lands they are in, confounding geographical property boundaries, so do these tribes change allegiances as they see fit. Maulavi Abdul Hakim Munib was a former Senior Taliban official and is now ( last I checked ) Governor of Uruzgan province in Afghanistan. he sometimes serves as a conduit or liaison between the US backed Afghan "government" and the increasingly encroaching Taliban, including their Quetta Shura or tribal council of leaders. This is probably a smart idea on the part of that current government. They know the reality is that the international forces are not always there to back up their policies when it counts - you only live once etc.
Look at the "Awakening" in Iraq. The USA finally decided to start doing something with many of the Sunnis that they had originally sidelined after the invasion. These Sunnis were also getting tired of the random nature of al Quaida guerilla casualties. Most importantly perhaps ( tell me your opinion ) they were getting paid by the USA to fight for their communities. They know these communities much better than foreign soldiers do and can also move through them as part of the background, blending in. It wasn't surprising to me that it was after this that al Quaeda started losing ground. IMHO it is mostly this , and not the vaunted "surge" that made such a big difference.
The new move is to take many of them off the payroll and put the Shiites in charge of paying the rest. What do you think will be the upshot of this ?
BBC NEWS | Middle East | Awakening fears for Iraq's future
Sunni-Shiite rift provides jobs for entrepreneurs World wire news 24/7 from The Plain Dealer & Associated Press - cleveland.com
BBC NEWS | Middle East | Iraq's Awakening Councils
Currently the Saudis are supposed to be "negotiating" with the Taliban. Scuttlebutt has it that the Saudis might even be considering helping with the "bailout" too. Sharia finance supposedly does not permit some of the practices that put the western financial system into peril recently. Short selling, for example, is strictly forbidden. I think I read that even charging interest on a loan is forbidden. How would you feel about the Saudis holding your paper as a mortgage payer householder in the USA ?
Right now General Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani feels caught in the middle as he attacks extremist tribes people between trying to keep his army of divided loyalties going and being embarassed by USA incursions with drone missles and commando raids etc.
It is not always wise to simply categorize personalities in play in an important conflict one is in the midst of as being simply "good" or "evil".