Lately it has become popular among some elite European opinion-makers to call for the abandonment of Afghanistan to the Taliban. For example, yesterday Britain’s BBC and Sky News both carried stories putting pressure on the British government to withdraw troops.

It is worth reminding people exactly what abandoning Afghanistan to the Taliban means. Yesterday, three Afghan schoolgirls suffered serious burns when attackers sprayed acid in their faces as they walked to school in Kandahar. The attackers ripped off the girls’ headscarves before the attack, while other schoolgirls wearing the full-length burqa accompanying them were left untouched.

Above: One of the schoolgirls (left) who was sprayed with acid being treated in Kandahar hospital

Girls were banned from going to school under the Taliban regime between 1996 and 2001. Since then, Taliban attackers have killed dozens of teachers and students and torched many school buildings in an attempt to close down the schools for girls that reopened after George W. Bush liberated Afghanistan.