Kandahar jailbreak

Even the most savage of conflicts sometimes throw up their moments of comic relief. And so in wider wars when prisoners of war (POWs) stage spectacular escapades, they leave behind narratives to be told and retold, often as movies like the 'Great Escape'. Jailbreaks by prisoners of war are generally treated differently from that by the criminals; and therefore, are often taken with some cheer.
No doubt, the Canadian media is furious over the Kandahar jailbreak on Monday night; for their country had invested millions in upgrading this jail, especially after the Taliban had blasted their way in and took away some 1,200 prisoners in 2008. But, first the jailbreak, for this is no less fascinating than a piece of fiction.
For a good five months, the pro-Taliban elements kept burrowing their way to the Kandahar prison's political section from their high-walled compound some 1,000 feet away, near a highway. They used hoes to dig their way through while fitting their way as they advanced with air-pipes and a lighting system. As to how they disposed of tons of excavated earth, there is no evidence yet. That no one in the wider Kandahar city talked of the Taliban tunnel is indeed enigmatic, given that the Kandaharis are compulsive talkers in an ambience of intense inter-personal communication.
As the diggers finally made it to the prison floor through a half-metre by three-metre hole, most of the inmates had no idea how close they were to their freedom. Then in small groups, they emptied out of the prison into a well-protected compound, where buses and taxis waited to take them to their individual destinations. The prison staff didn't take long, just half an hour, to discover that their prison house was virtually without its normal population, its vigilance deserves credit. Of the escapees only 20 or so, were said to be criminals, the rest were Taliban fighters and commanders.
Obviously, the Kandahar jailbreak is no less than a stunning blow to the coalition forces that had, to some extent, succeeded in taming this boisterous Taliban-infested region. Of course, it's the coalition's worry now that right at the opening of the spring fighting, the Taliban have scored a tremendous military as well a psychological victory in securing the release of their fighters and commanders. But that's not all that the coalition forces have to contend with. They must analyse the entire saga of jailbreak realistically and dispassionately - for it tells the truth about their gains in Afghanistan, if any.
There is no gainsaying the fact that almost the entire city of Kandahar was engaged in a kind of 'silent conspiracy' against the coalition as the Taliban kept working for almost half a year on a tunnel which must have involved not one or two, but scores of people. Inherent in this episode is the message to the coalition that 'we are not with you'. Then, how come after getting so much attention and financial assistance, the jail management was much inadequate in spotting the jailbreak conspiracy. Isn't it conceivable that the jail officials were part of the conspiracy? If this incident is any guide, the clear message the coalition has received is that 'everything is back to square one'.