Western media have recognized the Haqqani network’s character as a “militant” Islamist group in open alliance with the Taliban.Declan Walsh and Eric Schmitt, “U.S. Blacklists Militant Haqqani Network,” New York Times, September 7, 2012, http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/08/world/asia/state-department-blacklists-militant-haqqani-network.html. For the most part, the media concur with the widespread assumption among Western intelligence agencies that the Haqqani network is the most lethal arm of the insurgency in Afghanistan.Chelsea Carter and Joe Sterling, “Haqqani leader turned network into ‘killing machine,’ intelligence officials say,” CNN, September 7, 2012, http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/07/world/asia/pakistan-haqqani-profile/.

Certain media outlets have followed the lead of the Pakistani government in recognizing the Haqqani network’s potential to serve as a negotiating partner with the United States in its ongoing fight against the Taliban and al-Qaeda.Ahmed Rashid, Descent into Chaos, (London: Penguin Books, 2009), 221. The London-based Telegraph, for one, has played up the Haqqanis’ willingness to enter into “peace talks” with the United States. It has referred to the organization as a “militia.”Rob Crilly, “Haqqani network ‘ready to enter peace talks if Taliban approves,” Daily Telegraph (London), November 13, 2012, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/9674405/Haqqani-network-ready-to-enter-peace-talks-with-US-if-Mullah-Omar-approves.html.