Recent floods in Afghanistan caused by incessant rain kill 400 people

 The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has confirmed that 400 people have died in the recent floods triggered by incessant rain across the country

The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has confirmed that 400 people have died in the recent floods triggered by incessant rain across the country. The floods hit the provinces of Kunar, Nangarhar, Nuristan, Laghman, Panjshir, Parwan, Kabul, Kapisa, Maidan Wardak, Bamiyan, Ghazni, Logar, Samangan, Sar-e-Pul, Takhar, Paktia, Khost and Daikundi, as well as the Salang areas, TOLO News reported.

“The wounded have been evacuated to the hospitals. The people whose residences were damaged in the floods, they have been evacuated and provided with tents,” Mawlawi Sharfuddin Muslim, the deputy Minister of Natural Disaster Management, said in a statement on Wednesday. The statement added that the floods have also inflicted financial losses. In 2022, over 30,000 people have been affected by natural disasters in Afghanistan including more than 5,000 people affected by flash flooding.

Malala slams Taliban for hijab decree, urges world leaders to take action

 Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has expressed fear for women and girls in Afghanistan after the Taliban issued a decree making the hijab compulsory for women in Afghanistan.

Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has expressed fear for women and girls in Afghanistan after the Taliban issued a decree making the hijab compulsory for women in Afghanistan. She urged world leaders to hold Taliban accountable for violating the human rights of Afghan women. “The Taliban want to erase girls and women from all public life in Afghanistan – to keep girls out of school and women out of work, to deny them the ability to travel without a male family member, and to force them to cover their faces and bodies completely,” tweeted Malala.

She urged world leaders to take collective action to hold the Taliban accountable for violating the human rights of millions of women and girls. “We must not lose our sense of alarm for Afghan women as the Taliban continue to break their promises. Even now, women are taking to the streets to fight for their human rights and dignity – all of us, and especially those from Muslim countries, must stand with them,” added Malala…

Taliban stops issuing driving licence to women in Kabul: Reports

 The ban comes at a time when the country suffers from a devastating humanitarian crisis, with an acute shortage of food and other essential supplies.

The Taliban regime in Afghanistan has stopped issuing driving licenses to women in Kabul and other provinces, media reports said. The ban comes at a time when the country suffers from a devastating humanitarian crisis, with an acute shortage of food and other essential supplies. Before the Taliban takeover, women in Afghanistan could be seen driving in some of the major cities of the country including Kabul. However, the Taliban has now stopped distributing driving licenses to women, local media said.

Notably, the situation of human rights in Afghanistan has worsened since the collapse of the Afghan government and the Taliban’s return to power in August last year. Although the fighting in the country has ended, serious human rights violations continue unabated, especially against women. In a recent decree, the Taliban regime in Afghanistan banned girls from attending school above grade sixth leading to worldwide condemnation. The leaders of the outfit have since said that the move was taken because of an apparent “shortage of teachers” and that the right of girls to study beyond grade sixth will be restored “shortly”

Afghanistan gets over $760 mn in cash aid to fight poverty, food shortage

 The aim of the international aid has been to prevent widespread poverty and food shortages in the country hit by a devastating humanitarian crisis since the Taliban takeover in August last yeara

Afghanistan has received over USD 760 million in cash as humanitarian assistance from the international community, the country’s central bank informed, adding that the money donated is beneficial in maintaining the value of the Afghan currency. “In total, USD 761.6 million has been delivered. This aid preserves the value of the Afghani,” Saber Momand, Da Afghanistan Bank’s (Central Bank of Afghanistan) spokesperson was quoted as saying by Tolo News.

The aim of the international aid has been to prevent widespread poverty and food shortages in the country hit by a devastating humanitarian crisis since the Taliban takeover in August last year.However, some locals allege that the aid is not being donated in a fair manner, Tolo News reported. “Donations come but they do not give it to us. There are representatives of the people in our area who say that if you share fifty per cent of the aid with us, I will put your name on the list. If you do not, I will not take your name,” Mirajan, a worker was quoted as saying.

Ex-Afghan army general Sami Sadat prepares for new war against Taliban

 Speaking for the first time about the plans, Lt Gen Sami Sadat told the BBC that eight months of Taliban rule has convinced many Afghans that military action is the only way forward

A former general in the Afghan army says he and many other soldiers and politicians from the previous administration are preparing to launch a new war against the incumbent Taliban regime in the country. Speaking for the first time about the plans, Lt Gen Sami Sadat told the BBC that eight months of Taliban rule has convinced many Afghans that military action is the only way forward. He said operations could begin next month after Eid, when he plans to return to Afghanistan.

The Taliban took control of the country in a rapid offensive last August. The hard-line Islamists swept across the country in just 10 days, as the last US-led NATO forces left following a 20-year military campaign. Lt Gen Sadat said that he and the others would “do anything and everything in our powers to make sure Afghanistan is freed from the Taliban and a democratic system is re-established”….

Taliban's Afghan takeover has led to 'erosion of human rights': Blinken

 Blinken’s remarks came as the US state department released the 2021 Human Rights Report on Tuesday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday (local time) said that the Taliban’s takeover in Afghanistan has resulted in a “serious erosion of human rights” in the country. Blinken’s remarks came as the US state department released the 2021 Human Rights Report on Tuesday.

“In Afghanistan, the Taliban’s takeover precipitated a humanitarian crisis, and has resulted in serious erosion of human rights, from arbitrary detentions of women, protesters, and journalists, to reprisals against security forces for the former government, to growing restrictions on where women and girls can study or work,” he said during the press briefing.

Notably, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) has also claimed that there has been a surge in human rights violations in Afghanistan, reported Tolonews. “Human Rights Watch works on the human rights situation in about 100 countries around the world and at the moment we see Afghanistan as a very urgent priority. The human rights situation in Afghanistan is deeply worrying,” the media outlet quoted Heather Barr, associate director of the Women’s Rights Division at HRW, as saying.

Afghan schools, universities lose 60% students amid humanitarian crisis

 The owners of private schools and universities in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul have complained that they have lost 60 per cent of their students amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the country.

The owners of private schools and universities in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul have complained that they have lost 60 per cent of their students amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the country. This comes as the new educational year has just begun across Afghanistan, according to Khaama Press. The owners said that the ongoing humanitarian crisis and economic situation in the country have adversely affected the livelihood, thus most of the families have changed their children to study in public schools, Khaama Press reported. Meanwhile, owners of private universities in Afghanistan also complain about the number of students quitting studying.

Earlier, the Taliban regime issued a decree banning female students above grade six from participating in their classes. The girls were further told to stay home until the Islamic Emirate announces its next decision. Dozens of female students in Afghanistan’s capital city of Kabul took to the streets demanding the Taliban regime to withdraw its decision to ban girls from attending school above the sixth grade. Chanting the slogans of “education is our absolute right,” the protestors called for the reopening of schools for girls in grades 7-12 across Afghanistan, Tolo News reported.

Taliban allows girls in Afghanistan to return to high schools from today

 The Taliban has allowed girls to return to high schools from Wednesday, ending the uncertainty over whether the Islamic group would allow full access to education for girls.

The Taliban has allowed girls to return to high schools from Wednesday, ending the uncertainty over whether the Islamic group would allow full access to education for girls. Teenage girls across will return to their classrooms after being banned after the Islamic outfit sized power last August. Since taking power, the Taliban have rolled back women’s rights in virtually every area, including crushing women’s freedom of movement.

The vast majority of girls’ secondary schools were closed. Universities recently reopened, with new gender segregation rules. But many women are unable to return, in part because the career they studied for is off limits now as the Taliban banned women from most jobs. “Critical period ahead for Afghanistan as school and colleges soon re-open after winter break. UNAMA conducted a discussion on Higher Education yesterday with Mawlawi Abdul Baqi Haqqani. Importance of equal access to quality education for all & guarantees for academic freedom was stressed,” the UN Mission in Afghanistan said in a tweet…

Afghan women face violence, repression as world focus shifts

 Under the Taliban’s latest rule, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in Afghanistan are facing “grave threats” of violence and death

The Taliban reportedly captured 40 people in Mazar-e-Sharif, a medium-sized city in Afghanistan, at the end of January 2022. Taliban members then allegedly gang-raped eight of the women. The women who survived the gang rape were subsequently killed by their families. The fact that the women had been raped violated a societal honor code called Pashtunwalli, which prohibits women from engaging in sex outside of marriage.

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid tweeted that some of the women they arrested “remain detained because their male relatives have not yet come to escort them.” News of the attack is circulating among various Afghan communities and some local media, according to several Afghan women’s rights activists who are part of my academic network. These colleagues cannot be named because of security concerns. Women’s rights activists marched in Kabul on Jan. 16, 2022, asking where the women of the Mazar-e-Sharif attack have gone.

Over 6,400 Afghan journalists lost jobs since Taliban takeover: Survey

 More than 6,400 journalists in Afghanistan have lost their jobs since the Taliban takeover of the country, according to a recent survey.

More than 6,400 journalists in Afghanistan have lost their jobs since the Taliban takeover of the country, according to a recent survey.The survey conducted by non-profit organisation Reporters Without Borders (RSF) and the Afghan Independent Journalists Association (AIJA) shows a radical change in the Afghan media landscape since the Taliban took power. As many as 231 media outlets have had to close.

The Taliban takeover’s impact on Afghanistan’s media has been dramatic, according to the survey by RSF and its local partner, the AIJA.More than four out of every ten media outlets have disappeared and 60 percent of journalists and media employees are no longer able to work.The hardest hit among all are women journalists as 80 percent of them have lost their jobs since Taliban took control of Kabul…

Heroin worth Rs 400 cr seized from Pak boat off Gujarat coast; 6 held

 A Pakistani fishing boat with six crew members and carrying 77 kg of heroin worth around Rs 400 crore was apprehended in the Indian waters off the Gujarat coast, officials said on Monday.

A Pakistani fishing boat with six crew members and carrying 77 kg of heroin worth around Rs 400 crore was apprehended in the Indian waters off the Gujarat coast, officials said on Monday. The drug seizure was made on Sunday night in a joint operation by the Indian Coast Guard and the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS), they said. Gujarat’s defence PRO in a tweet said the Coast Guard in a joint operation with the state ATS apprehended the Pakistani fishing boat ‘Al Huseini’ with six crew members on board in the Indian waters.

They seized “77 kg of heroin worth approximately Rs 400 crore,” the tweet said. The boat was brought to the Jakhau coast in Kutch district of Gujarat for further investigation, it stated. In April this year, the Coast Guard and the ATS had carried out a similar operation and apprehended a boat with eight Pakistani nationals and carrying 30 kg of heroin worth about Rs 150 crore, from the Indian waters near the Jakhau coast in Kutch.

Taliban won’t agree to ceasefire unless reason behind war is discussed

The Taliban will not agree to a ceasefire unless peace negotiators discuss the main reason behind the war, said their spokesperson Mohommed Naeem

The Taliban will not agree to a ceasefire unless peace negotiators discuss the main reason behind the war, said their spokesperson Mohommed Naeem. The spokesperson claimed that the terrorist group reduced violence levels with the beginning of the preliminary round of talks but the government has not halted its “offensive operations, according to Tolo News. “It does not make sense to end 20 years of war in one hour. In our perspective, it will be logical to discuss the main aspects of the problems and the war and then finalise a ceasefire so that the problem is resolved permanently,” Mohammad Naeem told TOLOnews.

“Suppose, if we announce a ceasefire today, but then we fail to reach an agreement at the negotiating table tomorrow, do we go toward the war again? What does this mean?” he added. Naeem further said that the Taliban wants an Islamic system “that is answerable to the public and the nation”. “One of our objectives was to end the invasion of Afghanistan. The other one was that there is a true Islamic system that is answerable to the public and the nation,” Tolo News reported quoting the spokesperson.

Naeem said that despite the possibility of ups and downs in the negotiations, he is optimistic about the outcome of the talks between the two. “We have entered the peace process with a strong will and determination. We want this problem finally to be resolved. The process is complicated and it has its own complexities, but we are hopeful that the problems come to an end,” added Naeem…Read More

16 people killed as militants storm maternity clinic in Afghanistan

The clinic is supported by the aid group Doctors Without Borders, according to Unicef, the UN children’s agency

Militants stormed a maternity hospital in the western part of Kabul on Tuesday, setting off an hours-long shootout with the police and killing 16 people, including two newborn babies, their mothers and an unspecified number of nurses, Afghan officials said. While the battle was underway, Afghan security forces struggled to evacuate the facility carrying out babies and frantic young mothers, according to images shared by the interior ministry, news agency PTI reported The clinic is supported by the aid group Doctors Without Borders, according to Unicef, the UN children’s agency.

But the day’s spasm of violence extended beyond Kabul. A suicide bomber in eastern Nangarhar province a hotbed of the Islamic State group targeted a funeral ceremony, killing 24 people and wounding 68. And in eastern Khost province, a bomb planted in a cart in a market killed a child and wounded 10 people.

ALSO READ: Ahead of Intra Afghanistan talks, gunmen kill at least 32 in Kabul

The violence could further undermine a peace process in the wake of a deal signed between the United States and the Taliban in February, which envisages the start of talks among key Afghan figures, including government representatives, and the Taliban. Relentless, near-daily attacks have also left Afghan authorities ill-prepared to face the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, which has infected more than 4,900 people in the country and killed at least 127.

US has done a ‘great job’ in Afghanistan, asserts Trump: Key developments

Meanwhile, in an interaction with Pentagon reporters, Defence Secretary Mark Esper said the peace deal signed with the Taliban in Doha over the weekend was a conditions-based agreement

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Monday, US President Donald Trump asserted that his country had done a “great job” in its fight against terrorism in Afghanistan, and said it was now time for other countries to play their part. “We’ve done a great job in terms of getting rid of terrorists. Now it’s up to other countries to get rid of those terrorists,” Trump told reporters.

Responding to questions, Trump reiterated that the US was pulling out its troops from Afghanistan. “We are getting out. We want to get out. We had good meetings with the Taliban. And we are going to be leaving, and we’re going to be bringing our soldiers back home. We’ve been there for almost 20 years. It’s a long time,” Trump said. President Trump and his Afghanistan counterpart Ghani spoke over the phone on Sunday. Trump congratulated Ghani on the recent steps taken towards achieving peace in the war-torn country, according to a White House statement.

“The two leaders agreed that Saturday’s announcement of the United States-Afghanistan Joint Declaration and the Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan were important milestones for the Afghan peace process,” the release said. The two leaders further agreed to stay in touch as the peace process moved into the next phase, which involves negotiations among Afghans for a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire and road map for the political future of the country…Read More

Kashmir tensions won’t affect TAPI gas project, Pak assures Turkmenistan

Some Pakistani experts raised doubts about the future of the the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India and other offshore gas pipeline projects following tensions between India and Pakistan

Current Affairs: Pakistan has assured Turkmenistan that rising tensions with India will have no effect on TAPI gas pipeline project, a media report said on Sunday after doubts were raised over the future of the $10 billion trans-national project in the wake of fresh tension between New Delhi and Islamabad over Kashmir.

Some Pakistani experts raised doubts about the future of the the  (TAPI) and other offshore gas pipeline projects following tensions between India and Pakistan after India scrapped Jammu and Kashmir’s special status.

“However, Pakistan has assured Turkmenistan that rising tensions with India will have no effect on the mega project, a government official was quoted as saying by the Express Tribune. The Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India(TAPI) pipeline project seeks to build connectivity in the South and Central Asian regions through gas pipelines and will help ease energy shortages in South Asia.

The TAPI will pass through war-torn Afghanistan and Pakistan to India to boost economic activity and to ensure peace and stability in the region. This project would also help connect two regions through road, rail and fiber cable network…

US to keep 8,600 troops in Afghanistan after deal with Taliban: Trump

The comments provided some clarity on US intentions after lengthy negotiations with the Afghan guerrilla group over finding an exit from a war that has lasted two decades

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the US will keep a permanent presence in Afghanistan, with 8,600 troops initially, even after a deal is reached with the Taliban. “We’re going down to 8,600 and then we make a determination from there,” Trump said in an interview with Fox News radio.

“We’re always going to have a presence.” Donald Trump also warned that if another attack on the United States originated from Afghanistan “we would come back with a force like … never before.”

The comments provided some clarity on US intentions after lengthy negotiations with the Afghan guerrilla group over finding an exit from a war that has lasted two decades.
Despite overwhelming advantages in firepower, the US military has little to show for its efforts and Trump is hoping he can declare the war over in time for his 2020 reelection campaign.

Imran Khan considering closing Pakistan airspace to India: Minister

Pakistan closed its airspace on February 26 after Indian fighter jets struck an alleged terrorist training camp in Balakot.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan is considering a complete closure of airspace to India and blocking Indian land trade to Afghanistan via Pakistan, Minister Fawad Chaudhry said on Twitter.

#Modi has started we’ll finish!,” wrote Chaudhry, who handles the Science and Technology Ministry.

“PM is considering a complete closure of Air Space to India, a complete ban on use of Pakistan Land routes for Indian trade to Afghanistan was also suggested in cabinet meeting, legal formalities for these decisions are under consideration,” he wrote.

Pakistan closed its airspace on February 26 after Indian fighter jets struck an alleged terrorist training camp in Balakot in retaliation for an attack on paramilitary soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama. The airspace was reopened for civilian flights on July 16.

Air India, the country’s flag carrier, operates around 50 flights daily through Pakistani airspace. Prime Minister Khan said on Monday he will protest India’s decision to end Kashmir’s autonomy at international forum, including at the UN General Assembly next month.

PM Modi raises Imran Khan’s ‘extreme’ anti-India rhetoric with Donald Trump

According to a government statement, Modi and Trump had a 30-minute telephonic conversation

Alluding to recent statements by Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday told US President Donald Trump that extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence by certain leaders in the region were not conducive to peace.

According to a government statement, Modi and Trump had a 30-minute telephonic conversation. “In the context of the regional situation, the prime minister stated that extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence by certain leaders in the region was not conducive to peace,” it stated. Narendra Modi, the statement said, highlighted the importance of creating an environment free from terror and violence, and eschewing cross-border terrorism without exception.

The prime minister recalled his meeting with Trump in Osaka on the margins of G-20 summit in end-June. “The PM expressed the hope that the commerce minister of India and the US trade representative would meet at an early date to discuss bilateral trade prospects for mutual benefit,” the statement read..

‘Sandwiched’ Pak, two-front dilemma & Afghan-India ties: Imran’s worry list

‘We would do anything, I mean, if (there is) any role Pakistan can play in this. We have already suggested this to Iran’, said Imran Khan

International News: Forewarning the United States about any misfortune against Iran, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday said any activity on the lines of Iraq could be much more awful and individuals would overlook al-Qaeda.

“My stress over Iran is…. I am uncertain about whether every one of the nations understand the gravity of the circumstance if there is a contention with Iran,” Khan said in light of an inquiry during his appearance at the US Institute of Peace, a research organization financed by the US Congress.

“You know, this won’t be equivalent to (the 2003 US attack of) Iraq. This could be a whole lot worse…. It could release fear based oppression, which – individuals would overlook al-Qaeda…. You know, the fight may be very short on the off chance that it proceeds, besieging runways, etc,” he said.

“Yet, the outcomes from that point forward, my stress is that very few individuals completely get it. Also, I would unequivocally ask that there ought not be…another military circumstance,” Khan said in the midst of an acceleration of strain among Iran and the US. “We would do anything, I mean, if (there is) any job Pakistan can play in this. We have just recommended this to Iran,” he said…

Trump admin suspends $1.66 billion in security aid to Pakistan: Pentagon

Over the last few days Trump has said that people in Pakistan knew about the presence of bin Laden

International News – The United States has suspended $1.66 billion in security assistance to Pakistan, following President Donald Trump’s directive in this regard early this year, the Pentagon has said.

“$1.66 billion of security assistance to Pakistan is suspended,” Col Rob Manning, spokesman of the Department of Defense told reporters in an email response to questions on Tuesday. No further breakdown of the suspended security assistance to Pakistan was provided.

According to David Sedney, who served as Deputy Assistant Secretary Defense for Afghanistan, Pakistan and Central Asia during the previous Obama administration, the blocking of military assistance to Pakistan, which began in January of this year is a strong signal of American frustration.|Donald Trump

“But, so far Pakistan has taken no serious steps to address the core US concern – that Pakistan tolerates and often encourages groups which use violence against Pakistan’s neighbours Sedney told PTI.”Pakistan’s leaders have promised cooperation, but beyond words, serious cooperation has not happened, therefore President Trump is frustrated and so are most Americans,” he said in response to a question.

“This frustration does not ignore the suffering that Pakistani people have undergone. It just asks Pakistan to recognise that it should act to help stop the suffering of others,” said the Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think-tank..

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