Gaza

At Least 10 Dead, 8 Injured In Blast At Kabul Military Airport

At least 10 people were killed and eight others seriously injured in an explosion that rocked the Kabul military airport on Sunday, Khaama Press reported citing the Taliban Interior Ministry spokesperson.

Abdul Nafee Takkur, a spokesman for the Taliban Interior Ministry, reported that an explosion caused injuries close to the military airport’s main gate in Kabul.
No one has taken responsibility for the attack as of yet.

This explosion comes three days after four people were injured in a blast that rocked Taluqan city, the capital of northern Takhar province on Wednesday.

Taliban security commander Abdul Mubin Safi in Takhar confirmed the explosion and stated that a bomb was placed under a local administrative staff’s desk, The Khaama Press reported.

In the past few months, the war-torn county has witnessed increasing security incidents including explosions. (ANI)

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Females In Afghanistan

Females In Afghanistan Spent A Terrible Time In 2022

Women and girls in Afghanistan spent a terrible time in 2022 after being banned from schooling, higher education, and employment in non-governmental organizations reported TOLO News.

The TOLO News report stated, “Secondary schools were closed to girls at the beginning of the year. Universities were closed for women in December. So was the opportunity for women to work in national and international NGOs.”
Schools for girls were supposed to reopen on March 23, 2022. The Taliban, however, said that schools will remain closed until further notice. They are yet to open.

Islamic emirate officials expressed various opinions on the closure of schools. In an interview with RTA TV, Zabiullah Mujahid said that schools for girls were closed due to religious issues.

Afghanistan’s acting minister under the caretaker Taliban regime later said that schools for girls were closed due to cultural issues and that people are not willing to send their daughters to school.

“If (we) were acting on Pakistan’s instruction, the problems of the schools and other problems would have already been solved. This is a religious issue and it needs Islamic cleric’s agreement,” said Zabiullah Mujahid, the Islamic Emirate spokesman, as quoted by TOLO News.

The TOLO News report also quoted Noorullah Munir, the former minister of education, saying that: “You wouldn’t need to ask me the same question if you ask how many people in this mosque are willing to send their 16-year-old daughter to school. You and I both grew up in the same Afghan society, and the culture is clear to everyone.”

A committee of eight religious experts was formed on May 26, under the leadership of Pakistan’s Supreme Court chief Abdul Hakim Haqqani to look into the reopening of schools for girls. The committee is yet to make its achievements clear.

“The committee has eight members. It includes religious scholars. The committee has done some work to reopen high schools for girls. We hope it can be solved in the near future,” said Inamullah Samangani, former deputy spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, as quoted by TOLO News.

As many as 11.6 million women and girls are no longer receiving vital assistance in Afghanistan, the US envoy to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield said on Saturday in the wake of the Taliban’s decision to ban women from contributing to humanitarian aid efforts in the country.

“The Taliban’s decision to ban women from contributing to humanitarian aid efforts is already having terrible consequences. According to the UN, 11.6 million women and girls in Afghanistan are no longer receiving vital assistance. This dangerous, oppressive ban must be reversed,” Thomas-Greenfield tweeted. (ANI)

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UN Rights Chief To Taliban: End Disastrous Policy Towards Women

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk has called on the de facto authorities in Afghanistan to revoke immediately a raft of policies that target the rights of women and girls, noting both the “terrible, cascading effects” on their lives and the destabilizing risks such policies pose to Afghan society.

“No country can develop – indeed survive – socially and economically with half its population excluded. These unfathomable restrictions placed on women and girls will not only increase the suffering of all Afghans but, I fear, pose a risk beyond Afghanistan’s borders,” Turk was quoted as saying press statement by United Nations Human Rights Office.

“I urge the de facto authorities to ensure the respect and protection of the rights of all women and girls – to be seen, to be heard, and to participate in and contribute to all aspects of the social, political, and economic life of the country, in line with Afghanistan’s international obligations,” he said.

On 24 December, the de facto authorities issued a decree banning women from working in NGOs, TOLOnews reported. This came after they had already suspended university education for women and secondary schooling for girls until what they termed further notice.

“This latest decree by the de facto authorities will have terrible consequences for women and for all Afghan people,” the High Commissioner said. “Banning women from working in NGOs will deprive them and their families of their incomes, and of their right to contribute positively to the development of their country and to the well-being of their fellow citizens.”

The UN rights office said NGOs and humanitarian organizations provide critical life-saving services for many people in Afghanistan, providing food, water, shelter, and healthcare, and some critical programs, such as pre-and post-natal and infant care, are only provided by women.

Many staff working for these NGOs are female and many of the organizations have women in leadership roles. They are essential partners for the UN and other agencies in the delivery of their humanitarian and development programs throughout the country.

“The ban will significantly impair, if not destroy, the capacity of these NGOs to deliver the essential services on which so many vulnerable Afghans depend. It is all the more distressing with Afghanistan in the grip of winter, when we know humanitarian needs are at their greatest and the work these NGOs do is all the more critical,” Turk said.

The High Commissioner also voiced deep concern that increased hardship in Afghan society is likely to increase the vulnerability of women and girls to sexual and gender-based violence and domestic violence.

“Women and girls cannot be denied their inherent rights. Attempts by the de facto authorities to relegate them to silence and invisibility will not succeed – it will merely harm all Afghans, compound their suffering, and impede the country’s development. Such policies cannot be justified in any way,” Turk said. (ANI)

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34 Naxals Surrender In Chhattisgarh, 4 Having Bounty Of Rs 1L

TTP Intensifies Attacks Creating Chaos

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) with its supporters has attacked defense establishments in Pakistan 148 times within a year. And the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan has given these terror attacks by TTP a boost. But the central government seems reluctant to take action against them, Khaama Press reported.

The TTP in the last year has conducted hundreds of terror attacks on the police and army headquarters in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Quetta in the Balochistan region. The Khaama Press article quoted unconfirmed reports which said that other militant groups have joined forces with the TTP to expand their terrorist operation in tribal areas of the country.
The Khaama Press in its report also mentioned that these attacks can increase in number as the TTP recently ended the ceasefire that they had with the Pakistani authorities.

However, the common people in Pakistan have been showing their aggression in the matter via protests like the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement [PTM] demanding the establishment to take action against these groups, according to Khaama Press.

Previously, on December 23 a suicide bombing shook Islamabad killing two conspirators and a policeman. Along with this at least three police officers and seven passers-by were wounded in the bombing.

Pakistan’s capital city took place nine miles from the garrison city of Rawalpindi, home of the military and government spy agencies.

“Security has been re-alert in Islamabad. Carrying weapons is not allowed under any circumstances. Election-related meetings will not take place without the permission of the police. Election activities and corner meetings will be allowed inside the four walls,” Islamabad Police tweeted.

Police said the blast took place when police officers spotted a car and ordered the driver to halt for routine checking. Instead of stopping, its driver detonated explosives hidden inside. A female passenger in the car also was killed, Suhail Zafar Chattha, a senior police officer in Islamabad told reporters at the scene

. The TV footage showed a burning car as police officers cordoned off the area. Residents said they saw policemen on motorcycles chasing a car and ordering a man inside the vehicle to come out. Police confirmed that account, saying the suspect blew up the explosive-laden vehicle after being surrounded by police officers.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the bombing and thanked the police. “Police officers stopped the terrorists by sacrificing their blood and the nation salutes its brave men,” Sharif said in a statement.

The responsibility for the attack was later taken by TTP. In a statement, TTP announced that the killing was orchestrated because of the killing of their senior leader.

This violence comes days after several Pakistani Taliban detainees overpowered guards at a counterterrorism center in north-western Pakistan after snatching police weapons and taking three officers hostage. (ANI)

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India To Pak Occupied Kashmir

India Slams OIC Delegation Visit To Pak Occupied Kashmir

India on Tuesday condemned the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) Secretary-General Hissein Brahim Taha’s visit to Pakistan-Occupied Jammu and Kashmir and his comment during the visit to Pakistan, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

“We strongly condemn the visit of the OIC Secretary General to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and his comments on Jammu and Kashmir during his visit to Pakistan,” Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi replied to the media queries regarding Taha’s visit.

He further said, “Let me reiterate that OIC has no locus standing in matters related to Jammu and Kashmir, which is an integral and inalienable part of India. Any attempt of interference and meddling in India’s internal affairs by OIC and its Secretary General is entirely unacceptable.”

Regarding OIC, Bagchi said that the organization had lost its credibility by taking a blatantly communal, partisan, and factually incorrect approach to issues. He also said that OIC’s Secretary-General has become a mouthpiece of Pakistan, according to the statement.

India hoped that Taha would refrain from becoming a partner in carrying out the ‘nefarious’ agenda of Pakistan of promoting cross-border terrorism in India, especially in Jammu and Kashmir, Bagchi said.

Earlier, on Monday, OIC General-Secretary met Pakistan’s Prime Minister during his three-day visit starting from December 10 to 12, OIC said in a statement.

Both sides exchanged views on the question of Palestine, humanitarian challenges faced by the people of Afghanistan, and efforts towards countering rising anti-Muslim hatred and Islamophobia across the globe.

The meeting also reviewed aspects of cooperation between OIC and Pakistan, in particular, on the implementation of the resolutions of the Council of Foreign Ministers during ongoing Pakistan’s chairmanship of the Council, according to the statement.

Earlier, on Saturday, Taha held a working session with Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. Both sides discussed relations between the OIC and Pakistan as well as issues related to Jammu and Kashmir dispute, Islamophobia, and the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan. (ANI)

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Afghanistan Faces Health Emergency As Pneumonia Cases Rise

Amid the perceived humanitarian crisis that has gripped Afghanistan since the Taliban’s takeover last year, there has been a steep rise in pneumonia cases, the Tolo News reported.

Quoting doctors at the Indira Gandhi Children’s Hospital (IGCH) in Kabul, the Tolo News added that more than 30 pneumonia cases are being reported at the hospital every day.

According to the report, the pneumonia outbreak is being attributed to poor hygiene, polluted air, and extremely cold temperatures with the onset of winter.

Quoting officials in the Ministry of Public Health in Afghanistan, the Tolo News further reported that more than 9,60,000 pneumonia cases have been reported across the country over the past 11 months, with the majority of patients being children.

Speaking to Tolo News, Saifullah Abasin, a doctor, said 30 to 50 pneumonia patients are hospitalised in Afghanistan every day.

He added that 30 percent of the patients are brought to hospitals in critical condition as they have to make a long and arduous journey from the remote corners of the country.

The parents of a newborn told Tolo News that their child has been under treatment at the IGCH for pneumonia for over a week.

Speaking to the Afgha television news channel, Roya, the child’s mother, said, “He has been battling pneumonia for six days now. I initially got him admitted to a private hospital and bought lots of medicines for him. However, I could only keep him in the private hospital for one night as his conditioned worsened and I was asked to shift my child to the Indira Gandhi Children’s Hospital.”

The parents of another stricken child told Tolo News that the reason why their son caught pneumonia was that they did not have a room heater at home.

This is not Afghanistan’s first brush with a public health emergency under the Taliban. Recently, more than 600 people were found to be infected with a cholera-like enteric disease in the country. The outbreak left 15 people dead.

In August, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had reported that Afghanistan was battling multiple disease outbreaks, including Acute Watery Diarrhea (AWD), measles, Congo fever, dengue fever, and Covid-19.

Over 19,050 confirmed AWD cases were reported in various provinces across Afghanistan, especially Kabul, Paktia, Khost, Paktika, Jawzjan Ghazni, Kandahar, and Zabul.

Also, as per a report, as many as 64,654 cases of measles were also reported across Afghanistan. (ANI)

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230 Afghan Migrant Families

Around 28 MN Afghans Will Need Humanitarian Aid In 2023: UN

The UN agency for the coordination of humanitarian affairs stated that Afghanistan continues to face one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with 28.3 million people expected to require aid in the upcoming year, TOLOnews reported.

“Afghanistan faces its third consecutive year of drought-like conditions and the second year of debilitating economic collapse,” TOLOnews reported citing the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
“It is estimated that a record 28.3 million people will need humanitarian and protection assistance in 2023, up from 24.4 million in 2022,” the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs added.

In the meantime, the UN requested USD 51 billion on Thursday for those in need in 70 different nations in 2023.

According to UN emergency assistance coordinator Martin Griffiths, the humanitarian needs of some countries are ‘alarmingly great’.

“Five countries are experiencing what we call a famine condition and we can confidently and unhappily say that people are dying,” Griffiths added.

Meanwhile, UNICEF said that the lives of over 8,000 children in Afghanistan are at risk due to food insecurity.

Children in Afghanistan require more humanitarian aid than in the past and hangers are a daily occurrence, TOLOnews reported citing Ezatullah Akbari, head of Human Rights Watch’s media department.

Afghanistan is currently grappling with a serious humanitarian crisis as according to international assessments, the country now has the highest number of people in emergency food insecurity in the world, with more than 23 million in need of assistance and approximately, 95 per cent of the population having insufficient food consumption.

Moreover, 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.

The Ukraine crisis has also had a significant impact on the rise in food prices, making it unaffordable for many Afghans.

Even as the war has ended in the nation, grave human rights violations–particularly against women and minorities–remain unabated. The fundamental rights to non-discrimination, education, employment, public engagement, and health are being denied to women and girls in Afghanistan, reported Khaama Press. (ANI)

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Afgh Taliban

Under Taliban, Lives Of Ex-Afgh Security Forces Under Grave Threat

In Afghanistan, the Taliban continue to torture and detainment forcefully security officials who had worked under the previous government, because of which the life of these officials has become miserable, according to a report in the Afghan Diaspora Network (ADN).

The Taliban took over Afghanistan after US and NATO forces left in August 2021. Several reports and incidents of killings, torture, and forced detainment of security officials who had worked under the previous government have been observed, because of which the life of these officials has become miserable, says the report.
All these incidents are the result of retaliatory revenge that the Taliban is trying to assert on these former officials from the Afghan police, army, intelligence, and militias that were fending off the Taliban with the help of NATO forces says the author of ADN report, Elhamudin Afghan.

Many of these former defence officials were successfully able to flee Afghanistan as they were well connected to officials in the US and NATO forces. At present many of these security officials who have escaped have settled in western countries or have crossed the border and reached Iran. However, those who were unsuccessful in leaving Afghanistan when the Taliban took over in 2021 are now bearing the brunt.

For the past two weeks, there have been daily reports of killings in the eastern region of Nangarhar province. ADN reported quoting Radio Azadi which reported that the bodies of six people associated with the former government were found in different areas of Jalalabad City. Much like what happened in Eastern Nangarhar, in Kabul, an elite forces soldier of the former government was killed along with his two brothers and his cousin in recent weeks, the report mentioned.

ADN reported quoting a November 2021 Human Rights Watch report to state that the Taliban had killed more than 100 of these former Afghan defence officials within just three months of their takeover of Afghanistan’s Ghazni, Helmand, Kunduz, and Kandahar provinces.

During that time Afghan social media users shared many graphic videos of torture and killings done by the Taliban to grab the attention of the western forces. It is pertinent to say that no government has yet recognized the Taliban’s government.

Locals of Eastern Nuristan province said that the district officials of the Taliban in Laghman province have arrested, tortured, and then killed in September this year, Bahrumudin Nuristani who was a commander in the previous Afghan army in the Mandol district.

People in the Mandol and Doaba districts of Nuristan province demanded a probe into Nuristani’s murder. ADN reported quoting a BBC report that the Taliban had admitted that Nuristani was arrested and later died in Taliban’s detention.

ADN took interviews of two members of the former Afghan security forces- Shawkat Tareen and Abdullah Bawar – both pseudonyms used by the writer to hide the identities for security reasons.

Tareen recalled the day when the Taliban took over, a day that he and all his colleagues cried. That day people from the Taliban tore Afghan flags, scattered papers, and insulted them. And now they have no hope for life as they are now suffering, he was quoted as saying.

“I remember that, on the day of the regime’s fall, most of the soldiers cried. The Taliban pulled down our national flag, scattered our papers, and insulted us. This is our terrible memory. Now we have no hope in life because we are suffering,” Tareen said.

The former Afghan official said that he now has neither physical, mental, social, nor economic security, he is currently unemployed, depressed, and can sleep only with the help of sleeping pills.

He also pointed out that he was frightened about hearing that four of his former colleagues had died between Iran and Turkey on the road to Europe and that his two daughters are suffering under the Taliban regime, which has banned girls from attending schools beyond the sixth class.

Similarly, another security official from Eastern Laghman province quoted in the ADN report states he was detained but released in August 2021. He said in the interview given to ADN that he now does not believe that he will be able to see an organized military for Afghanistan and added that if he gets a chance he will flee Afghanistan.

The ADN report points out that in recent months, Afghan social media users have started a campaign to gain the attention of Western countries that had been engaged in Afghanistan, begging them to save the lives of former Afghan security forces stuck in Afghanistan. (ANI)

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Pakistan Girls School Attacked

Girls School Attacked in Pakistan’s Waziristan; 1 Dead

One person was killed and security personnel injured in an attack when unknown militants opened fire on a girls’ school in Pakistan’s South Waziristan on Thursday, according to Dawn.

The attack took place in a school in the Azam Warsak area of the South Waziristan district.

The Army Public School for Girls was celebrating Parents’ Day when the militants started shooting from a nearby mountain. According to Dawn, which cited police authorities, all of the people inside the school at the time of the attack–students, parents, staff, and security personnel–were unharmed.

Masti Khan, the deceased, was struck by a bullet while he was walking by the school, according to a police official. The injured security guard was taken to a hospital. The terrorists escaped to the Pakistan-Afghanistan border region when security forces retaliated, an official added.

Over the course of the last 40 days, militants have attacked six times the Azam Warsak Police Station, resulting in the deaths of seven police officers. Following an uptick in militant attacks, the police are said to have left the bordering police stations of Raghzai and Khankot, Dawn reported.

Since the outlawed Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan broke the ceasefire with the government on November 28 and vowed to carry out attacks throughout the nation, this was the first attack in the area to target a girls’ school.

According to Dawn, the Quetta attack signals the new beginning of a violent post-ceasefire campaign by the TTP, unless the security establishment and political leadership start to nip this evil in the bud.

The TTP, a Pakistani offshoot and close ally of the Afghan Taliban, is listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States and the United Nations. According to UN estimates, it has between 4,000 to 6,500 fighters in Afghanistan. Its spread is beyond the tribal belt, to Pakistani cities. (ANI)

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India Projects In AFghanistan Taliban

Taliban Says India May Restart 20 Projects In Afghanistan

Taliban on Wednesday said that India may restart 20 stalled projects in Afghanistan.

The Ministry of Urban Development and Housing (MUDH) of Afghanistan said that the Indian charges d’affaires, Bharat Kumar, expressed India’s interest in improving relations and the resumption of Delhi’s projects in Afghanistan, reported Tolo News.

Kumar made the remarks in a meeting with the Minister of Urban Development and Housing, Hamdullah Nomani.

The agency quoting the MUDH Ministry said, “It is expected that India will resume work on at least 20 projects in several provinces of the country. Kumar made the remarks in a meeting with the Minister of Urban Development and Housing, Hamdullah Nomani, in Kabul.

“Projects they were implemented during the former government but were delayed due to political changes or other issues–they are now interested in resuming these projects, said Mohammad Kamal Afghan, a spokesman for the MUDH.

Economists said they believe that the implementation of the projects will facilitate job opportunities and boost development in the country, reported Tolo News.

“The resumption of these projects can also create job opportunities for the people and it can promote people’s income and drive Afghanistan out of political isolation,” said Darya Khan Baheer, an economist.

“The restart of these projects will decrease the level of poverty and unemployment,” said Nazkamir Ziarmal, an economist.

The Pajhwok Afghan News meanwhile said that Urban Development and Land Affairs Acting Minister Mawlavi Hamdullah Nomani had urged the Indian business community to invest in the urban development sector of Afghanistan.

On its Twitter handle, the Ministry wrote that acting Minister Nomani met the charge de affairs of the Indian embassy in Kabul. During this visit, the acting Minister Nomani said: “The Indian businessmen can invest in the urban and housing sector, especially in the New Kabul City project”.

Numani further added, “India implemented some projects in Afghanistan in the past, while some of them remained incomplete due to non-payment”. He asked the Indian government to clear its stance about the incomplete projects as well.

“Projects they were implemented during the former government but were delayed due to political changes or other issues–they are now interested in resuming these projects, said Mohammad Kamal Afghan, a spokesman for the MUDH.

Locals believe that implementing the projects will facilitate job opportunities, decrease poverty and unemployment, and boost development in the country.

In addition, the visiting Indian envoy was requested to provide the Afghan nationals with scholarships for master’s and Ph.D. degrees in the civil and urban development field to increase Afghan engineers’ capacity further.

Charge de affairs Bharat Kumar said the ministry could share information about all the mentioned projects. He will convey the message to the Indian government to solve their problems and make all projects ready to use.

I have received some details about the New Kabul Project, and I would talk about them to Indian investors as well, Kumar said.

India had to stop all its projects once the Taliban took over the reins of power in August 2021. India then closed its embassy, which restarted functioning a few months ago. India still has security issues as several civilian projects, religious places, and the Russian embassy were targeted recently by suspected Islamic State terrorists.

India, before the takeover of Afghanistan by the Taliban, had invested in developmental and capacity-building projects of around three billion dollars.

The significant projects India supported in Afghanistan were: The 42MW Salma Dam in Herat province was inaugurated in 2016 and is known as the Afghan-India Friendship Dam. The other high-profile project was the 218-km Zaranj-Delaram highway built by the Border Roads Organisation. Zaranj is located close to Afghanistan’s border with Iran.

India built the Afghan Parliament in Kabul for $90 million. A block in the building is named after former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

In 2016, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the restored Stor Palace in Kabul, initially built in the late 19th century. India also constructed one of its leading hospitals in Kabul.

India, in the past, has been supporting in developing the human resources, giving training to professionals and offering a considerable number o scholarships and admissions to Afghan students to study in India.

The Indian projects are mostly people-centric in all 34 provinces of Afghanistan. The projects were aimed at making Afghanistan a self-sufficient nation. India also operationalized air freight corridors and the Chabahar Port to enhance regional connectivity to Afghanistan.

India presently has been voicing deep concern at the unfolding humanitarian situation in Afghanistan; India donated consignments of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. These include 40,000 MTs of wheat, about 50 tonnes of medical aid consisting of essential lifesaving medicines, anti-TB medicines, 500,000 doses of COVID vaccine, essential medical/surgical items, and 28 tons of other disaster relief material. (ANI)

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