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www.afghanistantimes.af www.facebook.com/ afghanistantimeswww.twitter.com/ afghanistantimes THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10 . 2015 -Qaus 19, 1394 HS Yo ur Yo ur ad ad he re he re 0778894038 0708954626

Karzai slams Kandahar terror attack AT News Report curity forces were searching the apartments and nearby facilities to the foreign office, where leaders operations against militancy, but KABUL: At least 37 civilians ‘carefully’ to eliminate the mili- discussed Afghanistan.Also in the said the action had "created unin- have been killed and 35 others tants and ‘prevent further civilian spotlight today was Indian For- tended consequences bringing were wounded in a group attack casualties’. Militants had man- eign Minister Sushma Swaraj, who about the displacement of a signif- of the Taliban on residential apart- aged to bring enough heavy and arrived in the capital last night in icant number of these groups onto ments near Kandahar International light weapons with them to the order to participate in today’s dis- our soil". Airport, said initial reports. township. “Most of the commer- cussion. President of Afghanistan "There no historical precedent The attack began late yester- cial flights in Kandahar Airport Ashraf Ghani opened his speech for solving this problem. The quar- day afternoon when a group of 10 by expressing gratitude to Pakistan rel of these people is not with the have been delayed by authorities for "hosting millions of Afghan ref- government of Afghanistan or its to 14 suicide bombers entered to to ensure safety of the passen- ugees over decades". But his speech people. We are fighting on behalf a township near Kandahar airport gers,” airport officials said. Mili- quickly turned to the perils and of all of you," he told the confer- and started fighting against Afghan tant press wing on social media origins of the refugee problem and ence, "But we are the ones who security forces. Nine of the at- claimed their suicide bombers tackers, who had taken positions were fighting against Afghan and ISLAMABAD: The opening of screengrab The theme of the con- as well as the defence minister. he talked about the ‘unintended are daily suffering some of the ference, jointly hosted by Pakistan The Afghan president reached consequences’ of Pakistan’s mili- worst atrocities, including the inside a school, market and resi- foreign troops. However, NATO the ‘Heart of Asia’ conference in dential apartments, were killed the press office in Kabul in a state- the capital today was marked by a and Afghanistan, is 'enhanced co- Nur Khan airbase on Wednesday tary operations. "Unfortunately, butchering of our children and eld- operation for countering security morning for the 'Heart of Asia' con- recent events in Pakistan have erly who are totally innocent." other day afternoon. Families of ment said the Taliban were warm welcome from Pakistani au- both civilians and army officers thorities to visiting dignitaries from threats and promoting connectivi- ference. - DawnNews screengrab forced us to host close to 350,000 He believed it prudent to name blocked out of the airport by Af- India, Afghanistan, China among ty in the Heart of Asia region.' Ghani arrived at the Nur Khan to 500,000 Pakistani refugees on the problems plaguing the region are living in the apartments. The ghan troops. The fighting ended other Asian countries. The Chief Afghan President Ashraf airbase to a resounding 21-gun sa- our soil. The refugee issue is a com- in order to formulate a plan of ac- Ministry of Defense said that 37 on Wednesday afternoon. of Army Staff, Chief of Naval Staff Ghani was greeted by a full recep- lute and the melody of the Afghan mon issue, like other issues that tion for regional cooperation along civilians, including women and chil- It said there had been no re- and Chief of Air Staff were present tion which included the prime min- and Pakistani national anthems. He confront us," Ghani said. He laud- the lines Prime Minister Nawaz dren have been killed and 35 oth- port on casualties among foreign at the reception. - DawnNews ister, the army, air and navy chiefs was then escorted in a limousine ed Pakistan's decision to launch Sharif earlier suggested. ...P2 ers received injuries. “The attack- troops. Ex-President Hamid ers had taken two families, includ- Karzai in a statement strongly ing women and children, as hos- denounced the terror attack. MAIL creates jobs for tages and used them as human Karzai said that killing innocent shield in fight against security civilians was an inhuman act. Ha- over 550 individuals forces,” said local security offi- mid Karzai extended his condo- in 6 months cials. Mohsin Sultani, a spokes- lences to the bereaved families and man of Afghan army in Kandahar prayed for quick recovery of the KABUL: The Ministry of Agri- told Afghanistan Times that se- wounded. Taliban hand culture, Irrigation and Livestock over bodies of 4 (MAIL) on Wednesday said it had created jobs for more than 550 Taliban’s major Kunduzi: ALP being soldiers to ICRC individuals during the past six months. In a statement, the min- push to seize strengthened against MAIMANA: Taliban have hand- istry said the recruitments includ- ed over the bodies of four soldiers ed both public and project (con- Khanshin thwarted Daesh in Achin to the International Committee of tract)-based positions. “MAIL the Red Cross (ICRC) in northern is committed to ensuring all em- LASHKARGAH: Insecurity forc- JALALABAD: The governor on Faryab province, an official said ployees are hired based on their es last night thwarted a major push Tuesday said another 1,000 Af- Musharraf claimed that those on Wednesday. The four soldiers ability and merit though a com- by Taliban to capture Khanshin ghan Local Police (ALP) members fighting in Indian-held Kashmir were killed during a firefight with petitive and transparent process district of southern Helmand Taliban militants after their heli- would be appointed and deployed are ‘Mujahideen’ and freedom in accordance with Independent province, police said on Wednes- to the Achin district of eastern fighters. AFP/File copter crash-landed in Pashtunkot Administrative Reform and Civil day. Helmand police chief Brig. district near Maimana, the provin- Service Commission’s (IARCSC) Gen. Abdul Rahman Sarjang told Nangahar province to deal with KARACHI: Former president cial capital, in late November. The guidelines.” The statement said Pajhwok Afghan News Afghan the so-called Islamic State or General (retd) Pervez Musharraf Taliban are still holding about 18 the new employees had high-lev- security forces had prior informa- Daesh group. Salim Khan Kun- on Tuesday said those fighting in soldiers hostage amid an ongoing el degrees, including doctorate, tion that 150 to 200 Taliban mili- duzi, who led a delegation com- Indian-held Kashmir (IHK) were operation by the Afghan army to master and bachelor. “They are tants laced with light and heavy prising senior security officials to ‘mujahideen’ and ‘freedom fight- AT News Report ing another operation, Afghan po- rescue them. The 21 people on currently working at grade 3 – 7 weapons were planning a major the troubled Achin district, said ers’ and not terrorists, BBC Urdu lice seized 3570 kilograms of un- board included two Moldovan pi- positions in 33 provinces. Thirty attack on Khanshin district. Pre- the operation in the town was reported.. “Considering the atroc- KABUL: The Ministry of Interi- processed hashish. A number of lots and a Moldovan engineer, the female recruits are also included pared for the assaults, security successfully underway, but peo- ities and the treatment meted out or (MoI) on Wednesday said that equipment and explosives mate- country’s acting prime minister in this batch.” It said 189 of the forces pushed back the insurgents ple’s cooperation in maintaining to the Muslim majority in IHK, National Interdiction Unit (NIU) rials used in roadside bombs were Gheorghe Brega had told report- positions were project based con- after they launched their offensive security was crucial. The gover- and Crisis Response Unit (CRU) also recovered in the operation. ers in Chisinau. The Mi-17 was tract staff working in 15 provinc- nor told a gathering of tribal el- several groups such as Lashkar-i- “After receiving intelligence tip- last night and inflicted heavy ca- Taiba and Jaish-i-Muhammad in cooperation with Afghan air privately owned by the Valan ICC es — Kabul, Nangarhar, Balkh, sualties on them, he said. Sarjang ders in front of the district head- forces conducted 34 counternar- off, Afghan forces conducted an company in Moldova, according Kunduz, Ghor, Herat, Baghlan, emerged. They were ready to lay operation in Azra district of Log- did not provide figures for casual- quarters: “You have introduced cotics operations across the coun- to Brega, and had been chartered Badghis, Bamyan, Paktia, Bada- ties among security forces. But down their lives for their Kash- try over the past one week and ar province. Security forces recov- by the Afghan army. The Taliban khshan, Kandahar, Helmand, 1,000 local policemen, we are in- miri brethren, we call them free- seized around 86.172 tons of nar- ered around 1697 kilogram hash- in a statement on their website had Uruzgan, and Panjshir. The min- another security official said 17 creasing their numbers and want dom fighters, not Taliban or ter- cotics. Deputy Minister of Inte- ish during the operation,” Ahma- said they shot the helicopter istry said as part of its commit- policemen had been killed and to deploy them in areas retaken rorist,” Musharraf told BBC. rior for Counternarcotics, Baz di said. He added that nine people down. Maj. Reza Rezaee, the ment to create a favorable em- their weapons seized by the from Daesh militants.” The gov- The former army chief also Mohammad Ahmadi, told news- were arrested in connection with spokesman for the 209th Shaheen ployment environment for Afghan rebels. The provincial police chief ernor said schools which had been claimed that there was no ‘Tali- men that the ministry has had the drugs. Officials in the MoI Corps in Faryab, told Pajhwok professionals, it was recruiting for said fresh army and police forces closed due to insecurity in a num- ban presence’ in Kashmir. Mush- great success in thwarting drug said that they have also conduct- Afghan News the Taliban had many of its public and project had reached theKhanshin to ber of areas would be reopened arraf elaborated that the ‘Kash- trafficking attempts. Speaking at ing operation against drug vendors handed over the bodies of four sol- based positions to utilize their strengthen security there. He said soon. miri mujahideen’ allied with the the press conference, Ahmadi said in Kabul. Police have detained diers to ICRC officials in the area skills for the development of Af- the security forces had air sup- Referring to Daesh, the gov- Taliban after the 9/11 tragedy. The that the NIU and CRU in cooper- several drug vendors so far. where the clash occurred. ghan agriculture sector. (Pajhwok) port and the Taliban would not be ernor said members of the outfit former army chief also stated that ation with air forces conducted able to capture the district. Sar- were allowing their children to he had warned the Kashmiri ‘free- operations in Sayed Karam and Death toll mounts as Taliban-Daesh battle enters 4th day jang said weaknesses earlier exist- study in Pakistani schools, but dom fighters’ about what he called Ahmad Abad districts of Paktika ed in the district had been over- they were barring Afghan children an alliance with the ‘extremists’, province and destroyed ten nar- come. The weaknesses had al- JALALABAD: A fierce firefight governor’s spokesman, Attaullah Hakim, was among the injured, in Achin from attending school. but they joined hands with Tali- cotics processing laboratories. He lowed the insurgents to attack and Nangarhar National Directorate of ban which led to the ‘mess’. Elab- said that Afghan forces recovered between Taliban and Islamic State Khogyani, told Pajhwok Afghan Nangarhar police spokesmanLt. advance, but he did not explain orating on his government’s stance 76.70 ton hashish, 3500 kilogram (Daesh) fighters in the Chaparhar News. “A Taliban-designated dis- Col. Hazrat Hussain Mashriqiwal the shortcomings. He also said Security chief Gen. Daud Moham- and development towards resolv- opium, 38 kilogram Heroine and district of eastern Nangarhar prov- trict chief, named Adel, has been said. A provincial councilmember, operations against militants were mad Harifi said they would ap- ing the Kashmir issue with India, several suicide vests during the inceentered a fourth day on killed along with 10 associates. Zabihullah Zmaray, said that civil- underway in Marja district and point in the local police force in- Musharraf claimed he and the In- operation. He added that the drug Wednesday, officials said. At least Five Daesh fighters were also ians were also affected by the four- security forces had advanced in dividuals tribal elders had intro- dian head of state at that time Atal dealers after a short resistance fled 16 militants, including a senior killed and two. Eleven rebels have day clash. Many families had been some areas and further advance had duced. He said cooperation of el- Bihari Vajpayee were heading to- the area and police set the labora- Taliban leader, have been killed so been wounded,” he said. A local displaced to other parts of the prov- been prevented by landmines on ders would result into increased wards a workable solution. ...P2 tories on fire. He added that dur- far during the ongoing clash, the Taliban leader, Mohammad ince, he added. (Pajhwok) the highway. (Pajhwok) security in the region. (Pajhwok)

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72.90 71.30 This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTAN TIMES Freed prisoners say Taliban kept them hungry for days Car p et -w eavin g w om en in Ku n d u z seek access t o m ar k et KUNDUZ CITY: Women carpet- clothes and tailoring, was unable weavers in northeastern Kunduz to meet her domestic needs. She is province called their vocation as a currently weaving carpets after good source of income, urging the completing the training course. government to find a proper mar- Mohammad Kamran, director ket for their products. of Peace Organisation in Kunduz, Kunduz’s hand-made carpets said the training programme was enjoy special fame in northern Af- launched four months ago with the ghanistan. Although the industry cooperation of the Ministry of has been weakened over the past Labour and Social affairs. few decades, it has gradually The course, scheduled to con- limped back to revivalin the last cludetwo months later, will help 10 years. The best rug woven in women work independently as Kunduz is called Mawr, which is carpet-weavers. The participants, of more exquisite quality com- having honed a variety of weaving paredwith Turkish and Iranian va- techniques, would be handed LASHKARGAH: Some of the demand. Taliban would beat us rieties. Six square metres of this equipment to help them at the end freed prisoners from a Taliban jail every day and would not let us carpet cost up to 30,000 afghanis. of the programme. in southern Helmand province on meet anyone,” he said. He said be- More than 170 poor women Sardar added each trainee re- Tuesday said they were beaten and fore the raid on the prison, the in Kunduz City, the provincial ceived 2,000 afghanis a month in kept hungry for days. Some 60 Taliban moved 34 ANA soldiers capital, and 100 others in Khana- transport expenses. The aim of the people, including Afghan soldiers, to another area. “Taliban impris- bad district are currently receiving training is to help poor women and policemen and civilians, were oned me because my son is a po- carpet-weaving training. One of the work independently and supple- freed from the jail as a result of a liceman,” a 60-year-old resident, trainees, Hamasa, has been weav- ment their husbands’income. joint operation by the Afghan and Mohammad Jan, said. During his ing carpets over the past four It was the first training pro- US special forces in Nawzad dis- five months in Taliban’s jail, Jan months. She has already learnthow gramme for carpet-weavers, he trict of Helmand. “I am from San- said he would eat meal purchased to create strikingcarpet designs. A said, adding more such initiatives gin district. Taliban captured me with his own money and the rebels mother of six, she says: “My hus- would be launched in the future. four years and eight months ago would provide meal to captive band has a mental problem and Peace Organisation has been on the charge of working with po- policemen and soldiers. “ Taliban cannot work. To me, carpet-weav- operational since 2007 to provide lice,” one of the freed men, Ziaud- arrested me for being in police and ing is the only way of feeding my vocational training to women and din, said. Taliban shifted him to they would every day tell me their children and meeting other family promote their economic empow- fairs. of Labour, said they were collabo- carpets made by women. Carpet- more than six jails they run and court has decided I shall be killed,” needs.” Hamasa, who once eked erment in coordination with the Abdul Ahad, director of voca- rating with donors to find a gainful weaving has been a rewarding vo- would beat him, blindfold him and Abdul Samad, a 15-year-old boy, out a living by cooking, washing Ministry of Labour and Social af- tional training at the Department market for handicrafts, including cation for women. (Pajhwok) would not give him food for days, a resident of Musa Qala district. he said. “I passed through a diffi- The Taliban captured him five cult time in the prison. Even once months ago. Another freed local I drank my urine due to too much policeman, Amir Mohammad from thirst. We preferred death over life Greshk district, said that he was in captivity,” he said. Ziauddin said detained by Taliban six months the prisoners would recite Quran- ago. “The Taliban court sentenced FAIZABAD: As part of an initia- tor Mohammad Hassan Kisha- kilograms of wheat for 740 afgha- ernment had provided him refined ly impinged on crop production. ic verses but Taliban would still 17 people including me to death, tive to enhancewheat production and warz said as many as 240 tonnes nis, about 40 percent of the price. seeds earlier as well, but there had Poppy is still being cultivated in call them ‘kafir’ (non-believers) and but Allah saved us when the ANA control poppy, cultivation, distri- of refined seeds would be distrib- He hoped the seeds would lead to a been positive outcome. He be- Argo, Darim and Kasham districts. would beat them. Another rescued launched operations to rescue us,” bution of refined seedsto growers uted to 4,800 farmers in 10 dis- higher wheat yield in the province. lieved the distribution process The distribution of wheat seedswill person, a de-miner, Khalil Rah- he said, complaining about their has kicked off in northeastern Bada- tricts of the province. He said each Bu Ashur Mohammad, a resident should have been launched earlier help wean farmers away from pop- man, from Narkh district of cen- mistreatment by Taliban. Those khshan province. Agriculture Direc- farmer would be provided with 50 of Aas village, complained the gov- because late cultivation negative- pies to other crops. (Pajhwok) tral Maidan Wardak said “about freed included 22 national police- 14 months ago, the Taliban at- men, 22 local policemen, 13 civil- tacked us near the military crops ians and three de-miners, Maiwand in Khorab area. They killed 12 de- Military crops commander in Hel- K h o st w o men ben ef it f r o m miners and arrested three others mand Maj. Gen. Mueed Faqir told including me.” They were kept in Pajhwok Afghan News. Taliban Nadali and Marja prisons for 45 had imprisoned some children and TL O l iv el ih o o d assist an c e days before shifting them to Bagh- aged people for ransom, he said. ran district and then to Nawzad However, a Taliban spokesman KHOST CITY: Impoverished district, he said. “They kept us Qari Yousuf Ahmadi said the raid women heads of families in south- alive for a prisoner swap to get on the prison had been repulsed eastern Khost and Paktia prov- released Taliban prisoners, but the and none of the captives had been inces on Wednesday urged donors government did not accept their released. (Pajhwok) to help address their financial woes. The Tribal Liaison Office (TLO) has launched a programme ‘Those fighting in Kashmir are not to assist widows and poor wom- en with setting up cattle farms as terrorists, but freedom fighters: Musharraf a sustained source of income. Under the programme, women are ..P1 The former president said that of any governing institution. The trained on goat and cattle and poul- he and Vajpayee had similar views vacuum was filled in the form of try farming. Poultry farms have over Kashmir as they both were the NSC and it stopped the threat been established for nearly 100 in agreement over ending the of any army takeover in the fu- widows in in the two provinces. which is being run on a trial basis her family problems, she asked do- bloodshed in the scenic valley. ture,” opined Musharraf. Answer- A TLOofficial in Khost, Nadia in the first year. If it produces good nor agencies for greater assistance- “Now Modi does not share ing a question regarding Osama bin Bawari, told Pajhwok Afghan results, we will extend the pro- to the needy women, including wid- the same view, he wants to intim- Laden’s presence in Pakistan, he News they wanted to provide as- gramme to 23 districts of Paktia ows. Another widow from Tanai idate Pakistan and put Pakistan said he will term the man’s pres- sistance to the needy women and and Khost,” he explained. Cur- district, Gul Zari, runs a farm of on the back foot; things cannot go ence on Pakistani soil an ‘intelli- widows in the area of livestock rently, the programme is being goatsinstead of poultry forward if he does not change his gence failure’ and not an indicator farming. “They process milk into implemented with financial sup- farming.Sheris happy with assis- stance,” said Musharraf. Answer- of some kind of a ‘reconciliation’ yogurt and butter, but they lack a port from the United States Agen- tance, which would help meet her ing a question regarding the Lal with terrorists. proper arrangement for selling cy for International Development needs to some extent. “We sell Masjid operation during his ten- He added that the Al Qaeda MAZAR-I-SHARIF: The pro- acres of land would be also plant- their products. We plan to boost (USAID) in the Mirzaka, Zazai yogurt, but our two cows don’t ure, he said whatever he did at the chief did not stay in Abbottabad cess to establish orchards on 750 ed with different fruit trees in Sa- their revenue with home-made Aryub, Dand-i-Patan districts of produce enough of it to resolve all time was justified and all ‘terror- permanently. When asked about acres of land has been launched in mangan, Sar-i-Pul, Jawzjan and dairy products,” she said. Estab- Paktia and Gurbaz, Tanai and our economic problems. We ask the ists’ should be treated in a similar the pending cases against him and five northern provinces, officials Faryab provinces, he said, adding lishing poultry farms for women Zazai Maidan districts of Khost. government and donors to pay more manner. “Now these terrorists are his refusal to go to the courts, said on Tuesday. The new or- orchards of peach, apricots, al- again raising their heads, the gov- Musharraf said his health prob- and proper animal husband- Wrikhmina, for whom TLO has attention to women like us,” she ernment should take action before lems, particularly a backbone frac- chards are being established in mond, pomegranates, pear, apple, rytraining were among the organ- set up a poultry farm in Gurbaz said. Meanwhile, Khost Women’s it is too late,” said the former army ture, did not allow him to attend Balkh province on 150 acres of walnut and other fruits would be isation’s priorities, she added. Dr. district,called the assistance effec- Network Chairperson Zeba Bar- chief. He also defended the estab- the court hearings. Musharraf’s land this year, National Horticul- established in these provinces. Azhar, TLO head for Khost, said tive to some extent. She runs the akzai voiced her concernat the poor lishment of the National Security interview comes at a time ture and Livestock Programme Balkh agriculture, irrigation and they had provided around 100 farm inside her home. “They gave financial condition of the women Council (NSC) during his tenure when Indian Minister for Exter- (NHLP) manger in the agriculture livestock director Katib Shams women with chickens in the prov- us a total of 90 hens and 10 cocks, responsible for meeting family saying the institution could prove nal Affairs Sushma Swaraj is in directorate, Fahim Jabari, said. He said the aim of the orchards was ince. Each woman has been given with eight bags of chicken feed. needs. She hit out at the govern- useful as the army was a part of Islamabad to partake in the Heart said farmers would also receive to improve economic condition of 100 chickens under the pro- The organisation also takes care ment for not taking meaningful steps it. “When a civilian government of Asia Conference and hold talks orchards related trainings, neces- farmers. He said his department gramme, which is being expanded of disease control and I feed the for boosting poor women’s income performs poorly, people look to- with the Pakistani leadership on sary equipment and seedlings as had already established 6,645 or- to other parts of the province. chickens twice a day,” she said. and failing to implement any long- wards army, which is not a part multiple issues. (DAWN) part of the project. Up to 750 chards in Balkh so far. (Pajhwok) “This is 10 years programme, Although the farm solves some of term programmes. (Pajhwok) Ghan i thun ders, Sw araj diplo m atic at 'H eart o f Asia' co n feren ce . . .

..P1 The Taliban which began as participants to "distance ourselves tion," if this happens, he said. neurial energies of our people will advantage of the zero-duty regime, unanimously adopted constitu- The PM reiterated Pakistan's an Afghan phenomena have be- from non-state actors because the Recalling a speech in Beijing be harnessed". she said. tion. commitment to strengthening its come a regional phenomena, the word of states is the word of pre- last year, Ghani said: "I spoke of He said 36 per cent of Afghans "The heart of Asia cannot func- The prime minister recalled relations with all its neighbours and Afghan president said. dictability." State-to-state, politi- four transitions: The political tran- live below the poverty line of $1.25. tion if arteries are clogged." remarks he made during a visit to regional countries, as well as pro- "The Tehreek-i-Taliban Paki- cal-to-political, military-to-mili- sition, the security transition, the If the line were $2, he said, almost "If Afghan trucks could carry Kabul in May 2015: "The enemies moting regional cooperation and stan launched a vicious attack on tary, economic-to-economic and in- economic transition and, most sig- 70pc of Afghans would be below Indian products to markets in Af- of Afghanistan are the enemies of connectivity. children in Peshawar for which telligence-to-intelligence coopera- nificantly, the transition to turn the it. ghanistan and central Asia, that Pakistan." 'Regional cooperation needed they robustly responded. But that tion are central to the Pak-Afghan culture of the state to being citizen “Poverty elimination is our would be the best way to make He said the Pakistani govern- to defeat terrorism' very response brought them onto relationship, he said. focused." He presented a run- most significant goal and I'm con- trucking from Afghanistan cost ef- ment would continue to support During an introductory ses- our country. Until now we have "We need to create a frame- down of the part Afghanistan vinced that regional cooperation fective and viable and bestow ben- an Afghan-owned and led peace sion of the conference on Tues- launched 40 operations through our work for comprehensive coopera- played to establish regional coop- could allow us to have the types efits to the whole region. India is and reconciliation process "which day, Adviser to the Prime Minis- Special Forces against them... What tion so that, in light of drivers of eration in 2015: of growth that could allow us to willing to receive Afghan trucks on remains the most viable option to ter on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz is the nature of the Taliban and conflict, we can fashion solutions Turkmen railways, transmis- tackle the most fundamental weak- its territory at Attari and create end violence and promote stabili- and Afghan Deputy Foreign Min- how do we deal with it?" that are going to be lasting. Peace sion lines, highways, gas pipelines ness - the poverty and exclusion necessary facilities for Afghan ty in Afghanistan". ister Hekmat Khalil Karzai laid "What is driving the conflict?" is not equivalent to reconciliation. and oil pipelines reaching Afghan- of women, youth and the poor.” products there." The prime minister said Paki- emphasis on regional cooperation the Afghan president asked. "Is it It requires dealing with all the driv- istan TAPI pipeline to be inaugu- Indian Foreign Minister Sush- 'The heart of Asia cannot func- stan was committed to eradicating for defeating terrorism. insurgency or are we dealing with ers of conflict so that a multidi- rated in Turkmenistan ma Swaraj and Afghan President tion if arteries are clogged.' She also terrorism, violence and extremism "In our view, closer regional a much larger conflict?" "The first mensional peace, that truly will Transmission line from Turk- Ashraf Ghani greet each other. - conveyed India’s willingness to from its soil, and that military op- cooperation can play an effective driver of conflict is regional and ensure that all of us live in harmo- menistan to Afghanistan and Paki- DawnNews screengrab join the Afghanistan-Pakistan trade erations Zarb-i-Azb and the Na- role in eliminating the scourge of international terror groups." ny and can count on each other for stan Gas pipeline accords, includ- Speaking of the political tran- and transit agreement. The Indian tional Action Plan were "deliver- terrorism," Aziz said. "Al Qaeda, Daesh and terror- enforcing an agreed set of rules of ing CASA-1000 Charbahar port sition in Afghanistan, he said, “We foreign minister singled out terror- ing desired results". Khalil Karzai called for united ists from China, Russia, Uzbeki- the game, is essential." which India and Iran jointly invest- took the unusual step of forming a ism as the biggest deterrent to "The emergence of newer and action against militancy in the re- stan, Tajikistan, the Middle East "Nawaz and I both do not be- ed in Five-Nation agreements on government of national unity." progress and peace in Afghanistan more threatening terrorist groups gion saying, "We strongly believe are all, unfortunately, present on lieve in blame games. We would railways with China Highway pro- "We have learned from 300 and said India was ready to help like Daesh should also strengthen that today, like never before, re- our soil." 'We are the ones who are like to suggest mechanisms of ver- gramme to link Herat to Iran, Turk- years of discord that politics must Afghanistan strengthen its defence. our resolve against terrorism," he gional and international circum- daily suffering some of the worst ification as to what type of actors menistan and will open way for become a win-win formula, not a She stressed that countries in said. "We should envisage collec- stances require a united and col- atrocities, including the butchering threaten our common interests be- Iran to Tajikistan and China Spe- lose-lose proposition and that is "proximity of Afghanistan" have a tive and coordinated measures on lective approach in the fight of our children and elderly.' Refer- cause with a proper regime of ver- cial economic zones planned in each an important part of the new po- responsibility to help Afghans fight the regional security front to en- against the scourge of terrorism and ring to recent terror incidents in ification, we can fashion the instru- of Afghanistan’s nine airports be- litical culture. "As part of this again terror and saluted the Afghan peo- sure that the gains and struggle extremism." Istanbul, Paris, Sharm-el-Shaikh ments of cooperation." tween 2016-2032 which will be I strongly reiterate our commitment ple and forces for battling the men- against terrorism are durable and Tensions between Pakistan and San Bernardino, he said,"We He said there had been "con- able to earn revenue of $32 billion to lasting and just peace within ace. 'India will extend its coopera- irreversible." and Afghanistan were reflected do have a problem. It is a global siderable uncertainty whether Pa- India-Afghanistan Friendship Dam which all movements that resort tion at a pace Pakistan is comfort- "Finalisation of border man- during the inaugural session as and regional problem it requires us kistan would truly acknowledge a to operate starting spring 2016 to arms convert themselves to po- able with.' At the end, Swaraj re- agement standard operating pro- Karzai, without naming Pakistan, to focus on it systematically and sovereign Afghan state with its le- Next year, will generate 242 mega- litical parties and participate in the ferred to the historic Grand Trank cedures will be helpful in contain- called for an end to support for coherently." Ghani called for a gitimate government and constitu- watts of power - 42MW from political process legitimately," he (GT) road constructed by Sher ing the movement of terrorists Taliban. mechanism of regional cooperation tion." Addressing PM Nawaz, he hydro, 100MW from natural gas, said. "Violence is not the way in a Shah Suri 450 years ago, connect- across the border," he said. "Vision of a peaceful, stable to examine "how the networks of said, "Your words today have gone 100MW from solar energy and democratic society," Ghani assert- ing Kolkata and Kabul. "That road "The massive cross-border and prosperous Afghanistan, terror coordinate, co-finance, what a very long way to assure us in "In short, Afghanistan is rap- ed. In her speech, Indian Minister exists till today, reminding us of movement of refugees constitutes which is in the best interest of the is their linkage with the criminal this regard and that opens up the idly moving towards regional inte- for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj our shared destiny." a security risk and is exploited by region, is far from becoming reali- economy, how is radicalism shap- possibility for sustained dialogue gration towards Central Asia, East focused on increased connectivi- Prime Minister Nawaz Sharf, the miscreants for their nefarious ty unless we put an end to finan- ing and maligning our holy religion among us." He appealed to Afghan- Asia and West Asia." ty, regional trade and openness while addressing the conference, designs," Nawaz said, adding that cial, logistical and ideological sup- and our opportunities for global istan's neighbours, near and far, to "By contrast, our ambitious with Afghanistan, and also "extend- called for an intensification of ef- efforts for stability in Afghanistan port enjoyed by militants in our engagement and dialogue." The help contain terrorists. projects of cooperation for transit ed India’s hand towards Pakistan" forts in order to "move forward should envisage the return and re- region," he said. Afghan president stressed the "Without rules of the game and linkages to Pakistan have still in this regard. "It is time we [Paki- from a conceptual domain to tan- settlement of Afghan refugees to In the past, Afghan officials need to recognise that terrorism where states respect the rights and remained at the level of concep- stan and India] display maturity gible landmarks for the implemen- their homeland in a dignified man- have openly accused Pakistan of "while morally an aberration has obligations of mutual sovereignty tion and aspiration. I hope this and self confidence to do business tation of concrete ideas, projects ner. backing Taliban insurgents. become a sociological system it has and cooperate in the states' rela- conference results in significant with each other... the entire world and visions in the heart of Asia". The theme of the conference, Afghan President Ashraf a distinctive ecology of competi- tionship we will have enormous movement in this domain." is watching and we must not dis- "Working for the achievement the premier said, "reflects our de- Ghani has on a number of occa- tion and cooperation. It has a mor- difficulty containing terrorists." "We inherited a deep recession appoint them." 'It is time Pakistan of a peaceful neighbourhood is a sire for promoting regional devel- sions pointed fingers at Pakistan phology - it is changing its form He called for a meeting regard- bordering on a depression... We and India display maturity and self cardinal principal of Pakistan's for- opment, increasing economic and for not ending Taliban sanctuaries very rapidly - If Al Qaeda is ver- ing regional cooperation in line with imposed an austerity program and confidence to do business with eign policy. We firmly believe that create linkages, improving quality on its soil. sion one, Daesh is version six - And what Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif met all our agreements including, each other.' India will extend its co- peace is vital for development, and of life for our peoples and meeting Aziz, who spoke before the worst feature of it is its pa- earlier suggested, in order to give it for the first time all the revenue operation at a pace Pakistan is development is vital for durable security challenges. Karzai at the meeting, denied the thology." 'If Al Qaeda is version "concrete shape and movement agreements, creating the ground for comfortable with... but let us di- peace." he asserted. "Afghanistan "For us, Afghanistan is more continuing allegations about Paki- one, Daesh is version six.' forward". The dignified return of launching a stimulus package and rect our help to Afghanistan for is a sovereign state and the inter- than a neighbour. Our cordial ties stan being behind Afghan woes. He said terror groups now used refugees, he said, is absolutely cen- a true growth series of pro- now." Swaraj said connectivity also national community fully respects are rooted in shared history, com- "Pakistan wants durable peace violence to "overawe in order to tral to regional cooperation, add- grammes." lies at the heart of India’s own ef- its sovereignty and territorial in- mon religion, cultural and linguis- and stability in Afghanistan. Insta- make the news, in order to put fear ing that it required coordination in He said the packages would forts to push for regional econom- tegrity," the premier said, adding tic affinities and people to people bility in Afghanistan is not in our into the hearts of people," and used terms of "elimination of the threats ensure the Afghan economy moved ic cooperation. Nothing can bene- that the democratically elected relations since time immemorial. interest. We will, therefore, con- violence for the sake of violence. that currently haunt us". into a south reliance system, in fit Afghanistan more immediately government in Afghanistan is the Due to these close bonds, Paki- tinue to support all endeavours While non-state actors have "We could generate double- which "our location, natural than full and direct access to In- only legitimate authority in the stan has always stood by Afghan- aiming at strengthening peace and been used in the past, he called for digit growth and poverty elimina- wealth, water, land and entrepre- dia’s markets to enable it to take country in accordance with its istan," he said. security in Afghanistan," Aziz said. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTAN TIMES

Speaking at a session in Kabul on are leaving." Mark Bowden, Dep- European countries about ending based on the facilities we have on "Migration: Challenges and Op- uty Special Representative for the the crisis. "Migration to European hand," said Sayed Zafar Hashemi, portunities", the United Nations Secretary-General of the United countries is falling into a crisis ... deputy spokesman for the presi- High Commissioner for Refugees Nations Assistance Mission in Af- And European countries are try- dent. Delegates attending the meet- (UNHCR) said insecurity, recruit- ghanistan (UNAMA) said: "Those ing to get out of it," the minister ing said government and the inter- ment by armed opposition groups who leave the country often lose said. "The migrant sender countries national community should make and economic problems are the their right to land and put them- should talk with the migration des- preparations to help those being main reasons driving Afghans to selves at risk and it is also a loss of tination countries about overcom- repatriated. Europe. According to Maya Am- skills to the country and when they ing the crisis," he added. Mean- This comes after a number of eratunga, the UNHCR represen- do return reintegration remains a while, the Presidential Palace European countries decided to tative in Afghanistan: "Fear of challenge." Meanwhile, the Min- spoke out about providing job send a large number of Afghan ref- forced recruitment, intimidation by ister of Refugees and Repatriation opportunities to Afghans. "When ugees back home. Some European anti-government elements, human Sayed Alemi Balkhi said the flow someone's migration application is countries have warned that they rights abuses; those are some of of migrants to Europe is a crisis. rejected and they are sent back to will cut their aid if the refugees are protection reasons why refugees He stressed the need to talk with the country, we will hire them not repatriated.

EMERGENCY CALLS Police 100 - 119 Hospitals FMIC Hospital Local officials in Nangarhar said security forces. going war in Nangarhar." the 201 Selab military crop Zaman appealed to Nangarhar residents to security forces." Behind Kabul Medical Wednesday that Pakistan's Inter- Nangarhar provincial council Head of the National Director- Waziri said the problem was that help Afghan security forces in their Meanwhile military forces University: Services Intelligence (ISI) is sup- said the security forces should be ate of Security (NDS) Gen. Dad Afghan security forces in the area efforts to eliminate insurgent launched an operation two months porting Daesh in their province. able to eliminate Daesh in the prov- Mohammad Harifi said: "Our se- do not have sufficient military groups – including Daesh – in the ago in the province but provincial 0202500200-+93793275595 After visiting the area to as- ince. curity forces are not afraid of any hardware. He said: "We are not province. council members and tribal elders sess Daesh activities in the district, Provincial police chief Fazil threats and bravely defend the asleep – Daesh has not taken con- Kunduzi said: "We call on the believe this has not been success- officials said the insurgent group Ahmad Sherzad said: "We received country and we say to Daesh that trol of Nangarhar. Security forces people whose sons are with insur- ful. Rabia-i-Balkhi Hospital is getting its orders from Pakistan documents which show Daesh di- you can't win a war against the have ruined their chances of taking gents and Daesh to stop them from They have urged government Pule Bagh-e- Umomi but that they do not have the ca- rectly getting orders from outside Afghan security forces." control." Provincial governor fighting the security forces and for to do more to eliminate insurgents pacity to stand up to the Afghan the border and it is causing the on- Meanwhile the commander of Salim Khan Kunduzi has however Nangarhar residents to support the in the province. 070263672 US to award 80 Khairkhana Hospital Fulbright scholar- 0799-321007 ships to Afghan 2401352 students this year The Government of the United Indira Gandhi Children By Farhad Naibkhel from 224,000 hectares in 2014. States plans to award 80 Fulbright Hospital, Wazir Akbar The survey said that opium pro- scholarships to Afghan students duction also dropped to 3,300 this year, including 77 for Mas- Khan, Kabul 2301372 KABUL: Afghanistan Drug Re- tons in 2015. The figure was 6,400 ter’s and 3 for Doctor of Philoso- port 2015, released on Wednes- tons in 2014. Better coordination phy (PhD) Degrees. With an aim day revealed that 12.6 percent of to increase the number of scholar- among Counter Narcotics Police ships every year after more than Ibn-e- Seena adults in Afghanistan are drug ad- (CNP) and other Afghan forces dicts. The Survey has been con- 20 years of suspension, the US Pul-e-Artan, Kabul decreased the casualties of CNP government has awarded scholar- ducted by the Ministry of five troops from 143 in 2014. The ships to around 485 students un- 2100359 Counter Narcotics in a joint ven- survey revealed that Helmand der the Fulbright program since it ture with the United Nations Of- province still remained main cul- was relaunched in 2003, which in- fice on Drugs and Crime (UN- tivator of poppy in the country cludes 89 female students. Darren Wazir Akbar Khan ODC). The Minister of Counter and poppy cultivation was wit- Thies, Assistant Cultural Affairs Narcotics Slamat Azimi said that nessed in Balkh province once Officer, in the US Embassy in Hospital 1.9 to 2.4 million (12.9 percent) again. UNODC Representative Kabul, said “This year we plan to 2301741, 2301743 adults in the country are using for Afghanistan, Andrey Avetisy- have 80 scholarships awarded, 77 drugs. She said that there are 123 ansaid, said that the organization would be Masters Students and 3 addicts’ rehabilitation centers in on need for conduct of another centers should be increased across and 48 percent drop in opium was committed to support the would be Doctoral students. The Ali Abad Afghanistan, which have the ca- survey to find out reasons behind the country, particularly in rural production. The survey showed Ministry of Counter Narcotics in Masters program is between 1 and pacity of treating only 10.7 per- drug addiction. Moreover, she said areas. The survey showed 19 per- a decrease in cultivation to its fight against drugs in Afghani- 2 years, more commonly 2 years Shahrara, Kabul cent of drug users. She stressed that number of the rehabilitation cent drop in poppy cultivation 183,000 hectares in 2015, down stan. and Doctoral program is 5 years.” He said the employment rate for 2100439 Fulbrighters has been recorded at 96 percent, and the vast majority of the students have returned to Malalai Maternity Afghanistan after completing their studies. According to Mr. Thies, Hospital the employment rate for the other ZARANJ/SAR-I-PUL: Hundreds items. He said most of the inmates aid was insufficient to meet their academic exchange programs im- 2201377/ 2301743 of prisoners in northwestern Nim- were poor people and some aban- needs. plemented through the US Embas- roz province and about 250 fami- doned by their families. UNHCR provincial spokes- sy in Kabul has been similar. “For lies returning from Pakistan and But Ghafar said their real man Fahim Hamdard said 225 our other programs it is very sim- Banks Iran to northern Sar-i-Pul prov- problem was the lack of space and Afghan families returning from ilar, Humphrey is about the same, ince were on Wednesday distrib- overcrowded cells as currently 10 Pakistan and Iran and 27 internal- and Foreign Language Teaching Da Afghanistan Bank Assistance and Afghan Junior Fac- uted relief goods, officials said. inmates lived in a cell made for ly displaced families received the 2100302, 2100303 In Nimroz, more than 500 pris- five people. An official of the pris- cash assistance. ulty alumnireport nearly 100 per- cent employment. Most of the oners and around 135 juvenile on, who wished not to be named, Bibi Khala, who was dis- people that are unemployed usu- Kabul Bank prisoners at the correctional facil- confirmed the space problem, placed from Kohistanat district to ally don’t stay that way very long. ity inside the central jail in Zaranj saying the jail was built in 1991 the provincial capital, said she re- When someone gets back, some- 222666, 070285285 were distributed the good by the for holding 50 inmates only, but ceived the aid. She said she was times they don’t immediately get Afghan Red Crescent Society currently 550 prisoners, includ- currently living in a rented house into a job, but for most part peo- Azizi Bank (ARCS). Nimroz ARCS director ing 10 women, were being held at with her family. ple find very meaningful employ- Mohammad Hashim Ilham told the facility. The official added the She was happy for receiving ment in a few months and we have 0799 700900 Pajhwok Afghan News the aid Zaranj detention department had the aid, but: “We cannot decide to a list of actual organizations where was donated by ARCS and the In- 20 acres of land but they had no pay this hundred dollars in house people work and I think you will Pashtany Bank ternational Committee of the Red budget to construct new blocks. rent or buy something to eat. We find that very impressive,” he said. 2102908, 2103868 Cross (ICRC). He said 10 prison- In Sar-I-Pul province, 252 were told to go to Sar-I-Pul city He said there are a number of very ers each were distributed six pack- families recently returning from because the government is provid- notable Alumni with many of them ages that contained soaps, clean- Pakistan and Iran were given away ing housing facilities, but we did are working for government min- Air Services ing powder, tooth brushes, tooth- cash assistance from the United not see such thing so far.” ation director Eng. Abdul Ahmad winter, urging charity organiza- istries, international organizations, pastes, jackets and blankets, dust Nations High Commissioner for Similar views were expressed thanked UNHCR, but said the aid tions and Afghan traders to come UN, other embassies, many of Safi Airways bins, gloves and medicines. Abdul Refugees (UNHCR). by a number of other families who could not meet people’s needs. forward and help the poor fami- them in the private sector as well, He said the families faced se- lies in this time of trouble. (Pajh- Banks and some to the universi- Ghafar, one of the prisoners, said Each family received 100 US received the aid. ties. Worldwide, the Fulbright pro- 020 22 22 222 they were in dire need of these dollars, but the recipients said the Sar-i-Pul refugees and repatri- rious problems in the face of harsh wok) gram has produced 31 heads of state and more than 53 Nobel Lau- Ariana reates. “Basically they all find 2 Afghan Air Force trainees reported missing in US some kind of job that suits their 020-2100270 Thousands of Afghans skills, so we find them to be great resource for the country and that is why that we do the program - Kam Air declare war on corruption because we are helping these indi- 0799974422 The drive w as also conducted in Herat , Balkh, Nangarhar, viduals but really the end result is Kapisa, Parwan, Kunduz and Bamyan provinces, where more that these individuals come back than 3,000 people signed a special banner prepared by IWA. and help Afghanistan. And so help- Hotels ing them get into some of these KABUL: Hundreds of Afghans to inform people there is a day high level jobs is away we can help Safi Landmark marked International Anti-Cor- devoted to efforts against corrup- magnify the impact of the program. ruption Day in the capital Kabul tion. On this day, we should raise I can list a few notable Alumni such 020-2203131 and other provinces, declaring an a voice and join hands against as the Minister of Agriculture As- adullahZamir, he is a Fulbright all-out war on the scourge. graft,” she added. Abdullah Taj, a from 2004. We also have a deputy SERENA Integrity Watch Afghanistan resident of Kabul, also signed the minister in the Ministry of For- (IWA) launched a one-day cam- IWA banner.He said government eign Affairs – Nasir Andisha, and 0799654000 paign against graft in Kabul and leaders had no intention to curb there is a newly appointed depu- other provinces, where thousands corruption. People should, there- tyin the ministry of defense Shoa- of people signed the banners it fore, press the rulers to do more ibRahim,” Mr. Thies said. In re- New Rumi Restaurant had installed. IWA Investigation to banish graft, he maintained. sponse to a question regarding the 0776351347 Director Izzatullah Adeeb told Ahmad Sharif, another young share and contribution of female Pajhwok Afghan News: “Today man, also promised to join the students in the program, Mr. Thies, we launched a campaign titled campaign, accusing senior govern- said “We have sent at least 89 Internet Services ‘I’m committed to transparency, ment officials of involvement in women in this program and we are accountability and integrity’ en- the menace. He believed corrup- trying every year to recruit more UA Telecom courage the Afghans to act against tion would continue as long as qualified applicants among wom- 0796701701 / 0796702702 corruption.” The drive was also unqualified people acted as min- en, and our goal is obviously to conducted in Herat, Balkh, Nan- isters. International Anti-Corrup- make it represent the population.” KABUL: Two Afghan Air Force names, however, were not given. army officers disappeared in Mas- garhar, Kapisa, Parwan, Kunduz tion Day has been observed since Providing an overview regarding Exchange Rate (AAF) students, attending s train- The students have trained sachusetts before reappearing in and Bamyan provinces, where 2003 when the the United Nations the program, Mr. Thies, said “the ing course in the Georgia state of alongside American counterparts the custody of Canadian border more than 3,000 people signed a Convention Against Corruption Fulbright Program is one of the Purchase: America have disappeared, CNN for the entirety of 2015 and do guards. In a statement, base offi- special banner prepared by IWA. was adopted. Afghanistanis the most prestigious scholarships reported on Wednesday. not pose any apparent threat, cials said the two men have been Another IWA official, Roya third most corrupt country in the worldwide, and it is not just a schol- Assigned to the 81st Fighter base officials were quoted as say- at Moody since February 2015 Musavi, asked people to share Asia Pacific region, according to a arship but it is considered a fel- One US$ = Squadron, the trainees did not re- ing. Federal authorities are trying and “were screened prior to their with them evidence and credible report from the Berlin-based lowship because the whole impact 66.83Afs port for duty on Monday at to locate the students. Last year, arrival in the United States more information of corruption. Transparency International. (Pa- of the program is not just academ- Moody Air Force Base. Their according to CNN, three Afghan than a year ago.” (Pajhwok) “We are markingthe occasion jhwok) ic. (KP) One Pound Sterling= 99.51Afs One Euro = 70.31Afs 1000 Pak Rs = 618Afs Mullah Manan Niyazi, a spokes- Taliban's former leader was op- Meanwhile, Mullah Rassoul, science are being threatened with differences of opinion among But a political analyst Nazar man for Mullah Akhtar Mansour's posed to talks, which were sched- from the breakaway Taliban fac- death." This comes amid ongoing Taliban commanders. Mohammad Mutamin said: Sale: opposing Taliban faction, has said uled to start after the opening of tion, addressed his supporters in rumors of Mullah Mansour's "Among key members of the "When military, governors and in- One US$ = that former Taliban leader Mullah the Qatar office. "The day the Ghoryan district of Herat prov- death - at the hands of rival Taliban Emirate and those who are emirate dividuals associated with the 67.03 Afs Omar was killed on the day the Taliban office opened in Qatar was ince recently and criticized Mullah members. However, in a bid to officials the conflicts are not in that Taliban stand beside one of the Taliban opened their office in the same day Mulla Omar was Mansour. He said: "All those who quash the speculation, the Taliban stage that they are killing each Taliban group it is natural that that One Pound Sterling= Qatar, which was about two and a killed but this news was kept hid- are along with Mullah Akhtar released an audio tape last week other," said the person on the tape. side is more powerful." 100.31Afs half years ago. den," Mullah Niyazi said. "The Mansour either they are officials purportedly made by their leader He went on to say: "Be as- But so far a number of clashes One Euro= He went on to say that the recent incidents happening among or scholars who have been paid and in a bid to prove he was alive. sured we are not fighting with any- have broken out between the two news of Mullah Omar's death was Taliban are a game that Iranians, we are aware of this issue. Those The person who claimed to be one for the sake of power, we are factions and analysts believe that 70.91 Afs kept hidden by Mullah Mansour. Pakistanis and Americans started scholars who did not accept Mullah Mansour on the tape did moving in our rightful path which with each passing day disputes 1000 Pak Rs= 626Afs Mullah Niyazi also said the in Afghanistan," Niyazi added. money and did not sell their con- however mention that there were is the Sharia path." increase among the Taliban groups. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTAN TIMES

Sri Lanka well Thaw in Indo-Pak relations as Sharif, Swaraj placed with end of war, new hold meeting on sidelines of summit infrastructure: ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister watching and we must not disap- Nawaz Sharif and Indian Minister point them," she had stated earlier IMF’s Kvintradze for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj in the day while addressing the are conducting a meeting to dis- ‘Heart of Asia’ conference. With the end of a war and recently cuss bilateral issues on the side- She added that India will ex- built infrastructure, Sri Lanka busi- lines of the ‘Heart of Asia’ confer- tend its cooperation at a pace Pa- nesses are well placed to benefit ence in the capital on Wednesday. kistan is comfortable with. from new opportunities, Eteri The meeting is considered cru- Swaraj also stated that connec- Kvintradze, the resident represen- cial as many long standing issues tivity also lies at the heart of In- tative of the IMF, said. are expected to be discussed, in- dia’s own efforts to push for re- Despite external vulnerabili- cluding stalled cricket ties between gional economic cooperation. ties and concerns about fiscal con- the two nuclear-armed neighbours. Nothing can benefit Afghanistan solidation, Sri Lanka can be com- Adviser to the Prime Minister more immediately than full and petitive in the South Asia region, on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and direct access to India’s markets to Kvintradze said. Prime Minister's Special Assistant enable it to take advantage of the She was speaking at the the Tariq Fatemi are also in attendance. zero-duty regime LBR LBO Debrief: Business Cli- Earlier, the opening of the She also conveyed India’s will- mate Outlook of 2016 full-day ‘Heart of Asia’ conference in the ingness to join the Afghanistan- conference held in Colombo on capital today was marked by a Pakistan trade and transit agree- Tuesday. warm welcome from Pakistani au- ment. “Sri Lanka could position it- thorities to visiting dignitaries from The Indian foreign minister self very competitively compared India, Afghanistan, China among singled out terrorism as the big- to the region, because if you look other Asian countries. gest deterrent to progress and peace at South Asia I don’t think any- In her speech, Swaraj focused in Afghanistan and said India was body has combination of relative on increased connectivity, region- ready to help Afghanistan peace and this infrastructure.” al trade and openness with Afghan- strengthen its defence. “The transition from war to istan, and also "extended India’s The national security advisers peace was accompanied with sig- hand towards Pakistan" in this re- of Pakistan and India met for a brief nificant infrastructure scale up. gard. and unannounced meeting in Probably 15 years worth of infra- "It is time we [Pakistan and Bangkok last week, which was fol- structure was constructed in five India] display maturity and self lowed up by an informal and short years,” she said. confidence to do business with meeting between the prime minis- The private sector can now each other... the entire world is ters of Pakistan and India. utilize these two dimensions: peace which comes with longer term expectations, and new infra- Nepal must urgently structure which opens opportuni- ties for businesses. Although a slowdown in Chi- work on finding na, declines in commodity prices and the prospect of tightening monetary policy define the current solution to Terai unrest, business climate, India is a bright spot and Asia will see higher WASHINGTON: Observing a rise ing at a pace that our governments say Indian experts growth than other regions in the in eagerness and willingness of US allow us to move. And really the world. Army to engage in joint exercises pace is set by India in this case. “India is doing quite well, and with Indian Army, a top general of We will move as fast or as slow as South Asia is more insulated from the US Pacific Command has said they want us to at any point of China’s impact because there isn’t the pace of this relationship is be- time. Because we have the resourc- a strong linkage with supply ing set by New Delhi. es in the region to do that now. chains to China.” "We have excellent relation- And that is a great opportunity “We are projecting Sri Lanka’s ship with Indian Army right now for us," he said in response to a growth rate at 5.5 percent growth and it is starting to increase. I question. which is higher than the regional would say it is a hot relationship, Gen Brooks said humanitari- average.” army to army. We have to work an assistance and disaster response Prime Minister Ranil Wickre- through the paces of our own gov- is very important area of coopera- mesinghe recently said Sri Lanka ernments in terms of how much tion. "You certainly saw that in may seek an IMF facility next year we are allowed to do. But, our ea- Nepal earthquake response," he as a prudential measure given un- gerness and willingness to increase said, adding that such a quick di- NEW DELHI: Nepal's ruling coa- the future, with the agitation as- certainties tied to the global econ- work with Indian Army is rising," saster and humanitarian response lition and the agitating Madheshis suming "separatist" dimensions. omy. said General Vincent K Brooks, was anticipated by the armed forc- must work towards a compromise Demarcation of boundaries, The balance of payments is Commanding General of US Army es of the two countries. to prevent secessionist movement distribution of political powers estimated to have recorded a defi- in Asia. "Right now, we are in bilateral in the Terai region that will also be and ambiguity in grant of citizen- cit of 2.3 billion dollars during the Gen Brooks told a defence exercises. We do hope at some detrimental to the security inter- ship to Indian women marrying first three quarters of 2015 in com- writers' roundtable in Washington point of time to try to get to a ests of India, senior officials and Nepalese men in Terai region were parison with a surplus of 1.9 bil- that the US is committed to con- multilateral (level) that prepares us experts in Delhi said. among major issues raised by the lion dollars a year earlier, accord- tinuing bilateral exercises like for the next time (any disaster) that The Narendra Modi govern- Madheshi community. ing to central bank data. 'Yudhabhyas' as "foundation of hot occurs," he said. ment has suggested to both Depu- Under the current law, an In- According to Kvintradze, one relationship", and said the pur- The General's remarks came a ty PM Kamal Thapa and Mad- dian woman marrying a Nepalese of the Sri Lanka’s vulnerabilities is chase of US military hardware by day after Manohar Parrikar be- heshi leaders, who visited Delhi man is granted citizenship of Ne- the external sector due to relative- Indian armed forces opens a door came the first Indian Defence Min- recently, to reach a compromise on pal when she starts the process of ly low reserve coverage and the to a "partner, if not a twin". ister to visit the headquarters of the demands raised in the agitation giving up Indian citizenship. annual current account deficit. "Having said that, we are mov- the US Pacific Command. that has already lasted for 110 However, there is no clarity on the “When oil prices declined it days. issue in the new constitution, ac- should have brought significant People familiar with the devel- cording to Madheshi leaders. They savings to Sri Lanka’s current ac- opments apprehend that young said there are differences between count. It could have been 1-1.5 bil- Madheshis may intensify their the rights enjoyed by Nepalese lion dollars, which is significant in struggle and even launch a seces- born people and naturalised citi- the overall reserve position.” sionist movement that will also zens. “However, most of those sav- impact India's security interests. Buying expensive oil from ings have not materialized. The India has suggested that the war- China is also not a sustainable long- main reason was significant fiscal ring parties work out a formula to term alternative for Nepal, the peo- expansion through increases in sal- establish federal structure to meet ple cited earlier said. "Nepal had aries which leaked out through non- during the next 72 hours. Mr. Ker- aspirations of all sections of the only tried to prove a point that it oil imports.” ry will meet [French Foreign Min- Nepali society. has other options available to meet The other worry is fiscal con- ister] Fabius now. He will also be External affairs minister Sush- its requirements," one of the ex- solidation, Kvintradze said. here for 72 hours. This week we ma Swaraj told a group of visiting perts said. Sri Lanka has one of the low- want a just climate agreement,” the leaders from the Madheshi com- Transporting fuel through the est corporate income tax produc- Minister said. Mr. Javadekar as- munity on Sunday that India was difficult Tibet region will push up tivity rates in the region. serted that there was no question for "broadbased ownership" of the costs of fuel 15-20 times, render- As a result, government pro- of diluting the principle of CBDR. new Nepalese constitution and ing the move economically unvi- jections for revenue increases next “There is no question of compro- favoured a "speedy" political so- able. year look overly ambitious, given mise. He knows that it is funda- lution to the crisis. The agitation by Madheshis, tax proposals outlined in the gov- mental to us and did not come to The Madheshis living in the who have blocked the trading ernment budget. Analysts at the change it.” In an interview to the Terai region of Nepal want better points along the Indo-Nepal bor- conference said the budget deficit Financial Times, Mr. Kerry had safeguards in the new constitution, der for nearly four months now, target could likely only be met said, “India has been more cautious which they claim discriminates has often turned violent and crip- through cuts in capital expenditure. [than China], a little more re- against them. pled supplies to the landlocked Adjustments to the external strained in its embrace of this new India feels if the issue is not country, triggering acute shortage environment are likely to come paradigm, and it’s a challenge,” he addressed effectively, it may of essential commodities including from both the exchange rate, and said. snowball into a "huge problem" in fuel and medicines. interest rates, they said.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry who said India could be a challenge at the U.N. Climate Conference in November, said on Tuesday night that he had “very positive” discussions with Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar. After the meeting, the Minister asserted that there was no compromise on the question of Britain’s international develop- Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (CBDR), which separates poor and rich countries for fixing of ment minister Baroness Sandip responsibilities and distribution of finance, under the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change. Mr. Verma, now in Dhaka, has reaf- Kerry told a small group of Indian journalists that his hour-long discussions with Mr. Javadekar were “very firmed the UK’s support in help- constructive, very positive. We are just working hard, we will keep working. We appreciate the good efforts ing Bangladesh achieve the new of the Indian delegation”. The Environment Minister echoed the sentiment, and said the discussions with the Sustainable Development Goals U.S. would continue. Asked what the issues were for the U.S., Mr. Javadekar cited differentiation among (SDGs). countries [in a future climate agreement] and transparency as among the issues for America. “As you have Of Indian origin, the minister seen all day, we have been having discussions with all groups, all countries. We will meet tomorrow also and is a Conservative member of the House of Lords and took charge of the department of International Development in May this year. Apparent U-turn: PTI shelves This is her first visit to Bang- ladesh. The British High Commission has said that during her visit the plan to protest against ECP minister will meet with stakehold- ISLAMABAD: In another appar- to the Constitution Avenue’s D- the ‘ruling elite’ tried to replace the ers connected to projects support- ent U-turn, the Pakistan Tehreek- Chowk junction, where the PTI ECP members with ‘blue-eyed ed by the UK. e-Insaf has shelved the plan to had protested for 126 days last boys’ next year or if the incum- On her arrival on Tuesday, she demonstrate against the members year in a bid to push the ECP bents remained in office after their reaffirmed Britain’s commitment to of the country’s top election su- members to step down. Insiders tenure expired in June. work closely with Bangladesh to pervisory body and would, in- claimed that Imran had made the help the country achieve the SDGs. stead, wait for them to complete decision in isolation, not unlike the The UK’s support is aimed their term. The Imran Khan-led announcement of launching a civil “at eliminating extreme poverty in party had earlier decided to launch disobedience drive during the par- a decade and ensure that the pro- a protest campaign against the pro- ty’s 126-day Azadi March that had cess of inclusive growth leaves no vincial heads of the Election Com- kicked off last August. Both the one behind” as pledged in the new mission of Pakistan after the judi- decisions have been retracted. The SDGs. cial commission formed to inves- October 4 rally was moved to Oc- “I am delighted to visit Bang- tigate into alleged rigging in the tober 9 for a showdown in the rul- ladesh. Our countries have a strong would stay in Bangladesh and days I want to meet people who ladesh to help transform the lives 2013 general elections rejected the ing Pakistan Muslim League- relationship built up over the years whom she would meet. are benefitting from the UK’s sup- of the poorest, most vulnerable and PTI’s accusations of vote fraud. Nawaz’s stronghold Lahore, ahead and I want to see that become even Officials have told port and also those working hard most marginalised,” she said. Imran had previously announced of the NA-122 by-election. Poli- stronger as Bangladesh flourishes bdnews24.com that secrecy relat- to ensure our help reaches those “UK aid funded programmes that a demo would be held in front cy shift? Regarding the PTI’s and leads its own development,” ed to the visit was necessary be- who need it most. in Bangladesh leave no one behind of the ECP headquarters in the fed- meeting in the capital, Imran had Verma was quoted as saying in a cause of security concerns. “As the biggest bilateral do- and it is crucial that we continue eral capital Islamabad on October told the media on Monday that the statement. The High Commission Baroness Verma in her state- nor in Bangladesh, our aim is to vital work on gender equality and 4, but then the venue was changed party would take to the streets if did not specify how long she ment continued: “Over the next few work with the people of Bang- women’s empowerment,” she said. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTAN TIMES News-in-Brief US conduct- US Istanbul ing 'serious mission partially review' of closed due to ‘ security threat’ alleged Iran The United States consulate in Istanbul was on Wednesday missile test offering only limited services Syrian opposition groups began with a scaled-down staffing due unprecedented talks in Saudi Ara- UNITED NATIONS: The United to information about a possi- bia on Wednesday, official media States is reviewing and seeking to ble security threat, the mission said, in a difficult attempt to unify confirm reports that Iran launched said. ahead of potential talks with Pres- a ballistic missile last month in vi- “Due to information about ident Bashar al-Assad’s regime. olation of U.N. Security Council a possible security threat “The meeting saw a broad par- resolutions, U.S. Ambassador to against the US Consulate Gen- ticipation of Syrian opposition the United Nations Samantha eral in Istanbul, the Consulate groups inside and outside Syria,” Power said on Tuesday. will open with limited staff and the Saudi Press Agency said. "The U.S. is conducting a seri- services” on Wednesday, the Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al- ous review of the reported inci- mission said in a statement. Jubeir welcomed the delegates to dent," Power told reporters after a It said public services, in- the closed-door meeting and ex- meeting of the Security Council on cluding visa appointments and pressed hope for successful talks. unrelated issues. non-emergency services for He then left and the Syrians She added that if Washington American citizens scheduled for began meeting among themselves, confirmed the reports that Iran Wednesday had been “can- an effort expected to continue un- tested a medium-range ballistic celled and will be rescheduled til Thursday. missile on Nov. 21 in violation of for a later date.” Representatives of Syria’s var- U.N. resolutions, the United States The move comes after the ious political opposition groups would bring the issue to the 15- U.S. authorities warned on and military factions fighting As- nation council and seek appropri- December 5 of an “imminent sad’s regime are holding talks for ate action. security threat against the U.S. the first since the Syrian war be- A Western diplomatic source consulate compound” in Tur- gan in 2011. said last week on condition of an- key’s largest city. onymity that the test of a Ghadr- The mission said the U.S. 110, a spinoff of the Shahab-3 mis- embassy in Ankara and consu- sile, was held near Chabahar, a lates in Adana and Izmir were port city near Iran's border with working normally. Pakistan. He said it was a liquid- Istanbul is on high alert for fueled missile with a 1,900 km attacks following three deadly (1,180 mile) range and was capa- bombings blamed on ISIS in ble of carrying a nuclear warhead. Ankara and the southeast of the All ballistic missile tests by country this year. Iran are banned under a 2010 Se- But there have also been curity Council resolution that re- attacks on security forces by The United States’ new envoy to percent of airstrikes conducted by mains valid until a nuclear deal be- the outlawed Kurdistan Work- the coalition it leads against Islam- Russia in Syria targeted ISIS and tween Iran and six world powers ers Party (PKK) and sporadic ic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) the rest hit “other armed groups.” is implemented. actions by the the banned ul- said on Wednesday its priority was “Our air campaign in Syria, we UN report: Iran worked on tra-left wing group the Revo- to seal the last strip of border be- think it’s very effective and we developing nuclear weapo …Play lutionary People’s Liberation tween Turkey and territory held have the data to back that up. The videoUN report: Iran worked on Party-Front. by the ultra-hardline group in Syr- Russian air campaign has different developing nuclear ia. The United States and Turkey objectives quite frankly,” he said weapo … have for months been talking of a at a briefing for the media in Bagh- Under that deal, reached on SNC: Will for Syria joint effort to clear ISIS from the dad. Russia launched airstrikes in July 14, most sanctions on Iran political remaining part of the frontier but Syria at the end of September in will be lifted in exchange for curbs there has been no sign of progress. support of its ally, President on its nuclear program. According solution exists “We are increasing our pres- Bashar al-Assad, with the stated to a July 20 resolution endorsing sure there,” said Brett McGurk, aim of hitting ISIS. that deal, Iran is still "called upon" Head of the Syrian National without elaborating. The West has accused Mos- to refrain from work on ballistic Coalition Khaled Khoja, who The aim is to deprive ISIS of a cow of mostly targeting Western- missiles designed to deliver nucle- is currently in Saudi Arabia for smuggling route that has swollen backed rebel groups fighting As- ar weapons for up to eight years. the Riyadh conference, said its ranks with foreign fighters and sad, and a Reuters analysis of Rus- In October, the United States, there’s a common vision to- filled its coffers with illicit trade. sian Defense Ministry data in Oc- Britain and France called for the wards a political solution. McGurk, who was appointed tober showed almost 80 percent Security Council's Iran sanctions Khoja added that the aim by U.S. President Barack Obama of Russia’s declared targets in Syria committee to take action over a test of the conference is to come up in October, also said that only 30 had been in areas not held by ISIS. by Tehran of a nuclear-capable with a joint consensual docu- missile that month that they said ment for the upcoming transi- violated U.N. sanctions. tional phase on the basis of the So far, no action has been tak- Geneva I and Vienna conferenc- Kerry says to go GCC leaders gather in en by the committee, though Pow- es. Last month, top diplomats er said council members would be from 17 countries - including discussing the issue next week. She key backers and opponents of added that the United States could Bashar al-Assad - agreed in Vi- to Moscow next Saudi Arabia for summit take unilateral steps against Iran, enna on a fixed calendar that though Tehran has warned that it would see a transition govern- Royalty and officials from around would treat any new sanctions as ment set up in six months and the Gulf have arrived in Saudi Ara- a breach of the nuclear deal. elections within 18 months. week for Syria, bia to meet on regional security U.S. Senator Bob Corker, “The major aim lies in unit- issues. The two-day summit be- chairman of the Senate Foreign ing the opposition’s stance gan Wednesday in the Saudi capi- Relations Committee, issued a through the (Riyadh) confer- tal, Riyadh. Saudi state television statement condemning what he ence,” Khoja said. Observers Al Ukraine talks showed dignitaries from around the described as the lack of response Arabiya News Channel spoke Gulf meeting with Saudi King Sal- to Iranian missile violations. with said the Riyadh conference man after arriving at the capital's "Iran violates U.N. Security is tantamount to the last op- international airport. Council resolutions because it portunity to end the Syrian cri- Also on hand to meet the Gulf knows neither this administration sis and unite the opposition leaders was the king's son, Depu- nor the U.N. Security Council is factions or else we’re facing the ty Crown Prince Mohammed bin likely to take any action," said option of the “Somalization” of Salman, who also serves as the nephew, also was there. The meeting comes as a Saudi-led coalition Corker. France said it would pay Syria if participants fail to kingdom's defense minister. Inte- battles a Shiite rebel group in Yemen and amid concerns about the deal close attention to ensure Iran re- reach a common vision. rior Minister and Crown Prince between Iran and world powers over the Islamic Republic's contested spects the ban on ballistic missile Syrian opposition groups Muhammad bin Nayef, the king's nuclear program. tests. began arriving in Riyadh on Tuesday morning in an attempt to unite their ranks before De- cember 18, which is the date UN says 12,000 Syrian refugees set for a New York meeting to discuss a political solution for the Syrian crisis. The Saudi-or- ganized talks, due to start on stranded at Jordan border Wednesday, mark the first time representatives of some of Syr- PARIS : U.S. Secretary of State Sea resort town of Sochi in May. Around 12,000 people who have ia’s various political and armed John Kerry said on Wednesday he The Moscow talks will take fled the war in Syria are stranded opposition factions come to- would travel to Moscow next week place ahead of a possible meeting at the Jordanian border, the U.N. gether since the outbreak of the for talks with Russian President in New York on December 18 on High Commissioner for Refugees country’s conflict in March Vladimir Putin on Ukraine and a trying to push the Syrian political said Tuesday, urging authorities to 2011. The goal is to form a uni- political settlement in Syria. process forward. But Kerry has allow them into the country. fied bloc for talks with Assad Speaking during an event on warned that the New York meet- Warning of “deteriorating hu- that world powers hope can be the sidelines of the Paris climate ing hinges on efforts currently un- manitarian conditions”, the UNH- held before January 1. talks, Kerry said despite its mili- derway in Saudi Arabia to unite CR appealed to the government to tary and political interests in Syr- Syrian opposition groups. prioritise entry for the most vul- Syrians leave ia, Moscow "has been construc- Russia, the United States, Eu- nerable, including the elderly, ba- tive" in trying to find a political ropean and Middle Eastern coun- bies under six months of age and rebel-held Homs in settlement to end the Syrian con- tries agreed last month in talks in pregnant women. truce deal flict. Vienna on a two-year timeline lead- A statement said 11,000 refu- "I’m ... traveling to Moscow ing to Syrian national elections, but gees were in Rukban, about eight Busloads of Syrians including in a week and will be meeting with left many questions unresolved, kilometres from the point where rebel fighters left the last in- him (Putin) and with Foreign Min- most notably the fate of Syrian the Syrian, Iraqi and Jordanian surgent-held area of Homs on ister Lavrov on the subject of Syr- President Bashar al-Assad. borders meet. The remaining 1,000 Wednesday under a rare local ia and on Ukraine," Kerry said. The countries involved in the are in Hadalat, about 90 kilome- truce agreement in Syria's near- "They have helped us in this pro- talks, which also include Saudi tres further west. ly five-year conflict that will cess. Russia has been constructive Arabia, Iran and Turkey, laid out a The areas are in a rocky desert area, devoid of shade, water or veg- shore up government control in helping the Vienna process to plan including formal talks between take place, to be successful, and I the government and opposition etation, the statement said. over the city. “The health situation is dete- The rebels and their fami- think they want a political settle- from Jan. 1. ment there." To achieve that timeline, Sau- riorating, with increasing signs of lies are being moved to insur- diarrhoea, vomiting and acute mal- gent-held areas of the north- He did not elaborate on dates di Arabia is hosting a conference for the meeting. this week to try to unite Syria's nutrition among children,” it add- Rights Watch reported that aid workers say they do not have enough resources to assist the growing numbers west near the Turkish border ed. “If refugees are not admitted of people at the border, and that unless Jordan allows them to move to transit sites, 20,000 people will be under the deal, an example of Kerry often meets with Lavrov divided rebel and opposition during events around the globe, and groups, who are trying to forge a to Jordan and substantial assis- stuck in the border area by the end of the year. The UNHCR noted Jordan’s “tremendous contribution” in the type of local truce U.S. tance not provided, the lives of hosting more than 630,000 refugees. It also highlighted the heavy strain that has put on the country’s President Barack Obama has it will be his second trip to Russia common platform to be able to this year to discuss Syria and negotiate with the Syrian govern- refugees will be at risk in the com- infrastructure and economy, as well as security concerns. Amman says the actual number is 1.4 million, said could happen in Syria more ing winter.” For its part, Human equivalent to 20 percent of the small kingdom’s population. frequently. Homs was a cen- Ukraine. He met Putin in the Black ment. tre of the uprising against Pres- ident Bashar al-Assad. The deal follows a major Syrian army ground offensive to the French police identify third attacker at Paris concert north of the city backed by A 23-year-old man from the east- the investigation is progressing, worst of the November 13 Paris "The more identities that they return, the men claimed they had Cazeneuve, France's interior min- Russian air strikes. Witnesses ern French city of Strasbourg has that the accomplices are found out, attacks. The third was shot by po- can find, the more that the police been horrified by what they had ister, has described as a "particu- saw 15 buses leave the area. been identified as the third armed that arrests happen," he said. lice who stormed the venue with can start to draw a broader net to witnessed in Syria and had started larly dangerous individual" - was Homs governor Talal al-Barazi man involved in the attack on Par- Aggad was reportedly identi- hundreds of people still inside. try to establish the connection," to dribble back to France from Feb- arrested in August 2014 in Turkey told reporters 300 fighters is' Bataclan music hall, police fied using DNA samples provided Most of the group of six men she said. ruary 2014. Fear and confusion in before being handed over to the were on board, together with sources say. by his mother. from Strasbourg who went to Syr- But in terms of catching the Paris after deadly attacks French authorities. Cazeneuve said 400 members of their families. Foued Mohamed Aggad had The two other attackers in- ia with Aggad were arrested in the other suspects, that might take They claimed to have gone to he was an important link between The fighters took with them travelled to Syria with his brother volved in the massacre of 90 con- Meinau area of the city on their some time, our correspondent said. Syria for humanitarian work but various "jihadist terrorist move- light weapons, he said. The and a group of friends at the end of certgoers at the Bataclan - Omar return in May last year and are all At least one suspect, Salah prosecutors believe they were part ments", including ISIL and al-Qae- deal echoes a local ceasefire 2013, a source close to the investi- Ismail Mostefai, 29, and 28-year- in custody on terrorism charges. Abdel-Salam, has reportedly fled of ISIL, which claimed responsi- da's Syrian affiliate al-Nusra Front. agreed in September elsewhere gation said on Wednesday. old former Paris bus driver Samy But Aggad stayed on in Syria, back to Syria. Others 'killed fight- bility for the carnage in Paris. Po- Nearly 1,500 people were watch- in Syria under which rebel In an interview with BFM TV Amimour - had also been in Syria. the source said. ing' Investigators believe two broth- lice suspect the Strasbourg group ing the Californian band Eagles of fighters were supposed to be in Paris on Wednesday, Manuel According to French news re- Al Jazeera's Jacky Rowland, ers from the group of attackers, had been recruited by Mourad Death Metal play at the Bataclan transferred to Idlib, though it Valls, France's prime minister, con- ports, Aggad was one of the two reporting from Paris, said the iden- Mourad and Yassine Boudjellal, Fares, 31, who was known to when the attackers burst in last has yet to be fully implement- firmed the report, as he pledged attackers, who blew themselves up tification of Aggad was significant were killed fighting with the Islamic French intelligence for recruiting month, leaving 90 dead and hun- ed. that France will carry out more with suicide belts packed with ex- as it allows police to establish the State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters through social media and dreds hurt, mostly people under arrests. "What is important is that plosives after the killing spree, the identities of other suspects. group. When questioned on their the internet. Fares - who Bernard 40. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES

We a r e a n a t ion a l in st it u t ion a n d n ot t h e voice of a gov t or a p r iva t e or ga n iza t ion AFGHANISTAN TIMES Editor: Abdul Saboor Sarir Phone No: +93-772364666 E-mail: [email protected] Email: [email protected] The Heart of Asia conference must be more than just diplomatic talk if www.afghanistantimes.af Afghanistan is going to achieve the economic stability it craves. Photojournalist: M. Sadiq Yusufi million annually, generate employ- gional stability, opening new pub- unequivocal signal that Afghani- Advisory editorial board By Richard Ponzio ment opportunities for over lic revenue streams, and improv- stan and its neighbors embrace a 100,000 people, and link the econ- ing conditions to allow for more truly comprehensive approach to Saduddin Shpoon, Dr. Sharif Fayez, Dr. Sultana Parvanta, Dr. Sharifa Sharif, Declining public revenues, the risk omies of Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, substantive regional dialogue. regional problem-solving. Placing of a run on major banks, and a stag- Pakistan, and Tajikistan. Similar Research shows that 50 per- economic goals on par with secu- Dr. Omar Zakhilwal, Setara Delawari, Ahmad Takal gering outflow of refugees all place tangible benefits are projected for cent of peace agreements fail when rity and political goals will improve heavy pressure on Afghanistan’s priority trade facilitation projects, not enough of the people affected people’s livelihoods. Economic Graphic-Designers: fledgling economy. On top of that, natural resource extraction, and by an agreement support it. Suc- stability will increase trust in gov- Mansoor Faizy and Edriss Akbari casualty rates among security forc- transport initiatives. cessful peace negotiations are more ernment and grant it greater legiti- es have increased by 50 percent However, despite that prom- inclusive – and effective – when macy, thereby aiding peace-build- Marketing & Advertising: during the first half of 2015 from ising start in 2012, diplomats with they engage multiple stakeholders ing efforts and strengthening sup- Mohammad Parwiz Arian, 0708954626, 0778894038 the same period last year. These more inclined toward political and and address a sufficient number of port for state institutions. crises threaten the durability of security projects have dominated issues. At present, the Kabul gov- Second, major Heart of Asia Mailing address: P.O. Box: 371, Kabul, Afghanistan Afghanistan’s political and securi- Heart of Asia proceedings. This ernment and its foreign partners economic players in the region, ty transitions. After 14 years of focus has curtailed the much-need- face a growing credibility problem including China, India, the Gulf Our Bank Accounts: Azizi Bank: 000101100258091 / 000101200895656 war, America and the West are ea- ed conversations that include more in the eyes of the Afghan people. States, Kazakhstan, and Turkmen- Printed at Afghanistan Times Printing Press ger to withdraw, yet the rise of the holistic perspectives on regional By combining regional economic istan, should lend political and eco- Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria cooperation and the factors essen- cooperation with political dia- nomic support to the new REC- should change the equation for tial to building durable peace. logue, reconciliation, and the rein- CA investment priorities. China, western countries. In Afghanistan, For example, at a senior offi- tegration of former combatants, a for instance, could expand the in- The constitution says an early exit or inaction by west- cials meeting on Sept. 27, 2015 in comprehensive peace process that vestment goals of its more than 2. From amongst district councils of each province, one individual, elected by the respective ern partners could lead to devas- New York, Heart of Asia member includes a strong economic com- $100 billion Silk Road Economic councils, for a three year term; tating instability. country representatives once again ponent will further incentivize Belt (across Central Asia) and $46 3. The remaining one third of the members shall be appointed by the President, for a five year On Dec. 9, 2015, the Istanbul prioritized the discussion of illicit peace, enhance neighboring coun- billion China Pakistan Economic term, from amongst experts and experienced personalities, including two members from Process on Regional Security and narcotics and emerging security try support, and increase the like- Corridor projects to include at least amongst the impaired and handicapped, as well as two from nomads. Cooperation for a Secure and Sta- threats, including the Islamic State, lihood that more Afghan citizens parts of Afghanistan. Although it The President shall appoint fifty percent of these individuals from amongst women. The ble Afghanistan – the so-called over equally important matters of will accept the outcomes associat- requires continued foreign aid at individual selected as a member of the House of Elders shall lose membership to the related “Heart of Asia” – is convened for regional economic cooperation. To ed with peace negotiations. In other the start-up, this initiative will Council, and, another individual shall be appointed in accordance with the provisions of the law. its fifth ministerial meeting in Is- the extent that economic coopera- words, a skillful and continuous move Afghanistan closer to a lamabad to construct a plan for tion drew focus, it was only to articulation of short- and long-term healthy and more independent Afghanistan and its neighbors. Join- stress the need to go beyond ad economic benefits will motivate economy. These innovations can ing the 14 member nations, includ- hoc or bilateral activities. By ig- Afghan society and neighboring source urgently needed capital ing Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and noring the connection between eco- countries to invest in peace and from private investors and sover- Turkey, will be 28 supporting nomic development and security, remain resilient against inevitable eign wealth funds, and ensure tech- countries (including the United western countries may win the setbacks. nical follow-through so that future States), regional organizations, and next battle in Afghanistan, but they Cognizant of Afghanistan’s diplomatic meetings amount to international organizations. Since will lose the war. current growth and revenue crisis, actionable commitments, not just November 2011, the Heart of Asia This half-hearted approach to the latest RECCA action plan, talk. has sought to combine regional economic issues is worrisome: which exists to boost investment Rethinking the West’s with- No disappointment political dialogue with security without greater focus on the econ- in Afghanistan and the region, re- drawal and Afghanistan’s regional and economic cooperation to re- omy, the violence will not end. inforces how the country’s eco- economic future spond to challenges facing Afghan- Without investing the necessary nomic future depends on transit, istan and its wider region. The plat- time and analytical skills and forg- trade, and extractives. Except for President Obama announced form’s key strength is the pursuit ing the public-private partner- the illicit opium trade, Afghanistan his decision in October to main- this time of regional cooperation, made pos- ships, near-term political and se- exports very little – $514 million tain a presence of 5,500 U.S. sol- sible by annual ministerial meet- curity concerns will continue to in 2014, half of that going to Paki- diers in Afghanistan through 2017. At last, some of kind of signs of hope emerged. Afghanistan and Pakistan ings and six regionally driven con- trump economic initiatives that can stan – and maintained a trade im- This military support creates some co-chaired the ‘Heart of Asia Conference—Fifth Istanbul Process. The fidence-building measure (CBM) ensure fiscal sustainability and use balance of $7.12 billion in 2014. breathing space for Afghanistan bigwigs from across South Asia, China and the world, made the confer- working groups. trade to unite the region. These To counter the effects of the coun- and its allies to reassess regional To revitalize Afghanistan’s fal- include programs like CASA-1000 try’s growth slowdown from 17.2 conditions while safeguarding vi- ence influential. It was marked by a warm welcome by high authorities in tering political and security tran- – an effort to develop a clean ener- percent in 2011 to 6.4 percent in tal interests. Recalling the positive Pakistan to the visiting dignitaries. There was no brinksmanship, but a sitions, the Heart of Asia should gy system between four Central 2014, and the progressive curren- influence of its presence abroad little bit openness. The words and promises must be about making im- support a strategy for economic and South Asian nations including cy devaluation, the action plan following World War II and the development, one that includes job Afghanistan and Pakistan – and prioritizes near-term transit (in- Korean War, the United States pacts rather than defusing the cross-border tensions just with the jugglery creation and harnessing Afghan and transportation and trade facilita- cluding in the energy sector) and should weigh the costs of inaction of words. Any attempt aimed at raining this south Asian parade must not foreign private sector financial and tion projects. The current Heart private capital opportunities. In and exit against the tangible bene- only be condemned by the regional and world powers, but the party which intellectual capital. Integrating Af- of Asia configurations do not lend five to ten years, shoring up trade fits of a sustained commitment to ghanistan’s economy within the themselves to serious, technical in extractives and other products Afghanistan. A U.S. military pres- attempts to dominate the outcomes in post-conference scenario must be South and Central Asian regional impact analysis and problem-solv- will be the action plan’s focus, pro- ence now will come at a fraction of held responsible for undermining efforts aimed at closing the South Asian economy offers the United States ing, because key players from rel- vided the necessary private and the blood and treasure expended and its Western allies real hope to evant economic ministries and the public investments to begin repair- since 2001 and, along with the eco- nations together. When policymakers change their hearts the “Heart of reduce assistance for essential pub- private sector are often absent. ing the trade imbalance are made in nomic stability measures outlined Asia” will be at peace. The theme of the conference is “increased cooper- lic services and ensure the sustain- Little seems to be accomplished in the next 12 to 36 months. above, will increase American ac- ation for countering security threats and promoting connectivity in the ability of Afghan security forces, a timely and effective manner. The Leveraging the opportunities cess to growing Eurasian markets while preventing foreign terrorist Heart of Asia platform could rein- for stability and economic growth and counter the rise in violent ex- region. groups from making further in- vigorate Afghanistan’s economy, outlined above will require a new tremism, narcotics, and refugee To translate the promises made during the conference and to move roads. but its recent meetings have been level of cooperation between the flows. forward while leaving behind the decades-old deadly mindset, only then Walk the walk toward econom- bogged down by ill-prepared bu- Heart of Asia and the RECCA. In conclusion, it’s the region, ic peace-building and cooperation reaucratic negotiations that pro- Among Afghanistan and its part- stupid. Renewed investments and we can dream about peace and security, enhanced trade and education ties. With the introduction of two duce no meaningful impact. ners, RECCA should lead in dis- other incentives for building sus- Though, President Ashraf Ghani’s statement was termed thunders and that priority CBMs in June 2012 – one Revitalizing regional econom- cussions of economic and techni- tainable private and public eco- of Sushma Swaraj diplomatic, however, Ghani spoke softly when he talked on trade, commerce and invest- ic cooperation to advance peace cal matters and be supported by nomic partnerships across Afghan- ment, and the other on regional in- and self-reliance rigorous research and dialogue with istan’s borders is the only model about ‘unintended consequences of Pakistan’s military security opera- frastructure – the Heart of Asia In July 2011, then-U.S. Secre- prospective private and public in- that offers Afghans a realistic tions. adopted the 15 Regional Invest- tary of State Hillary Clinton an- vestors. The Heart of Asia can then chance of progress toward stabili- In deciphering, the lexicologists who were watching the conference ment Projects and Policy Priori- nounced U.S. support for a “New fortify the economic proposals by ty, job creation, and greater self- ties introduced at the fifth Region- Silk Road” initiative to help the translating the concrete economic sufficiency. But success requires with keen interests must decipher his words in a positive way, but as Ghani al Economic Cooperation Confer- Afghan government and business incentives and goodwill generated immediate action and political re- chose words carefully, no body must be allowed to rain on Ghani’s parade. ence on Afghanistan (RECCA) in community accelerate cross-bor- from progress in Afghanistan into solve, particularly from China, In- He relied on soft diplomacy. Ghani started with thanks to Pakistan for March 2012, each designed to gen- der commercial ties and, over time, positive political and security out- dia, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, Saudi erate public revenue, jobs, and re- transform the country into a re- comes for the region. Arabia, and Turkey. The right kind hosting Afghan refugees. He also touched upon the issue of internally gional interdependence. The Cen- gional trade and transit hub. Re- So what needs to happen at of regional platforms exist; it is up displaced persons (IDPs) from North Waziristan. The people of FATA must tral Asia-South Asia Electricity gional economic cooperation be- this week’s Heart of Asia Minis- to political leaders now to seize Transmission and Trade Project tween Afghanistan and its neigh- terial? the opportunity presented by the be a cause of ‘tug-of-love and not tug-of-war. Then we can hope for mira- (CASA 1000), for example, will net bors could provide the fundamen- First, a full endorsement of the Heart of Asia this week in Islama- cles to happen. If they are used as fuel of terrorism, the region will always Afghanistan an estimated $175 tal building blocks for creating re- RECCA action plan will send an bad. (Courtesy: Foreign Policy) be at chaos and mothers on both sides of the Durand Line will keep re- ceiving the corpses of their beloved sons. Is this what we want? They were given camps and other facilities in the not-so-much developed provinces, Khost, Paktiya and Paktika. This clearly shows that we are being affected by terrorism and Talibanization alike, then why not to enhance joint ef- forts. Our collective densities are linked together in one way or the other. The unintended consequences pushed the people of the tribal belt to make mass exodus and forced Kabul to host nearly 350,000 to 500,000 IDPs from FATA. It should be thought provoking the people and government have been fighting on behalf of all of the people in South Asia and even the international community. Anyone who is trying to fane the fire of terror- ism in the region cannot be friend of the people of the region as this terrorism has caused the death of millions of people, thousands of people left homeless and even amputees. This is a sheer manifestation of Mus- lim and Muslim violence when it comes to Afghan-Pakistani people where- as it is a naked aggression against humanity when it comes to violence between Pakistan and India. What Sushma Swaraj said that it was time they—India and Pakistan, display maturity and self-confidence to do busi- Afghans ness with each other….as the world is watching them with greatest hopes Terrorism attached therefore, they must not disappoint them. 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THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES The National Front’s victory is a defeat for France

By Richard Giragosian Russia's capacity for rapid power projection has been un- expectedly successful, catch- ing many Western observers off guard. Beyond the Ukrainian the- atre, Russian military opera- tions have steadily expanded from assertive sorties violating the airspace of several NATO member countries to a more sophisticated campaign in Syr- ia. And with a missile launch from Russian naval forces in the Caspian Sea, this included a more potent display of force capability. Yet, it is not the impressive degree of effective power pro- jection that comes as the only surprise. Rather, Russia's force posture has been equally as- sertive, marked by an expan- sion of its presence through- out the wider region. Can Turkey and Russia re- solve their dispute? Against this backdrop, the downing of a Russian fighter by Turkey near the Syrian bor- der has sparked a critical con- This latter move by Russia sian move was also made with and logistical support, this may marks, and have insisted on means that the National Front frontation between Russia and By Agnes Poirier how mainstream the party now would rather see France bat- is already evident and includes the more conventional deploy- only further weaken and limit Turkey. a range of steps, similar to the ment of both combat and trans- Western influence and leverage “Shocking” is probably the was thanks to a relatively tling terrorism on its own when As this crisis continues to successful agreement with Cy- port helicopters to reinforce its in the broader South Caucasus term most used by French ana- young new leader, Marine Le it is obvious to all that this fight rapidly escalate tension, Rus- prus to secure emergency land- military base in Armenia. region. lysts, and the European media Pen. not only concerns all Western sia is moving quickly to bolster ing rights. Although UK forc- This move is also directly For the West, the paucity at large, to comment on the The fact that this twice-di- democracies but also requires its position throughout the es are already using their bases related to a policy to increase of policy options and the in- surge of Marine Le Pen’s Na- vorced, single mother is open- closer cooperation between al- wider region. in Cyprus for their air opera- Russian pressure on Turkey, herent weakness of its position tional Front party after the first ly pro-gay rights and has dis- lies. For Russia, the crisis with tions in Syria, this agreement and perhaps to provoke a re- in the region only suggest a round of France’s regional elec- tanced herself from fundamen- It seems, in fact, that the Turkey is directly related to a goes well beyond a similar ac- sponse from the NATO alli- further deepening of Russian tions. Founded by her father talist Catholics have also National Front does fight a lot deeper confrontation with the cord with the French and in- ance. For Russia, which not power and influence. Jean-Marie, “le FN”, known helped hugely in broadening - it fights the fight against rad- West. And as a key NATO cludes a Cypriot offer of the only maintains a Cold War-leg- Equally distressing, as the throughout France by its acro- her appeal, and indeed, placed icalism. For instance, on the member, Turkey has also con- use of its own facilities for the acy base in Armenia, but also key strategic frontline state, nym, has come out on top in the party in the mainstream of subject of closing down web- tributed to the escalation of evacuation of Russian nation- guards the closed border be- Turkey's own interests are in- six of the 13 French regions. French politics. In a telling ex- sites harbouring jihadi propa- tension. als from the larger region. tween Armenia and Turkey, the creasingly diverging from The French left is only ercise, the National Front has ganda, Le Pen opposes it, too By turning to NATO for Another set of recent Rus- aim may be to force NATO to Western strategic ambition, coming first in two regions often threatened to sue jour- afraid that affiliate extreme-right support in the immediate after- sian moves to enhance its po- back down, thereby disappoint- especially as it seems more in- (Brittany and Aquitaine), and nalists if they presented it as websites might suffer the same math of the shooting down of sition can be seen in the de- ing Turkey's already high ex- tent on targeting the Kurds than Nicolas Sarkozy’s rightist par- being “the extreme-right”. fate, and be accused of incit- the Russian warplane, and then ployment of the modern S-400 pectations from its Alliance on taking on Islamic State of ty in four (Pays de Loire, Au- Last but not least, the Na- ing hatred. by launching its own military air defence systems at the Rus- partners. Iraq and the Levant. vergne, Normandy, greater Par- tional Front has, and perhaps Also, Le Pen keeps point- operations in northern Iraq, the sian base in Syria, as well as At the same time, the Rus- And as the rivalry between is). Even if a Republican alli- most importantly of all, con- ing her finger at immigrants and stage is now set for a more di- the recent dispatch of the same sian move to increase its mili- Turkey and Russia in the region ance will probably shape up stantly hijacked and appropri- refugees, but an overwhelming rect confrontation. air defence system to the Arc- tary presence in Armenia may escalates, the South Caucasus during the week, before the ated itself potent symbols of majority of the suicide bomb- The Russian response to tic. have a direct impact on the re- will remain an arena of compe- second round of the elections, the republic, such as secular- ers who struck Paris were the Turkish incursion in north- But Turkey is also seeking gion's already delicate balance tition and confrontation for the fact that two and perhaps ism. This has been purely tac- French nationals. ern Iraq, which consisted of the to bolster its position, and re- of power. That may do little to some time. three regions covering large tical and devoid of sincerity. Stopping refugees from ar- deployment of Turkish troops cently secured an important deter and may actually encour- Richard Giragosian is the swaths of France, may end up If Marine Le Pen has reno- riving in France is not going to and tanks to Mosul, will prob- agreement for a new military age Azerbaijan to initiate mili- founding director of the Re- being managed by the extreme- vated the party and made it solve the problem of home- ably be twofold. In response, base in Qatar, a significant tary operations against Arme- gional Studies Center, an inde- right is a historically significant more “acceptable” for millions grown jihadists. Besides, per- Russian operations will likely move for the Turkish military, nia, in an escalation of the pendent think-tank in Yerevan, event. of French voters, the facts ceptions that France continues target the Turkmen rebels, Tur- which is not traditionally posi- Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Armenia. After the Paris attacks of show that on topics such as the to support Syria’s President key's local allies within north- tioned beyond Turkish territo- Moreover, as Armenia has The views expressed in this January 7 and 9, and Novem- fight against terrorism, her par- Bashar al-Assad and Russia’s ern Syria, in a bid to counter ry, with northern Cyprus as the already been drawn into sup- article are the author's own and ber 13 of this year, some ob- ty has, in the words of the po- President Vladimir Putin, will do Turkish influence on the sole exception. An additional, porting Russian operations in do not necessarily reflect Al servers in France, and it seems litical analyst Caroline Fourest, little to curtail ISIL’s expanding ground. Russia may also con- more tactically significant Rus- Syria by proving operational Jazeera's editorial policy. many voters, thought that Le “not only offered the wrong reach in Syria and Iraq. sider an added move to assist Pen and her party were the diagnosis, but also presented According to Fourest, sec- Kurdish forces in their fight best-placed to tackle the rise the wrong solutions”. ularism and feminism are the against Turkey. of radicalism in and outside To fight terrorists at home two most powerful weapons in A second likely Russian re- France. They imagined them and abroad, intelligence gath- the fight against radicalisation sponse will be to broaden the the toughest, and potentially ering and sharing is of the es- at home, however, she says: battle space. This would entail the most efficient, to respond sence. However, Le Pen’s MPs, “Marine Le Pen’s party is the diplomatic pressure on Iraq, to the enemy calling itself the senators and MEPs have vot- least secular of France and the exploiting Baghdad's frustra- By Yossi Mekelberg ly to remain quite grim. It is made the organisation. Israel’s cynical Islamic State of Iraq and the ed against a recent law giving least feminist.” tion over Turkey's military in- worse in places ravaged by war and criticism of UNWRA’s work de- Levant (ISIL). They couldn’t be more resources and power to If elected this week, the Na- cursion in Mosul and enhanc- As the winter is fast approaching conflict. For UNWRA the irony is liberately ignores the fact that the France’s intelligence services. tional Front said that it would and the skies over Syria are filling that in an ideal world there would agency spares it from taking re- further from the facts. Astute ing access to Iraqi airspace for not be any need for it to exist. A sponsibility for the dire conditions strategy We must, however, They have also voted against cut subsidies to associations with jet fighters from almost ev- Russian forces, and a more ery corner of the world, it is im- genuine political solution provid- of the refugees, especially in Gaza start by recognising that Le the creation of a pan-European helping women in impover- ambitious campaign to portant to remember also the plight ing a comprehensive and just solu- and the West Bank, which it large- Pen and her entourage have Passenger Names Record ished areas gain access to ser- strengthen its own position and of the refugees and displaced peo- tion for the refugees would make ly created. Israel blames UNWRA the role of the agency redundant. for perpetuating the Palestinian followed a very astute strate- (PNR) which could track the vices, such as abortion clinics. posture in the wider region. ple in the region. For the first time since the end However, those who block a peace- refugee issue and for taking politi- gy since taking over the party travelling of potentially radica- That six million French vot- Turkey's own interests are ful solution are the ones who are cal sides with the Palestinians. lised people, and they have ers now trust Marine Le Pen to of the Second World War there are in January 2011. increasingly diverging from more than 59 million people quick to criticise the role of UN- Conveniently, Israeli governments, They have purged the par- voted against more coopera- keep them safe from terrorism Western strategic ambition, around the globe who are either WRA and its work. Rhetoric aside, present and past, employed these ty of its most xenophobic mem- tion between European police is certainly a tribute to the Na- especially as it seems more in- refugees, displaced or asylum seek- in the absence of peace it is an im- arguments, ignoring that their in- forces. tional Front’s cunning rhetoric; ers. It is not a phenomenon that is perative that the humanitarian and transigence contributed to the lack bers and representatives, have tent on targeting the Kurds than developmental needs of the Pales- of a long-term solution for the Pal- evicted anyone who publicly Hatred for the EU but it is also, sadly, a defeat for unique to the Middle East, though on taking on Islamic State of the region has definitely had more tinian refugees across the region are estinian refugees. makes racist or anti-Semitic re- Their hatred for the EU France. Iraq and the Levant. than its fair share. These people met. These needs can only success- UNWRA’s challenges have who lost their homes, livelihood fully be provided for through close constantly increased since its in- and often their way of life, repre- cooperation between UNWRA, ception. The combination of pro- sent a grave facet of the human cost the donor countries which provide longed occupation in the West of not preventing or ending con- the financial support, the host Bank, blockade and periodical LETTER TO THE EDITOR flicts. Those who block a peaceful countries and the refugees them- wars in Gaza and the growing po- solution are the ones who are quick selves. Failure to find permanent litical instability in some of the host to criticise the role of UNWRA and solution countries, have a great impact on its work. There are more than 19 No one but UNWRA has the the organization. It became a trag- million refugees worldwide, and of devotion, leadership and expertise ic routine in Gaza, which endured them 5.2 million are Palestinian, to sustain so many refugees in such three massive rounds of hostilities who are cared for by United Na- a complex and uncertain environ- with Israel, which in addition to tions Relief and Works Agency ment and to operate with limited the appalling loss of lives, also saw (UNRWA), which was established resources. It provides shelter, ed- infrastructure including housing, 65 years ago. Considering the ever ucation, health, social services, and hospitals and schools destroyed or increasing needs and demands, lim- microfinance. Nevertheless, its at least badly damaged. This de- President Ashraf Ghani is expected to visit Pakistan to attend the heart of Asia conference in Islamabad. Main focus during ited resources and the constantly very existence is a constant remind- lays any plans for continuous de- the visit will be on peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban. Most of the people of Afghanistan are still changing political terrain, what is er of the failure to find a perma- velopment. Syria: A new dilemma doubtful about Pakistan’s role in the peace process. Pakistan should be asked to target the Taliban militants sectaries on its requested of UNWRA is nothing nent solution. This also creates The civil war in Syria presented a soil, if he truly want to bring peace to Afghanistan, or at least give up its support to militant groups. short of performing miracles. The duality in the attitude of the refu- whole new set of issues for the case of the Palestinian refugees gees to UNWRA. As grateful as lives of refugees and UNWRA Afghan government should not waste its time with these mere promises of peace talks. Usually peace talks give the they are to UNWRA for its ser- employees. Fourteen members of Taliban time to receive equipment during winter to launch coordinated attacks in summer. Thus, the presents somewhat different chal- lenges than other refugee commu- vices, for being a voice for them the organisation’s staff have been government should be very careful in its policy towards Pakistan and should have a clear stance towards nities. Their prolonged predica- and even creating employment, for killed since the beginning of the the Taliban. ment, since 1948, combined with them it also represents the failure conflict in Syria and thirteen are Hamid Khan, Kot-e-Sangi, Kabul contradictory international pres- to bring an end to their status as missing. Self-evidently there is a Letter to editor will be edited for policy, content and clarity. All letters must have the writer’s name and sures and the lack of a satisfying, refugees. growing demand for UNWRA’s address. You may send your letters to: [email protected] let alone just, political solution in Israel’s cynical criticism of services in the Palestinian refugee the offing make their case rather UNWRA’s work deliberately ig- camps of Syria, and for those who unique.Four generations of refu- nores the fact that the agency fled to Lebanon and Jordan and gees The tragedy of the conflict spares it from taking responsibili- became refugees for the second between Israel and the Palestinians ty for the dire conditions of the time in their history. One of the Disclaimer: is to a large extent epitomized by refugees, especially in Gaza and paradoxes for those who lead the suffering of four generations the West Bank, which it largely UNWRA, especially in these dif- of Palestinian refugees, who are created. Yossi Mekelberg It is also ficult times, is conducting long- The views and opinions expressed in the articles are those of the author(s) dispersed between Jordan, Leba- the unwarranted duality in the Is- term planning without being seen non, Syria, the West Bank and raeli government’s approach, and as acknowledging that millions of and do not reflect the views or opinions of the Afghanistan Times. Gaza. Without a political solution, that of some of the donor coun- Palestinians are going to remain their status and conditions are like- tries, that complicates the work of refugees for the foreseeable future. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES

As boats carrying thousands of to help set up a second kitchen in refugees from war-torn countries Lesbos, he saw that refugees were including Syria continue arriving on housed in makeshift shelters that Greek shores, an ecological crisis lacked roofs. He also noticed that is also emerging as the detritus nearby there were dozens of rub- they leave behind piles up, envi- ber boats with materials that could ronmental groups say. be used in the shelters. Once he In November more than 3,000 and other volunteers used plastic refugees arrived daily on the Greek and rubber to make roofs, they island of Lesbos, a common land- came up with other ideas to use ing point. About half of the the discarded material. 660,000 refugees who have “It’s addressing an ecological reached Greece this year have land- problem and human problem,” ed on the 630-square mile island Mexis said. of about 86,000 people, according After refugees arrive in Les- to the United Nations refugee agen- bos, “they leave all the clothes, life cy UNHCR. vests, and other materials — en- Refugees have left behind tire beaches are transformed to or- mounds of life jackets and rubber ange and black,” Mexis said. dinghies as they continue their Now that volunteers have col- journeys deeper into Europe. What lected the materials, the next step hasn’t been piled up at a nearby is to sort them and finish the de- dumpsite has been left along shore- signs and dimensions of the prod- lines, threatening to pollute the is- ucts. land and surrounding waters. “Then we will know, for ex- In response, an informal coali- ample, we need two life vests to tion of volunteers has devised a complete one bag,” Mexis said. plan to recycle some of these ma- Lesbos Mayor Spyros Gali- terials into products like back- nos met with Mexis last week to packs to be sold to the public, or discuss the plan. Galinos, Mexis temporary shelters for refugees. says, is supportive of the project Unemployed Greeks can be hired and is looking into ways he can to help make the products, volun- help, whether it’s trucks to trans- teers said. port the materials or space to cre- “It’s all about up-cycling and ate a small factory. transforming garbage in landfills “They want a good story out into products,” Jai Mexis, a Greek of Lesbos,” Mexis said. “If this is volunteer, told Al Jazeera. “They successful as a pilot project then will be used to create new prod- it can be used in other places.” ucts — from bags to raincoats to The volunteers said they need calendars — we can sell to get to raise initial funding for machin- money to refugees and support ery to manufacture the products, unemployed Greeks.” but once the products begin to be About 100 volunteers, most- sold the project will be self-sus- ly from Greece and other Europe- taining. an countries, began the first phase “What we’re trying to do is of the project last week, collecting help unemployed Greeks and give waste and cleaning up Lesbos’ them opportunities … this is the shores, according to volunteer Elis- positive side of a crisis,” Mexis abeth Dimitras. said. “This is something I really Life jackets urge younger people to do. Youth Plans for upcycling of life jack- must look for unconventional jobs, ets left behind by refugees on the October in response to the refugee groups could keep up with the tain their actions through fundrais- strangers. gee camp. He also has helped set create jobs instead of finding one. Greek island of Lesbos.Jai Mexis / crisis. After seeing the problem for needs of refugees, Dimitras — like ing or by setting up nonprofit or- Mexis, who is helping design up a kitchen where volunteers cook Jobs in the system don’t exactly The Life Vest herself and realizing that neither many other European volunteers ganizations, while others simply products to be made from the dis- for refugees or Greeks in need in give us moral satisfaction in our Dimitras, who lives in Athens, aid from Greece’s austerity-hit — gave up her job to help refugees use their vacation days and leave carded materials, had previously Athens. generation — why not try differ- began volunteering in Lesbos in government nor humanitarian in Lesbos. Some volunteers sus- family and friends behind to help worked in Jordan’s Zaatari refu- When Mexis recently decided ent things?” Meet t h e w om an fr eein g Mau r it an ia’s slaves Lebanese politician In a co u n t r y w her e s la v er y ca n b e a s m u ch a p s y cho lo g ica l s t a t e a s a p hy s ica l o n e, Sa lim a t a La m t a ck les it ho lis t ica lly . casts doubt on When I got off the plane at the is slaves who perform the desert against social injustice It is Ra- Mauritania along the Senegal Riv- eyes and wonder, since there is Nouakchott International Airport, economy's most demanding work: madan when I visit and the tem- er, and says of her paternal grand- obviously no plumbing and no I had just flown over miles and When Lam introduces me to a re- perature in Nouakchott has risen parents, who housed and educat- outhouse, how they are bathing presidential deal miles of the Sahara Desert, look- cently escaped family of slaves, I to its typical summer high of some- ed her: "They made me what I am and where they go to the toilet. ing out of the airplane window at learn that the young children in the where around 43 degrees. Although today." In 1968, Lam succeeded in Lam had arranged for an English- so much endless, timeless sand that family had been made to herd cam- I have fasted through plenty of entering her sixieme, the first year speaking student from the Univer- the dunes seemed, to my mind, els - an especially arduous job in holy months since I converted to of secondary school under the sity of Nouakchott to accompany like whitecaps on an ocean. When this harsh climate. And it isn't just Islam some 20 years ago, the ex- French educational system, at the me on the visit, and the happy, I got off the plane at the the landscape that makes quanti- treme heat here is making me rea- College des Jeunes Filles, and made sweeping man has come along too. Nouakchott International Airport, fying this problem so difficult. lise that I may need water. But, the move 317km north to He starts speaking to me in Has- I was landing in a country wholly Owing to the caste-based nature thankfully, when Lam picks me up Nouakchott to attend. It was as a saniya Arabic, and the student be- apart from the place from which of Mauritanian slavery, it also from my hotel to take me by taxi young student in Nouakchott that gins translating. It turns out that I'd come. Mauritania, in western takes on a psychological element. to the offices of SOS Esclaves, she canvassed for the Mouvement the happy sweeper is the escaped Africa, is a cloistered kind of coun- Mauritanians tend to be born into which are in an unassuming white National Democratique, which was woman's brother. He shares their try, an Islamic republic with un- vocations, and 'slave' is one of concrete building in a rather quiet founded in 1968 as a semi-clan- story. After his own escape, he be- paved roads and street corner mon- them. No words feel necessary to part of the city, I quickly learn that destine organisation with a left- gan searching for her, he says, but eychangers. It is a country that describe a condition accepted by she is exactly the kind of person wing agenda that opposed the do- the local government in her region only got its first working ATM in so many of those who are born who will offer water before I feel mestic policies and foreign align- claimed it had no record of her ex- 2004, a country whose television into it, and slaves do not always the need to ask for it. And when ments of then-President Ould istence. Various emissaries from and radio stations are entirely readily identify themselves as the taxi driver asks a probing ques- Daddah. "I learned the fight against SOS Esclaves, including Boubacar state-owned, a country where, ac- such. What is more, the Maurita- tion about my obvious foreignness, social injustices then," she says. Messaoud himself, travelled north cording to UNESCO, 67 percent nian government itself maintains a she tells him that I am her petit "The years passed, but watching in search of the woman, but no one of adult females can neither read stance of quiet denial regarding the soeur - little sister - and, having social disparities did not desensi- could find her in the vast network Talks aimed at ending Lebanon’s support for the 80-year-old Aoun nor write. At the airport, I looked scourge that flourishes within its thus graciously dismissed him, tise me. I realised that it is only in of dunes and scarps that make up 18-month-long presidential despite its close relationship with around and found that I was the borders. In 1981, the government begins to explain the city of the defence of human rights that I the northern part of the country. vacuum are not going smoothly, a Franjieh. The group has made clear only woman there. Since I was became the last in the world to Nouakchott. She motions out the could find my place, despite the Rural Mauritanians tend to be no- Christian leader said on Tuesday, it will not force Aoun to give way there conducting research for my abolish slavery, but slave-owning window at the passing donkey risks." She started her career teach- madic - and given the vast area of casting doubt on the outlook for a to Franjieh. novel, whose female protagonist did not become a punishable of- carts and the men on mopeds dur- ing the blind, and then moved on desert that the search had to cov- power-sharing proposal aimed at Even with regional backing, the is an escaped slave who hails from fence until 2007. In August of this ing our journey to the office, where to other kinds of human rights er, no one would have been sur- reviving the paralyzed govern- deal must also overcome rivalries the Mauritanian desert, I found year, thanks to the efforts of anti- she again offers water. She keeps work. Along the way, she had four prised if it had been abandoned. ment. among Christian leaders. myself wondering where this coun- slavery activists such as Lam, the my thick foreign blood well-hy- children of her own - two sons and But the woman's brother persist- The proposal tabled by Sunni Aoun’s party won more seats try's women were, and hoping to country doubled the prison term drated. And this is exactly her ap- two daughters. When I ask her ed. When the man's sister was meet one who would offer me an for offenders from 10 to 20 years, proach to combating slavery - kind how she managed to balance ca- eventually found, she was eight Muslim politician Saad al-Hariri in parliament than any other Chris- insight into the place and its peo- and criminalised 10 other forms of and thoughtful, yet powerful and reer and family, she remains mod- months pregnant. She delivered her marks the most serious effort yet tian in the country’s last parlia- ple. Lam is a slim woman of aver- slavery, including forced marriage. effective. "SOS Esclaves," she ex- est. "Like so many women," she baby just after escaping, in a city to resolve a political crisis that has mentary election, held in 2009. age height and elegant movement. Lam notes, however, that to date, plains, "fights for the eradication says, "I simply try to fulfill my between the site of her rescue and been exacerbated by region-wide Since then, parliamentary elections She was dressed, on the day I met only one slaveholder has been con- of slavery through familial descent. family responsibilities and my Nouakchott. This baby, who is conflict. have twice been delayed and par- her, in a powder blue mulaffa - the clusively prosecuted for owning We provide recourse for slaves and work responsibilities without one sleeping so profoundly as we Under the plan, Hariri would liament has extended its own term. traditional dress of Mauritania. slaves, in November 2011, after former slaves, and we raise com- infringing on the other." In 2010, speak, is the first in her family born become prime minister, while The Lebanese political system With her soft voice and beatific two boys - aged 10 and 12 - es- munity awareness about the laws she was recruited for the post of outside of slavery. I ask if I can Suleiman Franjieh, a friend and ally apportions government on a sec- smile, she might best be described caped confinement and turned to against slavery, and the rights of national coordinator of SOS Es- hold her, and as I do, I breathe deep- of Syrian President Bashar al- tarian basis. The presidency is re- as a presence. Lam is the national the Initiative for the Resurgence people under the laws. We make claves and happily accepted. "This ly of her sweetness. As a black Assad, would become Lebanese served for a Maronite Christian, coordinator for S O S Esclaves, a of the Abolitionist Movement (the pleas to policymakers to improve work," she says, "puts me in di- American, I'm not that many gen- head of state. the post of prime minister goes to Mauritanian association dedicated IRA). The IRA directed the boys the laws and their application. We rect contact with victims of sla- erations removed from slavery A senior member of Hariri’s a Sunni Muslim, while the speaker to fighting modern-day slavery. It to SOS Esclaves, who took the also provide legal assistance to vic- very, particularly with women and myself. To fight my gathering Future Movement has warned that of parliament must be a Shiite. is arguably the country's premiere case to court, and the two boys tims seeking redress." But Lam, in children who have experienced a tears, I focus on the tiny gold ear- the alternative to the deal could be “Golden opportunity” antislavery organisation, founded were able to testify against the man her position at SOS Esclaves, does lot of violence and deprivation. rings in her tiny, delicate ears, and civil strife. Lawmaker Ali Khreis, a mem- in 1995 by Boubacar Ould Mes- who had held them. It is not un- so much more than that. She helps They need much accompaniment I feel something for which there The prospects of a deal ber of the Amal Movement led by saoud, a dynamic former lawyer common for slaves to hold what people holistically, from the inside and support." I family of freed are no words in the English lan- who is widely regarded as "the Mathewson calls "a perverse loy- out. When we arrive at the SOS slaves sit on the floor of a tent as guage. I feel what every slave in seemed good last week when both Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, grand-pere of the abolitionist move- alty" to their masters, who exert Esclaves offices, which are tucked they share their story [Jacinda every place in all of history felt Iran and Saudi Arabia, regional said the Franjieh proposal was still ment . But Lam is modest and says psychological as well as physical away on a side street in the capital Townsend/Al Jazeera] Even if sla- when he or she saw their first child powers that are in conflict across serious, but “it has not yet been of her work: "The commitment and control over them, and the boys' city, we find a man sweeping the very is hard for the Mauritanian born free. After a time, it is over- the Middle East, expressed their decided.” trust in the correctness of what one mother actually testified on behalf entrance corridor. He is dressed in government to quantify and pun- whelming. support for a settlement in Leba- “We have a golden opportu- is doing will always give you the of the slaveholder. Nonetheless, a polo shirt and slacks, and, with ish, it isn't invisible. It is every- The tide of my emotions takes non. Both wield influence over ri- nity to get out of the crisis of the courage to do and continue." Sarah the slaveholder was convicted that his serene smile and efficient move- where you look, if you know what such a physical form that I feel I val Lebanese factions. presidential vacancy and if we Mathewson, the Africa programme December, and served four months ments, seems quite possibly the you are looking for. It is there in might wake this dreaming baby. I But former president Amin don’t seize it there will be no presi- coordinator of Anti-Slavery Inter- of a two-year sentence before be- happiest sweeper I have ever seen. the darker-skinned woman who hand her back to her mother, and I Gemayel said there were no “ready dent for one year or two years,” national, which works with SOS ing released on bail, pending an ap- "He was a slave," Lam tells me as sits outside a tent beside a stove return to taking notes in my small solutions” to the crisis after he met he told Sawt El Shaab, a Lebanese Esclaves to combat slavery, is a peal. That appeal has never taken we head upstairs to her office. I while a lighter-skinned family sits Moleskine notebook. Later, as I Michel Aoun, a veteran Christian radio station, on Tuesday. little more forthcoming about just place, though Anti-Slavery Inter- am shocked that this man with the inside, fanning themselves. It is in leave the SOS offices, I ask Lam politician whose blessing is seen “The terms of the settlement what it is Lam contributes: "She is national is part of a coalition that carefree aura of someone who has everything you hear, if you know how I can help. "The most impor- as crucial to concluding the deal. are not yet mature,” he added, say- the backbone of SOS Esclaves. She plans to take the case to regional spent a lifetime untouched by trag- what to listen for. The young girl, tant outside aid," she tells me, "is “It appears that matters are ing there would be no deal before runs the project in a very quiet way court. The boys are now under the edy was once a slave. As I spend no older than 10, who hangs laun- advocacy for significant changes in not going very smoothly at the Dec. 16, when parliament is next behind the scenes. She is very com- care of SOS Esclaves, although their the day in the SOS offices, I see dry on a roof all morning long, and policy direction". current time. We have a responsi- due to convene with the aim of mitted to the victims and the work. mother remains a slave. A handful him do many things - he empties then goes back inside, only to be Write to your own state de- We can never raise enough money of other cases have been brought the rubbish, runs errands, brings heard screaming a few moments partment, I think to myself. Write bility as Lebanese leaders in gen- electing a president. for the salary she deserves, but she to court and charged with lesser me more water. He is one of the later as though she is being beaten. to your senator. eral, and as Christians in particu- More than 30 such previous just carries on, working all kinds crimes, such as exploiting a minor many former slaves whose lives In the late afternoon, I am driven "The work of activists and lar. We cannot leave the country to sessions have failed to elect a of hours and making all sorts of or kidnapping, but not one of them have been transformed by the job from the offices of SOS Esclaves human rights defenders in Mauri- stumble in this way,” Gemayel president. Any power-sharing deal personal sacrifices to do this work has seen any jail time - which training that Lam coordinates. At to a tent on the outskirts of tania is a difficult job because one said. is expected to include an agreement she believes in." Lam's passion for stands in stark contrast to some of SOS Esclaves, former slaves can Nouakchott. must do it at all times. We who Political rivalries have caused on a law for parliamentary elec- justice is an asset to a country with the anti-slavery activists. Accord- learn to style hair, dye clothes, tai- There, I meet a woman who has defend human rights are investing almost complete deadlock in tions. a higher prevalence of modern sla- ing to Lam, she and her colleagues lor, and cook. Such job training is escaped slavery with her eight chil- a lot but faced with many obsta- Lebanon’s sectarian-based system Ahmad al-Hariri, the senior of- very than any other on the planet. are often followed by Mauritanian essential in the caste-based Mau- dren - some of whom were fathered cles on the ground. But it remains of government. The current prime ficial in the Future Movement, said According to the Walk Free Foun- government operatives. And in ritanian economy, where former by her master, all of whom are the very meaningful work, and there minister, Tammam Salam, heads a failure to strike a deal risked trig- dation's Global Slavery Index, November 2014, three anti-slavery slaves often find that once they've product of rape. One of the wom- are always changes. cabinet of national unity that has gering violence in a country still Mauritania, with its population of activists - Biram Dah Abeid, Bra- escaped, there's no competing in a an's children, a sickly girl who There are no fewer slaves now, failed to take even the most basic rebuilding from its 1975-90 civil just 3.8 million, has between him Bilal Ramdane, and Dijby Sow job market where employment is looks to be around the six or seven but there is all the time a slave who decisions. war. 140,000 and 160,000 slaves. That's - were convicted of "membership so firmly bound to ancestry. Lam's years of one of my own children, becomes aware of his situation and Aoun, who himself covets the “If the initiative fails to reach about four percent of the popula- in an unrecognised organisation, comprehensive approach to help- collapses in a fit of coughing. All who dreams of another life with presidency - which in Lebanon is a settlement and the vacuum con- tion, and it is, according to many taking part in an unauthorised as- ing people transition from slavery eight of the children gather to sit freedom and dignity," she contin- reserved for a Maronite Christian tinues for a number of months, the organisations, including Lam's, a sembly, failing to comply with to freedom seems entirely appro- on the tent's raffia-matted floor. ues. rather conservative estimate: they police orders, and resisting arrest". priate for someone who has long Unlike my girls, they are perfect- I leave Mauritania so much -, is seen as vital to the success of president of the republic will not point to a figure closer to 15 It is not the first time such high- been about the business of assist- ly still and perfectly quiet. I ask if more peacefully than I arrived, any deal due to the support his be elected easily, but will be elected percent.But slaves are hard to profile activists have been arrest- ing others. She enjoyed what she I can take a photograph and they because now I have seen that there candidacy enjoys from the pow- through blood,” said Ahmad al- count in a country whose landscape ed in a country with a history of calls "a very happy childhood" in oblige. is so very much power in that in- erful Shiite group Hezbollah, Hariri, a cousin of Saad. is covered by the drought-wrung, detaining and intimidating anti-sla- the village of Boghe, which is in I close my eyes and hear the wind finity of sand. which is backed by Iran. “Do we want to repeat a sec- ever-expanding Sahara, even as it very campaigners. A holistic fight the Brakna region of southern gathering in the sand; I open my Source: Al Jazeera Hezbollah has stuck by its ond civil war?” This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES “Tu r k ey m u llin g r et aliat or y san ct ion s on Ru ssia”

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Tuesday his gov- ernment was considering retalia- tory measures against Moscow, Egypt expects $1.5b with whom it is embroiled in a bit- ter dispute over Ankara’s shoot- ing down of a Russian warplane. in aid by year-end, “If we find it necessary, we will introduce retaliatory sanc- tions,” Davutoglu told members of eyeing IMF his ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), adding that cabinet had discussed possible measures at a meeting on Monday. “But we hope that the crisis with Russia will be overcome and there will be no need to resort to these measures,” he added. “We are ready for all kinds of discussions with Russia but we will never accept being dictated to.” Moscow has imposed a series of economic sanctions on Ankara after Turkish fighter jets shot down a Su-24 bomber on the Syr- ian border on November 24, spark- ing the biggest crisis between the two countries since the Cold War. Russia’s sanctions include a ban on the import of some Turk- ish foods and a halt on sales of Turkish holiday packages, a major blow to tourism in the Mediterra- nean country. Mehmet Simsek, deputy Egypt expects to receive $1.5 bil- She said the first effect of prime minister in charge of the dor to Ankara over images of a sile in the firing position had con- cident, foreign ministry spokes- plans to revise the convention. lion from the World Bank and Af- the loan would be to bring much- economy, has warned that the cur- Russian serviceman brandishing a stituted a violation of the woman Maria Zakharova said that “We currently have no prepa- rican Development Bank (AfDB) needed foreign exchange into rent tensions with Russia could rocket launcher as his warship Montreux Convention on Turkish the warship had not violated a ration to that end,” Bilgic told a by year-end to support the bud- Egypt: “There are three main cost Turkey’s economy nine bil- sailed through Turkish waters. straits, which governs international “single article” the 1936 conven- press conference Tuesday. But he get and could discuss potential advantages to this programme. lion dollars. In the latest escala- The Turkish foreign ministry traffic through the Bosphorus and tion. “Protecting a ship is a legal warned that “anything could be IMF financing once parliament First, it will bring in foreign cur- tion of tensions on Monday, Tur- warned the ambassador that the Dardanelles straits. But in right of any crew,” she said in a subject to assessment due to de- convenes, International Coopera- rency, quick foreign currency.” key summoned Russia’s ambassa- Russian soldier’s holding the mis- Moscow’s first reaction to the in- statement. Ankara said it had no velopments”. tion Minister Sahar Nasr said. Though the money has not Egypt is implementing a se- been ring-fenced to help Egypt ries of reforms aimed at reviving pay some $2.7 billion owed to its economy after the 2011 upris- international oil companies or to ing that ended Hosni Mubarak’s purchase petroleum products, it 30-year rule frightened off tour- will ease pressure on foreign re- ists and foreign investors, on which serves and implicitly free up it relies for foreign currency earn- more cash for energy imports. ings. Asked if Egypt planned to Foreign currency reserves, turn to the International Mon- which stood at about $36 billion etary Fund for further financing, before the uprising, were $16.42 Nasr said the decision was one he Iranian minister of indus nim reported. the country's constitution prohib- saying that he was not convinced billion at the end of November de- that should be taken collectively try and trade has received Hard-line MP Hamid Rasaee its governmental employees from Nematzadeh clarification as “the spite billions of dollars in Gulf Arab by the government and only pur- Tanother yellow card from the asked Nemadzadeh why he was having two jobs at one time in. minister has just transferred his aid that Egypt has received since sued with the support of the parliament. simultaneously director board The minister said he left his positions to his sons and rela- mid-2013. Egyptian people. Mohammad Reza Nematza- member at 19 companies while “19 positions before being called tives.” A foreign currency shortage “It is one of the options we deh who had appeared before the holding the post of minister. to join Rowhani’s government in Nematzadeh’s answer received has crippled import activity this are discussing, and it is very good MPs on Monday for questioning, He expressed “preoccupation 2013.” 37 positive votes, 106 negative year and the country is struggling we will be discussing it when the failed to convince them about the over the minister handling 19 jobs, However Rasaee responded, votes, and 10 abstentions from a to pay for supplies of energy, parliament is in place as you topic he was inquired about, Tas- in addition to the ministry,” while according to Fars news agency, by total of 203 MPs in the session. which drain some $700 million to need to get the people’s consent, $1 billion a month. and that would be a prerequi- The minister said she had ne- site,” she said. gotiated loans with the World But the benefits of an IMF Japan ’s eco n o m y avo ids a techn ical recessio n Bank and AfDB worth $3 billion package would have to be com- and $1.5 billion respectively, to be pared with other sources of aid: Japan's economy avoided a tech- the global financial crisis. disbursed over three years with the “Nothing is ruled out ... I am pre- nical recession in the three months On a quarterly basis, the latest eco- first tranche arriving “within days” senting all the different options to September, according to revised nomic numbers show gross domestic of the deals being signed later this to the economic ministerial cabi- official numbers released on Tues- product (GDP) for the three months to month. net to discuss the pros and day. Preliminary numbers released September grew 0.3% - instead of initial The economic reform cons.” last month indicated the economy report which showed a contraction of programme Egypt launched in June In total, Egypt has signed off shrank at an annual pace of 0.8% 0.2%. Analysts said Tuesday's numbers 2014 helped it secure the aid with- on some $4 billion of investment during the period. The preliminary were stronger than expected. "What's out a list of specific conditions. loans this year in addition to the figures meant it was Japan's sec- more, GDP only shrank by 0.1% quarter “If you already have done an budgetary support deals from ond consecutive quarterly contrac- on quarter [in the three months to June] integrated reform programme with the World Bank and AfDB, Nasr tion, which constitutes a technical instead of the earlier reported 0.2%," said a clear timeline ... you would not said. recession. economist Marcel Thieliant of Capital call it a conditionality because it Egypt also expects to receive However, the new data sug- Economics. Mr Thielant said one reason has already been achieved,” Nasr 370 million euros in budget sup- gests the economy grew at annual for the revision was stronger business in- told Reuters on the sidelines of the port from the European Union pace of 1%. Japan, which is the vestment, which edged up by 0.6% in- Egypt Mega Projects conference over three years, Nasr said, with- world's third-biggest economy, has stead of the preliminary reported 1.3% in Cairo. out elaborating. been in recession four times since quarter on quarter fall. Wales economy stays Ch in a econ om y: Ea sin g bottom of UK’s GVA table cycle k eep s on sp in n in g Rate cuts an d liquidity in jectio n s have yet to sho w substan tial effect

For China, there’s no letup in sight especially pork, so a pork-price right deflation—undermines rate What’s China to do? It is al- for the need to ease. revival driven by a shortage of cuts, making them less effective. ready moving forward with a slow- The half-dozen rate cuts and breeding sows may be in store. But Producer-price deflation means motion devaluation. The yuan is myriad liquidity injections to the that really helps only pork pro- that real borrowing costs for many at a four-year low against the dol- banking system have yet to show ducers. Others, including China’s producers are nearly 12%. lar. But even so, China has been substantial effect. Prices continue huge oil, steel, iron-ore and coal Iron-ore woes aren’t the only intervening heavily to prevent an to be weak, with consumer prices industries, are suffering. problem China is trying to dig its even faster slide in the currency. in November up just 1.5% from a There were hopes that pro- way out of. ENLARGE Those interventions remove yuan year earlier. Wholesale prices ducer-price deflation would fade Iron-ore woes aren’t the only from circulation. To replace them, charged at the factory gate were in year-over-year terms, as the problem China is trying to dig its expect further cuts to bank reserve- down 5.9%, the same rate as Oc- commodity-price rout is now 18 way out of. Furthermore, capital requirement ratios. tober. That’s on top of weak for- months old. But key commodities outflows, which picked back up The trick is, the more China eign trade for November. Domes- such as iron ore and oil have taken in November, crimp the cash avail- eases, the more expectations build tically, rail freight volumes for the another leg down. Oil averaged $60 able in the banking system to lend. for the currency to fall, which month were down 15% from a year a barrel in the first half of 2015, so While it is true that China has been sparks more outflows, prompting earlier. if sub-$40 oil persists, the pass- able to keep short-term interbank further easing. It’s a cycle that In China, inflation has legs. through to deflation will remain a rates low, despite the outflows, could go on for a while. The government’s consumer-price potent force next year. credit demand is near its weakest Write to Alex Frangos at index is heavily weighted to food, Low inflation—or worse, out- in decades. [email protected] An alyst s exp ect Sin gap or e econ om y t o gr ow 2.2p c in 2016: MAS su r vey Wales is one again at the bottom of the valleys £15,745 was produced It also enables us to compare a UK table measuring the strength per head in 2014. the economic performance of dif- Th e e co n o m is ts po lle d in th e qu arte rly s u rve y s ay th e y e xpe ct Sin gapo re ’s e co n o m y to gro w 2 .2 of the economy. When we focus on smaller geo- ferent areas and communities pe r ce n t n e xt ye ar, w ith in flatio n turn in g po s itive at 0 .5 pe r ce n t. The finance and insurance indus- The Office for National Sta- graphical areas the figures show across the UK and within Wales. try is expected to post the highest tistics (ONS) has published gross that in the Gwent Valleys only It is calculated where people SINGAPORE: Private sector Wednesday (Dec 9). The econo- Still, the forecast is less upbeat growth of 5.9 per cent, followed value added (GVA) figures for £13,479 is produced per head, work. So for example because economists expect Singapore’s mists polled in the survey said compared to the previous survey by the wholesale and retail trade 2014. while the lowest is for Anglesey at many thousands commute from the growth to pick up next year, al- they expect Singapore’s economy in September. Then, economists sector with a 4 per cent growth They measure how much £13,162. Gwent Valleys to Cardiff to work, though the manufacturing sector is to grow by 2.2 per cent in 2016, said they expected GDP to expand and the construction sector with a money is generated through goods This is not a measure of wealth that will underestimate what peo- likely to continue contracting, ac- with inflation turning positive at by 2.8 per cent in 2016. Manufac- 1.2 per cent growth. GDP growth produced and services delivered. and does not mean that people liv- ple living in Gwent Valleys gener- cording to a quarterly survey re- 0.5 per cent. Core inflation – which turing is expected to continue con- in the third quarter was weaker The figures show not only that ing in an area are earning more - ate, and over-estimate what peo- leased by the Monetary Author- excludes accommodation and car tracting next year, with the median than expected. The economy ex- less is produced for every person just generating more money. ple in Cardiff produce. ity of Singapore (MAS) on prices – is expected at 1 per cent. forecast at a decline of 1.2 per cent. panded by 1.9 per cent during the working in Wales but also the econ- It also measures where the What do they not say? quarter, lower than the median fore- omy has grown less than the UK money is produced. One reason It does not tell us where the cast of 2.1 per cent in the Septem- average. why Anglesey and Gwent Valleys wealth ends up or who is richer. ber survey. For the fourth quarter, The regional breakdown are low is because so many people So for example when Cardiff has the respondents expect GDP to shows: commute out of the area to work, high levels of GVA it does not mean expand by 1.4 per cent, lower than London had the highest GVA while on Anglesey there is a higher everyone is richer. the 2.3 per cent forecast in the pre- per head at £42,666, while Wales proportion of retired people. Gross Domestic Household vious survey. had the lowest at £17,573. The GVA for Scotland is Income is a better measure of how For 2015 as a whole, respon- The ONS figures show that on £23,102 per head and Northern wealthy or not people are as it also dents said they expect the average every person in the UK Ireland is £18,682. includes benefits and tax credits. economy to grow by 1.9 per cent, generates £24,616 per head, an in- Line break Where were we last time? a decline from the 2.2 per cent crease of 4.6% on 2013 but in What do GVA figures tell us? The figures released a year ago median forecast in the previous Wales the average has risen by only It is a measure of how much showed Wales at the bottom of the survey. 2.4% on the previous year. money has been generated by peo- pack, compared with the other The MAS Survey of Profes- Wales punches well below its ple making or doing things - from nations and regions of the UK. sional Forecasters is conducted weight. With 5% of the UK popu- making car engines to cutting hair, However we had the largest per- every quarter after the release of lation it produces only 3.4% of the to doing people's accounts. centage growth, but from a low detailed economic data for the pre- value of the UK economy. It is an indicator of how much base. ceding three months. The median When the GVA figures are bro- the Welsh economy has grown or We were in effect running faster forecasts in the latest report were ken down to regions within Wales changed. The figures provide anal- but not catching up the rest of the based on the estimates of 22 econo- it shows that in west Wales and ysis down to local authority level. UK. mists, MAS said. CNA/cy This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES

Adele’s ‘25’ adds another How the rendez- million sales in second vous with Rem- brandt worked record-breaking week It felt as though, in all of its three- day glory, FWP’15 had been but a storm gathering to culminate here- in, with Nilofer Shahid knocking it out of the park and injecting life into an otherwise tedious affair. Kudos to the organisers for saving the very best for last as there could not have been a better conclusion to the event. Evidently, our senti- ments are echoed by everyone in the fraternity. The collection, in- spired by the legendary Dutch painter Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn has remained the talk of the town ever since and as its pa- tron, Nilofer is overwhelmed by the praise. “You know, I could feel the appreciation in the air that night,” she says excitedly whilst speaking with The Express Tri- bune. “Nothing but positivity and applause came from the audience. People said they had been ‘mes- merised’ as though mine had been an international show!” Just as Rembrandt was the pioneer of his craft, Nilofer too managed to in- spire awe through her exquisite craftsmanship and dexterous use of fabric. She shares the story of one particular audience-member who had been moved to tears by the ensembles. “She came to me English singer Adele racked up an- downloads. crying and said, ‘It was like a mas- other 1 million US sales of her new Justin Bieber’s album Purpose ter paying tribute to another great album 25, adding another record kept its second place on the Bill- master, with passion and love,’” to her name and easily topping the board 200 slot, with 211,000 cop- says Nilofer excitedly. “I tried to Billboard 200 album charts. ies sold in the week, while his sin- translate Rembrandt’s work into After making history by be- gles Sorry and Love Yourself were sartorial interpretations with as Bill Cunningham hit the nail on the daughter to take his splendiferous ha Jamshed Facebook page Sure, it good things are worth the wait 2) coming the fastest-selling album in the 2nd and 3rd biggest sellers. much depth as possible. So much head when he said, "Fashion is the legacy forward. When she first helps when your best friend is Ma- Amo B established herself as the a single week with 3.48 million Adele’s ’25' becomes UK’s so, I think it resulted in all else armor to survive the reality of ev- made her presence known in the hira Khan, who wears your creations high-fashion IT girl Despite being copies, 25 sold another 1.16 mil- biggest-selling No1 album becoming pale and insignificant.” eryday life." This year was a dis- industry, she was dubbed the next around town and your father is the on the petite side, the Cara Delev- lion units in the United States in A cappella group Pentatonix Prior to this, the painter has been tinctive one; red carpet style be- big thing in fashion, a force to be founder of Teejays, the brand that ingne of Pakistan stands tall on the its second week on sale, according moved into 3rd place on the Bill- depicted on the ramp just once came more risque and ostentatious reckoned with. However, she dis- revolutionized boutique culture, but ramp. Clearly, the two supermod- before, by French high-street label while the streets went back to the appeared as soon as she had Feeha's talent speaks for itself. A els were separated at birth —Photo to figures from Nielsen Music. board 200 with That’s Christmas Dior. And if Van Gogh thought basics. A lot happened in the sar- emerged, coming up for air random- welcome addition to the prêt arena courtesy: Amna Babar's Instagram Adele’s ‘Hello’ breaks 1 mil- To Me. British boy band One Di- himself unworthy, one can imag- torial field — copycats were called ly every few months. All that in the city, Feeha's outlet on the Clearly, the two supermodels were lion digital sales in record rection slipped to No 4 with Made ine the sheer hard work Nilofer and out and new stores popped up in changed in the summer when the swanky E street in Karachi boasts a separated at birth —Photo courte- That made 25 the only album in the AM and Taylor Swift’s 2014 her team put in to recreating the Karachi and Lahore. You lived designer finally hit the green light mix of quirky animal-inspired, as sy: Amna Babar's Instagram Her since Nielsen began tracking sales best-seller 1989 re-entered the Top masterpiece. “It is by far, one of through it and now’s the time to on her flagship store. Feeha's store well as tribal prints that she has come hair's always perfectly blown out, in 1991 to sell at least 1 million 10 at No 5 with another 60,000 the most challenging things I have relive it: before we power into is located right next to the quaint to be known for. Big on flora and her skin is flawless and flushed and copies in two separate weeks, copies sold over the week. ever done for The Jewish Bride is 2016, here are some memorable cafe, Mews on E Street —Photo fauna and not afraid to experiment those chiseled cheekbones are al- Nielsen said. The Billboard 200 chart tallies one of Rembrandt’s most re- moments in fashion and style from courtesy: Feeha Jamshed Face- with ruffles, Jamshed's cemented a most mocking contoured faces all Adele also reigned on the Dig- units from album sales, song sales nowned romantic pieces, spiritu- this year. 1) Feeha Jamshed book page Feeha's store is located place for herself in the cutthroat over town — Amna Babar is one ital Songs chart, which measures (10 songs equal one album) and ally and physically,” admits Nilof- stepped into retail t was a long time right next to the quaint cafe, Mews world of ready-to-wear. Read: Re- model who is just as on fleek off the online download sales. Her single streaming activity (1,500 streams er. “There was a hint of glamour to coming for Tanveer Jamshed's on E Street —Photo courtesy: Fee- tail therapy: Feeha Jamshed proves runway as she is on it. Hello sold another 232,000 in equal one album). the bride. Emotional I can’t marry for ‘a lot of reasons’: Hamza Ali Abbasi Kendrick Lamar, Tay- return for ‘Eagles of lor Swift lead Grammy Death Metal’ nominations

PARIS: Eagles of Death Metal, the band which was performing when the deadliest of the Islamic State attacks took place in Paris on Nov NEW YORK: Rapper Kendrick tions in all of them except Best 13, made an emotional, powerful Lamar on Monday received a near- New Artist. She enjoyed nods for appearance at a U2 concert in the record number of Grammy Award Album of the Year for 1989 — city on Monday. nominations, with pop superstar which marked her transition from Led by frontman Jesse Hugh- Taylor Swift leading for the most country to pop — as well as es dressed in a white suit at a prestigious categories. Lamar — Record of the Year and Song of the packed AccorHotels Arena, the who has won wide critical acclaim Year for her hit Blank Space. 1989 Californian rock band gave a ren- for his politically charged album was the fastest-selling album in dition of Patti Smith’s People have There's more to Hamza Ali Abbasi corner for this one woman recent- "Shaadi is a huge deal," he said, He admits he's had quite a few To Pimp a Butterfly — earned 11 more than a decade although it was the Power before performing their than just politics and his deep con- ly", but refused to reveal the iden- later adding that "I can't get mar- relationships in the past, but not nominations for the music indus- recently surpassed by 25, the lat- own I Love You All The Time. cerns about protecting the morals tity of the mystery woman. He ried for a lot of reasons." He cited enough to fill "a juma bazaar". try’s biggest awards, the highest est blockbuster by English ballad “Nothing left except to intro- of the nation. Hamza Ali Abbasi went on to flabbergast his legions this as "the number one reason" "Women are very emotional... number in a single night other than singer Adele. 25 was not eligible duce you to some people whose also has a heart. The actor/activist of female fans and the nation's rish- for his break-ups in the past. so they get disappointed that I Michael Jackson’s 12 nods in 1984 for the Grammys, which cover re- lives will be forever part of Paris. recently disclosed at a morning ta-hunters by dismissing the pros- Gasp! Is Hamza a commit- can't marry them," he shared, talk- during the King of Pop’s Thriller leases in the year to September 30. These are our brothers, they were show that he "kind of [has] a soft pect of marriage completely. ment-phobe? ing about his failed relationships. days. To Pimp a Butterfly, Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly and Beauty robbed of their stage three weeks first album in nearly three years, Behind the Madness, The ago,” U2 frontman Bono said at is unusually innovative for such a Weeknd’s sophomore work, were the end of the last gig of their In- commercially anticipated album, also in contention for Album of the nocence and Experience tour after with long sections of unaccompa- Year. English singer and guitarist the American band’s remaining Don't think I can remarry, says Sandra nied spoken word, frequent his- Ed Sheeran’s viral ballad Thinking European shows were canceled in torical allusions and jazzy inter- Out Loud was also nominated for the wake of the attacks. ludes. Lamar — who hails from both Record of the Year, which con- U2 pays tribute to Paris vic- the gangsta rap capital of Comp- siders overall performance, and tims ton in southern California but un- Song of the Year, which recogniz- Some fans were draped in like many stars has had few per- es songwriting. - Surprise recogni- French flags at Monday’s concert, sonal controversies — examines tion for rising artists - The Record- where security was beefed up as the state of US race relations on ing Academy, the music industry France is under a state of emergen- To Pimp a Butterfly, with mock- body that determines the nomina- cy. ery of Washington politicians and tions, also had surprising choices A helicopter hovered for two explorations of his search for in- for Album of the Year, generally hours above the arena before the ner strength. Lamar’s heavy haul considered the most prestigious show and spectators were told to comes in part due to his collabora- category. Chris Stapleton, a coun- access the building, which seats up tions with other artists; he was also try artist who long worked in the to 20,000 people, through a back nominated for work with the DJ shadows as a songwriter for Nash- entrance. No incidents were re- Flying Lotus and with Swift her- ville’s big stars, was nominated for ported. self. Lamar also won acclaim for Album of the Year for his first full- US rockers want to be first his last album, Good Kid, length work, Traveller. Stapleton band to reopen Bataclan M.A.A.D. City,and was nominat- has seen a sudden surge in his ca- Eagles of Death Metal, whose ed in seven categories in the 2014 reer since becoming the unexpect- co-founder and Queens of the Stone awards. But he did not win any ed winner last month at the Coun- Age frontman Josh Homme rarely awards, leading some critics to al- try Music Association Awards in tours with them and who was not lege a double-standard against Af- Nashville. ‘I am Malala’ wins at the Bataclan concert, said after rican American artists. - Swift Grammy for best children’s album the shootings they wanted to be tapped in leading categories - Swift Along with rap and country, the the first to perform there when it and The Weeknd, the rising Cana- Recording Academy also branched reopens. scar-winning actress Sandra herself remarrying, Bullock, who the to-do list." that is filled with lots of love and dian R&B star, followed Lamar out by recognizing indie rockers. U2, which provided the band Bullock, who separated is dating photographer Bryan Ran- Talking about fostering and poop jokes, no sleep, schedule with seven nominations each for Alabama Shakes, the bluesy rock with logistical help after the at- Ofrom TV personality Jesse dall, told people.com: "I don't think adopting her three-and-a-half- books filled with more kids' social the Grammys, which will be an- band defined by frontwoman Brit- tacks, had denied it would appear James in 2010, says she can't see so, but I can see myself in a com- year-old daughter Laila, Bullock events than adults' and lots of yell- nounced at a gala ceremony in Los tany Howard’s overpowering on Sunday, when Patti Smith came herself getting hitched again any- mitted, safe relationship where said she had "no idea what a 'tradi- ing over who touched who first... Angeles on February 15. But Swift voice, was nominated for Album onto the stage to close the first of time soon. there is lots of love and laughter, tional family' looks like any more. Then I have a very traditional fam- was ahead in the four most- of the Year for the group’s second two shows. Asked if she would ever see and 'making memories' is No. 1 on `If a traditional home is one ily,` she said. watched categories, with nomina- album, Sound and Color. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10, 2015 AFGHANISTANTIMES ‘Pakistan-India ser ies m ay b e r e- d u ced t o m ean - in gless fixt u r es’ La Liga trio to vie fo r fo o tball's Wo rld Player o f the Year Aw ard that w ill be an n o un ced in Jan uary

ISLAMABAD: The much-blight- teams in three Tests, five ODIs and ed Pakistan-India series could be two T20s, but ran into trouble curtailed into a meaningless round amid strained political relations. of two ODIs and one T20 should On Monday, the PCB said it the Board of Control for Cricket was awaiting the Indian govern- in India (BCCI) continue to offer a ment's approval of a shortened lim- dead bat to its counterpart, a Paki- ited-over series — three one-day stan Cricket Board (PCB) official and two T20 internationals to be said on Tuesday. held in Sri Lanka — which it agreed The fate of a planned series with the BCCI last month. between Pakistan and India is ex- The PCB chairman Shaharyar pected to be decided during a visit Khan, who had given the BCCI a to Islamabad by India's Foreign December 7 deadline to decide on Minister Sushma Swaraj, who ar- the series, said: “We have been in- rived in Pakistan today to attend formally told that Swaraj will talk the Heart of Asia regional confer- on cricket and decide the fate of ence. the series.” In-depth: In a great but stalled Pakistan Prime Minister cricket contest, Modi is the um- Nawaz Sharif and his Indian coun- pire But according to the PCB of- terpart Narendra Modi met on the ficial, who requested anonymity, sidelines of a climate change con- India's reluctance to give Pakistan ference in Paris last week as the a clear answer has left the board two countries seek a thaw in rela- with possibility of arranging only tions. a very short series which could see That informal meeting was fol- the number of games being reduced. lowed by “cordial” talks between “Both the boards cannot de- the Indian and Pakistani national lay the dates of the series as both security advisers in Bangkok on the teams have their international Sunday, giving Khan fresh hope the commitments in January,” the of- series could yet take place. ficial told APP. “The recent meeting between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronal- fill the top two places on the po- tugal's Ronaldo has won three esta and Xavi swept the podium. Ronaldo, too, has 48 goals to his According to the official the the two prime ministers and secu- do will go head-to-head once again dium in Zurich in January for the times, once when he was at Messi is an overwhelming name for club and country in 2015 series could not be organised “be- rity advisers' meeting in Bangkok for the title of world's best foot- coveted accolade of being the Manchester United in 2008 and the favourite to lift the trophy again but Real's fortunes have slumped. fore or after December 15” which have hinted the situation between baller after being shortlisted along year's leading player. most recent two editions at Real for a fifth time after a calendar year The Ballon d'Or vote has been would mean chopping one ODI Pakistan and India will improve,” with Neymar for the 2015 FIFA Argentine Messi, who will Madrid. in which, despite losing two made by national team coaches and from the three ODI series and tak- he said. Ballon d'Or. now have been on the podium for The only time in the last sev- months to injury, he has still scored captains and leading journalists, ing out one game from the two- Making arrangements for the For the seventh time in eight an amazing nine successive years, en years when they did not finish 48 goals while inspiring his club to with the winner being announced match T20 series. series — which could run from Dec years, Barcelona's Messi and Real won four times in succession be- one-two was in 2010 when the a Champions League, La Liga and at a ceremony in Zurich on Jan. The series, agreed between the 17-Jan 3 — would be “challeng- Madrid's Ronaldo are expected to tween 2009 and 2012, while Por- Barcelona trio Messi, Andres Ini- King's Cup treble. 11. two boards in a memorandum of ing” at such short notice, Khan said, understanding signed last year, was “but we will do it once we get clear- Fu r y loses originally scheduled to pit the two ance from the Indian government”. William s w in s Garner on a new team IBF h eavyw eigh t and training in Spain belt over Klit sch - WTA t op p r ize for next season k o r em at ch

There's plenty to think about right The weather was great everyday now for road cyclist Lucy Garner. and it is a very popular place for A fast-approaching summer cyclists. In our hotel we also had Serena Williams has been ing all four titles simultaneously - the world. Olympics, a different set of wheels at least three professional men's named the WTA Player of the Year for the second time in her career. Martina Hingis and Sania Mir- and making friends with a new teams staying there. for the fourth consecutive time. US OPEN - 29th Aug S Open za won Doubles Team Of The Year team are all high on the agenda. The camp was mostly about The American has collected 2016 Men's Outright Novak Djok- after winning Wimbledon and the But the 21-year-old Sky Acad- coming together and meeting each her seventh Player of the Year ac- ovic6/5 Andy Murray4/1 Roger US Open, while Timea Bacsinsz- emy Sports Scholar from Leices- other before the season starts. We colade after a 2015 illuminated by Federer13/2 ChelseavPorto Eden ky took Most Improved Player. ter seems to be taking it all in her did do a lot of hours on the bike three Grand Slam wins, taking her Hazard to Score and Chelsea to Daria Gavrilova has been stride and a training camp in south- but nothing too intense - just riding career tally to 21. Win in 90 Mins4/1 Bet now£10 named Newcomer of the Year af- ern Spain was the perfect place to and getting to know each other. Coupled with the 2014 US completely free Her sister Venus ter shock wins over Maria prepare for all the challenges com- We always do three days on ing up. and one rest day. The hours varied Open, her three Grand Slam victo- Williams collected the prize for Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic, while Here's Lucy's latest blog on every day but anything from 3 - 5 ries of this year meant Williams Comeback of the Year after a hot Agnieszka Radwanska won her what she got up to, how she's fit- hours and some days we went to completed the 'Serena Slam' - hold- streak of form took her to No 7 in third consecutive Shot of the Year. ting in at Wiggle Honda and a small the gym as well. dose of what's going on inside the We had a lot of fun. We had a head of one of the country's top quiz night and also went out for riders... dinner with the whole team. It's Tyson Fury has been stripped of pening. Breeders' Cup w inn er Mo n go lian Very fun! They made me feel just nice to get to know everyone his IBF heavyweight title after re- Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson very welcome in the team and al- when it isn't in a period of being so fusing to face their mandatory chal- Fury will meet again in 2016 after Saturday targets H o n g Ko n g ready after spending 10 days away busy because of the races. There lenger Vyacheslav Glazkov next. Klitschko decided to activate a re- with them I'm really looking for- was a spa in the hotel so we were Fury took the IBF belt, along match clause in their contract ward to working with them next able to use that when we wanted. with the WBO, WBA and IBO ti- Wladimir Klitschko and Tyson year. It's a great group of girls. It was a great way to relax either tles, by beating Wladimir Klitsch- Fury will meet again in 2016 after It is a very professional team. on the rest day or after a hard train- ko in Dusseldorf last month, and Klitschko decided to activate a re- It is one of the best women's teams ing day. There are probably many his next fight will be a rematch with match clause in their contract in the peloton at the moment. worse places to train in December the Ukrainian veteran. "When we did the Klitschko There are a lot of strong riders but than Calpe in Spain! There are prob- The IBF insisted that Fury deal, they wanted a rematch clause, the staff do everything they can to ably many worse places to train in face Glazkov, making their stance which is common practice when help us achieve the best as well. December than Calpe in Spain! I public less than 48 hours after you're dealing in major world title Everyone is very honest and have changed bikes but I am un- Fury's victory, much to the disap- fights. He's exercising that clause open and I think that is the best able to ride my new bike until the pointment of his management so there's nothing we can do to way of working to achieve the January 1. That's when I am offi- team. satisfy the IBF. Tyson has to fight best. cially part of Wiggle. Everyone in Gloves Are Off Special - Klitschko." I enjoyed every minute of it. Wiggle has their own coach. There Joshua Win in Rnd 47/1 Vyacheslav Glazkov is set to It is still quite a relaxed time of the is no coach from the team. It's nice Bet now£10 completely free face Charles Martin for the IBF year in terms of riding the bike so to be able to work with your own Peter Fury, the champion's title it was great to get to know the team coach but we did spend a lot of uncle and trainer, said at the time: Vyacheslav Glazkov is set to on and off the bike before the sea- time with the staff and getting to "If they want to take the belt from face Charles Martin for the IBF son starts. know them. I just feel really posi- us in such pathetic and disgusting title After a hard day in the saddle, tive at the moment about next year circumstances, that will result in a The IBF cancelled the purse it's time to relax for Lucy and her and where I am at the moment. It's public and embarrassing display bid for Fury-Glazkov on Tuesday new friends always a bit scary moving teams for the IBF. That's for sure. and ordered the Russian to face After a hard day in the saddle, and this was my first move since I "It's shocking news. I don't Charles Martin (22-0-1 KO20) for it's time to relax for Lucy and her became a professional, but I'm re- think the IBF know what's hap- the vacant title. new friends ally looking forward to making Fury: McGregor copied me The aim was just to get back these next couple of years count. Tyson Fury has accused UFC into the riding again and keep build- Teaser for Sky Academy TV doc: star Conor McGregor of copying Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint winner al stage. Sent off a 20/1 outsider at Graded turf sprints before his vic- ing up the hours on the bike. I feel I am Lucy Garner aired in August- his attitude and style Mongolian Saturday is targeting Keeneland, the son of Any Given tory at Keeneland. "I was thinking fit for this time of the year and I'm Teaser for Sky Academy TV doc: Martin had been due to fight more international glory in Sun- Saturday stuck his neck out game- he would be first or second, but I happy with how my winter train- I am Lucy Garner aired in August Dominic Breazeale on Saturday in day's Group One Longines Hong ly to repel the challenge of Lady bet win and place," Enebish told ing is coming along. The training will increase and just San Antonio but ESPN reported Kong Sprint at Sha Tin. Shipman and claim Breeders' Cup www.hkjc.com with a chuckle. "I We were at Calpe in Spain getting back into my training that fight would be cancelled with The five-year-old is owned and glory. He was bought as a yearling don't know how the bets work in [north of Benidorm on the south rhythm. the IBF title having been vacated. trained by Mongolian nationals in for US$60,000 and made an instant Hong Kong. I think I should find east coast]. I liked training around I will plan my own training Joshua vs Whyte is exclusive- Ganbaatar Dagvadorj and Ganbat impression on the track when win- someone to show me." Jockey Flo- there because there are mountains camp in January and then the rac- ly live on Sky Sports Box Office, Enebish to add a truly internation- ning his debut by nearly 11 lengths rent Geroux, a native of France and which you can do but there are also ing will come very quickly. I'm December 12, and is now available al flavour to the weekend's presti- in the States but it wasn't until ear- now a rising star in American rac- laps which don't cover so many hoping to be racing in Australia and to order via your Sky remote or gious fare but he has already lier this year that he really came of ing, has partnered Mongolian Sat- high metres. that's at the end of January next online. proved himself on the internation- age as he hit the frame in three urday in his last two starts. There's a bit of everything. year. This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF. THURSDAY . DECEMBER 10 . 2015-Qaus 19, 1394 H.S Vol:X Issue No:132 Price: Afs.15 This document was created with Win2PDF available at http://www.win2pdf.com. The unregistered version of Win2PDF is for evaluation or non-commercial use only. This page will not be added after purchasing Win2PDF.