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Afghanistan State Structure and Security Forces
European Asylum Support Office Afghanistan State Structure and Security Forces Country of Origin Information Report August 2020 SUPPORT IS OUR MISSION European Asylum Support Office Afghanistan State Structure and Security Forces Country of Origin Information Report August 2020 More information on the European Union is available on the Internet (http://europa.eu). ISBN: 978-92-9485-650-0 doi: 10.2847/115002 BZ-02-20-565-EN-N © European Asylum Support Office (EASO) 2020 Reproduction is authorised, provided the source is acknowledged, unless otherwise stated. For third-party materials reproduced in this publication, reference is made to the copyrights statements of the respective third parties. Cover photo: © Al Jazeera English, Helmand, Afghanistan 3 November 2012, url CC BY-SA 2.0 Taliban On the Doorstep: Afghan soldiers from 215 Corps take aim at Taliban insurgents. 4 — AFGHANISTAN: STATE STRUCTURE AND SECURITY FORCES - EASO COUNTRY OF ORIGIN INFORMATION REPORT Acknowledgements This report was drafted by the European Asylum Support Office COI Sector. The following national asylum and migration department contributed by reviewing this report: The Netherlands, Office for Country Information and Language Analysis, Ministry of Justice It must be noted that the review carried out by the mentioned departments, experts or organisations contributes to the overall quality of the report, it but does not necessarily imply their formal endorsement of the final report, which is the full responsibility of EASO. AFGHANISTAN: STATE STRUCTURE AND SECURITY -
Making Sense of Daesh in Afghanistan: a Social Movement Perspective
\ WORKING PAPER 6\ 2017 Making sense of Daesh in Afghanistan: A social movement perspective Katja Mielke \ BICC Nick Miszak \ TLO Joint publication by \ WORKING PAPER 6 \ 2017 MAKING SENSE OF DAESH IN AFGHANISTAN: A SOCIAL MOVEMENT PERSPECTIVE \ K. MIELKE & N. MISZAK SUMMARY So-called Islamic State (IS or Daesh) in Iraq and Syria is widely interpreted as a terrorist phenomenon. The proclamation in late January 2015 of a Wilayat Kho- rasan, which includes Afghanistan and Pakistan, as an IS branch is commonly interpreted as a manifestation of Daesh's global ambition to erect an Islamic caliphate. Its expansion implies hierarchical order, command structures and financial flows as well as a transnational mobility of fighters, arms and recruits between Syria and Iraq, on the one hand, and Afghanistan–Pakistan, on the other. In this Working Paper, we take a (new) social movement perspective to investigate the processes and underlying dynamics of Daesh’s emergence in different parts of the country. By employing social movement concepts, such as opportunity structures, coalition-building, resource mobilization and framing, we disentangle the different types of resource mobilization and long-term conflicts that have merged into the phenomenon of Daesh in Afghanistan. In dialogue with other approaches to terrorism studies as well as peace, civil war and security studies, our analysis focuses on relations and interactions among various actors in the Afghan-Pakistan region and their translocal networks. The insight builds on a ten-month fieldwork-based research project conducted in four regions—east, west, north-east and north Afghanistan—during 2016. We find that Daesh in Afghanistan is a context-specific phenomenon that manifests differently in the various regions across the country and is embedded in a long- term transformation of the religious, cultural and political landscape in the cross-border region of Afghanistan–Pakistan. -
Leveraging the Taliban's Quest for International Recognition
Leveraging the Taliban’s Quest for International Recognition Afghan Peace Process Issues Paper March 2021 By Barnett R. Rubin Summary: As the United States tries to orchestrate a political settlement in conjunction with its eventual military withdrawal from Afghanistan, it has overestimated the role of military pressure or presence and underestimated the leverage that the Taliban’s quest for sanctions relief, recognition and international assistance provides. As the U.S. government decides on how and when to withdraw its troops, it and other international powers retain control over some of the Taliban’s main objectives — the removal of both bilateral and United Nations Security Council sanctions and, eventually, recognition of and assistance to an Afghan government that includes the Taliban. Making the most of this leverage will require coordination with the Security Council and with Afghanistan’s key neighbors, including Security Council members China, Russia and India, as well as Pakistan and Iran. In April 2017, in a meeting with an interagency team on board a military aircraft en route to Afghanistan, U.S. President Donald J. Trump’s new national security advisor, retired Army Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, dismissed the ongoing effort to negotiate a settlement with the Taliban: “The first step, the national security adviser said, was to turn around the trajectory of the conflict. The United States had to stop the Taliban’s advance on the battlefield and force them to agree to concessions in the process .... US talks with the Taliban would only succeed when the United States returned to a position of strength on the battlefield and was ‘winning’ against the insurgency.”1 1 Donati, Jessica. -
Afghanistan - 100 Years of Independence
In Depth - Afghanistan - 100 Years of Independence Introduction August 19, 2019 marked the 100th Independence Day for Afghanistan. On this day in 1919, Afghanistan gained its independence from Britain after the signing of the Anglo-Afghan Treaty which granted complete neutral relations between Afghanistan and Britain. For several weeks, the Afghan cities had been preparing to celebrate the 100th independence anniversary. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had also extended greetings to the Afghans while delivering his Independence Day speech on August 15th. But the sense of joy turned into grief when a series of explosions shook the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, wounding dozens of people including children. According to latest reports, as many as 10 blasts were reported in and around the city in Nangarhar province, and casualty numbers appeared to be rising. Earlier, on Saturday, a terror attack on a wedding party in Kabul killed more than 60, and injured nearly 200. Wars with British Empire: 1747:Ahmad Shah Durrani unified Pashtun tribes. Afghanistan was not fully integrated colony of British Empire. 1919:Afghanistan’s War of Independence. First Anglo-Afghan War (1839-1842): The First Anglo-Afghan War (also known by the British as the Disaster in Afghanistan) was fought between the British East India Company and the Emirate of Afghanistan from 1839 to 1842. Initially, the British successfully intervened in a succession dispute between emir Dost Mohammad (Barakzai) and former emir Shah Shujah (Durrani), whom they installed upon conquering Kabul in August 1839. The main British Indian and Sikh force occupying Kabul along with their camp followers, having endured harsh winters as well, was almost completely annihilated while retreating in January 1842. -
Interview with Top Taliban Leaders (NHK) 1
Annex I 1 Interview with Top Taliban Leaders (NHK) Some parts of the interview were broadcasted in Today’s Close-Up on September 6, 2012, in Japan and September 11, 2012, on NHK WORLD TV in English. Sohail Shaheen, member of Taliban Negotiation Team in Qatar Syed Rasool, member of Taliban Negotiation Team in Qatar Interview with S ohailS haheen NHK : How many members of the political office of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan are talking to United States? SOHAIL SHAHEEN : When there are talks or meeting with the politi- cal office, they decide how many members will take part in the talks and according to that decision members of the political office participate in the talks but this occurred before the suspension of the talks. But now there is no contact between the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and the United States of America. There were confidence building measures which reached an understanding but they weren’t implemented because the talks were sus- pended and postponed. So, there are now no meetings and talks. NHK : Why were they suspended? SOHAIL SHAHEEN : It was because of the confidence building measures. We had meetings with the Americans, several meetings, and at the end of those meetings, we came to an understanding that the American side should take steps regarding confidence building measures like the opening of the office and also exchange of the prisoners and also delisting. But we have bypassed the delisting. To show a sign of flexibility we have bypassed it but two conditions are still there – exchange of prisoners and also the open- ing of the office. -
I NEW YORK UNIVERSITY Separating the Taliban from Al-Qaeda: The
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY i CENTER ON INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION Separating the Taliban from al-Qaeda: The Core of Success in Afghanistan Alex Strick van Linschoten Felix Kuehn February 2011 NYU Separating the Taliban from al-Qaeda: The Core of Success in Afghanistan | A CIC Study CIC NEW YORK UNIVERSITY CENTER ON INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION The world faces old and new security challenges that are more complex than our multilateral and national institutions are currently capable of managing. International cooperation is ever more necessary in meeting these challenges. The NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC) works to enhance international responses to conflict, insecurity, and scarcity through applied research and direct engagement with multilateral institutions and the wider policy community. CIC’s programs and research activities span the spectrum of conflict, insecurity, and scarcity issues. This allows us to see critical inter-connections and highlight the coherence often necessary for effective response. We have a particular concentration on the UN and multilateral responses to conflict. Table of Contents Separating the Taliban from al-Qaeda: The Core of Success in Afghanistan | A CIC Study Key Findings 1 1. Overview 1 2. September 11 and the Taliban 5 3. An Avoidable Insurgency 6 4. Engaging Taliban on al-Qaeda 7 5. U.S. Policy and al-Qaeda 9 6. Conclusion 11 Endnotes 13 Key Findings 1. Overview • The Taliban and al-Qaeda remain distinct groups For much of the international community, relations with different goals, ideologies, and sources of recruits; between the Taliban and al-Qaeda – as well as the Taliban’s there was considerable friction between them before ties to the wider universe of jihadist groups – pose the September 11, 2001, and today that friction persists. -
Rhetoric, Ideology and Organizational Structure of the Taliban Movement
[PEACEW RKS [ RHETORIC, IDEOLOGY, AND ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE TALIBAN MOVEMENT Michael Semple ABOUT THE REPORT The withdrawal of NATO troops in 2014 means that a new Afghan government will need to develop a strategy to confront the Taliban’s campaign. Commissioned by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) as part of its ongo- ing commitment to conflict resolution in Afghanistan, this report offers insights into the movement’s doctrine, organization, and rhetoric and is intended to inform efforts to end the Taliban violence. ABOUT THE AUTHOR Michael Semple, a peace practitioner and scholar who focuses on Afghanistan and Pakistan, is currently visiting professor at the Institute for the Study of Conflict Transformation and Social Justice, Queen’s University Belfast. He previously worked as a political officer for the United Nations mission and deputy to the European Union Special Representative for Afghanistan. From 2009 to 2013, he was a fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Carr Center for Human Rights Policy. Cover photo: Mullah Omar’s bunker near his palace in Kandahar on December 13, 2001, in Kandahar (City), Afghanistan Documents (Photo by Patrick Aventurier/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images) The views expressed in this report are those of the author alone. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the United States Institute of Peace. United States Institute of Peace 2301 Constitution Ave., NW Washington, DC 20037 Phone: 202.457.1700 Fax: 202.429.6063 E-mail: [email protected] Web: www.usip.org Peaceworks No. 102. First published 2014. ISBN: 978-1-60127-274-4 © 2014 by the United States Institute of Peace CONTENTS PEACEWORKS • DECEMBER 2014 • NO. -
The Taliban Insurgency and an Analysis of Shabnamah (Night Letters)
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Calhoun, Institutional Archive of the Naval Postgraduate School Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Faculty and Researcher Publications Faculty and Researcher Publications 2007-09 The Taliban insurgency and an analysis of Shabnamah (night letters) Johnson, Thomas H. Routledge Small Wars and Insurgencies, v.18, no.3, September 2007, pp. 317-344 http://hdl.handle.net/10945/38802 Small Wars and Insurgencies Vol. 18, No. 3, 317–344, September 2007 The Taliban Insurgency and an Analysis of Shabnamah (Night Letters) THOMAS H. JOHNSON Naval Postgraduate School, California ABSTRACT The Taliban has recently re-emerged on the Afghan scene with vengeance. Five years after being defeated in Afghanistan by a US coalition, the resurgent Taliban, backed by al-Qaeda, are mounting an increasingly virulent insurgency, especially in the east and south, near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The Taliban now represents a significant challenge to the survival of President Hamid Karzai’s government. This article assesses the narrative strategy the Taliban has employed to garner support with the Afghan people. Specifically, this paper assesses the narratives of Taliban shabnamah, commonly referred to as ‘night letters’ in an effort unravel what the Taliban represents. Introduction The last two years have witnessed some of the fiercest and most sustained fighting in Afghanistan since the Taliban regime was toppled in November 2001. Some analysts are now contending that the conflict situation in Afghanistan is a ‘stalemate’ between Taliban insurgent forces and the United States and their NATO allies.1 There is no doubt the Taliban has staged a significant resurgence and is now a major threat to any semblance of a stable and democratic Afghanistan. -
HISTORY of the WAR the US- Led Military Intervention in Afghanistan
BACKGROUNDER ON AFGHANISTAN: HISTORY OF THE WAR The U.S- led military intervention in Afghanistan marks the fourth phase in the country’s twenty-three-year-old civil war. In every phase foreign powers have intensified the conflict by supporting one side against another. The First Phase: The Saur Revolution and Soviet Occupation Before civil war erupted in 1978, Afghanistan was a monarchy under Muhammad Zahir Shah, who had come to power in 1933. After World War II, both the U.S. and the Soviet Union used economic assistance to compete for influence. After the US established military ties with Pakistan in 1954, Afghanistan increasingly turned to the Soviet Union support. In 1964 Zahir Shah convened a Loya Jirga, or Grand Council, of tribal leaders to debate a draft constitution that would provide for a more representational government. However, Zahir Shah did not relinquish any power; political parties were permitted to organize but not to contest elections. Zahir Shah was overthrown by his cousin Daoud Khan in 1973; the king has remained in exile in Rome ever since. In staging the coup, Daoud had allied himself with the Parcham faction of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA), a Marxist-Leninist party that had been formed in 1965. In 1967 the PDPA split into two factions, Parcham (“flag”) which drew its support from urban, educated Pashtuns along with other ethnic groups, and Khalq (“masses”) which had the support of educated rural Afghans, also predominantly Pashtun. (Pashtuns comprise the largest ethnic group in Afghanistan and have dominated the government for centuries. -
Kunduz Province Map Pdf
Kunduz province map pdf Continue ProvinceAn aerial view from the window of the Blackhawk helicopter between Balkh Province and KunduzMap province of Afghanistan with Kunduz identifiedCoordinates (capital): 36'48'N 68'48'E / 36.8'N 68.8'E / 36.8; 68.8Coordinates: 36'48'N 68'48'E / 36.8'N 68.8'E / 36.8; 68.8CountryﻗﻨﺪوزﮐﻨﺪوزAfghanistan's province of AfghanistanKunduz is one of 34 provinces of Afghanistan located in the northern part of the country near Tajikistan. The province has (ﮐﻨﺪوز :Pashto ,ﻗﻨﺪوز :AfghanistanCapitalKundusGovernment - Governor Asadullah Omarhail (2012) - Total 8040 sq km (3100 sq. m. (a) (Afghan time) ISO 3166 codeAF-KD'Main LanguagesDariPashtoUzbekTurkmen Kunduz or Sunduz (Persian a population of about 953,800, which is mostly a tribal society; it is one of the most ethnically diverse provinces in Afghanistan, home to a wide variety of ethnic groups. Kunduz is the provincial capital. It borders the provinces of Takhar, Baghlan, Samannan and Balkh. Kunduz Airport is located near the provincial capital. The Kunduz River Valley dominates Kunduz province. The river flows irregularly from south to north into the Amudar River, which forms the border between Afghanistan and Tajikistan. The newly built bridge crosses Amudary in Sherhan Bandar, and international trade is a major source of Kunduz's economy. The river, its tributaries and derivative channels provide irrigation of irrigated fields that dominate land use in the agricultural province. There are also rain fields and open land range that span several miles. Kunduz was once Afghanistan's major economic center, but wars since 1978 have changed the province's fortunes. -
The Taliban, Foreign Occupation, and Afghan
1 RESISTANCE BY OTHER MEANS: THE TALIBAN, FOREIGN OCCUPATION, AND AFGHAN NATIONAL IDENTITY A dissertation presented by Mariam Atifa Raqib to The Law, Policy and Society Program In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the field of Law, Policy and Society Northeastern University Boston, Massachusetts April, 2011 2 RESISTANCE BY OTHER MEANS: THE TALIBAN, FOREIGN OCCUPATION, AND AFGHAN NATIONAL IDENTITY by Mariam Atifa Raqib Policy analysts frequently portray the Taliban resistance as an exclusively Islamic movement. Culturally deterministic notions regarding Islamic societies have negatively influenced western governments’ policies towards Muslim states. The research here advances the hypothesis that the current conflict in Afghanistan is not about “Islam.” At its core the Taliban resistance is a nationalist challenge to foreign forces and their Afghan allies. Furthermore, the roots of this movement are foreign occupation, continued years of war and violence, and a lack of genuine effort on the part of the incumbent regime to implement necessary socio-economic and political reforms. This work claims that the success of the Taliban movement is firmly rooted in their appropriation of religious symbols, discourse and terminology — particularly Shariat, or Islamic law — to channel the frustrations of a grieving population. Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the field of Law, Policy and Society in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Northeastern University, April 2011 3 Acknowledgements This dissertation has culminated from many years of research. I am privileged to have a group of people who have been supportive to me. -
Background Guide
Zahir Shah’s Cabinet, Afghanistan 1963 MUNUC 33 ONLINE TABLE OF CONTENTS ______________________________________________________ CHAIR’S LETTER………………………….….………………………………..….3 CRISIS DIRECTOR’S LETTER..…………..………………………………………..5 A BRIEF HISTORY OF AFGHANISTAN………………………………………….6 CURRENT ISSUES…………………………………………..…………………...21 ROSTER……………………………………………………..…………………...31 BIOGRAPHIES……………………………………………..…………………...33 BIBLIOGRAPHY……………..……………………………..…………………...45 2 Zahir Shah’s Cabinet, Afghanistan 1963| MUNUC 33 Online CHAIR’S LETTER ______________________________________________________ Dear Delegates, Welcome to Afghanistan! My name is Karina Holbrook, and I am the Chair (aka Zahir Shah) of this committee. As chair, I hope to be fair to everyone; more importantly, I want the committee to be fun. The goal of this conference is pedagogy, and I believe that this can best be done through an immersive, interactive experience - in other words, in a continuous crisis committee! I hope that this committee will give all delegates the opportunity to truly shine, both in the frontroom and in the backroom, in the pursuit of a new Afghanistan. On that note, there are a couple of things I would like to address. First, we will not be tolerating any remarks about the Taliban; not only is it completely inappropriate (and will be addressed accordingly), but it is also completely irrelevant to our time - we are, after all, in the 1960s, long before the Taliban even existed. Also, in that vein, I will not be tolerating any Islamophobic, racist, or sexist comments, either “in character” or to a delegate. “Historical accuracy” or “because my character was like that in real life” is not an excuse - after all, at the end of the day we are delegates in 2020, and we can choose to be mindful where our characters did not.