Afghanistan:

MONTHLY REVIEW

February 2007

IN THIS ISSUE:

• Up to 77 killed or injured in terrorist attacks. • and the US shift tone on . • Mujahidin organise visible show of power on amnesty bill. • Counter-insurgency operations lead 4,500 families to flee. • Pakistan to close four refugee camps. • Bird flu re-emerges in Afghanistan.

Security

The end of February saw a spate of suicide attacks:

• On 20 th February, three US soldiers were injured when a suicide bomber dressed in a white doctor’s coat detonated his explosives at a hospital function in Khost, in eastern Afghanistan. A US soldier had just fired at him when he was seen to be acting suspiciously.

• On 27 th February, up to 23 people were killed and a further 20 people were wounded when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives just inside a perimeter security gate to the main US military base at Bagram. Many of those killed were said to be Afghan workers at the base or truck drivers waiting to go into it. They also included two soldiers, from South Korea and the USA, and a US contractor. It is not clear whether the attack was linked to the presence of the US Vice- President, Dick Cheney, in the base. He was at a considerable distance from the explosion at the time and entered and left the base by air. His schedule had also provided that he leave the day before.

• On the same day, three people were wounded when a suicide bomber blew himself up in the city of Kandahar. The attack would appear to have been targeted at the police.

The police have also been targeted through other attacks:

• On 7 th February, three policemen were wounded when their vehicle was hit by a remote-controlled bomb in the south-western province of Nimroz.

• On 9 th February, four policemen were killed and three others were seriously injured when their truck was ambushed in the Panjwai District of Kandahar.

• On 18 th February, four police officers were killed and two were wounded in of , in western Afghanistan, when their vehicle was hit by a bomb as they returned from eradicating opium poppy in the area.

International forces, and those who protect them, have also been vulnerable:

• On 7 th February, two Afghan guards employed by the US security company, US Protection and Investigation, were killed by a remote-controlled roadside bomb in the Maiwand District of Kandahar. Six guards were injured, three of them critically. They were escorting a convoy which was supplying logistics to ISAF forces.

• On 21 st February, one Spanish soldier was killed and two were injured when their convoy of armoured ambulances was thought to have hit a high-potency mine near Shindand, to the south of Herat, in western Afghanistan.

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 1 January 2007

On 19 th February, the editor of a government-run magazine was killed by armed men, on a passing motorcycle, in Andkhoy District of , in northern Afghanistan. It is not clear why he was targeted.

Counter insurgency

After months of high profile criticism of the Pakistan Government in relation to the ongoing insurgency, both President Karzai and the US Government would appear to have decided to adopt a more conciliatory tone, while continuing to express concerns over the support that may be coming to the Taliban from within Pakistan.

In an interview with Pakistan’s The News International on 22 nd February, President Karzai was thus quoted as saying that his government was “happy with some of the measures adopted by Pakistan” and to have added that the two leaders had decided to refrain from blaming each other publicly. He nonetheless stated that “he did not want to let go the opportunity to point out that almost all the attacks by the Taliban were taking place in Afghan provinces bordering Pakistan”.

In the context of a visit by the US Vice-President, Dick Cheney, to Islamabad on 26 th February, the White House Press Secretary stated: “The Pakistanis remain committed to doing everything possible to fight Al-Qaida. But, having said that, we also know there’s a lot more that needs to be done”. He also noted the conclusion of the US Government that “it’s clear Al-Qaeda is, in fact, trying to build new strength and so is the Taliban”. The US Secretary of State, Condoleeza Rice, commented in a similar vein when she said that the US is “aware” of the political constraints that President Musharraf has in dealing with the tribal areas and in going after terrorists there. She added: “To not say that would be not to face reality”. She called President Musharraf a “stalwart fighter” against Al-Qaeda. However, the talks held between Dick Cheney and President Karzai on the following day were said to have focused on the “problems coming from Pakistan.”

The dilemmas faced by the US government were succinctly put at a hearing of the US Senate on 27 th February, when the US Director of National Intelligence, Michael McConnell, stated: “Most of our most crucial interests intersect in Pakistan, where the Taliban and Al-Qaeda maintain critical sanctuaries. Pakistan is our partner in the war on terror and has captured several Al-Qaida leaders. However, it is also a major source of Islamic extremism”. He also commented: “We recognize that aggressive military action, however, has been costly for Pakistani security forces and appreciate concerns over the potential for sparking tribal rebellion and a backlash by sympathetic Islamic political parties. There is widespread opposition among these parties to the US military presence in Afghanistan and ”.

The US President was reported to have announced on 16 th February that the US Government would fund the construction of 100 border outposts and also provide high- tech equipment to help Pakistani forces monitor cross-border movements. He added that

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 2 January 2007 it was also funding “an air wing, with helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, to give Pakistan better security and surveillance capabilities.”

The Pakistan Government is proceeding with its plans to fence part of its border with Afghanistan. President Musharraf advised on 2 nd February that, in the first instance, fencing would be erected at seven or eight locations to cover a total distance of 22 miles along Pakistan’s north-west frontier. He added that this would take “a few months” and that the necessary logistics were already underway. He stressed that mines would not be used during this initial phase but insisted that they remained an option linked to plans to create 150 miles of fencing along the border with Pakistan’s Baluchistan Province during the second phase.

There has been considerable debate, within both the Afghan Government and the international community, as to how best to respond to indications that the Taliban are planning a major spring offensive. Asia Times Online, for example, reported, on February 3 rd , that the Taliban intended to deploy forces in Helmand (in the south), Kunar, Nuristan and Tagab (in the east, with a view to besieging Kabul), Paktia, Paktika, Khost and Ghazni (in the south-east) and in the north-western provinces of Faryab, Badghis, Ghor and Herat.

The British Foreign Secretary, Margaret Beckett, used visits to Pakistan and Afghanistan on 26 th and 27 th February to explore some of the issues involved. In addition to talks with President Musharraf and other senior members of the Government, she also met Ali Muhammed Jan Aurakzai, the Governor of North-West Frontier Province on 27 th February, to discuss security issues relating to the border region, before travelling to Afghanistan.

Following discussions with President Karzai and the Afghan Foreign Secretary, Rangeen Dadfar Spanta, she commented, in a press briefing: “I would say, in all sincerity, that no one is doing enough to tackle the security problems. If we were doing enough, then we would have had a great deal more success than we have had so far. It is very important for us to do more together and to cooperate together to tackle these problems because they cause such harm, whether it be in Pakistan itself or in Afghanistan”.

Part of the debate has centred on concerns that the international military forces available may not be sufficient and has led to some criticism by the countries deploying forces in the southern provinces, notably the USA, UK, Canada and Holland, that other nations contributing to ISAF, with forces stationed across the north and centre of the country, are refusing to allow their forces to operate in the south.

This issue was a key area of focus at a meeting of NATO Defence Ministers in Seville on 8th February. However, the German Defence Minister, Franz Josef Jung, resisted pressure to deploy German troops to southern Afghanistan, stating “I do not think it is right to talk about more military means”, adding that, when the Soviet Union was in Afghanistan, “they had 100,000 troops and didn’t win”. He called on NATO-contributing countries to give greater priority to economic and reconstruction programmes.

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 3 January 2007

It was nonetheless announced on 7 th February that the German cabinet had agreed to send six Tornado reconnaissance jets to Afghanistan to help strengthen intelligence gathering. The German Defence Minister commented that “better reconnaissance will lead to measured and proportional reactions from international forces and should help avoid collateral damage (civilian deaths)”. However, the opposition Free Democrats party has expressed its concern that, with the Tornados relaying coordinates for potential bombing targets, the German Government will involve itself in acts of war which result in civilian deaths.

The Italian Prime Minister, Romani Prodi also rejected calls for Italy to increase the size of its military contribution. He insisted that any resolution of the conflict in Afghanistan required engagement between the US, the , Russia, China, Pakistan, Iran, India and Afghanistan.

He was later forced to resign after a motion submitted by his cabinet to the Italian Senate, on 22 nd February, for an extension to the deployment of Italian forces to Afghanistan failed to achieve the necessary majority. Three left-wing members of his coalition refused to support the motion, stating that they regarded the West’s operations in the country as a colonial war.

However, Mr Prodi was reinstated, as Prime Minister, following a vote of confidence in the Senate on 28 th February. His position nonetheless remains precarious, as a direct result of the deployment in Afghanistan, with a vote in the Senate in March, on the financing of Italy’s military presence, threatening to again unseat him.

The unwillingness of Germany, Italy and other NATO members to deploy to the south may have been a factor in the decision of the British Government, announced on 26 th February, to increase the number of its troops in Afghanistan by 1,400, thus bringing the total British military presence to 7,700. In advising on the increase, the British Minister of Defence, Des Browne stated: “I have lobbied our partners consistently for more help but it is increasingly obvious that, at present, when it comes to the most challenging parts of Afghanistan, only we and a small number of key allies are prepared to step forward”.

Leadership of the international military response to the insurgency passed, on 4 th February, from the British General, David Richards, to the US General, Dan McNeill. As commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, he presides over an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) force of more than 35,000 soldiers, 15,000 of which are US personnel. An additional 11,000 US soldiers are deployed as special operations forces or providing training to the Afghan National Army.

Another continuing element in the debate is the question of how tribal structures can be persuaded to withhold support from the Taliban. This was brought into focus when, on 2nd February, it was reported that Taliban forces had taken the district administration offices and police headquarters in Musa Qala, in , after arresting a number of elders and destroying part of the government compound. ISAF troops

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 4 January 2007 withdrew from Musa Qala on 17 th October 2006, after negotiating an arrangement with tribal elders whereby they would provide their own security in return for an understanding that they would keep the Taliban at bay. The district has been peaceful during the intervening months but the peace deal has been controversial in the face of reports that the Taliban continued to have a presence there. ISAF has exercised restraint in not seeking to recover the district, which remains under Taliban control, by military means, in the hope that the tribal elders can secure a negotiated outcome. The Governor of Helmand, Haji Assadullah Wafa, has been a key player in advocating this strategy. However, fear of retaliatory action by ISAF forces has led to a partial exodus of the population.

The Taliban claimed that ISAF had violated the agreement by killing a senior Taliban commander and his deputies in an air strike the previous week. ISAF responded by stating that the strike had been “clearly outside the area covered by the Musa Qala agreement.”

Progress in building support amongst the Pushtun tribes will also be dependent on the outcome of the Jirgas which the Afghan and Pakistan Governments are planning. A meeting took place on 25 th February, in Islamabad, between the Pakistan Jirga Commission and the Regional Peace Jirga Preparatory Commission of Afghanistan to work out the modalities for holding Jirgas on both sides of the border to discuss the security situation.

The Governor of Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province recently urged Afghanistan to open a dialogue with the Taliban. In support of this position, he stated that the Taliban- led insurgency was “developing into some kind of nationalist movement, a resistance movement, some sort of liberation war against the coalition forces”.

A key element in military operations in the south has been an effort to create a secure environment around the Kajaki Dam in Helmand, so that reconstruction and repair work can be undertaken to its electricity-generating facilities. During the course of the month, ISAF forces have been able to clear much of the surrounding area of Taliban forces and to have secured the dam in the face of Taliban attacks. However, the conditions for a return of the contractors working on the dam have not yet been achieved. Further, the vast majority of the population of the area around the dam is reported to have left, in anticipation of further military action.

Human rights

The draft law, drawn up and supported by the Wolesi Jirga (Lower House of Parliament) on 31 st January, to grant immunity from prosecution for all Afghans involved in the past 25 years of conflict has inevitably aroused strong reactions. The document states: “In order to bring reconciliation among various strata in the society, all those political and belligerent sides who were involved, one way or the other, during the two and a half decades of war will not be prosecuted, legally and judicially”. It calls on all “opponents who fought each other for different reasons in the last two and a half decades” to forgive

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 5 January 2007 each other and consider the Karzai-backed reconciliation process. Those who fought in the jihad are also to be lauded by Afghanistan’s “history and people”. Supporters of the amnesty say that it is a move towards reconciliation.

The bill responds specifically to a recommendation by Human Rights Watch that the Afghan authorities should hold accountable a number of communist and Mujahidin figures accused of major human rights abuses since 1979. It describes Human Rights Watch reports as “inaccurate” and based “on malicious intentions.”

The draft legislation was also passed by the Meshrano Jirga (Upper House of Parliament) on 20 th February and needs to be signed by President Karzai to become law. However, the Afghan constitution provides that the Wolesi Jirga can over-ride a presidential veto if a bill is supported by two thirds of the legislators. If the President takes no action, the bill will automatically become law after 15 days.

Supporters of the amnesty bill organised a rally in the Kabul stadium on 23 rd February. The stadium, which holds about 25,000 people, was said to be full to capacity. High profile figures attending the rally included the Mujahidin leaders, Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, Muhammed Qasim Fahim, Burhanuddin Rabbani, Ismail Khan and Karim Khalili. This show of power demonstrated very clearly the strength of conservative opinion within the country and the significance that the anti-Soviet jihad continues to hold amongst important segments of the population.

The spokesman for the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, Ahmad Nader Nadery, responded: “Only victims and the people of Afghanistan, who suffered decades of war and human rights violations, can make the decision about giving amnesty to war criminals in our country. AIHRC welcomes efforts for promoting reconciliation, but, at the same time, we believe granting blanket amnesty will only permit impunity in our country”.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan commented that “no-one has the right to forgive those responsible for human rights violations other than the victims themselves”. It added that the issue of post war justice should be addressed through the Action Plan on Peace, Reconciliation and Justice launched by President Karzai in December 2006. This contains five key elements: “acknowledgment of the suffering of the Afghan people; strengthening state institutions; finding out the truth about the country’s bloody past; promoting reconciliation; and establishing a proper accountability mechanism”.

Further concern was expressed by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Louise Arbour. In an interview with Le Monde newspaper, she stated that “the minimum would be to maintain room for justice and not grant any amnesty”, adding that, if trials had risked making the situation worse in Afghanistan, the authorities should have bided their time and continued their investigations. “Don’t forgive anything without establishing the facts”, she said “An amnesty is permanent. There is no going back on it.”

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 6 January 2007

As a reminder of past human rights abuses, hundreds of Hazaras commemorated the 14 th anniversary of what is referred to as the Afshar massacre of 26 th February 1993, when the Hazara neighbourhood of Afshar, in western Kabul, was actively targeted in the course of inter-Mujahidin fighting.

Some of the actions of the international military continue to undermine efforts to build support within the population. On 7 th February, members of the Provincial Council of called a press conference to protest at the “irresponsible operations and home searches” of international forces in villages. They expressed their concern that the Government had failed to respond to their complaints about military operations conducted without prior coordination with the authorities.

Four instances have been reported during February in which international troops, fearing suicide attacks, killed civilians who ignored warning shots not to approach ISAF positions.

Civilian casualties also continue to occur in the course of military operations. On 26 th February, ISAF forces were reported to have inadvertently dropped mortar rounds during fighting in District of Helmand Province. Two civilians were said to have been killed as a result and four others were wounded. ISAF expressed its regret over the accident.

Opium poppy eradication programmes, which commenced in early February, have led to casualties. On 18 th February, one farmer was killed and two were injured in a clash between opium poppy farmers and police involved in eradication in the western province of Ghor. Some 500 people had gathered to protest.

As part of its monitoring of the human rights situation in Afghanistan, Human Rights Watch issued a press release, on 16 th February, in response to the sentence handed down by a US court, on 13 th February, to a CIA contractor convicted of killing an Afghan detainee in 2003. It commented: “The US military continues to operate in Afghanistan without any legal framework, such as a Status of Forces Agreement with the Afghan Government, and to detain hundreds of Afghans without any legal process. US forces, at a minimum, are obligated to treat detainees in accordance with the fundamental guarantees provided by international humanitarian law.”

Humanitarian developments

Those who have fled Musa Qala and Kajaki to Lashkar Gah have faced difficulties accessing assistance as humanitarian agencies endeavour to assess the number of those displaced and seek to overcome security and other constraints. Around 300 of the 1,500 families displaced from Musa Qala were said, on 21 st February, to have received food and non-food assistance from UNICEF, the Afghan Red Crescent Society and the World Food Programme. The 3,000 families displaced from Kajaki were yet to be assisted.

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 7 January 2007

A typhoid epidemic has been reported in Charsada District of , in western Afghanistan. Five deaths have occurred while 200 people are said to be infected. Most of those affected are children.

Refugees

Four refugee camps in Pakistan are to close this year following a decision taken at a meeting between the Governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan and UNHCR on 7 th February. The four camps are Katchagari and Jalozai, in North West Frontier Province and Girdi Jungle and Jungle Pir in Baluchistan. Between them, they have a population of 236,000. Katchagari and Jungle Pir Alozai will close by June 15 th while Jalozai and Girdi Jungle are scheduled to close by August 31 st .

The decision is said to have been taken “for security and development reasons”. Pakistan’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations recently wrote to the UN Security Council: “The problem of cross-border militancy is closely related to the presence of …Afghan refugees in Pakistan. These camps have often given rise to complaints that they provide shelter to undesirable elements and Taliban”.

UNHCR has commented: “We understand that security near the border is a top priority and stress that refugee camps must retain their civilian nature. At the same time, the authorities should recognise genuine humanitarian needs, as they have done in the last 30 years, and offer options to Afghans affected by camp closures.

Those who do not wish to opt for UNHCR’s voluntary repatriation programme to Afghanistan may apply for relocation to other camps. However, all Afghan refugees are expected to return by 2009, including the 2.1 million issued with documentation in the registration exercise which started in October and finished in February.

This move carries with it the risk that those who return may find it harder to secure employment in Afghanistan than Pakistan. While the camps may provide a relatively accessible recruiting ground for Taliban fighters at the present time, the disaffection that may result from an unsatisfactory return process could also lead to a view that the Taliban are worthy of support. Much will depend on how easy Afghans find it to remain and, therefore, find work in Pakistan. Previous refugee camp closures have resulted in part of the displaced population moving to the urban areas. However, the recent registration process may result in growing restrictions on Afghan refugees, in the urban areas as well as refugee camps, and any consequent increase in police harassment could add to feelings of disaffection.

Iran has agreed to extend the voluntary repatriation programme for Afghan refugees for a further year, until March 2008. Although more than 1.6 million have returned under the programme since 2002, the rate of return has slowed down significantly. Only 5,000 used it during 2006. However, large numbers of Afghans continue to enter Iran, whether under visa arrangements or as illegal economic migrants. 915,000 Afghans are officially

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 8 January 2007 recorded as living in Iran but the actual number is likely to be much greater, while fluctuating.

Bird flu

The Food and Agriculture Organisation has reported on a new outbreak of bird flu, based on the H5N1 strain, in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar. The Afghan authorities are culling poultry, both chickens and turkeys, in the affected areas but are encountering some resistance. The Afghan Government has also placed a ban on imports of poultry from Pakistan, where the H5N1 strain was recently found, as well as from other countries which have experienced outbreaks.

Economic developments

It was announced on 1 st February that the Afghan Ministry of Communications had issued licenses to two new telecommunications companies, Shaheen and Irtibat, to provide services in Herat, Logar, Khost and Paktia provinces. A third company, Wasil Telecom, was given a license to operate in .

Pajhwok Afghan News reported on 25 th February that foreign investment in the western province of Herat had increased by $15 million over the previous year. It noted that the investment, which was focused on the industrial, construction and public services sectors, had primarily come from firms and individuals in Iran, Germany, Turkey and the USA. The Herat industrial zone was said to have more than 200 factories, employing 13,000 people and producing motorcycles, tractors, electrical instruments, food products and fruit juices.

Judicial reform

European Union Foreign Ministers have approved a new mission to help train the Afghan National Police. This will involve the despatch of 150 police officers, together with other experts. The mission is to be funded out of an allocation of 600 million euros to help fund Afghanistan’s public administration. About 40% of the funds are earmarked for reforms in the justice sector. The EU has contributed about 135 million euros to police reform since 2002.

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 9 January 2007

This report is published by the British and Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group (BAAG) Project, based at the Refugee Council, London. The Project is funded from a number of sources, including the UK Government’s Department for International Development and individual British and Irish NGOs operating in Afghanistan. However, the views expressed are those of the BAAG Project alone and do not represent any official view of its funders. In producing this Review, every effort has been made to achieve accuracy, drawing on the many information sources available.

For more information, please contact: The Secretariat, BAAG at Refugee Council, 240-250 Ferndale Road, London SW9 8BB; Telephone: 00 44 20 7346 1152/7346 6773; Fax: 00 44 20 7346 1140 Email: [email protected]

BAAG Afghanistan Monthly Review 10 January 2007