Eye on the News [email protected] Truthful, Factual and Unbiased Vol:XI Issue No:196 Price: Afs.20

www.afghanistantimes.af www.facebook.com/ afghanistantimeswww.twitter.com/ afghanistantimes WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15. 2017 -Dalw 27, 1395 HS

A deadly suicide attack rocked the those behind the attack. (KP) Lahore city of Pakistan on Mon- day evening, leaving at least 90 people dead or wounded. HEKMATYAR According to the Pakistani police officials, the incident took REPORTEDLY place as hundreds of people had participated in a demonstration in HOSPITALIZED the city. The protesters had organized a sit-in against a new law near the IN ISTANBUL Punjab provincial assembly build- A Turkish newspaper has claimed By Mansoor Faizy ing. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader Inspector General of Punjab of the Hizb-e-Islami group, is cur- KABUL: Among the concerns that “I once again call upon those police, Ahmad Mushtaq Sukhera, rently in hospital in Istanbul. The the upcoming spring would be a Taliban who are having an inde- said the blast ripped through the newspaper, Aydinlik, quoted a bloody one with serious of fight- pendence of mindset that Afghan- protesters after the suicide bomb- Turkish intelligence source as say- ing, President Mohammad Ashraf istan is the joint homeland of all er detonated his explosives vest ing Hekmatyar is being treated at Ghani, on Tuesday warned that the Afghans, and (you should) come among the people. an Istanbul hospital. No details country’s security forces will “de- to live a dignified life in this com- He said at least six police offi- were however given. feat” the militants and will “chase mon home like other countrymen, cials, including two senior offic- Last week, Afghan government them in every valley and moun- and take part in its development ers, were among those killed. and Hizb-e-Islami officials said tains” of the country. instead of destruction” he noted. Sukhera further added that 13 Hekmatyar would return to Kabul While briefing a gathering at Ghani prized the Hezb-e-Isla- people were killed in total and at within the next few weeks and that the Presidential Palace to mark the mi Afghanistan leader, Eng. Gul- least 73 others were wounded. arrangements were being made in 28th anniversary of the Soviet badin Hekmatyar for his “histori- The officials are saying that the terms of housing and security. Forces withdrawal from Afghani- cal” decision to join the intra-Af- Pakistan media recently re- suicide bomber detonated his ex- ported that Turkish President Re- stan, the president said that mili- ghan peace process, in which paved plosives when police officers were tant “will face big defeats” in the the way for a big number of dissi- cep Tayyip Erdogan had said he busy in a discussion with the pro- would travel to Kabul to welcome coming years as the security forc- dent Mujahidins to return home testers. es “will be chasing them in every after decades of living in Pakistan. Hekmatyar when he returns to valley and mountain”, if the mili- The president furthered, “this Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan Afghanistan. This was in addition tant outfits continue killing “inno- year nearly one million refugees (TTP) Jamaat-ul-Ahrar group to reports that a top Hizb-e-Isla- cent Afghan people” in their de- were returned to the country, most- claimed responsibility behind the mi delegation led by the group’s structive terrorist attacks. ly from Pakistan and now there is attack. The Pakistani Prime Min- political committee Ghairat Baheer “Militant would not reach to no excuse for the country to blame ister Nawaz Sharif condemned the and top negotiator Mohammad their “evil goals” by killing judges, the former refugee Mujhaideens for attack in strongest words with the Amin Karim visited Turkey at the Mullahs, soldiers, innocent Afghan the ongoing fight in Afghanistan.” Pakistani Army Chief of Staff in- invitation of Erdogan. But Hizb- women, and children in their sui- President Ghani called on ji- structing the relevant authorities e-Islami officials rejected the cide attacks. hadi leaders to lend support to the to take immediate steps to arrest claims. (Tolonews) “If their new or old lords security forces in the current con- thinking that they will once again flict, calling it “Jihad against ter- turn Afghanistan to a country with- rorist”. “Our today’s struggle is not out army, police, no rule of law different from what we had against Roots of ongoing violence in Afghanistan lie outside, Afghan envoy tells UNSC and also toward isolation, then communism, as we conquer in that The roots of ongoing violence in tection of Critical Infrastructure”. serves no one, defies international combat this menace with greater they should bear in mind that their one, we will also triumph over the Afghanistan lie outside the coun- “The ongoing cycle of violence law and constitutes a blatant vio- precision and accuracy. In this evil hope would be dashed to ongoing fight against militants.” try, the Afghan envoy to the Unit- in Afghanistan is not, by any lation of the very spirit and tenets context, we welcome the efforts ground with gigantic defeat.” It is worth mentioning that 28- ed Nations said during a meeting means, a homegrown phenomenon. of the UN Charter, including rele- of the new Secretary General to “I have a strong believe that year ago the Soviet Forces with- of the United Nations Security Its roots lie elsewhere, outside vant counterterrorism resolutions strengthen the UN counter-terror- the terrorists will not succeed to drew from Afghanistan, following Council (UNSC). Afghanistan,” Salarzai said. of the General Assembly and Se- ism architecture, including his de- divert the Afghan nation’s will from tough resistance from the Afghan Nazifullah Salarzai Minister, Salarzai further added the curity Council. According to Sala- cision to create the Office of development and prosperity of the people and Mujhaideen. The Rus- Deputy Permanent Representa- roots of violence are emanating rzai, the fight against international Counter Terrorism (OCT), and country” the president said, while sian Occupation which lasted for tive of Afghanistan, was speaking from a strategic design crafted from terrorism stands at a crossroads. appoint of an Under-Secretary calling on Taliban to return to Af- nine years claimed around two during the meeting “Threats within our region to advance an ill- “ At this critical juncture, a General to head that office,” he ghanistan and live with dignity. million lives. Caused by Terrorist Acts – Pro- fated political agenda, which refined global effort is needed to added. (KP)

AIHRC calls for legal Afghanistan talks action to be taken MOSCOW: Russia is expected to Russia’s direct talks with the Tal- host a second round of internation- iban, which U.S. officials say are al talks on Afghanistan in Mos- aimed at undermining their efforts. against Taliban cow on February 15, reports Rus- Russian Foreign Minister Ser- sia's TASS news agency, with Af- gei Lavrov announced the peace ghanistan representatives invit- talks on February 7, during a visit ed for the first time. by his Afghan counterpart, Russia says it wants stability Salahuddin Rabbani. and cooperation in the fight against China and Pakistan were at extremists in the region. But Af- December talks in Moscow, while ghan officials are not happy with Iran, India and Afghanistan repre- sentatives are invited to participate at this week’s round for the first Iran ready to help time. It is not yet clear which repre- Afghan farmers sentatives have accepted the invi- replace poppy tation. The Independent Human Rights Commission The Russian side will be rep- (AIHRC) on Monday called for action to secure cultivation: resented by special presidential justice in cases where Afghan citizens have been envoy for Afghanistan Zamir Kab- attacked or killed. Official ulov and Deputy Foreign Minis- They warned that impunity for crimes by Tal- ter Igor Morgulov, reports TASS. iban operatives against Afghan citizens was wide- Deputy Head of Iran's Anti-Drug (VOA) Headquarters Assadollah Hadine- spread. jad declared his country's readi- The AIHRC said many Taliban prisoners have ness to help Afghanistan to replace 20 militants killed been apprehended red-handed while committing its poppy cultivation with anoth- crimes but have not been prosecuted. er agricultural crop. in airstrikes in As such they called on the Afghan government "The official stressed that Af- southern Uruzgan to ensure justice is meted out and that the law is ghan farmers could replace poppy implemented. cultivation with other agricultural province Negligence regarding the rule of law in the coun- products, including sesame and At least 20 militants were killed in try is distressing, warned AIHRC chief executive corn, and sell them to Iran," Had- a series of airstrikes conducted in Musa Mahmoudi, adding that such an approach inejad said on Tuesday. southern Uruzgan province of Af- could only prolong the culture of impunity. He reiterated that all border ghanistan. In response to AIHRC allegations, the Minis- areas of Iran-Afghanistan have According to the local securi- try of Interior (MoI) has said that the arrest of been blocked to prevent the entry ty officials, the militants were tar- Taliban operatives and their associates have been at of opium into the country. geted in the vicinity of Tarinkot the top of the working agenda of government. Hadinejad's remarks came af- city, the provincial capital of Uruz- The Taliban has been at war with the Afghan ter the United Nations Office on gan. Provincial governor’s spokes- security forces since the hardline movement was Drugs and Crime (UNODC) an- man Dost Mohammad Nayab con- toppled from power in 2001 and continue to carry nounced that Afghanistan’s pop- firmed that several airstrikes were out deadly attacks on Afghan towns and security py cultivation has risen to its third- carried out against the militants in forces. highest level in more than 20 years. this province. The AIHRC meanwhile blasted the Afghan gov- The total area of land used for Nayab further added that the ernment for not taking solid action against the Tali- poppy cultivation in Afghanistan militants were targeted in strikes ban. had risen by 10 percent to 201,000 conducted both by the Afghan forc- “All those detained today is because they com- hectares (497,000 acres) in 2016, es and the foreign based in the coun- mitted crimes against the citizens of Afghanistan; UNODC reported. Opium pop- try. these crimes committed by them (Taliban opera- py cultivation, a favorite activity He said at least 20 militants tives) are mainly suicide attacks, kidnappings and of the Taliban, used to be limited were killed during the airstrike con- other violent actions worse than this,” said Mah- to certain parts of Afghanistan; ducted recently in Tarinkot. moudi. however, the surge in militancy and According to Nayab, the air- But some critics say some Taliban operatives the government’s loss of grip on strikes are being carried out as part are carrying out their activities freely in some Af- security has allowed it to spread of clearance operations against the ghan cities and that Afghan intelligence agencies and to other parts of the country, par- militants which were launched few other responsible organizations have not been able ticularly the North. (FNA) days ago. (KP) to curb their operations. (Tolonews) WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTAN TIMES TOUGH TIMES FOR AFGHAN AID WORK KABUL: When a convoy of Red themselves, Afghan territory Cross workers drove into remote changes hands more quickly, leav- northern Afghanistan on Wednes- ing NGOs scrambling to keep up. day with supplies for victims of "It makes us fear for the fu- snow storms, they were entering a ture of our operations, because all region that had recently seen dan- of the serious aid organisations gerous and unpredictable changes. operate without armed guards, and Long under Taliban control, the we can be easy targets in this corner of Jowzjan province had changing environment," said De- been infiltrated over the past year jan Panic, program director for by rival Islamist militants claim- Emergency, an Italian healthcare ing allegiance to Islamic State. charity. It was those militants who He added that his group was police suspect attacked the con- reviewing its movements after the voy, killing six Afghan aid work- Red Cross attack. ers. Two more are missing. The International NGO Safe- The killings were an example ty Organisation said old battle lines of a growing problem for non-gov- between NATO and Taliban fight- ernmental organisations: as insur- ers were being replaced "by multi- gent groups gain ground from gov- ple overlapping conflicts between ernment forces and fight among and within Afghan groups." The result is heightened con- fusion, suspicion and threats, aid IPL Auction 2017: groups say, even those that have worked in Afghanistan for decades Afghanistan star and are well versed in negotiating with all sides of the conflict. Rashid Khan could More than 40 per cent of the be the answer to country is contested or under in- surgent control, according to US Sunrisers military estimates, as Afghan forc- es struggle to contain a stubborn Hyderabad's spin Taliban. In the past year, militant bowling woes groups have also fractured and Is- Over the last few years, the Af- lamic State has established a foot- ghanistan cricket team has taken hold. massive strides at the Interna- "There is no doubt that our tional level. They are capable of operations are increasingly affect- surprising any top side in the T20 ed by increased insecurity," said format and it is evident from the Khalid Fahim, a program director fact that they were the only team for the Swedish Committee for to beat the eventual champions, Afghanistan, which runs several West Indies in the 2016 World aid projects. T20.Few of their players are reg- International and local aid agen- The top U.S. Army commander in ulars in the Bangladesh Premier cies, which run most of Afghani- Afghanistan confessed to Congress League, Pakistan Super League stan's humanitarian and social pro- earlier this week that the conflict etc. Now, the Afghans have set grams and many schools and hos- with the Taliban remains at an im- 'We need to find our missing colleagues' - their sights on IPL as it has been pitals, have been forced to take passe, an incredible admission giv- revealed that there will be five snap decisions on whether or not en the staggering bill racked up over players from Afghanistan who to continue providing aid. the last 15 years. Red Cross in Afghanistan to RT will take part in the 2017 IPL In Kunduz province in the “I believe we’re in a stale- auction.It won’t be a surprise if north, for example, Mr Fahim said We want our missing colleagues outrageous and despicable act of can conduct our activities, and how the brunt of the fighting. We are mate,” Army Gen. John W. Nichol- returned safely, and we need to killing six of our colleagues and the we can bring humanitarian aid to here for them and we are here to an Afghan International is picked the Swedish Committee was able son told Senate Committee on by a team in the IPL auction. One to reopen facilities that had to be find out what really happened in fact that two more of our colleagues the Afghans who are suffering help them. But we can only do so Armed Services Chairman John the course of this terrible tragedy, are still unaccounted for, we’ve from the conflict in a way that if we are allowed to do our job, if of the favourites to be snapped temporarily closed during heavy McCain. up by the teams at the auction is fighting. Thomas Glass, head of communi- made the decision to put on hold doesn’t jeopardize the safety and our staff is protected as it should McCain had asked Nicholson cations for the International Com- our activities throughout in Af- security of our staff. be and the work of humanitarian Rashid Khan. All the franchisees In Wardak, on the other hand, for a direct answer Thursday on will be aware of the Rashid’s threats from local Taliban com- mittee of the Red Cross in Afghan- ghanistan until further notice. RT: Is the Red Cross looking aid workers is respected. whether the U.S. was winning or istan, told RT. The people who are trapped at the possibility of a complete Overall, through all the years potential and the defending cham- manders forced the organisation to losing the fight, which has raged pions, Sunrisers Hyderabad will close schools in two districts. Glass discussed the tragic in- by the conflict, they are innocent pullout from Afghanistan due to of conflict it is always the civil- on and off since 2001. cident when six of the ICRC em- civilians who are bearing the brunt the lack of safety? ians that bear the brunt of conflict look to buy him in the upcoming For Emergency, operations And yet, the total bill for the auction. In case you didn’t calmed down in some districts of ployees (International Committee of the fighting. We are here for TG: At this point it is clear in Afghanistan just like anywhere know...Rashid Khan is a 19-year- war is enormous. According to an of the Red Cross) were killed and them and we are here to help them. that all the options are on the ta- else. Helmand province after the Tali- analysis by Micah Zenko at the old cricketer, who has the po- ban solidified control, ending two others went missing on RT: What needs to happen for ble. We’ve been in Afghanistan Unfortunately it is a sad reali- tential to end up as the country's Council on Foreign Relations, the Wednesday following an attack in the Red Cross to renew its opera- continuously for the past thirty ty that we all have to face. What is greatest cricketer ever by the time months of fighting. U.S. has close to $900 billion in The United Nations attribut- northern Afghanistan that officials tions in Afghanistan? years… we have a long-standing important is that the parties to the he calls it a day. He is leg-spin- taxpayer funds since 2001. Since attributed to local affiliates of ISIS. TG: First, we need to find our presence here. We are not planning conflict are held accountable for ner, who has taken 31 T20I wick- ed nearly 80 per cent of incidents 2001, 2,350 U.S. troops have died. targeting healthcare workers in RT: Could you comment on colleagues; we want them back safe on leaving the Afghan population their actions and that all the pre- ets in 21 matches at an extraordi- There are 8,400 U.S. troops still the tragic incident involving the and sound. And we need to find behind. The people who are cautions are put in place to pro- nary average of 16 and an econo- 2016 to anti-government groups stationed in Afghanistan. like the Taliban. killing of six of your colleagues? out what really happened. We also trapped by the conflict, they are tect the civilian. my of just over 6. He is also some- In fact, former President Thomas Glass: Following the need to be able to reassess how we innocent civilians who are bearing (RT) one who is equally good with the But the group's spokesman Barack Obama’s attempt to boost bat as he is known to play some Zabihullah Mujahid said the Tali- security in the region in 2009 by cameos down the order for his ban welcomed humanitarian aid sending 30,000 troops to Afghan- team.It is too early to come to a and had a committee to oversee istan has completely failed. The conclusion about his batting in requests to work in their territory. Taliban flourished in the chaotic T20Is as he has played just 6 When the Red Cross workers environment and regained territo- innings in which he averages were attacked in Jowzjan, Mr ry. As recently as December, U.S. 31.50 with a strike-rate of 150. Mujahid promised that the Tali- resolute support command said But, his numbers in the ODI for- ban would help find the perpetra- that the Taliban control about 10 mat will give an idea of how dan- tors. percent of the Afghan population gerous he is with the bat. He has As the Taliban movement has and are challenging the U.S. for 261 ODI runs in 14 innings at an fractured, however, NGOs say control over 20 percent. average of 23 with a strike-rate fighters do not always follow or- There were 11,418 civilian just over 95, numbers that are ders. deaths in 2016, a sizable increase good for someone who bats at "The practices on the ground from 7,162 in 2010. no. 8. He was also the second often conflict with what leaders In other words, the Taliban has highest wicket taker in the 2016 say at the high levels," Mr Fahim control of more territory now than World T20. Rashid is currently said of insurgent and government it has at any other time since 9/11, ranked fifth in the ICC T20I forces. a stunning indictment of U.S. rankings and is above the likes of The Swedish Committee and progress in Afghanistan. Sunil Narine, R Ashwin, Mus- Emergency said they did not in- For Nicholson, the reason the tafizur Rahman etc.The heart of teract officially with insurgents, the matterOne of the main rea- fight is now more or less at a stale- sons why Sunrisers Hyderabad but built relationships with local mate is because Russia and Iran won the 2016 IPL is their fast elders who acted as conduits to the have been providing aid to the Tal- bowling department as their pac- militants. iban. And while he has enough re- ers came to the party in each and "What facilitates access is ac- sources to continue the fight, van- every game last season. Ever ceptance and impartiality," Mr ishing numbers of Afghan troops since releasing Amit Mishra, the Fahim said. are making the prospect of a re- Hyderabad franchise had their "We are there for the people newed assault on the Taliban in- issues when it came to their spin of Afghanistan. If people want us, creasingly difficult. bowling department as their spin- then they facilitate the access." Nicholson added that troop ners, Karn Sharma and Bipul That channel is not necessari- shortages could be filled by an in- Sharma were often exposed in the ly open to Islamic State, which, flux of new servicemembers from last couple of seasons.Going into while much smaller than the Tali- the United States and other allies. the IPL auctions, they have re- ban in Afghanistan, has become White House Press Secretary leased Karn Sharma and it is cer- increasingly deadly in recent Sean Spicer implied on Thursday tain that they will look to months. that President Donald Trump in- strengthen their spin department. Christine Monaghan, a re- tends to take seriously Nicholson’s Players retained: Shikhar Dha- search officer for advocacy NGO recommendations on the situation. wan, Naman Ojha, Deepak Hoo- Watchlist on Children and Armed (Dailycaller) da, Vijay Shankar, Bhuvneshwar Conflict, said this week's attack Kumar, Ashish Nehra, Barinder indicated that Islamic State, also Sran, Karn Sharma, Bipul Shar- known as ISIS, was spreading ma, Ricky Bhui, Yuvraj Singh, across Afghanistan. Afghan interpreter arrives 'at home' in California, tells Siddarth Kaul, A Mithun, David "In areas where ISIS has tried Warner, Moises Henriques, Ben to expand its influence, residents Cutting, Mustafizur Rahman, are often caught between the Tali- crowd: 'You all are what makes America great' Kane Williamson.Players re- ban, government forces, and ISIS leased: Karn Sharma, Ashish in a back-and-forth," Ms Mon- Qismat Amin was an Afghan in- for the U.S. Army, demanding he Ball, at home in California, sort of overwhelmed. He's here. It's Reddy, Eoin Morgan, Trent aghan said. terpreter working with the United come out. worked tirelessly to bring his friend been a long time.” But Captain Ball Boult, T Suman, Aditya Tare.It If NGOs continue to operate States Army in 2010. From the Those inside insisted he’d left home. He told the San Francisco was not alone when Qismat ar- won’t be a surprise if Tom young age of 19, he risked his life years ago and hadn’t been back. Chronicle it was the “one mission rived. Other family members, Moody and co. opt for an over- in expanding areas controlled or contested by the Taliban or other to help people that many locals But months later, the militants re- he still had to complete”: friends, and people who had “just seas spinner and the likes of Im- and insurgents saw as “the ene- turned and confiscated the fami- "When I left, I could rational- heard that he was coming” showed ran Tahir, Rashid Khan, Brad groups, aid organisations say they face suspicion and pressure from my” — and he quickly befriended ly’s crops, saying they could be ize it — we’re not going to leave up to greet him at the airport: And Hogg etc. tick all the boxes that the Americans who, quite literally, reclaimed only in exchange for him behind, he’s going to come though Qismat said he had initial- are needed to be a successful the government. In one incident last year, Af- trusted him with their lives. Amin. with us eventually. I have to apol- ly worried about how he might be tweaker in this format. Their One of those Americans, Cap- “There is no way in hell I can ogize for the fact that we’re not received in America — especially first-choice target will be Imran ghan intelligence agents seized an NGO's convoy carrying medical tain Matthew Ball, worked along- go there,” Amin, now hiding out in upholding our side of the bargain.” considering the political climate Tahir and if they fail to acquire side Qismat while deployed in the another city in Afghanistan, said Qismat's visa was finally ap- and the president's recent execu- migrants. America is just a place him, they might turn their atten- supplies to rural districts in Kun- like Asia or Europe, but what duz province, according to the Nangarhar region of Afghanistan. in a recent Skype interview. “They proved just days before President tive order — he said that all of those tion towards Rashid In 2013, after Ball returned to the want to assassinate me. Those Trump's executive order stopped fears washed away as he saw the makes it great is because of you Khan.Though Rashid is not as United Nations. The trucks were great Americans,” he added. “You experienced as Tahir when it released after health ministry offi- United States, Qismat applied for people are probably still trying to travel from seven predominantly crowd waiting for him as he an immigrant visa when he began find me … and they can.” Muslim countries. Although Af- stepped off the plane: “Actually represent the values and the good comes to playing at the top lev- cials intervened. of this country. So keep fighting!” el, the Afghan International will Defence Ministry spokesman to receive death threats from the For four years, he waited for ghanistan was not on the list, both this has made me much, much Taliban. his visa application to be ap- Qismat and Ball worried that it stronger, seeing people with the Qismat, who will live with Ball and give the defending champions Mohammad Radmanish said secu- his wife for the time being, told more edge going into the tourna- rity forces were obliged to search The San Francisco Chronicle proved — unable to continue his might be added — so Ball bought welcome signs. I feel like I got a reported: work because he could have to his friend a plane ticket and got huge family right now, and I got a the BBC that he had two immedi- ment. He won’t cost as much as and question anyone coming or ate goals (in addition to getting Tahir, will give four economical going from frontline areas. In a tiny eastern Afghanistan leave at any time. For four years, him on a flight. Ball told the Asso- big family in Afghanistan.” Local town in November, rifle-toting Is- he remained in hiding as his father ciated Press that finally having his PBS affiliate KQED reported: some sleep after traveling for 40 overs, can pick up a wicket regu- "This is our right and it is the hours): to call his mother and tell larly and more importantly, he culture all over the world," he said. lamic State fighters pounded on the died of cancer and other members friend on U.S. soil was an immense Amin told supporters: “You are door of relatives of Qismat Amin, of his family were threatened be- relief: “I'm so happy. Yeah it feels doing an incredible job for coming her that he was safe, and to see the can score some crucial runs down (Reuters) ocean for the first time. (IJR) the order. (Sportskeeda) a 25-year-old former interpreter cause of him. great. I'm happy to see him. I'm out here and fighting for these im- WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTAN TIMES

Afghan refugee pleads not guilty to For years, Shaima has toiled to charges following make a home for her family in a congested district of Kabul, down DeVos protest at a narrow alley in the shadow of a mountain. D.C. school The ramshackle house she A man who was arrested after pro- rents is filled with heirlooms, me- testers blocked U.S. Secretary of mentos of a home that was once Education Betsy DeVos' entrance filled with children, a husband, a into a D.C. public school last Fri- thriving family. day faces multiple charges, includ- MERGENCY But for Shaima the objects are ing assault on a police officer. E a daily reminder of the losses eat- According to D.C. Police, Bi- CALLS ing away at her: the clock ticking lal Ahmed Askaryar, 32, of North- on a wall painted lime green re- west Washington, "got violent and cently in anticipation of a wedding started pushing and shoving offic- Police that will never happen; the small ers" when DeVos' vehicle was at- metal cups for holy water for a tempting to exit a driveway behind 100 - 119 future pilgrimage to Mecca; the the school. simple spatula kept as a mournful The Washington Post reports souvenir and the many photo- Askaryar did not move when an Hospitals graphs, framed and unframed, of officer requested him to, saying her sons. "no." A police report says he al- FMIC Hospital “I washed this, and put it legedly was captured on a police Behind Kabul Medical body camera video pushing an of- away,” she says, pulling the spat- ficer and a sergeant. University: ula from the cupboard. “I won’t Over the weekend, Askaryar 0202500200-+93793275595 lose this for a hundred years, be- pleaded not guilty to the assault cause Amanullah’s hands touched charges, according to Politico. Oth- this.” er charges include misdemeanor Rabia-i-Balkhi Hospital Mohammed Amanullah is one assault and failing to obey an of- Pule Bagh-e- Umomi of three sons, all police officers, ficer during the protest. Last whom Shaima lost to war on the month, Askaryar wrote an article 070263672 same day last month, when Tali- for NPR detailing he and his fami- ban militants attacked their out- ly's escape from Afghanistan when Khairkhana Hospital post in the southern province of he was five years old. He and his Kandahar. parents became U.S. citizens in 0799-321007 Men are dying in record num- 2000. (Newschannel20) 2401352 bers in Afghanistan, in a 15-year One mother in Sangin district, As her final job, Shaima worked war that both sides have said can- in the southern province of Hel- for the Afghan government’s min- not be won on the battlefield. mand, lost three sons fighting for istry of telecommunications, Indira Gandhi Children Often, they are men who have the Taliban in a period of eight sweeping the offices of its 18-sto- Afghan women taking over Hospital, Wazir Akbar exhausted every other opportuni- months. Mohammed Ibrahim was ry headquarters. Two years ago, ty for an honest living, before sign- 30, and had a son and daughter. after 10 years and six months of Khan, Kabul 2301372 ing up for a gun and $200 a month. Mohammed Ismail, 26, had one service, she retired at age 73. She kite making industry When they die, they — or what daughter. And Mohammed Ishaq could afford to rest, she thought. Ibn-e- Seena remains of them — eventually re- was 21. Her two daughters were married Afghan women have entered the established a new kite shop in Shor is a common hobby of many Af- turn home to children and fami- The mother, herself a widow, off and her seven sons had not be- kind making industry, which has Bazaar (Old Kabul)–the center of ghans. Afghans have been flying Pul-e-Artan, Kabul lies. historically been a male-dominat- kite shops in the country–where kites for more than 100 years. The is now left with the two widows come thieves or addicts. ed industry. the kites made by women are sold outdoor sport was banned by the 2100359 Shaima’s husband was para- of her children, three grandchildren When Shaima retired, the sons lyzed for the last decades of his The need to feed their fami- along with other popular Afghan Taliban as it was against the law. and one remaining teenage son. looked for every job opportunity lies has forced many Afghan wom- recreational products. Afghans revived this sport right life from disease. So she raised nine “Their mother is completely possible. Wazir Akbar Khan children, all but two of them sons, en to embark on this new adven- One kite maker, Sefat Begom, after the fall of the Taliban. lost now,” said Haji Naqibullah, a Zahir spent years as a laborer ture. told Tolo News she took over her Afghans fly the fighter kites Hospital on her own. Shaima, whose hus- nephew of the woman’s husband. in Iran. Amanullah had worked as band died in 2013, has endured a Currently, at least 50 families, late husband’s kite making busi- to compete with one another by 2301741, 2301743 “Even a heart of rock would have an apprentice for a mechanic since made up mostly of women and ness after she was left penniless. cutting the opponent’s kite. Kite life of difficulty and poverty, work- melted.” he was 7. Jawed, in his early teens, ing hard to ensure that her children girls, are supplying kites to the Begom and her two daughters cutting is when your kite’s string There is no phone coverage in sold ice cream from a little hand- Afghan market. make 2,000 kites a week. severs the string of your competi- Ali Abad grew up into good people. She Sangin, except for one small phone cart that blared a simple tune — A group of businessmen have Flying kites, ‘Gudiparan Bazi’, tor. (Wadsam) worried that the boys might be- booth in the government-controlled tuu lu lu, tuu lu lu — as it made its Shahrara, Kabul come thieves or drug addicts, like half of the bazaar. We reached Mr. way through alleys, and then 2100439 so many other young men on the Naqibullah with the help of the switched to roasting sunflower streets of cities across Afghanistan. shopkeeper manning the booth. A seeds on the side of the road. Then, she lost three of them civilian, Mr. Naqibullah crossed But one after another, they Malalai Maternity on one day. Just like that. the battle line to speak to us by found their way to the Afghan se- Hospital Mohammed Zahir, who was telephone about the woman’s or- curity forces. As the war escalat- engaged to be married soon, and deal. ed, Shaima had six sons serving in 2201377/ 2301743 Mohammed Jawed are the other In keeping with the Pashtun the farthest corners of the country two sons who died in the Taliban customs of rural areas of Afghani- — three as policemen in Kanda- Banks attack — their names added to the stan, which fiercely guards the pri- har’s Maiwand district, two in the long roll of Afghan security force vacy of women, he was reluctant besieged city of Farah in the west Da Afghanistan Bank members who perish year after to give the name of the mother. He and one as an army commando in year. said she was in poor health and Logar province just south of Kab- 2100302, 2100303 On a recent snowy morning unable to make the 20-minute jour- ul. A seventh son, Mohammed before the funeral for her sons, ney from Malmoon, their village Asef, has been in Iran for about a Bakhtar Bank Shaima appeared exhausted, her and a Taliban stronghold, to the decade, working as a laborer. 0776777000 eyes sunken in deep dark circles. phone booth. Then, about two weeks ago, She was wearing an immaculate His account of the death of her came the call. One of the cousins Azizi Bank white shawl, under which she had sons was later confirmed by tribal was notified first. 0799 700900 tightly wrapped her head with a elders from Malmoon who had fled A day after news reached Kab- bandanna — to ease the chronic an upsurge in fighting. ul of the death of her three sons, TurningAfghan opium ills to good Pashtany Bank headaches that keep her from Mr. Naqibullah said the wom- Farhad, the army commando, made sleeping peacefully. She had no an’s three sons had gone away from the dangerous bus journey to Kan- More than 15 years after the West- the 31 million people and continu- programs in Afghanistan. It has all 2102908, 2103868 more tears left to shed. And after the village for basic religious edu- dahar to pick up the bodies. Rela- ern coalition ousted Afghanistan's ing high reliance on aid inflows and been wasted. days of wailing, her voice was cation. When they returned home tives who got word started flock- Taliban regime, the scourge of il- military assistance. The time has come, perhaps, Air Services coarse. to Malmoon, they had little op- ing to the house. Shaima had not licit opium still dogs the country. The one sector that is boom- to dust off an idea that was com- But she held herself up tion but to pick up guns for the been told of the news, but as cous- At the same time, amid efforts to ing is opium. The United Nations prehensively shot down a decade Safi Airways straight; she is a proud woman, militants who controlled the vil- ins whom she hadn’t seen for years eradicate Afghanistan's opium in- Office on Drugs and Crime esti- ago by the U.S. and some close proud to have raised a dignified lage. began arriving, she sensed some- dustry, authorities in the U.S. and mates that Afghanistan's 2016 opi- allies, as well as international agen- 020 22 22 222 family in the face of such hard- “You know that in villages, thing was wrong. Australia are clamping down on um production was 4,800 tons, a cies whose officials have a vested ship. especially in Taliban-controlled So she started wailing. But she addictive painkillers, leaving mil- 43% increase on 2015. career interest in the suppression Ariana The three brothers, ages 18, lions of people suffering pain with- This crop was entirely illicit approach to the opium industry. areas, there’s nothing else for the did not know what had happened, out treatment worldwide. The sit- and not included in the GDP cal- The London-based Interna- 020-2100270 20, and 28, were buried next to young than picking up weapons.” to which of her six sons. So she each other, up the mountain near uation has led to suggestions that culations -- nor was the nearly $1 tional Council on Security and He said Taliban units in the wailed for each one of them, nam- it is time to revisit the solution billion it would have earned the Development for Afghanistan their home. The night they were south are often so localized that ing one after another, until her eld- Kam Air buried, there was a heavy snow- opposed by key Western countries Afghan growers, minus some "tax" floated a plan in the early 2000s to when one fighter dies, the com- erly brother sat next to her and a decade ago: legalizing Af- paid to the Taliban insurgency. trial licensed growing of opium, 0799974422 fall. By early morning, pristine mander visits the family to pay broke the news. snow blanketed the cemetery. ghantistan's opium production. The UNODC figures point to with the crop going into local pro- condolences. He brings a sheep to “We will build your sons three In Afghanistan, still poor after a massive failure of opium sup- duction of medicinal painkillers like Hotels There were no foot marks, human sacrifice. And then, he asks if an- new homes — pray for them,” the or animal. The three graves had years of economic development pression efforts by foreign and in- codeine and morphine. other brother could take up his brother, Mohammed Yasin, told efforts, results of the government's ternational anti-narcotics agencies. Over 2005 and 2006, the idea Safi Landmark become part of the landscape. weapons and his place. her. Shaima’s two sons in Farah, nation-rebuilding endeavors have In 2015, crops were destroyed on gained the interest of Afghan Pres- When security men like the “This way they continue re- after they received news of the been mixed. There have been only 3,760 hectares out of 183,000 ident Hamid Karzai's government 020-2203131 three brothers die, often in large placing father with brothers and deaths, could not get home in time. marked improvements in some hectares planted with poppies. In and discussions involving several numbers, most of their deaths are uncles,” he said. “Until they are They had no money for bus tick- welfare indicators like school at- 2016, UNODC thinks eradication ministries on a pilot project that SERENA denied at first by the government. finished.” ets and their commander said he tendance and infant mortality, but teams got to only 355 hectares out would involve experts on public Later, they become part of a tally, What you need to know to could not give them the approxi- slowing growth in the tiny formal of 201,000 hectares of poppy health, agriculture, rural develop- 0799654000 a soulless, imprecise number, of- start your day, delivered to your mately $30 they would need. economy shows per capita gross fields. The U.S alone has spent ment and counter-narcotics. ten rounded off as if those in be- inbox. Family members in Kabul domestic product of just $620 for $8.4 billion on counter-narcotics (Asia.nikkei) New Rumi Restaurant tween did not have stories of their Receive occasional updates went to the bus station and paid own. and special offers for The New for the tickets, and then phoned 0776351347 In recent years, the United York Times's products and servic- Farah so the brothers could get on States-led coalition fighting the es. board. But it was too late. Internet Services Taliban has been drawn down to a Days after Mr. Naqibullah “I didn’t get to see the bodies UA Telecom small mission. As the Afghans have spoke to us for a second time, fight- of my brothers before they were 0796701701 / 0796702702 taken charge of the war, the tally ing erupted again in the Sangin ba- buried,” said Humayoon, who ar- of deaths has been growing so fast zaar. The Taliban tunneled under rived from Farah the day after the that neither NATO nor the Afghan some of the remaining army posts burial. “We took our lives in the Exchange Rate government willingly discloses it. and set off explosives. Ten to more palms of our hands to defend our For just 11 months of 2016, than 20 soldiers were killed, many commanders, in situations where Purchase: 6,785 Afghan forces were killed, of the bodies remaining in the bullets were landing all around us. according to the United States wreckage for days. And they couldn’t give us 900 af- One US$ = Special Inspector General for Re- And the phone in the bazaar ghanis for a ticket so I could see 66.77Afs construction in Afghanistan. (Oth- went silent. my martyred brothers.” er sources say the number is much In Kabul, Shaima worked Humayoon and his brother One Pound Sterling= higher.) That is three times the many jobs over the years to care Aref are planning to return to the 80.95Afs United States toll for the entire 15- for her nine children and her hus- battlefield in Farah when their leave year war. Another 11,777 men were One Euro = band. She cleaned apartments of is over. The city remains surround- 70.05Afs wounded. government officials and washed ed, and Afghan forces have suf- No one knows how many Tal- laundry for the well-off in Kabul’s fered large casualties there. Aref 1000 Pak Rs = iban died in the same period. But upscale neighborhoods. During the recounted one dark night on which 612Afs many estimate it is more than the harvest season, she left home be- they buried 12 colleagues, digging number of Afghan forces. The Sale: fore dawn, one of her children trail- graves by the headlights of their One US$ = rebels lack the ability to evacuate ing behind and tugging at her burqa. police Ford Rangers. and care for those wounded on the On the outskirts of the city, men When asked about her reaction 66.97 Afs battlefield and face deadly air pow- shoveled dirt and she crouched for to the remaining sons returning to One Pound Sterling= er from United States and Afghan hours to pick potatoes and onions. the battlefield, Shaima sighed. 81.75Afs forces. “I would reap wheat for you Then she said: “If they stay here, On the Taliban side, there are One Euro= like no man could,” she recalls. “I they will either become thieves or 70.65 Afs also countless mothers with sto- would take the sickle and just reap,” addicts. What else is there to do?” ries of loss. she said. (NYtimes) 1000 Pak Rs= 620 WEDNESDAY . FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTAN TIMES Seeking greater transparency, Senate committee approves Right to More than 60 people died and her new home, 30km from the vil- Information thousands were forced to flee their lage where she lived before the ri- villages when Hindu-Muslim riots ots. In the aftermath, many Mus- Bill erupted in two districts of the lims were forced to leave and set- northern Indian state of Uttar tle elsewhere. Members of a Senate select com- Pradesh in 2013. The Muzaffarnagar-Shamli mittee on Tuesday unanimously The violence, sparked by the districts are now dotted with ghet- adopted a bill that seeks to codify alleged harassment of a young Hin- tos, where those displaced by the citizens' right to information. du woman by a Muslim man, last- riots have bought land and con- During the meeting, members ed two days. A few days later, sev- structed houses after the Supreme of the senate committee reviewed en women, all Muslims, went to Court directed the state govern- the bill clause-by-clause and unan- the police alleging that they were ment to pay them compensation. imously adopted all amendments gang-raped during the violence that Rubina is a middle-aged wom- and recommendations. broke out in their villages. The an. She stood before me with a The RTI bill is intended to re- police took a year to arrest all the baby resting on her elbow and place the Freedom of Information 29 accused, who were later released shoulders and two young children Ordinance 2002 — the existing on bail. The trials were supposed tugging at her tunic. right to information law — at the to be completed in special fast "I am tired of having my grand- federal level. track courts within two months. children complain to my daughter The newly-adopted law rec- But nearly four years on, the wom- that they are humiliated at school ognises citizens’ right to know en are still waiting for justice. Ex- because some child saw their 'rape under the Constitution, and to plaining India's new anti-rape laws victim' grandmother's photo," she have access to information about Has India reached a turning point told me later. the activities of the government. in tackling rape? Amnesty Inter- Rubina said she was gang raped 1. Recognises citizens' 'right to national's Mariya Salim has by four men, including her neigh- know' and right to information worked on a report tracing the le- bours. about the govt's activities. gal journey of the women and says "I fell unconscious, and when 2. Aims to facilitate those seek- there is a clear lack of will on the I came to, I just ran, with every- ing information on govt's activities part of the administration to en- one else in the village." and ensure transparency. sure they get justice. "Research They had no time to pack or 3. Seeks to protect whistle- tells us that there have been only take any money with them. blowers who want to expose cor- three convictions in rape cases Together they lived in relief ruption in public and security in- during Hindu-Muslim communal camps for months on end. Shared stitutions. riots since the country's partition, trauma and difficult circumstanc- 4. Seeks to ensure that infor- and that hasn't changed even now. es bred strength and sisterhood. mation on missing persons is pro- We have seen delays at every But then there were the vided within 3 days of request. stage", Ms Salim says. threats. It also seeks to ensure that in- The BBC's Divya Arya trav- "The accused threatened to kill formation on missing persons is elled to the area to listen to the my children, so I once retracted provided in writing by the relevant women's stories. my statement, but after my hus- institution within three days of a "No video recording and no band and lawyer reassured me I Charges have still not been framed in her case, despite her giving testimony, undergoing medical tests and attending endless rounds of court request for information being filed. photos on the internet," was how testified before the judge with the hearings. Rubina said she didn't see the point of continuing. Struggling to make ends meet, she feels uprooted and lost. "All I've got is the tag of fallen The bill also includes provi- Rubina greeted me when I visited complete truth." woman, I'm exhausted. Why should I pursue the case?" (BBC) sions for the protection of whistle- blowers, as any person associated with a public entity who raises a flag on corruption and misappro- priations in that entity will be pro- tected under the law, and will re- ceive immunity from prosecution in related cases. Whistleblowers from security institutions will receive similar protection. A three-member commission declined to be identified. with the power to order public The 70,000 new arrivals joined bodies to disclose information and more than 200,000 Rohingya al- provide records will be formed to ready in Bangladesh, many living hear RTI requests. in camps, who fled earlier crack- The commission will entertain downs in Myanmar. requests for records from the past A Bangladesh government of- 20 years, as records older than 20 ficial said the ship was on its way years will automatically pass in the to the Chittagong port after anchor- public domain. ing off the coastal town of Teknaf, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif near the Myanmar border, and ar- will appoint members to the com- rangements were being made to mission, which is expected to com- unload its cargo. prise one member of civil society, But Ali Hossain, chief admin- one from the bureaucracy, and one istrator of the coastal district of from the judiciary. Cox’s Bazar, which borders My- In a bi-annual report, to be anmar, told Reuters he had not re- submitted to parliament, the com- ceived clearance to let anyone off mission will provide "an overview the ship. of activities undertaken by all pub- A port official in Chittagong lic bodies." said a ceremony would be held on Sri Lanka's prime minister is set to ation, whilst ensuring accountabil- A standing committee of the Tuesday with a senior foreign min- receive an honorary doctorate on ity, and enabled groups riven by Senate and National Assembly will istry official and Malaysia’s am- the first day of his official visit to conflict to find common ground in have the authority to remove mem- bassador in attending to receive the Australia. a more hopeful future," a Deakin bers of the commission. Penal ac- shipment. Ranil Wickremesinghe and his University spokeswoman told tion will be taken against members UN officials working with ref- wife Maithree Wickramasinghe AAP. of the commission in case they ugees in Bangladesh have told Re- arrived in Melbourne on Monday He'll also meet with Victorian deliberately destroy any records. uters the death toll in the Myan- night. The prime minister will be Governor Linda Dessau. In later remarks, Senator Far- mar security sweep could be more awarded an honorary doctorate in In the afternoon Mr Wickre- hatullah Babar, who chaired the Dhaka: A Malaysian aid ship ar- Myanmar’s security forces had groups and aid organisations to than 1,000. Rohingya have faced law at a graduation ceremony at mesinghe will head to Canberra for committee, said in case a person is rived in Bangladesh on Monday committed mass killings and gang arrange a shipment of more than discrimination in Myanmar for Deakin University in Geelong on a reception with Prime Minister abducted and killed by security carrying aid for lakhs of Rohingya rapes of Rohingya Muslims and 2,000 tonnes of aid for Rohingyas. generations. They are not classi- Tuesday. Malcolm Turnbull to commemo- agencies, the agencies will no long- Muslims who have fled from burned their villages. The ship’s first stop was in fied as a distinct group under The award recognises his ef- rate 70 years of Australian-Sri Lan- er be able to use 'national security' Myanmar, many citing abuses by Myanmar has denied almost the Myanmar port city of Yangon, Myanmar’s citizenship laws and forts to help Sri Lanka transition kan diplomatic relations. as an excuse not to provide infor- the Myanmar security forces. all allegations of human rights abus- last week, where it unloaded 500 are regarded instead as illegal im- from a country traumatised by The pair will engage in a spot mation on the matter. Nearly 70,000 Rohingya have es and says that a lawful counter- tonnes of supplies. migrants from Bangladesh, entitled protracted, violent conflict toward of cricket diplomacy later this He further said that no infor- fled from Buddhist-majority My- insurgency campaign has been un- A representative of the mis- only to limited rights. About 1.1 a stable democracy. week when Sri Lanka take on the mation that pertains to matters of anmar’s Rakhine State to Bang- derway since the October attacks sion on the ship said it would un- million Rohingya live in apartheid- ""Mr Wickremesinghe has Prime Minister's XI team at Manu- fundamental human rights will be ladesh to escape a crackdown on the security posts. load about 2,000 tonnes of food like conditions in northwestern emphasised the need for reconcili- ka Oval in Canberra. (SBS) allowed to be withheld. launched after nine policemen were The violence has dismayed and emergency supplies in Bang- Myanmar. Bangladesh says the "The bill will grant the com- killed in attacks on border posts and outraged some of Myanmar’s ladesh, though staff were not be- Rohingya have been living in My- mon man greater access to infor- on October 9 that Myanmar neighbours with mostly Muslim ing allowed access. anmar for generations and are not Nepal, Belgium agree to form mation," Farhatullah Baber said as blamed on Rohingya militants. Malaysia being particularly vocif- “We are not allowed to get off Bangladeshis, and it faces a huge he addressed media after the sen- The UN human rights office erous in its criticism. the ship or to visit the camps,” burden looking after the refugees. bilateral mechanism, parliamentary ate committee meeting. said in a report this month that It has supported Muslim said the aid representative, who (THEWIRE) The senator said that informa- friendship groups tion regarding corruption in public institutions may now be more readily available with the passage of the Act. He said that information that has so far been held from the pub- lic will be obtainable through an appeal to an independent appel- late body. "In order for any piece of in- Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chairman 15 The cricketer-turned-politician ment is not functioning because its machinery is engaged in protecting formation to remain withheld from Imran Khan addresses media out- said his party will present the the prime minister’s corruption,” he said. the public, some steps will need side Lahore airport on Tuesday, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Po- Questioning NAP’s implementation, the PTI leader said all political to be taken," the senator explained. February 14, 2017. SCREEN- lice Act in the Parliament as well parties signed the plan and it should be implemented immediately. “When "The authorised officer will GRAB as the provincial assemblies of there’s a political consensus on NAP, why is it not being implemented?” have to explain in writing why the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chair- Punjab and Sindh. “If they [rul- he questioned. (TRIBUNE) information should not be made man Imran Khan addresses media ers] really care about the well-be- public." outside Lahore airport on Tues- ing of the people, they will let this In the explanation, the officer day, February 14, 2017. SCREEN- act pass in their respective assem- should provide reasons why di- GRAB blies,” he said. vulging the information will impact Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Hailing the performance of the national security, so that the com- chairman Imran Khan said inci- K-P police, Imran claimed the KATHMANDU: Nepal and Bel- Nepal’s vision to graduate from the mittee can decide what is in the dents of terrorism including Mon- crime rate had reduced in the prov- gium have agreed on establishing a LDC status by 2022, such sup- national interest for such cases, day’s blast in Lahore would not be ince due to the PTI government’s bilateral consultation mechanism port from Belgium would be criti- Babar elaborated. occurring if the National Action sincere efforts to uplift the forces. between the foreign ministries of cal," the press statement quoted "If there is corruption in a se- Plan (NAP) had been implement- Fata reforms are need of the the two countries and having par- Minister Mahat. Mahat is in Bel- curity organisation, that informa- ed in its true spirit. hour Talking about Federally Ad- liamentary friendship groups. gium to participate in the Interna- tion will [also] be brought for- “The war against terrorism ministered Tribal Areas (Fata) re- Minister for Foreign Affairs tional High-Level Conference on ward," Babar assured. can’t be won until the police force forms, the PTI chief said there was Prakash Sharan Mahat on Tues- Mediation. During the meeting, He said he was confident that is strengthened and depoliticised,” a dire need to merge the tribal re- day met Didier Reynders, the dep- Mahat shared with his counter- the new law would prove of great Imran said while speaking to the gion with K-P. uty Prime Minister and the Min- parts the updates concerning Ne- assistance in cases pertaining to media outside Allama Iqbal Airport “If we are to capitalise on the ister of Foreign Affairs at the lat- pal's recent political developments missing persons. in Lahore. “Army and Rangers gains of Operation Zarb-e-Azb, we ter's office and the two ministers and claimed that bringing all stake- "In the name of national secu- cannot do everything [to overcome need to introduce Fata reforms,” agreed on establishing such mech- holders onboard and holding elec- rity, citizens have not been grant- terrorism] on their own.” he said, lamenting that nothing was anisms. According to the Mission tions in the set deadline are the pri- ed access to a lot of information," Slamming the provincial gov- being done to act on the issue. of Nepal in Brussels Minister Ma- orities of the government. Accord- he noted. "It will no longer be pos- ernments of Punjab and Sindh over Govt busy in saving PM from hat requested for Belgium's en- ing to the Mission, Reynders ap- sible to withhold critical informa- alleged malpractices in the police, Panamagate hanced support and cooperation preciated the progress made by tion just because it has been arbi- the PTI leader claimed rulers were Firing a broadside at Prime in Nepal's development efforts in Nepal with regard to institutional- trarily decided that it is secret or not sincere in the uplift of the po- Minister Nawaz Sharif and his priority areas while he acknowl- izing the democratic gains over the sensitive," he said. The Act will be lice force because of their vested cabinet, Imran said Nawaz and his edged the support extended by years and expressed the commit- presented to parliament for further interests. ministers did not care about any- Belgium for relief and reconstruc- ment to extend possible support deliberations. ( DAWN) Country mourns as toll from thing but saving him from the Pan- tion works after devastating earth- to Nepal in future. Taliban attack in Lahore rises to ama Papers scandal. “The govern- quakes in 2015. "In the context of (MYREPUBLICA) WEDESDAY . FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTAN TIMES

News-in-Brief UN Security Council Soldiers condemns North kill 101 in clashes Korea with Kamwina missile launch Nsapu: UN The United Nations Security .Kamwina Nsapu group in cen- Michael Flynn has resigned as na- Council has condemned North tral Democratic Republic of tional security adviser over his Korea's test-firing of a new ballis- Congo killed at least 101 peo- contact with Russian officials be- tic missile and urged its members ple over five days in February, fore US President Donald Trump to "redouble efforts" to enforce the UN said. At least 39 wom- took office. sanctions against the reclusive en were among the victims killed His resignation on Tuesday state. amid the violence between Feb- followed reports a day earlier that The 15-member council met ruary 9 and 13, the UN's hu- the Department of Justice warned on Monday after Japan, along with man rights spokeswoman Liz the Trump administration weeks South Korea and the US, asked for Throssell said on Thursday, cit- ago that such communications an urgent meeting. North Korea ing sources in the country. could leave him in a compromised fires ballistic missile The soldiers fired indis- position. Sunday's launch of the criminately with machine guns This is very important news Pukguksong-2 missile violated UN when they saw the fighters, who and very worrying news for the resolutions banning ballistic mis- were armed mainly with machet- Trump administration. This is, sile launches and marked a major es and spears, she said. number one, a most important job. escalation from Pyongyang's short- "We are deeply concerned He is the gatekeeper, the man who er-range rocket launches. at the reported high number of tells the president about the world. It was also the first direct chal- deaths, which if confirmed He's the person who connects the lenge to the international commu- would suggest excessive and key agencies of the United States - nity since US President Donald disproportionate use of force the State Department, the Penta- Trump took office on January 20. by the soldiers," she said. gon, all the intelligence agencies - "The members of the Security The violence is also part of to the White House. Council deplore all the Democrat- a broader surge in instability It's an absolutely key job and ic People's Republic of Korea bal- across Congo in recent weeks he's going less than a month into ers with incomplete information Russia's ambassador to the Unit- possibly violate the Logan Act, a and he is consequently being not listic missile activities, including after President Joseph Kabila the presidency, but it's even more regarding my phone calls with the ed States, during the transition. law aimed at keeping citizens from unsuccessfully backed into a cor- these launches," it said in a state- refused to step down when his damaging for Donald Trump. Russian ambassador," Flynn wrote Vice President Mike Pence, conducting diplomacy. ner, or Russophobia has already ment. constitutional mandate expired This is his longest-serving pol- in his official resignation letter. apparently relying on information Mark Jacobson, a Democratic infected the new administration The council "called upon all in December. At least 11 peo- icy adviser. Trump went through "I am tendering my resignation, from Flynn, publicly vouched for adviser to former Secretary of De- also from top to bottom," MP member states to redouble their ple were killed on Monday in a couple of campaign managers honoured to have served President the national security adviser. Flynn fense Ash Carter, told Al Jazeera: Konstantin Kosachev was cited as efforts to implement fully the mea- clashes between the army and a throughout the campaign, he's had Trump, who in just three weeks later told White House officials "This is not about the conversa- saying by the RIA Novosti news sures imposed on the Democratic group loyal to a traditional chief a change of staff. Outside the fam- has reoriented American foreign that he may have discussed sanc- tions [Flynn] had with the Rus- agency. Kosachev is head of the People's Republic of Korea by the slain in fighting with police last ily, the man who's been with Pres- policy in fundamental ways to re- tions with the ambassador. His con- sian ambassador or other Russian upper house of parliament's inter- Security Council". year, said local activist Jean ident Trump the longest is Flynn. store America's leadership position versations raise questions about diplomats. This was about the way national affairs committee. Mos- North Korea has been under Rene Tshimanga, president of It's a very damaging blow for the in the world," he added. Trump's friendly posture towards he characterised it to the vice pres- cow-based Dmiitry Babich, a re- UN sanctions since 2006 over its the Civil Society of Kasai-Cen- White House. That's because not Retired General Keith Kellogg, Russia after US intelligence agen- ident, plain and simple." porter at the state-funded Sputnik nuclear and ballistic missile tests. tral province. "This morning, we only is he losing a key member of who has been chief of staff of the cies concluded that Moscow "Charges have never been International news agency, told Al In December, the council learned again that [the group] staff, but because of the fact he's White House National Security hacked Democratic emails during brought against anyone based on Jazeera the news signalled "a dan- adopted a resolution aimed to attacked the men in uniform resigned in these circumstances. Council, was named the acting na- the election. 'Looseness with the the Logan Act. I'm less concerned gerous return of McCarthyism to slash North Korea's exports of coal [who] repelled them," Tshiman- Remember that this is a situa- tional security adviser while truth' A US official on Monday about that, I'm more concerned American politics. "It's obvious and other metal exports, designed ga told Reuters news agency. He tion that is under investigation - Trump determines who should fill told The Associated Press that about the fact he may have lied to that the special services of the to cost it $800m a year. did not know how many of the hacking by Russia of the United the position. Discussing sanctions Flynn was in frequent contact the vice president," Jacobson add- United States who eavesdropped The US ambassador to the dead were fighters and how States during a presidential elec- Flynn's departure less than one with Kislyak on the day the ed. "It's more of the cover-up that on that conversation between United Nations, Nikki Haley, had many army soldiers. Neither tion. Flynn talked to the Russians month into the Trump administra- Obama administration slapped gets you here. There's been a lack Michael Flynn and the Russian tough words for North Korea af- provincial nor military officials about that very subject, it seems, tion marks an extraordinarily ear- sanctions on Russia for the elec- of transparency, there has been a ambassador, they leaked this in- ter the Security Council meeting could be immediately reached and talked about the idea of lifting ly shake-up in the president's se- tion-related hacking, as well as at looseness with the truth at this formation," he said. "That was on Monday. for comment. Similar clashes sanctions. The fact that Flynn goes nior team of advisers. other times during the transition. White House." 'Russophobia' used to remove a person from of- "It is time to hold North Ko- have uprooted tens of thou- does not mean that inquiries end. Flynn was a loyal Trump sup- Flynn's discussions with the A senior Russian MP said fice for a very strange reason. Isn't rea accountable - not with our sands. Analysts say violence in This saga is not over. porter throughout the campaign, Russian also raised questions Flynn's resignation suggested it natural that the future head of words, but with our actions," Ha- Congo, a tinderbox of conflicts It is illegal for private citizens but his ties to Russia caused con- about whether he offered assuranc- Trump had been backed into a cor- national security should talk to an ley said in a statement. linked to land, ethnicity and to conduct US diplomacy. "Unfor- cern among other senior aides. es about the incoming administra- ner or that his administration had ambassador of a foreign nation, not At a news conference on Mon- mineral resources, has been ex- tunately, because of the fast pace Flynn initially told Trump tion's new approach. been "infected" by anti-Russian a hostile nation, about the possi- day, Trump said: "Obviously acerbated by Kabila's failure to of events, I inadvertently briefed advisers that he did not discuss Much conversations would feeling. "Either Trump has not ble removal of sanctions?" North Korea is a big, big problem step down. (BBC) the Vice President-elect and oth- sanctions with Sergey Kislyak, breach diplomatic protocol and gained the requisite independence (Al Jazeera) and we will deal with that very strongly." The US "reaffirmed its iron- Ebola epidemic clad security commitments" to South Korea and Japan, the Pen- fuelled by tagon said. Later on Monday, the South 'super- Korean defence ministry said the US and South Korea would deploy spreaders': US strategic assets during their annual joint exercise - in what ap- Study British engine maker Rolls-Royce peared to be a response to the mis- slumped into a record $5.8bn an- sile launch. (Al Jazeera) Most of the people who were vented medical cases from receiv- nual net loss in 2016, ravaged by a infected with Ebola in the 2014 ing proper treatment and evacua- Brexit-fuelled collapse in the West Africa epidemic contract- tion. People are in need, and they pound and a corruption fine. ed the viral disease through "su- cannot wait any longer. We need The loss after tax contrasted Syria rebels per-spreaders", researchers say. to act now." Fua and Kefraya, the with a slender profit of $105m in According to a study pub- last two government-held villages the 2015, the company said in a lished on Monday in the Pro- in Idlib province, are surrounded results statement. cast doubt ceedings of the National Acade- by a rebel alliance including Jabhat Rolls took a vast hit from the my of Sciences, scientists said Fateh al-Sham (formerly al-Qae- drop in the value of the pound in on super-spreaders, a small per- da's Syrian branch). The UN's last the wake of Britain's shock EU exit centage of people who are re- humanitarian access to the four referendum, alongside a $836m sponsible for infecting several towns was in November, the state- penalty to settle bribery allega- attending others during epidemics of in- ment said, without directing blame tions. fectious diseases, played a cen- for the lack of access on one side The London-listed company, tral role in the spread of Ebola. or the other. 'One million under whose engines are used in Airbus Kazakhstan Researchers said 61 percent siege' Earlier this month, the UN and Boeing aircraft, added that of those afflicted were infected said it had been able to deliver aid underlying pre-tax profits almost by just three percent of others to just 40,000 people in besieged halved to $1bn. talks those who got sick, the research- and hard-to-reach areas in January, Rolls-Royce, which also Syrian rebels have cast doubt on ers said. If super-spreading had despite requesting access to more makes power systems for use on attending Russian-backed peace been completely under control, than 900,000 people. land and at sea, stated it was on talks this week, accusing Moscow about two-thirds of Ebola cases That made January the worst track with efforts to slash costs of failing to get Damascus to fully could have been avoided, the re- month for humanitarian deliveries and expected a "modest" perfor- comply with a ceasefire or take port said. "We now see the role in nearly a year, with approval re- mance improvement in 2017. tangible steps to fulfil their de- of super-spreaders as larger than A senior UN official in Syria has troops and the Lebanese armed and without repeated requests." ceived for just one of 21 humani- "2016 has been an important mands. initially suspected," said Ben- warned of a "looming humanitari- group Hezbollah. Zaatari added that the situa- tarian convoys proposed by the year as we accelerated the trans- A rebel official, speaking on jamin Dalziel, a co-author of the an catastrophe" in four besieged "Sixty-thousand innocent peo- tion was complicated by the "tit- UN, the International Committee formation of Rolls-Royce," said condition of anonymity, said on study. "It was the cases you towns and called on President ple are trapped there in a cycle of for-tat arrangement" between the of the Red Cross and the Syrian chief executive Warren East, who Monday that at most a handful of didn't see that really drove the Bashar al-Assad to allow safe pas- daily violence and deprivation, towns, whereby no aid can be pro- Arab Red Crescent. has overseen a radical restructur- rebels might attend, but only if epidemic, particularly people sage for life-saving aid to some where malnutrition and lack of vided to Madaya and Zabadani According to Siege Watch, a ing. "We have made operational progress was seen in the next two who died at home, without mak- 60,000 trapped civilians. proper medical care prevail," he without similar access to Fua and monitoring group that tracks be- progress and performed ahead of days. Russia had so far failed to ing it to a care centre." At the Ali al-Zaatari, the UN human- said in a statement released late on Kefraya, and vice versa. The link- sieged communities, more than one our expectations for the year as a yield any tangible steps towards time, researchers counted cases itarian coordinator for Syria, Monday. "The situation is a loom- age "makes humanitarian access million Syrians live under siege in whole. full implementation of the cease- according to those seen in medi- warned of dire conditions in Za- ing humanitarian catastrophe. The prone to painstaking negotiations Damascus governorate, Idlib gov- "At the same time, we have fire, humanitarian aid access, or a cal centres, but they later rea- badani, Madaya, Fua and Kefraya; principle of free access to people that are not based on humanitarian ernorate, Homs and Deir Az Zor. delivered major changes to our release of female detainees the lised these were a small fraction towns besieged by government in need must be implemented now principles," he said. "This has pre- (Al Jazeera) management and processes and, rebels had demanded at the first of the total. "There wasn't a lot while we have made good progress meeting in the Kazakh capital As- of transmission once people in our cost cutting and efficiency tana, he added. reached hospitals and care cen- programmes, more needs to be "It seems Russian pressure is tre," said Dalziel. (BBC) done to ensure we drive sustain- of no benefit," the official said. able margin improvements within Kazakhstan said on Saturday Yemen conflict: Seven Saudi the business." it had invited the government and Yahya Sinwar The huge annual loss also fol- rebels for February 15-16 talks. lows a tough past few years for They attended a similar indirect elected new Rolls, which faced a string of profit meeting in Astana last month aimed soldiers killed on border warnings on the back of weak de- at shoring up a ceasefire brokered leader of mand in its aerospace and marine by Turkey and Russia, President At least seven Saudi soldiers have markets. Bashar al-Assad's most powerful Hamas in Gaza been killed in the past week in The company was fined ally. "The opposition factions will clashes with Yemeni rebels, state $768m in January to settle brib- not attend Astana because the Rus- Strip media has said. ery and corruption claims probed sian side did not abide by what In an unusual series of official by Britain's Serious Fraud Office they agreed to before, during and Gaza's ruling Hamas movement and authorities in Brazil and the after Astana to uphold the cease- has chosen Yahya Sinwar, freed reports, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported late on Monday United States. fire agreement," Mohammad Al in a 2011 prisoner swap with Rolls will pay the penalty over Aboud, a second senior rebel offi- Israel after more than 20 years that Mohammed al-Manjahi was the latest soldier to be killed "de- five years but has taken the full cial said. in jail, as its new chief in the cost as an impairment charge Russia and Turkey, which Palestinian enclave following an fending" the kingdom's southern borders in the fight against Houthi against its 2016 profits. backs the rebels, have sought to internal election, sources close Pound slump revive diplomacy towards ending to the group said. Sinwar will be rebels. State media have previous- ly reported on deaths of slain The British pound has mean- the war since the Syrian govern- a key decision-maker for Hamas while fallen by almost a fifth against ment and its backers defeated the and a member of the executive troops but since Thursday, SPA has carried photographs of funer- the dollar since the Brexit referen- rebels in Aleppo in December, leadership that draws up poli- dum that was held last June. their biggest defeat of the conflict. cies, including towards Israel. als for the "martyrs" it said had died in battles. The slide is pushing up the A new round of UN-backed peace With the group's overall chief costs of imported goods, sending talks are due to begin in Geneva Khaled Meshaal in exile, Gaza- According to an AFP news agency tally compiling reports by British annual inflation to the high- next week. The Syrian government based officials have wielded est levels in 2.5 years. said earlier on Monday it was more clout in the past decade. the Saudi interior ministry and civil defence department, at least 115 Official data Tuesday showed ready to agree on prisoner swaps Hani Habeeb, a Gaza political 12-month consumer price inflation with rebel groups, which the op- analyst, said Sinwar's victory civilians and soldiers have been killed on the southern border since rising to 1.8 percent in January - position wants before any negoti- sent a message of defiance to the highest level since June 2014. ations over Syria's political future. Israel and was also likely to com- March 2015. Nearly two years ago, Saudi "Surging inflation, in particu- Syrian state media cited an official plicate efforts further to con- larly food and fuel prices, are eat- source as saying the government clude a stalled reconciliation with Arabia formed a coalition of Arab states to push back the Houthis than 8,600 bombs - destroying selves with security forces loyal The war in Yemen has left ing into disposable incomes and in was "always ready" to exchange rival Palestinian President Mah- schools, hospitals, factories, heri- to former president Ali Abdullah thousands dead and millions strug- turn that is starting to hit spend- prisoners in its jails for people moud Abbas's Fatah faction. Is- that control the capital, Sanaa, as well as vast swaths of the coun- tage sites, refugee camps and Saleh. They have engaged in fire- gling to feed themselves, a toll ing," said ING bank economist "kidnapped by terrorist groups". rael sentenced Sinwar to four life homes. The Houthis, a group of fights along the border, carried out which UN Secretary General An- James Smith. "We expect to see A rebel official dismissed the state- terms in the late 1980s. He try, at the request of President Abd- Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who resides rebels that claim to represent the retaliatory rocket strikes, and have tonio Guterres said in Riyadh on further evidence of this in this ment as a ruse, saying Damascus served 23 years for leading the Shia community, have made also fired ballistic missiles deep Sunday left him heartbroken. week's retail sales data." had far more detainees than the few group's first security. (CNN) in the capital, Riyadh. Since then, the coalition has dropped more sweeping gains since allying them- into the kingdom. (AL Jazeera) (Al Jazeera) the rebels held. (Al Jazeera) WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 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: Mansoor Faizy Phone No: +93-797070563 E-mail: [email protected]

Email: [email protected] By Alastair Sloan www.afghanistantimes.af Photojournalist: M. Sadiq Yusufi Advisory editorial board Saduddin Shpoon, Dr. Sharif Fayez, Dr. Sultana Parvanta, Dr. Sharifa Sharif, Dr. Omar Zakhilwal, Setara Delawari, Ahmad Takal, Saboor Sarir Graphic-Designer: Edriss Akbari, Bilal Yusufi Marketing & Advertising: Mohammad Parwiz Arian, 0708954626, 0778894038 Mailing address: P.O. Box: 371, Kabul, Afghanistan Our Bank Accounts: Azizi Bank: 000101100258091 / 000101200895656 Printed at Afghanistan Times Printing Press The constitution says Article 83: Article Eighty-Three: Members of the House of People shall be elected by the people through free, general, secret and direct balloting. The work period of the House of People shall terminate, after the disclosure of the results of the elections, on the 1st of Saratan of the fifth year and the new parliament shall commence work. The elections for members of the House of People shall be held 30-60 days prior to the expiration of the term of the House of People. The number of the members of the House of People shall be proportionate to the population of each constituency, not exceeding the maximum of two hundred fifty individuals. Electoral constituencies as well as other related issues shall be determined by the elections law.

Two months before Theresa May tive press, an austerity programme immigration, and anti-refugee, with refugees by asking them to under- became the prime minister of the which has legitimised public self- polling showing them as the most go dental checks. United Kingdom, she spoke at the ishness, and an even more marked right-wing in Europe. In reality, we now know that memorial service being held for one exodus of compassion in post- Unsurprisingly, many of these refugees view Britain as having one of her constituents, Sir Nicholas Brexit Britain. papers also opposed accepting of the strictest admission systems Winton. These four factors have creat- Jewish refugees into the country in the world. Winton had been known as ed a perfect storm that has stacked before the World War II. Appeasing once again? "the British Oscar Schindler", be- the odds against refugees, even if The nail in the coffin for the The nail in the coffin for the 28 years after Soviet cause he rescued hundreds of they are desperately vulnerable 90 percent of child refugees who 90 percent of child refugees who Czech children, all Jews, from the children. will now be turned away from Brit- will now be turned away from Brit- Holocaust in the months before In Britain, there is a romanti- ain's borders is the toxic anti-im- ain's borders is the toxic anti-im- World War II. cised view of how the country act- migration atmosphere of post- migration atmosphere of post- withdrawal At the funeral, May described ed towards the refugees that were Brexit Britain. Brexit Britain. Winton's actions as an "inspira- being targeted by Hitler. These papers have also cham- tion". But, apparently, these ac- In reality, the attitude towards pioned austerity. In the run-up to the vote, Jo The former Soviet Union’s army was pulled out of Afghanistan on tions were not inspirational these refugees was the exception They used the same journalis- Cox, a Labour MP was assassi- enough. The Conservative prime to a proud military record: it con- tic techniques to promote the gov- nated partly for wanting Britain February 15, 1989 after a decade of bloody invasion. The Red Army minister has just scrapped a simi- demned hundreds of thousands ernment's punitive austerity agen- to accept more refugees. lar child rescue scheme, proposed more Jews to their deaths when da - which targets the poor, dis- In response to Donald came to the country in late December 1979 with the call of Babrak by one of the very children Win- they might readily have been saved. abled and women, in particular - Trump's Muslim Ban, a former Karmal, one of the Soviet-backed regime’s officials to topple his ton saved, only months after his None of this is taught in our school as the methods used to oppose adviser to David Cameron, Alex death. history books. immigration: misinformation, se- Deane has leaped to Trump's de- rival Hafizullah Amin. But the people of Afghanistan who did not The so-called "Dubs Amend- On the eve of the war, just lective reporting and fearmonger- fence, while Prime Minister May ment", in which the government 70,000 Jews had been accepted for ing opinion pieces. has been nicknamed #TheresaThe- want their home to be occupied by the foreigners, stood up against begrudgingly promised to admit asylum in the UK, with an esti- Similarly, the idea that Britain Appeaser for standing meekly by. the invasion and this was the beginning of a long war. Hundreds of 3,000 child refugees from Syria in mated half a million having applied is a "soft touch" when it comes to The immigration spokesper- 2016, was named after a man who and been turned back - many to asylum applications forms the son for the UK Independence Par- thousands of Afghans were killed and injured and many parts of the owes his life to Winton. their deaths. backdrop to the current Syrian ref- ty (UKIP) has just told his Twit- country were damaged, while three million of people took refuge to Alfred Dubs, who grew up in Certainly, if you look across ugee crisis. Long before the Syrian ter followers; "If you want a jihadi Britain and became a Labour mem- Europe, Germany - the most hon- conflict began, this "soft touch" for a neighbour, vote Labour." The the neighboring countries as well as to the Europe and America. ber of the House of Lords, was est country about its actions in that myth has been pushed by journal- picture was accompanied by refu- The Soviet withdrawal was expected for Afghans as the end of saved from the hands of Adolf Hit- dark era - has taken its previous ists and accepted as fact by senior gees hanging off the back of a truck. ler by Winton. conduct towards refugees firmly politicians. Britain has changed after the bloodshed and destruction, but people’s dreams did not come true Last week, with the news me- into account, when it comes to re- To illustrate their point, news- Brexit, but the changes are, per- dia concentrating itself largely on sponding to Syria. papers have, since the 1990s, gath- haps, not as severe as being made and it was actually the beginning of another phase of war in the Brexit, the government quietly an- Given we have written out our ered anecdote after anecdote about out. From our Britain's approach nounced the "Dubs Amendment" real actions from the annals of his- "bogus asylum seekers", again to Jewish refugees in the World already war-torn country. child rescue scheme would be tory, we feel no need to make up seeking to present anecdotal evi- After a four-year fighting between the Mujahideen factions, Tali- stopped after only 350 children for how we really acted in the dence as systemic. War II, to the decades of anti-refu- had been admitted. World War II. Recent reporting has veered gee propaganda pushed by the ban started brutality against the people. The US invasion and top- Stacking odds against refugees The 'soft touch' myth into extreme callousness, includ- press, to the selfishness promot- Where has this turnaround The right-wing titles of the ing a reporter from Breitbart Lon- ed through six long years of aus- pling Taliban’s regime in 2001 made people again hopeful for a bright come from? British press tilted the odds fur- don photographing child refugees terity; there is a steady pattern of future. There are four factors: a refus- ther away from Syrians. into Britain and ruthlessly specu- behaviour that means rejecting al to acknowledge our historic in- The most-read print titles of lating about their age, while the child refugees who were promised Unfortunately, still war continues and civilians are killed and in- difference to refugee suffering, the Britain - namely the Daily Mail Conservative MP, David Davies a place here, should have been no jured by Taliban militants, the newly-emerged Islamic State (IS), moral rot of the British conserva- and the Sun - are conservative, anti- was accused of "vilifying" child surprise. aka, Daesh terrorist group and even government forces and foreign troops every day in different areas. 6,785 civilians were killed only last year, according to the United Nations report. There is question among people: “How long will the war contin- ue?” And there is no answer by any part involved in the country’s affairs. Some neighboring countries’ interference is undoubtedly the most reason of the continuation of war. They are looking their own stabil- ity and benefit in the instability and loss in Afghanistan. The international coalition led by the United States is spending time and money to eliminate terrorism in Afghanistan, while terror- ism is exported from some neighbors and Afghans tired of war, and also victims of terrorism. Afghan leaders have repeatedly asked the international allies to convince those countries from where terrorists enter Afghanistan not to let them use their soil. Hamid Karzai, the former president, said many times that looking for terrorism in Afghan villages does not go right and its bases should be found and targeted outside the borders of Afghanistan. Afghanistan, the region and the world in general will be safe when the roots of terrorism are cut outside Afghanistan and also when the neighboring countries start cooperation with Afghan government and the international coalition honestly. Subscription Rates Note:The following rates will apply from January 01, 2017. Fee Categories Afghanistan Times Annual Afg: 5400 at your door step For fast delivery service Six Months Afg: 2700 Afghanistan Times seeks the names, addresses of your International Organization $240 per year organizations and the number of copies you want. WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTANTIMES

By Rami Hamdallah By Esther Ngumbi The United Nations Food and Ag- oration with the international com- ed Pastoral Resource Management vary depending on the country and Israel is above international law, Israeli law. Yet under international estinian homes and other Palestin- riculture Organization (FAO) re- munity, including UN agencies initiative are relayed to pastoral- the commitment of their elected or so it seems. On December 23, law, both settlements and outposts ian infrastructures in the Area C. cently declared that millions of cit- such as the FAO. ists who use them in times of leaders. the United Nations Security Coun- are illegal. There is no such thing Farmers and Bedouins, who izens in the Horn of Africa face How to get results drought to find pasture for their Similarly, these initiatives' suc- cil passed resolution 2334, re-af- as a legal settlement. need large tracts of land to grow food shortages. Owing to a persis- Once integration and coordi- animals. cess will also depend on the con- firming the illegality of Israeli set- Although the government of crops and herd cattle, have been tent lack of rainfall between Octo- nation drought relief efforts has Another innovative approach tinued collaboration and sustained tlements. Israel and settlers have been build- hit the hardest and forced to ber and December, as many as 12 been achieved, there will be the to disseminate information is be- commitment by all the stakehold- The vote was significant for ing settlements and outposts in the change their traditional lifestyle, million people across Ethiopia, need to create innovative ways to ing used by "maarifa knowledge ers involved. Furthermore, other two reasons: Unlike previous occupied West Bank and East losing their means of livelihood in Kenya and Somalia are in dire need disseminate available information centres". UNSC resolutions targeting Isra- Jerusalem for nearly half a centu- the process. political reasons including the po- of food assistance. and solutions to farmers. These are innovative one-stop litical stability of these countries el, it was not vetoed by the Obama ry, this law crosses a dangerous Taking concrete steps But this is not new. Almost There is a need for this sort of information centres that are run by administration, who decided to red line, to the point where even The international community may hinder the success of these every year, around the same time, information to be widely available Arid Lands Information Network. initiatives. abstain. Secondly, it demonstrat- Israel's attorney general, Avichai cannot afford to ignore Israel's set- similar headlines appear in the with open access, so that farmers These modified shipping contain- ed an international consensus on Mandelblit, declared that it violat- tlement frenzy. Following the an- news. For example, in 2014, 2015 and citizens can take action. ers are used as a local hub for in- Investing in short and long- the illegality and illegitimacy of ed the Fourth Geneva Convention nouncements for renewed settle- and in 2016, news of drought and Projects working towards dis- formation on climate change, in- term localised initiatives to miti- Israel's settlement enterprise, and and that he would not defend the ment construction and the passing famine across the Horn of Africa seminating information are already cluding updated information on gate drought and innovative ways showed that these settlements con- bill if it was challenged in an Israeli of the so-called "regularisation was in the headlines. beginning to emerge in Africa. For drought and ways to mitigate it. to disseminate available informa- stitute an obstacle to peace. court. bill", world powers, rights-based It is a cruel cycle that is likely example, mobile phones are being While these current efforts by tion to farmers accompanied by These points were reiterated Make no mistake: soon, thou- groups and UN officials, including to repeat itself again and again de- used to send climate information governments, NGOs, Africans and strategic, well-planned and coor- by then-US Secretary of State sands of settlers will scramble to Secretary-General Antonio Gu- spite the fact that many of these to farmers so that they can plan the international community to dinated region-wide drought miti- John Kerry in his December 28 establish new settlements - and terres, promptly issued condem- countries are doing their best to and put appropriate drought miti- avoid these repetitive cycles of gation strategies can help the Afri- speech, and subsequently in the that is in addition to the thousands nations. prevent drought and other climate- gation strategies in place. drought will definitely make a dif- can continent to break this cyclic January peace conference held in of settlement housing units that Yet, past experience has shown related disasters. In Ethiopia, real-time maps ference, it is important to note that nature of droughts once and for all. Paris, which was one of the largest will be sponsored and built by the that these statements are ineffec- Various strategies generated through Satellite-Assist- the success of these efforts will Time is ripe. peace conferences ever held in Israeli government itself. tive and have never deterred Isra- Drought mitigation strategies terms of high-level participation. The continued Israeli policy of el. The same can be said about in the Horn of Africa include both The fact that even Israel's building settlements makes the es- UNSC resolution 2334, which was short-term approaches, such as staunchest ally, the United States, tablishment of a viable, contigu- adopted under Chapter VI of the distributing food to those affected affirmed the illegality of settle- ous Palestinian state increasingly UN Charter, meaning that it doesn't and long-term approaches such as ments, did nothing to change the impossible and seriously threatens obligate Security Council members planting drought-tolerant crop va- course of the Benjamin Netanyahu the two-state solution. But settle- to take concrete steps if Israel vio- rieties that can withstand insuffi- government. ments are not merely a factor to be lates the resolution. cient rainfall, or diversifying one's On the contrary, since the UN dealt with in future negotiations: Now, more than ever, the in- crop and income base so that there Security Council passed the reso- their presence has serious conse- ternational community must take is something to fall back on when lution, Israel hurried to approve quences for Palestinians, even now. concrete steps, such as economic drought strikes. the construction of even more Now, more than ever, the in- and diplomatic sanctions, against Kenya's government, for exam- houses in illegal settlements on ternational community must take Israel. This is not simply a moral ple, is supplying food to areas Palestinian land. Within one month, concrete steps, such as economic or legal obligation: it is also in ev- worst hit by drought, and is also the government gave the green and diplomatic sanctions, against eryone's interests. working on sustainable long-term light for the construction of more Israel. The building and expansion International law and interna- solutions such as investing in com- than 6,000 housing units - a higher of settlements is pushing Palestin- tional humanitarian law, much of munity water sources so that they number than the total number of ians out of the Area C, which con- which has been drafted following do not depend on rain-fed agricul- settlement housing units approved stitutes 60 percent of the West the horrors of World War II, is ture. in all of 2016. Bank and is under full Israeli con- meant to prevent the re-occurrence In addition, Kenya has estab- The 'regularisation bill' trol. Settlers routinely attack or of such tragedies. Countries that lished a national drought manage- In parallel, the Israeli parlia- harass Palestinians living close to flaunt international law (and are ment authority that oversees all ment passed a legislation - dubbed settlements and they also vanda- allowed to get away with it) inval- matters related to drought manage- the "regularisation bill", but essen- lise Palestinian properties in com- idate basic human rights, pushing ment and advises citizens on in- tially a land theft - enabling set- plete impunity, with the aim of humanity back towards darker coming droughts. tlers to "legally" steal Palestinian forcing Palestinians to relocate to ages, when colonialism and ethnic Ethiopia, too, has put in place land, thereby accelerating con- overcrowded cities outside the cleansing were the norm. several drought mitigation strate- struction of settlements. Area C. Palestinians might be the ones gies, including launching The Pro- The bill also retroactively "le- Moreover, in order to expand who are most affected by Israel's ductive Safety Net Programme, galised" existing outposts, which or build new settlements, Israeli settlement enterprise, but in the which enables the rural-poor com- are considered illegal even under bulldozers routinely demolish Pal- long term, we will all be affected. munities facing chronic food inse- curity to resist shocks, create as- sets and become food self-suffi- cient (PDF). Such efforts have not gone unnoticed and the recently ap- pointed UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres commended the Ethiopian government on their re- sponse to the 2016 drought. Localised efforts The question then becomes: Moroccan pragmatism: A new what can be done differently to avoid these repetitive cycles of drought and bring the hunger crisis chapter for Western Sahara in the Horn of Africa to a defini- tive end? How can we build better By amir Bennis resilience to climate-related disas- King Mohammed VI's new Afri- gion it followed with South Sudan. ters? can policy reflects the Moroccan By making South Sudan his However, while they have First, there is need for in- monarch's pragmatism and realism. first stop after Morocco's return been using this argument to lobby creased strategic integration and While in the past, Morocco had to the AU, the Moroccan monarch for the Polisario, Algerian and coordination between governments adopted a disastrous "empty sent a clear message to Rabat's ad- South African leaders did nothing and NGOs. They need to coordi- chair" policy, the new policy is versaries that it will now play in to help South Sudan to extricate nate their efforts aiming to help proactive and positive for the out- their backyards and establish eco- itself from the quagmire it has been farmers become more resilient to look of Morocco's territorial integ- nomic and political relations with embroiled in since its indepen- drought and other climate change- rity and the controversy it is fac- countries that have hitherto been dence. related disasters. ing over the Western Sahara. considered their exclusive domain. Neither of the two leaders has In Kenya, for example, there Owing to Morocco's absence The new dynamic of Moroc- paid an official visit to South Sudan are many organisations that are from the African Union (AU) over co's foreign policy shows that King to show them moral and political investing significantly into build- the past 33 years, Morocco's ri- Mohammed VI is determined to support. Their support remained ing resilience to drought and cli- vals, mainly Algeria and South Af- break away from the myopic ap- pure rhetoric and South Sudan was mate change for farmers. The gov- rica, have been using the pan-Afri- proach that has prevented Moroc- rather exploited by the two coun- ernment, NGOs, foundations, and can body to push their self-serv- co from extending its influence be- tries to fulfil their agenda. CGIAR's research programme on ing political and ideological agen- yond French-speaking West Afri- Meanwhile, the Moroccan climate change all work towards das. ca. king has visited this war-torn coun- this goal, but there is little coordi- The two countries have seem- Nigeria is a case in point. Un- try on the day after Morocco's re- nation between them. ingly dominated the organisation til recently, this most populous turn to the AU. His visit was Responding to climate change and attempted to use it as a tool to African country was among the crowned with the signing of nine and building sustainable drought weaken Morocco's position with vocal supporters of the Polisario bilateral agreements, the most of resilience will require a dedicated regard to the Western Sahara. Front, and observers often high- important of which established and coordinated effort. In the past three years, for ex- lighted the support that the South Morocco's commitment to build Once integration and coordi- ample, Algeria and South Africa Africa-Algeria-Nigeria axis pro- South Sudan's new capital. nation of drought relief efforts has were behind the AU's decision to vides to the group. Additionally, in line with its been achieved, there will be the appoint a special envoy in charge However, after King Moham- tradition to assist its African part- need to create innovative ways to of the Western Sahara whose pri- med VI's visit to Nigeria and the ners in times of crises and natural disseminate available information mary mission is to lobby the Unit- signature of several landmark eco- disasters, Morocco established a and solutions to farmers. ed Nations to force Morocco to nomic agreements, Nigeria seems field hospital in South Sudan, Better coordination can in- conduct a referendum of self-de- to be reconsidering its position on which is providing daily care to crease efficiency in dealing with termination and to establish a hu- the conflict. more than 4,000 people. drought and equipping citizens man rights monitoring mechanism Evidence of this new approach Morocco's new assertive Af- LETTER TO THE EDITOR with tools and other resources that in the territory. is the support it provided for rican policy is already paying div- they need to be able to successful- In an opinion piece written Morocco's return to the AU. idends. During King Mohammed ly respond to climate change. before the self-proclaimed Sahar- Therefore, Morocco's strategy to- VI's visit, South Sudan's president Coordinated efforts can also awi Arab Democratic Republic's wards Nigeria has proved success- said that there is no parallel be- offer the best option for strength- leader Brahim Ghali's working visit ful. tween the situation of South Sudan ening livelihoods through improved to South Africa in early January, The alarmist overtone ex- and the Western Sahara. agricultural productivity and they Pretoria's Minister of Internation- pressed by South Africa's press "While considering that the is- can build the capability of house- al Relations and Cooperation, and its officials before and after sue of Sahara is different in its gen- holds to diversify their incomes in Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, re- Morocco's return to its African esis, legal and political background order to manage drought-induced newed his country's call to the UN family speaks volumes about their from that of South Sudan, Presi- shocks. to conduct a referendum of self- fear that with Morocco's presence dent Salva Kiir Mayardit acknowl- Countries are already working determination in Western Sahara in the union, the equation will edges the efforts of the UN to reach Since the establishment of the national unity government security situation in the country is deteriorating on towards strengthening the coordi- and to establish a human rights change inside the AU proceedings a political solution to the regional daily basis. Recently Taliban insurgents captured Khanabad district of Kunduz province. Thought the nation between government agen- monitoring mechanism to inspect and the pan-African body will no dispute over the Sahara," the joint Afghan forces recaptured the district, but that does not mean that the Taliban would not attack the district cies and NGOs in their efforts to the situation in the region. longer be influenced by South Af- communique stated after the visit. for the second time. Related officials should device compressive security strategy in order not to lose the address persistent droughts. The South African official rica and Algeria in the way that it The alarmist overtone ex- district again. Heavy clashes between Afghan security forces and the Taliban insurgents are underway in Just last week, the Kenyan seemed oblivious of the UN polit- was before. The same applies to pressed by South Africa's press different parts of the country. In northern and southern provinces of the country, the Taliban have launched president called for streamlining of ical process initiated in 2007 and Ethiopia, which was a major sup- and its officials before and after a large-scale attacks to capture strategic districts. relief assistance being given by dif- stressed that the conflict about porter of Algeria. However, the Morocco's return to its African Time is ripe that the government should pay a serious look into the matter and realize that inside ferent ministries. He asked for all Western Sahara could only be set- king's visit there has helped ease family speaks volumes about their difference between national unity government leaders, cure nothing but to loss legitimacy at eyes of public. drought relief help to be distribut- tled through a referendum. This the atmosphere and made Ethio- fear that with Morocco's presence Putt difference and work for the national interests instead of personal. Security situation of the country is ed through one channel. position is at odds with the rele- pia one of the countries that have in the union, the equation will like open book to all of us. Indefatigable efforts must be done to maintain security and stability in the war- Most importantly, recent dis- vant UN Security Council resolu- supported the return of Morocco change inside in the AU proceed- torn county. cussions about the need to tions that have been adopted since to the AU. ings, and the pan-African body will Basir Bakhtari, Kabul, Afghanistan strengthen drought risk manage- April 2007, which called on the It is not unlikely that this im- no longer be influenced by South ment strategies across the African parties to work towards reaching portant state will withdraw its rec- Africa and Algeria in the way that continent have resulted in the pro- a mutually acceptable political so- ognition of the self-proclaimed it was before. Letter to editor will be edited for policy, content and clarity. All letters must posal for the formation of Drought lution (PDF). Sahrawi Arab Democratic Repub- It is very telling that an anon- have the writer’s name and address. You may send your letters to: Resilient and Prepared Africa With Morocco's return to the lic (SADR) in Western Sahara or ymous South African official was [email protected] (DRAPA), a new strategic frame- AU and the overwhelming support freeze its diplomatic relations with quoted in the South African news- work that focuses on enhancing it received in the process, the coun- it in the future. Additionally, by paper Daily Maverick as saying resilience to drought throughout try is now better positioned than strengthening diplomatic and eco- that Morocco's readmission with- Africa, while inspiring individual ever before to put an end to the nomic relations with South Sudan, in the AU was an "unfortunate de- African countries to develop their manipulation of the union by a Morocco is pursuing a far more cision" that goes against South Af- Disclaimer: own short and long-term drought handful of countries. From now on, important goal. Since South rica's interest. The article stressed mitigation plans (PDF). Morocco will also use the politi- Sudan's independence, Algeria and that Morocco's landmark economic The views and opinions expressed in the articles are The DRAPA will be working cal support it received during its the Polisario have been using the deals with both Nigeria and Ethio- those of the author(s) and do not reflect the views or towards getting regional institutes return to the union to nip in the alleged similarities between South pia proved more efficient than the that deal with drought mitigation bud all attempts to divert the cur- Sudan and Western Sahara to put "long-held ideals" of South Afri- opinions of the Afghanistan Times. together under African Union lead- rent UN political process. New pressure on Morocco and to call can leaders and their rhetoric on ership, and enforcing their collab- dynamics with countries in the re- on the UN to follow the same track the Western Sahara conflict. WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTANTIMES

Iran: Continued ceasefire in Syria main topic of Astana talks

Corbyn attacks No 10’s ‘Hunger Games approach’ after document shows UK treatment of EU nationals may colour EU27’s stance on reciprocal rights

of documentation, including P60s ple on both sides of the channel ropean parliament taskforce inves- for five years, historical utility bills are being left in limbo and faced tigating the residency issue, said and a diary of all the occasions they with agonising uncertainty over the UK government had acted “im- have left the country since settling their futures. Antagonising our morally” in failing to offer securi- in the UK. Some have received let- European partners is no way to ty to those who had made Britain ters inviting them to prepare to get a good deal for Britain and for their home. “We are receiving so leave the country after failing to the many UK citizens living in EU many emails every day from peo- tick a box on a form. A cross-party countries.” ple in the UK and elsewhere wor- group of the European parliament David Lammy, the Labour ried about the future that we can- has established a taskforce to in- MP and former minister, who vot- not answer them individually,” she vestigate the complaints, and a ed against Brexit, said the refusal said. “This is immoral. And if this parliamentary hearing is expected to guarantee EU citizens’ rights leaked document is right, then it to be announced in the coming “has significantly reduced our in- has backfired.” The document was days, to which a UK minister will ternational standing and made it far drawn up by the European parlia- Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister ing on the issue of preparation of be asked to give evidence. Jet Coo- less likely that the EU will feel in- ment’s committee on legal affairs for Arab and African Affairs yet another contact between the per and her husband, Patrick. She clined to give us a good deal”. He this month to help shape the ne- Hossein Jaberi Ansari announced [Syrian] government and armed has been told she may have to leave went on: “At a time when the leader gotiating positions of the parlia- that the new round of Astana talks members of opposition and we the UK after Brexit. Photograph: of the free world is putting refugee ment and the EU’s Brexit negotia- will focus on keeping the all-inclu- continue to attract additional armed Jim Wileman for the Guardian The bans in place and threatening to tors for the coming article 50 talks. sive ceasefire in Syria in place. groups to join the process," Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Far- deport people, our government The committee claims that while "The necessity for continued Lavrov said. Moscow does not ron, said May had been caught needed to show courage and lead- “specific entitlements acquired comprehensive ceasefire in Syria, make any attempts to replace the “playing with fire”. He said: “This ership. Failing to do so … not only validly in the past” – such as a coordination to establish stability UN-backed Geneva process aimed issue could have been settled from let down the 3 million EU citizens pension or ownership of a prop- in the specified regions, studying at reaching settlement in Syria by the start if the government had who call our country home, it also erty – may continue to apply, “it the actions made by the joint com- the negotiations held in Kazakh- done the right thing and made clear looks like it will affect British ex- cannot … be considered that a per- mission, including Iran, Russia and stan's capital of Astana, Lavrov EU citizens who have made the pats living in Europe too.” Caro- son who is no longer an EU citizen Turkey, which supervises the added. "I want to fully clarify one Britons living in Germany hold up signs in protest UK their home can remain indefi- line Lucas, a co-leader of the Green will have unrestricted rights to live, ceasefire will be among the main point: we have said at all levels nitely. The Guardian UK: Politics party, said any further delay in work and study in the EU, or ben- themes of these negotiations," that we are not trying to replace against Brexit in Berlin last July. Weekly The housing crisis, the giving EU nationals a guaranteed efit from social security arrange- Jaberi Ansari told reporters upon UN efforts (but to a large extent Jeremy Corbyn has condemned ons living in the EU could pay a Brexit bill and the French election right to stay would be “unforgiv- ments such as reciprocal health- arrival at Almaty airport in Kaza- our initiative was caused by the Theresa May’s “Hunger Games penalty for the prime minister’s – Politics Weekly podcast able”. “It’s deeply worrying that care entitlements, unless specific khstan. The second round of As- fact that it was impossible to tol- approach to Brexit” after a docu- failure to offer a secure future for Heather Stewart is joined by British nationals living abroad face provisions are made. The commit- tana talks on peace in Syria will be erate inactivity anymore) and we ment obtained by the Guardian EU nationals in the UK. The in- Polly Toynbee, Ryan Shorthouse being on the receiving end of a back- tee also says it will be “difficult if held in Astana on Wednesday and understand that the number of par- warned that British nationals liv- ternal document drawn up by the and John Healey to discuss the lash against our government,” she not impossible” to arrange a tran- Thursday at the level of deputy ticipants in talks from both from ing on the continent could expect a European parliament’s legal affairs passage of the Brexit bill through said. “The simple fact is that There- sitional deal within the next two foreign ministers of Iran, Russia parties to Syrian conflict and from backlash as a consequence of the committee says it will be down to the Commons and the govern- sa May should have already given years to cushion the UK in its and Turkey. The Russian foreign 'the external actors' should be big- government’s treatment of foreign- each member state to decide wheth- ment’s new housing strategy. Plus an unequivocal guarantee to EU withdrawal from the EU. May has minister said on Sunday that Mos- ger than the one in Astana," he ers since the EU referendum. er British citizens are allowed to we hear from Labour’s leader in nationals living here in Britain – said she wishes to leave the single cow was preparing another meet- underlined. "In parallel with the The leaked EU assessment of carry on living within their respec- the Lords, Baroness Smith, and giving them certainty of their right market and the customs union but ing between the Syrian government Astana process, which we would the legal impact of Britain’s with- tive borders after 2019, but adds: Angelique Chrisafis on the French to remain.” Sophie in ‘t Veld, a have a transitional. and armed opposition. Moscow is like to maintain as a 'driver,' we are drawal says the 1.2 million Brit- “The fact that it appears to be files election “Instead, millions of peo- Dutch MEP who is leading a Eu- (Theguardian) preparing another contact between preparing for the talks under the the Syrian government and repre- UN auspices," the Russian diplo- sentatives of the country's armed mat added, reminding that the About 750,000 opposition, Sergei Lavrov said in Geneva talks are expected to take What North Korea missile an interview with Russia's NTV place on February 20. launch means for US people trapped channel broadcast. "We are work- in western China relations Mosul, Dozens of civilians killed OXFAM warns in Turkish The British charity organization Eight alleged members OXFAM on Tuesday warned an shelling of al-Bab in Syria estimated 750,000 people were trapped in western Mosul with- The Syrian Observatory for Hu- ment, which has described it as a of banned Islamic group out an escape from the Islamic man Rights reported on Monday violation of Syria’s sovereignty. State (IS) before the city’s mili- that 13 children had been among Meanwhile, Syrian government detained in Kyrgyzstan tary operation begins soon. The those killed in the Turkish shelling forces have managed to wrest full organization mentioned the hu- on the town, which lies 40 kilome- control over an oil field from for- Police in Kyrgyzstan have de- that Hizb ut-Tahrir plays a role in manitarian conditions in western ters northeast of Aleppo. eign-sponsored terrorists in the tained eight alleged members of a efforts by Al-Qaeda and Islamic Mosul had been deteriorating since The UK-based group said country’s central province of banned Islamic group. Interior State (IS) militants to radicalize the November 2016 after supply dozens of others had also been in- Homs. Ministry officials said on Febru- country's youth and recruit them routes were blocked following the jured in the shelling. An unnamed military source ary 14 that the men were detained to fight in Syria and Iraq. Hizb ut- Iraqi security forces’ advance east It said that intense battles were said Syrian forces liberated the in the southern district of Kara- Tahrir, which is banned across of the city. “OXFAM is deeply going on between Turkish forces Hayan oil field in the desert region Suu on suspicion of being mem- former Soviet Central Asia and in concerned for the safety of fami- and allied militants on the one side of Palmyra, located 215 kilome- bers of Hizb ut-Tahrir. According Russia, says it is a peaceful group. lies trapped in western Mosul, and and the Daesh extremists on the ters northeast of the capital, Dam- to the ministry, police found The stated goal of the internation- North Korea rejected the U.N. Se- the United States have fundamen- particularly the Old City where other. ascus, on Tuesday, killing scores books and video materials that fea- al pan-Islamic political organiza- curity Council’s statement on its tally different approaches of deal- the narrow, densely-populated The Observatory said Daesh of terrorists in the process. tured "possible extremist content" tion is to unite Muslim countries latest ballistic missile launch and ing with North Korea,” said Tong streets could become a death trap,” (ISIS) militants are still in control Separately, Syrian Justice in the homes of some of the sus- in a global caliphate ruled by Shari'a claimed its tests are in self-defense. Zhao, a fellow at the Carnegie-Tsin- read the statement. “The interna- of major areas in al-Bab, even Minister Najm Hamad Ahmad has pects. Kyrgyz authorities contend law. (RFERL) The Security Council unani- ghua Center in Beijing. “China be- tional agency is calling on the Ira- though Turkish forces and their announced the establishment of a mously condemned Sunday’s test lieves we have to gradually encour- qi-led coalition to continue to up- allies have captured a string of ar- special commission to investigate during an emergency meeting age North Korea to liberalize its hold the Prime Minister’s commit- eas in the western flank of the crimes perpetrated by foreign- Monday night, calling the launch a economy to open up to the inter- ment to [prioritize] the protection town. backed Takfiri militants in the coun- grave violation of international law. national community.” Ninety per- of civilians in the military opera- On August 24, 2016, the Turk- try’s northern province of Alep- China signed onto that statement. cent of North Korea’s trade is with tions,” the report added. On Oct. ish Air Force and special ground po. Iran,Azerbaijan stress The country is seen as one of China, leading Western officials to 17, 2016, Iraqi and Peshmerga forces kicked off Operation Euph- The pro-government and Ara- North Korea’s only allies and its accuse Beijing of propping up the forces launched a military offen- rates Shield inside Syria in a de- bic-language al-Watan newspaper main lifeline. Sunday’s launch neighboring dictatorship. But Chi- sive to liberate Mosul from the clared bid to rid the border area of reported that the commission will cooperation in anti-terror came after months of silence from na said it’s doing its part by sign- extremist group, occupied since Daesh terrorists and fighters from look into some 10,000 pages of North Korea and at a sensitive time ing on to stringent U.N. sanctions. June 2014. Within the first three the Kurdish People’s Protection documents to establish their au- campaign for Beijing, just as relations with “China has fully implemented the months of the operation, about Units (YPG) and Democratic thenticity and provide compelling the Trump administration were relevant Security Council resolu- 2,000 civilians were killed and Union Party (PYD). evidence concerning states spon- beginning to thaw. It adds another tions,” said Foreign Ministry wounded. Additionally, over The operation was not coor- soring the terrorist groups in Syr- Iranian Ambassador to Azerbaijan in a meeting with Azeri Foreign level of uncertainty to the region Spokesman Geng Shuang in Chi- 190,000 people were forcibly dis- dinated with the Syrian govern- ia. (En.abna24) Javad Jahangirzadeh and Azeri In- Minister Elmar Mammadyarov in that is still trying to get a read on nese. China fears any further ac- placed from Mosul, and around terior Minister Ramil Usubov in a Baku called for executing the mem- the new, unpredictable U.S. presi- tion could destabilize the already 30,000 have since returned to their meeting in Baku on Tuesday ex- oranda of understanding (MoUs) dent, reports CBS News corre- shaky regime and turn North Ko- homes. “This next phase of fight- changed views on the ways to do signed between the two countries. spondent Adriana Diaz. The mis- rea into its enemy. “Now, the ing carries the highest stakes yet their best to uproot terrorist During the meeting in the Azeri sile tested was a new type, using Western countries want China to for civilians,” OXFAM’s Country groups. Usubov noted that Tehran capital, Rahimpour and Mammad- solid fuel -- not liquid -- to eject take the consequences of provok- Director in Iraq Andres Gonzalez and Baku share similar stances to- yarov examined the cooperation from a mobile launcher. It’s more ing North Korea,” Zhao said. stated. “The idea that families wards fighting terrorism, extrem- between the two countries and stable and allows for less advanced “China doesn’t want to get could be trapped amid heavy fight- ism and organized crimes particu- underlined the political will of their warning. According to analysts, the caught in the middle,” Diaz said. ing – particularly in the narrow larly drug trafficking. The two of- countries’ presidents for bolster- achievement is a dangerous step “Yeah,” Zhao said. The U.S. and streets of the Old City – without ficials also discussed the upcom- ing of relations. The Azeri Foreign forward in North Korea’s pursuit South Korea will hold annual large- any safe means of escape is a terri- ing visit of Azeri President Ilham Ministry announced that Rahim- of a deliverable nuclear weapon, scale military drills in March, large- fying prospect,” Gonzalez contin- Aliyev to Iran in March. The Az- pour and the Azeri foreign minis- and it’s a first test for President ly seen by North Korea as a direct ued. The organization called on the eri interior minister said that Iran ter were satisfied with the results Trump. “Obviously, North Korea threat to their security. North Ko- Iraqi security forces to avoid us- and Azerbaijan are two friendly of the bilateral talks and the level is a big, big problem and we will rea said Tuesday morning those ing heavy artillery in the populat- countries which enjoy deep reli- of bilateral relations. The two sides deal with that very strongly,” Mr. could seriously undermine peace ed areas such as mortars. More- gious, historical and cultural com- also laid stress on the importance Trump said. It also potentially pits and security in the region. The over, the statement asked the monalities. He reiterated that of meetings of the Ad Hoc work- the new U.S. administration drills could also close the door on armed forces to provide safe routes broadening of relations between ing group, tasked to develop a draft against China, North Korea’s only any potential direct engagement for civilians to be able to escape the two countries will surely lead convention on the Caspian Sea’s major ally, less than a week after with the U.S., and could push the from battle zones. OXFAM in- A monitoring group says at least 60 civilians been killed to further proximity of the two legal status, as a major contribu- President Trump smoothed things North to test an even larger, more stalled aid supplies to respond to countries. In relevant remarks in tion to finalizing the legal conven- over in a phone call with Chinese powerful missile. a possible displacement of 250,000 in shelling by the Turkish military in Syria’s northern late January, Iranian Deputy For- tion of the Caspian Sea. President Xi Jinping. “China and (AP) people as the military operation. border town of al-Bab over the past few days. eign Minister Ebrahim Rahimpour (Farsnews) Prosecutor seeks 46 life sentences each for Presidents of Uzbekistan, Istanbul Atatürk Airport attack suspects Turkmenistan hold phone ple dead on June 28, 2016. A total were involved because their prop- The prosecutor sought between of 45 suspects, of whom 41 are erty was harmed. Arrest warrants 2,132 years and 3,342 years in talks being tried under arrest, are accused were issued for fugitives Nazim prison over other charges. A non- of “being members of an armed Gasanov, Marat Pshnatov and suit decision was given for three Presidents of Uzbekistan and Turk- areas of regional and international terrorist organization,” “forming “Anzar abu Selbebil” code-named deceased militants who died dur- menistan held telephone talks on policy. and managing a terrorist organiza- Rustem Efendiev, the indictment ing the attack. The indictment has cooperation issues on February 14, The two leaders expressed tion,” “attempting to remove the said. While, another arrest warrant been sent to the Bakirköy Second reported the press service of the mutual interest in development of constitutional order,” “killing with was issued for an unidentified per- Heavy Penal Court for examina- Uzbek President. constructive and open dialogue a plan,” “attempting to kill with a son who was detained after the tion. The head of state Shavkat between the brotherly countries plan” and “harming property.” attack, but was later released. The The court has fifteen days to ex- Mirziyoyev congratulated the re- and vowed to use all potentials to The indictment for the 45 suspects suspects’ connections to the ISIL amine the indictment. elected President of Turkmenistan build the fruitful cooperation in was prepared in eight months af- bombers who died during the at- If the indictment is accepted, the Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov trade, economic, transport and ter investigations by the Bakirköy tack were also in the indictment. suspects will appear at the Ba- over the election win. communication, cultural and hu- Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office The prosecutor sought 46 times kirköy Second Heavy Penal Court. During the talks, the sides dis- manitarian areas. were completed. According to the aggravated life sentences for each On June 28, 2016, 45 people were cussed issues of bilateral relations (Trend) A prosecutor has sought 46 aggra- Islamic State of Iraq and the Le- 257-page indictment, 163 people of the suspects over “attempting killed by three ISIL gunmen at and exchanged views on the key vated life sentences each for sus- vant (ISIL) attack on Istanbul’s were listed as complainants for to remove the constitutional order” Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport. (Akipress) pects in a case launched into the Atatürk Airport that left 45 peo- being left wounded and 44 others and “killing purposively.” (Hurriyetdailynews) WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTANTIMES

Govt makes no allocation for IndiaAspiration Fund in Budget 2017 The government also reduced the allocation from Rs 600 crore to Rs 100 crore made earlier for this current fiscal. China's central bank injected 100 billion yuan (14.5 billion U.S. dol- The government has made no pro- crore as per the revised estimate lars) into the financial system vision for its ambitious India As- announced in the Budget 2017-18. through open market operations on piration Fund, part of StartUp In- The Budget, announced earli- Monday to offset impacts of ma- dia initiative, for the next financial er this month, has not made any turing securities. The People's year and has reduced the alloca- allocation under this head for the Bank of China (PBOC) made the tion to Rs 100 crore from Rs 600 next fiscal. injection through reverse repos. crore made earlier for the current At the time of the launch of The operations include 7-day re- fiscal. the Fund, Jaitley had said it is ex- verse repo priced to yield 2.35 In order to provide support to pected to catalyse tens of thou- percent, 14-day contracts with a startups through Fund of Fund sands of crores of equity invest- yield of 2.5 percent, and 28-day operations, IAF, with a corpus of ment in start-ups and MSMEs. agreements with a yield of 2.65 Rs 2,000 crore, was launched by IAF is a good initiative of the percent. Despite the cash injection, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in government to support MSMEs Monday will see a net drain of August 2015 to enhance the equi- and startups in India, Anshuman funds worth 90 billion yuan from ty availability to MSMEs. Verma, Founder and Managing the market due to maturing con- LIC was also made partner and Director at M1L said. tracts worth 190 billion yuan. The co-investor in the India Aspiration "Instead of or in addition to central bank has refrained from Fund (IAF) managed by SIDBI. disbursing part of the allocated open market operations since Feb. As per the Budget 2017-18 money to venture capital funds 4, citing a "relatively high level" of document, the government had operating in India, government liquidity. Last week, the central made allocation of Rs 500 crore should think about cutting ineffi- bank allowed the withdrawal of for 2015-16 when the fund was ciencies and bringing more clarity 625 billion yuan from the market, launched. by way of forming an expert panel draining some of the huge funds In the following year, a provi- that disburses funds directly to added ahead of the Lunar New Year. sion of Rs 600 crore was made but startups," he said. The restart of such operations reduced significantly to Rs 100 (Dnaindia) comes with some 900 billion yuan of reverse repos set to mature this week, putting liquidity strain on the market. Last time the central bank conducted reverse repos, it raised the lending rates to banks by 10 basis points, a move that was widely interpreted as a shift towards a neutral monetary poli- cy as economic fundamentals im- proved. China's monetary policy in 2017 is set to be "prudent and neutral," keeping appropriate li- quidity levels and avoiding large injections. (Xinhue) Vietnam Turkey, Bahrain pledge posts $1.15b stronger trade ties trade On official visit, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan surplus in and Bahrain's king look towards Turkey-Bahrain January Business Forum in March Less than a month into the Trump actionary. On the one hand, Py- The heads of state of Turkey and Bahrain exceeded those from a de- presidency, North Korea is loom- ongyang pleads for US imperial- Bahrain Monday agreed to expand cade earlier by more than 150 per- ing as a major flashpoint after the ism to end its decades-long isola- mutually beneficial economic and cent, to reach $193 million. Major Pyongyang regime test fired a new tion and economic blockade so as trade ties, marshalling the poten- Turkish exports came from iron intermediate-range ballistic missile to integrate the country as a cheap tial of the two countries’ business and steel, motor vehicles, and to- on Sunday. The test takes place labour platform in the global econ- forum set for next month. bacco products. amid mounting tensions between omy. On the other, its bellicose According to an official state- Mineral fuels, rolling stocks, the US and China, North Korea’s statements and striving for nucle- ment issued by the president’s of- and electrical and electronic equip- ally, over trade, monetary policy, ar arms only heighten the danger fice, visiting Turkish President ment were top subcategories in Taiwan and territorial disputes in of war and drive a wedge between Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Turkey’s imports from Bahrain the South China and East China the working class in North Korea host, Bahrain’s King Hamad bin last year, totaling $127 million. seas. and its class brothers and sisters Isa Al Khalifa, share the view that Turkey will also continue to The launch drew immediate in South Korea, Japan, the United the both countries’ business com- stand by Bahrain’s government to condemnation by Japanese Prime States and around the world. munities could further expand co- contribute to the country’s securi- Minister Shinzo Abe, who was Likewise, the Chinese Com- operation in new technology, in- ty and stability, and the two coun- visiting with Trump at the presi- munist Party (CCP) regime veers dustry, agriculture, infrastructure, tries will work closely on ongoing dent’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Flori- between seeking a deal with Wash- energy, and other sectors. security problems in the region, the da. At a joint press conference Sun- ington and engaging in a major mil- They said the Turkey-Bahr- statement added. day night, Abe called the missile itary expansion and its own mus- ain Business Forum set for next Erdogan's official visit to Bahr- test “absolutely intolerable.” cle-flexing. The CCP does not rep- month in Istanbul will provide a ain is part of Turkey’s drive to Trump declared that the US was resent the working class, but the valuable opportunity to enhance forge economic ties across Gulf “behind Japan, its great ally, 100 ultra-rich oligarchy that has been cised as ineffective. prochement with Beijing in 1972. trade and economic ties between countries, including Bahrain, Sau- percent.” The US, Japan and South spawned by capitalist restoration Turkey and Bahrain. di Arabia, and Qatar. Korea have called an emergency Trump has reacted belligerent- “China is now weightier, more since 1978. Vietnam posted a trade surplus of ly to North Korea. When North influential around the world, bet- Last year Turkish exports to (AA) $1.15 billion (921.03 million session of the UN Security Coun- In response to the US military cil to discuss North Korea. Korean leader Kim Jong-un an- ter able to resist or retaliate against build-up in Asia, China has trans- pounds) in January, the govern- nounced at the beginning of the year US pressure, and has more tools ment said on Sunday, down from a Trump has come under pres- formed several of its islets in the sure from sections of the Ameri- that his regime was preparing to of economic statecraft and military South China Sea into potential $881 million surplus in the same test an ICBM, Trump tweeted: “It power than ever before. This month a year earlier. can media and political establish- military bases and matched the ment to take more aggressive ac- won’t happen.” He also lashed out means that Washington needs to Pentagon’s provocative military Exports rose 5.7 percent to at China for failing to force its ally move from reactive to activist in $14.34 billion compared with the tion against North Korea. Much exercises in the area with its own. of the press is portraying the mis- into line. its approach to both China and China continues to engage in dan- same period last year, while im- Yesterday, during a media con- Asia,” Feigenbaum advised. ports edged up 3.9 percent to sile firing as a major test of the gerous encounters with the Japa- new administration, as indicated ference with the Canadian prime Already, Trump has gone on nese military and coast guard $13.19 billion, the government minister, Trump declared that he the offensive against Beijing, warn- website cited data from customs by headlines such as “North Ko- around the disputed Senkaku/Di- rea first ballistic missile, challeng- would deal “very strongly” with ing of trade war measures, threat- aoyu islands. Moreover, while department as showing. North Korea, which he described ening to dump the “One China” China, South Korea and the ing Trump” (New York Times), concerned about the potential for “North Korea missile launch sets as a “big, big problem.” His ad- policy—the bedrock of US-China a nuclear-armed North Korea to United States are Vietnam's biggest ministration is currently conduct- diplomatic relations—and reaffirm- trading partners so far this year. test for Trump” (Wall Street Jour- trigger an arms race in North East nal), and “North Korean nuclear ing a review of US policy towards ing that the US would back Japan Asia, Beijing has done little to curb Vietnam, the world's top ro- the country, which, in line with in a war with China over disputed busta producer, exported 140,300 ambitions to be defining issue for Pyongyang. Trump” (Bloomberg). Trump’s militarist orientation, will outcrops in the East China Sea. All of this feeds into the in- tonnes (2.3 million 60-kg bags) of likely shift toward a more reckless Secretary of State Rex Tillerson coffee in January, down 20.5 per- The focus on North Korea, creasingly perilous and unpredict- which carried out 24 missile and provocative use of force, along has declared that the US will block able situation being fuelled global- Governments should use cent from a year earlier. with efforts to destabilise the Py- Chinese access to its islets in the But the value of coffee exports launches and two nuclear tests last ly and especially in Asia by the year, reflects intense discussions ongyang regime. South China Sea, a move that installation of President Trump. diversity as pillar of rose 3.5 percent annually to $316.8 Any US move against North would constitute an act of war. million, customs data showed. and conflicts within the American His administration is already rent foreign policy and military estab- Korea is also aimed against China. US Defence Secretary James by divisions over foreign policy, economic growth: Japanese PM The country saw a trade sur- Coming on top of the Obama ad- Mattis has issued a chilling warn- plus of $2.52 billion and exported lishment over the past six months. reflecting the broader crisis of the A major concern is that North ministration’s confrontational ing to Pyongyang, declaring that American political establishment 1.78 million tonnes of coffee in “pivot to Asia” against Beijing, the any North Korean use of nuclear 2016. Korea is within striking distance at home and abroad. Amid deep- of building an intercontinental bal- Trump administration has already weapons against the US or its al- ening political opposition to his The forecast by PWC for Viet- made clear that it regards China as lies would be met by an “effective nam in 2015 was more positive. It listic missile (ICBM) capable of regressive domestic politics, launching a nuclear strike against the chief threat to US dominance and overwhelming response.” The Trump’s “America First” dema- estimated that the country would in Asia and internationally. statement not only underlines the have GDP of US$3.4 trillion in continental United States. gogy is aimed at turning social ten- President Obama, in briefing The concern in American rul- vastly superior American military sions outward against an external 2050 and a ranking of 22 on the ing circles is that time is running might, which could obliterate the world's economic scale, with an then-President-elect Trump on enemy, compounding the danger security issues, reportedly advised out to counter the historic decline North Korea regime and its mili- that a relatively minor incident annual growth rate of 5.3 per cent. of the United States and the rise of tary and industrial capacity, but PWC's report set out its latest that North Korea be placed at the could trigger a major conflagration. top of the new administration’s China. Writing in the January/Feb- also Washington’s willingness to The mounting danger of world long term global growth projec- ruary issue of the National Inter- use it in a catastrophic war that tions until 2050 for 32 of the agenda. Obama’s own policy to- war can be confronted only on the wards North Korea, punitive sanc- est, Bush administration official would inevitably draw in other basis of recognising that it is root- world's largest economies, ac- Evan Feigenbaum declared that powers, particularly China. counting for some 85 per cent of tions plus pressure on China to ed in the insoluble crisis of the cap- strong-arm Pyongyang into denu- Trump faced “a tougher challenge The response of the autocrat- italist system, which once again, global GDP. with Beijing than have his eight ic, ultra-nationalist North Korean (Rueters) clearising, referred to as “strategic as in the 1930s, is fuelling national patience,” has been heavily criti- predecessors” since Nixon’s rap- regime to US threats is utterly re- antagonisms. (Chron) Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo happiness is indeed the responsi- Abe spoke at the World Govern- bility of governments.” Kentaro ment Summit (WGS) on Sunday Sonoura, senior vice foreign min- Economists expect bank Indonesia to stand pat on benchmark rate through video link. Compliment- ister of Japan, expressed his deep ing the United Arab Emirates for respect for the UAE’s efforts to Economists expect Bank Indone- will maintain stability in prices and mists also expect Bank Indonesia organizing the event, he said: “As promote tolerance and diversity. sia to maintain its benchmark rate inflation, which will support peo- to take into consideration uncer- the world becomes more cultural- He said: “Your commitment to the at 4.75 percent during this week's ple's purchasing power," Bank tainties in the global economy, in- ly diverse, it is critical that we un- environment, public health, human policy meeting, amid rising infla- Permata economist Josua Pardede cluding restlessness in financial derstand how these traditions will development and good governance tion and uncertainties in the global told the Jakarta Globe on Mon- markets ahead of the United States coexist in the future. It is critical are benchmarks for governments economy. Economists at Bank day (13/02). Inflation accelerated government's new tax-related pol- that governments use this diversi- around the world. In addition, your Mandiri, Bank Central Asia, Bank to 3.49 percent in January, com- icies and the trajectory of the US ty as a pillar to enable economic investments in education and in- Permata, Bank Danamon Indone- pared with 3.02 percent in Decem- Federal Reserve's rate hikes, which growth based on innovation.” He novation will ensure a brighter to- sia, DBS Bank, Samuel Asset Man- ber, as a cut in the government elec- will strengthen the dollar. These said: “When I visited Dubai in morrow.” “The role of government agement and the SKHA Institute tricity subsidy started to take ef- uncertainties are putting pressure 2013, I was impressed by the way is to invest in people’s future by for Global Competitiveness fect. The government targets in- on the rupiah, SIGC chief econo- in which various peoples from dif- promoting education and innova- (SIGC) agree that the central bank flation to remain at 4 percent while mist Eric Alexander Sugandi said. ferent parts of the world coexist. tion. Governments must invest in should keep its seven-day reverse the central bank will try to keep it The rupiah has strengthened by 0.7 Furthermore, I commend the cre- new technology and create regula- repo rate unchanged. "Keeping the contained in the 3 percent-5 per- percent against the greenback so ation of the Ministry of Happi- tory reforms to pave the way for BI benchmark rate [unchanged] cent range this year. The econo- far this year. (AP) ness because it demonstrates that greater success,” he said. WEDNESDAY . FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTANTIMES BAFTA Awards: Emraan shoots in Bringing bling Jaisalmer to black after a

dele – who took home five decade Grammy Awards on Sun Actor Emraan Hashmi, shooting Aday – said she had worried here for the upcoming multi-star- her heart-wrenching global mega rer action-thriller "Badshaho", hit Hello would be a flop. says he has returned to Jaisalmer Speaking to reporters at the for the first time after shooting for music industry’s gala, the English his 2007 "Awarapan". ballad singer said she struggled with "After 'Awarapan', dus saal writers’ block as she took a break baad (10 years later) back in beau- from music to raise her son. tiful Jaisalmer to shoot for 'Bad- In the end, Hello won both shaho'," Emraan tweeted. Record of the Year and Song of the Directed by Milan Luthria and Year. The track Hello appears on written by Rajat Arora, the film 25, which won Album of the Year. also stars Ajay Devgn, Ileana “I felt the pressure writing 25 D'Cruz, Esha Gupta and Vidyut very, very much and for a very long Jammwal. time during the process, I didn’t The film marks the fourth col- really find my voice, and I don’t laboration of Luthria with Ajay know if I did find it even at the after "Kachche Dhaage", "Chori end,” said Adele. Chori" and "Once Upon a Time in The singer confessed she feared Mumbai". the 2015 commercial on British Luthria has also co-produced television that teased the film with Bhushan Kumar's T- Hello would turn out to be “an Series. The film has music by An- expensive disaster” and that listen- kit Tiwari. (Santa Banta) British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) ers would not recognise her or care. In the ubiquitous song, Adele rolled out the 70th edition of the British Academy Film says “Hello from the other side” Awards on Sunday night. The starry affair saw some as she struggles to reach someone of Hollywood’s leading ladies put their best foot for- from her past to apologise. “It’s ward in ensembles that suited them seamlessly. While the other side of being a grown- with a lot of my friends because of With Sunday’s trophy haul, the past decade with the excep- fashionistas like Sophie Turner and Emily Blunt sport- up; it’s the other side of my rela- how famous I got,” Adele said, Adele became the first act to tri- tion of Adele’s 21, which achieved ed swoon worthy dresses, style icon Emma Stone ex- tionship with my friends and my adding that the song also touched umph in the three key categories the sweep in 2012. ex-boyfriends,” she said. on her grandfather, who died 18 in two separate years. (Holleywoodreports) uded desi vibes in matching separates and a pearl “I don’t know if I lost touch anklet. years ago. 25 is the top-selling album of Dressed in a glittering Oprah Winfrey Chanel Couture Dress and TaimurAli Khan’s first picture corresponding cigarette sells Klimt pants, Stone definitely topped our best-dressed painting for an is out, we are literally speechless list. While her outfit seemed a astounding Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan embraced parenthood after suitable choice for the oc- $150 million welcoming son, Taimur Ali Khan casion, we loved the east- in December, last year. ern appeal to it – bagging Soon after the baby’s birth, Amy Jackson’s the top spot on our wish Oprah Winfrey has a prolific pro- many pictures went viral on social file that includes being a talk show media, claiming to be Saifeena’s phone hacked, list for the desi wedding newborn’s first glimpse. Howev- season. host, entrepreneur as well as a phi- lanthropist, but now she has also er, all rumours were laid to rest private photos The silver dress featured surfaced as an art collector. The when a family picture was released, intricate embroidery and a television star sold a painting of with Saif, Kareena and Taimur all get leaked deep plunging neckline. A Gustav Klimt for no less than $150 in one frame. Now, Taimur’s first million to a wealthy buyer hailing clear picture is finally out and online high ponytail was a chic OMG! We are literally short of from China, grossing additional $62 Bollywood actor Amy Jackson has decision on Stone’s part, million, being regarded as the “the words! not taking away from her That blond hair, those grey claimed that her phone was hacked biggest private art deal of 2016,” recently and her personal images heavily-embellished outfit. Bloomberg reported. While the eyes and that adorable pout has us fixated on his gorgeous face! leaked on the internet. The actor While her outfit was on OWN network’s founder bought was at a London mobile store “Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer II” According to Bollywood Life, the whole western, the way Bollywood superstar Priyanka where the incident happened. for $87.9 million in 2006, Winfrey According to a report in Mid Turner carried it was rem- reportedly decided that she would Chopra, too, can’t seem to stop gushing over Taimur’s adorable Day, Amy was on a connecting iniscent of Bollywood sell it for the aforementioned price flight from London to Chennai to following skyrocketing of its val- looks! “It is such a wonderful beauty Shilpa Shetty – moment and it is such a beautiful shoot for Robot 2.0 and had to showing off her toned legs ue by 71 per cent. At first, Win- are amazing.” I have a husband, my your body and that is the biggest make a pit stop in Mumbai. frey loaned the painting on tem- baby and he already has Kareena’s priorities are different from Priy- responsibility. Both me and Saif at almost every award pout.” Kareena, too had proudly She alleged that her phone’s porary basis to Museum of Mod- anka’s, says Kareena Kapoor always wanted this. We used to automatic sync with iCloud was function. ern Art in 2014 but then art dealer replied to the praises saying, “My “There are a lot of responsi- talk about all these things. Both of son is the most gorgeous man this on. The Game of Thrones Larry Gagosia brought up an in- bilities on you once you become a us see ourselves in Taimur and this Amy added that she was in teresting buyer who showed will- side of the equator. I take it as a mother. You feel that your heart is is the most special thing.” said starlet looked sultry in a compliment because yes his lips London when she could not log ingness to pay more than $100 mil- not beating inside you but outside mommy Kareena. (Tribune) into her account and approached a Louis Vuitton plunging lion. Until August 15 2016, the beaded-black gown with store for help. “However, it was painting could be found at the fifth on February 7 when two pictures a thigh-high slit. Her all- floor of the museum. Prior to be- with her best friend having dinner black outfit added oomph ing handed over to the new owner, Katrina Kaif, not Salman Khan, to appeared online that she realised to her look, and comple- it was put on display at Neue Gale- her phone was hacked. She went mented the smokey eyes. rie located in New York from Sep- launch sister Isabel in Bollywood? to the service centre again before tember 22 to January 16, with calls coming to India,” a source said. Delicate silver jewel- to Winfrey’s representatives and her sister in Hindi films soon. “I was shocked when this hap- lery and black strappy the gallery not being answered. pened. This isn’t a trivial matter Interestingly, Winfrey isn’t a new- Mumbai Mirror quoted a heels added to the finish- source saying, “Katrina and Sal- and has to be taken up seriously. I bie to the world of art as the 63- will register a complaint with the ing touches. year-old CEO organised an auction man discuss films extensively and are like family to each other. She cyber crime cell in London and from her Chicago condo, selling ensure the hackers are taken to task. some of her artwork. These includ- has shown interest in venturing into film production soon while Cyber safety is the need of the ed pieces from British-born paint- hour,” Amy said, adding that she er Maud Earl and American Im- simultaneously balancing her act- ing gigs and has been reading will lodge a complaint with the pressionist Francis Coates Jones. cyber crime cell in Mumbai once According to founder of Leslie scripts, discussing films with her close director friends as well. If she is back. Hindman Auctioneers Leslie Hind- Amy is currently busy shoot- man, “I once met Winfrey in 2003 there’s anyone who’ll launch her sister in a big Bollywood produc- ing for 2.0 with Rajinikanth and and it was immediately evident that Akshay Kumar. she had extensive market knowl- tion, it’ll be Katrina herself.” edge and had made it a priority to The newspaper also contact- form relationships with dealers, ed Katrina who said, “Nothing re- collectors and industry contacts to ally has crystallised yet. I will pro- make informed decisions regarding duce a film one day... soon.” acquisitions.” The recent deal by From Priyanka Chopra to Winfrey’s of the 1912 painting by Anushka Sharma, a lot of other Austrian Klimt depicts Adele Bollywood heroines are venturing Bloch-Bauer I, who was the wife Bollywood superstar Salman Vinay Virmani. Now, she looks all into film production, and thus of a rich industrialist from Vienna, Khan launched Katrina Kaif’s sis- set to make her debut in Bolly- Katrina might be thinking of fol- MoMA said. The painting was ter Isabel in films with Indo-Cana- wood as well. If reports are to be lowing the same path. then stolen by the Nazis in 1938 dian venture Dr Cabbie opposite believed, Katrina is going to launch (Hindustan Times) alongwith other pieces of art be- longing to the family, and finally made its way back after 2006 fol- lowing legal battle with the Aus- trian government. The team of ‘Half Girlfriend’ kickstart promotions on Twitter After the success of the Bollywood adaptation of 2 States, Chetan Bhagat is all set to bring to life his another best-seller 'Half Girlfriend'. The much-awaited film directed by Mohit Suri is just thirteen and half weeks away from its release, and the makers of the film have decid- ed to engage with their digital au- dience by kickstarting the promo- tions on Twitter. Monday morn- ing started off with an interesting Va Va Voom! She is undoubtedly one who never ever tweet by the coveted author, Ar- lets us down with her sense of style. The actor’s em- jun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor. broidered Alexander McQueen number came com- With this tweet they shared an in- teresting fact about the making of plete with sheer panels that exhibited her legs while the film. The film has associated she walked. The neat hair bun and ruffles on the with The National Basketball As- dress were reminiscent of the Victorian era. Blunt sociation (NBA) being the first was seen flashing a diamante ring that featured a ever Hindi film to partner with them. Interestingly, this is the sec- dragonfly. Minimal blush and a light pink pout com- ond time around where Arjun pleted her refined look. (Tribune) Kapoor has been casted. (AP) WEDNESDAY . FEBRUARY 15, 2017 AFGHANISTANTIMES RaviAshwin ‘the Bradman of bowling’: FormerAustralia captain Steve Waugh

Tottenham midfielder Nabil India spinner Ravi Ashwin is "the win's bowling. If the Aussies can Bentaleb is on the verge of join- Bradman of bowling", according to do that then we will have a chance. ing Schalke, according to Sky former Australia captain Steve The guys need to stay calm under sources. Waugh. pressure. The 21-year-old Algerian is India face Australia in four "The way he is playing at the currently on a season-long Tests - all live on Sky Sports - with moment, he is going to break a num- loan at the Bundesliga team and Ashwin, who has taken 254 wick- ber of records. Ashwin's statistics it is understood that the fee is ets in just 45 matches - the main are just mind-boggling." around £16m. threat to the touring batsmen. Waugh believes Australia's ag- Sky believe that his expect- No bowler took more than gressive opener David Warner will ed 20th appearance for the club, Ashwin's 72 Test wickets in 2016, be the key man for the tourists in due to be against Cologne this and Waugh says he is now so dom- combating Ashwin. Sunday, would trigger a clause inant he can be compared to Aus- "David Warner is an amazing tralian legend Sir Don Bradman, player - he is someone who has that would make the move per- generally acknowledged to be the redefined the role of opening bat- manent. greatest batsman in cricket histo- ting," he said. "He will be facing Schalke are presently 11th ry. Ashwin and that will test him. It in the top flight of German foot- "Ashwin is basically the Brad- will be interesting to watch. ball, with Bentaleb having man of bowling," Waugh, speak- "He doesn't care about repu- scored four goals this cam- ing to Indian media ahead of the tation, always backs himself and paign, along with a further four Laureus Awards, said. "What he is doesn't get nervous. It will be a assists. doing is quite incredible. I think he really good series. Whether Aus- He joined Spurs in the sum- is the player we have to overcome. tralia win or compete, Warner is mer of 2013, playing almost 50 "The Australians would have going to score a lot of runs." matches for the first team, and to look at ways to overcome Ash- (Sky Sport) in 2014 was a member of the Al- geria squad which contested the World Cup Finals in Brazil. Jordan Lance Spieth eases Armstrong set to four-shot for $100m win at Pebble lawsuit trial as US government Beach seek damages Pro-Am A US government lawsuit seeking Jordan Spieth celebrated his 100th $100m (£80m) in damages from PGA Tour start with his ninth vic- Lance Armstrong has been given tory as he cruised to a four-shot the go-ahead. win with a composed final-round The US Justice Department 70 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro- took up the case on behalf of the Am. Postal Service in 2013 after the Final leaderboard disgraced cyclist admitted using AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am performance-enhancing drugs. Spieth's overnight six-shot ad- It says Armstrong defrauded Great Britain handed vantage was trimmed to three ear- the government by covering up his ly on the back nine by the impres- doping to keep getting paid under sive Kelly Kraft, but the leader was his US Postal Service sponsorship tough Fed Cup draw largely untroubled as he carded two deal. Armstrong was stripped of birdies and 16 cast-iron pars to his seven Tour de France titles and post a winning score of 19 under banned from competitive cycling away to Romania par. in 2012 after his confession. He Brandt Snedeker, who was tried to get the case dropped, claim- Great Britain have been given a Konta left the teams level follow- Spieth's closest rival after the third ing the sponsorship was worth tough away draw against Romania ing the singles matches. round, got within four of his play- more to the Postal Service than the in the Fed Cup World Group II The Romanians, who were ing partner when he birdied three $32m it paid to his team, Tailwind play-offs. surprisingly beaten in their World of the first six holes, but he slipped Sports Corporation. That amount Anne Keothavong's team will Group II tie at home to Belgium, back with a bogey at the ninth and can be tripled in damages if Arm- play the match on April 22 and 23 boast world number four Simona could not better par on every hole strong loses the case. The 45-year- as they bid to reach the competi- Halep among their ranks. after the turn. old won the Tour de France seven tion's second tier for the first time They have strength in depth Snedeker's frustrating 70, times between 1999-2005 The 45- in almost a quarter of a century. too, with Irina-Camelia Begu, the which was summed up when he year-old won the Tour de France Great Britain kept their Fed world No 28, and Monica Nicules- lipped out from inside three feet Cup promotion hopes alive with a cu, ranked 39, also available. for birdie at 17, allowed him to be dramatic play-off victory over Niculescu is also a formidable overtaken by Kraft, whose 67 in- Croatia on Saturday. doubles player, currently the cluded five birdies in six holes on Johanna Konta and Heather world No 19. the outward nine, and Dustin Watson came from a set down in Great Britain have not played Johnson snatched outright third the final-match decider against Ana at the World Group level since after coming home in 32 with four Konjuh and Donna Vekic in the 1993. birdies. doubles after a surprise defeat for (Sky Sport) But Spieth ensured the chas- ing pack would be playing for sec- ond after he gave himself some in- Errol Spence Jr says Kell Brook is "He's a great fighter but he's any options but to fight me, so surance with a routine birdie at the getting "too much credit" for de- getting too much credit for fight- that's where he went. second, and he was content to fending his IBF welterweight title ing me," Spence Jr told Errol Spence Jr grind out the pars and avoid any against him. BoxingScene.com "Who else was "He was trying to find a way big mistakes. Promoter Eddie Hearn con- he going to fight at 147? Nobody. out," said Spence. "First he was His consistent driving was firmed last night that terms have Who was he going to fight at 154? looking for another title-holder. He seven times between 1999-2005 backed up by a rock-solid iron been agreed for IBF champion Kell Brook's IBF title defence was looking to fight either Danny game as he missed only two greens However, his lawyers suggest me- Brook to defend his title against against Errol Spence Jr could be Garcia or Keith Thurman. But dia exposure for USPS was worth in regulation, getting up and down mandatory challenger Spence Jr, staged at Sheffield United's ground they're fighting each other, so he after tugging his approach to the at least $160m. US District Judge with Bramall Lane being consid- "He couldn't fight someone was looking for Manny Pacquiao. Christopher Cooper, who had 13th while his third to the long 14th ered as a possible venue in May. else at 147 because if he didn't fight Manny Pacquiao wasn't interest- found the fringe, albeit only 12 feet been considering the case since last The Sheffield man has been me they would say he is ducking ed, so he was trying to fight Amir year, decided the dispute should widely praised for returning to the me. There was nobody for him to Khan. "Then that fell through, so I be decided by a jury. Armstrong, 147lb division to take on the un- fight at 154, no big names, the was high last option. There was who had long denied using perfor- beaten American after his brave names he wanted. So he had to nobody at 154 for him to fight. mance-enhancing drugs, admitted defeat to the world's No 1 middle- fight me." Brook was denied a [Saul] Canelo [Alvarez] already to doping in January 2013 during weight Gennady Golovkin last long-awaited domestic clash with had a fight with somebody and the a much publicised interview with September. Amir Khan after talks broke down rest of the guys are with Al Hay- talk show host Oprah Winfrey. But Spence Jr, nicknamed 'The last month and Spence Jr has tak- mon. He really didn't have any Armstrong's former team-mate, Truth', believes Brook's only op- en a swipe at the Sheffield man by options but to fight me, so that's Floyd Landis, originally brought tion was to take a title defence suggesting that he was trying to where he went." the claim in 2010 and stands to get against him. avoid him. He really didn't have (Fox Sport) up to 25 per cent of any damages. Max Dynamite targets Melbourne Cup not Cheltenham Festival Owner Rich Ricci admits Max nary thrill." One horse Ricci does Dynamite is unlikely to make next expect to be in the mix at Chelten- month's Cheltenham Festival, with ham is Let's Dance, winner of a a crack at the Melbourne Cup in Grade Two event at Leopardstown November the ultimate aim this at the end of January. He said: year. "When Let's Dance won the Grade The seven-year-old was beat- Two novice hurdle at Leop- from the hole. en just half a length in the Flem- ardstown last month, it opened up Spieth did break his long run ington Group One back in 2015, the possibility of her triggering a of pars in some style when he but two outings on the Flat last 50,000 euros bonus offered by the rolled in a superb 30-foot putt for year yielded little joy and he has race sponsors should she go on to birdie at the tough 17th, and he been off the track since finishing win at Cheltenham. "I think it's took no chances at the last as he down the field in the Gold Cup at brilliant, and well done to Nathaniel wrapped up a comfortable victo- Royal Ascot last June. Max Dy- Lacy and Partners Solicitors. It's ry - his first since landing the Dean namite is on on offer at around the unusual because the 50,000 euros & DeLuca Invitational title in May 20-1 mark for the County Hurdle goes to the stable staff should Let's last year. at Cheltenham, but Ricci believes Dance do the business next month, Kraft emerged as Spieth's big- the Puchestown Festival at the end so let's hope for Nathaniel Lacy gest threat when he reeled off four of April is a more likely option and the stable staff that she can straight birdies from the third, and before he builds towards another win one. "She's in good form and he responded to a bogey at the sev- Australian trip. Ricci told his Bet- is rated 147 now, so with a 7lb enth with a birdie at the next after Bright blog: "I'm often asked about allowance in any of those open rac- knocking a pure 207-yard second him and I'm happy to report that es like the Neptune or the Albert to four feet. he's fine, back in training and riding Bartlett, it would make her very The 28-year-old picked up out. "It's not certain that he won't competitive. "The New Course at one further shot at the 11th, but get to Cheltenham but it's proba- Cheltenham, on which the racing the putts dried up for him down bly a bit unlikely, and he should be on the Thursday and Friday of the the stretch as he settled for the best ready for Punchestown on the way festival takes place, would suit her finish of his career on 15 under. towards getting ready for a Flat and so she has plenty of options. Johnson laboured to an out- campaign. "The Melbourne Cup, "I would say at this stage the Dawn ward 36 on the easier front-nine, in which he finished second two Run mares novice race on the but he atoned with birdies at 10 years ago, is the ultimate aim. Get- Thursday of the Festival looks the and 13 before rolling in putts from ting him back to Flemington Park most likely race for her in my view." 20 and 15 feet to pick up. (AA) this winter would be an extraordi- (Sky Sport) WEDNESDAY. FEBRUARY 15. 2017-Dalw 27, 1395 H.S Vol:XI Issue No: 196 Price: Afs.20

The Envoy:From Kabul to the White House, My Journey Through a Turbulent World President Bush encouraged me to Fortunately, these sentiments, spend a great deal of time on the while not atypical, were not rep- hydrocarbon law. The draft creat- resentative either. Advocates of ed a Federal Council on Oil and reconciliation frequently men- Gas that would include officials in tioned to me how common inter- the federal government, represen- marriage was across sectarian lines 16 ISIS MILITANTS tatives of oil-producing regions and and how some tribes were com- provinces, and other figures to plan prised of both Sunni and Shais. KILLED IN and oversee development of Iraqi And Malik, to his credit, did hydrocarbon resources. Most im- not express sectarian views pub- NANGARHAR AIR portantly, it balanced the equities licly. Despite our disagreement on of the federal government and the reconciliation, he believed that sec- AND GROUND KRG in developing and managing tarianism was a transitional prob- oil resources. The draft law was lem. As Iraq security improved and OPERATIONS approved by the cabinet at the the unity government delivered on At least sixteen loyalists of the very end of my tenure. It was its promises, he thought that is- Islamic State of Iraq and Syria transmitted to the National Assem- sue-oriented politics would gain in (ISIS) terrorist group were killed bly, but there was little momen- prominence. He spoke frequently, in eastern Nangarahr province of tum behind modernizing the hy- and emotionally, about his belief Afghanistan. drocarbon sector through partner- that the rule of law would assist in ment to Hadley when I visited The provincial police com- ships and profit-sharing with in- this transition. Washington in September, urging mandment in a statement said the ternational companies. The docu- By the end of my tenure, I had him to take it up in the interagen- militants were killed in the past 24 ment that I helped Iraqi officials concluded that improvement in the cy process. He demurred, arguing hours in Haska Mina and Kot dis- develop is still the only full draft security situation was necessary that the issue should be moved up tricts. The operations were con- law for Iraq’s hydrocarbon indus- for reconciliation to gain traction. through the military chain of com- ducted jointly by the Afghan Na- try. IN TERMS OF military strat- mand. tional Defense and Security Forc- I also prioritized de-Baathifi- egy I had arrived in Iraq believing One of my greatest regrets was es (ANDSF) with the close-air cation. On the very last day of that a population-security “oil that I did not press harder for the support. At least two ISIS loyal- ambassadorship, Talabani signed spot” strategy was the optimal adoption of a population-security ists were also wounded during the off on a draft law to reform the de- approach. strategy in 2005. From Baghdad, I A prominent Jihadi figure and Baathification process and submit- In September 2005, the “Red former Afghan lawmaker Abdul operations, the statement said, saw that population-security adding that five hideouts of the ted it to the cabinet. The draft law Cell,” which Casey and I had strategies were successful under Rab Rasool Sayyaf has said the HRW raps Pakistan called for reducing the scope of de- tasked with reviewing our politi- Afghan nation achieved victory terror group were destroyed and Colonel H.R. McMaster in Tal at least 9 suspects were arrested. Baathification and reversing the cal-military strategy, had called for Afar in 2005 and under Colonel against the Soviet forces with al- purge of lower-ranking members a population-security campaign most 1.5 million human lives lost for ‘forced’ According to the police command- Sean MacFarlane in Ramadi in ment, five of the militants were of the Baath Party. It shifted the tah would secure Baghdad neigh- 2006. in the campaign. focus toward prosecuting actual borhood by neighborhood. The Red Sayyaf was speaking during a killed and two others were wound- In advocating a strategy to tran- repatriation of Afghans ed in Haska Mina district. The re- crimes of the Saddam era in the Cell report advised that, after se- sition the war to the Iraqis, Casey gathering to mark the withdrawal judicial process. The de-Baathifi- curing Baghdad, the military cam- of the Soviet forces from the coun- maining militants were killed in was on the same page as General KABUL: Pakistan is conducting “After decades of hosting Af- Kot district and all those killed or cation draft law, too, never advance paign should work outward from Abizaid at CENTCOM and Rums- try 28 years ago. though the National Assembly. the capital to secure cities and He said the whole Afghan na- the mass repatriation of Afghan ghan refugees, Pakistan in mid- wounded were foreigners, the feld. Patey told me that Prime refugees through coercion, threats 2016 unleashed the world’s larg- statement added. The anti-govern- On the most import issue-rec- towns, one by one, along the coun- Minister Blair raised the Red Cell tion should be proud of the day to onciliation-Iraqi leaders made very try’s two rivers, the Tigris and the mark the withdrawal of the Soviet and abuse, Human Rights Watch est recent anti-refugee crackdowns ment armed militant groups have report with President Bush, but (HRW) said in a scathing report to coerce their mass return,” said not commented regarding the re- little progress at all. In this respect, Euphrates. It assumed that no ad- because President Bush had not forces, insisting that no external we were up against hard realities. I ditional coalition forces were avail- force can defeat the Afghan peo- Monday, accusing the UN refugee Gerry Simpson, a refugee research- port so far. Nangarahr is among the seen the document, Blair did not agency of complicity in promot- er at HRW. “Because the UN refu- relatively calm provinces in east- made the case for pluralism to a able and argued that forces from get any traction. Its possible that ple. Shia Arab leader at my residence the provinces should be rede- Sayyaf further added that any ing the exodus. gee agency (UNHCR) did not ern Afghanistan but the anti-gov- the “oil spot” strategy would have Hundreds of thousands of Af- stand up publicly to Pakistan’s ernment armed militant groups are one evening in late 2006. ployed to initiate the campaign in been difficult to implement as ear- provocative act or insult against “I agree with everything you Baghdad. The repost also argued Jihad will be considered as an at- ghans have been forced to return bullying and abuses, international actively operating in some of its ly as 2005. The program to build remote districts. This comes as the say about reconciliation and plu- that the planned force structure for up Iraqi security forces was gain- tack on the religion. ralism,” he replied to me. “How- Iraqi security forces was too small. He was apparently gesturing Afghan security forces launched a ing momentum but had not yet clearance operation against ISIS ever, I see it differently. Sunni Ar- Casey was not enthusiastic. achieved critical mass. The Iraqi towards the growing frustration abs have dominated us for hun- While he did not reject the Red Cell against the Jihadi leaders who were loyalist earlier this week with the Police, which were at that point local officials saying the operations dreds of years. We want dominate report outright, he wanted to pri- infiltrated by sectarian forces, involved in a devastating civil fol- them for a couple of hundred years. oritize the transition of security lowing the withdrawal of the So- are being conducted with the sup- could not be used to secure Sunni port of the US forces who are pro- Then we will implement plural- responsibilities to Iraqi security Arab areas. viet from the country. ism.” forces. I gave a copy of the docu- In other parts of his speech, viding air support to the ground To be continued Sayyaf said the Mujahideen forc- forces. (KP) es liberated the country which was sold to the outsiders, apparently gesturing towards the communist regime. Goal should be winning the war inAfghanistan: Mohib Sayyaf endorsed support for The goal of the international com- Ambassador said in response to a istan would like to see a peaceful freedom of speech but warned munity in particular the United question. The national security and stable Pakistan as this is in its against any attempts that under- States led by the President reasons that propelled the United national interest. “We have practi- mine the values of the nation. Donald Trump should be to win States into Afghanistan 16 years cal recommendations for both Pa- The Soviet forces launched an to their homeland, which is racked donors should step in to press the the war against terrorism in Af- ago are as urgent as ever, he said kistan and the United States on offensive on Afghanistan on 14th ghanistan and not how not to lose indicating that Afghanistan is still what should be done by them,” he December 1979, deploying ground by conflict, poverty and unem- government and UN to protect the ployment, joining more than half a remaining Afghan refugees in Pa- in the country, a top Afghan dip- far away from being not to be a said as he pushed for a Afghan-led and air forces in the country. lomat based in the US told a safe haven for terrorist groups. peace process and no third party The Soviet war in Afghanistan million others uprooted by war kistan.” The report said a combi- inside the country. nation of insecure legal status, the Washington audience on Monday. In his remarks, Mohib spoke intervention in the process. lasted nine years from December “We need to shift the men- about terrorist safe havens in Pa- “If Pakistan wants to bold bet- 1979 to February 1989. Part of the The report, entitled “Pakistan threat of deportation during win- Coercion, UN Complicity: The ter and police abuses — including tality from not losing in Afghan- kistan. “I can’t speak of security ter relationship with Afghanistan, Cold War, it was fought between istan to winning there. We must in Afghanistan without talking it better do it with friendlier means. Soviet-led Afghan forces against Mass Forced Return of Afghan extortion, arbitrary detention and supporting Taliban is wrong. It Refugees,” called the repatriation nocturnal raids — had left the Af- win,",” the Afghan Ambassador about terrorist safe havens in Pa- Pakistan have been trying to do it is not going to work,” he said. multi-national insurgent groups to the US Hamdullah Mohib told kistan,” he said adding that this is with forceful method,” Mohib said called the mujahideen. (KP) the world’s largest forced return ghan refugees with no choice but The Afghan Government is of refugees. to leave Pakistan. (AFP) a Washington audience at an event the biggest cause of concern for when a Pakistani journalist asked extremely determined to bring organized by the New America Afghanistan and its war against about Afghan relationship with the agenda of governance to its Procurement body Foundation, a top US think-tank. terrorism. India. people a government that peo- TALIBAN SUBJECT “Win is only way forward. “The objective fact is, victory “As they (Pakistan) know ple have confidence in it. “In OKs 3 contracts This is the only way forward for in Afghanistan requires a paradigm through history that (forceful meth- Afghanistan, spending of aid PASSENGERS TO the people of Afghanistan,” he shift in American thinking about od) would not work (in Afghani- should be on budget and in ac- worth 1.5b afs said. Pakistan," Mohib told the Wash- stan). Every time there is an at- cordance with our needs as op- KABUL: The National Procure- All other policies including ington audience, ruling that there tack in Afghanistan the perception posed to donor discretion,” BIOMETRIC SCREENING ment Commission has approved the troop numbers of the US has not been much change in the is that Pakistan allowed that at- Mohib said. Governance is a lev- three contracts worth one a half Government should revolve policies of Pakistan. tack. What kind of friendship is el of priority for the Ghani Gov- KUNDUZ CITY: Taliban militants have subjected passengers on the billion afghanis, the Presidential around this objective, the Afghan The Ambassador said Afghan- that? Mohib asked. “Helping and ernment. (PAN) Khanabad- Aliabad highway to a biometrics screening in northern Kun- Palace said on Tuesday. The con- duz province, local officials said on Tuesday. tracted were given the go-ahead at Hayat Lala Amiri, the Khanabad district chief, told Pajhwok Afghan a meeting of the commission News that the insurgents stopped a passenger bus going from Takhar chaired by President Ashraf Ghani Noose tightened around land grabbers in Laghman on Monday night, a statement province to Kabul at 6.00am. KABUL: More than 170 people list had encroached on land belong- He said the rebels conducted a biometric check on passengers and from the palace said. It said con- tracts were okayed for the con- accused of usurping government ing to teacher townships and the their mobile phones. The apparent objective was to determine whether struction of a 10.8 kilometre road land have recently been introduced Ministry of Education in the pro- there were government officials aboard the bus. in Zaranj, the capital of Nimroz to the attorneys in eastern Lagh- vincial capital, Mehtarlam, and Amiri added the security forces at a checkpoint in the area fired at province, a 50-bed hospital in the man province, officials said. Alingar, Alishang and Qarghai dis- the Taliban and forced them into fleeing. Although no one was captured, Siah Gird district of Parwan prov- The crackdown on illegal land tricts. the incident had scared the people, the official said. ince and food supplies for securi- grabbers comes amid an ongoing He said relevant documents Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed the ty personnel. The meeting also endorsed a proposal from the Min- strike by hundreds of teachers in prepared by the Ministry of Edu- fighters had access to the biometric system in different areas, including the Qarghai district of Laghman. cation had been attached with the Kunduz. But he said nothing about today’s incident. istry of Defence for cancellation of medical supplies. The commis- The teachers claim land allotted to list sent to the attorney’s office Some months back, the Interior Ministry had spurned as groundless sion rejected contracts for gravel- them under a residential scheme has for investigation. reports about Taliban’s possession of the biometrics system. It had ling of roads in Kandahar, asking been usurped. Zwak said the Ministry of then called the movement’s claim part of the propaganda war. the Defense Ministry’s engineer- Sarhadi Zwak, the governor’s Education had long been struggling According to the ministry, the system has been divided into central ing corps to implement the spokesman, told Pajhwok Afghan with the issue of land grabbing and and regional categories. The central part -- closely guarded -- is main- projects. President Ghani said pro- News that Governor Abdul Jab- had informed land grabbers through the governor’s house updated on how involved in the matter had tained in Kabul. The system contains information about security per- curement body’s processes and bar Naeemi yesterday sent a list radios and other sources to relin- the investigation. been identified and so far more than sonnel and offenders. strategies be studied one by one. of 171 individuals through an offi- quish properties they had Zwak said the provincial gov- 2000 acres of land had been recov- Only a few special individuals can access the data. At the regional He directed all state institutions ernment had launched a strong ered from their illegal occupants in to focus on such recommendations cial letter to the attorney’s office usurped. level, the biometrics system would be operated only in emergency situ- and principles for improved work for a judicial investigation. The governor in his letter has campaign against land grabbing. He Mehtarlam and a number of dis- ations. (Pajhwok) procedures. (Pajhwok) Zwak said individuals in the urged the attorney’s office to keep said a large number of people some- tricts. (Pajhwok)