Recent Appearances...

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Hello !
Recent Appearances...

Afghanistan

Two cash aid packages of $40 million arrive in Kabul in just four days

2023-05-17

[AMUtv] Afghanistan has received two cash aid packages of each $40 million in humanitarian assistance within the span of a week after weeks of pause amidst Taliban
Taliban

...mindless ferocity in a turban...
’s ban on female employees of the United Nations
...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks...
and other restrictive bans from their administration on women in the country.

The aid packages of $40 million are sent to Afghanistan every week, but after the Taliban ban on UN female employees, there was a pause in the delivery of the fund. The last package arrived in Afghanistan on March 14, according to Taliban-run Central Bank.

The UN and the United States have assured that the money will not be left under Taliban control but will be used by UN agencies in Afghanistan.

Over the past four days, the Taliban-run Central Bank has informed about the arrival of two aid packages, in total $80 million, as part of humanitarian aid

to the country.

But former vice president Amrullah Saleh in a tweet said the flow of the money is connected with the Doha agreement between the US and the Taliban and that the international community "wouldn’t announce this in order to avoid potential public criticism on absolute non-existence of independent local NGOs."

"In reality, it was a conspiracy to turn a conglomerate of good terrorists, narco-traffickers and fanatics into geopolitical assets. If not, why the hefty weekly eight-digit cash delivery isn’t conditional?" he asked.

The money is usually transferred to Afghanistan International Bank (AIB) and then distributed to the UN agencies. The US special inspector for Afghanistan reconstruction has also expressed concern over Taliban influence on the fund.

"Why all meetings, from the EU representative to UN employees, are with the Taliban only? Why do they only listen to Talibs? And why are the victims of the current situation, including women and kiddies, mentioned only when they send money to the Taliban under their name?" asked Zarmina Pariani, a women’s rights activist.

"If the aid packages do not arrive in Afghanistan, the value of Afghani will fall and all the people of Afghanistan will be affected and Afghanistan will move towards a crisis," said Torek Farhadi, an analyst in political affairs.

The transfer of aid packages to Afghanistan has resumed at a time when at least 3,500 UN employees, including women, are either working from home or have not attended their offices in protest to the Taliban ban on women employees.

Link

Afghanistan

Southern Afghan City Becomes De Facto Capital As Taliban Chief Tightens Grip On Power

2023-04-19

[RFERL] Afghanistan’s southern city of Kandahar is the historical birthplace and the political base of the Taliban
Taliban

...the Pashtun equivalent of men...
. Now, the country’s second-largest city appears to be becoming the de facto capital under the murderous Moslem group’s rule.

Several officials have recently been transferred from the capital, Kabul, to Kandahar. Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada
...Former deputy to Taliban supremo Mullah Akhtar Mansour, now The Big Man Himself...
lives in the city and rarely leaves the Pashtun heartland in southern Afghanistan.

Experts say Akhundzada’s decision to relocate the offices of two Taliban spokesmen to Kandahar is part of efforts to tighten his grip on power. The move comes amid growing reports of infighting between key Taliban ministers based in Kabul and a powerful group of holy mans led by Akhundzada in Kandahar.

"It looks like political power is being transferred from Kabul to Kandahar," Sami Yousafzai, a veteran Afghan journalist and commentator who has tracked the Taliban since its emergence in the 1990s, told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi. "[Akhundzada] is creating a parallel administration to the one in Kabul."

In recent months, senior Taliban officials have appeared to criticize Akhundzada, accusing him of monopolizing power and empowering ultraconservative holy mans who share his bully boy views.

Akhundzada’s repressive policies have alienated Afghans and isolated the Taliban's unrecognized government internationally. Under his leadership, the Taliban has severely curtailed women’s rights, stamped out the free press, and committed human rights
When they're defined by the state or an NGO they don't mean much...
abuses.

Akhundzada, a hard-line holy man and former chief justice, has the ultimate say on all important matters under the Taliban’s holy manal system.

'APPOINTING LOYALISTS EVERYWHERE'
After the Taliban seized power in 2021, ministers carried out the day-to-day administration of the Taliban government. But in recent months, Akhundzada has sought to micromanage the affairs of the state, said Yousufzai.

"He is now involved in appointing district commanders, administrators, and the directors of various government departments," Yousufzai told Radio Azadi. "He is appointing loyalists everywhere."

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s chief front man, relocated his office from Kabul to Kandahar on April 6, according to Abdul Mateen Qani, a front man for the Ministry of Information and Culture.

Innamullah Samangani, another key government front man and head of the Taliban’s Media and Information Center, was also recently transferred to Kandahar.

Kandahar, a historically important political center, briefly served as the capital of Afghanistan, which was founded in 1747. Many of the kings that ruled the country until the monarchy was tossed in 1973 hailed from the broader Kandahar region.

The Taliban first emerged in Kandahar during the civil war in Afghanistan in the mid-1990s. Its founder, Mullah Mohammad Omar, kept Kandahar as the de facto capital even after the Taliban seized control of Kabul in 1996. The hard-line Islamist group was ousted from power by the U.S.-led invasion in 2001.

Andrew Watkins, a senior Afghanistan expert at the United States Institute of Peace think tank in Washington, says Mujahid’s transfer is one of the most public signs of a trend in which Akhundzada appears to be strengthening his influence.

Watkins said Akhundzada wants control over "public messaging," which he says has "long been a priority for the Taliban."

The Taliban has denied that the decision to relocate bigwigs to Kandahar is part of a power struggle.

Mujahid said part of his office has moved to Kandahar in order to report more closely on the meetings and other activities of the Taliban chief. "The recent move doesn't amount to transferring the capital to Kandahar," Mujahid told Radio Azadi.

But observers are not convinced.

"There are factions within the Taliban that want more power," Tariq Farhadi, an Afghan political analyst based in Europe, told Radio Azadi. "It paints an overall worrying picture for the future of the Taliban."

Link

Afghanistan

'Talented' Ex-Officials Will be Given Jobs If They Return: Taliban Commission

2023-03-14

Don’t go back, guys — it’s a trap!

[ToloNews] The "Commission for the Return and Communications with Former Afghan Officials and Political Figures" said that talented and honest former officials and political figures who return to Afghanistan will be provided with jobs.

According to the commission, more than 500 people including ministers, governors and political figures have returned to the country.

"The government is committed to considering capacity, talent and honesty of Afghan figures. They may join certain areas of the government because hundreds of thousands of former government officials are currently included in the government," said Ahmadullah Wassiq, a front man for the commission.

"Until now, 513 Afghan figures including ministers, governors and deputy governors, have returned to their country via the "Commission for the Return and Communications with Former Afghan Officials and Political Figures," Wassiq said.

The political analysts believe that the commission should change its method and create a trusting environment for the professional figures.

"The solution is that the Taliban
Taliban

...mindless ferocity in a turban...
should extend their embrace and change their policy and pave the way for intra-Afghan negotiations," said Stana Gul, political analyst.

"To pave the way for the return of Afghans, the schools for girls should be reopened and work access for women should be facilitated," said Torek Farhadi, political analyst.

"If the Islamic Emirate is really working in this regard, they should invite the eligible and professional figures to Afghanistan," said Amanullah Ghalib, former head of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat.

Link

Afghanistan

Afghanistan coffers swell as Taliban taxman collects

2023-03-11

[Dawn] The Taliban
Taliban

...mindless ferocity in a turban...
administration is proving adept at collecting tax — and seemingly without the corruption associated with the previous administration.

A dusty logjam of trucks inches across a rut in the mountains splitting Pakistain and Afghanistan, teeming with a cargo of fruit and coal — and paying the Taliban authorities for the privilege of passage.

In downtown Kabul, a patrol of accountants inspects a bazaar, billing shopkeepers for trading honey, hair conditioner and gas hobs under the snapping white flag of the country’s new rulers.

Afghanistan is frozen deep in a second winter of humanitarian turmoil since the Taliban seized power in 2021, but cash is changing hands at a dizzying pace.

The Taliban administration is proving adept at collecting tax — and seemingly without the corruption associated with the previous administration.

At Torkham on the border, one trucker told AFP that under the old regime he would pay 25,000 Afghani ($280) at illegal checkpoints along a 620 kilometre (380 mile) trip to Mazar-e-Sharif.

"Now we travel day and night, and no one asks us to pay," said 30-year-old driver Najibullah.

In late January, the World Bank reported "strong" revenue collection at 136 billion Afghani ($1.5 billion) over the first nine months of 2022 — broadly in line with the final full year of the US-backed regime.

"It has been reported quite consistently that they’re doing quite well on revenue, and that too is happening when economic activity is quite subdued," an official with a foreign organization in Afghanistan told AFP.

"It was a shock."

However,
a hangover is the wrath of grapes...
in a country where the United Nations
...an idea whose time has gone...
says half the citizens face severe hunger, the figures beg many questions.

AT THE COALFACE
About 60 per cent of the Taliban treasury is funded by customs, the World Bank says, raised at tumbledown checkpoints like Torkham in eastern Nangarhar
The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country..
province, where truckers trade rubber-stamped paperwork for cash.

Incoming freight is mostly food — oranges, potatoes and World Food Programme (WFP) flour — but the outgoing lane is dominated by a convoy of lavishly painted trucks loaded with chromite and coal.

Neighbouring Pakistain has been hammered by the global energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine at a time when an economic crisis has withered dollar reserves.

So it brokered a deal to pay for Afghan coal in rupees — cutting out usual suppliers in South Africa and Indonesia.

According to a 2022 report by research group XCEPT, coal exports to Pakistain likely doubled under the Taliban government and earned Afghanistan $160 million in tax — three times what the previous administration was capable of.

But the mining industry relies heavily on child labour, with punishingly low pay and the barest safety measures.

"This has been their strategy from day one — to increase revenue no matter what," former deputy commerce and industry minister Sulaiman Bin Shah told AFP.

The Taliban’s lodestar has always been law and order — albeit on their ultra-conservative terms — and there are signs Kabul’s coffers have benefitted from a crackdown on corruption which leeched the US-backed government for 20 years.

Afghanistan climbed 24 places up Transparency International’s corruption perception ranking last year, a rare case of a metric improving for the country.

"Afghanistan has that capacity, which now we are collecting," said finance ministry front man Ahmad Wali Haqmal. "The main problem was the corruption."

But analyst Torek Farhadi sees it another way.

"They are more effective because people are scared of them," he said. "The Taliban have an iron grip on the administration. They have the guns, and nobody can steal any money."

OUT OF THE SHADOWS
The Taliban’s transition from murderous Moslems to ~~babus~~ bureaucrats is not entirely surprising.

During their 20-year guerilla war, they established a shadow government in many areas they controlled, including courts, regional governors and a tax system to fill their war chest.

Afghanistan’s customs director Abdul Matin Saeed once ran shadow toll booths for the insurgency in Farah province, bordering Iran, and Balkh, bordering Uzbekistan, roving the territory on raspy cycle of violence

s to evade capture.

"We didn’t have complete control over the roads ... but still we were meeting our ends," he told AFP.

This experience was "very handy" when the republic fell and he took office in Kabul, he says.

The government’s ability to raise revenue has far-reaching implications.

The international community has pressured the regime over restrictions on women’s rights with financial sanctions, but their ability to raise domestic revenue grants them greater independence.

It also presents a dilemma for donors — does providing humanitarian support free up the Taliban administration to pursue discretionary aims such as quashing dissent?

But perhaps the most glaring issue is the lack of clarity over how all this cash is spent.

Last year, the Taliban government issued an annual budget outlining 231 billion Afghanis of spending, but scant further detail.

"This money goes to the functioning of the government of the Taliban," said analyst Farhadi. "I want to see how they spent it. Where did it go? "

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Iran frees prominent actress who was jailed for backing protests

2023-01-05

[IsraelTimes] Taraneh Alidoosti, who starred in Oscar-winning film, released on bail after being arrested for Instagram posts voicing support for demonstrators.

Iran
Iran

...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites....
released a prominent actress from an Oscar-winning film on Wednesday, nearly three weeks after she was nabbed
Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages!
for expressing support for anti-government protests, local reports said.

Iran’s semi-official ISNA news agency said Taraneh Alidoosti, the 38-year-old star of Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar-winning "The Salesman," was released on bail. Her mother, Nadere Hakimelahi, had earlier said she would be released in a post on Instagram.

After her release from the notorious Evin Prison in Tehran on Wednesday, Alidoosti posed with flowers among her friends. No further details have been released about her case.

Alidoosti was among several Iranian celebrities to express support for the nationwide protests and criticize the authorities’ ~~violent~~ mostly peaceful crackdown on dissent. She had posted at least three messages in support of the protests on Instagram before her account was disabled.

One message had expressed solidarity with the first man to be executed on charges linked to the protests, which were triggered by the death of a woman in police custody and have escalated into widespread calls for the overthrow of holy manal rule.

The protests mark one of the biggest challenges to the Islamic Theocratic Republic since it was established after the 1979 revolution, and have prompted a heavy crackdown by security forces, who have used live ammunition, bird shot and tear gas to disperse protesters, according to rights groups.

Mohsen Shekari was executed December 9 after being charged by an Iranian court with blocking a street in Tehran and attacking a member of the country’s security forces with a machete. A week later, Iran executed a second prisoner, Majidreza Rahnavard, by public hanging. He had been accused of stabbing two members of the paramilitary Basij militia, which is leading the crackdown.

Activists say at least a dozen people have been sentenced to death in closed-door hearings over charges linked to the protests.

″His name was Mohsen Shekari," Alidoosti wrote on an account with some 8 million followers before her arrest. "Every international organization who is watching this bloodshed and not taking action, is a disgrace to humanity."

At least 516 protesters have been killed and over 19,000 people have been arrested, according to Human Rights Activists in Iran, a group that has closely monitored the unrest. Iranian authorities have not provided an official count of those killed or detained.

Khamenei, who has said little about the protests, spoke about Islamic dress on Wednesday in a meeting with women, saying the hijab is necessary but that those who do not "completely observe" the practice "should not be accused of being non-religious or against the revolution."

Even before the protests, many Iranian women wore the headscarf loosely, and authorities sometimes eased off on enforcing it, particularly during the presidency of Hassan Rouhani
...Iran's moderate president, which he is, relative to his predecessor, which doesn't mean he's anything but a puppet of the nearest holy man...
, a relative moderate who governed from 2013 to 2021. His successor, the hardliner Ebrahim Raisi, had moved to tighten the restrictions.

Alidoosti had previously criticized the Iranian government and its police force before this year’s protests.

In June 2020, she was given a suspended five-month prison sentence after she criticized the police on Twitter in 2018 for assaulting a woman who had removed her headscarf.

Link

Afghanistan

Islamic Emirate Rejects USIP Report Claiming Terrorists in Afghanistan

2022-09-03

[ToloNews] The Islamic Emirate denied the assessment of the US Institute of Peace that says the "Taliban
Taliban

...mindless ferocity in a turban...
" has continued "to harbor a range of terrorist groups that endanger their neighbors."

According to USIP, the "Taliban" has given sanctuary to "the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP), which threatens Pakistain; the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which threatens China; the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which threatens Uzbekistan; and ISIS-Khorasan Province, which threatens everyone (including the Taliban)."

But a front man for the Islamic Emirate stressed that the Afghan soil will not be used against any country.

"The Islamic Emirate does not allow anyone to threaten other countries from Afghan soil. Such allegations made in this regard are not true. Unfortunately, such allegations are published without evidence or proof. It is based on inaccurate information and propaganda," said Bilal Karimi, deputy front man for the Islamic Emirate.

According to USIP, one year after the Islamic Emirate came to power, Afghanistan's neighbors in the region are coming to grips "with the reality that they now own a greater share of Afghanistan’s problems and the Taliban realize that neither recognition nor financial aid are going to come from the region easily."

The analysts give various opinions on the matter:

"The neighbors of Afghanistan are concerned and the neighbors of Afghanistan want the recognition of Afghanistan because Afghanistan then would be obliged to follow up with some international conventions. This could not be solved only via some verbal assurances by Kabul," said Torek Farhadi, a political analyst.

"If the neighbors really have concerns regarding Afghanistan, they should recognize Afghanistan,, so their concerns could be addressed," said Janat Fahim Chakari, an international relations analyst.

The assessment said that the regional powers, particularly Iran, Russia and China, were happy to see US and NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
troops go but are not in a position to replace the massive amounts of development assistance.

Link

Afghanistan

Al-Qaida and Islamic Emirate Relationship 'Remains Close’: UN

2022-05-30

[ToloNews] "The relationship between the Taliban
...the Pashtun equivalent of men...
and al-Qaeda remains close, with the latter celebrating the former’s success and renewing its pledge of allegiance to [Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada]," a UN report said.

The Islamic Emirate has yet to comment on this latest claim but has earlier denied reports of the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

The report estimated an approximate presence of "180 to 400 fighters affiliated with Al-Qaeda" from "Bangladesh, India, Myanmar and Pakistan" who are settled in "Ghazni, Helmand, Kandahar, Nimruz, Paktika and Zabul provinces."

The UN Security Council released a report by the Analytical Support and Sanctions Monitoring Team which assessed the presence of al-Qaeda and ISIS groups in Afghanistan.

"Member State assessments thus far suggest that al-Qaeda has a safe haven under the Taliban and increased freedom of action. Ayman al-Zawahiri
...Formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, now the head cheese, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area assuming he's not dead like Mullah Omar. He lost major face when he ordered the nascent Islamic State to cease and desist and merge with the orthodox al-Qaeda spring, al-Nusra...
has issued more frequent recorded messages since August, and there is now proof of life for him as recently as February 2022," the report said.

The report estimated an approximate presence of "180 to 400 fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda" from "Bangladesh, India, Myanmar and Pakistain" who are settled in "Ghazni, Helmand
...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan...
, Kandahar, Nimruz, Paktika
...which coincidentally borders South Wazoo...
and Zabul provinces."

"The Islamic Emirate has yet to reach a final discussion regarding this issue. The officials of the Islamic Emirate should provide final assurances in this regard," said Shir Hassan Hassan, an international relations analyst.

"After the killing of (the late Osama bin Laden

...... who used to be alive but now he's not......
), the al-Qaeda has become a diminished organization. In fact, al-(Qaeda) is not an important danger to the world," said Torek Farhadi, a political analyst.

"These are the excuses for the Islamic Emirate. The Islamic Emirate should clarify its stance about whether it has a link with al-Qaeda or not. If not, then clearly deny it," said Sayed Ishaq Gailani, leader of the National Solidarity Movement of Afghanistan.

The report said that " Taliban are starting to see the National Resistance® Front challenge fading while recognizing ISIS-K as a more long-term and serious threat."

Link

Afghanistan

Politicians Call for Probe into Alleged Torture of Civilians

2022-05-15

[ToloNews] Afghan politicians called for an investigation into the alleged reports of torture and mistreatment of civilians in the provinces of Panjshir, Baghlan and Takhar.

The influential politicians who voiced concerns over the claims of civilian mistreatment are former chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation, Abdullah Abdullah

...the former foreign minister of the Northern Alliance government, advisor to Masood, and candidate for president against both Karzai and Ghani. Dr. Abdullah was born in Kabul and is half Tadjik and half Pashtun. He also held the meaningless salaried sop position as CEO of Afghanistan, while Ghani was president...
, former Jihadi leader Abdul Rab Rasul Sayyaf, Karim Khalili the former Vice President of Afghanistan and the leader of Hezb-e-Wahdat, Abdul Rasheed Dostum
...ethnic Uzbek warlord who distinguished himself fighting the Soviets and the Taliban. The story that he had a bad guy run over with a tank is an exaggeration. It was an armored personnel carrier...
, leader of Hizb-e-Junbish and Muhammad Mohaqiq, People’s Islamic Unity Party of Afghanistan.

However,
the hip bone's connected to the leg bone...
the Islamic Emirate denied the allegations.
No, no! Certainly not!
of civilian casualties in these provinces.

"The recent reports from Afghanistan speak of painful incidents in Panjshir, Takhar, and Andarab (of Baghlan) and Khost, that the military has conducted desert trials and tortured civilians. We call on the international community and the human rights
...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty...
organizations to launch a neutral investigation into these incidents and share the results with the people of Afghanistan," Abdullah said in a series of tweets.

Analysts said that the issue should be taken seriously.

"The government should not ignore it and should prevent it. It is important that (acting Minister of Foreign Affairs) Amir Khan Muttaqi and Mohammad Alam Izdyar restart the negotiations," said Torek Farhadi, a political analyst.

Meanwhile,
...back at the barn, Bossy was furiously chewing her cud and thinking...
a number of US based Afghans held protests in reaction to the alleged reports of civilian’s casualties in Panjshir, Baghlan and Takhar provinces.

"The Islamic Emirate conducted clearing operations against the people who were causing insecurity. Hundreds of them have surrendered and their weapons and ammunitions were seized by the Islamic Emirate. The civilians have a normal life. We seriously deny the reports and propaganda being spread in this regard," said Bilal Karimi, deputy front man for the Islamic Emirate.

The UN Special Rapporteur for Afghanistan, Richard Bennett said it was "essential for international human rights and humanitarian law to be upheld" and that they are "watching closely."

Link

Afghanistan

Kabul Rejects Gen. McKenzie's Remarks on Daesh

2022-03-21

[TOLO] "Dude. We told you! They're all gone. Like to Pakistain or someplace. K?"
General Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of the US Central Command, talking to reporters on Friday raised concerns regarding Daesh’s presence and activity in Afghanistan.

He said Daesh has a few thousand fighters in Afghanistan, and they have carried out some high-profile attacks in the past several months since the collapse of the former government.

"So we assess probably a couple thousand, more or less, ISIS fighters in Afghanistan. Of course, when the Taliban opened Pul-e-Charkhi and Parwan prisons and infused new talent and new energy into ISIS -- and so they're now reaping the result of that very shortsighted decision," he said.

McKenzie said if the pressures on Daesh are gone, the group will regenerate in the country. "But absent effective pressure, it's going to be -- we would expect that ISIS will continue to regenerate in the ungoverned spaces, principally in eastern Afghanistan but not exclusively there, and we're going to see them on down the road," he added.

The Islamic Emirate, rejecting McKenzie's remarks, said Daesh hideouts have been discovered and destroyed in the country. Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, said such remarks are baseless.

"These claims are baseless and there is no evidence. Daesh’s activities in Afghanistan have been shut down and no one will be allowed to create insecurity," Karimi said.

This is not the first time that McKenzie has made such remarks. On Wednesday he said that the Islamic Emirate is committed to fighting Daesh but has found it difficult.

"Daesh exists in Afghanistan and with its attacks on Shia mosques and schools it wants to attack the government," said Tariq Farhadi, a political analyst.

"The Americans again have plans to have an intelligence presence in Afghanistan and so they make such excuses, while Daesh does not exist," said General Samar, a former military officer.

Previously the UN said in a report that Daesh’s fighters have increased from 2,000 to 4,000 since the opening of prisons in the country. The Islamic Emirate, however, has repeatedly rejected such figures and reports about Daesh.

Link

Afghanistan

Islamic Emirate Faces Shortage of Professional Staff: Report

2022-01-16

[Tolo] Hard to believe, I know
The Islamic Emirate is facing a shortage of professional staff, the New York Times reported, saying that many of the officials in government posts lack professional skills.

The report said that "many of the selected theologians are graduates of Darul Uloom Haqqania madrasa, one of Pakistan’s oldest and largest Islamic seminaries."

"Government jobs are given as patronage to ex-fighters and exiles living quietly in Pakistan. But not all possess the technical skills required for the job," the report read.

However, the Islamic Emirate denied the report.

"We deny the report of the New York Times that says the Islamic Emirate is faced with a shortage of staff..." said Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate.

Wahidullah Hashimi, a senior member of the Islamic Emirate's council for training and educating soldiers, relates the staffing problems to the corruption in the former government, as well as to the plot of foreigner’s to drain Afghanistan of talent.

"Foreigners intentionally evacuated Afghans, most importantly, the educated and professional ones, to weaken the Islamic Emirates and undermine our administration," Hashimi said as quoted by the New York Times. "We are in touch with some Afghans in different parts of the world and are encouraging them to return to Afghanistan because we desperately need their help and expertise to help their people and government."

Political analysts say that professional individuals should be appointed to senior government positions.

"The Islamic Emirate should trust the professional individuals and appoint them to senior government posts and include them in decision-making. This helps with professionalism and recognition," said Toreq Farhadi, a political analyst.

After the fall of the former government, many high-profile and talented youth left the country.

Link

Afghanistan

Normalcy: Provincial judges appointed, Mazar-e-Sharif processes IDs

2021-12-17

Talib Supreme Court Appoints 69 Provincial Judges

[ToloNews] The Supreme Court
...the political football known as The Highest Court in the Land, home of penumbrae and emanations...
has appointed 69 judges to 33 provinces (Panjshir province was not included.)

Hmmm...Is that because it is still under military rule or because they are still working in subduing it?

The Islamic Emirate said that the appointees to the provinces are qualified to address legal cases.

"The 69 individuals are introduced by the Supreme Court and are appointed to positions of appellate court judges and provincial judges- they are all skillful and are experts in Sharia law," said Inamullah Samangai, deputy front man for the Islamic Emirate.

But some political officials reacted to the new appointments in the judicial system, saying that the system needs well-experienced officials.

"It is necessary to appoint officials based on talent, skills, integrity and capability," said Janat Fahim, a political analyst.

"These should be lawyers who are familiar with Afghan and international law," said Toreq Farhadi, a political analyst.

Some lawyers said that the newly appointed officials should not have been accused of committing war crimes.

"The individuals who are being appointed in this section should not have any background of violating human rights
When they're defined by the state or an NGO they don't mean much...
or committing war crimes--they should be honest," said Rohulah Sakhi Zada, a lawyer.

The citizens hoped that the new judges would take decisive action in judicial cases.

"Honest and good people should be appointed who can ensure justice," said Khalil Rahman, a Kabul resident.

Electronic ID Distribution Restarts in Mazar-e-Sharif

[ToloNews] Four months since the processing and distribution of electronic Nations Identity Cards (eNIC) was halted, the National Statistics and information Authority (NSIA) of Balkh province said on Wednesday that the process of distributing identity cards (e-Tazkiras) has resumed in Mazar-e-Sharif.

The acting head of the NSIA in Balkh, Mohammad Noor Wasiq, said so far one center has been activated to restart services and two more centers will be opened in the coming days.

"People can register offline for the electronic Tazkira ... we will reopen more centers, if the capital ( Kabul Officials) gives permission," said Mohammad Noor Wasiq.

The residents of Mazar-e-Sharif, who were queuing in front of the center, welcomed the opening of the center. They called on officials to reopen more centers in the city.

"The process restarted, we are happy about it, women are allowed to receive Tazkiras, we are happy," said Maasoma Nazari, a resident in Mazar.

Officials said that more than 300 persons a day go through the biometric processing at the center.

After the victory of the Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan, the process of issuing passports and identity cards was disrupted for weeks across the country, and citizens--including students who study abroad and patients who need to travel for medical care--were faced with serious travel challenges.

Link

Afghanistan

Anas Haggani: World's Terms for Govt Recognition 'Unjust'

2021-12-09

No taqqiya, for once.

[ToloNews] The international community's lack of recognition for the current Afghan government is unjust, an official of the Islamic Emirate said on Wednesday.

After nearly four months have passed since the fall of the country to the Islamic Emirate, foreign countries have yet to recognize the current Afghan government.

The UN General Assembly voted to defer a decision on Afghanistan's representation at the world body, meaning that the ambassador from the former government will retain his seat for the time being. The Islamic Emirate had proposed Suhail Shaheen as the new representative.

Anas Haqqani, a member of the Islamic Emirate’s political office in Qatar
Qatar

...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi...
, said that imposing conditions and applying force would not pave the way for resolving Afghan problems.

"This is the injustice of the world toward Afghanistan. Earlier they talked about (called for) peace and security and now they have imposed new conditions and say that these should be accepted," he said.

In the wake of a political changes that took place in mid-August, Afghanistan has plunged into an economic and humanitarian crisis. There are also serious concerns about an imminent collapse of Afghanistan's economy and banking system.

Political analysts say that Afghanistan is in grave need of engagement with the international community, warning that if the current crisis remains unsolved, the people will be severely damaged.

"The international community doesn’t have a particular responsibility to recognize Afghanistan. This situation may last for years but the sanctions put on Afghanistan affects the people," said Toreq Farhadi, a political analyst.

"The world has turned into a shared home today (an interrelated community). A country without international relations and contacts is unable to make progress," said Imran Afghan, a political analyst.

To recognize the Afghan government, the international community has demanded that the Islamic Emirate remain committed to the formation of an inclusive government, the rights of women, and human rights
...which are often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless...
As the existing crisis has engulfed the country in a variety of ways, a big part of the country’s population has been scrambling with severe poverty. Over $9 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank assets have remained frozen.

"The international community should not leave the nation because the nation has this government," said Noor Zaman, a resident of Kabul.

"The international community and Islamic Emirate should reach an agreement, so the Afghanistan economic problems will be solved," said Mohammad Hussain, another resident.

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