Recent Appearances...

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Hello !
Recent Appearances...

Mullah Baz Mohammad

Taliban

Afghanistan

20030918

Afghanistan

Pakistan Deports Over 20,000 Afghan Families in 5 Months

2025-05-27

From time to time we check on the countries around Afghanistan to see that yes, they continue to send back more of the millions of Afghan refugees that have been accumulating in the near-abroad since the Soviet era. The profits for hosting them dried up after the Biden-Harris Politburo gave Kabul to the Taliban.

[ToloNews] In the past five months, Pakistan has forcibly deported more than 20,000 Afghan families through the Torkham crossing.

Baz Mohammad Abdul Rahman, Director of Refugees and Repatriation in Nangarhar, told TOLOnews that seventy percent of these families have been resettled in Nangarhar province.

He stated: “The number of returnees is 97,883 individuals, with 70 percent of them settled in Nangarhar and the remaining 30 percent relocated to other provinces. In Nangarhar alone, 14,316 families—comprising 68,591 individuals—have been resettled.”

According to recent UN statistics, since 2023, Iran and Pakistan have forcibly returned more than three million Afghan migrants to Afghanistan.

Many of the families deported from Pakistan have faced serious challenges in finding shelter and a place to live upon returning to Afghanistan.

They are calling on the interim government and aid organizations to assist them in securing shelter.

Arman Khan, a recently deported returnee, said: “When we crossed through Torkham, the Pakistani police told us we had to pay two thousand rupees. We paid the money and were allowed to pass.”

Mir Ahmad Khan, another deportee, said: “If we are supported for even one year, we can stand on our own again. A hand of cooperation must be extended to us.”

According to recent UN statistics, since 2023, Iran and Pakistan have forcibly returned more than three million Afghan migrants to Afghanistan.

Afghanistan Faces Continuing Waves of Deportees

[ToloNews] Seven years ago, Ghulam Nabi, along with his wife and six children, left for Iran to escape poverty, insecurity, and unemployment.

But today, after years of living in exile, he is once again in Kabul—not by choice, but by force.

Ghulam Nabi, deported from Iran, describes his challenges: “We left here because of poverty and hardship, hoping for a better life there. For the first two or three years, no one bothered us, but in recent months, the pressure increased significantly. We were always running from the police, but eventually, around four o'clock, they caught us all and took us to a camp.”

Alongside him, thousands of other families are returning—people who had lived in Iran or Pakistan for years but now have to rebuild their lives in Afghanistan from scratch.

Arefa, deported from Iran, said: “We returned from the border and are now facing many difficulties. We lived in another country for a while, and now we’ve come back to our homeland. We ask our government to help us.”

Aziz, deported from Pakistan, said: “We were working and earning a living in Pakistan, but now that we’ve returned to Afghanistan, we are facing many problems and need cooperation and support.”

According to a recent report by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 107,000 Afghan migrants were deported from Iran and Pakistan in just one week—from May 11 to May 17.

The IOM stated in its report that between May 11 and 17, there were 58,200 entries from Iran and 49,245 entries from Pakistan into Afghanistan, recorded by the organization.

Experts warn that the mass deportation of migrants without any preparedness for their reintegration could trigger a new humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan.

Mohammad Khan Talebi Mohammadzai, a migrant rights activist, said: “As long as the return of migrants is not voluntary and supported by international organizations, such actions are considered a violation of human rights. International organizations and humanitarian bodies must negotiate with host governments about harsh migration policies to ease the difficulties faced by migrants.”

Meanwhile, the International Crisis Group has urged the European Union to apply political pressure on Pakistan to halt the forced deportation of Afghan refugees.

The Crisis Group said in a report: “The EU should also scale up its response within Afghanistan, enhancing assistance for returnees and host communities."

Alireza Karimi, another migrant rights activist, echoed this view: “EU pressure can be somewhat effective, especially if it is accompanied by threats of financial aid cuts and reduced diplomatic ties. However, to fully prevent deportations, a multilateral solution is needed.”

Previously, a representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) stated that 380,000 Afghan migrants have been deported from neighboring countries this year alone and stressed that Afghanistan is not prepared to accommodate this number of returnees.

Link

Afghanistan

Clashes, Shelling in Torkham Displace Around 800 Families

2025-03-07

[ToloNews] Around 800 families in Torkham have been forced to leave their homes due to intermittent festivities and shelling attacks by Pak forces.

Local residents told TOLOnews that Pakistain’s missile attacks have caused massive damage to their homes and shops.

Abdul Haq, a resident of Torkham Township, said that four nights ago he was forced to leave his home due to attacks by Pak forces and seek shelter in a safer area.

Abdul Haq added: "Shells were coming from Pakistain, I didn’t know where they would land, but we fled and found shelter here. That night, it was also raining, and we bravely ran away with our children and women."

"We left under very difficult conditions while bullets were being fired. We took the children out, but we didn’t even have blankets or quilts with us," said Roqil, another displaced person in Torkham.

Some of the displaced people claim that Pak forces do not have the capability to fight face-to-face with the forces of the Islamic Emirate, which is why they target civilians and workers.

"It is the month of Ramadan; whether we had dry or fresh food, we should have been able to eat it in our homes, but now we are displaced here," Nasib Gul, a resident of Torkham, told TOLOnews.

Meanwhile,
...back at the shootout, Butch shot Black Bart's knife out of his hand......
local officials have announced efforts to provide urgent assistance to the displaced people.

Baz Mohammad Abdul Rahman, head of the 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..
department of refugees and repatriation, told TOLOnews: "Around 800 families have been displaced from the areas near Torkham. Organizations under the supervision of the department of refugees and repatriation are conducting surveys, and assistance will be provided shortly."

Mohammad Hashim Maiwandwal, head of the Omari camp in Torkham, said about the aid to the displaced: "Several organizations have arrived, and the survey process is ongoing to assist them."

This comes as the Torkham crossing has been closed to all movement by Pakistain for the past 13 days, leaving hundreds of passengers, emergency patients, and thousands of cargo trucks stranded at the crossing.

Link

Afghanistan

Kabul Residents Struggle With Dried-Up Wells, Decreased Ground Water

2023-05-06

[ToloNews] Kabul residents complained about the lack of water. They said that despite their economic challenges, they are compelled to buy water.

Residents of Kabul urged the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan to work on supplying water to the capital.

"We used to have water in our well at seven meters when the Kabul River had water, but now that the water level has dropped to about eighty or ninety meters, we have no water, and the well has dried up," said Baz Mohammad, a resident of Kabul.

"I have a state faucet which has been dry for nine months. Tankers are currently coming to the streets and we buy one barrel for 10 afghani," said Ketab Khan, another resident of Kabul.

According to some environmentalists, the excessive use of underground water has caused the reduction of water in the capital.

"The indiscriminate consumption of water happens in the commercial centers that wash cars, carpets, bathrooms and swimming pools," said Sayed Qayum Hashemi, an environmental expert.

However,
a clean conscience makes a soft pillow...
the Afghanistan Urban Water Supply and Sewage Corporation (AUWSSC), said that Kabul City's supply of water has been reduced by 50% due to the lack of rainfall, and, as a result, the majority of residents buy the water they need from private companies.

"Canals used to provide water in quantities between 2,000 and 2,400 cubic meters, but they currently only provide 800 to 900 cubic meters. The water level has dropped due to the decrease in rainfall and snow," said Shafiullah Zahedi, head of the Kabul City Sewage Water Supply Corporation.

According to the Ministry of Energy and Water, Kabul city is currently facing a severe water scarcity due to a number of factors including an increase in population, the usage of subsurface water, and climate change.

Or it could be that Allah is showing his disapproval of the new rulers. That one’s got my vote.

Link

Afghanistan

Women Banned From Outdoor Restaurants in Afghanistan’s Herat Province

2023-04-14

Adding another step of heat to the cooking pot.

[KhaamaPress] In a recent move, the Taliban
Taliban

...the Pashtun equivalent of men...
authorities banned the entry of families and women in restaurants with gardens and green spaces in the Herat
...a venerable old Persian-speaking city in western Afghanistan, populated mostly by Tadjiks, which is why it's not as blood-soaked as areas controlled by Pashtuns...
Province of Afghanistan on Monday.

The Taliban on Monday barred entry of families and women into restaurants with gardens or green spaces in Herat province, Afghanistan.

“The de facto government”

Scare quotes mine.

decided after receiving a complaint from the religious holy mans. The Religious holy mans complained that a crowd of men and women had been at such places.

While according to Afghan authorities, the curbs were imposed due to not wearing a headscarf (Hijab) and gender mixing.

So far, the ban only applies to restaurants with green spaces in Herat province.

Meanwhile,
...back at the pond, the enormous newt was trying to decide if Gloria was edible...
officials in Herat denied imposing restrictions for families and women in all restaurants, but saying that it only applies to those restaurants with green areas, such as parks, and eateries with green and garden spaces.

According to a deputy official, Baz Mohammad Nazir from the Ministry of Vice and Virtue’s directorate in Herat denied media allegations that all eateries were off-limits to families and women, characterizing them as misinformation, reported Fox News.

Since the return of the Taliban in August 2021, several restrictions have been imposed on women, including education, working with domestic and international institutions, gyms and open spaces.

Recently, the Taliban authorities banned Afghan female aid workers from working with the UN in the 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 of Afghanistan.

The ban on women’s education and employment was confronted with massive criticism by regional and international organizations, and the suppressive policies of the Taliban were condemned.

However,
ars longa, vita brevis...
the restrictions for female aid workers working with the UN continue, including the ban on girls’ education beyond the sixth grade and university.

Link

Afghanistan

Resistance Front Commander Allegedly Surrenders to Authorities in Afghanistan

2022-12-02

[KhaamaPress] A resistance front commander, resisting the current administration in Afghanistan, reportedly surrendered and joined the government along with 12 of his men.

The state-run Bakhtar News Agency reported on Thursday, December 1, citing security sources in Panjshir province of northern Afghanistan that a National Resistance® Front (NRF) commander relinquished to the new government.

"Twelve rebels led by commander Baz Mohammad and his brothers Mohammad Arez and Nek Mohammad joined the Islamic Emirate," Bakhtar reported quoting security officials in Panjshir province.

Mawlawi Mohammad Mohsen Hashemi, the governor of Panjshir province, hailed the surrender of the resistance front commander and stated that the current administration does not favor "bloodshed."

The authorities in Afghanistan refer to the current administration adversaries as "rebels", especially the NRF. The NRF is led under the leadership of Ahmad Massoud, the son of the late resistance front commander Ahmad Shah Massoud when the Afghan capital collapsed in mid-August last year.

The Ahmad Massoud-led NRF has yet to confirm and respond to the surrender of the NRF commander to the NRF’s opponent, the current administration in Afghanistan.

Link

Afghanistan

MoI Releases List of Taliban Commanders Killed in South

2020-11-16

[ToloNews] The Ministry of Interior Affairs on Sunday released a list of 70 Taliban
Taliban

...Arabic for students...
commanders killed in Helmand
...an Afghan province populated mostly by Pashtuns, adjacent to Injun country in Pak Balochistan...
and Kandahar in Afghan forces operations that were carried out in response to attacks by the group that started more than a month ago.

According to the ministry, 20 of the commanders were from various parts of Helmand and were leading groups of 45 to 100 members.

Rahmatullah, Habibullah, Mawlawi Musa Jan, Qari Mohammad, Rohullah, Mullah Nek Mohammad, Atiqullah, Mullah Sardar, Mullah Anargul, Wali Mohammad, Mullah Idris, Mullah Samad, Sharifullah, Mullah Mohammad Isa and Mullah Amanullah are the Taliban commanders killed in Helmand, according to the ministry.

The list shows that 10 Taliban commanders who were killed in Helmand came from Uruzgan, Kandahar and Ghazni to help their fighters in Helmand.

The 10 commanders include Mullah Mohibullah, Mullah Shah Wali, Mullah Ishaq, Abdul Rahman, Mullah Payenda, Mullah Baridad, Mullah Juma Gul, Mullah Mustafa, Mullah Amanullah, Mullah Khairkhwah, Mullah Toryalai, Ejaz-Ul-Haq, and Badri Janan.

The data by the Ministry of Interior Affairs shows that 40 Taliban commanders were killed in Kandahar.

The commanders killed in Kandahar include Mawlawi Munir, Mullah Saifuddin, Mullah Sazuddin, Qari Labib, Mullah Talib, Mullah Sediq, Abdul Latif, Isa Mohammad, Noorullah, Ainuddin, Musa, Abdul Waris, Mullah Abdullah, Sardar Mohammad, Hamdullah, Mullah Merajuddin, Mullah Saifullah, Abrar, Mullah Zabihullah, Mawlawi Ainulhaq, Mullah Agha Jan, Mullah Saadullah, Mullah Qasim, Mullah Janan, Mullah Bashir, Ehsanullah, Mohammad Qasim, Mullah Nasib, Mullah Waliullah, Mullah Qadir, Hezbullah, Mawlawi Sabir, Mullah Nematullah, Mullah Baz Mohammad
...deputy to Taliban faction supremo Mullah Mohammad Rassoul Nowrozi...
, Mullah Neda Mohammad, Mustaghfir, Shir Ahmad, Sardar Wali, Hafiz Nematullah, and Pir Agha.

Presenting the list to news hounds, Interior Affairs Ministry’s front man said 152 Pak fighters were killed in Helmand province.

The list shows that 65 bodies of Taliban fighters were transferred across the Durand Line, 35 bodies were taken to Farah province, 54 to Helmand, 13 to Zabul and 13 bodies were taken to Uruzgan province.

At least 30 Taliban commanders were maimed in Helmand festivities, Arian said, adding that Taliban attacks were repelled by Afghan forces in Helmand, Kandahar and other southern provinces under the active defense framework.

The war in the south was led by Chief of Army Staff Gen. Mohammad Yasin Zia.

The festivities are ongoing in parts of Kandahar, Helmand and other southern provinces, but Arian said the Taliban has been defeated the southern province.

Meanwhile,
...back at the dirigible, Jack stuck the cigar in his mouth, stepped onto the gantry, and asked Got a light, Mac?

Von Schtinken stopped short, lowering the dagger and trying to control his features.

If you light that thing, Herr Armschtröng, he pointed out, his voice tense, we all die!...
Arian said that at least 134 non-combatants were killed and 289 more were maimed in Taliban attacks in the last 25 days.

Taliban has rejected the statement by the Ministry of Interior Affairs.

Link

Afghanistan

Afghan Forces Hold ‘Full Control’ Of Key Highway In Southeast

2019-04-01

[ToloNews] A strategic highway linking Khost with Paktia province in the southwest of Afghanistan is fully under control of the Afghan forces over the past year while it was under influence of the Taliban
...Arabic for students...
and Haqqani network

for five years.

The road, almost 50 kilometers in length, connects Zazi Maidan district of Khost with Dand Aw Patan district of Paktia.

Security forces are now able to travel by one vehicle through the graveled road, which is mostly rough terrains and has only one lane.

Dand Aw Patan is a district in Paktia which borders the Kurram tribal region of Pakistain. Zazi Maidan or Jaji Maidan is located in the northeastern part of Khost. It borders Bak district to the west, Paktia province to the north, and the

Kurram Agency
...home of an intricately interconnected web of poverty, ignorance, and religious fanaticism, where the laws of cause and effect are assumed to be suspended, conveniently located adjacent to Tora Bora...
of Pakistain to the north and east. The district center is the village of Zazi Maidan, situated in the eastern part of the district.

TOLOnews news hounds Tamim Hamid and Abdul Haq Omeri traveled with an Army vehicle to the highway where they met many Army soldiers who said the highway is under their control.

Noor Mohammad, 38, who serves in the Afghan National Army ranks in Dand Aw Patan district, said he lost one of his comrades in operation for clearing the highway of holy warriors last year.

"He had a marvelous personality and was a talented boy. May the Almighty Allah forgive him. He lost his life just in this war front," said Noor
Mohammad, remembering his friend who was killed in an operation against the Taliban.

Mohammad’s friend, Noorullah, an Army soldier, said that he has not seen his family for a long time.

"My family and the children are missing me. I miss them too," said Noorullah.

"They (Taliban) are preparing from now on and they place mines in some areas. Their preparations will increase as the weather is warming," said Zakaria, 29, an Army soldier in Khost.

Every soldier in the area has their own stories.

"I still have six or seven months to return home and get married. If peace comes, I will do it soon and I will not waste the time," said Baz Mohammad, another soldier.

The Nahri area, which is the connecting point between Khost and Paktia provinces, was the last stop of the forces. A year ago, they had had to fight the Taliban to get to the area but now they reach there in a few hours of drive.

Link

Afghanistan

Kabul Faces Water Crisis as Drought, Population Strain Supply

2019-01-13

[AnNahar] Standing in his garden in Kabul, Baz Mohammad Kochi oversees the drilling of a new well more than 100 metres deep after his first water reservoir dried up. He is not alone.

A shortage of rain and snow, a booming population and wasteful consumption have drained the Afghan capital's water basin and sparked a race to the bottom as households and businesses bore deeper and deeper wells in search of the precious resource.

"The water level has dropped so much that it is now necessary to reach other underground basins 100 metres, even 120 metres" deep, says well digger Mohammad Aman as his dilapidated machine pierces the ochre earth in Kochi's yard.

Link

Afghanistan

All Govt Centers 'Under ANDSF Control' In Ghazni City, at least 39 Talibs toes up

2018-08-11

[Tolo] The US forces in Afghanistan confirm that there were attacks on multiple government centers in Ghazni City on Thursday night.

“We can confirm that there were attacks last night on multiple government centers in Ghazni City, Ghazni province,” Lt. Col. Martin L. O’Donnell, a spokesman for US forces in Afghanistan, told TOLOnews.

He said fighting has since ceased (at around 8am Kabul time).

The spokesman said the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces held their ground and maintain control of all government centers.

“US forces responded with close-air support (US attack helicopters) and conducted one strike (drone). In addition, US aircraft conducted a show of presence,” Mr. O’Donnell told TOLOnews.

Initial reports indicate minimal Afghan security force casualties, he said in a statement on Friday.

“This is yet another failed Taliban attempt to seize terrain, which will result in yet another eye-catching, but strategically inconsequential headline,” he said.

Taliban stormed Ghazni City – in the center of Afghanistan – 148 kilometers southwest of Kabul, at around 2am Kabul time on Friday. Taliban has said in a statement that the group stormed Ghazni City from different sides.

Ghazni police said Kabul-Ghazni Highway has been closed to traffic following heavy fighting between government forces and Taliban.

Hamidullah Nawrozi, member of Ghazni Provincial Council, told TOLOnews that "Ghazni city will fall to the Taliban if reinforcements were not sent".

Meanwhile, Ghazni Police Chief Farid Ahmad Mashal said the Ghazni City is under the control of government forces as he talked to TOLOnews at around 8:30am Kabul time. He rejected the claims that Taliban has entered the city. The police chief said clashes are ongoing in Khogyani, Khwaja Omari and Zanakhan areas on the outskirts of Ghazni City.

Recently, insecurity has increased in Ghazni province. The increasing insecurity has resulted in a decision by the Independent Election Commission to delay the upcoming parliamentary election in the province.

Taliban Blocks Kabul-Kandahar Highway Following Ghazni Attack

[Tolo] Taliban insurgents on Friday blocked Kabul-Kandahar Highway that connects Afghanistan’s capital Kabul to the southern city of Kandahar after the group launched an overnight attack on Ghazni City.

Taliban’s attack on Ghazni, about 180 kilometers southwest of Kabul, is the latest series of attacks by the resurgent group on provincial centers.

Afghan security officials in Maidan Wardak province said Taliban launched an attack on Salar area at midnight on Thursday and then engaged in a fierce battle with government forces in the area.

Passengers who stranded on the strategically important high said Taliban fighters have visible presence in some parts of Kabul-Kandahar Highway.

“They (Taliban) targeted the vehicles. Landmines were planted, bridges were destroyed, they also opened fire on us. Many drivers had been hit,” said Abdulhai, a driver.

“We stranded for two hours in Sayed Abad district. Clashws were ongoing in Chashm-e-Salar, so we returned,” said Mohammad Zia, a driver.

The US army in Afghanistan however has said that a series of air strikes were carried out on the Taliban in the area and that the group’s attempt to seize Ghazni City has failed.

“We can confirm that there were attacks last night on multiple government centers in Ghazni City, Ghazni province,” Lt. Col. Martin L. O’Donnell, a spokesman for US forces in Afghanistan, told TOLOnews.

TOLOnews reporter Gulabuddin Ghubar who visited Maidan Wardak said government forces were trying to send reinforcements to the area to repel further advance of the group.

Soldiers describes the warfronts
“We checked the route and defused the mines. We also escorted the convoy towards Durani bazar and took the martyrs there,” said Mohammad Sediq, a soldier.

“We walked through Dasht-e-Top area. Taliban militants are fighting on multiple fronts. They cannot engage in direct battles,” said Emal Ibrahimi, a soldier.

“People have suffered from this war. The road is blocked. People are stranded on both sides,” said Sharifullah Hotak, member of Maidan Wardak Provincial Council.

In pictures and latest on coordinated Taliban attack on Ghazni city

Photos can be seen at the link.

[KhaamaPress] The Ministry of Interior (MoI) officials are saying that the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) have full grip over the security of Ghazni city, the provincial capital of Ghazni province.

MoI deputy spokesman Nursrat Rahimi told reporters in Kabul that the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces are in full lead of the security of Ghazni city.

He said the Taliban militants have sustained heavy casualties during the attack on Ghazni city and in clashes with the security forces but added that no specific information is available regarding the exact toll.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defense Gen. Mohammad Radmanish said the attack was carried out jointly by the militants from Maidan Wardak, Paktia, and Zabul provinces.

Provincial security Chief Farid Ahmad Mashal says the dead bodies of at least 39 militants are left in the eastern parts of the city.

Provincial public health directorate officials had earlier said the bodies of at least 16 people including two civilians have been shifted to the hospital along with at least 30 others who have sustained injuries.

According to the officials, at least 26 security personnel are among those wounded during the clashes.

The provincial governor’s spokesman Mohammad Arif Noori had earlier said at least seven security personnel have sustained injuries during the attack.

An Nahar adds:

Officials said Afghan special forces were also eing deployed to the southeastern city of Ghazni after the latest attempt by the Taliban to capture an urban centre, with the assault coming as pressure builds on the insurgents to enter peace talks.

At least one Afghan soldier has been killed and seven others wounded in the fighting, provincial governor spokesman Arif Noori said.

Civilian houses and army checkpoints have come under mortar attack and the bodies of dozens of Taliban fighters are in the streets, he added.

Rudaw adds still more details. At some point the fog of war will clear, and we’ll have at least a better idea of how many people belonging to which groups were killed:

Taliban fighters tried to overrun a provincial capital in Afghanistan early on Friday, hiding inside homes before slipping into city streets in the night to attack security forces and killing at least 14 policemen before being pushed back, officials said.

The overnight attack in the southeastern city of Ghazni, the capital of a province with the same name, also wounded at least 20 members of the security forces, said Baz Mohammad Hemat, the administrator of the Ghazni city hospital.

Another Taliban attack, this one on Thursday night in western Herat province, left six policemen dead in the district of Obe, according to the governor’s spokesman there, Gelani Farhad.

In Ghazni, the attack began around 2 a.m. with intense gunbattles raging and fires burning in several shops in the city’s residential areas, provincial police chief Farid Ahmad Mashal told The Associated Press.

After repulsing the daring assault, police conducted house-to-house searches for any remaining Taliban fighters. An investigation was also underway on how the insurgents had managed to infiltrate so deep into the city, barely 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of the Afghan capital of Kabul.

Mashal said there were more than 100 other casualties but he could not give a breakdown of the dead and wounded. Most of the casualties were Taliban, he said.

Several bodies of dead Taliban fighters remained on the street after government forced pushed the insurgents from Ghazni, the police chief said. Bodies of 39 Taliban fighters were recovered from under a bridge on the southern edge of the city.

Airstrikes called in to quash the offensive also killed dozens of Taliban, Mashal said. Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammad Radmanish said the army had helped the police and that the city was brought under control of government forces.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed parts of Ghazni had been seized and scores of people killed.

By mid-morning, sporadic gunfire could still be heard in city, some residents said. There were still Taliban fighters who had hunkered down in elevated positions from which they were still shooting, the residents said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear for their safety.

The Taliban have so far not confirmed being behind the earlier attack in Herat in which at least six policemen were killed at a district checkpoint.

Link

Afghanistan

ISIS arrests woman over illicit sexual charges in North of Afghanistan

2017-08-07

[Khaama (Afghanistan)] Militants affiliated with the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems....
of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group have locked away
Don't shoot, coppers! I'm comin' out!
a woman in North of Afghanistan on charges of having illicit sexual relations (Zana).

According to the local officials in Jawzjan, the woman, az Nazia was arrested and has been taken to an unknown location after she was accused of having illicit sexual relations with a man.

The incident took place in an area under the control of the bully boyz of the terror group in the restive Darzab district.

The provincial district administrative chief Baz Mohammad Dawar confirmed the incident and said preliminary reports indicate the woman is being kept as a hostage in Sardara area, which is under their control.

This comes as reports emerged earlier today suggesting that scores of people were rubbed out by the bully boyz affiliated with the terror group in northern Sar-e-Pul
...a city and eponymous province in northern Afghanistan, population about 500,000. Demographically it is majority Tadjik and Uzbek. There are small Pashtun, Arab, and Hazara communities, of which the Hazaras mostly don't bother anyone...
province.

Link

Afghanistan

Afghan official: 650 tons of drugs seized in past 12 months

2017-04-05

A little profit removed from the coffers of the Taliban and their friends.

[Ynet] An Afghan official says that in the past 12 months the country's counter-narcotics department has seized almost 650 tons of contraband drugs and alcohol.

Gen. Baz Mohammad Ahmadi, deputy interior minister for the counter-narcotics police, says the confiscated drugs include raw opium, heroin and hashish. He says that during that same time, the police tossed in the calaboose
Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'!
2,683 smugglers and traffickers, including 67 women.

He added that 20 coppers and 17 army soldiers have also been arrested for drug trafficking during the same time period. Ahmadi spoke on Tuesday as part of his annual reports on the fight against drug trafficking

Link

Afghanistan

Afghanistan loses 13 soldiers in past 24 hours as security deteriorates countrywide

2016-08-22

[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The Afghan National Army (ANA) forces have lost at least 13 soldiers in the past 24 hours the security situation has rapidly deteriorated across the country.

The Ministry of Defense (MoD) said the soldiers bit the dust during the counter-terrorism operations, mainly in northern and southeastern parts of the country.

"The Afghan National Army (ANA) forces are prepared for all kinds of devotion and with all force to maintain security and comfort for the people of Afghanistan," a statement by MoD said, adding that 13 Afghan soldiers were martyred during counter-terrorism operations against the internal and foreign terrorists.

The Afghan force are facing a resurgent Taliban and deteriorating security sitaution since they assumed full charge of the security responsibilities at the start of last year.

The considerable rise in Afghan army casualties comes as the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) are busy conducting their annual operation to suppress the insurgency activities of the Lion of Islam groups.

Tolo News has more:
Clashes have reached unprecedented levels across the country but the north-east and southern parts of Afghanistan are paying a particularly high price in the ongoing war - so much so that the ‎Commandos and Special Forces are now also involved in many of these battles.

"It is not just Taliban who are angry as they are losing the war, but their regional supporters are also angry at Afghan security forces for their good achievements", said Muhammad Rad Manish, spokesman for the ministry of defense.

Heavy clashes are ongoing in Kunduz, Baghlan and Helmand. In Kunduz province, security forces are fighting the insurgents on the outskirts of the city.

However, the question is, how was the Taliban able to reorganize an onslaught in Kunduz?

Hamdullah Danishi, former caretaker governor of Kunduz said: "Government did not destroy the nests of Taliban in the province and they could not manage the war. Security forces do not have good coordination and the Taliban took a lot of ammunition from them in various fights and today once again they are threatening the province and north-east parts of the country."

Currently battles are ongoing in more than 10 provinces and security forces are having to carry out planned operations and night raids.

Meanwhile, poor war management by the ministries of interior and defense has been blamed for the current situation.

"If in this situation government does not take serious steps toward bringing more coordination and better management of the war, it means that security forces will become subordinates to the insurgents", said Baz Mohammad Anwari, a military affairs analyst.

Lack of ammunition and other equipment is also said to be a cause for concern.

Video report at the link

Link

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