Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

Pak, US Need to Work as Partners in Afghanistan: Khar

Pak, US Need to Work as Partners in Afghanistan: Khar

October 01, 2011

KABUL - Pakistan and the US need to work as "responsible partners" in Afghanistan's peace process and the three nations should not question each other's intention, Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabani Khar has said. Khar, in her address to the 66th session of the UN General Assembly, said Pakistan is firmly committed to ...

Govt. Asked to Accept Woman MP’s Peace Plan

Govt. Asked to Accept Woman MP’s Peace Plan

October 01, 2011

KABUL - Almost 200 people staged a protest in Kabul on Thursday, demanding that a peace process, proposed by a woman member of the Wolesi Jirga, be implemented forthwith.
On July 14, MP Huma Sultani told a press conference that she had prepared an outline of reconciliation that was presented to Taliban ...

Iran’s Participation in Confab on Afghanistan is Important: Rassoul

Iran’s Participation in Confab on  Afghanistan is Important: Rassoul

October 01, 2011

KABUL - The participation of Iran in the international conference on Afghanistan is important and will bring a constructive spirit to the occasion, Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmay Rassoul said when inviting in New York his Iranian counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi to attend the event, the Iranian Foreign Ministry's official website ...

Pak Supports Haqqani to Nullify Indian Threat: Musharraf

Pak Supports Haqqani to  Nullify Indian Threat: Musharraf

October 01, 2011

LODON - Former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf has suggested that his country allows the Haqqani network to operate on its soil to stop India from creating an anti-Pakistan Afghanistan.
"If I was in government I would certainly be thinking how best to defend Pakistan's interests," Musharraf told The Daily ...

Partnership with Pakistan Hard to Revive: Mullen

Partnership with Pakistan Hard to Revive: Mullen

September 29, 2011

KABUL - The partnership approach between Washington and Islamabad would be hard to revive in the wake of recent attacks on American interests, US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen said on Wednesday.
The US would remain firm in its approach toward Pakistan and the war on terrorism, warned Mullen, who accused the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) of providing logistic support to the Haqqani network ...

Pak Speaker Calls for Joint Front Against Terror

Pak Speaker Calls for Joint Front Against Terror

September 29, 2011

KABUL - Pakistan's National Assembly speaker on Wednesday condoled with her Afghan counterpart the assassination of former president Prof. Burhanuddin Rabbani.
Dr. Fehmida Mirza, in a letter addressed to Wolesi Jirga Speaker Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, conveyed deepest condolences of the people and Parliament ...

Ban Reiterates UN Commitment to Afghanistan

Ban Reiterates UN  Commitment to Afghanistan

September 29, 2011

WASHINGTON - United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon met visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul and reiterated the world body's commitment to Afghanistan.
Ban renewed the commitment of the United Nations to assist the people of Afghanistan during talks with the minister in New York, a UN ...

US to Designate Haqqanis as Terror Network

US to Designate  Haqqanis as Terror Network

September 29, 2011

WASHINGTON - The United States is working to designate the Haqqani network as a "terrorist organization", a State Department official said on Tuesday. A sizeable number of the Haqqani kingpins had been individually designated as terrorists, but US officials were considering the issue ...

Kabul Seeks $598m to Cope with Drought, Emergencies

Kabul Seeks $598m to Cope with Drought, Emergencies

September 29, 2011

KABUL - The Afghan government would ask the international community for $598 million (29.3 trillion afghanis) to cope with draught and emergency situations, the agriculture minister informed the Wolesi Jirga on Wednesday. Mohammad Asif Rahimi said the Afghanistan National Disaster ...

US Needs Pakistan to Change Behaviour Now: Khalilzad

US Needs Pakistan to Change Behaviour Now: Khalilzad

September 29, 2011

KABUL - Continued support of Pakistan to the Taliban and other extremists could end up with a strategic blow to the United States and "Washington needs Islamabad to change its behavior and ...

US Promises Not to Leave Afghanistan Alone

US Promises Not to  Leave Afghanistan Alone

September 29, 2011

WASHINGTON - The US and the international community can no longer afford to commit their past mistake of neglecting Afghanistan after the Soviet defeat, a top Obama administration official said on ...

UK, UAE Troops to Stay in Afghanistan Beyond 2014

UK, UAE Troops to Stay  in Afghanistan Beyond 2014

September 29, 2011

KABUL - Troops from Britain and the United Arab Emirates may stay in Afghanistan after 2014 to support local forces, a senior UK defense official said yesterday.
International combat troops are scheduled to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and transfer the responsibility for providing security to the Afghan National Security ...

Drugs Worth $350 Million Destroyed

Drugs Worth  $350 Million Destroyed

September 29, 2011

KABUL - Afghan and U.S.-led coalition troops have destroyed drugs worth more than $350 million and three drug laboratories in southern Afghanistan. NATO said Wednesday the narcotics seizure may be the largest ever made in Afghanistan. Acting on intelligence, the troops targeted an area of Baghran district in the southern Helmand province on Monday that ...

51pc of Aid Spent on Security Forces

51pc of Aid Spent  on Security Forces

September 28, 2011

KABUL - Of the $69 billion (3.3 trillion Afghanis) pledged in aid by the international community, the Afghan government has received and spent $57 billion over the past decade, the minister of economy said on Tuesday.
Fifty-one percent of the foreign aid was spent on the security sector and the rest on agriculture, rural rehabilitation and development, infrastructure, health, education and good governance, Abdul Hadi Arghandiwal said. Releasing the annual report ...

Afghan Forces Making Progress: NATO Official

Afghan Forces Making Progress: NATO Official

September 28, 2011

WASHINGTON - More US military trainers are being sent to Afghanistan, a top Pentagon official said, commending the progress made by Afghan security forces."We're going to do an uplift of about 800 people by next March that will better help us start getting at some of these specialty skills now that really are very ...

Afghanistan Less Deadly Than Iraq

Afghanistan Less Deadly Than Iraq

September 28, 2011

WASHINGTON - The war in Afghanistan is far less deadly than the one in Iraq. In Afghanistan, war related deaths are still running at the rate of 40 per 100,000 Afghans (about 12,000 dead a year). At its peak, four years ago, that rate in Iraq was three times that and most of the dead were civilians killed by Iraqi terrorists. Fewer of the Afghan ...

IMF to Consider Fresh Fund Request for Afghanistan

IMF to Consider Fresh Fund Request for Afghanistan

September 28, 2011

WASHINGTON - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that its executive board would soon take into account the request for a fresh financial assistance for Afghanistan.
However, before the new economic program could be considered by the IMF Executive Board, Afghanistan needs to carry out certain actions ...

Trade Agreement Signed with Kazakhstan

Trade Agreement Signed with Kazakhstan

September 28, 2011

KABUL - An agreement was signed on Tuesday between the Afghan Commerce and Industries Ministry and Kazakhstan' Emergency Situation Ministry on expanding trade ties between the two countries, an official said.
Wheat and flour would be imported in large quantity to Afghanistan under the agreement, Minister of Commerce and Industries Anwar-ul-Haq ...

Fifth Annual Congress of AFSOG Held in Kabul

Fifth Annual  Congress of AFSOG Held in Kabul

September 28, 2011

KABUL - Fifth annual congress of Afghan Society of Obstetrician and Gynecologist (AFSOG) was Held here in Kabul on Tuesday by participation of Dr. Suraya Dalil, Acting Minister of Public Health (MoPH) Dr. Sima Samar, Chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), representatives of MoPH's Health partners and ...

IMF Calls for Continued Aid to Afghanistan

IMF Calls for Continued  Aid to Afghanistan

September 27, 2011

KABUL - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has urged donors to continue extending assistance to Afghanistan, a Ministry of Finance (MoF) official said on Monday.
The call came at the annual IMF-World Bank meeting in Washington, MoF spokesman Aziz Shams told Pajhwok Afghan News. The finance minister represented Afghanistan at the three-day meeting.
Last year, the Fund asked the Karzai government to pressure Parliament to pass a $83 million bailout package for ...

Pak Ambassador Summoned Over Rocket Attacks

Pak Ambassador Summoned Over Rocket Attacks

September 27, 2011

KABUL - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan on Monday over recent artillery shelling into the country's eastern provinces.
Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq was told to ask his government to immediately stop the shelling, a statement from the ministry said.
The Pakistani Army has fired more than 340 rockets ...

Herat Revenue Soars By 45pc

Herat Revenue Soars By 45pc

September 27, 2011

HERAT - The revenue of western Herat province reached more than 10 billion Afghanis ($205 million) over the last six months, showing a 45 percent increase compared to the corresponding period last year, an official said on Monday.
The provincial government's income during the first six months of the last year stood at about 6.9 billion afs, said the revenue department ...

Afghan Transition ‘Key NATO Summit Topic’

Afghan Transition ‘Key NATO Summit Topic’

September 27, 2011

WASHINGTON - Ongoing moves to transfer responsibility for security in Afghanistan to the Asian country's security forces will be top of the agenda at the next NATO summit.
Speaking during a visit to the USA, Alliance Secretary General Anders Fogh-Rasmussen said the meeting – in Chicago next May – will be an opportunity to review the progress ...

Kazakh Minister Discuss Economical Ties with Karzai

Kazakh Minister Discuss Economical Ties with Karzai

September 27, 2011

KABUL - The Kazakh minister for emergency situations discussed with President Hamid Karzai expansion of economic links between the two countries, the president's office said on Monday.
Since wheat production in Kazakhstan was far more than its consumption, the Kazakh government would export some of the commodity ...

$268mln for US-Afghanistan Counternarcotics Programs

$268mln for US-Afghanistan Counternarcotics Programs

September 27, 2011

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) announced this week an agreement with the Government of Afghanistan that provides approximately $268 million for joint programs promoting rule of law, corrections, counternarcotics, and law ...

Kabul Attack Militants Product of CIA, Not Pakistan: Khar

Kabul Attack Militants Product of CIA, Not Pakistan: Khar

September 27, 2011

ISLAMABAD - The Haqqani group that the United States holds responsible for last week's attack against the American embassy in Kabul was the CIA's creation, Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said.
"If we talk about links, I am sure the CIA also has links with many terrorist organizations around the world, by which we mean ...

Pakistan Fires 10 Missiles into Kunar: Wahidi

Pakistan Fires  10 Missiles into Kunar: Wahidi

September 27, 2011

ASADABAD - Despite protests from Afghan authorities, 10 missiles were fired from Pakistan into eastern Kunar province on Monday, the governor claimed.
The cross-border attack on Dangam district caused no casualties, said Syed Fazlullah Wahidi, who asked the neighboring country to halt the ...

Wolesi Jirga Quorum to Be Complete Soon: MPs

Wolesi Jirga  Quorum to Be  Complete Soon: MPs

September 27, 2011

KABUL - As Reformists said on Monday there would be no quorum problem in the Wolesi Jirga quorum, the Law-Supporting Coalition demanded the unseating of the nine lawmakers who were sworn in recently.
The lower house split into two groups soon after the special election ...

Pak Not Responsible for US, NATO Forces’ Security: Gilani

Pak Not Responsible for US, NATO Forces’ Security: Gilani

September 26, 2011

ISLAMABD - Pakistan Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has said that Pakistan cannot be held responsible for the security of the US, NATO, and ISAF forces in Afghanistan.
"Several countries have maintained direct contacts with the Haqqanis.
Singling out Pakistan is not fair. Pakistan cannot be held responsible for the security of US NATO/ISAF forces in Afghanistan. While there have been terrorist attacks in Kabul and Wardak, there have also been numerous attacks on Pakistan launched from ...

Ashgabat and Kabul Discuss TAPI Gas-Pipeline Project

Ashgabat and  Kabul Discuss TAPI  Gas-Pipeline Project

September 26, 2011

KABUL - A meeting was held with a delegation from the Afghan Ministry of Mines at the Turkmen Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources to discuss the implementation of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) construction project, a Turkmenistan newspaper ...

Karzai Appoints Team to Probe Rabbani’s Murder

Karzai Appoints Team to Probe Rabbani’s Murder

September 26, 2011

KABUL - President Hamid Karzai on Sunday appointed a team to investigate the assassination of former High Peace Council Chairman Prof. Burhanuddin Rabbani.
The Jamiat-i-Islami leader was killed on Tuesday evening by a bomber disguised as an insurgent emissary with an important message at his ...

Govt. Revenue Up By 28pc in Last 6 Months

Govt. Revenue Up By 28pc in Last 6 Months

September 26, 2011

KABUL - The government's income increased during the first six month of the current Afghan year that began on March 21, as compared to the corresponding period last year, an official said on Sunday.
In the first six months, official revenue stood at $46 billion (2,218 billion Afghanis), up from $36 billion, a spokesman for the Ministry of ...

Pak Wants to See Afghanistan to Be Stable, Successful: Khar

Pak Wants to See Afghanistan to Be Stable, Successful: Khar

September 26, 2011

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Hina Rabbani Khar has said that Pakistan and Afghanistan share the same future and that her country will stand by the latter for its prosperity and progress despite all ...

Pakistan Bans Flour Exports to Afghanistan

  Pakistan Bans Flour  Exports to Afghanistan

September 26, 2011

KABUL - Pakistan has slapped a ban on flour exports to Afghanistan, preventing 200 trucks of Afghan businessmen at Torkham dry port, officials said on Sunday.
The ban was imposed four days back, the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) chief for the eastern zone told Pajhwok ...

Karzai Seeks New Cooperation Paradigm

Karzai Seeks New  Cooperation Paradigm

September 25, 2011

WASHINGTON - Embarking on the process of achieving long-term stability and economic development, Afghanistan has urged the international community for a new paradigm of cooperation.
"As a framework for long-term partnership, we will call for a new paradigm of cooperation between Afghanistan and our partners," President Hamid Karzai said in his address to the UN General Assembly.
The speech was read out in absentia by his Foreign Minister Zalmai Rassoul, Karzai said he had to cut short his to ...