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Afghan Population Grows By 2.4pc Annually
August 17, 2011
KABUL - Afghanistan's annual population growth rate stands at 2.4 percent, officials said on Tuesday, warning the population, if not controlled, could double over the next three decades. The Central Statistics Organization (CSO) puts Afghanistan's current population at about 26.5 million, which could increase to 34 million by ...
No Official Discussion of Taliban Inclusion in Bonn II: GMIC
August 17, 2011
KABUL - Director of the Government Media and Information Centre (GMIC) on Tuesday said participation of the Taliban in forthcoming Bonn conference has not yet been discussed officially. The only way that Taliban could participate in the Bonn conference is that they become part of Afghan delegation, Director of GMIC Abdul ...
Karzai Trying to Dissolve Parliament: Behzad
August 16, 2011
KABUL - President Hamid Karzai may dissolve Parliament in an effort to stand for a third term, the second deputy speaker of Wolesi Jirga said on Monday. However, other lawmakers rejected the allegation as unfounded.
Addressing a news conference, Ahmad Behzad claimed having video and audio documents that showed Karzai wanted to dissolve the legislature and thereby pave the way for his re-election as president.
The Presidential Palace and all ministries were making ...
UN Pressing IEC to Unseat 17 Lawmakers: Report
August 16, 2011
KABUL - The United Nations is suggesting a plan aimed at bringing an end to the current chaos between the legislative and executive branches and to avoid the country sinking into a constitutional crisis, McClatchy newspapers reported. Two international officials have said on condition of anonymity ...
Gov.t Can Invite Taliban to Bonn Conference: UK
August 16, 2011
KABUL - British Ambassador to Afghanistan Sir William Patey on Monday said that the Afghan government could invite Taliban fighters to the second Bonn conference, scheduled for December 5 in Germany. Considering progress in the peace talks with the Taliban fighters, Afghan government could make a decision about participation of Taliban ...
No Legal Solution to Resolve Election Standoff: FEFA
August 16, 2011
KABUL - There is no legal solution to bring an end to election turmoil, except if the Independent Election Commission (IEC) makes a decision that could convince protesting candidates, the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA) said on Monday. Afghanistan Civil Society Forum and FEFA said that Afghanistan is ...
PRT-Funded Religious School Opens in Kunar
August 16, 2011
ASADBAD - A provincial reconstruction team-funded religious school was inaugurated on Monday in Asadabad, the capital of eastern Kunar province, officials said. The seminary, where 700 students could be taught at a time, took a year to complete at a cost of $210,000 (9.8 million afs), the director of education ...
Taliban Storm Governor House
August 15, 2011
KABUL - Six suicide bombers attacked Parwan government building on Sunday killing policeman, Ministry of Interior Affairs said.
The attack occurred at 11:30 am local time when a suicide bomber detonated his explosives near the gate of the governor's building and five others started clashes with security forces, the Ministry said.
Twenty two people including six Afghan policeman were killed and 34 other people including 10 Afghan policemen were wounded during the attack and clashes ended after about one ...
‘Britain Can No Longer Waste Money in Afghanistan’
August 15, 2011
KABUL - The United Kingdom has already wasted £14bn on the war in Afghanistan and cannot afford to waste any more in military operations there at a time of financial crisis, Lord Oakeshott has said.
"We have wasted £14bn on going to war in Afghanistan, and we are losing hundreds of lives in a futile war propping up a failed state - ...
Kabul to Decide About Taliban Participation in Bonn II: Crocker
August 14, 2011
KABUL - In an exclusive interview with Tolo news, US Ambassador to Afghanistan said the second Bonn conference will be led by Afghans and Kabul should decide whether to exclude or include Taliban in the conference.
Once again US Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker urged Pakistan to do more in the fight against insurgents that are attacking foreign troops in Afghanistan.
Earlier Ryan Crocker said that there is no space for the Taliban to take part in the forthcoming Bonn ...
MPs Rule Out Changes in Poll Results
August 14, 2011
KABUL -Wolesi Jirga members on Saturday ruled out any deal with any institution on changes in results of last year's parliamentary election."We declare that under Article 86 of the constitution, no one has the right to alter the outcome," said the second deputy speaker, Ahmad Behzad, while reading out a resolution that was tabled ...
US Vows Not to Abandon Afghanistan
August 14, 2011
WASHINGTON - The Afghan-US strategic partnership will send a clear signal to the world and the region that the United States will never abandon Afghanistan, a top Pentagon official has said.
The strategic partnership would frame the character of an enduring US-Afghan relationship, said Michael D. Lumpkin, acting assistant ...
Obama for Political Solution in Afghanistan
August 13, 2011
WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama has reaffirmed his commitment to a political solution to bring long-term peace and stability to Afghanistan, the White House said.
Obama renewed this commitment during his first video conference with US Ambassador Afghanistan Ryan Crocker and NATO commander General John Allen on Thursday.
"The newly arrived team of US leaders in Kabul underscored the continuing momentum of the coalition campaign, the development of Afghan ...
US-Taliban Secret Talks Destroyed Over Leaks
August 13, 2011
KABUL - Secret peace talks between the United States and the Taliban leadership have been ruined after details of the talks were unmasked, The Daily Telegraph learnt from Western officials.
The Washington Post paper and Der Spiegel news magazine leaked details of the talks with naming Tayeb Agha as the key negotiator of ...
President Karzai Won’t Contest for 3rd Term
August 13, 2011
KABUL - President Hamid Karzai, who has been in the saddle for a decade, said on Thursday that he would not seek a third term to rule the country."Afghanistan's constitution does not allow the president to run for a third time," Karzai said in a statement from the Presidential Palace. He had no intention to run for the presidency for the third time, he ...
Even Karzai Can’t Unseat Lawmakers
August 13, 2011
KABUL - Leader of the coalition to support enforcement of law on Thursday warned that it wouldn't tolerate any sort of change in the structure of the parliament. Abdul Zaher Qadir, MP and leader of the coalition to support enforcement of law, said the House of Representatives enjoys the support of the international community and stressed that collapse of ...
Najafi Rejects Rigging Allegations
Saturday August 13
KABUL - The transport and aviation minister on Thursday rejected as groundless allegations regarding his involvement in rigging during the 2009 presidential election and the murder of Herat transport director. Daud Ali Najafi told a press conference that some media outlets, quoting unnamed sources in the Complaints Commission at the ...
Karzai Asks IEC for Final Decision on Parliamentary Elections
August 11, 2011
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid on Wednesday decreed that Independent Election Commission holds full authority to make final decision on disputed September elections.
President Karzai says in the decree that Afghan courts have no authority to alter election results.
Last year's parliamentary election was marred by some irregularities and allegations of fraud and 1.3 million ballots were ruled out with 19 candidates disqualified over alleged ...
Decision on Decree Next Week: IEC
August 11, 2011
KABUL - The Independent Election Commission ('IEC) chief on Wednesday said that the commission would announce its decision next week regarding President Hamid Karzai's decree to resolve a lingering dispute over last year's fraud-hit parliamentary poll. The IEC will now be responsible for deciding how many lawmakers ...
Youth for Participation in Bonn 2nd
August 11, 2011
KABUL - The National Youth Union on Wednesday asked the government to let it participate in the second Bonn conference scheduled to be held in Germany later this year. Speaking at a ceremony marking the International Youth Day, the union head Ghulam Daud Shayiq asked the government to invite the youth to take part in the Bonn meeting and ...
Private Security Firms to Halt Operations by Year End
August 10, 2011
KABUL - Two billion Afghanis, collected from 36 private security companies in fines, had been transferred to the national exchequer, the interior minister informed lawmakers on Tuesday.
The Meshrano Jirga had summoned Gen. Bismillah Mohammadi to answer questions from senators about the security situation in the country.
Mohammadi told the Senate all security firms would halt their operations at the end of the year and that the companies would be brought under police control.
He dismissed ...
U.S. to Continue Mission, Succeed in Afghanistan: Obama
August 10, 2011
>WASHINGTON - U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday that the United States will press on and finally succeed in its Afghan mission despite the tragic loss of 30 American service members in a helicopter crash Saturday."Their loss is a stark reminder of the risks that our men and women in uniform take every single day on behalf of their country, " Obama said in a...
WB to Give $60m to Finance Ministry
August 10, 2011
KABUL - The World Bank (WB) would provide about $60 million (2.8 billion Afghanis) for the improvement of Afghanistan's financial sector, an official said on Tuesday. The money would be spent on capacity building of government servants and framing new policies as well as monitoring, Ministry of Finance ...
President Asks Clerics to Campaign against Turban Bombs
August 10, 2011
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai has asked the country's religious elders to use their influence to sway Islamist insurgents not to use turbans to hide suicide bombs in a bid to halt the deadly new tactic before it becomes more...
Karzai Warned Against Ignoring Parliament Decisions
August 09, 2011
KABUL - If parliament's decisions are not implemented, President Hamid Karzai's credibility would come under question, a coalition in the Wolesi Jirga warned on Monday.
Last month, the assembly passed a no-confidence vote against Attorney General Mohammad Ishaq Aloko. However, the decision has not been implemented so far.
On June 25, the house also voted for sacking five Supreme Court judges, including the chief justice, Abdul Salam Azimi, and his deputy Bahauddin Baha. The four others ...
Etisalat Distributes Food Items in Ramadan
August 09, 2011
KABUL - Etisalat Afghanistan, as part of its on-going corporate social responsibility initiatives, has announced to launch food distribution activities among more than 10,000 poor and low income families throughout Afghanistan. Every year during the holy month of Ramadan, Etisalat Afghanistan conducts distribution of food and relief items among the ...
Next Handover Regions to Be Slated in Two Months: ISAF
August 09, 2011
KABUL - NATO denied reports that Taliban outfit had obtained new weapons especially to target aircraft in the war-torn Afghanistan, spokesman of NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Monday."We are not seeing any specific new type of weapons on the battle field," Brigadier General Carsten Jacobson responded ...
No New Weapons with Taliban in Afghanistan: NATO
August 09, 2011
KABUL - NATO denied reports that Taliban outfit had obtained new weapons especially to target aircraft in the war-torn Afghanistan, spokesman of NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Monday."We are not seeing any specific new type of weapons on the battle field," Brigadier General Carsten Jacobson responded ...
Karzai, Obama Stress War on Terror
August 09, 2011
WASHINGTON/KABUL - President Hamid Karzai on Monday offered condolences to his US counterpart Barack Obama over the death of US Special Force members in a helicopter crash in central Maidan Wardak province. Speaking over the telephone, the Presidential Palace in Kabul said, the two leaders conferred on the war against terrorism and termed the ...
Rabbani: Foreign Intelligence Behind Afghan Assassinations
August 08, 2011
KABUL - Foreign intelligence agencies are behind the assassination of influential Afghan officials, Chief of High Peace Council said during a visit to Kandahar province on Sunday.
Chief of High Peace Council Burhanuddin Rabbani said that the assassination of high-profile Afghan figures is part of a plot sketched by foreign intelligence organisations to misuse the name of the Taliban and to defame Islam.
Burhanuddin Rabbani said the death of influential ...
Taliban May Attend Bonn Conference: Foreign Minister
August 08, 2011
KABUL - The Taliban could attend the second Bonn Conference on Afghanistan's future if the national reconciliation process progressed satisfactorily, the foreign minister said on Sunday. Dr. Zalmai Rassoul, addressing members of the parliamentary commission on women's affairs, linked the Taliban's participation in ...
Foreign Taliban Biggest Obstacle to Peace: Taliban Commander
August 08, 2011
KABUL - A former Taliban commander has told a Chinese television that foreign Taliban don't want peace in Afghanistan and they are a big obstacle to peace in the country. In an interview with China's CC television, Noor-ul-Aziz a former Taliban commander who presented himself as hero of the fight against US troops, said in a short span of...
Karzai Orders Inquiry into NATO Air Strike Deaths
August 08, 2011
KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai ordered an investigation on Sunday into a NATO air strike that killed eight civilians in the volatile south of the country, adding more fuel to an already contentious issue between Kabul and foreign forces. Violence is at its worst in Afghanistan since U.S.-backed Afghan ...
Karzai May Impose Emergency Rule: MPs
August 07, 2011
KABUL - President Hamid Karzai is pondering over imposition of emergency rule in the next few days, members of the ""'Wolesi Jirga, or lower house of Parliament, said on Saturday.
Baktash Siawash, a public representative from Kabul, told the house he had received information that the president might announce an emergency situation in the country, without consulting parliamentarians.
Under Article 64 of the constitution, the president, with support ...
Deaths of Americans in Afghan Chopper Crash Shows ‘Extraordinary’ Cost of War: Obama
August 07, 2011
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama said Saturday that the deaths of Americans in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan are a reminder of the "extraordinary" price the U.S. military is paying in the decade-long Afghan war. Obama's statement did not confirm the number killed or other details of the crash. Afghan President Hamid Karzai said that the ...