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MTN Mobile Clinic Treats 850 Patients for Free
July 21, 2011
Kabul – MTN Mobile Clinic visited Reesh Khor and Char Qala-e-Char Dehi areas in Kabul and treated more than 850 patients for free during this week. Besides; MTN Mobile Clinic doctors educated people about seasonal diseases and personal ...
Pakistan to Release Afghan Food Shipments
July 20, 2011
KABUL - Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari promised on Tuesday that he would order the immediate release of stranded food shipments to Afghanistan. He held out the assurance at a meeting with President Hamid Karzai in Kabul, where he arrived on a daylong visit. The two leaders conferred on transit issues between the neighbors, Karzai's office said. Minister of Commerce Anwar ulHaqAhadi also attended the meeting, in which the visiting dignitary was briefed on the problems that Afghan traders faced in...
Pak-Afghani Interior Ministers Meet at Kabul
July 20, 2011
ISLAMABAD –Afghan Interior Minister, General Bismillah Muhammadi met his Pakistani counterpart in Kabul on Tuesday and discussed issues of mutual interest, security and bilateral relations. The two sides also discussed installation of Biometrics System at Pak-Afghani Border, incursion of Taliban through Afghanistan and lunching attacks on ...
Government Phone Expenses Exceed $10 Million Since March
July 20, 2011
KABUL - Last year the government's telephone bill was over $10 million (roughly 519 million Afghanis). The Ministries of Defense, Interior, and Culture and Information generated 42 percent of those costs, an official said Monday. Haji Mohammad Aqa, a Finance Ministry official, told Pajhwok Afghan News that since the end of March, the...
Corruption, Illiteracy Hold Back ANP
July 20, 2011
LASHKARGAH - When NATO forces in Afghanistan caught an opium producer with 15 kgs (33 lbs) of drugs, they might have expected his family to plead for his freedom. Instead, an Afghan police officer appealed to foreign troops to release him. The drug-trafficker stayed in prison, but the British army officer who described the incident said...
India Urges USto Remain Engaged in Afghanistan
July 20, 2011
NEW DHELI - Concerned over the security situation in South Asia and a Taliban re-emergence after troops pullout from Afghanistan by the United States, India has appealed to the US to remain involved in Afghanistan in accordance with the comfort of the war-torn nation. Indian External Affairs Minister S M Krishna in a joint press ...
Mehtarlam Handed Over to Afghan Forces
July 20, 2011
KABUL - Security responsibility for Mehtarlam, the capital of eastern Laghman province, was handed over to Afghan forces on Tuesday, officials said. A ceremony marking the security transfer was held at the overnor's house in Mehtarlam, the second of seven areas to hand responsibility to Afghan forces, the Ministry of Interior said. Dr. Ashraf Ghani...
Waheed Omar: Targeted Killings Couldn’t Go Without Revenge
July 19, 2011
KABUL - Afghan government would avenge the serial and targeted killings of high-ranking Afghan officials and tribal elders, President Karzai's Spokesman said on Sunday.
Speaking at a press conference, Karzai's Spokesperson Waheed Omar said the assassination of our national figures and tribal elders is part of a big plot by the enemies of Afghanistan.
Mr Omar said the Taliban and their affiliates want to disrupt the security transition process, but the process will...
Wardak Warns About Early Exit of Troops
July 19, 2011
KABUL - Afghanistan's defense minister, Abdul Rahim Wardak said Monday he hopes U.S. Gen. David Petraeus will temper calls for a quick withdrawal of U.S. forces in Petraeus' new role of CIA director. The Afghan official says the general's "unmatched experiences and knowledge of the ground realities" should counterbalance what he ...
Petraeus Hands Over Command in Afghanistan, to Lead CIA
July 19, 2011
KABUL - General David Petraeus, Washington's new intelligence chief, handed over command of U.S. and NATO-led troops in Afghanistan Monday, a day after a tentative start was made to a gradual process of transferring security to Afghan forces. Petraeus, credited with reversing a spiral toward civil war in Iraq...
Etisalat Launches Social Drive to Support Primary Education
July 19, 2011
KABUL - Etisalat Afghanistan, strongly believes in conducting its business in a way that it contributes to the growth and development of the society it operates in. The company has launched various CSR programs and social campaigns in Afghanistan over the years and has made profound efforts to contribute in the growth of various sectors of ...
President Karzai Adviser Killed
July 18, 2011
KABUL – Gunmen attacked the home of an adviser to president Karzai in Karte-chahar district of Kabul on Sunday evening. According to initial reports threeattackersentered Jan Mohammad Khan, former governor of Uruzgan province and adviser to President Hamid Karzai, home and killed him along with Mohammad HashimWatanwal, an MP from Uruzgan province and three bodyguards. "There has been an armed attack by at least two gunmen on the house of the former governor of Uruzgan Jan Mohammad Khan...
U.N. Delists 14 Ex-Taliban Figures
July 17 2011
KABUL - The UN committee that oversees the Taliban blacklist has dropped 14 names at the Afghan government's urging, including several members of the peace council that President Hamid Karzai formed to find a political solution to the country's insurgency. The Afghan government had asked the sanctions committee to drop up to 50 former Taliban leaders from its list, and provided extensive documentation aimed at showing they have since been reintegrated into ...
Azizi Bank not in Crises: Central Bank
July 17 2011
KABUL - Acting central bank governor said on Saturday the country's second-biggest private bank was not in crisis and warned lawmakers that raising fears about its future could spark panic.
Mohebullah Safi appeared before parliament at the request of lawmakers, some of whom suggested this week that Azizi Bank was ...
Taliban Softens Stance in Talks: Peace Council
July 17 2011
KABUL - A senior member of the Afghan High Peace Council has said during a visit to India that the Taliban group has softened its position in peace talks. "They have softened their stance a little bit, I should say. They say, well, no foreign troop should live on the soil of our country, Afghanistan. Hekmatyar, leader of the ...
WB Grants $52m to Manage Natural Resources
July 17 2011
KABUL - World Bank on Saturday signed a $52 million grant with Ministry of Finance to support the government's efforts to manage natural resources effectively and transparently.
Officials in the Ministry of Finance said the grant will be spent to boost management of natural resources of the country in the next four ...
Civilian War Deaths Hit Record Level:UNAMA
July 16, 2011
KABUL - The first half of this year was the deadliest six months for civilians in Afghanistan since the decade-old war began, the country's U.N. mission said on Thursday. Civilian deaths hit a record high, up 15 percent compared to the first half of 2010, due to roadside and suicide bombings, increased ground fighting and more deaths from air strikes. The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said 1,462 civilians had been killed in conflict-related incidents. It ...
U.S. Drawdown Begins, First Troops Leave
July 16, 2011
KABUL - The first U.S. troops have left Afghanistan as part of U.S. President Barack Obama's planned drawdown of about a third of the 100,000 U.S. forces there during the next year.
Facing growing political opposition to the nearly decade-old war, Obama announced in June the withdrawal plan, which was a faster ...
Electric Project Launched in Bamyan
July 16, 2011
>BAMYAN CITY - After protesting over the lack of electricity in Bamyan city, hundreds of families will soon have access to power. The installation of two generators that produce 1,200 kilowatts of electricity – enough to provide power for 750 homes and 500 businesses – began this week in Bamyan ...
Mullah Omar Agrees to make Peace: Sultani
July 16, 2011
KABUL - Afghanistan's complex and often confusing business of talks with the Taliban took a surprisingly dramatic turn this week when a female lawmaker told a news conference she had recently met the Taliban's Supreme leader, Mullah Omar, who agreed to make peace. Despite questions of credibility, the large turnout to Thursday's ...
India Welcomes Rabbani’s Peace Mission
July 16, 2011
NEW DELHI - India's External Affairs Minister SM Krishna on Thursday told the visiting Chairman of the High Peace Council, Prof. Burhanuddin Rabbani, that his country can always count on India's support for development and peace. Led by Burhanudin Rabbani, a high level peace delegation from Afghanistan arrived on Thursday here on a two-day...
Turkey to Train 15,000 ANP
July 16, 2011
ANKARA - Turkey has taken up another training role for the Afghan police force as a part of its decade-long contribution to the reconstruction of Afghanistan and plans to train some 15,000 Afghan policemen at the Sivas Higher Vocational Police School in Central ...
Rabbani: India’s Cooperation Needed in Afghan Reconciliation
July 14, 2011
NEW DHELI - Burhanudin Rabbani Chairman of the High Peace Council negotiating with Taliban, on Wednesday said
that 'India is an important country in the region and we want its cooperation in peace and reconciliation in Afghanistan'.
Rabbani arrived here on a two-day visit along with the sixteen-member delegation, mostly the members of high peace council.
Rabbani led delegation includes Minister Masoom Stanekzai, CEO of ...
3mln Afghans to Need Food Aid in Autumn: U.N.
July 14, 2011
GENEVA - Two to three million people across Afghanistan are likely to need extra food aid from September following drought and a poor wheat harvest this year, the United Nations food agency said on Wednesday. But Bradley Guerrant, the World Food Program's deputy director for the country, told a news conference WFP's Afghan operations were facing ...
Millions of Afghans Suffer Respiratory Disease
July 14, 2011
KABUL - Over the past three months more than 2.4 million people have been treated for respiratory system disorders in health facilities throughout the country, officials said. Dr. Mohammad Yaqub Azimi, the head of the Health Information Management System (HIMS), counted air pollution and the environment as major factors contributing to the...
ECO Stresses Cooperation Among Customs Offices
July 14, 2011
KABUL - Commerce ministers of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) member states met in Kabul on Wednesday. They agreed on enhanced cooperation among customs offices. The ministers at the meeting also decided to make efforts to bring into effect the Economic Cooperation Organization Trade Agreement (ECOTA) by the end of this...
MTN, MoCN Lanuch Anti Narcotics Program
July 14, 2011
KABUL – In continuation of "21 days of Y'ello Care" project MTN Afghanistan launched a joint campaign with Ministry of Counter Narcotics (MoCN) named "Anti Narcotics campaign – say NO to drugs" at Habibia High school on Wednesday. The program was started by recitation of Holy Quran and it was ...
Wali Karzai Killed at Home
July 13, 2011
KANDAHAR - The younger half-brother of President Hamid Karzai, one of the most powerful men in southern Afghanistan, was shot dead at his home on Tuesday by a senior and highly trusted bodyguard, officials said. Ahmad Wali Karzai's assassination will leave a dangerous power vacuum in volatile Kandahar province, the Taliban's birthplace and a focus of recent efforts by a surge of U.S. troops to turn the tide against the insurgency. President Karzai may find his reach there is now limited as a ...
US Welcomes Pak-Afghan Joint Military Group
July 13, 2011
>WASHINGTON - The United States welcomed the formation of a joint military working group by Afghanistan and Pakistan to address recent incidents along the border.
"We call on both sides to continue to engage cooperatively to lower tensions on the border and to ensure the protection of the local...
Parliament Wants its Decision Implemented
July 13, 2011
KABUL - Parliament on Tuesday once again called on the government to implement its no confidence votes against the Supreme Court's chief justice, five other judges and the Attorney General.
The lower house of parliament last month passed a vote of no confidence against Attorney General Mohammad Ishaq Alako after he failed to appear...
1,000 Troops to Leave Afghanistan By 2012: Sarkozy
July 13, 2011
KABUL - French President Nicolas Sarkozy said during a visit to Afghanistan on Tuesday that France would pull out 1,000 troops by the end of 2012, as it speeds up its withdrawal alongside the United States. In a surprise five-hour trip, Sarkozy met President Hamid Karzai, had a working lunch with General David Petraeus, the top U.S....
Reaction to Death of Ahmad Wali Karzai
July 13, 2011
KABUL - Ahmad Wali Karzai, a brother of Afghan President Hamid Karzai and one of the most powerful but controversial men in southern Afghanistan, was shot dead at his home on...
Wali Karzai shot dead
July 12, 2011
Ahmed Wali Karzai, brother of President Hamid Karzai, Head of Kandahar Provincial Council and one of the most powerful men in southern Afghanistan, found dead in his house, Kandahar governor spokesman and a family member said on Tuesday."I confirm that Ahmad Wali was killed inside his house," Zalmay Ayoubi, a spokesman for the governor of Kandahar province said. Wali Karzai was shot dead by his bodyguard, Sardar Mohammad, Ayoubi said, according to the ...
Petraeus: Taliban have Less Capacity; Degraded Somewhat
July 12, 2011
KABUL - Just days away from the end of his tour as the supreme military commander in Afghanistan, and the end of a 37-year military career, Gen. David H. Petraeus said he was leaving in the belief that his plan to turn around the war and hand over security to the Afghans could be achieved. "It is very hard, but it is doable," he said in his last scheduled interview before his departure this month. "A number of different elements have to keep coming together to achieve our objectives. Again, we are...
Azizi Bank on the Verge of Collapse: MPs
July 12, 2011
KABUL - Wolesi Jirga members on Monday claimed they had credible information that another private bank, Azizi Bank, was on the verge of collapse due to mismanagement.
Azizi Bank has been operating in Afghanistan for five years. "I have information showing the bank is in crisis," Abdul Zahir Qadir, a lawmaker from eastern Nangarhar province, told the...