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

Afghans Must Meet the 2014 Deadline: Jones

Afghans Must Meet  the 2014 Deadline: Jones

May 18, 2011

ASHINGTON - Afghans would have to step up to the task of meeting the 2014 deadline when US forces would complete a gradual withdrawal from their country, a former top Obama aid said Monday.
“At some point, Afghans, after all these years, are going to have to step up to the task. The international community, should continue to support them as best we can. But the decision has generally been made that by 2014 we are all shooting to making President...

Project to Strengthen Afghan Financial Sector Launched

Project to Strengthen  Afghan Financial  Sector Launched

May 18, 2011

KABUL- The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) on Tuesday launched a new project to strengthen Afghanistan's financial sector and help the government and private-sector create jobs and stimulate economic growth, the agency said.
The five-year Financial Access for Investing in the Development of...

Dr. Dalil Seeks Backing for Vaccines

Dr. Dalil Seeks  Backing for Vaccines

May 18, 2011

GENEVA - Afghanistan's acting health minister will seek international funding on Tuesday for immunization, which she sees as key to reducing child mortality in a country where the average life expectancy is only 48 years.
Dr. Suraya Dalil, in an interview with Reuters in Geneva before holding talks with Bill Gates at the World Health Organization (WHO),

U.S. Deepens Engagement with Afghan Taliban to End War: Report

U.S. Deepens  Engagement with Afghan Taliban to End War: Report

May 18, 2011

SINGAPORE - The United States has stepped up direct talks with the Afghan Taliban for a political settlement of the 10-year-old war, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, a move that analysts said earlier was easier following the death of Osama bin Laden.
A U.S. representative attended at least three meetings in Qatar and...

Afghan Experts Urge Afghan-US Strategic Partnership

Afghan Experts Urge Afghan-US Strategic Partnership

May 18, 2011

KABUL - Afghan government should make a strategic agreement with the United States before foreign forces withdraw from the country, experts said on Tuesday. Some Afghan experts in Kabul expressed concern that Afghanistan will again turn into a ground for neighbors’ games, if no strategic document is sealed with the...

Rangin Dadfar Spanta: Afghanistan Needs No Permission for US Accord

Rangin Dadfar Spanta: Afghanistan Needs No  Permission for US Accord

May 17, 2011

KABUL - Signing a strategic agreement with the US does not need any permission from neighboring countries, a presidential advisor said on Monday.
"Afghanistan is an independent country and can sign any strategic agreement with any country it wants to," Rangin Dadfar Spanta, national security advisor to the president, told parliamentarians. He added Afghanistan has the right to fight terrorism in partnership with its allies.
Under the proposed strategic agreement...

Afghan, NATO Forces Make Progress, Challenges Remain

Afghan, NATO  Forces Make Progress, Challenges Remain

May 17, 2011

KABUL - Afghan army and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) have made progress in fighting insurgents but challenges remain, Lt. General David M. Rodriquez, Commander of ISAF Joint Command (IJC), said on Monday, Xinhua reported.
"Together Afghan and coalition forces have degraded many of the insurgents support bases and weakened the enemies effectiveness,"...

Al-Qaeda ‘Cadres’ Still Help Afghan Taliban: Gen. Rodrigues

Al-Qaeda ‘Cadres’  Still Help Afghan Taliban: Gen. Rodrigues

May 17, 2011

KABUL - Fewer than 100 Al-Qaeda members remain inside Afghanistan, the second-most senior US commander in Afghanistan said on Monday, but those fighters act as a “cadre” organization for the Afghan Taliban providing resources and technical battlefield skills.
US Lt. Gen. David Rodriguez also said it was too early to say if the death of Osama Bin Laden had an impact on the Taliban or if it would...

Speedy Afghan Withdrawal Premature: Gates

Speedy Afghan Withdrawal Premature: Gates

May 17, 2011

>WASHINGTON - US Defence Chief Robert Gates has said it would be premature to speed up the pace of troops withdrawal from Afghanistan.
In an interview with CBS news 60 Minutes, Robert Gates said it's too early to accelerate withdrawal of troops.
"I think it's premature," he said."I think we just don't know. It's only been a week. And people are already drawing...

Most Afghans Welcome Bin Laden Death: Poll

Most Afghans Welcome  Bin Laden Death: Poll

May 17, 2011

KABUL - More than two-thirds of Afghan men say the killing of Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden is good news for their war-torn nation but opinions are split over the terror network's future, a poll shows.
The poll results, collected from across Afghanistan, point to general approval of the US operation that shot bin Laden in neighboring Pakistan on...

Senate Alarmed at Widening Gap Between Govt. and People

Senate Alarmed at Widening Gap Between Govt. and People

May 16, 2011

KABUL - Meshrano Jirga members on Sunday expressed alarm at yawning gap between the government and people due to non-implementation of laws in the country.
The issued was echoed by a number of senators, with Abdul Hanan Haqyoon, saying the increasing gap between the government and people was the legacy of what he said "wrong and incompetent leadership of the country."
"When the president issues an order, one or both of his...

Karzai Seeks Suggestions for Aircrafts Purchase

Karzai Seeks  Suggestions for Aircrafts Purchase

May 16, 2011

KABUL - President Hamid Karzai on Sunday directed the Ministry of Defence to provide viable suggestions for purchasing aircrafts and strengthening the air force, the president's office said.
The ministry was asked at a meeting of the National Security Council (NSC), presided over by President Karzai, to prepare workable...

Pakistan Has to Decide What Kind of Country it Wants to Be: Kerry

Pakistan Has to  Decide What Kind of Country  it Wants to Be: Kerry

May 16, 2011

KABUL - US Senator John Kerry told Tolo news in an exclusive interview on Sunday that it is an important moment for the relationship between Pakistan and the world and that Pakistan needs to make a decision about what kind of country it wants to be.
Mr. John Kerry said the US government is anxious to engage in a...

Karzai, Kerry Discuss Post-Osama Scenario

Karzai, Kerry  Discuss Post-Osama Scenario

May 16, 2011

KABUL - President Hamid Karzai discussed with US senator John Kerry issues concerning the fight against terrorism, Afghan-US cooperation and efforts at bringing peace and stability to the country, the president's office said on Sunday.
The US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman, John Kerry, who...

Pakistan Can Be Better Ally Against Terror: Kerry

Pakistan Can Be Better  Ally Against Terror: Kerry

May 15, 2011

KABUL – Pakistan could be a better partner in the fight against terrorists, U.S. Sen. John Kerry said Saturday on the first leg of a visit to Afghanistan and Pakistan to patch up relations following the U.S. killing of Osama bin Laden.
Kerry, chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said the United States wants Pakistan to be a real ally in combating terrorism.
"We believe there are things that can be done better," he...

India Can Play Constructive Role in Afghanistan: US

India Can Play Constructive Role in Afghanistan: US

May 15, 2011

WASHINGTON: The US has said India can play a constructive role Afghanistan and it will welcome New Delhi's involvement in the war-torn nation.
"India can play a constructive role in Afghanistan and in the region, and we would certainly welcome their involvement," US state department spokesman Mark Toner told reporters at his daily news...

Canada Reconsidered Afghan Combat End Date: Wikileaks

Canada Reconsidered  Afghan Combat End Date: Wikileaks

May 15, 2011

OTTAWA - Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper's minority Conservative government in 2009 was reconsidering its planned 2011 end date for the Afghanistan combat mission, a U.S. diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks to CBC News reveals.
At a cabinet meeting in March, ministers "agreed that 'all options are back on the table' with respect to Canada's military role...

MPs Say Insulted By President’s Guards

MPs Say Insulted  By President’s Guards

May 15, 2011

KABUL -A number of parliamentarians on Saturday said that they were thoroughly searched by security guards of the president before entering the Parliament building on Friday when Indian prime minister delivered a speech.
Special security guards of President Hamid Karzai were deployed at the entrance of the parliament to search everybody entering the...

Afghanistan Wants to Join 6-Nation Shanghai Alliance as Observer

Afghanistan Wants  to Join 6-Nation Shanghai Alliance  as Observer

Sunday May 15

ALMATY- Afghanistan has applied for an observer status in the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which will consider the application at its summit in June, Russia's foreign minister said on Saturday.
The security alliance, which includes Russia, China and former Soviet republics of Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, is gathering for its annual 15th summit in Astana, Kazakhstan's ...

India Interested in Stable, Independent Afghanistan

India Interested in Stable, Independent Afghanistan

May 14, 2011

KABUL - Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday told the Parliament that Afghanistan had to make its decisions without “outside interference or coercion” and added that India was only interested in a stable, peaceful and independent Afghanistan at peace with its neighbors.
Singh, who arrived on a two visit to Kabul on Thursday, told the joint session of the parliament, which composed of Wolesi Jirga or Lower House and Meshrano Jirga or Upper House, the two nations must not allow the flames of extremism and...

Afghan Peace Needs Pakistan’s Cooperation: NATO

Afghan Peace  Needs Pakistan’s  Cooperation: NATO

May 14, 2011

KABUL - NATO's Chief, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, has said Pakistan's positive engagement is needed to establish peace in Afghanistan and in the region.
Mr Rasmussen has said to ensure long term peace and stability in Afghanistan and in the region a positive engagement of Pakistan is needed.
He has said to engage Pakistan it is important to ease tensions...

US Slaps Sanctions on Badruddin Haqqani

US Slaps Sanctions on Badruddin Haqqani

May 14, 2011

WASHINGTON – US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday slapped sanctions against a Haqqani terror network commander, Badruddin Haqqani, but the State Department said it had no plan to designate the Pakistan-based Afghan militant group "a foreign terrorist organization".
“At this point there are no plans to designate the Haqqani...

WFP Warns of Cut in Food Supplies

WFP Warns of  Cut in  Food Supplies

May 14, 2011

KABUL - The World Food Program (WFP) on Thursday warned of cutting food supplies to poor Afghan families if international donors failed to assist the program.
"The WFP plans to distribute aid to about 7.3 million people in Afghanistan with a cost of about $400 million (18.3 billion Afghanis) this year," WFP Regional Director for Asia Kenro Oshidari told a press conference in....

US Needs Afghan Base to Fight Terrorists in Pakistan: Riedel

US Needs Afghan Base to Fight  Terrorists in Pakistan: Riedel

May 14, 2011

KABUL - Since the US cannot rely on Pakistan to fight al-Qaeda we need Afghanistan to put our pressures on insurgent networks supported by Pakistan, Bruce Riedel a former advisor to President Barack Obama writes on the Daily Beast website.
An article by Bruce Riedel published on the Daily Beast on May 10 said "the notion that al-Qaeda was neutered was just plain...

Bin Laden Death May Speed Up Talks with Taliban: Zalmai Rassoul

Bin Laden Death  May Speed Up Talks with Taliban: Zalmai Rassoul

May 12, 2011

BEIJING - The death of Osama bin Laden may speed up reconciliation efforts between the Taliban and the Afghan government, Afghanistan's foreign minister said on Wednesday, but he cautioned that it was early days.
Bin Laden was killed last Monday during a raid by the U.S. military in Pakistan, since when the United States has called on the Taliban to abandon al Qaeda and negotiate an end to the war in...

800 Children Treated for Heart Diseases: ARCS

800 Children Treated for Heart Diseases: ARCS

May 12, 2011

KABUL- As many as 800 children suffering from heart diseases were treated over the past two years at home and abroad, with another 2,300 children waiting to receive treatment, the Afghan Red Crescent Society said on Wednesday .
Forty of the ailing children would be sent to Pakistan, India and to hospitals in Kabul, the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS) head, Fatima...

Special Court is Unwarranted: Manawi

Special Court  is Unwarranted: Manawi

May 12, 2011

KABUL - The Independent Election Commission (IEC) chief on Wednesday said irregularities during last year's parliamentary election were not enough to alter the poll's final results, calling the creation of a special court as unwarranted.
"We have done out duty with honesty, but now the special court has been creating problems between the legislative body and the...

Raid Raises Prospect of Afghan Withdrawal

Raid Raises Prospect  of Afghan Withdrawal

May 12, 2011

WASHINGTON - The death of Osama bin Laden and growing pressure from Congress to shrink the US commitment and expense in Afghanistan have given new impetus to those in the Obama administration who favour a swift reduction of US forces.
The US would withdraw 70,000 troops from Afghanistan during the next three years and rely increasingly on Special Forces in plans being...

Karzai’s Brother Regrets Backing Karzai in Presidential Campaign

Karzai’s Brother  Regrets Backing Karzai  in Presidential Campaign

May 12, 2011

KABUL - In an exclusive interview with Tolo news President Karzai's brother, Mahmoud Karzai, said he was disappointed having supported Karzai during his presidential campaigns for the second term.
Mahmoud Karzai, the younger brother of President Karzai, said...

400 Taliban Militants Pound Nuristan

400 Taliban Militants Pound Nuristan

May 11, 2011

JALALABAD - At least two militants were killed and three policemen injured after hundreds of insurgents launched a massive attack on police posts in eastern Nuristan province on Tuesday, officials said.
Laced with AK-47s, rocket-propelled grenades and machineguns, about 400 militants pounded checkpoints around a base housing police-reserve units located about 11 miles (18 kilometers) south of the provincial capital of Paroon, police chief, Shamsur Rahman Zahid, told...

Turkey to Organize Regional Conference on Afghanistan

Turkey to Organize  Regional Conference  on Afghanistan

May 11, 2011

ISTANBOLE - Turkey will host a regional conference on Afghanistan in Istanbul at the beginning of November, according to an official statement Tuesday. The statement was released after Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu hosted a working breakfast for representatives from countries neighboring and surrounding Afghanistan. Ministers from ...

Kandahar Attack ‘Embarrassing’: Senators

Kandahar Attack  ‘Embarrassing’:  Senators

May 11, 2011

KABUL - Senate House branded the two-day Kandahar attack an "embarrassment" to security officials in particular to provincial officials.
Head of Kandahar provincial council, Ahmad Wali Karzai, has said the Senate House has no authority to monitor Kandahar officials.
Senators dismissed the comments as irresponsible and ...

Talk or Face Bin Laden Fate, Kabul Warns Taliban

Talk or Face  Bin Laden Fate, Kabul Warns Taliban

May 11, 2011

KABUL - The Afghan government on Tuesday called on Taliban leaders to join peace talks initiated by the government or face the same fate as Osama bin Laden, who was killed by elite US commandos last week.
Opening a two-day conference discussing efforts to broker peace, Afghan Vice President Mohammad Karim Khalili said the talks were an opportunity for the Taliban to embrace...

ANP Committing Crimes with Impunity: Oxfam

ANP Committing Crimes with  Impunity: Oxfam

May 11, 2011

KABUL- Afghan police are committing crimes such as child sex abuse, torture and killings with impunity, said Oxfam on Tuesday, warning the violations could escalate as local forces take on frontline role.
"Unless the international community acts immediately the country will not be secure enough to hand over to Afghan forces in 2014," the charity warned in a report titled "No...

Release of Insurgents, Against Laws and Constitution: Mohaqiq

Release of Insurgents, Against  Laws and Constitution: Mohaqiq

May 10, 2011

KABUL - Hajji Mohammad Mohaqiq, A member of Afghan High Peace Council and the prominent Law maker has strongly protested against the release of insurgent prisoners by High Peace Council and Afghan national peace and reconciliation commission.
As part of peace efforts in Afghanistan the High Peace Council has recently set a number of prisoners free and the action has faced strong criticism.
Hajji Mohammad Mohaqiq, also...