Moby Media Updates Archives 2008 MMU: Leadership Void Seen in Pakistan, 24 June 2008
| MMU: Leadership Void Seen in Pakistan, 24 June 2008 |
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Mullah's 'rape victim' bears stillborn child No articles featured today
FEATURE STORY
New York Times, United States Pakistan is in a leaderless drift four months after elections, according to Western diplomats and military officials, Pakistani politicians and Afghan officials who are increasingly worried that no one is really in charge. The sense of drift is the subject of almost every columnist in the English-language press in Pakistan, and anxiety over the lack of leadership and the weakness of the civilian government now infuses conversations with analysts, diplomats and Pakistani government officials. The problem is most acute, they say, when it comes to dealing with militants in the tribal areas that have become home to the Taliban and Al Qaeda. Although the political parties and the military all seek a breather from the suicide bombings and nascent insurgency that have roiled Pakistan in recent years, there are fundamental disagreements over the problem of militancy that they have not begun to address, Pakistani politicians and Western diplomats say. The confusion is allowing the militants to consolidate their sanctuaries while spreading their tentacles all along the border area, military officials and diplomats warn. It has also complicated policy for the Bush administration, which leaned heavily on one man, President Pervez Musharraf, to streamline its antiterrorism efforts in Pakistan. If anyone is in charge of security policy in the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan, Pakistani politicians and Western diplomats say, that remains the military and the country's premier intelligence agency, Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI, which operate with little real oversight. While the newly elected civilian government has been criticized for dealing with the militants, it is the military that is brokering cease-fires and prisoner exchanges with minimum consultation with the government, politicians from the government coalition, diplomats and analysts said. Politicians in both the provincial and central governments complain they are excluded from the negotiations and did not even know of a secret deal struck in February, before the elections. "You see a lack of a coordinated strategy between the federal level and provincial level, and that includes the ISI and the military, who are clear players," said one Western diplomat with knowledge of the tribal regions, who spoke only on the condition of anonymity. "You see it even on principles of negotiation and combined strategy." One newspaper, the weekly Friday Times, satirized the situation with a front-page cartoon showing the country's main political players riding in a plane, all issuing different instructions. Since coming to power in February, the fragile coalition government, run by Benazir Bhutto's widower, Asif Ali Zardari, leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, has been engrossed in internal wrangling over removing President Musharraf. The coalition is barely functioning after half its ministers left the cabinet in May in a dispute over whether to reinstate 60 high court judges dismissed by Mr. Musharraf last year. For now it is just accepting the military's decisions regarding the militants, said Talat Masood, a retired Pakistani general who is now a political analyst. He characterized the country as suffering from "institutional paralysis and a dysfunctional government, signs of which are showing already." The American commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan, Gen. Dan K. McNeill, also described the government as "dysfunctional" just before leaving his post earlier this month. "I have a feeling that no one is in charge and that is why the militants are taking advantage," Mr. Masood said. "It is a very dangerous situation because what is happening is the Afghan government is getting desperate." The frustration is such that President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan threatened this month to send troops into Pakistan to pursue Pakistani militant leaders. That Pakistan's government appears broken is not surprising, analysts say. Pakistan's civilian institutions were atrophied by eight years of military rule, and the country's major political parties were left rudderless by the absence of their leaders, who lived in exile much of that time. The assassination of Ms. Bhutto in December left her party in even deeper disarray. The military remains the country's strongest institution, having ruled Pakistan for about half of the country's 61 years of independence. But it is proving to be an increasingly fickle and prickly partner for Washington. United States and NATO officials are still struggling to decipher the intentions of the army's new chief of staff, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. Last fall, at the time of his appointment, American officials spoke approvingly of General Kayani, who seemed well aware of the threat the militants posed to Pakistan, and of the dangers of peace deals that have allowed the militants to tighten their grip in the tribal areas. But despite at least $12 billion in aid to Pakistan from Washington for the fight against the militants since 2001, General Kayani has recently shown a reluctance to use the military for counterinsurgency operations, suggesting that the task be left to the much weaker tribal force, the Frontier Corps. He has encouraged the civilian government to take the lead. Part of the confusion stems from the shift in power from military rule, after President Musharraf stepped down as head of the army in December, to the new civilian government, one Western military official said. "Kayani is being careful not to get too far out in front and is trying to determine who is in charge," he said. "We all are." The uneasy balance between civilian and military authority was demonstrated this month when the finance minister, Naveed Qamar, revealed details of the defense budget to Parliament for the first time in 40 years. While Mr. Qamar called it a "historic moment," the document was a mere two pages. Parliament, tied up with budget negotiations until next month, has not discussed security or militancy. "We do understand this is the biggest issue, and after the budget session it will have to be addressed," said Farah Ispahani, a Pakistan Peoples Party legislator. Meanwhile, the military under General Kayani has quietly pursued its own policies, politicians from the government coalition, diplomats and analysts say. The military and ISI negotiated a little-known truce with the tribes and militants of North Waziristan just days before the Feb. 18 elections, a senior government official in Peshawar confirmed. The deal was so secretive that few in the government know its contents even today. "The civilian government is in the back seat, or not even in the back seat," said the Western diplomat, who did not want to be identified because of the critical nature of the remarks. The military also began negotiations with the most powerful of the Taliban commanders, Baitullah Mehsud, in January, just weeks after the government accused him of masterminding Ms. Bhutto's assassination. An official agreement with the Mehsud tribe has not been completed, but the military has already pulled back from some positions, put in place a cease-fire and exchanged prisoners with the militants. Western officials are suspicious of the deal. Mr. Mehsud is accused of dispatching scores of suicide bombers in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but the agreement initially included no prohibition on cross-border attacks. Only after strong pressure from the United States and other allies did the military insert such a clause this month, according to a senior official close to the negotiations. In the meantime, cross-border attacks increased by 50 percent in May, NATO officials in Afghanistan say. The provincial government in the North-West Frontier Province has also expressed its reservations about the deal. Officials from the Awami National Party, a Pashtun nationalist party that leads the government in the province and which is also part of the national coalition, complained that they have not been included in the military's decisions. "Our main demand is that we should be included in negotiations," said Wajid Ali Khan, a party official. "We don't know with whom they are talking." Moreover, the central government's point man for counterterrorism, the acting interior minister, Rehman Malik, has appeared to have an uneven grasp of developments. This month he announced in Parliament that the peace deal with militants in the Swat Valley, just outside the tribal areas, had been scrapped. But he retracted the statement the next day, after the provincial government insisted the deal was still on. Officials of the Awami National Party have complained that his comments undermined their negotiating position. Afrasiab Khattak, a senior official of the party, and other party officials are confident they can make the peace deals in their province work. But few believe that the deals brokered by the military in the tribal regions will last more than a few months, including military officials themselves, senior government officials in Peshawar say. More fighting and violence is almost certainly on the horizon. What the plan will be then, no one seems to know.
BUSINESS Mullah's 'rape victim' bears stillborn child
http://www.quqnoos.com/ Teenage girl claims cleric raped her nine months before the birth A 17-year-old girl, who claimed a religious cleric raped her several times over a year-long period, has given birth to a stillborn child. The young girl, Razia, said 40-year-old Mullah Altaf-ul Rahman raped her several times - the latest sex attack happened just three days ago, she claimed. She refused to give any more information about the rape. The head of the Human Rights Commission in Badakhshan, Wahiduldin Arghon, said Mullah Rahman was currently under police investigation. The police chief of Raghistan said his men arrested the Mullah after Razia complained he had raped her. The chief prosecutor in the province's attorney office said his investigation suggested that Rahman raped Razia nine months ago. Her child was born dead because someone had beaten her days before the birth, according to the lawyer. The Mullah is still awaiting trial. Ammunition Shipment Came From China Panel Says U.S. Ambassador Knew Origin of Materiel Bound for Afghanistan
Washington Post - World A House investigative committee has learned that the American ambassador to Albania knew evidence of Chinese origins was being removed last year from an ammunition shipment before a U.S. contractor sent the material to Afghanistan, said Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the panel. This month, Maj. Larry Harrison, a Pentagon official at the U.S. Embassy in Albania, told staff members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that Ambassador John L. Withers II held a late-night meeting with Albania's defense minister. After the Nov. 19 meeting, the order was given to Albanian officers "to remove all evidence of Chinese packaging" from the ammunition, Waxman said in a letter sent yesterday to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. In a June 9 appearance, Harrison told the committee that "the ambassador agreed that this would alleviate the suspicion of wrongdoing," Waxman wrote. Harrison also said "that he did not agree with the decision to remove the Chinese markings," Waxman said. A federal grand jury on Friday indicted Efraim E. Diveroli, president of AEY Inc., the U.S. company involved, on 71 counts, including conspiracy to defraud the government on a $298 million U.S. Army contract to provide various types of ammunition to the government of Afghanistan. The contract "prohibited delivery of ammunition acquired, directly or indirectly from a Communist Chinese military contract," according to the press release announcing the indictment by R. Alexander Acosta, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Florida. The indictment alleges the defendants falsely said the ammunition was manufactured in Albania after they instructed people to remove the Chinese markings. After his hour-long interview, Harrison "expressed an interest in seeking advice of counsel" and a Pentagon attorney terminated the session, Waxman wrote. Three days later, Harrison's lawyer told the committee he needed at least two weeks to prepare for continuing the interview. Waxman charged in his letter that "it appears" embassy officials kept from the committee information related to the ambassador's meeting in Albania. Harrison told the panel that he had "urged embassy officials to inform the committee," Waxman wrote, but embassy officials did not mention it in response to a prior request for information. "We have no information that would support the idea that U.S. officials were involved in some kind of illicit activity," State Department spokesman Tom Casey said yesterday. He added that "any allegations made, certainly any questions raised by the chairman of a major committee . . . is something that we will be happy to look into." The New York Times this year reported that AEY supplied decades-old stockpiles of ammunition to the U.S. government, after which the Defense Department suspended the company "from future contracting with any agency in the Executive branch," according to a Pentagon announcement. In his letter to Rice, Waxman asked Withers and five other State Department officers from the Albanian Embassy to be made available for interviews before July 11. Withers has been ambassador in Tirana since July 2007, and previously directed the State Department's operations center. He has a PhD from Yale in Chinese history, did graduate-level research at Nanjing University and was China desk officer in the 1980s. Clashes continue in Afghanistan
Aljazeera.net, Qatar A suicide car bomb has killed five Afghan civilians and injured 19 others, Afghan sources say, amid continued fighting between multinational troops and Taliban fighters. The explosion took place on Monday near a convoy of international forces in western Afghanistan, Zemarai Bashary, an interior ministry spokesman, said. "A suicide car bomb exploded. Four civilians were killed and 12 others were injured. The target was a foreign forces' convoy," he said. The condition of the foreign soldiers after the blast, which took place in the Shindand district of Herat province, was not immediately known. The explosion occurred on the same day that US-led forces said they killed 55 Taliban fighters, including three senior commanders. The deaths resulted after the fighters attacked a patrol of the US-led force with rockets in the Paktika province, near the eastern Afghan-Pakistani border. Nangarhar incident The incidents came a day after a father and son were allegedly killed by gunfire from US-led soldiers in Khogyani district of the eastern Nangarhar province. US-led and Afghan forces hit a private house after firing on a neighbouring suspected opposition hideout, Haji Zalmai Khan, Khogyani's governor, said. The deaths later prompted about 200 residents to take to the streets in protest. The multinational forces, however, denied any civilian casualties. In another incident on Sunday, air strikes conducted after a Taliban attack killed several fighters in southern Afghanistan, US-led forces said. Violence surge The Taliban in Pakistan have recently claimed a number of successes, killing seven foreign troops over the weekend, while violence has surged this month. The group caused a jail-break of more than 1,000 prisoners on June 14, when suicide bombers attacked Kandahar prison in southern Afghanistan. Many of those who escaped were Taliban members. Afghan and Nato forces reacted by launching a major operation to expel Taliban fighters from villages surrounding Kandahar a few days later. Afghan officials said that the operation killed 56 Taliban fighters. Source: Agencies Car bomber kills five and wounds 25 - army
http://www.quqnoos.com/ Suicide car bomb attack on ISAF patrol in crowded bazaar kills five A SUICIDE bomber has killed five civilians, including one woman, and wounded 25 more in a crowded bazaar in the western province of Herat, an army officer said. The car bomber tailed a NATO-led ISAF convoy through the district of Shindand and blew himself up when the patrol reached the Azizabad bazaar at about 6pm on Monday, a spokesman for the western police zone said. No police or ISAF troops were killed or injured in the attack, the district governor said. Governor Haji Lal Mohammad said five civilians were killed and 19 wounded in the explosion. But an unnamed army officer said the blast killed five, including one woman, and wounded 25 more. Kabul claims arresting two Pakistanis
Dawn Afghan authorities paraded two alleged Pakistani militants before the media in chains and handcuffs on Monday in a fresh attempt to highlight cross-border infiltration by militants. The governor of Kandahar province said the two men were would-be Taliban suicide bombers, but one of the Pakistanis told journalists he had only entered Afghanistan to fight US-led invading Nato forces. The public display comes just over a week after Afghan President Hamid Karzai sparked a major diplomatic row by threatening to launch attacks on militants based on Pakistani soil. "I came to Afghanistan for jihad (the Holy War) but am not a suicide bomber," the alleged militant, identifying himself as Ali Ahmad in his 20s from the Pakistani city of Quetta, told journalists at the press conference in Kandahar. He said he was a student at a religious school in Pakistan and was encouraged to fight in Afghanistan by a fellow student who managed to escape arrest. The second Pakistani national, his hands and feet tied with chains and introduced as Abdul Zahir, did not speak at the news conference, which was hosted by Kandahar governor Assadullah Khalid. The two were arrested on Saturday in the Afghan border town of Spin Boldak along with their Afghan guide as they were on their way to the troubled Zehri district of Kandahar, Governor Khalid said. "The two Pakistani suicide bombers along with their Afghan guide were arrested two days ago. One of them, Ali Ahmad, has confessed," Khalid said, despite Ahmad's denial. Separately, four men, including three Pakistanis, were arrested in a station wagon filled with explosives in the neighbouring province of Helmand, provincial intelligence chief Mohammad Naeem said. Karzai's government has been fighting back against a wave of recent activity by the Taliban, including an embarrassing mass jailbreak by militants in Kandahar earlier this month. In the wake of the prison escape, Karzai said that the Kabul government would be justified in striking militant hideouts in Pakistan. Islamabad summoned the Afghan ambassador to protest against the comments.-AFP US military chief wants more Afghanistan troops
Radio Australia, Australia The chief of the US military says he needs three more brigades in Afghanistan to battle Taliban fighters and train Afghan forces. Admiral Michael Mullen, says they are currently short of soldiers in Afghanistan and a training brigade is needed. The United States has urged NATO allies for months to deploy reinforcements to Afghanistan. Admiral Mullen says violence has increased this year. This month has already been the bloodiest of the year for international forces with 32 soldiers killed so far.
Daily Times, Pakistan There are many sceptics that doubt the efficacy of negotiating peace with the tribal militants. In my view elected governments have a right to explore alternative solutions to the difficult and stubborn legacies of conflict that Afghanistan and Pakistan face together Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have been difficult for obvious reasons. Afghanistan has been in a state of war for more than thirty years; it is still not out of the conflict that started with the American-led invasion. And Kabul has reasons to believe that the violence it has been enduring for decades has much to do with the role of foreign actors, including Islamabad. It is in this context that we need to examine the outrage that President Hamid Karzai expressed in threatening to attack the houses of suspected Pakistani militants and eliminating them. Karzai's angry and aggressive tone toward Pakistan is not new; he has quite frequently, on occasions when he could draw international attention, blamed Pakistan for not doing enough to stop the infiltration of militants into Afghanistan. Some of us may conveniently ignore Afghan threats and warnings and term them empty, frustrated, politically motivated or inspired by the United States and other countries that are engaged in the stabilisation and reconstruction of Afghanistan. Nevertheless, we need to objectively analyse why Afghan leaders are becoming increasingly impatient, angry and threatening. Our media and government often deflect the accusations of the Afghan leaders by telling them that they and their foreign allies have failed to contain the insurgency of the Taliban mainly in the Pashtun region, and that they cannot blame Pakistan for this. Both within Afghanistan and the international coalition partners, much thought has been given to what has gone wrong. There is the realisation among all stakeholders that priorities in Afghanistan have not been set right. Security and financial resources are inadequate, and the task of nation building in war-torn Afghanistan cannot be carried out smoothly in the face of ethnic divisions and power politics. The international community and observers of the Afghan political and security scene have also rightly blamed the personal and leadership failures of Afghan leaders, including Mr Karzai. Afghanistan has been in turmoil for the better half of thirty long and painful years, mostly due to the follies and inadequacies of Afghan leaders. Many of them have problems accepting responsibility and are ever ready to blame anyone but themselves. But the internal problems of Afghanistan - a weak and ineffective state, lack of legitimacy, a poor resource base and infighting among Afghan groups - are not unique or peculiar to Afghanistan. Many other countries also suffer from these. My view is that Afghanistan has been and continues to be a victim of geopolitical aggressiveness of its neighbours, transnational militancy and imperialistic impulses of great and hegemonic powers. The Afghans have mostly been helpless in the face of interventions-by the Soviet Union, regional neighbours and now the American-led international coalition. A significant group of Afghans has always sided with the dominant international power or powers, while those left out for ideological or other reasons took up arms thus fuelling conflict and violence. Pakistan has been a key player in Afghanistan during the past three decades, mostly as a friend and supporter of oppositions to the Afghan regime, and now as one of the front-line members of war on terror the objective of which is to eliminate militancy and rehabilitate Afghanistan. It is precisely Pakistan's role that has become the subject of discussion and debate in Kabul and in many other capitals. Is the residue of distrust and lack of confidence in our country or failure on our part to fulfil our declared and not-so-declared commitments the reason Afghan leaders and most of their international coalition partners have assumed a threatening posture? We have an international obligation to restrain militants from crossing over into Afghanistan and fighting on the side of the Taliban forces. Having said this, it is not so easy to contain cross-border militancy that is entangled in a web of Pashtun ethnicity, Islamic nationalism and Jehadic spirit provoked by the presence of American and NATO forces and their war against the Taliban in Afghanistan. History, terrain, undefined borders and the alignment of political and religious groups beyond the nation-state are also complicating factors. I assume the Afghan leaders and our common international partners understand and appreciate the real complexities of the Afghan-Pakistan borderlands and how the internal security of the two countries has become so interdependent and vulnerable to the same set of forces. If the logic of interdependent security and the state formation process in the borderlands is understood, then by strategic necessity we have to cooperate, be sensitive to each other's needs and appreciate the vulnerabilities we individually and collectively face. One plausible reason for Karzai's outburst against Pakistan last week is the discernible change in Pakistan's policy towards militant groups in the tribal region from military pressure to negotiating peace deals. Negotiating with the insurgent groups that openly argue that supporting the Afghan Taliban is their religious and national obligation justifiably provokes resistance from regional and international powers that consider this approach as capitulation. The irony is that the Pakistani population at large is not supportive of Pakistan's participation in the war on terror or of military operations against its own population in the tribal territory, which they regard primarily as in the American, and not in the Pakistani, interest. The coalition governments at the centre and the NWFP are not willing to sell the American war and pay a political price. Also there is a realisation that military operations in FATA have damaged national solidarity. The elected leaders with a very strong social base among the Pashtun groups appear to be optimistic that the peace-deals they are negotiating will be concluded only on the condition that the militants drop their weapons and don't cross over into Afghanistan. There are many sceptics that doubt the efficacy of negotiating peace with the tribal militants. In my view elected governments have a right to explore alternative solutions to the difficult and stubborn legacies of conflict that Afghanistan and Pakistan face together. The international acceptance of this approach however would depend not on what is on paper but what is really on ground and how it has helped establish peace in our borderlands. Dr Rasul Baksh Rais is author of Recovering the Frontier State: War, Ethnicity and State in Afghanistan (Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books 2008) and a professor of Political Science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences. He can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it War refugees in Kandahar to get UN aid
Written by http://www.quqnoos.com/ Thousands turfed out of their homes by recent fighting to receive aid RESIDENTS whose villages were turned into a battleground during fighting between Afghan forces and Taliban rebels are set to receive basic supplies form the United Nations. About 2,000 families in the district of Arghndab in Kandahar were forced to flee their homes after 400 Taliban rebels seized control of four villages in the area, prompting Canadian and Afghan forces to launch an attack to flush out the fighters. The families will receive clothes, food and tents in the coming days, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan, Salvatore Lombardo, said on Monday. The UN estimates that about 7,000 people were displaced by the recent fighting, which came days after the Taliban blew open the gates of Kandahar's main jail, releasing hundreds of militants and criminals into the city's streets. A bad week for militants and NATO in Afghanistan
Irish Sun Over fifty Afghan militants, including three senior commanders, have been killed by US troops in an action which occurred after rebels ambushed a patrol with rockets. The fighting occurred near the eastern Afghan-Pakistani border. Separately, a suicide car bomb exploded near a convoy of international forces in western Afghanistan, killing five Afghan civilians and injuring at least 19 others. The killings are the result of an insurgency launched by the Islamist Taliban. Seven foreign soldiers, part of the NATO alliance, were killed over the weekend. Saturday was the deadliest day for international soldiers in the war-torn nation this year. The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said it had been targeted in the bombing in western Herat province's Shindand district, which had been claimed by Taliban militants.
Seattle Post Intelligencer A new Government Accountability Office report finds the U.S. is falling short of meeting goals in Afghanistan. Such slow progress might mean we're doomed to repeat our mistakes in that country. In 2005, the GAO made specific recommendations to the Defense Department for developing Afghan National Security Forces (police and army) there, where for a time, the DOD planned to arm the forces with salvaged Soviet weapons still littering the country. The Soviets attacked Afghanistan in 1978, and after the U.S. helped the Afghans in their fight against the Russians, the country became a front in the Cold War. We left them at the mercy of the Taliban by 1989. We know how that turned out. In a 2007 report, the GAO pointed out that, "no army combat units are fully capable of operating independently and less than 20 percent are fully capable of leading operations with coalition support no Afghan police units are fully capable of operating independently and that only 1 of 72 police units is fully capable to lead operations with coalition support." And in this latest report, the GAO figures that for the $10 billion we've spent on the effort, "only 2 of 105 army units are assessed as being fully capable of conducting their primary mission and efforts to develop the army continue to face challenges." No police units are up to snuff. Without security, there can be no political stability in Afghanistan, and without political stability, it's back to 1989, when the Taliban were in charge. With all the sacrifices we've already made, that can't be an option. Rice brands Karzai's troop threat 'unwise'
Written by http://www.quqnoos.com/ foreign desk President's threat to send troops into Pakistan received coldly by US AMERICA'S secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, has labelled President Karzai's threat to send troops into Pakistan "unwise". Karzai last week said Afghanistan had the right to defend itself against insurgent attacks by pursuing Taliban militants in Pakistan's tribal areas, a claim many Afghans and Pashtuns on both sides of the border welcomed. Karzai's comments angered Pakistan, which immediately warned countries against meddling in its internal affairs. Rice said during an interview aired on the CNN news network on Sunday: "I think it's probably not wise to talk about Afghan cross-border operations. "I think it's better that Pakistan and Afghanistan cooperate on their respective sides of the border. "There are Taliban operating in Afghanistan who have to be defeated. And there are Taliban who are operating in Pakistan, and they have to be defeated, too. "But I think it's probably better that the respective governments deal with their own problems." Relations between the US and Pakistan were already low when President Karzai, who has since rescinded his threat to send in troops, made the remarks. Pakistan and America were engaged in a diplomatic spat over allegations that US warplanes in Afghanistan had killed 11 Pakistani soldiers in a "cowardly" cross-border raid on a Pakistani border post.
AOL News Newsbloggers, VA Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif) thinks the U.S. embassy in Albania may have helped an indicted weapons dealer hide the Chinese origin of ammunition sent to Afghanistan, and that the embassy tried to keep information about the ammunition from Congress. Waxman, chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, today sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, saying: "The Oversight Committee has received information that the U.S. ambassador to Albania held a late-night meeting with the Albanian Defense Minister at which the ambassador approved removing evidence of the illegal Chinese origins of ammunition being shipped from Albania to Afghanistan by a U.S. contractor." Here's what the chief of the Office of Defense Cooperation at the embassy, Major Larry Harrison, told the committee on June 9: -Ambassador John Withers and top aides (as well as Harrison) met with the Albanian defense minister on Nov. 19, 2007, to discuss how to respond to a NY Times request to visit a site in Albania where U.S. arms contractor AEY was removing Chinese ammunition from its original packaging before sending it to Afghanistan -the defense minister then ordered his top general to remove all evidence of Chinese packaging before the next day's inspection, to "alleviate the suspicion of wrongdoing." -he felt "very uncomfortable" with the decision to remove the Chinese Markings, since AEY was under investigation for illegal arms trafficking involving Chinese ammunition. Here's part of the transcribed Q&A with Harrison: Q: So at the time of this meeting between the Defense Minister, the Ambassador, and several other State Department officials, it was clear that you were discussing Chinese ammunition; is that correct? A: That is correct. That is correct. Q: And it was clear that AEY was the company that was buying it under a U.S. contract? A: That is correct. Q: And you said, by this time, you had been informed that it was illegal under U.S. law for a U.S. contractor to buy Chinese ammunition. Is that correct? A: That is correct, yes, sir. Q: And you said also at this time it was clear that there was an investigation ongoing Is that right? A: That is correct, yes, sir. The Justice Department last Friday announced the indictment of AEY and four of its officials for hiding the ammunitions' origins. The New York Times in March did a piece on AEY's young president, Efraim Diveroli, and how his role raised questions about how Army contracting officials have been securing arms for the Pentagon's allies in Afghanistan and Iraq. AEY, of Miami Beach, received a two-year contract in January 2007, potentially worth $298 million, to provide Afghan security forces with ammunition. "Although the circumstances are different, the evidence the Committee has received suggests that on at least one occasion, Embassy officials also played a role in concealing the Chinese origins of the ammunition," Waxman wrote. Waxman is calling on several embassy officials to testify before the committee, and for the State Department to hand over all documents pertinent to the case. Europe targets human smugglers
Aljazeera.net, Qatar Police across Europe have detained 75 people suspected of smuggling illegal immigrants, mainly Iraqi Kurds, into northern Europe, French and German officials say. The largest number of arrests happened on Monday in France. The sweep, dubbed Operation Baghdad, was the result of a broad investigation into a complex people-smuggling ring, the officials said. The network believed to have brought hundreds of people from Iraq, Afghanistan, and elsewhere to Scandinavian countries, Britain and Ireland in recent years. Paris prosecutors said in a statement that police had uncovered a "well-structured transnational cell" and arrested 24 people in the capital and other French towns and cities. The French interior and immigration ministries said in a joint statement that at least 1,300 police officers from 10 European countries were mobilised for the probe. The would-be immigrants paid between $9,300 and $21,000 to be brought to Europe, French and German authorities said. Multiple raids In Belgium, police detained 10 people during raids in the capital, Brussels, and in nearby city of Leuven. Some of those detained are believed to be ring leaders, Belgian police officials said. Seven people were arrested in Germany. Horst Hund, a German prosecutor spokesman, said the seven people were among 15 individuals that authorities have been investigating since the beginning of the year. In Sweden, 12 people were detained in connection with Operation Baghdad. In the Netherlands, border police in the northern city of Leeuwarden arrested three men "suspected of involvement in a European network of human smugglers", the Dutch national prosecutor's office said. Source: Al Jazeera and agencies Assassination trial will be open to the public
http://www.quqnoos.com/ No date set for trial of officials accused of failing to stop plot to kill Karzai THE TRIAL of 20 security officials accused of failing to stifle the plot to kill the president will be open to the public, the attorney-general said on Sunday. Evidence against the 20 men, who have been under investigation for more than one and a half months, has already been submitted to the Supreme Court, but no date has been set for the start of the trial, Abdul Jabar Sabit said. The attorney-general suspended eight top-ranking security officials from their jobs in the police, Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence one month after gunmen opened fire on President Karzai at a military parade. The assassination attempt on April 27 killed one Member of Parliament, a council leader and a young boy and wounded 10 others. Both the Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami claimed responsibility for the attack, which the government believes may have been the work of the Haqqani "terror" network based in Pakistan. Days after the attack on the president's life, the ministers of defence and interior and the head of the country's secret service survived a vote of no confidence in Parliament. The next day, the head of the intelligence service, Amrullah Saleh, said his NDS officers had arrested a spy posted inside one of the ministries to help plot the assassination attempt. The NDS launched three separate dawn raids on suspected militant hideouts in Kabul after the ‘spy' told intelligence officers where the plotters were hiding. All the gunmen who fired shots at the parade were killed and most of those involved in organising and supplying weapons to the attackers were arrested, Saleh said at the time. Battling drug addiction in Afghanistan
BBC News, UK When Rahim Ahmedy was an Afghan refugee in neighbouring Iran, he and his friends would go on three-day picnics. They would slaughter sheep for feasting and take drugs such as opium and heroin. At first the 30-year-old thought it was fun. But then it took over his life. He returned to Afghanistan after the fall of the Taleban in 2001 with all his worldly possessions - and a drug addiction. "Then my family became distant from me," said the father-of-one, his face gaunt and emaciated, sitting in the Nejat drug treatment clinic in Kabul. "It was then that I realised how bad the drugs had become." Afghanistan is the world's biggest producer of heroin and opium. But less well known is the country's drug problem. According to the most recent UN figures in 2005, there are about one million addicts in a country of about 30 million people. 'Increasing' But some officials and organisations believe that the true figure is higher. "The addicts are increasing year on year," said General Khodaidad, the Afghan Minister for Counter-Narcotics. "This is a type of war that we are fighting." Drug addiction takes many forms in Afghanistan. In many cases, refugees, like Mr Ahmedy, have returned to the country with their habits. Other addicts are opium farmers, hooked on the drug they harvest. Some are female carpet weavers who take opium to dull the aches in their fingers joints. And many are young users with little else to do. The Afghan government with the help of the international community has established about 40 drug addiction clinics, according to officials. They are dispersed throughout the country. But Dr Tariq Suliman, the director of the Nejat clinic, says that the number of places available for treatment needs to dramatically increase. He also says that there needs to be greater awareness about drugs among the general population. "The important thing is that the young people who aren't involved in drugs know the dangers," he says. "This would be a very positive step." Social element The Nejat clinic runs a three-month programme to help wean participants off drugs. The drug addicts are provided advice by medical professionals on how to rehabilitate and detoxify their bodies. There is also a large social element to the programme, with participants regularly drinking tea together, talking and even playing chess. Dr Suliman says that the treatment has about a 30% success rate among the participants. One of those in the programme and determined to get off heroin is Najib Hakimi, 30, who used to be a driver. He became addicted to drugs after socialising with his nephew who is a heroin addict. "The only thing I now have is my family," he says, explaining that he lost his job because of his drug addiction. "But I'm lucky to be alive." Throughout the morning and early afternoon, drug addicts seeking help arrive at the clinic. At one stage, three men turn up. They are dirty and bedraggled, but Dr Suliman welcomes them warmly to the facility. Another doctor gives them a small bottle of shampoo and they are taken to shower blocks to wash themselves. They may just be the lucky ones to get the attention they need. Afghanistan is a country facing many problems - and many of its most needy are being overlooked. Deal with Taliban hangs in balance
Dawn - National The future of the peace deal between the NWFP government and local Taliban in Swat hangs in the balance, although both sides are determined to keep it intact. The local Taliban Shoora met at an unknown location on Monday and discussed the implementation of the agreement. Sources said that Maulana Fazlullah, who was in hiding, presided over the meeting, which was attended by about 100 militant commanders and leaders. The maulana's spokesman told reporters that the Shoora had expressed concern over non-implementation of the deal signed on May 21. UN: Pakistan delays Afghan expulsion
http://www.quqnoos.com/ Pakistan agrees to push back date for refugee eviction, UN says PAKISTAN has agreed to delay the expulsion of Afghan refugees from its land for one year, the United Nations says. Afghanistan's neighbour has already shut down its largest Afghan refugee camp at Jalozai, arguing that it had become a safe-haven for "terrorists" and criminals. The UN refugee council has warned in the past that Afghanistan's ability to absorb refugees is "limited". On Monday, the UN's High Commissioner for Refugees in Afghanistan, Salvatore Lombardo, said: "After the Jalozai camp was closed in Pakistan, no other camp has been closed down yet and I don't think that Pakistan will close any more refugee camps." Almost 60,000 refugees have returned to Afghanistan since the closure of Jalozai in April. The UN estimates that there are still about two million Afghan refugees living in Pakistan, with half of them living in refugee camps and the other half in their own homes. Since the start of the year, more than 120,000 refugees have returned to Afghanistan, mostly to the east of the country, the UN says. British reporter kidnapped on Afghan-Pakistan border is freed
International Herald Tribune - Europe Britain's Foreign Office says a British reporter kidnapped on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan has been released after being held for three months. Sean Langan was working on a documentary for Britain's Channel 4 when he was seized. The Foreign Office said Monday that Langan was freed late Saturday. The ministry says it was not involved in securing his release. In a statement, his family says it had been unaware of the reporter's kidnapping until recent weeks. The family says Langan had been held by a group linked to the Taliban. He has previously made documentaries in Iraq, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan. Pakistan-Afghanistan relations
PakTribune.com, Pakistan The reason for strained relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan is largely President Hamid Karzai`s lack of understanding of the situation in FATA. The problem lies in the communication gap created by vested interests and certain lobbies between the two countries. Islamabad also needs to do more to make its voice heard on this matter. Unfortunately, it seems that a campaign has been launched to undermine Pakistan`s contribution towards Afghanistan`s rehabilitation. Saner elements there understand well that Afghanistan could not reach where it is now without Pakistan`s help. Not only Pakistan is still hosting millions of Afghan refugees everything that is bought and sold in Afghanistan goes via Pakistan. Yet nobody speaks of Pakistan`s contribution. They only remember `Taliban`s safe havens` in FATA. Also there exists a communication gap between Pakistan and Afghanistan. The government has banned Pakistani newspapers, except one, while Indian and western newspapers, periodicals and magazines are easily available. Having said that, both countries need to develop trust and support each other`s peace efforts since this is the only way to end terrorism and extremism in the region. For their part, both NATO and the Afghan government should not make Pakistan a scapegoat and need to look at their own shortcomings as well. Pakistani Taliban seize tribal town
TVNZ Pakistani militants loyal to Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud captured a town at the entrance to the South Waziristan tribal region after a battle with pro-government tribesmen, police said. At least six people, four tribesmen and two militants, were killed in the fighting for control of Jandola town, the gateway to Waziristan, they said. "The Taliban have taken over Jandola," and taken seven tribesmen hostage, the area's police chief, Barkat Ullah, said. A Taliban spokesman said nine people, including seven tribesmen, had been killed and the Taliban had abducted 10 pro-government fighters. Waziristan is the power base of Mehsud, who leads the Pakistani Taliban, has close links with al Qaeda, and is accused by the authorities of being behind a wave of suicide attacks since mid-2007, including the one that killed former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in December. The attacks have tapered off since a new governing coalition, formed after the February general election and led by Bhutto's party, opened talks with Mehsud and other militants through tribal elders to end the violence. But sectarian violence and kidnappings have surged in the tribal areas and several parts of the adjoining North West Frontier Province in recent weeks. Suspected pro-Taliban militants kidnapped 17 policemen on Sunday night from posts on the Khyber Pass, the vital supply route for Western forces in Afghanistan. The Khyber area had been virtually free of militant violence until this year but security has deteriorated sharply in recent months. Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan was kidnapped in February while travelling through the Khyber Pass, and the Taliban militants holding him freed him in May. Several aid workers have also been kidnapped in the region. Rival militant factions have been battling to control the area and up to 15 people were killed and dozens wounded in fighting at the weekend. Separately, authorities in the Kurram tribal region, to the west of Khyber, found the bodies of eight truck drivers kidnapped when Sunni Muslim militants attacked a food convoy going into a Shi'ite region last week. Four drivers were killed in the attack last Thursday and security forces backed by helicopter gunships retaliated, killing five of the militants. Source: Reuters Hundreds protest 'civilian killings'
Written by http://www.quqnoos.com/ Protestors march against US-led soldiers' alleged killing of father and son HUNDREDS of angry protestors in the east have demanded that US-led soldiers who allegedly killed two civilians face trial. Residents in the Khogyani district of Nangarhar claim US-led troops dropped bombs on the area, killing two civilians in their homes on Monday. But the governor of Khogyani, Haji Zalmai Khan, said the two civilians were killed when a rebel laying a roadside mine clashed with foreign and Afghan soldiers. The soldiers shot dead the militant before a nearby coalition base opened fire on a suspected Taliban hideout, Khan said. "Cannon rounds" landed on a house and killed a father and son, Khan said. The coalition denies killing any civilians during the clashes in the district. "Flying carpets" used to smuggle heroin into China: report
AFP Drug traffickers sewed tiny tubes of heroin into "flying carpets" that were shipped to China as part of a newly discovered method for smuggling illicit drugs, state media said Tuesday. Customs officials in Urumqi, capital of China's far western Xinjiang region which borders Pakistan and Afghanistan among other countries, confiscated 48 kilogrammes (105 pounds) of heroin from 32 carpets sent from Pakistan in March alone, the China Daily said. Two months earlier, five kilogrammes of heroin were discovered in three carpets shipped from Afghanistan, the newspaper said. Traffickers had injected the heroin into tiny plastic tubes that were then wrapped in synthetic fibres and sewn into the carpets, it said. "The traffickers have become more sophisticated and are using new techniques," Wang Zhi, a customs official, was quoted as saying. Customs in other countries had been notified, he said. The discovery was made as part of stepped up efforts to monitor imports into China ahead of the August Beijing Olympic Games, it said. Islamabad awaits Kabul's response over border fencing: PM
Daily Times, Pakistan Pakistan will fence its border with Afghanistan if Kabul agrees to the proposal, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said on Monday, adding that Islamabad was awaiting Kabul's response. Talking to outgoing Canadian High Commissioner David B Collin, who paid a farewell visit to the premier, Gilani praised Canada's role in Afghanistan's reconstruction. He said Pakistan had taken a number of steps to stop illegal cross border movements, including the setting up of 900 checkposts and the installation of biometric system along the border. Stable Afghanistan: The prime minister said Pakistan wanted a stable and peaceful Afghanistan because it would help promote economic development in the region. He added Pakistan wanted a dignified and early repatriation of Afghan refugees to their home. The high commissioner said Canada intended to work on the resettlement of Afghan refugees in Afghanistan. Gilani said people had elected moderate and democratic political parties in the February 18 elections, adding that broad-based governments had been formed at the centre and in the provinces. He appreciated Collin's contributions to strengthen relations between Islamabad and Ottawa. Collin also visited President Pervez Musharraf at Aiwan-e-Sadr. President Musharraf stressed the importance of Pakistan-Canada relationships, and lauded Collin's contribution in this regard. Musharraf also lauded Canadian company Barrick Gold's investment in the copper mining joint venture project in Balochistan. Taleban's '$100m opium takings'
BBCi - News Front Page Taleban insurgents took an estimated $100m (£50m) from Afghanistan's opium trade in 2007, the head of the UN's anti-narcotics agency told the BBC. Antonio Maria Costa, head of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said it was raised by a 10% tax on farmers in Taleban areas. "We estimate the farm gate value is $1bn [£500m] in 2007," said Mr Costa. Mr Costa estimated the takings were beyond $100m (£50m) as opium produced two other forms of Taleban revenue. "One is protection to laboratories and the other is that the insurgents offer protection to cargo, moving opium across the border," he added. The final figures for this year's harvest have yet to be released but yield and proceeds are likely to be down due to drought, infestation and a poppy ban enforced in the north and east of Afghanistan. This would lower revenue, "but not enormously", he added. The past few years have seen abundant yields from poppy farming, with Afghan farmers cultivating more than the global demand. "Last year Afghanistan produced about 8,000 tonnes of opium," said Mr Costa. "The world in the past few years has consumed about 4,000 tonnes in opium, this leaves a surplus. "It is stored somewhere and not with the farmers," he added. The stockpiles represent hundreds of millions of dollars and it is not known whether they are possessed by traffickers, corrupt Afghan officials and politicians or the Taleban. British officials say that drugs money funds the Taleban's military operations. "The closer we look at it, the closer we see the insurgents [are] to the drugs trade," said David Belgrove, head of counter narcotics at the British embassy in Kabul. "We can say that a lot of their arms and ammunition are being funded directly by the drugs trade." Pakistan-Afghanistan Youth Council launched
The Post, Pakistan The Sustainable Peace and Development Organization (SPADO) launched the Pak-Afghan Youth Council to develop understanding between the youth of both sides and to promote peace and harmony in the region, said SPADO Executive Director Raz Shah on Monday. Addressing a press conference at Peshawar Press Club, he said that the formation of Pak-Afghan Youth Council was a first forward towards creating an atmosphere of trust between the two countries. He stressed that youth and civil society should play their due role in resuming the dialogue process between Pakistan and Afghanistan. He observed that Afghanistan was in a state of war over the last 30 years. A large number of people were displaced and rendered homeless, such the situation drove a wedge between the two nations. "We will try to participate in Pak-Afghan Jirga under the banner of Pak-Afghan Youth Council to remove the misunderstandings," he added. He said that about 40 members have been selected for the Pak-Afghan Youth Council, 20 from each side including two representatives of tribal areas. Raza also told reporters that the SPADO would hold roundtable dialogue on June 17 in Peshawar. 12 POs arrested, weapons seized: City police here on Monday arrested 12 proclaimed offenders and other criminals and seized weapons from their possession. According to a press release, the Peshawar police arrested twelve proclaimed offenders identified as Fazal Subhan, Zerat Gul, Ghulam Sarwar, Hamayun, Syed Gul, Naqeeb Shah, Nasib Wali, Aitbar Gul, Rahmdil Bulbil, Asrab Gul, Mehnat and other criminals. Police also seized two Kalashnikovs, one rifle, 16 pistols, 216 bullets, 13 kg of hashish and 53 bottles of liquor. Police have registered cases and started investigations. Meanwhile, Hayatabad Police recovered 60,000 fake Pakistani currency and one pistol from the possession of Farhad and Barat. Afghans parade ‘Pakistani militants'
Gulf Times - Home
Afghan authorities paraded two alleged Pakistani militants before the media in chains and handcuffs yesterday in a fresh attempt to highlight cross-border infiltration by insurgents. Iran seized 900 tonnes of drugs from Afghanistan in 2007
(AFP) Iran seized less than half of the 2,500 tonnes of drugs that entered the country from its eastern neighbour Afghanistan in 2007, a top police commander said on Monday. "Around 900 tonnes of drugs out of the 2,500 tonnes of drugs that entered the country from Afghanistan were seized in 2007," Iran's police chief and anti-drug trafficking supremo Esmaeel Ahmadi Moghadam told reporters. Iran lies on a major transit route for smuggling illegal drugs from Afghanistan towards European markets. It has lost hundreds of police killed in clashes with drug smugglers in recent years and has repeatedly lamented a lack of funding and support from the West to combat the traffickers. The proportion of the total volume of Afghan drugs transiting through Iran fell to 31 percent in 2007 from 42 percent in 2006, Ahmadi Moghadam said, adding that the volume itself was unchanged due to a major rise in Afghan production. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime has said that Afghanistan's opium production increased from 6,100 tonnes in 2006 to 8,200 tonnes in 2007, accounting for 93 percent of global production. Around a third of the drugs from Afghanistan that are not seized by Iranian police are consumed in Iran itself, creating a serious domestic drug abuse problem. Opium use has long been a problem in Iran but crack and heroin consumption is on the up with the latter available at 3.5 dollars (2.4 euros) per gram, according to the United Nations. "According to our latest analysis, there are 1.16 million drug addicts in Iran and around 700,000 occasional users," said Ahmadi Moghadam.
The National, UAE Low salaries are forcing many of Afghanistan's teachers to take on second jobs so they can feed their families. Despite promises that their wages would be increased, schoolteachers in Kabul said there have been few improvements since the US-led invasion in 2001. "When the Taliban regime was destroyed, we were optimistic that the new government would help us, but they have done nothing," said Aziza Khalil, a chemistry teacher. Against the backdrop of growing insecurity, education is commonly regarded as being one of Afghanistan's most tangible success stories. Girls were barred from going to school under the Taliban, a fact often used as a marker for progress the country has since made. During a visit to Afghanistan this month, Laura Bush, the wife of the US president, was quick to highlight the issue. "There's a huge increase in the number of kids in school," she told reporters. "There are almost six million kids in school now compared to 2001 when there were maybe a million, but no girls." However, the reality is that progress has been slower than many expected and some Afghans fear the education system is in danger of regressing. Ms Khalil started teaching during the communist era, a period she remembers as perhaps the best time for her and her colleagues. When the Taliban seized power, she continued to receive her salary for two years, even though she was not allowed to work at Zarghona High School. Although she has been welcomed back, she has had to take on another job, tutoring students after school, to make ends meet. "We have five people in our family and that's small for Afghanistan. But on the salary I get I cannot even afford to buy them tea and bread," Ms Khalil said. Most teachers at state schools earn between US$50 to $100 (Dh183 to Dh367) a month. Those interviewed said their income had barely changed since the Taliban regime was overthrown and, with basic living expenses increasing, they were struggling to survive. "The problem is with the people in high positions. They steal the money given to the ministry of education and build themselves a house, a beautiful castle," Ms Khalil said. Last month, teachers around the country went on strike to demand a pay rise. The protest lasted just two days at Zarghona, but elsewhere the demonstrations were longer and the police responded by arresting some school principals. Nazifa Ghiasi, a colleague of Ms Khalil's, also has a second job, earning more as a tailor than she does from helping girls learn Pashto. In total, she works an average of 14 to 15 hours a day. "I have five children and the money from teaching is not enough for me," she said. The government has pledged to increase salaries as part of an overall scheme to raise wages in the public sector, but the plan is not due to be implemented for at least another three years. Mohammed Suleman Kakar, a senior adviser at the ministry of education, acknowledged Afghanistan's schools were in a "crisis situation", but warned it could take another five years to move beyond that. "When you have such a large number of students enrolled in schools, you have to provide the supplies, including qualified teachers, textbooks, buildings, good administration and management," he said. "Resources have always been limited and strategic planning for the organisation of all this was lacking." Mr Kakar said the ministry of education receives just 30 per cent of the money it needs annually. Teachers across the city said classroom supplies rely on donations from wealthy parents, and that in one school regular electricity was only possible because a former pupil is the nephew of an influential warlord. Zarghona also has to share its facilities with another school, a situation found throughout Kabul. At Rukhshana High School, some lessons are held in the corridors as all the classrooms are full. "This is all because of [Hamid] Karzai," one female teacher at the school said, blaming the Afghan president. Her colleague, however, disagreed. "This is all because of the Americans. They do not want to improve education in Afghanistan." Mr Kakar said poor governance following the US-led invasion caused many of the problems that exist today. He said only 35 per cent of schools have buildings and 80 per cent of teachers have not completed high school education. Security is also a big problem in seven provinces, including Kandahar, Helmand, Zabul and Badghis. "Schools are attacked, schools are blown up, schools are burnt, teachers are killed, students are killed, students and teachers are threatened," he said. He said in the short-term, teachers who register with the government, pass a competency test and open a bank account will receive relatively substantial pay rises. But the ministry hopes that a scheme due to be implemented in stages over the next three to four years will eventually leave all of its teachers with a minimum wage of about $120 a month. The maximum will be about $500 or $600. US-led forces kill 55 Taliban fighters
Gulf Today US-led coalition troops killed some 55 Taliban insurgents who ambushed them in southeastern Afghanistan, close to the Pakistan border, the US military said on Monday. There has been a sharp rise in violence along Afghanistan's eastern frontier in recent months. Taliban insurgents ambushed the coalition forces with small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades in the Zerok district of Paktika province on Friday, a US military statement said. Among those killed were three Taliban leaders. "Around 55 anti-Afghan forces were killed, 25 wounded and three detained as part of the combined response of coalition ground and air forces," the statement said. Nato's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and the US-led coalition force in Afghanistan do not usually disclose Taliban casualties and normally use vague formulations such as saying "several" militants were killed. Agencies AFGHANISTAN: Stream of deportees from Iran continues
(IRIN) About 490,000 Afghans have been deported from Iran over the past 18 months, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and Afghanistan's Ministry of Refugees and Returnees (MoRR) told IRIN. "One hundred and forty thousand undocumented Afghans have been deported so far in 2008, and some 350,000 were deported in 2007," said Salvatore Lombardo, the UNHCR representative in Afghanistan, adding that most of the deportees were "single males" who had gone to Iran in search of work. Abdul Qadir Zazai, chief adviser to the MoRR in Kabul, told IRIN Tehran was continuing to deport Afghans who are not refugees. Kabul has requested that the deportations be conducted in a humane and gradual manner. "Every day 1,500-2,000 individuals are expelled from Iran," Zazai said. "Afghanistan does not have the capacity to absorb large numbers of deportees in a short time," he said. The Iranian embassy in Kabul was not immediately available for comment. However, Iranian officials have always said it is their right to deport all Afghans who "illegally" enter Iran. Aid for "the most vulnerable" According to the UNHCR and the MoRR, over 90 percent of the deportees are young men who go to Iran to look for jobs but who do not qualify for humanitarian assistance when deported to Afghanistan. "Together with UN agencies we provide minimal assistance only to the most vulnerable deportees," Zazai said. In response to a massive expulsion in mid-2007 which pushed ill-prepared Afghanistan into a humanitarian emergency, the Afghan government, assisted by aid organisations, set up two transition centres close to the Iranian border to mitigate the impact of large-scale deportations. Those deemed "most vulnerable", mostly women and children, can stay in the transition centre for up to 48 hours and receive free food, and transportation assistance to help them reach their final destination. "The UNHCR has a presence in the border area and we will continue to assist the most vulnerable deportees," said Lombardo, adding that over 1,500 deportees had been assisted in the past six months. Some two million Afghans in Iran Some one million Afghans are registered as refugees in Iran. They are allowed to stay and work in the country, and their permits may be renewed, the UNCHR said. The MoRR estimates there are a up to a further one million Afghans in Iran who do not have appropriate residency documents and are therefore eligible for deportation according to Iranian law. Lack of socio-economic opportunities, conflict and drought are driving thousands of Afghans to Iran and other regional countries. Taliban commanders killed in attack
National Post - Today's Paper U. S.-led troops killed about 55 Taliban, including three senior commanders, after they ambushed a patrol with rockets near the eastern Afghan-Pakistani border, the coalition said yesterday. Separately, a suicide car bomb exploded near a convoy of international forces in western Afghanistan, killing five Afghan civilians and injuring at least 19 others. The latest bloodshed comes amid the deadliest phase of an insurgency launched by the Islamist Taliban after their ouster by U. S.-led forces in late 2001, with seven foreign soldiers killed over the weekend. Three days of fighting erupted in Zerok, Paktika, after a rebel attack on a patrol on Friday. The UAE is a force for hope in Afghanistan
The National, United Arab Emirates Some military endeavours are far more about compassion than conquest. The UAE's involvement in Afghanistan is one. Since 2003, a UAE humanitarian force, supported by a military contingent, has been working to rebuild a nation that has been mired in a near permanent state of war for several decades. The need is immense: 70 per cent of the country's population lives in poverty; only 23 per cent have access to safe drinking water, and a mere 12 per cent to proper sanitation facilities. What is most striking is that the country's youth - more than half the population and Afghanistan's only hope of emerging from nearly 30 years of war - are the worst afflicted by poverty and persistent violence. The United Nations Children's Fund estimates that some 54 per cent of Afghan children are "chronically malnourished". A dismaying 60 per cent of children do not attend school. The UAE is the first Arab nation to respond to these dire circumstances with a strong financial commitment and a full-scale, on-the-ground presence to see its contribution implemented. As a Muslim nation, UAE humanitarian workers and soldiers are uniquely suited to repairing Afghanistan's damaged cultural and spiritual health. Much of the UAE's work does indeed make use of its religious affinity with Afghans. With the help of the International Red Crescent, aid workers have built more than 38 mosques, each capable of holding more than 300 worshippers. Beyond the religious and cultural contributions, UAE citizens have provided financial support for the construction and operation of 11 schools, six medical clinics, a hospital for 7,000 patients, a library, and 160 clean-water wells. Zayed University has also established a campus in Afghanistan serving more than 6,400 students. Recent events have shown that the security situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate. But if the conflict is ever to be brought to a peaceful conclusion it will only be through humanitarian aid and the completion of the much-needed infrastructure improvements. A strong military presence is the only way to make such efforts effective and permanent. UAE soldiers are acting under the precept that fanaticism and extremism cannot thrive in the same space as economic growth, education and respect for the rule of law. The UAE Constitution provides for humanitarian military operations by stipulating that the armed forces may be used defensively. Such a principle can be extended to include the defence of citizens of other nations. Those who would see the fighting in Afghanistan through a prism of inextricable cultural or religious differences - East versus West, or Christian versus Muslim - do a disservice to the Afghan people, whose concerns are far more immediate. Unlike the US-led invasion of Iraq, the rebuilding of Afghanistan was sanctioned by a broad swathe of the international community. With its combined military and humanitarian commitment, the UAE Government recognises that Afghans should not be made casualties in a proxy war of abstract ideas. Instead, this conflict transcends hollow talk of a "clash of civilisations" - a tired litany, indeed - to present a challenge to those nations who are willing to act in the defence of human dignity. We applaud the UAE's resolve - and the courage and commitment of its soldiers and aid workers. Peace advocate speaking at FSU warns of crisis in Afghanistan
The News-Press, Florida - Local & State The United States and the international community are not succeeding in Afghanistan and the Taliban is extending its reach to urban areas, a peace advocate warned today. "The resurgence of the Taliban today (means) they are more capable than they were two years ago," said Mark Schneider, senior vice president of the International Crisis Group, a nonprofit organization which advises governments on policies to avoid violence. "Unfortunately what that means is we're not succeeding." Schneider spoke at Florida State University as part of the Human Rights and National Security in the 21st Century summer lecture series, which attracted about a 100 people. The series, put on by the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights, examines human rights interests and national security imperatives within the context of the U.S.-led war on terror. Schneider said there has been a 600 percent increase in suicides since 2005 in Afghanistan and that 8,000 people died there last year. The only industry thriving in the poverty-stricken country is poppy farming for opium production, Schneider said. And much of that goes undeterred because of widespread corruption, he said. He said much of the resources needed for Afghanistan are being sent to Iraq. Vivian Alarcon said she came to the lecture to help her be a more informed voter for the coming presidential election. "I learned that the situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated and we made a terrible mistake and that's where we should've focused," said Alarcon, 57. Teaching in Kandahar requires bravery Afghan-born teacher, Canadians teaming up to open schools that give Afghan girls a future
The Toronto Star (Canada) An Internet café for Afghan women only: What a concept. Ehsanullah Ehsan, with the help of some benevolent Canadians, took the idea from concept to reality. Just as he fashioned a vocational training academy out of little more than personal initiative, with seed money from an Ottawa couple looking for a charitable project that had "special meaning.'' Today, there are 700 students, mostly female, attending school at the Afghan-Canadian Community Center in Kandahar city, and the Internet café inside its learning compound is constantly bustling with online activity. "Tell Canada that your money is being spent in the right place, at the right time,'' says Ehsan, an Afghan-born educator who has opened private not-for-profit schools in Kandahar, Zabul, Helmand, Uruzgan and Pakistan. But it is this facility, behind protective gates in Kandahar city - incubating locale of the education-loathing Taliban - that has been his most ambitious endeavour. The school opened in January 2007, originally with 200 female students. Since then, it has expanded more than three-fold, opened its courses to male students - whose modest fees help pay for the free education available to girls - and will soon move to larger space. That relocation has been made possible by the announcement last month that Canada, through the Canadian International Development Agency, was donating $60,000 to the facility. It is a visible and vibrant CIDA "capacity-building'' project, and the widely criticized funding agency can point to few of those. "The security situation in Kandahar is not good and girls have difficulty getting an education,'' says Khatera Kaker, 17, a student at the academy for the past year. "Here, I feel safe. And the school is giving us all an opportunity to become something. I want to be a doctor because Afghanistan needs doctors, especially female doctors who can examine female patients.'' There are about a dozen women in the Internet café this afternoon, peering at the screens of donated computers, many provided by Canada's Provincial Reconstruction Team, participating in online courses offered by distance-learning institutions, including the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology. Twelve students have enrolled in their online business management program. "Nobody bothers us at this school,'' adds Amina Haidary, 19, who also wants to be a doctor. "In other areas of the province, the Taliban burn down schools, threaten the students and the teachers. Families are afraid to send their daughters to school even if they want them to get an education.'' The grim facts: Instability and an expanding insurgency in the south is keeping 40,000 children out of school in Kandahar province. Out of 360 existing schools, most built since the Taliban were overthrown in 2001, only 232 were open as of last month; the rest were either put to the flame by anti-education, anti-government militants, shut down because parents fear exposing their children to violence, or closed due to the absence of teachers, themselves routinely threatened with death, often enough slain to make the bloody point. The situation is particularly wretched for girls: only 35 per cent of enrolled students in Afghanistan are female. Currently, one-third of schools operated by the Ministry of Education are boys-only. Further, many parents don't want their daughters being educated by male teachers, yet only 28 per cent of teachers are women. With fighting now a daily occurrence in the five southern provinces - bombings and improvised explosive devices on the roads and gun battles - it is simply not safe to attend school, though many districts struggle on, holding class for hundreds of students at a time under outdoor tents. "It has been very hard, but we are trying to give ourselves a future,'' says Sadia Rochi, who has been teaching English at the centre for the last 18 months. "You have to be very brave to be a teacher in Kandahar these days.'' Ehsan, centre director, adds that it's not just the Taliban who thwart educational objectives in Afghanistan. "The warlords, including some in the government, don't like the idea of enlightenment either. For them, it's better to keep Afghans in the dark.'' It was a story about a Kandahar school two years ago by Star foreign correspondent Mitch Potter that prompted Ryan Aldred and Andrea Caverly to do some good - directly. "I'm just a private citizen who wanted to get involved,'' Aldred explained in an email this week. "I'm also a reservist, so doing a charitable project for Afghanistan has special meaning to me. I used to donate to larger organizations but became sick of not knowing where my donations actually went. "I admit, a project of this size wasn't on my radar when I first spoke to Ehsan. I was just going to help him purchase computers or pay some additional salaries, but once I became aware of what the need was over there, I just wanted to do more.'' What Aldred and Caverly did was set up the Afghan School Project, partnered with Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan, to raise funds that initially allowed the school to operate for six months. Aldred is program director for the project; Caverly is its chief operations officer. Although the project is still awaiting charitable institute status, donors have continued to contribute, stabilizing the centre's existence until finally CIDA came aboard with funding through the Kandahar Local Initiatives Program. But even before CIDA's involvement, the lively centre was one of the most successful development projects in Kandahar. The school offers post-secondary courses in health care - training for student nurses - information and computer technology, business management and English language studies. With these skills, graduates have secured good-paying jobs with international development organizations and prominent Afghan companies such as Roshan, the cellphone provider. "Already, more than 90 of our students have obtained jobs where they are earning up to $1,000 U.S. a month,'' says Ehsan proudly. Soon, he hopes to offer a new course: "Journalism. It appears to be very popular.'' Afghanistan Treasure on Display
NumisMaster.com, WI Ancient coins are featured at the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C., in a joint exhibition with the National Geographic Society and the National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul. It will be open for viewing until Sept. 7. The exhibition includes ancient coins found in the region. Many of the treasures were rediscovered buried in the Central Bank located in the Presidential Palace after being out of sight since 1979 when the Soviet invasion occurred. The treasures escaped the later onslaught of the Taliban, who ruthlessly destroyed many works of art that portrayed deities. A true civilization grew up in the region as early as 2000 B.C. with fortified buildings, including towers. An external danger existed that prompted such construction - providing for the common defense - that resulted in a fortress type city. The early civilization on the Oxus River left no evidence of writing and its history is lost. It predates the minting of coins as well. The discovery of a grave site 40 years ago unearthed a small treasure including a crushed gold cup that displays artwork of bearded bulls, a common symbol with the cultures of Mesopotamia and India. By 500 B.C. the Afghanistan region became part of the Persian Empire and the area became known as Bactria. Trade was established with India and Sieria. In the war with Macedon, Darius was pursued by Alexander the Great into Bactria, where Darius was killed by Bessus, his satrap. The Bactrians were finally defeated in 328 B.C. by Alexander after a severe struggle. Marco Polo visited the ruins of Balkh, the former capital of Bactria. Alexander married the daughter of Darius, supposedly merging the two cultures. Hellenization took effect in the region and Greek language, culture, art and religion developed. Little was known about the precise culture except for the coins of Alexander's successors, the Kings of Bactria, until these modern discoveries, which testify to the Greek culture in Bactria. Found in the same case are two impressive coins. The first is a silver drachm of Mithradates II of Parthia, 123-88 B.C. It is an important although common Ancient numismatic specimen with its typical realistic portrait. Nearby and above the Mithradates II coin is a lovely gold aureus of Tiberius, Emperor of Rome, 14-37 A.D. The reverse portrays Livia as Pax. It is the oldest Roman coin to be found in Afghanistan to date, according to the exhibition catalog. It is believed to have reached Afghanistan by sea and then through India, apparently a Roman trade route. An applique from Tilla Tepe Tomb IV portrays the sons of Herakles drawing lots to divide future kingdoms. In the same case is an Indian gold medallion, first century B.C., with a lion portrayed on the obverse and a figure with a wheel on the reverse. In another case from a different find is a gold imitation of a silver coin of Gotarzes I, 95-90 B.C., of Parthia. The obverse portrait is in excellent detail. The reverse is weaker, perhaps a garbled legend. There is a note in the museum catalog that it was not intended for commercial purposes. However, it possesses a small portrait counterstamp to the right of the Gotarzes portrait. A counterstamp is usually placed on a coin by a merchant to signify its acceptance in commerce, but this could be a vassal ruler creating a coinage. Of great interest is a semi-circular gold ingot that was created by hammering gold objects, possibly including cons, in a stack until they merged into an ingot. A circular coin-shaped disk with the figure of a person as a design element is still visible on the top of the ingot. A note on the ingot states it is booty from the fall of the city in 145 B.C. to the nomads of the steppes, more precisely, the Sakas according to the Columbia Encyclopedia. The ingot was finally broken in two to divide up the booty. The Columbia Encyclopedia dates the fall of Bactria to 130 B.C. and indicates it did not rise again as a state. Sex trade thriving in Afghanistan
LubbockOnline.com, TX GIRLS AND BOYS as young as 10 in Afghanistan are being forced into prostitution with the knowledge, consent and even active insistence of their families. A report by the German aid group Ora International said 39 percent of the sex workers interviewed found clients through their relatives - including 17 percent through their mothers and 15 percent through their husbands. The Ora report drew data from 122 sex workers, of whom less than 1 percent knew about AIDS or condoms. At one family-run brothel, the oldest girl was a 15-year-old, orphaned when her parents died in rocket attacks in Kabul. "Prostitution is in every country that has poverty, and it exists in Afghanistan," says women's rights activist Orzala Ashraf. "But society has black glasses and ignores these problems." Afghanistan is one of the world's most conservative countries, yet its sex trade appears to be thriving. GASOLINE THIEVES GETTING MORE CREATIVE - Soaring gas prices are now being blamed for a rise in gas thefts. And this time it's not just people driving off without paying. Since most cars and trucks built in the last decade have a mesh filter to block siphoning hoses, thieves are turning to new ways to steal gasoline, according to WLWT.com. Creative thieves are punching a hole in the tank and draining out the fuel. SUVs and other vehicles that sit high off the ground are favorite targets because it's easier for crooks to get under them. Many of today's cars have plastic gas tanks, making it even easier for thieves to break them. THIS WEEK'S EXAMPLE OF FELONY STUPIDITY - Frank Keys Jr. faces up to 40 years in prison after he was found cruising down the highway north of New Orleans with more than 200 grams of heroin in the diaper he was wearing. Keys, 38, got in trouble when sheriff's deputies pulled over the car he was in for a traffic violation. A drug-sniffing dog alerted them to the car's passenger side. During a pat-down, Keys told officers he was wearing a diaper and when they asked if there was anything in the diaper, he nodded his head. Officers then removed a package containing about 257 grams of heroin from the diaper. Canada to help rebuild Kandahar prison after breakout
AFP Canada will help rebuild a prison in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar following a mass jailbreak at the site by Taliban militants, the foreign ministry said. "Canada has contributed to both infrastructure and training" at the Sarpoza Prison in Kandahar City, read a foreign ministry statement attributed to Elissa Golberg, Canada's representative in Kandahar province. "We will continue to do so, in keeping with the Government of Canada's priorities for Afghanistan announced by (Foreign) Minister (David) Emerson," read the statement released late Friday. On June 13 a Taliban suicide bomber detonated a bomb that destroyed the main gates of the Sarpoza Prison. Afghan authorities said 886 prisoners fled, more than 380 of whom were Taliban. NATO's International Security Assistance Force said more than 1,100 prisoners fled, while the Taliban militia said that 400 of its own fighters escaped. "On behalf of the government of Canada, I signed a letter on Wednesday confirming Canada's intent to rebuild the wall around Sarpoza Prison," Golberg said. The statement added: "Reports of there being two breaches are incorrect -- there was one breach at the front of the prison, though it was of a tremendous scale." Canada has some 2,500 soldiers stationed in the Kandahar area belonging to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). There are some 70,000 foreign troops total in Afghanistan. Some 27 insurgents have been killed and 20 escapees recaptured during a vast manhunt launched after hundreds of prisoners escaped following a brazen Taliban attack on the facility last week. Laura Bush: busier than the president?
Los Angeles Times, CA Suddenly, it seems like first lady Laura Bush is making more news than the president. Today she's in Vermont, the only state George W. Bush hasn't visited as president (see our earlier post) to deliver remarks about national parks at the Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historic Park in Vermont. "As we celebrate the very start of the summer season, it's a perfect time for us to recommit ourselves to preserving and protecting our fabulous national parks," she said. The president has only two public events on his schedule today -- a photo op with the 2008 presidential scholars and with the 2007 WNBA champion Phoenix Mercury. "They brought new glory to women's athletics and the sport of basketball," Bush said at the team event. "As they like to say, 'Mighty Mercury, we are number one!' And these women proved it." Meanwhile, the president's own first lady was out on the road, giving speeches that if delivered by her husband might have drawn protests. Yesterday she was in Boston for First Bloom, a program that teaches children how to protect fragile ecosystems and create gardens in urban neighborhoods. Last week she made remarks in honor of World Refugee Day. And when the president was in Europe, she gave a speech in Paris to an international donors conference on Afghanistan, pressing for more aid to that country, a cause she also trumpeted in an op-ed piece in The Wall Street Journal and when she traveled solo to Afghanistan, speaking to troops at Bagram Air Force Base. With the president's popularity ratings hitting historic lows -- and Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama battling it out for who has the best and least-plagiarized cookie recipes -- maybe the White House is putting its best ambassador out front. Or maybe Laura Bush has just come into her own. "It's probably a whole lot easier to be a lame duck first lady than it is be a lame duck president," said Jennifer Duffy of the Cook Political Report. Noting Laura Bush's kind words toward Michelle Obama, Duffy said she's "really found her voice" in the second term. "She has the freedom to say these things now. She doesn't have to be partisan." -- Johanna Neuman Photo: Shealah Craighead/White House German to boost Afghan troop limit
Ireland.com - All German defence minister Franz Josef Jung said today that Germany planned to increase the number of troops it can send to Afghanistan by 1,000 later this year. Speaking at a news conference in Berlin, MR Jung said the government wanted to raise the ceiling on German soldiers in the country to 4,500. A parliamenatary mandate which expires in October foresees a maximum of 3,500 German troops in Afghanistan. Germany has been under pressure from NATO partners, particularly the United States, to bolster its troop contingent in Afghanistan and shift soldiers from the north to the more dangerous south to help battle Taliban insurgents. Iran promises another $50m in Afghan aid
Tehran Times, Iran Iran's ambassador to Afghanistan on Monday said Tehran has promised to contribute another USD 50 million to the war-torn country for reconstruction. Fada Hossein Maleki reiterated Iran's initial 50-million-dollar contribution, saying another USD 50 million will be donated to ""renovate Afghan road transportation links."" Maleki referred to the $300 million in aid for private entrepreneurs as ""the most important initiative,"" conceived by the Islamic Republic of Iran at the Paris conference. ""Such funds play critical role in reinforcing Afghanistan infrastructures,"" said the diplomat. He also expressed hope that bilateral commissions give more weigh to private companies. Afghan President Hamid Karzai was promised more than $20 billion dollar at the Paris conference last week. Truce Could Bring Greater Taliban Power
Washington Post, United States The Current Discussion: The Taliban is resurgent in Afghanistan. Rather than sending more troops, is it time to negotiate a truce there? Back when the Americans began the invasion of Afghanistan, if someone would have said that one day they would have to negotiate with the Taliban, he or she would have been called mad and such an event would be considered an impossibility. While formal discussions for a truce may not be on the cards just yet, there are a number of local Taliban commanders who have negotiated settlements with the government of Hamad Karzai. The reality of Afghanistan is not about the Taliban; it's about how this war-ravaged country has sought internal order, and steeped in the history of resisting occupation. After the defeat of the Soviet Union, it became apparent that the warring Mujahideen factions, without exception, had agendas supported by countries in the region and were perhaps the single most-decisive factor that encouraged the growth of the Taliban who were fiercely independent of others, even though Pakistan may be encouraged their formation. While the Taliban model for society is not realistically in tune with modernism and progress and has severe social implications, especially for women, the inability of the Americans and Hamad Karzai to create feasible alternates within Afghan society has meant that the hold of the Taliban has a strong hold at the village and district level. A combination of force, money and tribal alliances make the Taliban prosper, and in some cases, even cut off the region from the Afghan government who may wish to develop projects there. On the other hand, some would argue that Hamad Karzai's government has received huge sums of money for development aid, against which there has been little development to speak off. If there is to be a solution for this unfortunate war-torn country then it must come from within, and, unfortunately, this might mean the Taliban will bargain hard for control. In contrast, Hamad Karzai must create a viable government and bring progress to the people; a task at which he seems to have failed. Even though I would admit there is no alternate to him and his government, personally the thought of the Taliban making a comeback is rather scary. The Taliban may have changed their political dimensions, especially those who now are negotiating with the government, as they resist foreign presence, both of Americans and even al-Qadea, the reality is that should the Taliban share power it shall not be long before they will have established more effective control than was intended to be shared with them. If the aim of the negotiation is to bring peace in some areas this can be encouraged, but the dividend of this peace has to be development of the area for the good of the people and the use of the tribal system to wrest control from the Taliban of these regions. If the aim is to induce the Taliban into a power sharing framework then the consequences will be quite disastrous in the long run. In short, this is not an easy or comfortable situation. It is further complicated by the fact that if the Americans are to leave then I would see the Karzai government collapsing either politically or by the eruption of a civil war. The only bet is to get progress into the villages, win the hearts of the people - and then there is a chance. Please e-mail PostGlobal if you'd like to receive an email notification when PostGlobal sends out a new question. We can win the fight against Taliban, vows army chief
Daily Record, Scotland THE man in charge of driving the Taliban out of Helmand province believes it can be done but will take time. Lt Col Robin Matthews, military spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said military action and civil reconstruction in Afghanistan will win hearts and minds. He told the Daily Record: "This place is a breeding ground for terrorism but the situation has improved dramatically since UK forces came to Helmand. "Now, UK, US and Danish troops control all the major population centres." He added: "The reality is that, strategically, the Taliban are no longer a threat. "Tactically, they may be but that is different from the strategic situation. "They have resorted to desperate measures, including suicide bombers. "Layer upon layer, we are shattering Taliban command and control structures. "This could take some years and that is nothing new in me saying that."
HUMANITARIAN In loving memory of Abdul Samad Ghaus, who will be missed dearly, not just by many, but by all. Samad Ghaus was born on March 24, 1928 and was the son of Ghulam Ghaus Khan, Afghan poet and former Deputy Minister of Commerce, and Violet Ghaus. He graduated from the Afghan French school, Lycée Istiklal, and spent three years studying medicine in the University of Paris, Sorbonne system. After embracing his passion for international relations and his duty to accelerate development in his beloved country Afghanistan, he left his path in medicine to pursue his studies in foreign policy, graduating with a Masters in political science and international relations from the University of Geneva in 1956. He then entered the Afghan Foreign Ministry where he served as Director General of Political Affairs and then Deputy Foreign Minister and advisor to President Mohammad Daoud. For many years, he was also a member of Afghanistan's United Nations Mission, chairing the 1971 Special Political Committee of the General Assembly, and was a proud mentee of Ambassador Abdul Rahman Pazhwak. During his twenty-two-year diplomatic career, he represented Afghanistan at numerous international gatherings, including conferences of the nonaligned nations of Islamic countries, and was able to make good use of his fluency in English and French. During Afghanistan's republican period, he was involved in all major aspects of his country's foreign policy, including top-level talks with leaders of the United States, Soviet Union, and Pakistan. Later, as a researcher and lecturer at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, Mr. Ghaus published the first comprehensive English-language book on Afghan foreign policy written by an Afghan. He is the most senior survivor of the Afghan Foreign Ministry to survive the Soviet-backed coup d' etat of April 1978 and lived to share his account. His book, "The Fall of Afghanistan," was dedicated to the memory of the Afghan martyrs who fell to the Communist onslaught in the early hours of April 28, 1978. After serving time in prison, including the Pul-e-Charchi prison in Kabul, and losing dear friends and colleagues to the brutality of the Communist regime, he managed to escape Afghanistan in a twist of fate and received asylum in the United States through the assistance of Ambassador Theodore L. Eliot and the Tolstoy Foundation, among others. To say that his life changed dramatically, and that he spent the rest of it grieving for Afghanistan, would be an understatement. In particular, the cruel assassinations of President Mohammad Daoud, his family, and Mr. Wahid Abdullah pained him until his death. Despite his sadness and change of lifestyle, he enjoyed the love of many friends, young and old, and the closeness of his family. His wit and intelligence were second to none, and he was always the life of the party. He loved everyone he encountered in his own special way, but he loved his family above all else and never wished to disappoint them. It was his unconditional love and quiet strength that guided those who loved him. He was an exceptionally kind and patient man who's endurance was at times shocking. Despite his gentle nature and natural propensity for avoiding conflict, he held strong convictions which drove him to act only based on his beliefs. He had a loving character and will be known as an enlightened, fair and principled man. A remarkable civil servant: for those who knew him, knew what he stood for, and realized the era that he represented, a chapter has closed.
Samad Ghaus is survived by his son, Harris Ghaus, his daughters Humaira Azimi, Nahil Karim and Hawa Ghaus, and his sisters Humaira Hamidi, Ayesha Khairzada and five grandchildren.
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