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MPs slam govt’s move to include ethnicities in new ID card system
Members of the Wolesi Jirga (Lower House of Parliament) on Wednesday voiced their displeasure over the recent decision by the National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) to categorize ethnic groups in the registration process of the new electronic ID card system.
Some MPs said this decision will create a new crisis in the country.
“The move by the NSIA is a risk to nation building; it will destroy unity among the people… the act is dividing tribes,” said one MP Khan Agha Rezayee.
“The government makes problems for people and divides tribes into categories. This is against the Constitution; it will fuel tribal discrimination. If government does not control this, the response will be very tough and uncontrollable, ” said Zalmay Noori, another MP.
“The NSIA’s decision is against the Constitution; 15 tribes are mentioned in the Constitution; the decision is against the law that we passed,” said Makhdom Abdullah Mohammadi, an MP.
However some MPs came out in support of the move.
“Some tribes want to see their tribe name on their ID cards,” said MP Niamat Karyab.
First deputy speaker of the house, Javid Jaihoon, meanwhile called on government to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
“We call on government to solve the problem based on the articles of the Constitution and to end concerns around this issue,” said Jaihoon.
According to MPs, government needs to encourage unity among tribes and avoid creating division.
This comes after the NSIA announced earlier this month that it had classified a number of ethnic groups and tribes into categories in the online registration form for new electronic ID cards.
Based on the list, all Pashtuns in Afghanistan are classified into one ethnic group but the rest of the groups such as Tajiks, Hazaras, and Uzbeks are each divided into several tribes.
Politicians are among those who believe the NSIA’s list “deliberately” fuels disunity among the people of Afghanistan especially as the organization has categorized ethnic groups based on their “villages, districts and tribes.”
Second Vice President Sarwar Danish said the list lacks “scientific and practical” elements and this in itself could lead to disputes in the country.
“Hasty decisions would question the government and create divisions and mistrust among our people,” Mohammad Hedayat, the head of Danish’s media office said.
Meanwhile, former Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani stated that the NSIA has intentionally planned to divide ethnicities based on districts and villages.
Atta Mohammad Noor, Chief Executive of Jamiat-e-Islami Party, claimed that the NSIA is not “aware of the difference between an ethnicity and place of residency.”
“This government organization is not yet aware of this important fact that there is a huge difference between an ethnicity and the residence of a group, and you can never count the name of the location as the ethnicity of a specific people,” said Ahmad Afzal Hadid, Head of Balkh Provincial Council.
Abdullah Abdullah, Chairman of the High Council for National Reconciliation, also spoke out against the NSIA’s decision and called the list a “mistake.”
Abdullah called on the organization to rectify the issue.
The NSIA, however, claimed that its decision was made at the request of the people.
“This decision was made as per the request of a number of tribal elders and the interpretation of the third part of Article 4 of the Constitution,” said Roeina Shahabi, the spokesperson for the NSIA.
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Afghan official slams Shehbaz Sharif’s ‘shameful’ claims on Islamic unity
Khubaib Ghufran, spokesperson for Afghanistan’s Ministry of Information and Culture, sharply criticized Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif over his recent claims about Islamic unity in relation to the war in Iran, calling them “shameful.”
On his X account, Ghaffran wrote: “You praised Trump as a hero of the Gaza peace plan, yet today you claim Islamic unity regarding Iran in a war that the same criminal (Trump) and his allies initiated?”
He added that while Afghanistan is governed under an Islamic system, Shehbaz Sharif has shown no compassion even toward the most vulnerable groups—from children to women and drug addicts—and that this cruelty persisted even during the holy month of Ramadan.
Ghaffran described Sharif’s stance as a “grave shame” and a stark example of “historical hypocrisy.”
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Airstrike on Kabul drug rehabilitation centre sparks legal concerns
Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Research, Isabelle Lassee, said the scale of casualties suggests the presence of a significant civilian population at the site.
An airstrike on a drug rehabilitation facility in Kabul has drawn sharp criticism from Amnesty International, raising serious questions about compliance with international humanitarian law.
The strike, carried out on 16 March, targeted a site at Camp Phoenix, a former military base that has functioned largely as a rehabilitation centre since 2016. Pakistani officials have claimed the attack was aimed at an ammunition depot allegedly located within the compound.
Responding to those claims, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Research, Isabelle Lassee, said the scale of casualties suggests the presence of a significant civilian population at the site.
“While the total number of casualties has yet to be independently verified, it is clear that the attack caused extensive civilian harm, with reports indicating hundreds killed or injured,” she said.
Lassee emphasized that the facility was widely known to house civilians undergoing treatment, and warned that any military action should have taken this into account. “Pakistan’s military should have taken all feasible precautions to avoid harming civilians and civilian infrastructure,” she added.
She further noted that even if a military target had been present within the compound, international law requires that any strike be proportionate, ensuring that civilian harm is not excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage.
“The scale of destruction raises serious concerns about whether an adequate proportionality assessment was conducted and whether sufficient steps were taken to verify the target and minimize civilian casualties,” Lassee said.
Amnesty International has called on Pakistani authorities to disclose the intelligence behind the strike and to launch an independent, impartial, and transparent investigation into the incident. The organization stressed that findings should be made public to ensure accountability.
The group also urged all parties involved in the conflict to adhere strictly to international humanitarian law and to protect civilian infrastructure, including medical and rehabilitation facilities.
The airstrike formed part of Pakistan’s “Operation Ghazab Lil Haq,” which included strikes in both Kabul and Nangarhar Province. The targeted rehabilitation centre, known as Omid, reportedly had the capacity to accommodate around 2,000 individuals.
Casualty figures remain contested. Islamic Emirate officials claim more than 400 civilians were killed and over 200 injured, though these numbers have not been independently verified. The United Nations has so far confirmed 143 deaths.
The strike comes amid escalating tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan. According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, at least 76 civilian casualties had already been recorded since the conflict intensified in February.
Pakistani officials, meanwhile, reported civilian casualties on their side of the border, including four deaths in Bajaur district on 15 March and the killing of a child in North Waziristan earlier in the month, allegedly due to cross-border fire from Afghanistan.
The latest developments underscore growing concerns about civilian safety as hostilities between the two countries continue to intensify.
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