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Former senior US official admits to planning attempted foreign coups

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John Bolton, a former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and former White House national security adviser, said on Tuesday that he had helped plan attempted coups in foreign countries.

Bolton made the remarks to CNN after the day’s congressional hearing into the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. The panel’s lawmakers on Tuesday accused former President Donald Trump of inciting the violence in a last-ditch bid to remain in power after losing the 2020 election, VOA reported.

Speaking to CNN, however, Bolton suggested Trump was not competent enough to pull off a “carefully planned coup d’état,” later adding: “As somebody who has helped plan coups d’état — not here but you know [in] other places — it takes a lot of work. And that’s not what he [Trump] did.”

In 2019, Bolton as national security adviser publicly supported Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido’s call for the military to back his effort to oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro, arguing that Maduro’s re-election was illegitimate. Ultimately Maduro remained in power, VOA reported.

“I feel like there’s other stuff you’re not telling me [beyond Venezuela],” the CNN anchor said, prompting a reply from Bolton: “I’m sure there is.”

Many foreign policy experts have over the years criticized Washington’s history of interventions in other countries, from its role in the 1953 overthrowing of then Iranian nationalist prime minister Mohammad Mosaddegh and the Vietnam war, to its invasions of Iraq and Afghanistan this century, VOA reported.

But it is highly unusual for U.S. officials to openly acknowledge their role in stoking unrest in foreign countries.

“John Bolton, who’s served in highest positions in the U.S. government, including UN ambassador, casually boasting about he’s helped plan coups in other countries,” Dickens Olewe, a BBC journalist from Kenya, wrote on Twitter.

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Over 2.13 million Afghan refugees repatriated from Pakistan

Officials say over 150,000 individuals were returned from Punjab alone, where enforcement efforts are being led by the Punjab Home Department’s Foreign National Security Cell.

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More than 2.13 million Afghan nationals have been repatriated from Pakistan to Afghanistan as part of an ongoing campaign targeting undocumented foreign residents, according to Pakistani authorities cited by local media.

Officials say over 150,000 individuals were returned from Punjab alone, where enforcement efforts are being led by the Punjab Home Department’s Foreign National Security Cell. The campaign includes inspections of thousands of residential areas and hundreds of markets, resulting in numerous detentions and legal cases against Afghan nationals found without valid documentation.

The repatriation process comes amid heightened tensions along key border crossings between the two countries. Hundreds of migrants have recently been sent back via the Chaman crossing, particularly during disruptions at other transit points.

The Torkham crossing—a major gateway for cross-border movement—has faced repeated closures. Although it briefly reopened, local officials in Nangarhar Province report that it was shut again after only a few hours. Authorities in Pakistan have not provided a clear explanation for the latest closure.

According to Sediqullah Quraishi, head of Nangarhar’s Information Department, the crossing was opened temporarily on Thursday before being closed again without official clarification.

Meanwhile, hundreds of Afghan migrants remain in temporary holding centers across Punjab, where they are undergoing registration and processing ahead of their return to Afghanistan. The large-scale repatriation effort continues to raise humanitarian and logistical concerns, particularly as border access remains unpredictable.

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Human Rights Watch calls Pakistani airstrike on Kabul rehab center ‘unlawful’

Patricia Gossman, senior associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said available evidence suggests the strike hit a well-known civilian medical facility.

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Human Rights Watch has condemned a recent Pakistani airstrike on a rehabilitation facility in Kabul, calling it “unlawful” and warning it could amount to a war crime.

The strike, which reportedly took place on March 16, targeted the Omid Drug Rehabilitation Center, located within the former Camp Phoenix complex in eastern Kabul. According to international agencies, at least 143 people were killed and more than 250 others injured, most of them patients undergoing treatment.

Patricia Gossman, senior associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said available evidence suggests the strike hit a well-known civilian medical facility.

“The available evidence indicates that the Pakistani airstrike against a well-known Kabul medical facility killing dozens of patients was unlawful,” she said, adding that authorities must determine why the site was targeted and who should be held accountable.

An employee of the center told the organization that three buildings were struck, including a dining hall, a residential building housing hundreds of patients, and a guard post. At the time of the attack, more than 1,000 patients were reportedly at the facility, many gathered to break their fast during Ramadan.

Human Rights Watch said satellite imagery and visual evidence show extensive destruction across the compound, with multiple structures either destroyed or severely damaged. The organization added that it found no indication the facility was being used for military purposes.

Under international humanitarian law, medical facilities are afforded special protection. The group stressed that attacks failing to distinguish between civilian and military targets, or those causing disproportionate civilian harm, may constitute serious violations of the laws of war.

Human Rights Watch has called on Pakistan to carry out a prompt, impartial investigation and ensure accountability if violations are confirmed.

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Torkham crossing closes again hours after brief reopening

Officials say the reason for the sudden closure has not been clearly communicated by authorities in Pakistan.

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Torkham closed

The key border crossing at Torkham crossing has once again been shut down, just hours after it was temporarily reopened, according to local officials in Nangarhar province.

Sediqullah Quraishi, head of information at the provincial Department of Information and Culture, said that on Thursday the Pakistani side allowed the crossing to open briefly to Afghan migrants. However, the crossing was closed again shortly afterward, leaving many travelers stranded.

Officials say the reason for the sudden closure has not been clearly communicated by authorities in Pakistan.

The Torkham crossing serves as one of the most important transit points between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its repeated closures have caused significant disruption, particularly for migrants, traders, and families who rely on cross-border movement.

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