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Journalists, activists slam evacuees for faking their professions

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(Last Updated On: September 27, 2021)

The Afghanistan Civil Society And Journalist Group has lashed out at Afghans who have tried to evacuate under the guise of being journalists and civil society activists.

The group’s officials say that although most journalists have chosen to stay in Afghanistan, the actions by civilians pretending to be journalists and activists is an insult to the media and to media workers.

Journalists in turn have also spoken out against foreign countries for not vetting applicants properly, which has enabled scores of people to leave the country posing as journalists.

While all Afghans have the right to travel abroad, thousands of people reportedly produced fake documents that got them safe passage to foreign countries.

Civil society groups and journalists see the move as a blatant insult and say a distinction must be made between real journalists and fake journalists, as many journalists want to stay in their country and continue working.

“Interestingly, out of thirty-four million people, nine million have introduced themselves as journalists, which is an obvious insult to journalists, and journalists are the voice of the people, and journalists value everyone, and the identities were not checked during evacuation.

“It was a tragedy and the responsibility lies with the world,” said Nasir Ahmad Akhtarzai, head of Afghanistan Civil Society And Journalist Group.

“The international community has evacuated journalists and civil activists from Afghanistan, and the Islamic Emirate must prosecute those involved in forging journalists documents,” said Frozan Khalilyar, a female activist.

The Afghanistan Civil Society And Journalist Group, meanwhile, insists that people have forged press cards and media documents in exchange for money.

At the same time, a number of journalists said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan should provide the necessary ground for media activities to continue.

“With the support of the Islamic Emirate, the media coverage space should not be limited, because most journalists, especially women, have resigned, most journalists are present in Afghanistan and others have left the country in the name of journalists,” said Farkhunda Mohibi, a journalist.

“The system must have a clear strategy for freedom of expression and journalistic activities and partner with the media, because there is a great concern that many people have abused the name of the journalist and gone abroad,” said Sarajuddin Patan, a journalist.

However, these civil activists and journalists emphasize that this concern has no political aspect and the main purpose is to identify real and fake journalists; and they called on the international community to assess documents of those who have been evacuated to foreign countries claiming to be journalists.

This comes after Bloomberg News reported that Kam Air, a private Afghan airline, evacuated at least 155 relatives of Kam Air executives to Abu Dhabi on a flight meant for journalists and activists.

According to the report, relatives of the airline’s leadership were crammed into the half-empty plane at the last moment.

After the plane landed in the United Arab Emirates, the US State Department discovered the evacuees were not on the list, according to the report.

Officials at Kam Air denied the claims, saying the company was not picking evacuees. The company was only responsible for transferring them, they said.

“We had only two flights–to Abu Dhabi and Tbilisi. They went according to the list. Because many people remain in Afghanistan, they make these claims that Kam Air took some families and relatives,” said Mohammad Dawood Sharifi, Kam Air chief executive.

The passengers who were allegedly not on the list are reportedly still in Abu Dhabi and their fate is uncertain.

 

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Kabul police summons Afghan YouTuber Hamayon

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

Afghanistan’s YouTuber Hamayon Afghan was summoned to the police station for publishing a woman’s interview without her permission, Kabul police said.

The spokesman of Kabul Police Khalid Zadran said Friday on X that Hamayon interviewed an old woman and published the report without her permission.

“After the interview, the interviewee’s family complained to the police and the police summoned Hamayon Afghan to the police station,” said Zadran.

Zadran stated that police are working to solve the problem with the two sides’ agreement as soon as possible.

He urges people to avoid posting rumors on the issue.

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Contract worth $53 million signed for construction of last section of Khaf–Herat railway

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

A contract worth $53 million was signed Thursday for the construction of the last section of Khaf-Herat railway that connects Afghanistan with Iran.

The contract was signed between Afghanistan Railway Authority and Gamma Group in the presence of Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, his office said in a statement.

The segment is 47-kilometer long, stretching from Rabat Parian to Herat International Airport and the Industrial Town, according to the statement.

It added that completion and standard operational readiness are expected within approximately two years.

“Upon its completion, this segment will integrate the Khaf-Herat regional connectivity project with Iran’s significant seaports and facilitate access to Europe via the Turkish railway network,” the statement said.

“Furthermore, traversing Afghan territory, it will bolster commercial exchanges between Central and South Asia. Notably, this project’s realization will enable the expansion of railway networks into Farah, Nimruz, Helmand, and Kandahar provinces,” it added.

Gamma operates across Europe and Asia in multiple sectors including construction, renewable energy, power transmission, mining, railways among others.

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US urges IEA to fulfill counter-terrorism commitments

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

The US State Department said on Thursday that Washington is committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be a launching pad for terrorism.

“We remain committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be a launching pad for terrorism, and we continue to push the Taliban (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) to fulfill all of their counterterrorism commitments to the international community,” the department’s spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a news briefing in Washington.

He reiterated that the United States had clearly communicated to the IEA that it’s their responsibility to ensure that “they give no safe haven to terrorists, whether it be Al Qaeda or ISIS-K or any other terrorist organization”.

Miller also reassured US allies that Washington was closely watching the developments in Afghanistan and was ready to deal with any threat emerging from the region.

“We remain vigilant against the evolving threat of these terrorist groups, and our global coalition to defeat ISIS and the C5+1 help intensify our efforts to monitor terrorist threats from the region and prevent their ability to raise funds, travel, and spread propaganda,” he said.

C5+1 refers to a diplomatic platform involving the five Central Asian states (Kazakhstan, Kyrgy­zstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) and the United States. It serves as a forum for discussing and addressing regional issues such as security, economic development, and cooperation.

“The United States remains vigilant against the evolving threat posed by terrorist groups, including ISIS-K, and has maintained an unwavering focus on terrorism since President Joe Biden took office three years ago,” Miller said.

The US, he said, was “working both unilaterally and with its partners to successfully disrupt threats across the globe and degrade ISIS”.

“We will continue to work to hold ISIS accountable for its actions and to prevent terrorist attacks against the United States and other Western countries,” Miller said.

This comes as IEA has repeatedly said that it is committed to not allowing anyone to use Afghanistan soil against any other country.

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