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Khalilzad plans shakeup of Afghan peace process

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(Last Updated On: March 8, 2021)

US Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad proposed a shakeup of the stalled peace process this past week, including an interim government and a conference of key players, but his plan faced immediate objections by the warring sides

According to Reuters, a Taliban leader in Doha who spoke on condition of anonymity said Khalilzad raised the possibility of an interim government and a conference with the insurgents’ negotiating team, as well as asking for a ceasefire or reduction in violence by 60-70 percent.

“Khalilzad has come with some ideas and his top agenda is the intra-Afghan dialogue to deliver some tangible results and very soon,” he said.

“We would recommend people with a good reputation for the interim government and this set up would need to work for at least two years to depoliticise all the government departments, including the security establishment,” he said.

They could consider the reduction in violence, but not a ceasefire, the Taliban leader said, and had asked Khalilzad to pressure the Afghan government to release 7,000 more Taliban prisoners, Reuters reported.

“We don’t believe any other conference in any country would help resolve the Afghan conflict,” he said.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, told Reuters they had not yet seen the plan, but if an alternative to talks in Qatar was sought, “it is doomed to failure.”

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meanwhile made a fiery speech in parliament on Saturday, repeating his refusal to step aside for an interim government.

“Any institution can write a fantasy on a piece of paper and suggest a solution for Afghanistan” he said, warning any transfer of power would have to take place through elections as required by the constitution.

Reuters reported that two international officials in Kabul said Ghani’s fierce opposition would be a problem for the plan.

“The problem here is that Ghani can blame the United States directly … by challenging his legitimacy and considering an interim government it implies they are undermining the democratic process,” one of the officials said.

Khalilzad is currently in Doha after having spent three days in Kabul. He is expected however to also visit Islamabad where he will once again call on Pakistan to help push the peace process forward.

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At least 1,500 families affected by recent floods: IRW

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(Last Updated On: April 23, 2024)

The Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) organization has reported that the rains and floods of the last week have claimed the lives of many Afghan and incurred huge financial losses.

According to the organization, a total of 1,500 families have suffered as a result of the recent floods and hundreds of livestock have also been lost.

IRW added that following the recent rains, 900 houses were partially or completely destroyed and 93,000 hectares of agricultural land was damaged.

This comes amid an ongoing economic crisis in Afghanistan which has left millions of people reliant on aid.

The disaster management ministry meanwhile confirmed earlier that 99 people died and 64 others were injured as a result of the heavy rains.

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Russia says US facing humiliation in Ukraine like in Vietnam and Afghanistan

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(Last Updated On: April 22, 2024)

Russia said on Sunday U.S. lawmakers’ support for $60.84 billion more in aid for Ukraine showed that Washington was wading much deeper into a hybrid war against Moscow that would end in humiliation on a par with the Vietnam or Afghanistan conflicts.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said it was clear that the United States wanted Ukraine “to fight to the last Ukrainian” including with attacks on Russian sovereign territory and civilians, Reuters reported.

“Washington’s deeper and deeper immersion in the hybrid war against Russia will turn into a loud and humiliating fiasco for United States such as Vietnam and Afghanistan,” Zakharova said.

Russia, she said, will give “an unconditional and resolute response” to the U.S. move to get more involved in the Ukraine war.

The United States lost more than 58,000 military personnel in the 1955-75 Vietnam War, which ended with Communist North Vietnam’s victory and takeover of the South, while hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed.

In the 2001-2021 war in Afghanistan, the U.S. reported 2,459 dead and over 20,000 wounded in the conflict which ended with the withdrawal of U.S.-led coalition forces and return to power of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA).

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Iran says water is an important factor in expansion of ties with Afghanistan

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(Last Updated On: April 22, 2024)

Iran’s special representative for Afghanistan, Hasan Kazemi Qomi, said on Sunday that water is an important factor in the expansion of bilateral relations, expressing hope that the flow of water to his country will continue.

Qomi said this in a meeting with Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul, the ministry said in a statement.

The envoy expressed gratitude for removing obstacles to the flow of water from the Helmand River to Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran.

Meanwhile, Muttaqi noted that there were good rains in the country this year, as a result of which, after several years of severe drought, Helmand River’s water flowed to Nimroz province of Afghanistan and into Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran.

He assessed the relations between Afghanistan and Iran as “friendly and positive” and hoped relations will expand further in various fields.

During the meeting, Iran’s envoy also thanked the Islamic Emirate for its stance on Israel’s attacks on Gaza and for having condemned the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus.

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