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Kidnapped Balkh child turns 10 while still being held hostage
Abdul Raouf, the Balkh boy kidnapped six months ago, celebrated his tenth birthday Thursday – a day that saw his emotional parents plead with government to help get their boy back.
The child’s mother said it was extremely difficult for her to not be with her son on his special day – especially as they have celebrated every birthday of his until now.
“Today is Abdul Raouf’s birthday, but he is not with us, and it is very difficult for us today, and if he was with us, we would celebrate his birthday today,” said his mother Zuhra.
The boy’s parents are also devastated about government not having been able to secure the release of their child, six months after he was kidnapped.
In a bid to push government to do more to release the child, the family has carried out a sit-in protest, in tents, outside the Balkh governor’s office for the past five months.
Mohammad Nabi, Abdul Raouf’s father, said that government officials had done nothing to help them except make promises.
“These people (government officials) have a harder heart than a stone and they do not care about anyone, and if they cared about someone, they would have found a clue [to his whereabouts] in six months,” said his father Mohammad Rafi.
One of the protesters said the kidnappers want money in exchange for Abdul Raouf, and every few days the family receives threatening messages.
“Nowadays the kidnappers are demanding one million and two hundred thousand dollars ($1.2 million),” said Kamal, one of the protesters.
Security officials meanwhile have stated they carried out numerous operations in the search for the child and that they have arrested suspects but in recent weeks, no new information has been shared with the media.
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Kremlin says it is very important for Afghanistan’s neighbors to build ties with IEA
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this after Kyrgyzstan removed IEA from its list of banned organizations
The Kremlin has said that it is very important for the neighbors of Afghanistan to build relationships with the Islamic Emirate.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this after Kyrgyzstan removed IEA from its list of banned organizations
«Kyrgyzstan and Afghanistan share a close geographical proximity, and with the Taliban (IEA) now serving as the de facto government in Kabul, Russia understands Kyrgyzstan’s decision to remove the Taliban (IEA) from its list of terrorist organizations,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said during a briefing, 24.kg reported citing TASS news agency.
He explained that establishing connections with the authorities in Kabul is essential for regional stability.
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UN Security Council condemns IEA’s morality law
UN Security Council members urged the IEA to swiftly reverse all the policies and practices that restrict women and girls of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The UN Security Council on Friday condemned the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) morality law, calling on the international community to use its influence to push for an immediate reversal of policies that target Afghan women.
Twelve out of 15 UN Security Council members in a statement condemned “in the strongest terms” the IEA’s restrictions on women and girls in Afghanistan. China, Russia and Algeria did not back the statement.
A diplomat has told The National that Russia and China had said it would be “unfair” to make a judgement on an internal Afghan matter.
UN Security Council members urged the IEA to swiftly reverse all the policies and practices that restrict women and girls of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.
“The Taliban (IEA) need to listen and respond to the voices of Afghan women and girls by respecting their rights to education and for women, to work as well as the freedoms of expression and movement,” said Japan’s ambassador to the UN, Yamazaki Kazuyuki, on behalf of the 12 council members.
“It is a prerequisite for a stable, peaceful and prosperous Afghanistan.”
The council members further emphasised that the IEA’s actions undermine international efforts to engage with them, citing a meeting with UN special envoys in Doha two months ago.
This comes as the IEA has said that laws are made according to the Islamic rules, which should be respected.
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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa CM wants to hold talks with IEA over security
The chief minister said peace in the province was linked to a peaceful Afghanistan.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Khan Gandapur said on Thursday that he had requested the authorities for permission to hold talks with the Afghan government for peace in the province.
“If my request is not considered, I, as the chief minister of KP, will lead our tribal elders to Afghanistan for a dialogue with the interim government,” Gandapur told a tribal jirga at the Chief Minister’s House on Thursday, according to an official statement, Dawn newspaper reported.
The chief minister said peace in the province was linked to a peaceful Afghanistan.
He stressed the need for a clear policy and timeline to eliminate militancy.
“I’ll soon call a meeting of the provincial apex committee on this matter,” he said.
Gandapur urged authorities to take people on board before launching any military offensive against militancy and said no war could be won without the people’s support.
Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that the attacks in this country are orchestrated in Afghanistan and the Islamic Emirate should hand over the TTP leaders to Islamabad.
The Islamic Emirate, however, rejected these claims and said that Afghanistan is not responsible for Pakistan’s “security failure”.
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