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Pakistan Should Help to Reduce Violence in Afghanistan: U.S. General

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(Last Updated On: October 24, 2022)

A top U.S. general on Monday urged Pakistan to make a commitment towards reducing violence in Afghanistan and encourage Taliban to pursue peace talks with the Afghan government.

Addressing a joint news conference on Monday in Kabul, the commander of the U.S. Central Command, General Joseph Votel said that their role in Afghanistan is to support the Afghan peace process.

“Our role here is to be as supportive as we can be to the Afghan-led, Afghan-owned peace process. So we are gonna do everything we can to support that process,” he said.

General Votel, meanwhile, said that Pakistan has shown some positive indications in the fight against terrorism in the region, but he believes Islamabad should make a commitment to helping to lower the violence in Afghanistan. 

“There have been some positive indications and some things that Pakistan has done, but what we really need, we really need Pakistan to make a commitment to helping to lower the violence here in Afghanistan and to be as helpful as it can be and encouraging the Taliban to pursue these peace opportunities that are before us right now,” he added.

Referring to recent reports of indirect talks between Afghan Taliban and U.S. officials, the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan General John Nicholson said: “With respect to specific negotiations, of course, you can talk to the State Department.”

“We are going to work with Afghanistan and we are willing to support and participate in these peace talks with the Taliban,” Nicholson said.

He further said that they had two peace offers on the table; the unconditional peace offer which was made by President Ashraf Ghani and an open letter by the Taliban to the American people.

“In this letter, they outlined the basic elements of a negotiation and position. So when you put these two positions side by side and now you have the starting point for a negotiation,” Nicholson said.

Regarding the arrival of Afghan Vice President General Abdul Rashid Dostum in Kabul, the Nicholson said: “With respect to First Vice President Dostum returning, from a security perspective, we hope this leads to a greater stability in the north-west part of the country.”

“But with respect to other dimensions, it is a matter for the Afghan government and of course we and the United States respect the rule of law.”

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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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