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Rival Taliban factions agree on ceasefire; leader Mansour absent

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Last Updated on: October 25, 2022

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Rival factions of the Afghan Taliban agreed to stop deadly infighting, officials said, but tensions remained over the status of new leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour, who has not been seen since reportedly being shot last month.

Leadership of the Taliban has been in dispute since the confirmation last July of the death of the hard-line Islamist insurgency’s founder, Mullah Mohammad Omar, nearly two years previously.

Despite leadership disputes, the Taliban have made big advances this year, inflicting heavy casualties on Afghan forces fighting largely on their own since the withdrawal of most foreign combat troops last year.

On Friday, representatives of a splinter group headed by Mullah Mohammad Rasool Akhund calling itself the ulema, which rejects Mansour’s authority, travelled to an undisclosed location to meet the exiled insurgency leadership headed by Mansour, according to two senior officials from both camps.

“We agreed on ceasefire and prisoners’ swap, but the ulema were not given access to Mansour,” Mullah Abdul Manan Niazi, Rasool’s deputy, told Reuters by telephone.

Niazi said the delegation was only able to meet Mansour’s deputy, Haibatullah Akhund, who told the representatives that from now on, Mullah Mansour would not meet people because of security issues.

The secrecy surrounding Mullah Mansour, and its similarity to the Taliban public narrative pushed by Mansour for two years while Mullah Omar was actually dead, has raised new suspicions among the dissident Taliban commanders.

“Like many other people, we also believe that Mullah Mansour is dead and that’s why his deputy ‎Sheikh Haibatullah refused access to the ulema council to him,” Niazi told Reuters.

Written by: Reuters

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Continued aid to Afghanistan vital for regional security: Kazakh president

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Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has emphasized the continuation of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, stating that the ongoing provision of such aid plays an important role in ensuring regional security.

Speaking at the international conference “Peace and Trust” in Ashgabat, the capital of Turkmenistan, Tokayev described addressing complex humanitarian challenges and the reconstruction of Afghanistan as a necessity.

“To ensure regional security, we consider it essential to continue providing assistance to Afghanistan, including by strengthening international efforts to address complex humanitarian issues and the reconstruction of this country. Kazakhstan remains committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan through humanitarian aid, educational projects, trade development, and food security initiatives,” he said.

Meanwhile, experts believe that sustainable improvement of the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan requires broad cooperation from the international community and support for the country’s economic development.

“Investment can be defined as one of the fundamental drivers of the economic cycle, and whenever Afghan traders do not take their money out of the country and instead invest domestically, it naturally leads to greater growth and dynamism in Afghanistan’s economy,” said Abdul Zahoor Modabber, an economic analyst.

As the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan continues, reports by international relief organizations indicate that millions of citizens of the country are in urgent need of food, health, and livelihood assistance.
The reduction in funding for aid organizations, the impacts of climate change, and the return of migrants have increased concerns about a further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in the country.

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Islamic Emirate declines to attend Tehran meeting on Afghanistan

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The Islamic Emirate has announced that it will not participate in the upcoming meeting of special envoys of regional countries on Afghanistan, scheduled to be held in Tehran, despite having received an invitation.

In a statement, Zia Ahmad Takal, Head of Information and Public Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Islamic Emirate has maintained continuous and active engagement with all regional countries through various organizations, regional formats, and bilateral mechanisms, achieving notable progress in promoting mutual understanding and regional cooperation.

The statement added that Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes regional cooperation should be advanced by strengthening existing mechanisms and formats within the region.

Tehran is set to host the meeting next week, with special envoys from Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, China, and Russia expected to attend.

 
 
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Sirajuddin Haqqani: A government that intimidates its people is not a true government

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Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Minister of Interior of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, said during a visit to Khost province on Friday that any government which rules through fear cannot be considered a true government.

“A government is one that is loved by its people, one that serves them with respect and compassion, and from whose behavior people learn ethics and sincerity,” he said.

Haqqani also stressed that Afghans who opposed the Islamic Emirate in the past should be tolerated and treated in a way that helps eliminate hostility and animosity, paving the way for national cohesion.

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