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Travel ban waiver necessary for engagement with IEA: China

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(Last Updated On: August 26, 2022)

Extending travel ban exemptions for leaders of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) is necessary for world’s engagement with the government, China’s ambassador to the United Nations has said.

A UN Security Council waiver allowing 13 IEA leaders, including Acting Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, to travel abroad expired last Friday, after member states failed to agree on a possible extension in the exemptions.

Zhang Jun, the Permanent Representative of China to UN, said that engagement with IEA is “very much necessary since Afghanistan is at a critical stage.”

“We cannot say that we want the Afghanistan government to do something but meanwhile we do not give them any chance to have access to the international community and we cut off their linkage with other countries. That is not reasonable,” Zhang said.

He said that China wants IEA to make efforts on ensuring the rights of women and girls, but it is “not right” to isolate the Afghan government because of the concerns in this regard.

China and Russia have called for an extension, while the United States and Western nations have sought a reduced list of IEA officials allowed to travel, claiming IEA has failed to ensure women’s rights and form an inclusive government.

“Chinese seek their own economic interests in all countries and do not involve themselves in political and military affairs. They are not at a level to have presence in a country. They are only interested in taking Afghanistan’s resources,” said Sayed Ishaq Gelani, leader of National Solidarity Movement of Afghanistan.

Anas Haqqani, a senior member of IEA, said that pressuring IEA failed over the past 20 years, and instead the world should step up engagement with the new government.

“The world still intends to confront us, it creates conspiracies, it disrupts our security. This is very disappointing. But our door of engagement is still open to them,” Haqqani aid.

The United States and allied nations have proposed granting the travel waiver to a lower number of IEA officials and limiting their travel only to Qatar, where US officials have routinely held talks with IEA delegates in recent months.

China and Russia, however, advocated allowing all 13 officials of IEA, which seized power in Afghanistan a year ago, to continue to travel.

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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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IEA condemns Israel for confiscating 800 hectares of land in West Bank’s Jordan Valley

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) strongly condemned on Thursday Israel’s decision to seize 800 hectares of land in the occupied West Bank’s Jordan Valley region.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry said that the recent actions by “the Zionist regime demonstrate that it does not to adhere to international laws, especially international humanitarian law.”

“Continuation of such unilateral actions and ignoring the rights of Palestinian people will further deteriorate the situation,” the statement said.

“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan expects international actors, particularly influential regional Muslim countries to fulfill their legitimate, human and moral responsibilities in supporting the oppressed people of Palestine and prevent the expansion of illegal settlements in the occupied territories,” it added.

Israeli media have reported that Israel seized 800 hectares of land in the Jordan Valley region of the occupied West Bank, claiming it as “state land.”

It is reported the seized land could be used for the construction of illegal Jewish settlements.

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