Afghanistan: Germany hints at reopening Kabul embassy

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has said a German Embassy could reopen — under certain conditions. Elsewhere, India has, for the first time, held talks with the Taliban.
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Read more at: Afghanistan: Germany hints at reopening Kabul embassy — live updates | News | DW | 01.09.2021

Afghanistan - Biden between a rock and a hard place: Taliban Spokesman Says Afghans Will No Longer be Allowed to Leave Their Country

“We are not in favor of allowing Afghans to leave,” Mujahid said at a press conference. He said Americans “have the opportunity” and “all the resources” to “take all the people that belong to them, but we are not going to allow Afghans to leave and we will not extend the deadline.”

Read more at: Taliban Spokesman Says Afghans Will No Longer be Allowed to Leave Their Country

Afghanistan: Taliban′s newly ′moderate′ claims fade in face of harsh reality

While Taliban officials insisted in press conferences and statements to media outlets that they will hold members of the militant group accountable for their actions and investigate reports of reprisals, evidence of violence and atrocities carried out by the group continued to emerge Saturday.

The Taliban said it is preparing to form a new government and will roll out those plans in the coming weeks. The earliest days of the group's return to the capital of Kabul have left many worried that even as the Taliban tries to strike a conciliatory tone, the group's actions belie the same ruthless barbarism that defined its time in power from 1999 to 2001.

Read more at: Afghanistan: Taliban′s newly ′moderate′ claims fade in face of harsh reality | News | DW | 21.08.2021

Afghanistan: China and Russia: Why They Want Good Relations With the Taliban

Now that the U.S. has pulled out of Afghanistan and the Taliban are in control, China and Russia have been establishing relations with the new leaders. Russia wants to ensure that the instability in Afghanistan does not spill over into Central Asia, part of the former Soviet Union it regards as its own backyard, and that it does not become a launchpad for other extreme Islamist groups. To avoid this, Russia appears to be publicly acknowledging the Taliban as the leaders of Afghanistan and saying that Moscow’s long campaign to build ties with the Taliban appeared now to be paying off.

Read more at: China and Russia: Why They Want Good Relations With the Taliban - Impakter

EU eyes talks with Taliban but no plans to recognize them - by Lorne Cook and Kirsten Grieshaber

The European Union has no immediate plans to recognize the Taliban after their sweeping victory in Afghanistan but will talk with the militants to ensure that European citizens and Afghans who have worked with the EU can leave safely, the bloc’s top diplomat said Tuesday.

peaking after leading emergency talks among the EU’s foreign ministers, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also underlined the importance of opening talks with the Taliban to help prevent a new exodus of refugees as a humanitarian crisis unfolds in the conflict-ravaged country.

“We have to get in touch with the authorities in Kabul, whatever they are. The Taliban have won the war, so we will have to talk with them,” Borrell told reporters. “This dialogue will also have to focus on the means to prevent the return of foreign terrorists.”

“It’s not a matter of official recognition, it’s a matter of dealing with” the Taliban, Borrell said.

The EU has decided to suspend development assistance to the Afghan government now that the Taliban has seized power, but the 27-nation bloc is weighing whether to boost humanitarian aid.

Read more at: EU eyes talks with Taliban but no plans to recognize them | World | stltoday.com

Afghanistan: Taliban promise peace at Kabul news conference as rescue mission launched to save 6,000 Brits

Homira Rezai, who grew up in the war-torn country until she was 13 and now lives in Dudley, described how the militants were already drawing up lists of women to target for future punishments.

She told BBC Women's Hour: "Just an hour ago, I received an update from Kabul where they are going house to house searching for women who were activists, women who were bloggers, YouTubers, any women who had a role in the development of civil society in Afghanistan.

"They are going door to door targeting those women and marking the doors with bright pink or bright-coloured paint to ensure 'this is the house we need to come back to and do something about them'."

Read more at: Afghanistan news latest: Taliban promise peace at Kabul news conference as rescue mission launched to save 6,000 Brits

Afghanistan Press conference: Taliban seek to reassure U.S., protect Afghan women to extent of Islamic law

The Islamic Emirate is committed to the rights of women within the framework of Sharia," Mujahid said, according to The Guardian. "Our sisters have the same rights, will be able to benefit from their rights.

"They can have activities in different sectors and different areas on the basis of our rules and regulations, educational, health and other areas."

Read more at: Taliban seek to reassure U.S., protect Afghan women to extent of Islamic law - UPI.com

Afghanistan: What now to avoid disaster? - by Mohammad Ismail

Lets face it: NATO (US and its Atlantic Alliance partners) have lost their 20 year war against the Taliban, just like the Russians did before them. Apart from the tragic loss of lives during this time span, of not only US soldiers, but also many from the NATO European partner Nations, this disastrous war also wasted billions of Euros and US dollars of taxpayers money. Hopefully this military catastrophe will not be shovelled under the mat, and result in thorough investigations by the political establishments of the US and all NATO country member nations. Indeed the Afghanistan NATO mission has turned into another NATO disaster.

Read more at: Afghanistan: What now to avoid disaster? - Atlantic Council

Afghanistan: Taliban captures strategic district close to Kabul

Militants took control of the district building on Tuesday and torched it, according to provincial officials. The district center of Nirkh has been under siege by the Taliban for at least a week. The Taliban said it had captured munitions from stockpiles in the district.

Nirkh is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) away from Kabul. It could be used by militants as a gateway to reach Kabul and launch attacks on the Afghan capital. Several important highways connecting Afghanistan's central and southern provinces go through Nirkh.

Read more at: Afghanistan: Taliban captures strategic district close to Kabul | News | DW | 12.05.2021

Afghanistan: Biden says US to leave Afghanistan on September 11 after a 20 year war against the Taliban the US did not win

US President Joe Biden is set to announce the withdrawal of all US troops from Afghanistan by September 11, an official told reporters on condition of anonymity on Tuesday.

The symbolic date, 20 years to the day of the historic terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in New York, will end the longest war in the US history.

Read more at: Biden says US to leave Afghanistan on September 11 | News | DW | 13.04.2021

NATO in a quandary as it awaits Joe Biden′s Afghanistan plans

A group in Washington co-chaired by retired General Joseph Dunford, who served both as commander of US and NATO troops in Afghanistan and as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned the Biden team that it should immediately begin negotiating for an extension of the deadline. The Afghanistan Study Group's conclusions include that "withdrawal in May under current conditions will likely lead to a collapse of the Afghan state and a possible renewed civil war" in addition to a "reconstitution of the terrorist threat to the US homeland within 18 months to three years."

Read more at: NATO in a quandary as it awaits Joe Biden′s Afghanistan plans | Asia| An in-depth look at news from across the continent | DW | 16.02.2021

Afghanistan: US-Talibon Agreement guaranteed to fail

The agreement, warned Rep. Barbara Lee, "leaves thousands of troops in Afghanistan and lacks the critical investments in peacebuilding, human-centered development, or governance reform needed to rebuild Afghan society."

A Fake Deal ? USA-Taliban-Afghanistan

The Taliban have agreed to sever ties with al-Qaida and other international terror groups and sit down for peace talks with other Afghans, including a government they have always denounced as a US puppet. In return, Washington will start a phased withdrawal of troops.

Troop levels will be cut to 8,600 over the next 135 days and five bases will be closed. If both sides keep to their commitments, all U.S. military forces could leave Afghanistan by spring 2021, although Washington is thought to want to keep intelligence operatives on the ground fighting Isis and al-Qaida.

According to Lee, nobody should be fooled into thinking that this is a "peace" agreement.

"It leaves thousands of troops in Afghanistan and lacks the critical investments in peacebuilding, human-centered development, or governance reform needed to rebuild Afghan society," the Congresswoman said.

As peace advocates have been saying since even before the U.S. invasion took place in 2001, following the attacks of September 11, there was never a military solution to the situation in Afghanistan. That remains true today.

"Two decades of trying to bomb our way to peace have made clear: there is no U.S. military solution in Afghanistan," said Stephen Miles, executive director of Win Without War, in a statement.

While the reduction in U.S. military presence "is a welcome step," Stephens said, the agreement "utterly fails to confront the underlying logic of military occupation, lacks any strategy for long-term peace, and falls far short of accountability and justice. It is no 'peace deal.'"

Like Lee, Stephens said a deal that leaves nearly two-thirds of current U.S. forces in Afghanistan for 'counterterrorism' purposes—"bringing levels down to about where they were when Trump entered office"—cannot be considered a peace deal. While the drawdown can be considered a positive development, he said, the agreement "is far from an end to endless war—and further still from anything that would ensure stability, peace, and justice after decades of violence."

Read more at: "So-Called ‪'Peace Deal' Is Anything But": Critics Warn US-Taliban Deal Exposes Fallacies of Endless War Paradigm | Common Dreams News

Taliban-US Deal IS A Fake Deal: "So-Called ‪'Peace Deal' Is Anything But": Critics Warn US-Taliban Deal Exposes Fallacies of Endless War Paradigm

The agreement, warned Rep. Barbara Lee, "leaves thousands of troops in Afghanistan and lacks the critical investments in peacebuilding, human-centered development, or governance reform needed to rebuild Afghan society."

A Fake Deal ? USA-Taliban-Afghanistan

The Taliban have agreed to sever ties with al-Qaida and other international terror groups and sit down for peace talks with other Afghans, including a government they have always denounced as a US puppet. In return, Washington will start a phased withdrawal of troops.

Troop levels will be cut to 8,600 over the next 135 days and five bases will be closed. If both sides keep to their commitments, all U.S. military forces could leave Afghanistan by spring 2021, although Washington is thought to want to keep intelligence operatives on the ground fighting Isis and al-Qaida.

According to Lee, nobody should be fooled into thinking that this is a "peace" agreement.

"It leaves thousands of troops in Afghanistan and lacks the critical investments in peacebuilding, human-centered development, or governance reform needed to rebuild Afghan society," the Congresswoman said.

As peace advocates have been saying since even before the U.S. invasion took place in 2001, following the attacks of September 11, there was never a military solution to the situation in Afghanistan. That remains true today.

"Two decades of trying to bomb our way to peace have made clear: there is no U.S. military solution in Afghanistan," said Stephen Miles, executive director of Win Without War, in a statement.

While the reduction in U.S. military presence "is a welcome step," Stephens said, the agreement "utterly fails to confront the underlying logic of military occupation, lacks any strategy for long-term peace, and falls far short of accountability and justice. It is no 'peace deal.'"

Like Lee, Stephens said a deal that leaves nearly two-thirds of current U.S. forces in Afghanistan for 'counterterrorism' purposes—"bringing levels down to about where they were when Trump entered office"—cannot be considered a peace deal. While the drawdown can be considered a positive development, he said, the agreement "is far from an end to endless war—and further still from anything that would ensure stability, peace, and justice after decades of violence."

Read more at: "So-Called ‪'Peace Deal' Is Anything But": Critics Warn US-Taliban Deal Exposes Fallacies of Endless War Paradigm | Common Dreams News

Afghanistan: After 18 bloody years, U.S. signs deal to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan. It's not over yet

With the exception of the wars with American Indians from 1788-1890, the Afghan war has been America’s longest. For the Afghans, the war stretches back four decades to the Soviet invasion and the internecine fighting that followed Moscow’s withdrawal in 1988. Estimates of the U.S. cost of the war range widely because there is no uniform way the White House or Congress tallies or allocates the money. One estimate puts it at about $1 trillion while another puts it at $2 trillion. But neither of those numbers include future interest on debt incurred to pay for the wars, estimated by one researcher at an additional $7.9 trillion by the 2050s. Nor does it cover the cost to the Department of Veterans Affairs for caring for injured U.S. veterans, including tens of thousands who have suffered traumatic brain injuries.

Said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in Doha for the ceremony: “The future of Afghanistan is for Afghans to determine. The U.S.-Taliban deal creates the conditions for Afghans to do just that.”  On Friday, Donald Trump said, “If the Taliban and the government of Afghanistan live up to these commitments, we will have a powerful path forward to end the war in Afghanistan and bring our troops home.”

Just getting the Taliban to the table with the nation’s leaders was a difficult step. The Taliban have rejected the legitimacy of the Kabul government, calling it a “puppet regime” that they would not negotiate with. On Friday, however, Taliban leaders were taking a victory lap over the certainty of the signing in Doha. The Taliban has agreed to break off all ties to international terror groups, including al Queda, whose attacks on the United States in 2001 spurred the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, which, at the time was controlled by the Taliban. But it has not agreed to any adjustment of its ultra-strict interpretation of Islam, profound oppression of women and girls, and harsh punishments of both women and men for the pettiest of offenses. 

The United States had a choice in 2001. It could have gone into Afghanistan and done what was needed to capture or kill Osama bin Laden and kneecap al Qaeda, then bring the troops home. Instead, lives and treasure were poured into a fight that generals and neoconservative politicians said the U.S. could win and historians warned it couldn’t. Has the lesson been learned? Rather doubtful.

Read more at: After 18 bloody years, U.S. signs deal to withdraw all troops from Afghanistan. It's not over yet

Afghanistan: is the US ready to give up on fighting the Taliban as the Russians did before them ?

US changing its tune in Afghanistan as 'barbaric' Taliban becomes bulwark against ISIS

Read more at: 

https://www.rt.com/usa/435971-taliban-us-peace-isis-afghanistan/

Afghanistan’s Karzai shuns US-Taliban peace talks - by Philip Crowther

Afghan President Hamid Karzai said on Wednesday his government would not join U.S. peace talks with the Taliban and halted negotiations with Washington on a troop pact, underscoring the fragile nature of hopes for a negotiated peace in Afghanistan.

“As long as the peace process is not Afghan-led, the High Peace Council will not participate in the talks in Qatar,” Karzai said in a statement, referring to a body he set up in 2010 to seek a negotiated peace with the Taliban.

Underlining the importance of the process to the United States, the State Department said Secretary of State John Kerry would travel to Doha for meetings with senior Qatari officials on Friday and Saturday. A U.S. delegation had arrived in Qatar earlier for the Taliban negotiations, a diplomatic source said.

Read more: Afghanistan’s Karzai shuns US-Taliban peace talks - AFGHANISTAN - FRANCE 24

Taliban congratulate Dutch on departure

The Taliban have congratulated the Netherlands' government for the upcoming pull-out of their troops from Afghanistan, according to a newspaper interview with a spokesman from the group.


"We want to wholeheartedly congratulate the citizens and government of the Netherlands for having the courage they have had to take this independent decision," Qari Yusuf Ahmadij told Dutch daily Volkskrant.
"We hope that other countries with troops stationed in Afghanistan will follow the Netherlands example and withdraw their troops," said Ahmadij, who was described as the Taliban's spokesman for west and south Afghanistan.


For more: Taliban congratulate Dutch on departure

CTV.ca : Obama says deal with moderate Taliban possible

For the complete report from CTV.ca click on this link

Obama says deal with moderate Taliban possible

President Barack Obama says the U.S. is not winning the war in Afghanistan and he's willing to open the door to negotiating with some moderate Taliban leaders. Obama made the comments to the New York Times Friday in a half-hour interview on Air Force One.He pointed out the success in pulling moderate elements of the Iraqi insurgency away from the hardcore Al Qaeda membership, a strategy many have credited to significantly reducing violence in that country. "There may be some comparable opportunities in Afghanistan and in the Pakistani region," Obama told the newspaper, while stressing the circumstances in that area are more complex.

EU-Digest/ IHT: Afghanistan: No 1 Heroin Producer in the world: "A bottomless Pit which is hard to sell in Europe" - by Celestine Bohlen

For the complete report from the International Herald Tribune click on this link

Afghanistan: No 1 Heroin Producer in the world: "A bottomless Pit which is hard to sell in Europe" - by Celestine Bohlen

As allied casualties mounted - more than 840 at last count - popular support for the war has waned in Europe, limiting the ability of government leaders to respond to urgent pleas for help from the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, which leads the international force. Continued involvement hinges on a comprehensive plan for the country's reconstruction, which was the focus of an international conference in Paris last week. European leaders "want a new strategy that's more saleable at home," says Daniel Korski, author of "Afghanistan: Europe's Forgotten War" and a senior fellow at the London-based European Council on Foreign Relations. "It is part of an outreach to the domestic audience that there's more to this than the military component." When the war was started in late 2001 in response to the attacks of Sept. 11 against New York and Washington, the fight against Al Qaeda and its Taliban allies had broad support in both the United States and Europe, in stark contrast to the more divisive, costlier and deadlier Iraq war that began two years later. Since then, Afghanistan has increasingly been caught in a spiral of violence and corruption, fueled by a booming opium trade that has put local officials in thrall to a criminal narcotics racket.

Heroin production in Afghanistan has tripled since 2001 and now accounts for 90 percent of the world supply, according to U.S. figures. Profit from the drug trade helps fund Taliban insurgents, who have stepped up attacks. In 2003, there were three suicide bombings. In 2007, there were 130.

World Student Press Agency - The Taliban Hydra - by Abdul R. Karim

For the complete report from the World Student Press Agency, click on this link

The Taliban Hydra - by Abdul R. Karim

In retrospect, the Americans can be forgiven for their near sightedness five years ago. When the US led coalition began its war in Afghanistan in 2001 following the 9/11 attacks, it was easy to be optimistic.

Fast forward five years, and we have a vicious insurgency that shows no signs of abating. At least ¼ of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces have a heavy Taliban presence, while almost half the country is under the sway of Taliban law and gun. The government controls the urban centers and the Coalition controls the roads when their patrols make their rounds. But it is when the sun sets, within the rural parts of the country which are home to the majority of Afghans, that the Taliban re emerge. In many parts of the south, locals take their disputes to Taliban courts, as opposed to government judiciary institutions. Those with grievances avoid the corrupt Afghan police, a despised and mistrusted force, instead seeking redress from the Taliban. Curfews, laws (in some parts, the use of motored vehicles have been banned) and edicts are strictly enforced by the Talibs. In most of the south and east of the county, aid agency presence is virtually non existent, and schools remain empty.