Month: December 2014

Angriff der Taliban auf die Kinder

Thomas Ruttig •

Märkische Allgemeine und Kölner Nachrichten, 17 December 2014 (nicht online) Short interview with AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about the attack of Pakistani Taleban on a school in Peshawar, mainly saying that Pakistan’s Taleban see the Pakistani army as their main enemy and do not care about civilian casualties when attacking it (the school is run by […]

17 Dec 2014

„Propaganda der Angst“

Thomas Ruttig •

Leipziger Volkszeitung, 17 December 2014 (nicht online) Short interview with AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about the attack of Pakistani Taleban on a school in Peshawar, mainly saying that Pakistan’s Taleban see the Pakistani army as their main enemy and do not care about civilian casualties when attacking it (the school is run by the military) and […]

17 Dec 2014

Bulk of poppy grown in 10 [districts]: minister

AAN •

Pajhwok News Agency, 17 December 2014 Acting Counternarcotics Minister Haroon Rashid Sherzad informed that the bulk (54%) of poppy crop was cultivated in 10 districts of four provinces this season: Nad Ali, Nawzad, Nahr-i-Saraj, Kajaki, Garmser, Musa Qala and Khaneshin districts of Helmand province, Bakwa district of Farah, Maiwand district of Kandahar and Khashrod of Nimroz. This year, […]

17 Dec 2014

The Empty Streets of Mohammad Agha: Logar’s struggle against the Taleban

Obaid Ali •

Logar province has become a dangerous place to live for many residents. The number of violent incidents and assassinations of locals committed by Taleban has increased starkly. AAN’s Obaid Ali describes how the Taleban intimidate and exploit the people of this province just south of Kabul and how they challenge local security forces, especially the […]

15 Dec 2014

Militants Kill 23 in Attacks in Afghanistan

AAN •

Voice of America, 13 December 2014 In an article before the background of recent terrorist attacks in Afghanistan and the discussion about the pros and cons of negotiations with the Taleban, AAN’s Kate Clark is quoted: Kate Clark, a senior researcher at Kabul-based Afghanistan Analysts Network, said Ghani “needs to have a government before he […]

13 Dec 2014

The ‘Other Guantanamo’ 12: Bagram closes, CIA torture revealed, US to be held to account?

Kate Clark •

As grotesque revelations in a Senate report on the CIA’s torture of ‘war on terror’ detainees are being mulled over, it has been announced that the last three remaining detainees in United States custody in Afghanistan have been transferred out of American hands. The Bagram detention facility is finally, after 13 years, closed. As AAN’s […]

12 Dec 2014

Presidential decree on the NUG’s Chief Executive Officer

(AAN working translation) No 35 22/09/1393 [11 December 2014] Decree President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Concerning the Establishment of the Council of Ministers, the Responsibilities and Authorities of the Chief Executive Officer of the National Unity Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Pursuant to articles 5, 50, and 142 of the Constitution, and […]

11 Dec 2014

Afghan Concern Over Western Disengagement

Thomas Ruttig •

IPS, 11 December 2014 In an article about Afghan concerns about western disengagement, AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted: “The political framework was never adequate,” Thomas Ruttig, co-director and co-founder of the Kabul-basedAfghanistan Analysts Network, told IPS. “Over the past few years the international community was busier – at least at the government level – with […]

11 Dec 2014

High-Risk List for the Afghanistan reconstruction effort

AAN •

SIGAR, 10 December 2014 Today SIGAR released a high-risk list for the Afghanistan reconstruction effort that calls attention to areas that are especially vulnerable to significant waste, fraud, and abuse. The seven items on the list are areas in which SIGAR believes U.S. implementing agencies are failing to mitigate risks in their operations. The high-risk […]

10 Dec 2014

The National Unity Government’s Elusive Cabinet

Martine van Bijlert •

On day seventy-two of Afghanistan’s national unity government, the new cabinet still looks to be weeks away, with the country’s President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) locked in protracted discussions over who to appoint and how that should be decided. The composition of the cabinet will be a first, crucial test of what Afghanistan’s new […]

9 Dec 2014

Afghanistan: Ein Patt auf hohem Gewaltniveau

Thomas Ruttig •

Frankfurter Rundschau, 8 December 2014 Op-ed by AAN’s Thomas Ruttig (an update of his 2013 year-ender “something got better but nothing got really good”), drawing a balance of the now closing ISAF mission. It is part of a series to which, among others, German defence minister Ursula von der Leyen (19 Nov.), former CDU MP and […]

8 Dec 2014

7. Dezember 2004 – Hamid Karsai als Präsident vereidigt: Macht-Magier am Hindukusch

AAN •

WDR, 7 December 2014 The website of the German radio, in its “calendar leaf” column, commemorates the inauguration of President Hamed Karzai after his first election on 7 December 2004 and quotes AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about the surge of the Taleban unde rhis rule: Im Dezember 2001 wird Karsai auf der Petersberger Konferenz zum Vorsitzenden […]

8 Dec 2014