Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Month: December 2015

What Has Become Of Taliban In Afghanistan? – Analysis

AAN •

Eurasia Review, 31 December 2015 A very short AAN quote on the divisions in the Taleban here, without concrete source: In fact, according to the Afghan [sic] Analyst [sic] Network, a segment of dissenters took their grievances to a private news network in Kabul, doing something that had no parallels in the past.

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Lahndi Season: a delicacy and a feast in rural Afghanistan

Fazl Rahman Muzhary •

Many find the arrival of fall and the beginning of winter depressing, but Lahndi, a traditional food feast in Afghanistan, makes the season something to look forward to. In certain ways, the anticipation of Lahndi can be compared to the way people around the world prepare for Christmas, with happiness; with one major difference, that […]

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Afghanistan: Die Vögel singen trotzdem

AAN •

Wiener Zeitung, 30 December 2015 An AAN quote, of Borhan Osman (from his Helmand analysis in The Guardian), in this unusually titled 2015 year ender by the Viennese daily which continues to cover Afghanistan closer than many other German-language newspapers: In den vergangenen sieben Monaten überrannten Taliban-Kräfte immer mehr Gebiete der südlichen Provinz [Helmand], die […]

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Afghan Emigration to Europe Seen as Setback

Thomas Ruttig •

Voice of America, 29 December 2015 Two quotes of AAN’s Thomas Ruttig on the Afghan refugee problem: Many emigrants gamble their hard-earned savings, sell off their properties or borrow money to pay human traffickers, according to Thomas Ruttig, a senior researcher at Kabul-based research institution Afghanistan Analysts Network. (…) “The high number of Afghans becoming refugees […]

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Why capturing Helmand is top of the Taleban’s strategic goals

Borhan Osman •

Helmand, in southern Afghanistan, is a strategic goal for the Taleban, who have launched more attacks there than in any other province of Afghanistan this year, making a slow pincer movement towards the provincial capital, Lashkargah. The lure of Helmand goes beyond its opium economy, with the Taleban pursuing a long-term strategy to expand their reach into the […]

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Vormarsch der Taliban im Süden Afghanistans

Thomas Ruttig •

SRF, 26 December 2015 Listen to the audio (in German) of an interview AAN’s Thomas Ruttig gave to Swiss radio about the latest fighting in Helmand (it is the third audio from the top).  

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Kampf gegen die Taliban: Afghanische Geistersoldaten

Thomas Ruttig •

dpa/FrankfurterAllgemeine, 26 December 2015 In this article about the recent setbacks for the Afghan government forces, AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted on one possible major reason: “ghost soldiers” (and policemen): Der deutsche Direktor des in Kabul ansässigen Recherche-Instituts Afghanistan Analysts Network, Thomas Ruttig, sagt, es gebe Hinweise, dass viele der Soldaten und Polizisten, die auf […]

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Geistersoldaten verhelfen den Taliban zu ihrem Erfolg

Thomas Ruttig •

Die Welt, 25 December 2015 A quote by AAN’s Thomas Ruttig in this article by the conservative German daily about the latest Taleban forays in Helmand: … Das wirft die Frage auf, wie die Aufständischen es schaffen, Zehntausende von Regierungstruppen in Schach zu halten. Es sei eine Mischung aus Unfähigkeit, Erschöpfung und Korruption, sagen Analysten. […]

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[the situation in Sangin]

AAN •

BBC, 24 December 2015 A little christmas present: Amb. Francesc Vendrell, head of the AAN advisory board, interviewed by BBC4’s “Today” programme, on the situation in Helmand. He says that the fall of Sangin is not that “terribly important” from its strategic value; that the Taleban are not winning but also not losing; the best […]

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Afghanistan in 2015 – Withdrawing pledges to withdraw

Thomas Ruttig •

Deutsche Welle, 24 December 2015 Another AAN quote in another year ender, this time by German foreign radio and by Thomas Ruttig: … the German government wants to increase the number of troops it stations in Afghanistan to 980 next year. For Thomas Ruttig, co-director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, this figure is by no […]

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Afghanistan in 2015 – Withdrawing pledges to withdraw

Thomas Ruttig •

Deutsche Welle, 24 December 2015 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted in this year ender at the German foreign radio’s website: For its part, the German government wants to increase the number of troops it stations in Afghanistan to 980 next year. For Thomas Ruttig, co-director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network, this figure is by no […]

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Taliban Chief Rebuked by Religious Leaders in Sign of Turmoil

AAN •

New York Times, 24 December 2015 This article contains quotes by AAN’s Borhan Osman: “Mansour has increasingly established his control over the resources since 2012,” said Borhan Osman, a researcher with the Afghan [sic] Analysts Networkwho has closely tracked the Taliban. As part of larger centralization he orchestrated over the last three years, Mullah Mansour placed […]

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