Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Month: May 2017

Looking at the ‘Nicholson plan’: A bid to tilt the Afghan war in the government’s favour

Kate Clark •

The United States is reviewing its military strategy towards Afghanistan, as part of an overall strategic review. Nothing is certain until President Trump makes a final decision, but proposals, drawn up with the Afghan government, are circulating. We already know what the commander of US and international forces in Afghanistan, General John Nicholson, would like […]

International Engagement Read more

How Return of Half a Million Refugees is Impacting One Afghan Province

AAN •

News Deeply, 23 May 2017 The news service republishes a shorter version of Fazal Muzhary’s AAN dispatch about the problems the Afghan province of Nangrahar is facing after the (often involuntary) return of Afghan refugees from Pakistan – original title: “Resettling Nearly Half a Million Afghans in Nangrahar: The consequences of the mass return of […]

AAN in the Media Read more

The Battle for Mamand: ISKP under strain, but not yet defeated 

Borhan Osman •

In recent weeks, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) has lost a significant part of its stronghold in Nangrahar as well as several senior commanders and its overall leader, Sheikh Abdul Hasib. Its losses have been mounting steadily since early April when American and Afghan special forces intensified their campaign against the group. This included […]

War and Peace Read more

Violence, corruption threaten Afghan progress in getting kids to school

Martine van Bijlert •

Reuters, 23 May 2017 Article on setbacks in Afghanistan’s education sector quotes AAN’s researcher Ali Adili, in response to his recent AAN dispatch on the education figures: Ali Yawar Adili at the Afghanistan Analysts Network said there was huge mismanagement, citing the case of the Education Ministry printing thousands of incorrect school textbooks that now […]

AAN in the Media Read more

Deutsche Entwicklungshelferin getötet

Thomas Ruttig •

Berliner Morgenpost and Hamburger Abendblatt, 22 May 2017 A quote of AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about the recent attack on a Christian NGO office in kabul during which a German woman was killed: “Christliche Missionsarbeit ist ein rotes Tuch in Afghanistan – nicht nur für die Taliban”, sagte Thomas Ruttig, Direktor des Afghanistan Analysts Networks, dieser […]

AAN in the Media Read more

Abflug eines Warlords: Vizepräsident Dostum geht ins türkische Exil

Thomas Ruttig •

Tageszeitung, 22 May 2017 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig op-ed contribution about General Dostum leaving into exile in Turkey, officially declared as a trip for “medical treatment.” This deepens the government crisis in Afghanistan further and, given Dostum’s control over the Afghan Uzbek vote bank, necessitates (from President Ghani’s point of view) to develop a new leader […]

AAN in the Media Read more
Afghan migrants, including minors, living in inhumane conditions in a Belgrade, Serbia squat. Photo: Martine van Bijlert (Nov 2016)

AAN’s Martine van Bijlert and Jelena Bjelica discuss their research work on migration. Episode: 1 – May, 2017

Jelena Bjelica •

AAN’s Martine van Bijlert and Jelena Bjelica in conversation with Roxanna Shapour on their research on Afghan migrants.

Podcasts Read more

Deutsche Entwicklungshelferin getötet

Martine van Bijlert •

Morgenpost, 21 May 2017 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig commented on the possible reasons for the recent killing and abduction of a German and Finnish international aid worker in Kabul: Operation Mercy ist eine christliche Vereinigung. Glaubensbasierte Angriffe sind zwar selten, kommen aber immer wieder vor. Zuletzt hatten die Taliban 2014 das Gästehaus einer Organisation angegriffen, die sie […]

AAN in the Media Read more

Vice-president leaves Afghanistan amid torture and rape claims

AAN •

The Guardian, 20 May 2017 “Afghanistan’s vice-president [Abdulrashid Dostum] has left the country after a six-month standoff following allegations that he illegally detained a political rival and had him raped with an assault rifle”, reports the British daily.  President Ashraf Ghani “framed the case as his make-or-break moment to show that not even powerful warlords were […]

Recommended Reads Read more
Anti-migration graffiti on the wall of the Ministry of Telecommunication in Kabul, Afghanistan. The caption on the left reads: "There is no rest in flight.” The caption on the right reads: "The real face of a smuggler” – whatever picture had been stencilled on the wall below looks to have been scrubbed out. (Photo: Fazal Muzhary, AAN 2017)

Voluntary and Forced Returns to Afghanistan in 2016/17: Trends, statistics and experiences

Thomas Ruttig • Jelena Bjelica •

While hundreds of thousands of Afghans sought protection in Europe throughout 2015/16, an increasing number have been returning to Afghanistan, both voluntarily and involuntarily. The number of voluntary returnees from Europe picked up significantly throughout 2016, with additional returns in the first four months of 2017, reaching a total figure of over 8,000. By contrast, […]

Migration Read more

Possible US Troop Increase in Afghanistan Aimed at Breaking Stalemate

Martine van Bijlert •

Voice of America, 17 May 2017 Article quotes AAN’s Kate Clark on the possible increase of US troops in Afghanistan: With some 350,000 Afghan security forces already engaged in the fight, the [US] numbers reportedly under consideration are marginal, and seem intended only to increase pressure on the Taliban to negotiate. “His thinking is basically […]

AAN in the Media Read more

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