Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Month: September 2018

‘انتخاباتی که افغانستان را ‘بر سر دوراهی قرار داد

Thomas Ruttig •

BBC Farsi, 30 September 2018 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig wrote this op-ed for the website of BBC Farsi, pointing out shortcomings in the preparations and the failure to hold district council elections again (and the parliamentary vote in Ghazni) as results of long-delayed election reform, both under NGU and long before, under the eyes of the […]

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Afghan election campaigning kicks off amid violence, fraud claims

AAN •

AFP/Channel News Asia, 28 September 2018 AAN colleague Ali Yawar Adili is quoted here on an element of the upcoming, but already reduced Afghan elections on 20 October: “They have promised (biometric verification) and they may do it, but will it be successful in dispelling the concerns? I’m doubtful,” Afghanistan Analysts Network researcher Ali Yawar […]

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On 29 August, the IEC reported that it had designed the ballot papers for 20 October poll and sent it to Dubai for printing. But no ballots designed for district council elections and Ghazni parliamentary elections. Photo: IEC.

Afghanistan Election Conundrum (14): District council and Ghazni parliamentary elections quietly dropped

Ali Yawar Adili •

It has emerged that, without any announcement or formal decision taken, district council elections and Wolesi Jirga elections in Ghazni will not be taking place as planned on 20 October. A special committee of senior government officials had been tasked in early August to rule on an IEC proposal to delay both elections. It has […]

Political Landscape Read more

Neue Strategie bei den Taliban – Bürgernähe statt Bombengürtel

AAN •

SRF, 25 September 2018 AAN’s Obaid Ali is extensively quoted in public Swiss radio’s article about the Taleban’s changing strategy: less suicide attacks in urban centres, more consideration for Afghans’ needs (in German): Dass die Taliban heute weniger Selbstmord-Attentate verüben, habe mit einem Strategiewechsel der Aufständischen zu tun, sagt Obaid Ali, von der Denkfabrik Afghan […]

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Flash from the Past: Kabul security handed back to Afghans in 2008

Thomas Ruttig •

Ten years (and a few weeks) ago, in August 2008, a process started that would later become known as enteqal (transition), namely of security responsibility from NATO to the Afghan forces. (*) This process was supposed to be finalised by the end of 2014. Full troop withdrawal was never fully achieved, though. NATO troops’ “watchful eye […]

International Engagement Read more

망명서 돌아온 아프간 도스툼 부통령… 잔혹한 군벌 정치인의 재등장 (As Afghan’s vice prez Dostum back from exile, warlord politics re-emerging)

Thomas Ruttig •

Hankuk Ilbo, 21 September 2018 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted in this article of the leding South Korean daily, on the status of political parties and whether the Taleban are one of them:  AAN 국장인 토마스 루티그는 기자와의 인터뷰에서 “아프간 정당들이 민주적 제도 하에서 자기 목소리를 낼 수도 있다고 본다”면서도 “하지만 그들은 스스로가 민주적인지 되돌아 보고 […]

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‘Isis will be looking for targets’: guns and fear mark Afghan Ashura

AAN •

The Guardian, 20 September 2018 AAN’s Kate Clark is quoted here: “In 40 years of war, Afghanistan hadn’t seen mass sectarian violence until the rise of ISKP [the regional Isis affiliate],” said Kate Clark from the Afghanistan Analysts Network thinktank. “It’s struck at the heart of the city, what used to be the safest part, […]

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Before Ashura: Extra security measures in place for second year running

Kate Clark •

This year, the ten-day commemoration of Muharram by Afghanistan’s Shia Muslims follows a wave of bloody attacks directed against them, most claimed by the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISKP). In 2017, the government armed and paid guards at some mosques and other religious buildings in an attempt to thwart attacks. Those guards have stayed […]

War and Peace Read more

NATO base in Kabul is building more amid open-ended US commitment

AAN •

Stars and Stripes, 17 September 2018 The bid is out for “hardened permanent structures” for RS headquarters in Kabul, including a building with “more than 800 workspaces. (…) The plans follow completion earlier this summer of a permanent passenger terminal and control tower at the compound’s helicopter landing zone (…)”

Recommended Reads Read more

Protesters Shut Afghan Election Offices as Political Crisis Brews

AAN •

New York Times, 15 September 2018 This article by Mujib Mashal quotes from a recent AAN dispatch on voter registration: In the end, at least four provinces — Paktia, Nimruz, Nangrahar and Nuristan — saw more than 100 percent of their estimated eligible voters registering, according to Afghan [sic] Analysts Network. Some of the provinces […]

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Afghanistan: Wo Anschläge Alltag sind

Thomas Ruttig •

Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung, 14 September 2018 Long quotes from an interview with AAN’s Thomas Ruttig in this article of the Heidelberg-based daily, on the security situation in Afghanistan and on his conclusion from this analysis that there are no sufficiently large stable areas in Afghanistan that justify deportations (in German).

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Afghans express doubts in democracy, fair elections ahead of parliamentary vote

Thomas Ruttig •

Washington Times, 13 September 2018 After quotes of a young Kabuli unemployed who says “I will not participate in the upcoming election as my vote will not be counted. I do not believe anymore that it will be a transparent election. Only rich guys who collude with Afghanistan’s independent election commission can win the election. So […]

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