Month: April 2020

Static War: Helmand after the US Marines’ return

Andrew Quilty •

In April 2017, 300 US Marines were sent back to Helmand, a province the US troops, who numbered 20,000 at their peak there, had handed over to Afghan forces less than three years earlier. The Marines’ task was to rehabilitate the Afghan National Army’s (ANA) 215th Corps and help prevent the fall of the provincial […]

23 Apr 2020

26 Pro-Government Afghans Killed in Fighting

Voice of America, 21 April 2020 Research by AAN’s Kate Clark about the Afghan National Army Territorial Force is quoted here: “Despite the many pitfalls associated with local defense forces … when they work, they work extremely well, producing determined fighters with local knowledge who protect the civilians in their areas and often stand their ground more […]

21 Apr 2020

Domestic abuse: ‘Women in Herat may survive coronavirus but not lockdown’

The Guardian, 21 April 2020 Since Herat was put in lockdown two weeks ago, work of healthcare workers helping victims of domestic abuse has ground to a halt and many of the women they were trying to protect have disappeared. “In a country where violence against women is endemic, Herat has some of the highest […]

21 Apr 2020

Herat City’s Reported Spike in Insecurity: What a sober reading of events reveals

S Reza Kazemi •

In late 2019 and early 2020, Afghanistan’s key western city of Herat witnessed a series of security incidents, including targeted killings and attacks on the police. The increase in violence resulted in an Afghan media uproar and a swirl of local theories about what or who could be behind it. Taking a closer look at […]

21 Apr 2020

Afghanistan on the Brink: Time for a Broader Humanitarian Intervention

Stability Operations Magazine, 20 April 2020 In an exclusive 1TV interview after taking oath as First Vice-President, Amrullah Saleh made a confident statement, claiming the government has put a set of firm measures and precautions in place — while sharing no details on how they work — to reduce the infection rate of the pandemic […]

20 Apr 2020

Virus Wipes Away [Female] Afghan Toilet-Paper Maker’s Expansion Plans

AFP, 20 April 2020 The story of a “rare female face in Afghanistan’s male-dominated business world,” Zuhal Atmar talks about the odds of her business, also beyond the Corona crisis: “To get a loan, you need a guarantor, a business partner, and of course collateral,” she said. “Women don’t usually have access to any of […]

20 Apr 2020

One Land, Two Rules (10): Three case studies on Taleban sales of state land

Fazl Rahman Muzhary •

As the Taleban have expanded their areas of control around the country, anecdotal reports have been popping up of Taleban commissions and commanders in several provinces selling state land. However, a closer look into the three most prominent examples – Helmand, Uruzgan and Takhar – reveals a murkier picture than media reports and claims by government […]

15 Apr 2020

Jihadistische terreurbewegingen willen profiteren van coronacrisis

de Volkskrant, 13 April 2020 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted on whether the Afghan IS franchise might be able to instrumentalise the coronavirus crisis for gaining territory– which he doubts, after the severe weakening it has suffered: De situatie in Afghanistan lijkt wat minder urgent. De altijd al marginale rol van Islamitische Staat-Khorasan, de lokale […]

13 Apr 2020

Ein Schei­tern aller:  Afghanistan steht vor einem Bürgerkrieg…

Der Spiegel, 11 April 2020 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted in this analysis for the leading German news magazine by Christoph Reuter (behind paywall): „Letztlich ist es ein Scheitern aller Beteiligten“, urteilt der Co-Direktor des Afghanistan Analysts Network, Thomas Ruttig, „der Amerikaner, der Verbündeten, die nur mitgemacht haben, sowie der afghanischen Eliten. Nur von denen […]

11 Apr 2020

Elephants in Afghanistan: Surveying the history of a pachyderm cultural frontier

Shah Mahmoud Hanifi •

Elephants (pil in Pashto and fil in Dari) are not indigenous to Afghanistan. However, they have had a significant presence in and impact on the country. The first of them seem to have arrived in 305 BC when an Indian ruler sent 500 war elephants to the Hellenistic empire, which then stretched across western Asia, in exchange for […]

11 Apr 2020

Friedensprozess in Afghanistan: Taliban brechen Gespräche ab

Tageszeitung, 9 April 2020 In Afghanistan, the tug-of-war between the Taleban and the government about an exchange of prisoners is escalating Freilassung. The Taleban threaten to collapse the peace process. But meanwhile, some prisoner exchange has happened…

9 Apr 2020

Voices from the Districts, the Violence Mapped (2): Assessing the conflict a month after the US-Taleban agreement

Kate Clark •

It is now four weeks since Afghans enjoyed eight days of reduced violence in the lead up to the signing of the United States-Taleban agreement. The Taleban announced almost immediately afterwards that their fight would continue against the government, although not against foreign forces. US officials spoke of an understanding with the Taleban that a […]

8 Apr 2020