Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Sudhansu Verma

Alleged Taliban Execution Shatters Image Of ‘Taliban-Free’ Province

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RFE, 9 July 2012 An interesting look at the context of the stoning of a young Afghan woman in Parwan province which indicates that the picture of this crime is much more blurred then hitherto reported.

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Torture, Mass Hysteria, and Forced Confession in Afghanistan’s Girls’ Schools

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Newsweek/The Daily Beast, 7 July 2012 Matt Aikins about the latest wave of poisoning of schoolgirls – or is it a phenomenon of mass hysteria. Whatever, the Afghan authorities have already made arrests.

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Afghanistan’s Draft Election Law: A Missed Opportunity to Enhance Transparency in Campaign Finance

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Bamdad, 4 July 2012 An election expert looks at the finance side of the draft new electoral law — a good addition to our blog on the issue.

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Avoiding Meeting Fatigue

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USIP, 2 July 2012 Bill Byrd gives the international Afghanistan conferences held so far a critical glance. He writes that they ‘have helped keep attention focused on Afghanistan, elicit financial support, give a “seat at the table” to all partners, generate good strategic documents, and provide a forum for the Afghan government. However, the meetings […]

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U.S. nixes larger office for Afghan defense minister

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Washington Post, 1 July 2012 The United States is spending $92 million to build a new defence ministry for Afghanistan, ‘a massive five-story military headquarters with domed roofs and a high-tech basement command center that will link Afghan generals with their troops fighting the Taliban across the country’. The MoI gets a ‘$54 million Kabul […]

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Japan conference brings Afghan government peace negotiator face-to-face with Taliban emissary

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AP, 1 July 2012  The news agency reports that ‘the Taliban and Hezb-e-Islami, despite reports of infighting in Afghanistan, found common ground at the Kyoto conference in their demand that all foreign troops, including trainers, leave Afghanistan after 2014. Civil society activists represented at the conference also said that it was proposed ‘to set up […]

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Ahmed Rashid: Talks with Taliban must be secret to be successful

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Globe and Mail, 1 July 2011 Ahmed Rashid tells us how it all started: ‘The process began when German officials, at the request of the Taliban, held their first meeting in September, 2009, in Dubai. […] The Germans made sure the interlocutors represented the Taliban Shura (its governing council), which is headed by Mullah Mohammed […]

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Some at Gitmo could go to Afghanistan

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AP, 29 June 2012 In order to get stalled talks with the Taleban going again, ‘the Obama administration is considering a new gambit to restart peace talks with the Taliban in Afghanistan that would send several Taliban detainees from the military prison at Guantanamo Bay’ to prisons in Afghanistan.

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The Biggest And Most Expensive Embassy In The World Is About To Get A Massive Upgrade

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Washington Post, 28 June 2012 US State Department continues to spend money on the Baghdad Embassy, that currently still houses 1,350 government employees.

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U.S. Awards Afghan Contract to Dubai Firm

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Wall Street Journal, 24 June 2012 The Pentagon signed a contract with Dubai-based company Anham FZCO for food-supplies to their military bases. The contract value is estimated at $8.1 billion but could reach up to $24 billion over 5.5 years. A separate interim contract was awarded to current, controversial supplier Supreme at an estimated worth […]

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