Afghanistan Analysts Network – English

Thomas Ruttig

Le chef des talibans afghans tué par un drone

Thomas Ruttig •

Le Figaro, 23 May 2016 A short quote from AAN’s Thomas Ruttig about one of the contenders to replace killed Taleban leader Mullah Mansur, one of hi deputies Mawlawi Haibatullah Akhundzada: «Son adjoint, Haibatullah Akhundzada, paraît le mieux placé, juge Thomas Ruttig, codirecteur de l’Afghanistan Analysts Network, un centre de recherche basé à Kaboul. C’est […]

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Killing of Taliban chief in US drone strike deals blow to peace hopes

Thomas Ruttig •

Indian Express, 23 May 2016 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig comments on expectations that the killing of Taleban leader Mullah Mansur could open the door to talks and for insurgents to return from Pakistan to join peace efforts: Thomas Ruttig, co-director of the Kabul-based Afghanistan Analysts Network, said: “There wasn’t much of a peace process. There was an […]

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Taliban leader confirmed killed in U.S. airstrike as focus turns to his successor

Thomas Ruttig •

Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2016 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig and Borhan Osman are quoted here on the succession for killed Taleban leader Mullah Mansur: Others say Akhundzada, a former head of the Taliban’s religious courts, could have the upper hand. He was close to the group’s founder and spiritual leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, according to […]

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„Dem Frieden im Wege gestanden“: Drohnenangriff auf Talibanchef

Thomas Ruttig •

taz online, 22 May 2016 AAN’s Thomas Ruttig summarises the mixed messages about the alleged killing of Taleban leader Mullah Mansur in this article (in German) and expresses skepticism about a possible (and feared by many) Haqqani succession at the top of the Taleban. Will also appear in the print taz on 23 May.

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Taliban No.2 Haqqani may be even more deadly foe than Mansour

Thomas Ruttig •

Reuters, 22 May 2016 In this article reporting the reports about Mullah Mansur’s alleged death, AAN’s Thomas Ruttig is quoted in the skeptical school regarding a possible Haqqani succession at the Taleban top: “Haqqani … as a non-Kandahari and as someone who is unfamiliar with the insurgency landscape beyond Loya Paktia, would likely struggle to […]

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HIG leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. Photo: website of Shahadat daily.

Almost Signed? The peace agreement with Hezb-e Islami

Martine van Bijlert • Thomas Ruttig •

On 18 May 2016, two delegations representing respectively the insurgent faction of Hezb-e Islami-ye Afghanistan and the Afghan High Peace Council (HPC) initialled a draft peace agreement that should end Hezb’s armed struggle. The status of the document – and whether it may still be subject to changes – is not fully clear, but there is […]

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Stromstreit in Afghanistan: Die Spannung steigt

Thomas Ruttig •

taz, 20 May 2016 Op-ed article summarising the TUTAP protests on Monday in Kabul and the background of ethnic tensions between the Hazara minority and Pashtuns (in German).

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“TUTAP” could fracture Afghanistan yet further

Thomas Ruttig •

Prospect Magazine, 20 May 2016 Emily Winterbotham links to Thomas Ruttig’s analysis of the TUTAP protests for AAN: (For information on the demonstrations see Thomas Ruttig’s comprehensive report for AAN).

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Are Afghanistan’s Hazaras marginalised?

Thomas Ruttig •

al-Jazeera, 17 May 2016 Radio round table discussion with the participation of AAN co-director Thomas Ruttig after the Kabul TUTAP protests on 16 April, with link to listen to the entire programme.

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Afghanistan paid 11,000 militants to lay down their arms. Now the money has run out

AAN •

Washington Post, 17 May 2016 Money is drying up two months after the United States and other countries invested about $200 million in the Afghanistan Peace and Reintegration Program. Now this effort is effectively suspended “amid broader scrutiny here and in Washington of de-radicalization efforts as the Taliban leadership shuns peace talks. … The High Peace Council […]

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Why are Afghan refugees leaving Iran?

AAN •

al-Jazeera, 17 May 2016 “How do I explain 31 years of problems?” In Iran, many Afghan refugees are forced to exist off the grid and say they lack basic human rights. And, as HRW has reported, Iran has been recruiting thousands of Afghan refugees to fight in pro-government armed groups in neighbouring Syria – while some had been […]

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An ethnically charged dispute over electricity brings protesters into Kabul’s streets

Thomas Ruttig •

Los Angeles Times, 16 May 2016 Ali Latifi quotes from Thomas Ruttig’s TUTAP dispatch for AAN: “In both instances [through Bamyan and through the Salang], the transmission line will end in the power-hungry capital, Kabul, and go south from there,” Thomas Ruttig of the Kabul-based Afghanistan Analysts Network wrote in an online commentary published Monday. “Many […]

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