Guardian Weekly, 3-9 January 2014 A commentary with a self-explanatory headline by a former imegary analysts with the US air force. She writes: "The US and British militaries insist that this is an expert program, but it's curious that they feel the need to deliver faulty information, few or no statistics about civilian deaths and twisted technology reports on the […]
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IWPR, 8 January 2014 A rare report from the southern province of Zabul, presenting some optimism, mainly expressed by government officials of provincial council members. The local population apparently was more concerned about US night raids then about the Taleban, and everyone seems to be happy to have national forces in the lead now. The […]
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New York Times, 4 January 2014 "Afghan hospitals like Bost, in the capital of war-torn Helmand Province, have been registering significant increases in severe malnutrition among children" writes Rod Nordland, reporting on the often over-looked socio-economic side of things in Afghanistan. "Countrywide, such cases have increased by 50 percent or more compared with 2012, according to […]
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Tolo News, 26 December 2013 The head of the Kabul Crime Investigation Department said on Thursday that over the past two months poverty, crime and unemloyment have increased in the capital Kabul, "pointing to the foreign troop withdraw in 2014 as the main cause".
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Tolo News, 25 December 2013
TheLwer House of parliament has approved five new ministers nominated by President Karzai's cabinet: Din Mohammad Mobarez Rashidi (166 votes) will be the new Minister of Counter Narcotics; Zarar Ahmad Osmani (183 votes) will be the Minister of Foreign Affairs; Akbar Barekzai (164 votes) becomes the new Minister of Mines; […]
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BBC, 23 December 2013 Hundreds of Afghan asylum seekers have set up a protest camp in the Belgian town of Mons, demanding to meet Prime Minister Elio di Rupo to discuss their demands to be granted residency and a guarantee that none of them will be expelled.
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Pajhwok News Agency, 14 December 2013 The Kabul-based news agency picks up a hot iron, with the issue of traditional ('tribal') justice and comes to the conclusion that they "are violative of human rights in many cases and their decisions are illegal and contrary to shariah". (What about the Afghan constitution?) Such jirgas are often "condoning […]
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USA Today, 5 December 2013 A telling piece about how transition to the ANSF and the US withdrawal looks in practice: "Highway 1 is more than just a dusty asphalt road. It … is supposed to be an example of the success of the 12-year effort by multinational forces to end Taliban control and showcase the […]
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Reuters, 1 December 2013 A good overview over shortcomings that stand in the way of orderly 2014 elections: "Organizers of Afghanistan's make-or-break presidential election next year say poor security, a shortage of monitors and funding holes are undermining their ability to safeguard the process from the widespread fraud that marred the last poll in 2009." Worryingly, […]
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IWPR, 30 November 2013 The anti-Taleban 'uprising'/ALP saga continues with a telling report from Moqor district in Ghazni were three ALP commanders terrorise the population and run private prisons, a well-known feature from all stages of Afghans wars. The three commanders admitted they received regular payments from Kabul until [former NDS head] Asadullah Khaled left Afghanistan for medical […]
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NPR, 28 Novermber 2013 The number of US private military contractors has been higher than that of the US military in Afghanistan at least since 2007: "In December 2007, there were 25,000 American troops, compared to 36,000 contractors. In March of this year, the number of U.S. troops stood at about 66,000 — supported by a […]
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Washington Post, 18 November 2013 Another "White Elephant" or victim of Afghan government inability? – the story of the Urgent and Primary Care Clinic in Kabul, "the brainchild of Asad Mojadidi, an Afghan-born doctor" who now is advisor to the Afghan Ministry of Public Health (MoPH), build with Pentagon money and inaugurated by then ISAF commander Eikenberry in […]
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