Gates says US Troops in Southern
Afghanistan to Lead New Fight Against Taliban
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates
VOA News / March 9, 2010
U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has met with members of a
U.S. battle unit in southern Afghanistan that suffered heavy
losses last year in the fight against the Taliban.
He told the troops they will soon be part of a "decisive phase"
in the war.
Gates paid tribute to the sacrifices of the U.S. combat brigade
Tuesday as he spoke to soldiers at an outpost about 50 kilometers
north of Kandahar city. The brigade has lost 22 soldiers and has
seen 62 others wounded since its deployment last year.
Secretary Gates told the troops they will be at the "tip of the
spear" when the U.S. military launches an expected offensive
against the Taliban in Kandahar province later this year.
He also met with U.S. and British generals overseeing a current
operation against Taliban militants in neighboring Helmand
province.
Speaking in Kabul Monday, Gates said he was encouraged by the
progress of the Marjah offensive, but warned that "very hard
fighting" remains ahead for NATO troops.
NATO and Afghan forces have been trying to clear insurgents
from the city of Marjah in Helmand province since last month to
allow Afghan authorities to take control of the area.
Gates held talks in Kabul with the top U.S. commander in
Afghanistan, General Stanley McChrystal, who said his next goal is
to retake Kandahar, the Taliban's traditional stronghold.
McChrystal said that, unlike Marjah, the operation to secure
Kandahar will be more gradual as Washington sends thousands of
additional troops to the region in the coming months.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and
Reuters.
Robert Gates
warns of 'hard Afghan fight ahead'
BBC News / March 9, 2010
US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has warned that "hard
fighting" lies ahead, in his first visit to Afghanistan since the
launch of a major offensive there.
After meeting military chiefs overseeing the anti-Taliban
operation in southern Helmand province, Mr Gates also said some
progress had been made.
Preparations have already begun to secure control of
neighbouring Kandahar province, military commanders said.
Additional troops ordered by US President Obama have begun
arriving.
About 6,000 of the 30,000 extra forces assigned to Afghanistan
have already arrived in Afghanistan. Thousands more are due to
arrive over the next few months.
But Mr Gates warned: "People still need to understand there is
some very hard fighting, very hard days ahead."
Kandahar target
The offensive in Helmand, targeting the Taliban stronghold of
Marjah, has been described as the biggest operation since the
invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 - it involves Nato, US and Afghan
troops.
But officials have recently hinted that the current action in
Marjah is a "prelude" to a bigger operation.
Nato commander Gen Stanley McChrystal has made it clear that
Kandahar is the next priority for troops, once enough
reinforcements have arrived.
The general said that, although the district was not under
Taliban control, it was "under a menacing Taliban presence,
particularly in the districts around it".
The BBC's Chris Morris in Kabul says that, as was the case with
Marjah, international commanders are making little effort to
conceal plans about where they intend to take the fight to the
Taliban.
There is a vast swathe of territory across southern Kandahar
and Helmand provinces from which forces want to drive the Taliban
before re-establishing a functioning civilian infrastructure, our
correspondent says.
But, he adds, military operations are deeply unpopular with
local people and military commanders are aware of the need to get
the balance right.
Afghan police and government agencies have already started to
deploy in and around Marjah but officials warn that the region is
not yet totally free from Taliban influence.
On Monday Mr Gates discussed the progress of the operation with
Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
On Sunday President Karzai visited the former Taliban
stronghold of Marjah for the first time since the beginning of the
offensive in Helmand.
He promised elders that the town would be rebuilt and appealed
to local people for support.
Afghan gov't bans
using vehicles with tinted glasses
KABUL, March 9 (Xinhua) -- In efforts to strengthen security in
the militancy-hit Afghanistan, the Afghan Interior Ministry has
banned using vehicles with tinted glasses, spokesman for the
ministry Zamarai Bashari said on Tuesday.
"From now on no one has the right to drive a vehicle with
tinted glasses and police have been ordered to tear the tints
glued to the windows of automobiles," Bashari told a press
briefing here.
The decision has been taken in the wake of increasing security
incidents and criminal activities particularly multiple attacks
organized by Taliban militants on the capital city Kabul recently.
Afghan officials often use expensive automobiles with tinted
glasses and police exempted them from checking.
However, locals believe those with tinted glasses roaming in
the city are involved in criminal activities including kidnapping
for ransom and terrorist attacks.
Pretend to be government officials, the terrorists and criminal
gangs take arms into the city and carry out illegal activities,
locals say. "The aim of this decision is to strengthen security in
capital Kabul and others cities. There is no exemption and will be
applied to all citizens including government officials," Bashari
stressed.
The Taliban militants, who have made a bloody comeback four
years ago, carried out a series of multiple attacks on Jan. 18 and
Feb. 26 leaving dozens of people including civilians and some
foreigners dead.
Air strike kills
15 insurgents
in Taliban birthplace: Official
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Air raids against
militants' hideouts in Taliban birthplace Kandahar province in
south Afghanistan left more than a dozen insurgents dead, said a
statement of provincial administration released here Tuesday.
The statement said that acting upon intelligence report, the
NATO-led aircrafts raided a hideout of Taliban outfit in Mianshin
district on Sunday killing 15 insurgents.
It also asserted that there were no casualties on civilians.
Taliban militants fighting Afghan and NATO-led troops have yet
to make comments.
Kandahar in south Afghanistan has been regarded as the Taliban
stronghold over the past eight years. Afghan and NATO-led forces,
according to officials would soon launch a major operation against
Taliban militants in Mianshin and other parts of Kandahar.
Around 15,000 NATO and Afghan soldiers are involved in a
massive operation against Taliban in the neighboring Helmand
province since Feb. 13 which has left over 120 militants dead.
Huge weapon cache
discovered in NE. Afghan province
KABUL, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Security forces have discovered a
huge weapon cache in Faizabad, the capital of peaceful Badakhshan
province in northeast Afghanistan, spokesman for the provincial
administration Abdul Marouf Rasikh said Tuesday.
"Containing 296 mortar rounds, 108 mortar fuses, 23 artillery
shells, nine boxes of heavy machine gun magazines and 12 fuses of
28 mm shells, the weapon cache was discovered on Monday in Yaftal
village outside the provincial capital Faizabad," Rasikh told
Xinhua.
No one has been arrested so far in this case, Rasiksh added.
Taliban militants whose regime was toppled by a U.S. led
military campaign in late 2001, have been attempting to infiltrate
from their traditional hotbed in the southern region to the
peaceful northern provinces of Afghanistan.
Afghan forces
detain 22 insurgents
KABUL, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Afghan security forces have detained
22 suspected insurgents over the past 24 hours, Defense Ministry
said in a statement released on Tuesday.
"National security forces backed by the NATO-led troops during
series of operations elsewhere in Kandahar, Helmand and Khost
provinces have captured 22 insurgents since Sunday," the statement
added.
All the suspected terrorists have been handed over to concerned
departments for interrogation, it added.
Taliban militants fighting Afghan and NATO-led troops have yet
to make comment.
Iranian president
to visit Afghanistan on Wednesday
TEHRAN, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Iranian President Mahmoud
Ahmadinejad will visit Afghanistan on Wednesday, Iranian Foreign
Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Tuesday.
"It has been decided that the president will visit Afghanistan
on Wednesday," Mehmanparast told reporters in his weekly press
conference.
The visit will mark Ahmadinejad's first official visit to the
country since the re-election of Hamid Karzai as Afghan president.
An unidentified Afghan official said Monday that Ahmadinejad
has postponed visit to Afghanistan which is originally scheduled
on Monday.
Afghan President
to visit Pakistan
for seeking help to hold talks with Taliban
By Hamid Hussain
ISLAMABAD, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai
will pay a two-day visit to Pakistan on Wednesday and is expected
to officially ask Pakistan for its assistance in the talks with
Taliban, political analysts here said.
They said that the president will also seek the extradition of
the top Taliban commander Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar from Pakistan
to Afghanistan for a court trial.
Sources from Pakistani Foreign Office said that President
Karzai will meet his Pakistani counterpart Asif Ali Zardari, Prime
Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and some other civil society members.
Anti-terrorism battle, U.S. army surge, repatriation of Afghan
refugees and progress in the war-ravaged country will also be
discussed during the meeting with Pakistani high-ups, they said.
Analysts believed that Pakistan will raise the issue of border
infiltration of militants from Afghanistan and of its missing
persons while Afghanistan will seek details for the recovery of
the abducted Afghan diplomat Abdul Khaliq Faraakhi.
Afghan Interior Minister Hanif Atmar has asked for Baradar
extradition when he held a meeting with his Pakistani counterpart
Rehman Malik in Islamabad last month. But circumstances changed
when a Pakistani court ordered not to hand over Mullah Bardar to
any country.
Saleem Safi, a leading journalist and expert on Afghan affairs,
told Xinhua that President Karzai's visit is very important
because the situation has changed and American authorities have
given a green signal for negotiations with Taliban, adding that
Pakistan could play a crucial role in the negotiations with
Taliban.
It is the first visit of Karzai to Pakistan after he won his
second term as President in November 2009, Safi said.
"Approach in Pakistan's policy towards President Karzai has
changed too much but there is slight shift in policy towards
Afghanistan," said the expert.
Maryana Babar, an analyst on foreign affairs agreed that the
visit is very important in the backdrop of the new U.S. policy for
Afghanistan, in which Pakistan has asked for a role in the
negotiations process.
Babar said that Pakistani Army Chief General Pervez Ashfaq
Kayani, in his recent trip to Kabul, told the Afghan government
and U.S. authorities that Pakistan could provide training to
Afghan troops.
She said that the Afghan president will bring a plan of action
and will ask Pakistan's assistance in the process of
reconciliation and reintegration with Taliban as Karzai has openly
asked Pakistan and the Saudi Arabia for assistance in bringing
Afghan Taliban to talk table on the sidelines of London conference
in January.
Salarzai lashkar sets fire to
130 Taliban houses in Bajaur
Two pro-government tribal leaders killed in South Waziristan
By Hasbanullah Khan
Daily Times (Pakistan)
March 9, 2010
KHAR/TANK: A Salarzai tribal lashkar on Monday set ablaze 130
Taliban houses in Bajaur Agency, officials said.
One Taliban was killed and nine arrested in a joint operation
of the political administration and an armed lashkar of the
Salarzai tribe. Official sources told Daily Times that Assistant
Political Agent (APA) Iqbal Khattak had decided that action
against the Taliban would continue until the agency was purged of
all terrorists.
The Salarzai tribal lashkar, consisting of thousands of armed
tribesmen, have strictly prohibited the locals from providing
shelter to the Taliban. They have announced a Rs 2 million fine
for any tribesman helping the terrorists, and warned that
violators’ houses would be set on fire.
Attack: Meanwhile, two pro-government tribal leaders were
killed while another was injured when some unidentified Taliban
blew up their car in Shakai area of South Waziristan, sources
said.
Sher Ali and his associates were riding a car in Mazdak, Shaki
tehsil, when the Taliban blew it up, killing Ali and Syed Nawaz on
the spot. Another tribal leader Abdullah was injured in the blast.
The political administration officials took the bodies into their
custody and shifted the injured to the local hospital for medical
treatment.
The Taliban have been threatening tribal leaders of dire
consequences, if they do not stop supporting the government.
Last week, the house of a pro-government tribal elder was blown
up in Aliabad area of Hangu.
Japan grants US
$19.5 Million
to promote literacy in Afghanistan
Source: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO)
UNESCO and the Ministry of Education launch 2nd phase of the
Programme for Enhancement of Literacy in Afghanistan (ELA 2)
Kabul, 09 March 2010 - UNESCO will receive a grant of US$ 19.5
million from the Government of Japan for the 2nd phase of the
Enhancement of Literacy in Afghanistan (ELA 2) programme. The ELA
2, to be jointly implemented by UNESCO and the Ministry of
Education, will benefit 300,000 youth and adults, particularly
women in rural villages in 15 provinces in Afghanistan.
The official signing ceremony was held in the Ministry of
Education today, along with the Ambassador of Japan, Mr Shigeyuki
Hiroki, and the Director of UNESCO Kabul office, Mr Shigeru
Aoyagi, in the presence of the Afghan Minister of Education, Mr
Farooq Wardak. During the ceremony, Mr Aoyagi expressed his deep
appreciation to the Government of Japan for its continuous support
and the Ministry of Education for its strong initiatives in
improving persistent illiteracy problem in Afghanistan.
Nearly three decades of conflict in Afghanistan have resulted
in the emergence of an illiterate and non-professional generation
who have had limited to no access to education. As a result,
Afghanistan has one of the highest illiteracy rates in the world,
with only 34% of the population being literate. In particular, one
of ten women in rural areas cannot read and write. Given the
present context, equipping the population with sufficient literacy
skills is essential to peaceful, democratic and sustainable nation
building in Afghanistan.
The Afghan Ministry of Education developed the National
Education Strategic Plan (NESP), which is the national strategic
plan for education and identifies literacy as one of its
priorities for the recovery and reconstruction of the country. To
contribute to achieving the national literacy goals set forth in
the NESP, the 1st phase of ELA was launched in March 2008 through
a grant from the Government of Japan. The ELA 1 is currently
operating in 9 provinces of Afghanistan (Badakhshan, Balkh,
Bamiyan, Daikundy, Ghor, Nangarahar, Samangan, Paktika and Wardak),
and will provide literacy education to 300,000 youth and adults
during a period of three years. To date, approximately 92,000
people have participated in 9 month literacy classes. In addition,
construction of Provincial/District Literacy Centre (PLC/DLC),
which aims at enhancing institutional capacity of Ministry of
Education, particularly its Department of Literacy, was completed
in 3 provinces.
In 2009, the Ministry of Education developed NESP II and the
National Literacy Action Plan (NLAP) with the support from UNESCO
and other partners. While NESP II aims to 'increase the literacy
rate of the population aged 15 and over to 48% (43% females and
54% males)' through 'providing literacy courses for 3.6 million
learners by 1393/2014 (At least 60% of learners will be women)',
the NLAP provides the government, donors and all other literacy
stakeholders with a common vision, guiding principles and a sound
national strategy that lays out a general framework necessary for
the effective implementation of literacy programmes and plans. In
line with NESP II and NLAP, the 2nd phase of ELA (ELA 2) will
cover an additional 9 new provinces (Badghis, Faryab, Ghazni,
Khost, Kunar, Nimroz, Nooristan, Urozgan and Zabul) and 6
provinces from the 1st phase, in which a further 300,000 youth and
adults will participate in the literacy programme and selected
graduates will be trained in skills development.
Literacy is a fundamental human right and its contribution
towards social, economic and political benefit is well documented.
Furthermore, empowering disadvantaged people through literacy will
play a crucial role in building peace in Afghanistan. Through its
1st and 2nd phases, ELA will greatly contribute to building peace
in Afghanistan and ensuring enhancement of individual life skills
and community development throughout the country.
For further information please contact:
Mohammad Amin Sadiqi, Public Information Officer, Kabul
a.sadiqi@unesco.org
Tel: +93 (0) 799 125292
www.unesco.org/kabul
New journalism
training
hub in Jalalabad swings into action
By Tilak Pokharel, UNAMA
9 March 2010 - Barely a month into its existence, a regional
journalism training hub in Jalalabad has already trained 13
broadcast journalists from four provinces of eastern Afghanistan
as of last week.
The training hub, one of just two in the country, is run by a
local media development organization called Nai.
Nai conducted a series of trainings for local journalists in
the lead up to last year’s presidential elections with support
from international media development organization, Internews whose
mission is “to empower local media worldwide.”
“We want practical training for journalists,” said Parisa
Saadatmand of Internews who has been advising the Jalalabad office
of Nai. “We just hope for the success,” she added.
The other hub dedicated to training journalists is being set up
in Mazar-i-Sharif.
The topics covered in the six-day-long training were, among
others, news values and ethics, working for radio, interview
skills, technical writing, reading and producing a radio story.
A needs assessment was conducted prior to the establishment of
the training hub so as to know how best “we can cater to the
people’s needs,” said Ms Saadatmand.
Nai and Internews are working together to develop modules for
specialized and basic journalism training.
Also, the hub is going to have a multimedia studio for training
soon.
Ziar Samim, 18, one of the youngest journalists to receive the
first training at the hub, said he learned in the training that
journalism is a “fact job.”
“We learned how radio journalism is different from print
journalism,” said Mr Samim, who works for local Spinghar Radio as
a reporter covering social and development issues.
Another participant, Hamidullah Hashimi of Jala Radio, said
interview techniques and handling equipment were some of the new
skills he has learned from the training.
Nai’s two “experienced trainers” – Nazibullah Nayel and Shama
Ahmadzai – gave the training to the first batch.
Mr Nayel said the training he gives at the hub is “more focused
and in-depth,” adding that the participants are asking for more
and more advanced form of training.
“The trainers are amazing and the participants are passionate
about their work,” said Ms Saadatmand.
Talking about the participants’ absorption in the training, she
said: “I was observing (a practical exercise) on ethical
conundrum. They were discussing. One was saying ‘this’ and the
other said, ‘No, we should do that.’ And the first one said, ‘Oh,
I had never thought about that.’”
Journalists of eastern Afghanistan’s budding media industry –
which is much needed in Afghanistan’s transition -- are also
upbeat about the newly established training hub.
“Journalists here just have basic skills,” said Abdul Moid
Hashimi, vice president of a journalists association in Jalalabad.
Mr Hashimi, who works as a reporter for the Pajhwok Afghan
News, said the local journalists need rigorous and in-depth
training to hone their skills.
Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, the spokesperson of the Nangarhar
provincial governor, hopes that the new training hub will provide
“comprehensive” training to local journalists.
“It’s so important to have a training hub for journalists. Some
journalists need training on report writing while others need
photojournalism and video training,” he said.
One year down the line after the hub trains local journalists,
Ms Saadatmand expects to see the media persons do their job “more
professionally and with more understanding,” and with more
inclusion of women in the media field.
“We also want to see journalists from different regions meet
and discuss ethical concerns, challenges and success,” she added.
Diverse cultures
blend well in Afghanistan
By Tilak Pokharel and Shafiqullah Waak, UNAMA
9 March 2010 - It wasn’t just the Muslims of Jalalabad who
celebrated the holy festival of Eid with pomp and jubilation in
the last week of November 2009.
In downtown Jalalabad, minority Hindu-Sikhs were also euphoric
about the festival of their Muslim neighbours.
They reached their Muslim brothers’ homes with stacks of big
packets wrapped in a white piece of cloth.
Each packet called “thali” contained a big rectangular-shaped
steel tray filled with a variety of locally-made chocolates and a
piece of cloth for making shirts and pyjamas.
The long list of recipients of the gift also included the
powerful governor of Nangarhar Province, Gul Agha Sherzai, and
government department heads.
Earlier that month, Muslims went to the homes of Hindu-Sikhs
and their temple called Gurudwara, to greet them on the occasion
of Puranmasi, one of the two biggest festivals, which is the
birthday of their God incarnation, Guru Nanak.
This is how the two diverse communities blend together,
maintaining a symbiotic relationship and at the same time
preserving their cultural identity, in Pashtun-dominated
Jalalabad.
“We have an excellent relationship with our Muslim brothers
here,” said Dr Harmeet Singh, 36, who is the spokesperson of the
Jalalabad Gurudwara.
Dr Singh, a medical doctor by profession, who graduated from
the Nangarhar University, said the Gurudwara also runs a free
medical dispensary, which is open to everyone regardless of their
religious and ethnic views.
However, in the past, things were not as rosy as they are now.
The head of the Gurudwara, Rawail Singh, said over 26,000 Sikh
families – with about 8,000 families in Nangarhar Province alone –
were scattered across Afghanistan 30 years ago.
Besides Nangarhar, their concentration was mostly in Kabul,
Ghazni, Kandahar, Kunduz and Helmand.
“The number is just 160 in this province now,” said Mr Singh,
who holds an MA in Pashto literature.
“After the war started, they came to the cities from districts
and then moved to other countries,” he says, recalling that the
Sikhs and the Hindus were forced to flee during the mujahideen
period.
He said thousands of missiles landed in their communities. “I
also had a home, but I sold it. Before the mujahideen period,
there was no religion dividing Muslims and non-Muslims.”
In a single incident on 8 March 1989, a rocket in the Gurudwara
killed 18 people.
He said with a sigh of relief that relations are better now.
“However, there are some crooks who take joy in seeing others
fight. But, the majority are good.”
Dr Singh said some people make fun of their appearance, with
their unique turban.
Underlining the historical significance of the place, Mr Singh
said that Guru Nanak lived for 40 days in the place where the
Gurudwara stands now, in 1520.
There are two Gurudwaras and one Hindu temple in Jalalabad
city.
The Hindu-Sikhs, who are mostly traders and businessmen, also
earn praise from local Muslims.
Daud Wafa, a senior lecturer of literature at Nangarhar
University, said the cultural diversity promotes development.
“They can play a very good role in the economy,” said Mr Wafa, who
is also a journalist with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Admitting that the cultural minorities like the Sikhs had
serious problems during the first years of the mujahideen regime,
the Government and the mujahideen later realized that “these
people are very quiet and they don’t create problems”.
The Sikhs have demanded with the government certain facilities
like waiver of electricity bills of their Gurudwaras as is the
case with mosques.
But, Mr Wafa said the Government is not ignorant towards
minority rights, but it hasn’t met their demands because the
Government lacks adequate resources.
“Government is not able to solve all their problems,” he said.
“But, it’s in no way related to ethnicity or religion.”
But, the Sikhs regret that they are forced to send their
children to India, among other countries, to study because there
is no school in Afghanistan for them.
Assadullah Musafer, an officer with UNAMA’s Governance section,
says Hindus, Sikhs and Pasai tribe make the cultural minority in
eastern Afghanistan. “Most of these minorities mix well with the
Pashtuns, which constitute about 99 per cent of the population,”
said Mr Musafer. “They preserve their cultural identities, but the
minority people other than the Sikhs are not visible in the
public.”
A few yards from the Gurudwara across the road, 18-year-old
Farhad, who owns a general store, says both communities have
benefited from each other’s presence there.
“We eat together when they invite us for dinner/lunch parties
or participate in the ceremonies in their houses during
festivals,” said Mr Farhad.
