Jeff Seldin VOA News May 1, 2019 WASHINGTON — The U.S.-led NATO mission in Afghanistan is no longer collecting data showing the Afghan government steadily losing ground to the Taliban, telling a U.S. government watchdog the information was “of limited decision-making value.” The so-called district-level stability assessments, which measure the number of the country’s districts under
By Ray Furlong RFE/RL’s Russian Service May 1, 2019 Mohammad Nasser was 10-years-old when he was brought from Afghanistan to the Soviet Union under a special program for orphans. Now he’s fighting a court battle to avoid deportation to a homeland he doesn’t know.
AFP: Islamic State fighters who waged a bloody campaign in Syria and Iraq are heading to Afghanistan to continue their jihad and help plot “spectacular” attacks against America, a US official has told AFP. The warning comes as IS seeks to assert a regional influence after the loss of its self-proclaimed Middle East “caliphate”, and as
Tolo News: The appointment of Abdul Qadir Zazai Watandost, a former MP and a parliamentary candidate from Kabul, as head of the secretariat of the Wolesi Jirga, the Lower House of Parliament, by President Ashraf Ghani has been criticized by a number of lawyers as they said it is in contravention of the country’s Constitution. Watandost’s appointment was announced in a decree by President Ghani’s office
Ayaz Gul VOA News April 29, 2019 ISLAMABAD — Pakistan announced Monday a major reform plan for the “mainstreaming” of more than 30,000 Islamic seminaries, known as madrassas, amid long-running allegations some of these religious schools promote violent extremism and maintain ties to transnational terrorist networks. Islamabad is under international pressure to act against Islamist groups
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty April 29, 2019 Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has opened a four-day Loya Jirga, or grand assembly, with more than 3,200 delegates seeking to agree on a common approach to peace talks with the Taliban. The Loya Jirga bringing together politicians, tribal elders, and other prominent figures was overshadowed by no-shows by
Ayaz Gul VOA News April 28, 2019 ISLAMABAD — Pakistan said Sunday peace in Afghanistan is key to increasing economic connectivity with Central Asian countries under China’s global Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), of which Islamabad is a major beneficiary. Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan told a gathering of business leaders in Beijing that leaders from