Hasib Danish Alikozai VOA News October 10, 2018 The founder of the U.S.-based Blackwater security firm has been meeting with powerbrokers in Afghanistan to rally support for his plan to privatize the Afghan war. Erik Prince heads the private military company known as Academi, renamed in 2011. According to a report in The New York Times,
UNAMA: The figures released today by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) show continuing high casualty rates being inflicted on the Afghan civilian population, especially by anti-government elements. Covering the period 1 January to 30 September 2018, the new UN report documents 8,050 civilian casualties (2,798 dead and 5,252 injured), reflecting the same extreme
RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan October 9, 2018 A suspected suicide bomb attack at an election rally in southern Afghanistan has killed at least eight people, officials say, as militants escalate their attacks across the country ahead of general elections scheduled for later this month. Umar Shakti, the provincial governor’s spokesman, told RFE/RL that 11 people
Ayaz Gul VOA News October 8, 2018 ISLAMABAD — The Taliban has ordered its fighters to attack authorities and security forces who are helping organize this month’s parliamentary elections in Afghanistan, denouncing the process as “fake” and “completely bogus.” The Islamist insurgency in a statement issued Monday called on candidates and voters to boycott the polls,
Ayaz Gul VOA News October 7, 2018 ISLAMABAD — Fresh fighting in central and eastern Afghanistan has killed at least 20 people, half of them civilians, fueling security concerns among voters ahead of this month’s parliamentary elections. Authorities in the central Maidan Wardak province confirmed Sunday the Taliban overnight staged a major offensive on the Sayed
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty October 5, 2018 Afghan officials said at least four civilians were mistakenly killed when the Afghan Air Force carried out an air strike targeting Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan. Abdul Raziq, the police chief of Kandahar Province, said the Taliban had mounted an attack in the Maroof district when security forces
Ayaz Gul VOA News October 2, 2018 ISLAMABAD — A suicide bomb blast has ripped through an election-related gathering in eastern Afghanistan, killing at least 13 people and wounding 30 others. The deadly blast in Kama district in Nangarhar province went off inside the campaign office of a candidate for the October 20 parliamentary elections. The
Tolo News: In reaction to the possibility of privatizing the Afghan war, President Ashraf Ghani said he will not allow “foreign mercenaries” to operate in Afghanistan. President Ghani says Afghan forces have enough potential and have managed to save the country from “collapse”. Ghani’s remarks come days after Erik Prince, the founder of Blackwater security company, in an
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty September 26, 2018 The UN mission in Afghanistan has expressed “strong concern” over the rising numbers of civilian casualties caused by aerial operations, as two separate air strikes over the weekend appear to have killed a total of 21 civilians. Citing preliminary findings, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on
Ayaz Gul VOA News September 25, 2018 ISLAMABAD — The United Nations announced Tuesday it has received “multiple, credible allegations” the latest anti-Taliban airstrikes by pro-government forces in Afghanistan killed at least nine civilians, mostly women and children. The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan expressed its concern about the rising number of civilian casualties from airstrikes this