Afghanistan kicks off anti-polio vaccination drive

·

Child getting polio drops (file photo)

Xinhua: The Afghan government kicked off a five-day anti-polio vaccination campaign on Monday, a statement of the Public Health Ministry said. Aimed at vaccinating 6.1 million children under five, the campaign’s first phase will wrap up on Sept. 18 during which the doctors and thousands of volunteers would give the immunity doze against crippling virus to children in 20 out of the country’s 34 provinces, the statement added. The anti-polio drive was initially supposed to launch five months ago but has been delayed due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Click here to read more (external link).

Afghanistan: 56 New Coronavirus Cases Reported

·

Tolo News: The Ministry of Public Health on Monday reported 56 new cases of the coronavirus out of 365 samples tested over the last 24 hours. The number of total cases is now 38,772, the total number of reported deaths is 1,425, and the total recoveries is 32,073.  Click here to read more (external link).

Related

Qatari Ruler Helps Kabul, Taliban Envoys Kick Off Day Two Of Intra-Afghan Talks

· · 1 Comment

Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
September 13, 2020

Qatar’s ruler helped launch the second day of long-awaited Afghan peace talks in Doha on September 13 between representatives of the Afghan government and Taliban militants, but reports of ongoing clashes back in Afghanistan were a reminder of obstacles ahead.

The first day included a formal ceremony and efforts to agree on a framework and other broad aspects of the first direct negotiations between the two sides since a breakthrough agreement between the United States and the hard-line Taliban in February.

But the Afghan Defense Ministry said that, even hours after the official start of talks, Taliban and central government forces were still fighting in many places in Afghanistan.

“With the start of intra-Afghan talks, we were expecting the Taliban to reduce the number of their attacks, but unfortunately their attacks are still going in high numbers,” Reuters quoted Fawad Aman, a ministry spokesman, as saying.

Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, who is hosting the negotiations in Doha, met with both sides on September 13 and wished them success, according to Qatari state media.

The peace talks could quickly turn to a discussion of a lasting cease-fire.

Abdullah Abdullah, the country’s former chief executive officer who is heading an Afghan negotiating team that includes members of the opposition and individuals outside the government, told AFP that the Taliban could offer a truce in exchange for the release of more of their jailed fighters.

“This could be one of their ideas or one of their demands,” Abdullah, who is also chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation, said.

‘A Momentous Occasion’

At a ceremony opening the talks a day earlier, the Afghan government and allies, including the United States, called for a cease-fire. But the Taliban did not mention a truce as they came to the negotiating table..

Abdullah said during the opening ceremony that history will remember the start of the talks “as the end of the war and suffering of our people.”

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the start of the talks was a “momentous occasion,” telling participants that they carry “a great responsibility” and an opportunity to overcome divisions.

Taliban leader Mullah Baradar Akhund said that Afghanistan should “have an Islamic system in which all tribes and ethnicities of the country find themselves without any discrimination and live their lives in love and brotherhood.”

“Negotiations may have problems but should move forward with patience,” he said.

Washington helped broker the on-and-off peace talks in Qatar, where the Taliban has a representative office.

Analysts said that, although getting both sides to the negotiating table was a major achievement, this does not mean the path to peace will be easy, especially with violence increasing around the country.

“Nothing should prevent a cease-fire being accepted and implemented by both parties,” Josep Borrell, the high representative for foreign affairs of the European Union, told the Doha meeting via video link.

Negotiations will be arduous, delegates warned, and are starting even as deadly violence continues to grip Afghanistan.

“We will undoubtedly encounter many challenges in the talks over the coming days, weeks and months,” Pompeo said as he called for the warring sides to “seize this opportunity” to secure peace.

President Donald Trump made the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan a promise before the 2016 presidential election. In the countdown to this November’s presidential polls, Washington has ramped up pressure to start intra-Afghan negotiations.

Trump has said Washington expected the number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan to be down to 4,000 troops by November.

Nearly two decades since the US-led invasion that toppled the Taliban, the war still kills dozens of people daily and the country’s economy has been shattered.

The talks are expected to tackle thorny issues, including a permanent cease-fire, the rights of women and minorities, and the disarming of tens of thousands of Taliban fighters and militias loyal to warlords, some of them aligned with the government.

Constitutional changes, power sharing, and even the name of the country and the flag are expected to be on the agenda as well.

Many people in Afghanistan fear a return of the Taliban as part of a governing arrangement. The extremist group was accused of human rights violations and abuse of women during its years of rule, which ended when U.S. forces invaded and drove the militants from power in 2001.

The Taliban controlled Afghanistan at the time and harbored Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

With reporting by RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan, AFP, Reuters, and dpa

Copyright (c) 2020. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.

Related

COVID-19 Latest: 75 of 532 Cases Test Positive in Afghanistan

·

Tolo News: The Ministry of Public Health on Sunday reported 75 new cases of the coronavirus out of 532 samples tested over the last 24 hours. The number of total cases is now 38,716, the total reported deaths is 1,420, and the total number of recoveries is 31,638. Click here to read more (external link).

Related

 

Taliban collect electricity bills on outskirts of Kabul

·

Taliban fighters (file photo)

1TV: Taliban militants collect electricity bill on the outskirts of capital Kabul, Afghanistan’s national power utility said on Saturday. Wahidullah Popalzai, provincial head of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat for Kabul, said that Taliban have collected 1,000 afghanis from each household in Arghundi Bala area of Paghman district and in Uzbin area in Surobi district. Click here to read more (external link).

Afghan Rivals Begin Historic Peace Talks; US Cautiously Optimistic

· · 5 Comments

Pompeo (left) and Baradar (right)

Ayaz Gul
VOA News
September 12, 2020

ISLAMABAD – The United States pressed Afghanistan’s warring factions Saturday to approach their first-ever direct peace talks with an intent to strike a power-sharing deal that would accommodate “competing views” and permanently end decades of bloodshed in the country.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made the remarks at a special ceremony in Doha, Qatar, marking the start of the U.S.-brokered dialogue, known as intra-Afghan negotiations, between delegates of the Taliban insurgency and the government of Afghanistan.

“Today is a truly momentous occasion. Afghans have at long last chosen to sit together and chart a new course for your country. This is a moment to dare to hope,” Pompeo said.

He cautioned that the intra-Afghan talks will “undoubtedly encounter many challenges” because of decades of divisions, but the two sides will need to “be patient” to seize the opportunity of writing the next chapter in the history of Afghanistan.

“We hope this chapter is one of reconciliation and progress, not another chronicle of tears and bloodshed. We urge you to make decisions that move you away from violence and corruption and toward peace and prosperity,” stressed Pompeo.

The chief American diplomat noted that a landmark agreement the U.S. sealed with the Taliban on February 29, set the stage for Saturday’s start of negotiations between Afghanistan’s warring parties.

While saying it was solely for Afghans to determine a future political system to govern their country, Pompeo added that he hoped the outcome of the talks would respect rights of all Afghans and protect social progress achieved over the past nearly two decades.

“As you make your decisions, you should keep in mind that your choices and conduct will affect both the size and scope of future U.S. assistance. Our hope is that you reach a sustainable peace, and our goal is an enduring partnership,” he said.

Abdullah Abdullah, the leader of the Afghan delegation, told the inaugural ceremony that his team has come to Doha with “goodwill and good intention” to negotiate with the Taliban an end to the 40 years of bloodshed.

“We have come to achieve a dignified and lasting peace. There is no winner through war or military means, but there will be no loser if this crisis is resolved through submission to the will of the people,” said Abdullah, the chairman of Afghanistan’s High Council for National Reconciliation.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, head of the Taliban’s delegation, pledged in his speech that the insurgent negotiating team would enter the intra-Afghan dialogue “with full sincerity” and stressed the need for both sides to move forward with patience.

“We assure the world that we will strive to our utmost ability in order for the intra-Afghan negotiations to attain a successful outcome. We seek an Afghanistan that is independent, sovereign, united, developed and free – an Afghanistan with an Islamic system in which all people of the nation can participate without discrimination,” Baradar said.

Pompeo later held separate meetings with Baradar and Abdullah, where their negotiating teams also were present.

The historic Afghan talks stemmed from the U.S.-Taliban deal that seeks to have all American and coalition forces leave the country by mid-2021 in return for insurgent counterterrorism assurances and pledges to seek a political settlement between Afghan rivals.

The U.S. has cut its military presence in Afghanistan to 8,600 from roughly 13,000 personnel since signing the pact with the Taliban.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration intends to further reduce the size of U.S. forces to about 4,500 by November.

Analysts anticipate the intra-Afghan negotiations will be a long, drawn-out process and experience many controversies as they proceed.

VOA’s Cindy Saine contributed to this report.

Related