Iran’s Zarif meets Taliban, calls for inclusive government

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Zarif

Ariana: During talks with a visiting Taliban delegation, Iran’s Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Sunday called for the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan. Iran’s foreign ministry said in a press release after the meeting between the Taliban delegation, led by the group’s deputy leader Mullah Ghani Baradar, and Zarif that Iran’s foreign minister welcomed the idea of the formation of an “all-inclusive government with the participation of all ethnic and political groups in Afghanistan.” Click here to read more (external link).

Reported Civilian Deaths in Behsud to be Probed

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Tolo News: The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) on Sunday said it will assess reports of civilian deaths in clashes in the Behsud district in Maidan Wardak province that erupted during a protest in the district on Friday. The Ministry of Interior Affairs said the fighting erupted after armed men loyal to a local commander, Alipoor, started fighting with security forces, but Alipoor in a voice message to TOLO news rejected the claim and said the security forces opened fire on the protestors.  “It was a civil protest, but they opened fire on the people. Sixty people were near their tanks. This itself is a war crime,” Alipoor said.  Click here to read more (external link).

COVID-19: 38 New Cases, 4 Deaths Reported in Afghanistan

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Tolo News: The Ministry of Public Health on Sunday reported 38 new positive cases of COVID-19 out of 1,648 samples tested in the last 24 hours. The ministry says the cumulative total of known COVID-19 cases is 55,059, the total number of reported deaths is 2,400, and the total number of recoveries is 47,609. Click here to read more (external link).

Taliban Claims Car Bombing That Killed At Least 14 Afghan Troops

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Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
January 30, 2021

The Taliban has claimed responsibility for a car bombing in eastern Afghanistan that officials say killed at least 14 soldiers when it targeted a military base in Nangarhar.

Local councilor Ajmad Omar said four other troops were wounded in the attack on January 30, in the Shrizad district near the border with Pakistan.

The dpa news agency quoted a spokesman for the Taliban, Zabiullah Mujahid, claiming that the militant group carried out the attack and saying casualty figures were higher.

Both the Taliban — who are engaged in mostly deadlocked peace talks with the Afghan government in Qatar — and Islamic State (IS) are active in the area.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Interior Ministry and a lawmaker are providing contradictory accounts of a deadly clash that occurred in the central Wardak Province a day earlier.

The ministry said police killed seven local militia members and wounded nine more in a skirmish in the Behsood district late on January 29. It also said 68 militia members were arrested for disrupting police efforts.

But a local Wardak lawmaker, Mahdi Rasikh, was quoted as saying that police had opened fire on a peaceful demonstration, killing 11 and injuring 20 more.

The continued violence comes with calls rising from Kabul for the United States to ramp up pressure on the Taliban and avoid rushing the withdrawal of more of its 2,500 or so troops from Afghanistan.

Afghan and Pakistani security sources reported on January 28 that a mine blast in Nangarhar Province killed Mangal Bagh, the leader of the Pakistan-based militant group Lashkar-e Islam.

In 2018, the United States placed a $3 million bounty on Bagh’s head over his alleged role in attacks on NATO convoys, drug trafficking, and other illegal activities.

On January 29, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani urged the United States and NATO to “take a very strong stand on the conditions-based approach” to withdrawing their troops.

Ghani said members of the transatlantic alliance had told him they were “very much interested in continuing” NATO’s mission in Afghanistan.

Ashraf also said the new administration of U.S. President Joe Biden “is going to send a team to Kabul” to discuss ways to energize Afghan peace talks.

The Pentagon said this week that “the Taliban are not meeting their commitments” under an agreement reached nearly a year ago on the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

With reporting by dpa and Reuters

Copyright (c) 2021. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036

Related

ACB confirms Test matches against Zimbabwe in March will go ahead.

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Ariana: Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) on Saturday said the Afghanistan national cricket team is expected to play two Test matches against Zimbabwe in March. “Test Cricket will resume for Afghanistan as the national team is scheduled to play its fifth and sixth Test matches this March against Zimbabwe,” the ACB said in a statement. Click here to read more (external link).

Afghanistan’s first female breakdancer sets sights on Paris Olympics

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Reuters: When 18-year old Manizha Talash joined a small but ardent breakdancing community in Afghanistan a few months ago, she was the only woman. In that short time, however, she’s already set her sights on representing her country in one of the latest sports to be added to the program for the Summer Olympics. Click here to read more (external link).