Imran Khan
Tolo News: “I’m afraid no one can predict which way things will go in Afghanistan right now,” Khan said in an interview on Der Spiegel on Oct. 30. “What I can say is that after Afghanistan, the country that wants peace most is Pakistan.” Click here to read more (external link).
Related
Tolo News: The Ministry of Public Health on Saturday reported 91 new positive cases of COVID-19 out of 210 samples tested in the last 24 hours. According to the Public Health Ministry’s data, the cumulative number of total cases is now 41,425, the number of total reported deaths is 1,536, and the total number of recoveries is 34,321. Click here to read more (external link).
By Habibur Rahman Taseer
Abubakar Siddique
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
October 30, 2020
GHAZNI, Afghanistan — Hamidullah, a young resident of the southeastern Afghan city of Ghazni, recently had a harrowing experience. While returning from a trip to the southern city of Kandahar this month, the Taliban stopped the bus he had taken for the 350-kilometer return journey.
“A Taliban fighter asked me to hand over my mobile phone,” he told Radio Free Afghanistan. “They found some photos of Afghan Army soldiers, and then they beat me,” he said.
Hamidullah, who goes by one name, says the photos were of friends and relatives, some of whom serve in the Afghan forces. “After they beat me, they broke my phone,” he said.
Hamidullah is not alone in experiencing such treatment. In Ghazni Province, of which Ghazni city is the capital, many have endured harassment and beatings at the hands of the Taliban. The hard-line Islamist group has set up makeshift check posts along Afghanistan’s main highway connecting the capital, Kabul, in the east to Kandahar, the second city in the south. The province contains the middle stretch of Highway 1, which is more than 500 kilometers long.
While the Taliban has admitted prying into mobile phone data, the hard-line group maintains it limits the practice to people considered “suspicious.”
But every day, scores of travelers report intimidation or harassment as the Taliban snatches smartphones and, in some instances, copies phone data to prove what the hard-line Islamist movement considers suspicious activity. The presence of music or videos that the Taliban deems as violating its strict moral code can quickly provoke the militants’ ire.
“I was grilled for half an hour after they discovered some music and dial tones on my phone,” said Mir Ahmad, who recently traveled between Kabul and Kandahar. “It’s not a good idea for the Taliban to peep at someone’s private data, particularly photos.”
Khalid Afghan recently traveled by bus from Kabul to the western city of Herat via Ghazni and Kandahar. He spent several hours at a check post in rural Ghazni as the Taliban went through dozens of smartphones collected from bus passengers.
“We didn’t mind being searched by the Taliban, but checking the contents of our mobiles was really cruel,” he told Radio Free Afghanistan. “People have private family photos [on their phones], including pictures of their wives, sisters, mothers, and other family members,” he added. “Looking at someone’s private videos and photos is not acceptable in Afghan culture.”
Naseem Sodager, an activist in Ghazni, says that in recent years the Taliban has established control over stretches of major highways across Afghanistan where they comb through thousands of smartphones every week. He says the practice has sparked outrage for many in the conservative Muslim country as the Taliban pries into contacts, content, and social media accounts.
“The Taliban sometimes uses data recovery software to copy and save smartphone data,” Sodager told Radio Free Afghanistan. “In some cases, this data later became widely available and created major problems for people.”
For the Afghan government, the Taliban’s ragtag data snooping is evidence of the group’s opposition to development and modernity. Wahidullah Jumazada, a spokesman for Ghazni’s provincial governor, says the practice is part of the Taliban’s keenness to revive its harsh rule from a quarter-century ago, when it banned music, photography, television, and other forms of entertainment.
“Basically, they want to prevent Afghans from linking up with the rest of the world through their smartphones,” he told Radio Free Afghanistan. “This is why in parts of Ghazni that the Taliban control, the insurgents have forced people to break their phones.”
But Zabihullah Mujahid, a purported Taliban spokesman, rejected such views and offered a different explanation. In an audio message to Radio Free Afghanistan, he claimed his comrades only go through the phones of people their intelligence flags as suspects.
“We do not check anyone’s phone to look at their photos or data,” he said. “We only look at the phones of suspected individuals to complete our information,” he added. “We look at their contacts and other information to decide whether we need to detain them and take them away [for further questioning].”
Evidence from across Taliban-controlled regions in Afghanistan indicates that the hard-line movement is eager to bring back the moral policing that was a hallmark of the Taliban’s rule in the late 1990s. In August, the Taliban imposed new restrictions — including bans on music, mobile phones, and shaving beards — in rural districts of Ghazni. In the northern province of Faryab, similar pervasive bans took effect last month.
The Taliban’s data snooping has real-life consequences even for the poorest in Afghanistan. Obaidullah Ubaidi, a day laborer, has to pass through several insurgent check posts to get to Ghazni city from his village. He says the Taliban recently broke his smartphone.
“It had all my contacts,” he told Radio Free Afghanistan. “Now I can’t find all the people who used to offer me work.”
Abubakar Siddique wrote this story based Habibur Rahman Taseer’s reporting from Ghazni, Afghanistan.
Khalilzad
By Ayaz Gul
VOA News
October 30, 2020
ISLAMABAD – The U.S. peace envoy for Afghanistan reconciliation has resumed his diplomatic efforts to press warring Afghan parties to reduce battlefield hostilities and accelerate ongoing negotiations to reach a deal that ends the country’s nearly 20-year war.
Zalmay Khalilzad’s renewed push comes as President Donald Trump’s administration says it has brought down the U.S. military presence in the war-ravaged country to 4,500 troops.
Khalilzad returned this week to Doha, Qatar, where teams representing the Afghan government and the Taliban insurgency have been negotiating since September 12. They have not made headway because of lingering disputes over procedural matters.
A spokesman for the Taliban, Mohammad Naeem Wardak, said Thursday that their political leaders in Doha met with Khalilzad and his team the previous evening, and that the commander of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, General Scott Miller, also attended.
On the agenda
Wardak said the two sides discussed “the importance and full implementation” of the peace agreement signed by the Taliban and the U.S. in February. Wardak added that the removal of names of top Taliban leaders from a U.N. so-called blacklist and alleged U.S. violations of the agreement also were discussed.
The U.S. side has so far not commented on the meeting.
The February 29 peace pact called for all American and NATO forces to leave Afghanistan by May 2021. In return, the insurgents are required to fight terrorism on Afghan soil and open peace talks with Kabul to negotiate a comprehensive cease-fire, as well as a political power-sharing deal.
White House national security adviser Robert O’Brien said Wednesday that the peace agreement sealed after 19 years of war “we hope and expect” has put Afghans “on a path toward lasting peace.” He credited Trump’s working to end America’s longest war.
“We are ending the American involvement in Afghanistan. It does not take place overnight, but if you look at Afghanistan, where we had 15,000 troops, we are now down to 4,500 troops,” O’Brien said while delivering a public talk at Washington’s Hudson Institute.
“We are on a pathway to get our soldiers, sailors and Marines home after the tremendous sacrifices of blood and treasure that the country has made over the past 19 years,” he said.
While explaining a recent tweet by Trump that he wanted all American troops out of Afghanistan by Christmas, the national security adviser said that “as soon as conditions permit,” the president has pledged to live up to his commitment.
“He’s even tweeted recently like many other past presidents in times of war that he would like them home by Christmas, and whether we get them home by Christmas, or surely thereafter, American troops are coming home,” O’Brien emphasized.
Some skepticism
Critics are skeptical, however, about whether the intra-Afghan peace negotiations will produce any tangible outcomes soon or help reduce the deadly violence in Afghanistan.
Expressing his frustration over the rise in violence and the slow movement of the peace talks, Khalilzad criticized the Afghan rivals Tuesday for their “intransigence and a refusal to abandon animosity” in favor of a formula for political cooperation to end the war.
“I return to the region disappointed that despite commitments to lower violence, it has not happened. The window to achieve a political settlement will not stay open forever,” said Khalilzad. The Afghan-born diplomat urged both negotiating teams to “move past procedure and into substantive negotiations.”
The United Nations warned Tuesday that the Afghan peace process had failed to slow the number of civilian casualties in the conflict. It said nearly 6,500 Afghan civilians had been killed and wounded in the country since the start of 2020, although the figures represented a 30 percent drop compared with the same period last year.
Tolo News: An ancient minaret in the city of Herat is on the verge of destruction as less attention has been paid to its maintenance, local officials and residents said on Friday. The minaret is one of the five remaining minarets of former Musallah complex, each of them 55 meters tall. The complex initially had 20 minarets built by Queen Gawhar Shad in 1417. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News: The Ministry of Public Health on Friday reported 66 new positive cases of COVID-19 out of 169 samples tested in the last 24 hours. According to the Public Health Ministry’s data, the cumulative number of total cases is now 41,334, the number of total reported deaths is 1,533, and the total number of recoveries is 34,258. Click here to read more (external link).
James Dorian
October 30, 2020
What’s your idea of perfect relaxation? For most people, it means spending an evening with high-quality cinema and TV programs. Are you in the mood for Afghan production?
The film industry in the country is growing, and the newly produced films show that progress. It’s nice to see themes that tackle current social and political upheavals. Afghan film-makers are part of a local tradition that’s worthy of being explored and celebrated.
If you figured out how to download Netflix movies on Mac, you’ll be able to watch great shows and movies offline. Now, the big question is: what should you watch?
We created a diverse list of Afghan movies and TV shows that suit different tastes. They tell great stories, and they cover different eras of local cinema. All suggestions are available for online streaming, so it will be easy for you to watch them.
It’s a story of a young girl, who has no other choice but to find work and support her family. As women are restricted from working, she decides to present herself as a boy. The plot is interesting; it will surely keep your attention. However, it’s a movie that shows a deep perspective of Afghan society, and makes you think about what’s right and wrong.
Marina Golbahari is an excellent young actress, who will certainly trigger emotions with her performance in the movie.
If you read the online critiques, you’ll find a common opinion: “It’s just an old man and his grandson, walking.”
Yes; this is a simplistic plot that could be described with a single sentence. But when you scratch its surface, you see a remarkable presentation of the despair and horror of war. It’s one of those movies that leave you with a bitter taste in your mouth, especially if you are acquainted with the terror and consequences of that war.
The movie gained international acclaim, and it was the country’s submission to the 77th Academy Awards in 2004.
If you’re into arthouse movies that experiment with the traditional format of storytelling, you’ll love No Woman. It’s a story about two women trying to cross a desert road that they are forbidden to cross.
It’s a short film that makes a big point in only three minutes. It won several international awards and gained extraordinary critical acclaim.
There aren’t many Afghan series that attracted the audience’s attention, but this one is pretty decent. It’s about the way Afghan Police solves crimes. You’ll quickly binge-watch the 13 episodes; they are fun and packed with action.
Crime and corruption in society are always interesting to explore through the TV industry. Can the Rule of Law always win? Can all cases be solved in accordance with the regulations that are already set?
How about a modern movie that combines action, romance, fantasy, and social circumstances in one? Sammeer is a lovable lead character with a big dream: fight crime and contribute towards a better world. Since he has a learning disability, he tries to make up for it by becoming as skilled as possible in martial arts. But he lacks focus for that, too. A magical necklace solves the problem and turns him into a superhero.
It’s rare to see Afghan movies with such a fun, yet valuable theme. That’s why we’re sure that you’ll enjoy Faceless. The best part is that you can watch the full movie for free directly through its IMDb page.
The list above is versatile enough to suit different tastes. You’ll surely find something interesting to watch.
Afghan cinema is becoming more popular because it’s raw and far less commercialized than the movies we’re used to seeing. Not many movies come out of the country on a yearly basis, but the film industry is thriving. It will become more productive in the future.
Thanks to online streaming services, you have access to any movies that you’d like to watch. So what will your first choice be?
Author Bio:
James Dorian is a technical copywriter. He is a tech geek who knows a lot about modern apps that will make your work more productive. James reads tons of online blogs on technology, business, and ways to become a real pro in our modern world of innovations.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
October 29, 2020
Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Russia remain near the top on the list of countries where the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) says “impunity” in cases of murdered journalists is “entrenched.”
The New York-based watchdog’s 2020 Global Impunity Index highlighted a total of 12 countries where “journalists are singled out for murder and their killers go free.”
Somalia, Syria, Iraq, South Sudan, and Afghanistan occupy the worst five spots in a ranking based on deaths as a percentage of each country’s population, as “war and political instability perpetuate the cycle of violence and lawlessness.”
In war-torn Afghanistan alone, 13 unresolved killings of journalists over the 10-year index period have been recorded, according to the CPJ.
The country was followed by Mexico, the Philippines, Brazil, and Pakistan, which ranked ninth in the index with 15 unresolved slayings of journalists.
The CPJ welcomed a decision by Pakistan’s Supreme Court this year to accept an appeal challenging a lower court’s ruling overturning the murder convictions of four men accused in the killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl in 2002.
The “surprise” legal development, although not directly affecting the 2020 Impunity Index, showed that “even murder cases that were long thought to be resolved can be upended,” the watchdog noted.
Pakistan is followed in the raking by Bangladesh, Russia — which was in 11th place with six unresolved killings of journalists — and India.
Illustrating the “entrenched nature of impunity,” the 12 countries on the index account for 80 percent of the global total of unsolved murders of journalists over the past 10 years, according to CPJ.
It said that in these 12 countries, powerful actors such as criminal and political groups, politicians, and business leaders “resort to violence to silence critical and investigative journalists,” while corruption, weak institutions, and lack of political will to thoroughly investigate murder cases are all factors behind impunity there.
During the period ending on August 31, a total of 277 journalists were killed for their work worldwide and no perpetrators have been successfully prosecuted in 83 percent of those cases.
CPJ noted that the rate of “complete impunity has inched lower” in recent years.
The number of journalists killed in reprisal for their work was the lowest in 2019 that CPJ had recorded in any year since 1992, and while the number of killings in 2020 has already exceeded last year it is “not on track for a major increase.”
However, the group warned that “incremental progress toward reducing the murders of journalists worldwide is fragile and could be thwarted by legal appeals and lack of political leadership.”
It cited the case of a Serbian court that overturned in September the convictions of four former state security officers involved in the 1999 killing of journalist Slavko Curuvija and ordered a retrial.
And in Slovakia, a court acquitted a business tycoon suspected of ordering the 2018 killings of investigative journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee.