Afghan experts brand U.S.-led war on terror in Afghanistan as failure

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A file photo of American soldiers at an unknown location in Afghanistan.

Xinhua: Afghan political experts have described the U.S.-led war on terror in Afghanistan as a failure. “The so-called U.S.-led war against the Taliban, al-Qaida and terrorist groups has failed to root out the insurgents and bring about peace in Afghanistan,” renowned analyst Shamsul Haq Arianfar told Xinhua. Aimed at dethroning the Taliban regime, demolishing al-Qaida and associated groups and bringing about peace and stability in Afghanistan, the U.S.-led Operation Enduring Freedom, launched on Oct. 7, 2001 in Afghanistan, has yet to achieve its goals, said the expert. Click here to read more (external link).

Afghanistan secures a coveted seat at the UN women’s commission

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Raz

Al Jazeera: Afghanistan has secured a seat at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) for the first time in its history, the South Asian country’s Permanent Mission to the UN announced on Tuesday. Afghanistan’s representative to the UN, Adela Raz, said winning the seat was of “critical importance”. Click here to read more (external link).

US Hails Pakistan’s Role in Advancing Afghan Peace Process

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Zalmay Khalilzad

By Ayaz Gul
VOA News
September 14, 2020

ISLAMABAD – America’s peace envoy for Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, visited Pakistan on Monday and conveyed Washington’s gratitude for the “important role” Islamabad has played in easing the start of reconciliation talks between warring Afghan parties, officials said.

The historic, intra-Afghan negotiations began last Saturday in Doha, Qatar, where representatives of the Taliban insurgent group and the Kabul government are tasked with negotiating a cease-fire and a political settlement to four decades of hostilities in their country.

The U.S Embassy in Islamabad said Khalilzad and his delegation met with Pakistan’s military chief, Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, and some of the country’s other senior officials.

“Ambassador Khalilzad expressed appreciation on behalf of the United States, especially the important role that Prime Minister Imran Khan and General Bajwa played in facilitating the start of the Afghanistan Peace Negotiations in Doha on Sept.12, and stressed the need for ongoing regional and international support for this historic opportunity for peace,” the embassy said in a statement.

A military statement quoted Bajwa as saying that Pakistan was determined to further its mission of promoting regional peace, economic progress and prosperity.

“The visiting dignitary greatly appreciated Pakistan’s role in the ongoing (Afghan) peace process and said that it could not have succeeded without Pakistan’s sincere and unconditional support,” the army statement quoted Khalilzad as saying.

Pakistan shares a nearly 2,600-kilometer traditionally porous border with Afghanistan and still hosts about 3 million Afghan refugees who have fled decades of conflict in their country.

Taliban insurgents allegedly have used Pakistani soil to direct and expand attacks against local and U.S.-led foreign troops in Afghanistan. The Pakistani military has long been accused of covertly supporting the insurgents.

Islamabad rejects the charges, but officials have not ruled out the possibility of Taliban leaders and fighters using refugee populations as a hiding place.

Pakistani leaders take credit for persuading the Taliban to negotiate and sign a landmark agreement with the U.S. in February 2020 that led to the commencement of the intra-Afghan negotiations in Doha this past weekend.

The U.S.-Taliban deal commits all U.S. troops to withdraw from Afghanistan by the end of April 2021 and close America’s longest war.

Khan said Monday he hopes the ongoing Afghan peace talks succeed in bringing peace and stability to Afghanistan.

“If it results in peace (in Afghanistan), it will (economically) connect the entire region all the way up to Central Asia,” he said.

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Cricket: Afghanistan Test unlikely, deadline looms

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The Islander (AU): The one-off Test between Australia and Afghanistan is in extreme doubt as the stakes increase in Cricket Australia’s stand-off with its disgruntled free-to-air broadcaster. The match between Australia and Afghanistan, currently slated to be played in Perth on November 21-25, has long been at risk of being scrapped because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Click here to read more (external link).

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Afghanistan kicks off anti-polio vaccination drive

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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).