Tolo News: Afghanistan’s National Football Team lost 0-1 to Asian Cup champions Qatar during their FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023 joint qualifying match on Tuesday night. Qatar, who has already qualified for the 2022 World Cup as hosts, plays India next on March 26, with Afghanistan taking on Bangladesh. Click here to read more (external link).
Two-Thirds Of Afghan Children Affected By Conflict, Says Charity
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
November 19, 2019
Almost two-thirds of Afghan children have been impacted by the ongoing conflict in the war-wracked country, the British-based Save the Children charity says.
Children affected by the conflict lost a family member, witnessed battles or attacks, or sustained conflict-related injuries, the charity said in a report published on November 19.
Seven hundred adults and children were interviewed across four Afghan provinces for the report, which said a large proportion of minors suffers from symptoms such as depression and anxiety, and lack access to vital support services to help them cope.
Children were most scared on the way to school, parents interviewed for the report said.
Save the Children said that 38 percent of the children hurt themselves, while others behaved violently toward other children.
According to a quarterly report published by the UN’s Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), last year was the deadliest year for Afghan children since the agency began documenting casualties caused by the conflict in 2009.
The UN report said that 927 children were killed and more than 2,100 others were injured in the Afghan war.
With reporting by dpa
Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.
1TV Afghanistan Dari News – November 19, 2019
The Afghan DJs abandoned by the US Military
The Verge: When the US entered Afghanistan, local DJs were hired to help with the war effort. And when the American military pulled out, they abandoned those voices, leaving many of them for dead. Click here to read more (external link).
Hekmatyar: Prosecute Those Committing Electoral Fraud
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
Tolo News: Presidential candidate Gulbuddin Hekmatyar at a news conference on Tuesday said that those involved in electoral fraud should be brought to court. He insisted that out of 2.5 million votes, 1.2 million are fraudulent and have been cast in favor of a certain campaign team. Hekmatyar had a list of demands: Click here to read more (external link).
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1TV: The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on Afghanistan-based Nejaat Social Welfare Organization for providing financial and logistical support to Islamic State militant group. Two of the organization’s senior officials, Sayed Habib Ahmad Khan and Rohullah Wakil, were also targeted for supporting activities of IS’s Afghan affiliate, US Treasury Department said. Click here to read more (external link).
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Taliban Releases 2 Western Hostages in Prisoner Exchange
FILE – Timothy Weeks of Australia, left, and American Kevin King (photo taken from video sent to VOA from Taliban)
Ayesha Tanzeem
VOA News
November 19, 2019
ISLAMABAD – The Taliban freed two Western hostages Tuesday after the Afghan government released three important Taliban prisoners, who were flown to Qatar where the Taliban has a political team.
Sources told VOA the hostages, American Kevin C. King, 63, and Australian Timothy J. Weeks, 50, were released in Zabul province in southern Afghanistan. A 48-hour ceasefire was in place in multiple districts in Zabul to help the process.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid confirmed that 10 Afghan soldiers were also released as part of the deal.
The three Taliban prisoners were flown from Kabul to Doha in a special Qatar government plane, according to sources in the Afghan government. A former Taliban ambassador currently based in Doha, Mawlawi Abdul Salam Zaeef, confirmed that the prisoners had arrived.
Another source said the prisoners were allowed to meet the Taliban political team in Doha Monday night.
Qatar has, for years, facilitated an unofficial Taliban political office in Doha, the capital of Qatar, in order to enable Western governments to negotiate with the group. Most direct talks between the U.S. and the Taliban have taken place there.
In a statement welcoming the release of the three prisoners, Mujahid thanked the emir of Qatar and the Qatari foreign minister for assisting the process. “These actions are a step forward in good-will and confidence building measures that can aid the peace process,” he said.
King and Weeks were kidnapped in Kabul in August 2016 as they were leaving the American University of Afghanistan where they taught.
“The AUAF community shares the relief of the families of Kevin and Timothy, and we look forward to providing all the support we can to Kevin and Tim and their families. We wish to extend our gratitude to all involved in the release of our colleagues,” the university said in a statement.
The Taliban prisoners included Anas Haqani, arrested in Bahrain in 2014 and reportedly handed over to Kabul by the United States. His older brother Sirajuddin Haqqani is the second-in-command in the Taliban hierarchy and heads the deadly Haqqani network blamed for many attacks on the U.S. and NATO forces.
Released with him were Hafiz Abdul Rashid, who was captured with Haqqani in Bahrain, and Haji Mali Khan.
President Ashraf Ghani announced last week that he had “conditionally” approved the prisoner swap to help reduce violence in the country and facilitate direct talks between Taliban and Afghan government.
In two separate phone calls with U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Nation Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, Ghani reviewed how the swap would be implemented, according to his spokesman Sediq Sediqi.
“The U.S. officials reiterated their support for President Ghani’s decision and committed to work closely together to respond to any possible Taliban violence in the event the group don’t respond in good faith,” Sediqi tweeted.
The two sides also agreed that “a ceasefire and/or a reduction in violence was a necessary pre-condition for kick-starting the intra-Afghan negotiations to reach a political settlement,” according to State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus.
The intra-Afghan negotiations were expected to be the second step of a deal between the U.S. and Taliban that was considered nearly done and ready to be signed when it was abandoned by President Donald Trump in early September.
The U.S. peace envoy who led those negotiations, Zalmay Khalilzad, is also credited with leading the hostage negotiations with the Taliban. However, the hostage swap was delayed by days after two Taliban attacks soon after Ghani’s initial announcement.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Twitter that his country had “facilitated” the release. In a trip to Washington in July, Khan had told Trump that his country was working to help get the hostages released and promised good news within 48 hours.
Afghan and U.S. officials believe Pakistan still maintains a considerable influence on the Taliban insurgency because it provides safe havens to senior Taliban leaders — a charge Islamabad denies.
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1TV Afghanistan Dari News – November 18, 2019
IEC Prepares for Possible Runoff
Ariana: An official at the Independent Election Commission of Afghanistan (IEC) stated on Monday that preparations for a possible runoff are underway in the commission. However, election watchdogs stress that IEC does not have the capability of managing a possible runoff. Click here to read more (external link).
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1TV: Afghanistan defeated Sri Lanka by seven wickets in their third match of Emerging Teams Asia Cup in Bangladesh on Monday and advanced to semi-finals of the tournament. The win was Afghanistan’s second in the tournament after beating Oman by nine wickets. Click here to read more (external link).
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