Tolo News: Shaheen Asmayee will face De Spinghar Bazan on Thursday night in the second week of group matches of the Afghan Premier League (APL). The match will kick off at 6pm Kabul time at Afghanistan’s Football Federation stadium in the city. On Wednesday night’s match, last year’s champions Toofan Harirod defeated Mawjhai Amu 3-2. Click here to read more (external link).
Afghanistan’s Human Rights Defenders Under ‘Intensifying Attack’
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
August 28, 2019
Amid “escalating violence” in Afghanistan, its human rights community is under “intensifying attacks” from both the authorities and armed groups, according to Amnesty International.
Human rights defenders and activists in Afghanistan have been largely ignored by the Afghan government and the international community as they face “intimidation, harassment, threats, and violence,” the London-based human rights watchdog said in a briefing released on August 28.
It said the Western-backed government in Kabul “has repeatedly failed to investigate attacks on human rights activists, sometimes accused them of ‘fabricating’ their claims, and even told them to take up arms to defend themselves.”
The government has “a duty to respect, protect and support activists, to investigate threats and attacks against them, and to hold suspected perpetrators accountable,” said Omar Waraich, Deputy South Asia Director at Amnesty International.
Meanwhile, he said, the international community “must step forward and provide Afghanistan’s human rights community with the support they urgently need.”
The international community “has long paid tribute to the bravery of Afghanistan’s human rights activists, but they have failed to recognize their achievements and effectively support them at this increasingly difficult time,” according to Waraich.
There has been no let-up in violence in the nearly 18-year war in Afghanistan, even though U.S. and Taliban negotiators appeared to be closing in on an accord to end the fighting.
More than 3,800 civilians were killed or injured during the first six months of this year alone, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).
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.
Pro-Government Afghan Commander Killed By His Own Son’s Taliban Unit
Baz Muhammad was killed by his own son’s Taliban unit just hours after speaking to RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan.
By Farangis Najibullah
Alem Rahmanyar
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
August 28, 2019
SHEBERGHAN, Afghanistan — A pro-government commander in Afghanistan has been killed in a battle against a group of Taliban fighters that included his own son.
The battle also involved two Afghan brothers who fought on opposite sides – a pro-government militia fighter who was killed and his brother, a Taliban militant, who was wounded and escaped from the battlefield.
The overnight battle in Afghanistan’s northern province of Jowzjan took place just hours after the slain commander, Baz Muhammad, spoke to RFE/RL about the need to end a war which pits “sons against fathers and brothers and against brothers.”
The 60-year-old Baz Muhammad was in command of 18 pro-government fighters who were manning a checkpoint near the village of Kokaltash in Jowzjan’s Faizabad district when it was attacked by more than 100 Taliban fighters on the night of August 26.
Baz Muhammad was shot dead along with 10 of his fighters in the Taliban assault, which began at about 8 p.m. local time when the Taliban began firing rocket-propelled grenade launchers at their post, district governor Alifshah told RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan.
Seven other militia fighters under Baz Muhammad’s command were wounded in the battle, Alifshah said.
Alifshah said the Taliban were pushed back nearly four hours later after reinforcements from the Afghan security forces were deployed.
Alifshah told RFE/RL that Baz Muhammad’s 28-year-old son, Fraidon Pahlavan was among the Taliban attackers. It was not known whether his son was the militant who killed his father.
Just nine hours before the battle began, Baz Muhammad told RFE/RL that the war was bringing nothing but misery to Afghans on all sides of the conflict.
“Who kills who in this war? We’ve witnessed that a brother kills his own brother, a father kills his own son, and a son kills his own father. It ends with a tragedy within the same family,” Baz Muhammad told RFE/RL.
Rostam And Sohrab
Baz Muhammad’s involvement in the war ended in a family tragedy that resembles the story of Rostam and Sohrab — one of the most tragic episodes told in the 10th-century epic poem Shahnameh by the Persian poet Ferdowsi.
Shahnameh’s mighty hero Rostam did not know that he had a son, Sohrab, who lived in another kingdom.
When the father and son faced each other in battle, it was only after fatally stabbing Sohrab that Rostam realized he had killed “the person who was dearer to him than all others.”
Unlike, Rostam and Sohrab, however, Baz Muhammad and his son knew that they were fighting on opposite sides in the Afghan war.
Baz Muhammad has been a pro-government commander for nearly 10 years. Fraidon joined the Taliban in early 2019.
Baz Muhammad told RFE/RL he had tried many times to convince his son to leave the insurgent group. But he said Fraidon was adamant about wanting to continue to fight “for the religion.”
Before airing Baz Muhammad’s interview, RFE/RL tried to contact Fraidon through a mobile phone number provided by the family. He didn’t respond.
Family In Mourning
“Baz Muhammad’s wife and other children are devastated by his death and by what has happened,” said Alifshah, who was a long-time friend and neighbor of the slain commander in their village of Sansiz. “It’s hard to describe what they’re going through.”
Alifshah said Fraidon hasn’t contacted the family since the killing of his father, but authorities in Faizabad believe Freidon is alive and is fighting alongside the Taliban.
Fraidon was the second eldest of Baz Muhammad’s 11 children. He was engaged to marry before he joined the Taliban.
Alifshah said Fraidon “fell for the Taliban propaganda.” But he said poverty and a lack of opportunities may have played a role in his decision to join the militants.
Like many ordinary Afghans, Baz Muhammad’s family struggled to make ends meet. Baz Muhammad’s death will only deepen the family’s plight— especially that of his youngest son, who is just four years old.
On August 28, the mourning families of the 11 slain pro-government militia fighters received a one-off “humanitarian aid” delivery consisting of rice, cooking oil, and other foodstuffs.
Baz Muhammad and Fraidon were not the only blood relatives who fought as enemies that night at the Kokaltash checkpoint.
One of the slain government fighters, Hekmatullah, fought against his brother Allah Muhammad, a Taliban militant who was wounded and escaped from the scene.
Afghan authorities believe there are many more families across the country who fight against each other on different warring sides.
‘Peace Can’t Come Soon Enough’
In his remarks to RFE/RL on August 26, Baz Muhammad said he hoped a peace deal would pave the way for “building the country up… instead of destroying it.”
Baz Muhammad, who fought during the 1980s alongside Afghanistan’s communist government forces against mujahedin guerilla fighters, said achieving peace in Afghanistan was difficult but not impossible.
In his last interview, he said he “couldn’t wait” to lay down his weapons and take part in rebuilding Afghanistan.
“Peace can’t come soon enough,” Baz Muhammad said. “Every war, every conflict must end in peace. There is no other way, no better solution than peace.”
Written by Farangis Najibullah in Prague with reporting from Sheberghan, Afghanistan. by RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan correspondent Alem Rahmanyar
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.
US Military: Too Soon to Discuss Afghanistan Troop Withdrawal
U.S. General Joseph Dunford
Carla Babb
VOA News
August 28, 2019
Ayaz Gul contributed to this report.
PENTAGON — The top U.S. military officer says it’s too soon to talk about an American troop withdrawal from Afghanistan or the future of U.S. counterterrorism forces there, as peace talks with the Taliban continue.
“I’m not using the ‘withdraw’ word right now,” Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters Wednesday at the Pentagon.
Dunford was speaking at the first on-camera Pentagon briefing by a secretary of defense and the chairman in exactly one year.
Dunford expressed hope that a peace agreement would cause “a disruption of the status quo” needed to move toward a resolution to the 18-year conflict.
He said any agreement would be “conditions-based” and would need to prevent Afghanistan from becoming a “sanctuary” for terrorists to launch attacks against the United States.
“It’s premature to talk about what our counterterrorism presence in Afghanistan may or may not be without a better appreciation for what will the conditions be,” he said.
Defense Secretary Mark Esper said all options remain on the table.
The U.S.-Taliban deal reportedly could withdraw thousands of American troops from the country, leaving only a residual military force to ensure the Taliban is living up to its commitments outlined in the agreement.
Taliban officials have said the deal being negotiated with the U.S. would require the insurgent group to open a peace process with Afghan stakeholders to discuss a cease-fire or a reduction in attacks against government forces, along with matters related to future political governance.
U.S. officials say the Taliban also would be bound to prevent al-Qaida from establishing a safe haven in insurgent-controlled Afghan areas, and to help defeat Islamic State terrorists in the country.
The Afghan branch of Islamic State has intensified its deadly attacks in the country, raising questions about whether a U.S.-Taliban deal could end violence in Afghanistan. Earlier this month, Islamic State claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing at a wedding ceremony in Kabul that killed more than 80 people and injured about 160 others. Almost all of the victims were civilians.
Related
Taliban Says Agreement Near On U.S. Withdrawal As Afghan Violence Continues
Sohail Shaheen
By RFE/RL’s Radio Free Afghanistan
August 28, 2019
The Taliban has said an agreement is close with U.S. officials on a deal that would see American forces withdraw from Afghanistan in exchange for a Taliban promise the country would not become a haven for international militants.
The statement came during a ninth round of talks on August 28 in Qatar’s capital, Doha, to end the 18-year Afghan conflict, as officials in the war-wracked country said that at least 14 pro-government militia members were killed by Taliban militants in the western province of Herat.
“We hope to have good news soon for our Muslim, independence-seeking nation,” said Suhail Shaheen, a spokesman for the Taliban’s political office in Doha.
U.S. officials engaged in the talks with the Taliban in Doha were not immediately available for comment.
The U.S. special representative for Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, who has been leading the talks, is scheduled to be in Kabul to brief President Ashraf Ghani about the agreement, according to officials close to the negotiations.
In Moscow, officials said they had not been notified by the parties that an accord was near. But Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that “Russia stands ready to act as a witness to the signature or as a guarantor of the implementation of an agreement” between Washington and the Taliban if requested.
Russia has interests and a long history in Afghanistan.
Some 14,000 Soviet soldiers were killed in Moscow-dominated Afghanistan from 1979 to 1989 in a conflict with Islamic guerrillas, who were then backed by the United States.
A senior security official in Kabul said the Taliban and U.S. officials had agreed upon a timeline of about 14 to 24 months for the withdrawal of U.S. forces.
Details would be shared with the Afghan government before they were made public, the official said.
In Herat, the 14 militia members were killed after a large number of Taliban fighters stormed security checkpoints in the Chahardara area of the province’s Rubat-e-Sangi district.
“At least nine others are wounded in the clashes and the Taliban militants were pushed back after Afghan forces reinforced the area,” said Abdul Ahad Walizada, a spokesman for Herat police.
He said there was an unspecified number of Taliban casualties.
Separately, in eastern Nangarhar Province, governor’s spokesman Attaullah Khogynai said a university professor was killed and two others wounded on August 27 when a bomb attached to their car exploded in the provincial capital, Jalalabad.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in Herat. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack in Nangarhar, where both the Taliban and the local affiliate of the Islamic State extremist group are active.
With reporting by AFP, AP, Reuters, and Interfax
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.
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1TV Afghanistan Dari News – August 28, 2019
Afghan Taliban kill 14 pro-government militia members
Press TV
August 28, 2019
Taliban militants in Afghanistan have killed at least 14 pro-government militia members and wounded several other people in the country’s western province of Herat, government officials say.
The casualties occurred when a large number of Taliban militants stormed security checkpoints in the Chahardara area, in Rubat-e-Sangi district of Herat, Abdul Ahad Walizada, a spokesman for Herat police, said on Wednesday.
“At least nine others are wounded in the clashes, and the Taliban militants were pushed back after Afghan forces reinforced the area,” said Walizada.
It was not clear precisely how many of the wounded were civilians, and potential casualties on the part of the Taliban were also not mentioned in reports.
The attack comes as the Taliban and United States officials are said to be nearing a deal aimed at ending the 18-year war in Afghanistan.
On August 22, representatives from the US and the Taliban resumed a new round of talks in Qatar’s capital city, Doha.
The Taliban, which now control or have influence in about half of Afghanistan’s territory, have held several rounds of direct talks with US officials in the Qatari capital since October last year. The militants say they do not recognize the government in Kabul and refuse to talk to it.
Eighteen years ago, the US invaded Afghanistan to overthrow a Taliban regime. It is still fighting the militants in what has become the longest war in US history.
The exit of foreign troops from Afghanistan is a condition set by the Taliban during the talks.
NPR: Afghan Women Still Being Imprisoned For Failing Virginity Tests
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
August 28, 2019
Afghan women are still being imprisoned for failing virginity tests, despite a nationwide ban on the unscientific practice, U.S. National Public Radio (NPR) reported on August 27.
Farhad Javid, an Islamic policy adviser for Marie Stopes International, a U.S. global family planning organization, told NPR that she and Afghanistan’s first lady, Rula Ghani, visited a prison in January where many of the women were being held.
As a result, 190 prisoners were released between January and April, yet more have since been jailed, Javid said.
“Many are kept inside the jail for a year and a half – for nothing,” Javid told NPR in a separate interview.
In 2018, the UN banned the tests, which don’t accurately prove if a woman has had sex.
They are “medically unnecessary, and often times painful, humiliating, and the traumatic practice must end,” according the UN.
Afghan families force daughters to take the tests for a variety of reasons.
They are administered as rape tests, or used to determine whether someone can attend school, get married, or hired for a job.
If a daughter fails the test, the police are usually alerted, and the incarceration process begins.
To reduce the practice, Javid this month rolled out training programs that target police and members of the legal community, including judges and the Prosecutor-General’s Office.
In May, similar sessions were held in the health-care community to educate medical workers.
Based on reporting by The Guardian and NPR
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.
Afghanistan Ready For 2022 World Cup Qualifiers
Tolo News: The National Football Team will face Qatar in their opening group match in the 2022 World Cup Asia Qualifiers in Qatar on September 5. Their second match will be against Bangladesh on September 10. Click here to read more (external link).
1TV Afghanistan Dari News – August 27, 2019