1TV: Addressing a press conference in Kabul, Minister [Telecommunications and IT] Shahzad Gul Aryoubi said that Facebook is being misused in Afghanistan, as he cited harassment, insulting and publishing private photos and videos of others. He said that creating accounts should be based on documents and that all fake accounts should be blocked. Click here to read more (external link).
1TV Afghanistan Dari News – April 13, 2019
Taliban Fighters Attack Kunduz Outskirts, Violence in Kabul, Day After Spring Offensive Announced
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
April 13, 2019
Taliban fighters attacked the outskirts of a northern Afghan city and bomb blasts were reported in the capital, Kabul, a day after the Taliban launched their annual spring offensive.
The violence on April 13 comes as the United States continues to push for a peace settlement with the Taliban, with a new round of talks scheduled later this month in Qatar.
In the city of Kunduz, Naeem Mangal, head of the regional hospital, told the AFP news agency that at least eight people were killed and 62 wounded in fighting on the city’s limits.
In Kabul, meanwhile, a central police station came under attack when two hand grenades were thrown at a military vehicle — the first major incident of its kind in weeks.
Interior Ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said at least one person was killed and six others wounded. No one immediately claimed responsibility.
In the western province of Ghor, at least seven members of Afghan security forces were killed in a Taliban ambush, the provincial governor’s spokesman, Abdul Hai Khatibi, said.
And a truck bomb attack was reported in eastern Nangarhar province late on April 12. A spokesman for the provincial governor, Ataullah Khogyani, said two Afghan troops had been killed, along with 27 Taliban fighters.
The spring offensive traditionally marks the start of the so-called fighting season, though fighting nowadays continues unabated throughout the year.
In a statement released in five languages on April 12, the Taliban said the fighting would continue while foreign forces remain in Afghanistan.
Zalmay Khalilzad, the U.S. special envoy who is spearheading Washington’s push for a peace settlement, called the Taliban announcement “reckless.”
The Taliban have long refused to speak officially with Kabul, calling the government a “puppet” of the West.
Based on reporting by AFP
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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ICC Judges Reject Request For Probe Of Possible War Crimes In Afghanistan
Bensouda
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
April 12, 2019
The International Criminal Court has turned down a request made by the ICC prosecutor to open a probe into possible war crimes committed during the conflict in Afghanistan.
In its decision issued on April 12, the judges cited a lack of evidence and a poor outlook on state cooperation.
“The chamber hereby decides that an investigation into the situation in Afghanistan at this stage would not serve the interests of justice and accordingly rejects the request,” the decision said.
In November 2017, ICC prosecutor Fatou Bensouda asked judges to open an investigation into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Afghan national security forces, Taliban and Haqqani network fighters, as well as U.S. forces and intelligence officials in Afghanistan since May 2003.
On April 5, Bensouda’s office said in a written statement that U.S authorities revoked her entry visa.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last month that Washington would revoke or deny visas to ICC staff seeking to investigate alleged war crimes and abuses committed by U.S. forces in Afghanistan or elsewhere.
The United States is among dozens of countries that have not ratified the Rome treaty that established the ICC in 2002.
Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP
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 – April 12, 2019
Taliban Unleashes Afghan Spring Offensive Despite US Push for Peace
Taliban militants (file photo)
Ayaz Gul
VOA News
April 12, 2019
ISLAMABAD — The Taliban announced Friday its annual spring offensive in Afghanistan amid a U.S.-led push for a negotiated settlement to the 18-year-old war with the Islamist insurgency.
The offensive dubbed “Al-Fath,” which means “victory” in Arabic, commenced throughout the country early Friday morning with an objective to establish an “Islamic system” in an Afghanistan “cleansed from American occupation,” said a Taliban statement.
Observers, however, say the announcement is largely symbolic because insurgents in recent years have not eased battlefield activities during winter and have staged major attacks against Afghan forces as well as their U.S.-led NATO partners.
Afghan Defense Ministry officials swiftly rejected the insurgent offensive as “mere propaganda,” saying the government resolved to defeat it through ongoing spring operations.
More than 200 killed
Within the past week alone, fighting and Taliban bomb attacks across several provinces have killed more than 200 people, including three U.S. soldiers, and wounded many more.
The Taliban is believed to be controlling or contesting half of Afghanistan’s 407 districts.
“Our Jihadi obligation has not yet ended. Even as large parts of our homeland have been freed from the enemy yet the foreign occupying forces continue exercising military and political influence in our Islamic country,” the Taliban said in its Friday’s declaration.
Washington’s envoy for Afghan reconciliation, Zalmay Khalilzad, has been leading bilateral peace talks with Taliban representatives in Qatar since late last summer amid expectations the process would lead to a reduction in insurgent hostilities this year.
Taliban negotiators freed from UN sanctions
U.S. and Taliban negotiators are set to resume meetings in late April to try to conclude discussions on a preliminary draft agreement about a timeline for foreign forces to exit Afghanistan in exchange for insurgent assurances they would disallow terrorists from using the Afghan soil for attacks against other countries.
In a significant development Thursday to further the Afghan peace effort, a Taliban spokesman confirmed to VOA that all 15 insurgent leaders who are based in Qatar and are negotiating peace with U.S. interlocutors have been temporarily removed from a United Nations sanctions list. Zabihullah Mujahid said the sanctions have been suspended for nine months.
The insurgent group has long maintained the international financial and travel restrictions hamper its efforts to engage with Afghans and officials in foreign countries to discuss a political way out of the war.
Taliban officials said the U.S. envoy had promised in a recent round of talks that he would request an easing of U.N. sanctions against the insurgent negotiating team. There was no immediate U.S. or U.N reaction, nor any Afghan government comment.
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Afghan Spinners Will Shine At World Cup: Nabi
Mohammad Nabi
Tolo News: Afghanistan’s all-rounder Mohammad Nabi and former captain, who is playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League, has said that the National Cricket Team’s spinners would be a handful at the cricket World Cup after their experiences playing in England and in the IPL. The 34-year-old batting all-rounder will form a potent spin attack with Rashid Khan and Mujeeb Zadran at the World Cup, with all three currently contesting the high-pressure IPL. Click here to read more (external link).
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1TV Afghanistan Dari News – April 11, 2019
Afghan nation has a sad history with respect to truth-telling and corruption: Pompeo
Mike Pompeo
1TV: Pompeo said this while testifying before a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the State Department budget request. Asked by a Senator Jeanne Shaheen why do the US believe the Taliban will be honest, Pompeo said that it will be about actions on the ground. “Trust but verify. It will be about actions on the ground. We understand there is not only a deep level of distrust with the Taliban, there is a deep level of distrust with many of the actors in the Afghan area. It’s a nation that has a sad history with respect to truth-telling and corruption,” Pompeo said. The diplomat said that Americans have “our eyes wide open.” Click here to read more (external link).
Taliban Bans Operation of WHO, ICRC Until Further Notice
Ariana: Zabihullah Mujahid the Taliban spokesman said in a statement on Thursday that the group can’t guarantee the safety of these organizations across the country. The group further accuses both organizations for violation of the agreement and “suspicious movements during vaccination campaign”. Click here to read more (external link).