Tobias Ellwood Faced No-Confidence Motion For Praising Taliban
Tobias Ellwood
Khaama: Tobias Ellwood, the chairman of the commons defence select committees in the UK parliament, is facing motion after he shared a video praising the Taliban for improving security in Afghanistan. Ellwood tried to end the controversy by apologizing for his “poor communication” after his actions infuriated members of his party and veterans. Click here to read more (external link).
Afghan Resistance Leader Says US Diverted Attention From Afghanistan To Ukraine
Massoud
Sputnik: The United States diverted its attention from Afghanistan to Ukraine and other places after the Taliban takeover in 2021 just like it did after September 11 when it reallocated resources to invade Iraq, National Resistance Front (NRF) of Afghanistan Leader Ahmad Massoud said during a virtual panel hosted by the Aspen Institute. “Unfortunately, once again, the attention from Afghanistan has been diverted to Ukraine and different areas,” Massoud said on Thursday. Click here to read more (external link).
Related
US Body Reports ‘Horrific Information’ About UN Operations in Afghanistan
John Sopko
Akmal Dawi
VOA News
July 20, 2023
A U.S. watchdog says it has disclosed to Congress information about diversion and control of international humanitarian assistance by de facto Taliban authorities in Afghanistan.
“We have just uncovered, as part of our response to the House Foreign Relations Committee, some really horrific information about the problems with the U.N. operations in Afghanistan,” John Sopko, Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), told an event at King’s College London on Thursday.
Sopko did not offer more details about his findings saying the foreign relations committee had tasked SIGAR to investigate and report to it whether U.S. aid to Afghanistan benefited the Taliban.
“A lot of congressmen are torn in this conundrum between giving humanitarian assistance to Afghans who are suffering versus how much of that [aid] is going to a regime which we hate,” said Sopko.
United Nations officials have not yet responded to VOA questions sent Thursday about what they know about diverted aid.
The Taliban are under U.S. sanctions that date back decades when the group was first in power over much of Afghanistan in the 1990s.
After spending over $146 billion on reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan between 2002 and 2022, the United States government suspended all development aid to the country following Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.
The Taliban deny they are interfering in humanitarian programs and accuse the U.S. and other Western donors of politicizing aid to Afghanistan.
However, the Islamist regime has imposed gender-based restrictions on aid activities denying Afghan women’s work for the U.N. and other non-government organizations – a move globally condemned as misogynistic.
Meanwhile, the U.N. says there continue to be many incidents of interference involving U.N. aid workers.
“118 gender-related incidents were recorded, with some 97 percent attributed to the de facto authorities and involving, inter alia, interference with programming, incidents at checkpoints, threats against humanitarian workers, assets and facilities, and mahrams [male escorts] required for movement of female staff,” the U.N. Special Representative for Afghanistan reported to the Security Council last month.
The U.N. has reported progress in reducing risks of fraud and diversion of funds in Afghanistan but has not given more details.
Robust funding
The United States, even while enforcing sanctions on the Taliban, has maintained humanitarian funding to Afghanistan amounting to about $2 billion since August 2021.
Despite a reported drop in donors’ response to the U.N. humanitarian appeal for Afghanistan, the United States remains at the top of the donors’ list with over $336 million contribution so far this year. Last year, the United States contributed over $1.26 billion to the U.N. appeal.
As of July 20, only 23% of this year’s Afghanistan appeal has been funded, according to the U.N.
Aid agencies have warned that a lack of funding to the appeal will force millions of vulnerable Afghan households into extreme poverty.
Citing North Korea and Syria, among other countries, John Sopko said in the past “we in the United States held our nose and delivered assistance to people around the world who live under governments we hate.”
Last month, the U.S. Department of States announced an additional $920 million in humanitarian assistance for the people of Syria taking the total U.S. assistance to the country since 2011 to $16.8 billion.
SIGAR said a new proposed draft law, which was passed by the House and under consideration by the Senate, will prohibit any U.S. assistance going “directly or indirectly” to the Taliban. Sopko predicted the bill, if passed, would have “serious implications” for aid to Afghanistan.
British Lawmaker Deletes Video Lauding Taliban Rule in Afghanistan
Tobias Ellwood
Ayaz Gul
VOA News
July 20, 2023
ISLAMABAD, PAKISTAN — A senior British member of parliament deleted a video Thursday praising the Taliban’s rule in Afghanistan and apologized for what he said was the outcome of his “poor communication.”
Tobias Ellwood of the Conservative Party released the video commentary Wednesday on Twitter after his trip to the war-ravaged South Asian nation last week.
He argued in his now-deleted video that the security situation in Afghanistan had “vastly improved” since the Taliban returned to power two years ago.
Ellwood added that “corruption is down,” and the Taliban have almost eliminated the opium trade. He recorded his comments in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, one of the world’s largest opium poppy producers.
“This is a very different country indeed — it feels different now since the Taliban have returned to power,” he said. Ellwood urged Britain to re-engage with the Taliban and reopen its embassy in Kabul.
His video sparked outrage and prompted fellow members to move to seek his ouster as chairman of the House of Commons Defense Select Committee.
“I’m very, very sorry that my reflection of my visit could have been much better worded and have been taken out of context,” Ellwood said Thursday in his statement on Twitter after deleting the video.
Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid retweeted the video Thursday, calling it a “positive report.” But he, too, later deleted the tweet without explaining.
British media quoted Mark Francois, a defense committee member, telling the House of Commons on Wednesday that the video was “utterly bizarre” and advising Ellwood to be “very careful” in expressing his views.
“Tobias Ellwood’s video could have been issued by the Afghan tourist board,” Jacob Rees-Mogg, a British member of parliament, said in a sarcastic Twitter comment.
On Thursday, Ellwood appeared to defend some of his remarks in the controversial video, including criticism of the British government for not engaging directly with the Taliban, saying, “our current strategy of shouting from afar, after abruptly abandoning the country in 2021” was not working.
“However well-intentioned, reflections of my personal visit could have been better worded,” he said.
“I stand up, speak my mind, try to see the bigger picture, and offer solutions, especially on the international stage, as our world turns a dangerous corner. I don’t always get it right,” the lawmaker added.
“My simple call to action was to see our embassy reopen again and pursue a more direct strategy to help the 40 million people that we abandoned,” Ellwood said.
The Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021 when the United States and other Western allies withdrew all their troops after almost two decades of involvement in the war.
The fundamentalist de facto rulers have since introduced their strict interpretation of Islamic law or Sharia, squeezing women out of public life and placing an indefinite ban on girls’ education beyond the sixth grade. The restrictions on Afghan women and other human rights concerns have kept the international community from granting legitimacy to Taliban rule.
Taliban leaders defend their government, saying it is aligned with the Afghan culture and Sharia.
A U.S. State Department spokesman told reporters Wednesday that “we are not reconsidering opening an embassy at this point” in Afghanistan. He was responding to a question about Ellwood’s video.
“We have always made clear to the Taliban that there are certain steps that we expect them to take if they want to gain any form of international legitimacy, which they are a long way from reaching, if at all possible,” Matthew Miller said and denounced as “abhorrent” curbs the Taliban have placed on Afghan women and girls.
“We strongly object to those steps, and of course, we know that others in the international community take note, and they consider those in assessing their relationship with their government.”
Related
Tolo News in Dari – July 20, 2023
“Eradicating” Terrorism: The Deceptive Political Rhetoric
8am: The Pakistan Army has played a significant role in the expansion and fortification of the terrorist industry, profiting the most from its existence. For several decades, the Pakistani military has been responsible for establishing and controlling terrorist groups to achieve their strategic objectives. The Taliban is among these groups that ultimately triumphed in dominating Afghanistan with the aid of the Pakistan Army. Click here to read more (external link).
US would have invaded Afghanistan even without bin Laden: Taliban deputy PM
Abdul Kabir
Ariana: The United States would invade Afghanistan even if al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden left the country, Maulavi Abdul Kabir, [Taliban] deputy prime minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), said on Wednesday. “It was the zeal of our Amir-ul-Mominin that he didn’t leave something that would taunt us, which would be handing over a Muslim to infidels. But we should understand that even if that Muslim voluntarily left the country, US and NATO would certainly invade Afghanistan,” Abdul Kabir said addressing a gathering of local elders. Click here to read more (external link).
Sri Lanka to Host Afghanistan’s Home Series Against Pakistan
Khaama: Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) will host the bilateral one-day home series between Pakistan and Afghanistan next month. According to reliable sources at the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), which has its headquarters in Kabul, the SLC has been approached about allowing three One Day Internationals (ODI) against Pakistan to be played at the same venue, Daily Mirror reported. It is also said that the SLC has agreed to rent out its ground and the Stadium. Click here to read more (external link).
First Round of University Entrance Exams Held Without Girls
Tolo News: The first round of university examinations of the 1402 solar year was held on Thursday in 11 of 34 provinces without the presence of female students. According to the officials, the examination will be taken in two days, in which at least 24,000 people are attending. Meanwhile, some of the female students who are not allowed to attend the examination expressed criticism towards the officials of the Islamic Emirate for not allowing girls to attend the examination. “We also want to be part of it and form our future. Please, I request they allow girls to get their education,” said Hadia Mohammadi, a student. Click here to read more (external link).