Donald Trump
Khaama: United States Former President Donald Trump criticized American forces’ hasty withdrawal from Afghanistan and said ‘Bagram Airfield’ has a strategic location to monitor China from a closer range. Bagram Airbase is located some 11 kilometers in southwest of Charikar, the provincial capital of Parwan province, which accommodated American forces until 2020. Click here to read more (external link).
8am: Sources told Hasht-e Subh that on Monday, January 30, Abdul Matin Saeed, the district governor of the Taliban for Kohistan’s first district, ordered butchers to pay 2,000 AFG for the slaughter of each cow. According to sources, Saeed told the butchers to increase the price of each KG of meat by 50 AFG in the market in exchange for paying this amount. Shopkeepers in Kapisa province have repeatedly accused the Taliban of extortion and increase in taxes. Click here to read more (external link).
By RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal
January 23, 2023
At least 44 people have been killed and 157 wounded in an attack witnesses said was a suicide bombing inside a mosque in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar.
Most of the dead were police officers, according to a spokesman for a Peshawar hospital where victims of the attack were treated.
Eyewitnesses told RFE/RL that suicide bombers standing in the first row behind the imam detonated explosive vests as worshippers, including many policemen and other officials, had gathered for afternoon prayers at the Police Line Mosque on January 30.
Dozens of the wounded were transferred to nearby hospitals, a police officer said. Several of them were in critical condition, the officer said, raising fears that the death toll might rise further. One hospital official said 10 to 15 people were in critical condition.
The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for the attack. The radical group has waged an insurgency in Pakistan over the past 15 years.
Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif condemned the bombing and said “stern action” will be taken against those who were behind it. He ordered authorities to ensure the best possible medical treatment to the victims.
RFE/RL correspondents in the area said the mosque has been frequented by police officers and officials from the provincial government whose offices are located in the same area.
Police said rescue crews were working at the scene amid expectations that there are more casualties buried beneath the rubble as the two-story building collapsed following the powerful blast.
Former Prime Minister Imran Khan also condemned the bombing, calling it a “terrorist suicide attack.”
“It is imperative we improve our intelligence gathering [and] properly equip our police forces to combat the growing threat of terrorism,” Khan tweeted.
Peshawar is the capital of the volatile Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province, which borders Afghanistan.
With reporting by AP and Reuters
Tolo News: Female students in grade 6-12 still face an uncertain future as Sunday marks 500 days that schools have been closed for girls in those grades. The students said the closed schools have faced them with psychological problems and mental pressure. Click here to read more (external link).
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Pompeo (front-left), and Ghani (back-right). File photo.
PTI: Ashraf Ghani, the former Afghanistan President who fled the country when the Taliban grabbed power in Kabul, was “a total fraud” solely focused on his own desire to stay in power and a big hurdle in any peace talks, former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has said. Click here to read more (external link).
8am: Sources told Hasht-e Subh that the Taliban arrested these people on Saturday in Tankhawi village of Dara district, and no specifics were available on their whereabouts. These people have been arrested on suspicion of possessing firearms. It is worth noting that civilian detention by the Taliban in Panjshir has increased again. Click here to read more (external link).
Michael Hughes: A newly-released World Bank assessment suggests economic conditions in Afghanistan are improving just as UN agencies are warning that the country is on the verge of “systemic collapse.” Making the dilemma even more mysterious is the Taliban’s lack of transparency – for if business is booming, why isn’t the cash flowing to those in need?
The World Bank’s latest Afghanistan Economic Monitor report, dated January 25, claims that inflation is down, exports are up, the Afghani is stabilizing, while most food and non-food items remain “widely available.”
Some have suggested that the Taliban are less corrupt than the previous Ghani administration – which, in fact, is not saying much. However, even if the Taliban have streamlined operations a bit and business is expanding, it is practically impossible to trace the revenue stream. A large portion of revenue derives from taxes collected at the border and the coal mining royalties, but what happens to the inflow seems a mystery to most Afghans living below the poverty line. And lord knows what the true figures are in terms of private investment.
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Al Jazeera: Sayed Muhammad Hussainy says it is his duty to help strengthen the voices of women living under the Taliban’s rule. When the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled the country fearing curbs on freedoms. Cartoonist Sayed Muhammad Hussainy was one of them. The 29-year-old artist, who has taken refuge in Germany, said he feared the Taliban would target him for working with the previous West-backed government of President Ashraf Ghani. Click here to read more (external link).