Thursday, April 18

Tag: aFGHANISTAN

Special forces blocked UK resettlement applications from elite Afghan troops
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Special forces blocked UK resettlement applications from elite Afghan troops

Image caption,Some of the commandos from Triples units, pictured training with British troops, are now in hiding in Afghanistan UK Special Forces blocked Afghan troops they had fought alongside from relocating to the UK after the Taliban seized power, BBC Panorama can reveal. Leaked documents show special forces rejected applications despite some containing compelling evidence of service alongside the British military. Afghan commandos accompanied British special forces on some of the most dangerous missions of the conflict. The Ministry of Defence said it was conducting an independent review. When the Taliban swept to power in August 2021, members of Afghan Special Forces units CF 333 and ATF 444 - known as the "Triples" - were among the groups most at risk of reprisal, ha...
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Pakistan orders Afghan asylum seekers out of country by November
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Pakistan orders Afghan asylum seekers out of country by November

Pakistan has ordered all unauthorised Afghan asylum seekers - an estimated 1.7 million people - to leave the country by November. A spike in attacks along the two countries' border, which Islamabad blames on Afghanistan-based operatives, has escalated tensions this year. It has also fuelled resentment in Islamabad, which on Tuesday announced a crackdown on "illegal" migrants. The Taliban government urged Pakistan to rethink its "unacceptable" move. Afghanistan's rulers have repeatedly denied providing refuge for militants who target Pakistan. Last week, a blast at a mosque in Mastung city, near the border with Afghanistan, killed at least 50 people during a religious celebration. Pakistan's Interior Minister Sarfraz Bugti did not appear to directly reference that and another attack i...
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Taliban bans foreign currencies in Afghanistan
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Taliban bans foreign currencies in Afghanistan

The Taliban has banned the use of foreign currencies in Afghanistan, a move that could further disrupt an economy on the brink of collapse. “The economic situation and national interests in the country require that all Afghans use Afghani currency in their every trade,” the Taliban said. The economy is struggling due to the withdrawal of international financial support after the Taliban took control. The US dollar has been used widely in Afghanistan’s markets. Dollars are also often used for trade in areas bordering Afghanistan’s neighbours such as Pakistan. “The Islamic Emirate instructs all citizens, shopkeepers, traders, businessmen and the general public to henceforth conduct all transactions in Afghanis and strictly refrain from using foreign currency,” Taliban...
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Taliban fire in air to scatter hundreds of protesters in Kabul
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Taliban fire in air to scatter hundreds of protesters in Kabul

Taliban gunmen fired in the air on Tuesday to scatter protesters in the Afghan capital Kabul, witnesses said, as video showed scores scurrying to escape volleys of gunfire. Hundreds of men and women shouting slogans such as "Long live the resistance" and "Death to Pakistan" marched in the streets to protest against the Taliban takeover. Neighbouring Pakistan has deep ties with the Taliban and has been accused of assisting the Islamist group's return to power - charges it denies. "The Islamic government is shooting at our poor people," one panic-stricken woman on the street says over sounds of gunfire in a video clip shown on Iranian television news. There were no immediate reports of injuries, however. The Taliban's rapid advance across Afghanistan as U.S. forc...
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Afghan security forces free dozens from Taliban prison
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Afghan security forces free dozens from Taliban prison

Afghan security forces freed 43 civilians and military personnel from a Taliban prison in southern Zabul province during a secret operation, the country’s Ministry of Defence said on Saturday. Twenty of the prisoners were taken to the provincial capital, and the rest returned to their military units, according to a ministry statement. The operation was confirmed by a spokesman for the provincial authorities. The Taliban, which has been particularly powerful in the province and controls large parts of it, has not yet reacted to the news. The operation comes against the backdrop of talks between the government and the Taliban, which included as a precondition a large prisoner swap. The Afghan government released some 5,000 Taliban prisoners, and the militants released 1,0...
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Gunmen shoot Afghan negotiator: officials
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Gunmen shoot Afghan negotiator: officials

A prominent women's rights campaigner and member of the Afghan negotiating team that will hold talks with the Taliban, Fawzia Koofi, has been wounded in a gun attack near Kabul, officials said Saturday. Gunmen opened fire on Koofi and her sister on Friday when they were returning from a meeting to offer condolences in the province of Parwan, interior ministry spokesman Tariq Arian told AFP. The attack took place when the two women had got out of their car to purchase something, Arian said.© Wakil KOHSAR Afghan negotiator Fawzia Koofi was shot in he right hand, the interior ministry said Koofi, a member of parliament and strong critic of the Taliban, was shot in her right hand, he said, adding that she was in a stable condition. No group has claimed the attack so far. T...
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