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Taliban’s Qatar Office Engaged in ‘Spreading Terror Activities’ in Afghanistan
The Taliban political office in Qatar concentrates more on spreading terrorist activities in Afghanistan than having impact on the process of Afghan peace talks with the group, a government source told Ariana News Wednesday.
“The Taliban Qatar office is ineffective to the pave the way for peace talks and its negative role is more prominent, therefore, it has concentrated more on spreading terror activities [in Afghanistan],” the source said.
The Taliban opened their Doha office in 2013, following the support of the U.S., Afghan and Qatari governments. The political leaders hoped the move would set the stage for peace negotiation between the Taliban and the Afghan government.
However, recently reports emerged that U.S. President Donald Trump is pushing the Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to agree on closure of the Taliban office which has been a channel for dialogue for more than six years.
Qatar said the office has operated with U.S. and Afghan consent. “As with the opening of the office, any decision on the future of it rests with both the Government of the United States and the Government of Afghanistan,” said Sheikh Saif Bin Ahmed Al-Thani, director of the Qatari government’s communications office, cited by Wall Street Journal.
“No matter the decision, Qatar will remain America’s strongest ally in the region, working to defeat terrorism and resolve global conflicts,” he said.
Some Afghan political analysts believe if the Taliban’s Qatar office was closed, the group will lose its “independency” status.
“The closure Qatar office will harm the dialogue [process] and will encourage the Taliban to fight further,” said Jawid Kohistani. “They will lose independency and will rely upon Pakistan again.”
It comes as Trump unveiled a new strategy for Afghanistan that will surge U.S. troops’ presence and to repel Taliban advances across the country.
By Shakib Mahmud and Rafi Sediqi
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Mullah Baradar discusses creation of railway with Kazakh deputy PM
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, deputy prime minister for economic affairs has met with Erik Zhumangarin, the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan, and discussed the establishment of a railway network from Kazakhstan to Pakistan through Turkmenistan and Afghanistan, the deputy PM’s office said in a statement.
During the meeting, Baradar emphasized the need to sign agreements to solve the banking problems of traders from both countries, the creation of Afghan-Kazakh joint companies, and the facilitation of visas for Afghan traders.
According to the statement, the Deputy Prime Minister of Kazakhstan said that the Kazakh government intends to establish a joint chamber of industry and commerce and a joint trade and labor group between the two countries, and is ready to cooperate with Afghanistan in the sectors of e-governance, industry, higher education, education, health, and banking.
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Iran, Pakistan leaders raise concerns over ‘terrorist groups’ in Afghanistan
Following a two-day official visit to Pakistan, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif issued a joint statement emphasizing the need to further expand commercial and economic cooperation and transform the common border of the two countries from a “border of peace” to “border of prosperity”.
The two leaders also strongly condemned aggressions and crimes of Israel in Gaza, and demanded an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, as well as unimpeded humanitarian access to the besieged people of Gaza.
Numerous other issues were also discussed but on the topic of Afghanistan, they jointly declared their commitment to the development of Afghanistan as a peaceful, united, independent country free from the threats of terrorism and drug trafficking.
According to the statement the two countries pointed out that the existence of terrorist organizations in Afghanistan is a serious threat to the security of the region and the world.
The two sides stressed their desire to strengthen cooperation in the field of fighting terrorism and ensuring security and creating a united front against terrorism.
They also discussed the importance of coordinating regional and international efforts to ensure security and stability in the region.
“While respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan, the two sides recognized that increasing participation of all strata of Afghans in basic decision-making will lead to the strengthening of peace and stability in this country,” the statement read.
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Over 1,000 Afghan refugees forced out of Pakistan in one day
The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations (MoRR) says over 1,000 Afghan migrants were forcibly returned from Pakistan on Tuesday through Spin Boldak border crossing in Kandahar province, the ministry said in a statement.
The ministry stated that based on information provided by the Spin Boldak Kandahar border command, these returnees comprised 191 families, totalling 998 people.
In addition, three migrants released from Pakistani prisons were also returned, according to the statement.
The statement added that after registering the returnees, the refugees were referred to the offices of the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the World Food Program (WFP) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
Each family received 10,000 afghanis – paid to them by the Islamic Emirate.
In another statement, the ministry said that 2,783 migrants living in Iran voluntarily and forcibly returned to the country during this week.
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