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17 bodies of drowned Afghan refugees returned home from Turkey to date: MoFA

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Wednesday that the bodies of 17 Afghan migrants who drowned in Lake Van in Turkey have been repatriated so far. 

The Ministry identified 34 Afghan citizens who drowned along with dozens of migrants after their boat capsized in the lake last month. 

The Ministry said, so far, 61 bodies in total have been recovered from the lake. 

Giran Hiwad, a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that five victims have been buried in Van city in Turkey, adding that the remains of six other victims had also been buried but exhumed and will return to Kabul on Thursday at the request of relatives. 

Six more bodies were currently in mortuaries in Istanbul in Turkey and will also be sent back to Kabul, said Hiwad. 

According to reports, around 80 migrants mostly from Iran and Afghanistan were crossing Van Lake on a fishing boat from Iran, trying to avoid police checkpoints on the highways, on their way to Turkey. 

Turkey, which is a key crossing point for migrants attempting to reach Europe, hosts about 3.7 million Syrian refugees.

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Torkham remains closed after Pakistan-Afghanistan talks fail

The Pakistani authorities have requested that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) refrain from constructing new facilities along the Durand Line.

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The Torkham border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan remained closed on Tuesday after four days of negotiations between officials from the two countries failed to yield results.

Torkham commissioner Abdul Jabbar Hikmat reported that discussions held Monday were chaired by the deputy governor of Nangarhar but ended without any agreement.

The Pakistani authorities have requested that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) refrain from constructing new facilities along the Durand Line.

According to Bakhtar news agency, Pakistan also said Afghanistan should not obstruct Pakistan’s own development projects in the area.

Hikmat confirmed that this request was rejected by the Afghan side, which resulted in Pakistan maintaining its closure of the Torkham gate.

The ongoing closure has left thousands of travelers, including medical patients and commercial convoys stranded on both sides of the border.

Torkham is a key crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan, especially for trucks. Closures of this border crossing result in huge losses for traders as many rely on this route to move fresh produce between the two countries.

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IEA confirms arrest of UK couple and a Chinese-American in Afghanistan

Meanwhile, Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed the detention of the two British nationals adding that the government was supporting their family.

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Afghanistan’s ministry of interior’s spokesman, Abdul Mateen Qani, confirmed Monday night that the Islamic Emirate has detained two Brits, a Chinese-American, and their Afghan translator.

Qani told AFP that “efforts are underway to resolve this issue”.

The two Brits, Peter and Barbie Reynolds, are both in their 70s and were detained in Bamiyan province.

According to their daughter, the couple has lived in Afghanistan for 18 years and stayed on after the IEA regained control.

“Based on certain considerations, the authorities have detained four people: two British citizens holding Afghan papers, one person with Chinese and American nationality and their translator,” Qani told AFP.

Meanwhile, Britain’s Foreign Office confirmed the detention of the two British nationals adding that the government was supporting their family.

“We are supporting the family of two British nationals who are detained in Afghanistan,” a spokesperson said in a statement on Monday.

In a statement reported by the BBC on Monday, Qani said: “A series of considerations are being taken into account, and after evaluation, we will endeavour to release them as soon as possible.”

Qani added the three foreign nationals had Afghan passports and national ID cards.

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Global consensus on human rights is crumbling, UN rights chief says

“We need an all-out effort by everyone, to make sure that human rights and the rule of law remain foundational to communities, societies and international relations. Otherwise, the picture is very dangerous,” Turk said.

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The U.N. human rights chief on Monday warned that a system of global protections built in the decades after World War Two has never before been under so much strain, calling for an effort to reinforce it or risk suffering the atrocities of the past.

“The global consensus on human rights is crumbling under the weight of authoritarians, strongmen and oligarchs,” United Nations High Commissioner Volker Turk told a high-level meeting of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

“We need an all-out effort by everyone, to make sure that human rights and the rule of law remain foundational to communities, societies and international relations. Otherwise, the picture is very dangerous,” he said.

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