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Danish warns against interim govt that ‘might lead to collapse of system’
No peace plan should lead to the collapse of the Republic system and the abolition of the Constitution, Second Vice President Sarwar Danish said on Thursday.
Speaking at an event to mark the 26th death anniversary of Abdul Ali Mazari, Danish said that any plan for an interim and participatory government without holding elections would be a doomed plan.
Danish said plans proposed should be within the current political system and within the Constitution.
“The government emphasizes that, firstly, no plan should be proposed in the absence of the Afghan government and without considering our national interests and only based on the wishes of foreigners; and secondly, any plan should be proposed while maintaining the political system and the Constitution of the country.”
He also said any plan should not put the government and political system at risk of collapsing nor should it threaten the Constitution.
He said “therefore we consider the plan of an interim government as a kind of setback which will cause the current system to collapse,” said Danish.
“Peace with dignity and permanence is important. The people of Afghanistan want a peace that preserves the dignity and authority of the country and does not mean the collapse of the current system.
“The Taliban group demands allegiance from us, but we do not accept such a request and we do not pledge allegiance to anyone,” said Mohammad Mohaqiq, Presidential Palace (ARG) senior adviser.
Former vice president Yunus Qanooni also addressed the event and said that Washington wants to change the format of the talks in order to speed up the peace process.
“The format of the negotiations should change in order to expedite the peace efforts and ensure enduring peace in the country. Afghan peace process requires consensus within Afghanistan, in the region and in the international community,” Qanooni said.
These remarks come as US Special Envoy for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad left Kabul on Thursday after a three-day visit to discuss various alternatives and options in a bid to get the peace process moving forward.
Officials who met with Khalilzad over the past few days have said that among the options proposed by Khalilzad is an international summit that includes Afghan leaders, Taliban representatives and members of the foreign community, including Iran and Pakistan.
They also said it was suggested that such a meeting be mediated by the UN and held in another country.
Khalilzad meanwhile arrived in Doha on Thursday and immediately met with members of the Afghan Republic’s negotiating team.
According to one team member, Fawzia Kofi, a number of talks team members discussed the “various dimensions of the peace process and the subsequent stages of that process.
“I once again stressed the importance of the presence and undeniable role of women and the new generation of Afghanistan in this process,” she said.
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Stanikzai says media is an essential part of society
Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the political deputy foreign minister, says media is an essential need in society.
Speaking at a seminar aimed at improving the capacity of spokespersons from ministries and independent government institutions, Stanikzai emphasized the importance of access to information and the vital role of media in Afghanistan.
"In today's age, media and spokespersons are a significant need for society and the country, and this sector must be strengthened. Spokespersons must be strong and able to withstand any situation. In order to cope with the circumstances, they should strive to have comprehensive information not only about their work environment but also about the country and society,” he said.
Khabib Ghafran, spokesperson for the Ministry of Information and Culture, also addressed the seminar and said: "The main goal of this seminar is to discuss how to improve the capacity of spokespersons in central departments of the Islamic Emirate and how to address the issue of access to information."
Meanwhile, some journalists and organizations supporting journalists are calling for timely and comprehensive information to be made available to them.
Hujatullah Mujaddidi, head of Afghanistan Independent Journalists Association, said: "It is the responsibility of journalistic and media institutions to support the media by enhancing journalists' capacities, improving media literacy and ethics, and working on maintaining neutrality and innovation."
Rohullah Danish, a journalist, stated: "It is necessary that Afghan media receive more support because they play a significant role not only in information publication but also in education and cultural development within society."
After three years, journalists say they are still facing challenges regarding access to information, and that this issue has not been fully resolved.
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Egeland says Donald Trump’s aid pause ‘disastrous’ for Afghanistan
Trump signed an executive order temporarily suspending all US foreign assistance programs pending reviews to determine whether they are aligned with his policy goals
The head of a major humanitarian organisation said U.S. President Donald Trump's order to halt foreign aid for 90 days would have immediate and disastrous consequences in Afghanistan where relief operations are already stretched thin.
Trump signed an executive order temporarily suspending all US foreign assistance programs pending reviews to determine whether they are aligned with his policy goals.
It was not immediately clear how much assistance would initially be affected by the Monday order as funding for many programs has already been appropriated by Congress and is obligated to be spent, if not already spent.
The scope of the order was not clear, including whether it applied to Afghanistan's humanitarian funding, which is channelled through NGOs and United Nations agencies.
Jan Egeland, the secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, told Reuters that the decision had left agencies reeling as they braced for further cuts from the biggest donor to Afghanistan.
"A 90-day suspension of all aid, no new grants, no new transfer of funding, will have disastrous consequences immediately ... for an already starved aid operation for very poor and vulnerable girls and women and civilians in Afghanistan," he said during a video interview from Kabul late on Tuesday.
Afghanistan is home to more than 23 million people requiring humanitarian assistance - more than half the country's population - but aid has shrunk as donors face competing global crises and diplomats raise concerns about the Islamic Emirate’s restrictions on women in most areas of public life, including education and health.
Development funding that formed the backbone of government finances was cut after the IEA took over and foreign forces left in 2021.
Reuters reported last year that non-governmental groups played a critical role in filling the humanitarian void.
"If you go back in time it was a well funded operation, we got development assistance, then we could have perhaps have lived through three months of suspension, we cannot any more," Egeland said.
Trump told a rally shortly before taking office that aid to Afghanistan would be contingent on getting back billions of dollars of military equipment that U.S. forces left behind.
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Chinese national killed by unknown gunmen in Takhar province
Police gave the man’s name only as Li, and said the victim had been on his way to Dasht Qala in Takhar when he was shot.
Takhar Provincial Police Command said Wednesday a Chinese national was killed by unknown gunmen in Takhar Province on Tuesday night.
Police gave the man’s name only as Li, and said the victim had been on his way to Dasht Qala in Takhar when he was shot.
Mohammad Akbar Haqqani, head of press and public relations department for the police command, said in a statement that the man had decided to travel without informing authorities.
Haqqani said: "This Chinese citizen and his interpreter intended to travel for an unknown reason without informing the officials of the Chinese office and the security officials of the office. Unfortunately, he was killed by unknown gunmen on the way to Dasht Qala of Takhar province."
He added that the man’s translator was not harmed in the incident. Haqqani stated that police have started its preliminary investigation.
No group or person has yet claimed responsibility for the incident.
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