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Money exchangers protest against Biden’s move to use funds for 9/11 victims
Hundreds of money exchangers and members of the private sector on Tuesday protested in Kabul against US President Joe Biden’s decision to release Afghanistan’s frozen assets to pay victims of the 9/11 attack and use for humanitarian aid.
The protestors called on the US to release all Afghan assets and return the full amount of about $7 billion to Afghanistan.
They also urged the international community to take steps to help secure the funds for Afghanistan.
“We want the United Nations to hand over all Afghanistan’s money to Afghans. We have a lot of problems,” said Rohullah, one protestor.
“The US president’s decision contravenes all international laws. We Afghans never handed over our assets to Americans,” said Abdul Matin, another protestor.
Members of the private sector and money exchangers union said that Afghans were not involved in the 9/11 attacks and that the US can’t hand over Afghanistan’s money to pay 9/11 attack victims.
“We urge the international community to hand over Afghanistan’s money. The US president’s decision is against all laws,” said Qazi Mir Afghan Safi, head of the money exchangers’ union.
“The $3.5 billion that Biden allocated for compensation [for 9/11 victims] is rightfully the money of Afghans and should be returned,” said Abdurahman Zerak, a member of the money exchange market, Sarai Shahzada.
Economic analysts meanwhile have also called on the United Nations (UN) to prevent the implementation of Biden’s decision.
“The US president’s decision is very cruel and controlling. It contradicts all international political and economic principles, it is not forgivable,” said Taj Mohammad Talish, an economic analyst.
Afghan officials meanwhile say that Biden’s decision will have an adverse effect on the country’s already struggling economy and that poverty levels will increase considerably.
Ten people were killed by unknown individuals in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan province on Thursday night, police said on Friday.
The incident happened as the victims were doing Zikr at a mosque in Shahr-e-Kuhna of Nahrin district, police said in a statement.
The statement said that they used to regularly go to mosques and monasteries at night after returning from work.
Abdul Ghayoor Khadim, a provincial police official, said that several people were arrested in connection with the incident, adding that an investigation was launched.
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Serdar Muhammetdurdiyev on Thursday met with Chinese special envoy for Afghanistan, Yue Xiaoyong, the Foreign Ministry of Turkmenistan announced.
During the meeting, the sides discussed priority vectors of strategic interstate cooperation built on a long-term, mutually beneficial basis, as well as exchanged views on the implementation of previously reached agreements.
It was noted that personal contacts between the leaders of the two countries play a key role in intensifying the interstate dialogue, which give a strong impulse to further development and expansion of Turkmen-Chinese ties.
It was emphasized that Turkmenistan considers multilateral international platforms for maintaining stability in Afghanistan as an important factor in promoting sustainable improvement of socio-economic state of the neighboring country. The sides exchanged views on the preparations to the 5th meeting of Foreign Ministers of Afghanistan's Neighboring States to be held in Turkmenistan.
The interlocutors reaffirmed that Turkmenistan and China will continue to provide all-round support for the economic restoration of Afghanistan.
The U.S. House Of Representatives has passed a legislation on evacuation of Afghans who assisted Americans during the 20-year war in Afghanistan.
“The passage of the CARE Authorization Act of 2024 further underscores the commitment made by the U.S. government to safeguard those who served shoulder-to-shoulder with our personnel during the twenty-year mission in Afghanistan,” Congresswoman Dina Titus said in a statement.
“The State Department has made it clear: There is no deadline for the crucial job of protecting Afghan allies. By authorizing the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts at the State Department, we can more effectively relocate and resettle those who have qualified to immigrate to the U.S. as a result of their service to this country.”
In 2022 the State Department established a specialized office called the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (CARE) to streamline and coordinate the ongoing relocation and resettlement process for eligible Afghans from Afghanistan and Pakistan to the United States.
The CARE Authorization Act of 2024 will formally authorize the CARE office at the State Department for three years and grant important authorities to advance its mission. These include an extension of authorities to enter into personal services contracts as well as measures to streamline the transfer of funds to and from other agencies involved in the Afghan relocation mission.
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