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Australia: 13 soldiers will be dismissed after Afghan report

Australia has told 13 Special Forces soldiers they face dismissal in relation to a report on alleged unlawful killings in Afghanistan, Reuters reported said on Friday quoting the head of the country’s army.
An independent report published last week reveals that there was evidence that 39 unarmed Afghan prisoners and civilians were killed by 19 Australian soldiers.
None of the 19 soldiers were identified in the report.
The 19 current and former soldiers have been referred for possible prosecution.
Lieutenant General Rick Burr, the head of the Australian army, said 13 current soldiers have been issued with notices that could eventually lead to their termination.
Burr did not identify any of the 13 soldiers, but said they were not part of the 19 current and former soldiers who face possible criminal charges.
“At this time, 13 individuals have been issued administrative action notices in relation to the Afghanistan inquiry,” Burr told reporters in Canberra.
Australia’s most senior military official apologised to Afghanistan last week after the release of the report.
The report into the conduct of Special Forces personnel in Afghanistan between 2005 and 2016 said senior commandos may have forced junior soldiers to kill defenseless captives in order to “blood” them for combat.
The inquiry examined more than 20,000 documents and 25,000 images, and interviewed 423 witnesses under oath.
Australia sent troops to join U.S.-led forces that tried to defeat the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan in the years after the Islamists were forced from power in 2001.
COVID-19
Norway concerned as death toll rises to 29 from COVID vaccine

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Two female judges killed in targeted attack in Kabul

Two female judges were killed and three others including a driver and a civilian were wounded in an attack by unknown gunmen in Kabul city on Sunday morning, police confirmed.
According to police three gunmen attacked the convoy of vehicles carrying Supreme Court employees in the Qala-e-Fathullah area of PD10 in Kabul city this morning.
Police did not provide further details about the attack.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
This comes as targeted attacks have sharply increased in Afghanistan amid peace talks in Doha.
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Biden plans about a dozen Day One executive actions: aide

US President-elect Joe Biden is scheduled to issue a number of executive orders immediately after his inauguration – by using the powers of his new office to push policy changes on housing, student loans, climate change and immigration, a top aide said on Saturday.
Biden, who campaigned on a raft of promises to undo President Donald Trump’s legacy even before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the US, will unveil “roughly a dozen” previously promised executive actions on Wednesday, incoming Biden chief of staff Ron Klain said in a memo distributed to reporters, Reuters reported.
The actions to be taken on Wednesday include rejoining the Paris climate accords, reversing a travel ban on several majority Muslim countries, extending a pause on federal student loan payments, halting evictions and foreclosures, as well as mandating masks in inter-state travel and on federal property.
All of the measures were previously announced.
Most of the measures are a reversal of policies Trump pursued and do not require congressional action. But Biden will also unveil a long-expected immigration proposal that would provide a pathway to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants that does require congressional action, Reuters reported.
That measure, as well as Biden’s recent proposal for $1.9 trillion in spending on COVID vaccinations and economic stimulus, face uphill battles in a Congress narrowly controlled by Biden’s fellow Democrats.
A broader set of Biden’s “Day One” promises will be executed over the following nine days after inauguration, Klain said. Those measures include expanding COVID-19 testing and directing the government to favor American-made goods when it makes purchases.
“President-elect Biden is assuming the presidency in a moment of profound crisis for our nation,” Klain said. “During the campaign, President-elect Biden pledged to take immediate action to start addressing these crises and build back better.”
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