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Australia-China relations hit new low over fake Afghanistan photo

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Australia’s Prime Minister Scott Morrison has called for social media platform Twitter to take down a doctored picture of an Australian soldier purportedly slitting the throat of an Afghan child.

The photo was posted on Sunday by a senior Chinese official and has since sparked an international incident while the official, Lijian Zhao, has since pinned the inflammatory post to the top of his official Twitter account.

Retaliating to Morrison’s request, China’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday Australia should be ashamed of its war crimes in Afghanistan.

Beijing’s The Morning Star reported Tuesday that China has asked Australia to apologize to the Afghan people for the alleged war crimes their troops committed.

According to The Morning Star, Beijing also scorned Australia’s demand for an apology for the image posted by Lijian Zhao, who is one of China’s Foreign Ministry spokesmen.

“Shocked by murder of Afghan civilians and prisoners by Australian soldiers. We strongly condemn such acts and call for holding them accountable,” Lijian Zhao wrote above the picture that has since sparked an international incident.

He was commenting on an Australian war crimes report, which found Australian troops unlawfully killed 39 Afghan prisoners, farmers and civilians.

On the other hand, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Australia should “reflect deeply, bring the perpetrators to justice … and solemnly promise they will never commit such crimes again.”

Lijian Zhao has meanwhile been slinging insults at Australia all year and has in the process been making a name for himself.

Until recently, Zhao was a diplomat in the US and Pakistan and according to the UK’s Daily Mail has become known for his bombastic attitude, which won him a promotion to deputy director of Beijing's 'Information Department'.

For the past few months he has specifically focused on Australia, especially as relations between the two countries are at an all time low.

The Daily Mail reports that Zhao has slammed Australia in recent months for allegedly spreading misinformation and accused its leaders of being 'hysterical' about Chinese spying.

Meanwhile, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern came to Australia’s defense and chided Beijing for the post.

Calling the tweet “unfactual,” Ardern told reporters on Tuesday that her administration had contacted Beijing “directly” to raise objections over the controversial image, shared on Sunday by Zhao Lijan.

“There is an exchange that’s happening between Australia and China, it will of course tap into spaces where, as a general principle, we may have concerns and will raise those,” the PM said.

In this case, an image has been used that is not factually correct, that is not a genuine image. So we have raised that directly with Chinese authorities, she said.

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IEA delegation attends conference for ‘Promoting Mining Cooperation’ in China

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The Ministry of Mines and Petroleum said on Saturday in a statement that its delegation participated in a conference titled "Promoting Mining Cooperation" in China’s Hunan province.

The Ministry stated the conference aims to build a well-equipped laboratory in Afghanistan, increase the capacity of technical and professional employees of the Ministry of Mines, and encourage investors in the mineral resources sector of Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Chinese investors expressed their interest in Afghanistan’s gold, copper, mica, talc, oil, gas, lithium, lead and zinc mines.

At the conference, the ministry’s deputy minister of finance and administration and head of the delegation Hussamuddin Saberi talked about Afghanistan's natural resources contracts and investment opportunities and considered holding such programs effective for the relations between the two countries.

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Uzbekistan, EU envoys meet to discuss Afghanistan

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Uzbekistan’s special representative for Afghanistan, Ismatulla Irgashev, on Friday met with the EU Special Representative for Central Asia Terhi Hakala.

During the meeting, the parties discussed the current state and prospects of Uzbek-European relations in the Afghan direction, the efforts of the international community to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the country and the possibility of using the international transport and logistics hub in Termez to deliver humanitarian aid to Afghanistan, Uzbekistan’s foreign ministry said in a statement.

Hakala highly appreciated the efforts of Uzbekistan to develop a consolidated regional position on Afghanistan, establish long-term peace and stability in the country, according to the statement.

The parties expressed mutual interest in continuing bilateral consultations on the Afghan issue, the statement added.

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UN expert calls for comprehensive, rights-focused action plan for Afghanistan

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A UN expert on Friday called on the international community to devise and implement a comprehensive, human rights-centered action plan to address the human rights crisis in Afghanistan.

“The absence of a unified, forceful response from the international community has emboldened the Taliban (IEA),” UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett, said.

In his latest report to the UN General Assembly, Bennett said that the human rights situation in Afghanistan is worsening, which includes systematic gender oppression, amounting to gender persecution and which many Afghans term “gender apartheid” with intergenerational implications.

Bennett expressed concern about the new “vice and virtue” law, announced in August, which he believes has institutionalized an expanding list of restrictions that “blatantly violate the rights of women and girls.”

He also expressed concern about the “shrinking civic space” in Afghanistan, the situation of minorities, journalists, and former government officials and security personnel.

“Justice, equality, and the rule of law are being systematically undermined,” he said.

The UN expert also called for increased funding and support for Afghan civil society and humanitarian efforts to mitigate the crisis.

Bennett urged the IEA to reverse its “repressive policies” and reinstate basic human rights. He pressed the international community to take a coordinated, multifaceted approach to support the Afghan people.

Bennett urged states not to normalize relations with the IEA until there are demonstrable human rights improvements and pathways to justice and accountability.

This comes as the Islamic Emirate has said that it is committed to ensuring human rights, including the rights of women and girls, according to Sharia, and this is an internal issue of Afghanistan.

The Islamic Emirate has banned Richard Bennett from traveling to Afghanistan, saying that he exaggerates small issues.

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