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Concerns raised over high number of people killed in old land mine explosions

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(Last Updated On: April 6, 2022)

Ministry of State for Disaster Management officials said Wednesday they are concerned about the high number of people killed in mine explosions every month and that they are worried about the ongoing dangers these remnants of war pose.

Marking Mine Awareness Day in Kabul, officials said between 120 and 150 Afghans die in this way each month.

“We assure the people that we are cooperating with all demining institutions and we are ready to provide any facilities that are needed,” said Mohammad Abbas Akhund, the government’s minister for disaster management.

The inspector general for the ministry of defense, who also attended Wednesday’s event, said that funding by the international community to clear mines had decreased significantly in the past few months.

“After the new government took office, foreign aid has been reduced and the capacity of demining institutions has been reduced. These institutions have been forced to limit their capacity. I think more capacity building should be done in this regard,” said Mufti Lotfollah Hakimi, Chief Inspector of the Ministry of National Defense, said.

Meanwhile, some officials representing international demining organizations said at Wednesday’s event that they were committed to cooperating with the authorities but said that solid demining plans were critical.

“Our efforts in the demining sector must be coordinated and all our work will be in coordination with the Ministry of State for Disaster Management. I thank the leadership of the ministry that they made assurances to cooperate [with us],” said Soran Adser, director of the DRC Mine Action and Humanitarian Aid Institute.

According to ministry data, 1,016 people were killed or injured last year as a result of landmine explosions in the country, most of them were children

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Kabul police summons Afghan YouTuber Hamayon

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

Afghanistan’s YouTuber Hamayon Afghan was summoned to the police station for publishing a woman’s interview without her permission, Kabul police said.

The spokesman of Kabul Police Khalid Zadran said Friday on X that Hamayon interviewed an old woman and published the report without her permission.

“After the interview, the interviewee’s family complained to the police and the police summoned Hamayon Afghan to the police station,” said Zadran.

Zadran stated that police are working to solve the problem with the two sides’ agreement as soon as possible.

He urges people to avoid posting rumors on the issue.

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Contract worth $53 million signed for construction of last section of Khaf–Herat railway

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

A contract worth $53 million was signed Thursday for the construction of the last section of Khaf-Herat railway that connects Afghanistan with Iran.

The contract was signed between Afghanistan Railway Authority and Gamma Group in the presence of Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, his office said in a statement.

The segment is 47-kilometer long, stretching from Rabat Parian to Herat International Airport and the Industrial Town, according to the statement.

It added that completion and standard operational readiness are expected within approximately two years.

“Upon its completion, this segment will integrate the Khaf-Herat regional connectivity project with Iran’s significant seaports and facilitate access to Europe via the Turkish railway network,” the statement said.

“Furthermore, traversing Afghan territory, it will bolster commercial exchanges between Central and South Asia. Notably, this project’s realization will enable the expansion of railway networks into Farah, Nimruz, Helmand, and Kandahar provinces,” it added.

Gamma operates across Europe and Asia in multiple sectors including construction, renewable energy, power transmission, mining, railways among others.

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US urges IEA to fulfill counter-terrorism commitments

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(Last Updated On: March 29, 2024)

The US State Department said on Thursday that Washington is committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be a launching pad for terrorism.

“We remain committed to ensuring that Afghanistan can never again be a launching pad for terrorism, and we continue to push the Taliban (Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan) to fulfill all of their counterterrorism commitments to the international community,” the department’s spokesperson Matthew Miller said at a news briefing in Washington.

He reiterated that the United States had clearly communicated to the IEA that it’s their responsibility to ensure that “they give no safe haven to terrorists, whether it be Al Qaeda or ISIS-K or any other terrorist organization”.

Miller also reassured US allies that Washington was closely watching the developments in Afghanistan and was ready to deal with any threat emerging from the region.

“We remain vigilant against the evolving threat of these terrorist groups, and our global coalition to defeat ISIS and the C5+1 help intensify our efforts to monitor terrorist threats from the region and prevent their ability to raise funds, travel, and spread propaganda,” he said.

C5+1 refers to a diplomatic platform involving the five Central Asian states (Kazakhstan, Kyrgy­zstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan) and the United States. It serves as a forum for discussing and addressing regional issues such as security, economic development, and cooperation.

“The United States remains vigilant against the evolving threat posed by terrorist groups, including ISIS-K, and has maintained an unwavering focus on terrorism since President Joe Biden took office three years ago,” Miller said.

The US, he said, was “working both unilaterally and with its partners to successfully disrupt threats across the globe and degrade ISIS”.

“We will continue to work to hold ISIS accountable for its actions and to prevent terrorist attacks against the United States and other Western countries,” Miller said.

This comes as IEA has repeatedly said that it is committed to not allowing anyone to use Afghanistan soil against any other country.

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