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General Miller hands over command of Afghanistan to CENTCOM chief

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(Last Updated On: July 12, 2021)

US Forces commander in Afghanistan General Scott Miller officially handed over command of US and NATO troops in the country to the commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM) Marine General Frank McKenzie, at a ceremony in Kabul on Monday.

Addressing the ceremony, Miller stated that the US will continue to support the government and the Afghan Security and Defense Forces (ANSDF) after the withdrawal of international troops from Afghanistan.

“It is important that the military sides set the conditions for peaceful and political settlement in Afghanistan. We can all see the violence is taking place across the country but we know with that violence that would be very difficult to achieve is a political settlement,” Miller said.

“What I tell the Taliban is they are responsible too. The violence that is going on is against the will of the Afghan people of Afghanistan and it needs to stop,” he added.

McKenzie, who officially took authority of US forces in Afghanistan, stated that the withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan does not mean a cutting of ties, indeed, it is the beginning of a new chapter in the two country’s relations.

“We retain a protective posture that enable us to do the following things; first of all maintaining an ongoing diplomatic presence; second, support the Afghan security forces, people and government; and finally, prevent Afghanistan from once again becoming a safe haven for the terrorism that threatens the US homeland and the homelands of our friends and neighbors,” McKenzie said.

Meanwhile, NSA Hamdullah Mohib said that the government is trying to fill the security vacuum that has been created as a result of the withdrawal of international forces from the country.

“The vacuum was created as a result of the retrograde but we are trying to fill that gap; the strength of ANDSF is able to deal with some of the issues immediately; we have been working on how do we cover those gaps that exists,” Mohib said.

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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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