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Ghani tells BBC his biggest mistake was trusting foreign partners

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Former President Ashraf Ghani said on Thursday that his biggest mistake had been to trust the United States and Afghanistan’s other foreign partners.

In his first interview since fleeing the country in mid-August, the former president told BBC Radio 4 that leaving Afghanistan had not been planned and that only after takeoff in a helicopter did this course of action become clear.

Ghani has been heavily criticized and accused of abandoning the country but he defended his decision to flee.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) seized power in August after taking control of Kabul - just hours after Ghani fled the country.

Ghani told BBC that when he woke up on 15 August he had "no inkling" it would be his last day in Afghanistan.

In a conversation with General Sir Nick Carter, the UK's former Chief of the Defence Staff, who was guest-editing BBC Radio 4’s Today program on Thursday, Ghani said IEA fighters had agreed not to enter Kabul - "but two hours later, this was not the case".

"Two different factions of the Taliban (IEA) were closing in from two different directions," Ghani said. "And the possibility of a massive conflict between them that would destroy the city of five million and bring havoc to the people was enormous."

He said he agreed to let his national security adviser and wife leave Kabul, but then the "terrified" chief of presidential security came to him to say that if he took a stand, "they will all be killed".

"He did not give me more than two minutes," Ghani said. "My instructions had been to prepare for departure for [the city of] Khost. He told me that Khost had fallen and so had Jalalabad.

"I did not know where we will go. Only when we took off, it became clear that we were leaving [Afghanistan]. So this really was sudden."

Ghani was widely criticized for having fled the country, also by his vice-president Amrullah Saleh, who called it "disgraceful".

Many people, who were privy to talks at the time, have said in the past few months that Ghani's sudden secret departure on 15 August scuppered a deal to secure a more orderly transition.

Ghani, who is living in the UAE, said in conversation that he misread US politics and the situation on the ground at the time.

Allegations of him having taken vast amounts of money also emerged following his departure and just this week was he named as one of the most corrupt people in the world.

Ghani however denied this and said he would welcome an international investigation into the allegations so that he can clear his name.

"I want to categorically state, I did not take any money out of the country," he said, adding: "My style of life is known to everyone. What would I do with money?"

He did however acknowledge that mistakes were made, including "assuming that the patience of the international community would last".

However, he pointed to the agreement made between the IEA and the US under then-President Donald Trump, which paved the way for the events leading to 15 August.

"Instead of a peace process, we got a withdrawal process," Ghani said. The way the deal was done "erased us", said Ghani.

Ghani said that what happened on August 15 was "a violent coup, not a political agreement, or a political process where the people have been involved".

The same day Ghani left Kabul, the IEA took control. Since then, the country has been thrown into a humanitarian and economic crisis, exacerbated by the removal of donor support and foreign aid as well as the freezing of over $9 billion of Afghanistan’s foreign reserves.

Four months later, Ghani says he is willing to take the blame for some things which led to the fall of Kabul - like trusting "in our international partnership".

He told BBC that his “life work has been destroyed. My values had been trampled on. And I have been made a scapegoat."

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Afghanistan exported more than 2,500 tons of pine nuts in 1402

Afghan pine nut is mostly exported to China, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

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The Ministry of Industry and Commerce says that in the past solar year (1402) more than 2,500 tons of pine nuts worth $27 million were exported to neighboring countries and beyond.

Afghan pine nut is mostly exported to China, India, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

“The total weight of black pine nut exports during 1402 was 2,523 tons and the value was $27 million, mostly to China, India, Pakistan, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United States, Britain, Australia, the Netherlands, and other countries,” said Abdul Salam Javad Akhundzada, the spokesman of the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

Officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock say that since last year, pine nut production has increased in the country and they have also expanded artificial forests to harvest more pine nuts.

“In order to revive pine nut forests, according to last year's development budget, pine trees have been planted on approximately 1,500 hectares of land.
There used to be pine trees on these lands, but they were cut down or destroyed in a fire,” said Misbahuddin Mustain, the spokesperson of the Ministries of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock.

Experts say that currently China buys most of Afghanistan's pint nuts, but the government must find new markets so that it can be sold at a better price.

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IEA says deportation of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries has intensified

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A committee of the High Commission for Addressing the Problems of Migrants said the process of forced expulsion of Afghan migrants from neighboring countries has intensified.

However, members of the committee emphasized, in their meeting with the Prime Minister's administrative deputy, that they have managed the resettlement of the returnees well in cooperation with relevant institutions.

In the meeting, Abdul Salam Hanafi, the administrative deputy prime minister, said that as winter approaches, committees should seek to ensure that the returnees will not face problems.

Experts say that the refugee hosting countries should treat Afghan migrants according to international laws, and take into account the current conditions of the country.

“To reduce immigration and increase economic stability, creating employment opportunities, increasing investment, giving various types of loans to people and issuing securities can be effective,” said Asifa Stanikzai, a migration expert.

Iranian officials have said that they deport 3,000 Afghan immigrants from the country every day and they plan to deport two million Afghan immigrants by the end of this year.

Forced deportation of Afghan migrants from Iran and Pakistan has been a serious challenge in the last three years, but according to experts, the Islamic Emirate has been able to manage the process to some extent.

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Iran executes 13 Afghans in October, 49 in total since January

Last month, Iran carried out at least 166 executions in October alone bringing the total in the first 10 months of 2024 to at least 651

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Iran Human Rights reported this weekend that in the first 10 months of 2024, Iran has executed 49 Afghan nationals, 13 of whom were executed in October alone. 

According to IHR, the number of executions of Afghan nationals has increased in the past three years. 

In 2022, 16 Afghan nationals, including a juvenile offender and a woman, were executed. 

In 2023, this number increased to 25. 

This year, the trend has accelerated further.

IHR warned that Iran may take advantage of the rising conflict between Iran and Israel to escalate the number of executions in the coming months.

Last month, Iran carried out at least 166 executions in October alone bringing the total in the first 10 months of 2024 to at least 651.

This marks the highest number of executions recorded in a single month since Iran Human Rights began documenting executions in 2007. 

Among those executed were the 13 Afghan nationals, six women, and an Iranian-German citizen.

The organization has called on the international community, media, and civil society to closely monitor and respond to what they say is an “alarming rise in executions”.

IHR also stated that since the presidential election and the recent escalation in Iran-Israel tensions, the number of executions has surged, with at least 353 people having been executed between August and October - since President Massoud Pezeshkian took office.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has not yet commented on the number of Afghan nationals executed.

The Iranian government does not disclose the number of Afghans it executes or the reasons behind most cases. 

However, it is widely believed that a significant portion of these executions are related to drug charges.

Human rights organizations have criticized the Iranian government for conducting such executions, arguing that these actions violate international laws and the right to life.

Amnesty International says that the death penalty, without exception, constitutes a violation of the right to life as articulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

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