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Govt says US forces spared from attacks, but Afghans paying the price
The deputy spokesman for Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Sunday that the reason why the US has not suffered casualties among its forces in the past 10 months is because the foreign forces are no longer fighting in Afghanistan.
Reacting to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s earlier statement about the Taliban not targeting American soldiers in Afghanistan in the past year, Meenapal said this was not because of the US-Taliban deal as Pompeo stated but because the US was no longer actively involved in the war on the ground.
Meenapal said the casualties are being sustained by the Afghan security forces and that the Taliban is now at war with the Afghan people and with the country’s own security forces.
On Sunday morning Pompeo put the lack of casualties among US troops down to the Taliban adhering to the Doha deal signed in February.
In a series of tweets Pompeo said: “Our mission in Afghanistan is to eliminate Al-Qaeda and threats to the American homeland. Don’t need 10s of 1,000s of U.S. troops on the ground to do that. We have partners: brave Afghans, NATO forces. We also have the ability to project power from afar”.
He said no US servicemen had been killed in Afghanistan in almost a year, and Afghans are finally discussing peace and reconciliation among themselves.
“Logged a lot of air miles to Qatar and Afghanistan and back for talks,” he said.
Meshrano Jirga head Fazl Hadi Muslimyar meanwhile noted his dismay at the high levels of violence being meted out by insurgents against the Afghan people.
Sarcastically he said: “I want to congratulate the Taliban that no Americans have been killed in the past year, but dozens of Afghan soldiers have been killed."
The Taliban has not commented on government’s reaction to Pompeo’s remarks.
This comes just two days ahead of the resumption of intra-Afghan peace talks in the Qatari capital, Doha.
It also comes amid a serious spike in targeted attacks and attempted assassinations of public figures including journalists, civil society activists and government employees.
However, no group has yet to take responsibility for all these attacks.
Meanwhile, in response to Pompeo’s comments, the Taliban said in a series of tweets Sunday that no attacks against US forces since the Doha deal shows that the Islamic Emirate is fulfilling its obligations as a committed entity.
The Islamic Emirate wants the hoped for peace agreement to be implemented in the same way, the group tweeted.
“We will fulfill the same obligations when we reach an agreement with the internal” actors, the group stated.
Canada's border guards sent 19 rejected Afghan asylum seekers back to the country last year despite Otawa’s Temporary Suspension of Removals (TSR) that has been in place for Afghan nationals since 1994.
CBC reported that none of the 19 Afghans had their cases rejected on the basis of safety or security risks. The border service did not however reveal further details.
The border agency said a TSR is meant to "halt removals to a country or place when general conditions, such as armed conflict or an environmental disaster, pose a risk to the entire civilian population."
It also said individuals who were found inadmissible "on grounds of criminality, serious criminality, international or human rights violations, organized crime, or security" can be removed despite a TSR, CBC reported.
The CBSA said the 19 who failed their refugee claims left Canada "voluntarily," and that the Afghans were "aware that they benefit from a stay of removal due to the Temporary Suspension of Removal on Afghanistan but requested to have their removal order enforced despite the legislative stay.
"In other words, the individual was advised that they can remain in Canada until the TSR is lifted and they opted to return to Afghanistan."
Canada has welcomed some 54,000 Afghans since August 2021, surpassing a commitment it made to bring in 40,000 in 2021.
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Trump team compiling list of military officers responsible for US withdrawal from Afghanistan
Trump has on a number of occasions condemned the withdrawal as a “humiliation” and “the most embarrassing day in the history of our country.”
Citing a US official and a person familiar with the plan, NBC stated a commission would then gather information about who was directly involved in the decision-making for the military, how it was carried out, and whether the military leaders could be eligible for charges as serious as treason.
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Ottawa taking detention of Canadian in Afghanistan ‘very seriously’
Lavery helped an estimated 100 Afghans flee Kabul during the chaotic withdrawal of US and allied forces.
The Canadian government is taking "very seriously" the detention in Afghanistan of a former member of Canada's elite special forces, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Saturday.
Retired soldier David Lavery, known in Kabul as Canadian Dave, was detained by the Islamic Emirate shortly after landing in Kabul on Monday, according to Canadian broadcaster CTV News.
His whereabouts are unknown, the outlet added, citing unnamed sources.
Asked about Lavery, Trudeau said: "I can first of all assure you that the Canadian government is taking very, very seriously the situation."
He also said consular assistance has been provided to Lavery's family.
Lavery helped an estimated 100 Afghans flee Kabul during the chaotic withdrawal of US and allied forces.
He spent decades in the Canadian military and is said to have been a key member of its elite Joint Task Force 2 special operations unit.
More recently, Lavery has reportedly operated a private security firm in Kabul.
The Islamic Emirate has not yet commented.
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