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Hekmatyar claims govt has yet to implement key decisions around peace process
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the leader of Hiz-e-Islami, said Sunday that the Afghan government has failed to form a single and decisive authority for peace.
Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Hekmatyar stated that important issues over a unified plan for the Istanbul peace conference were agreed upon during a trilateral meeting with President Ashraf Ghani and former President Hamid Karzai.
According to him, all sides had agreed on the creation of a transitional government, and High Government Council, the release of all Hizb-e-Islami and Taliban prisoners from Afghan jails, a ceasefire, and elections but Ghani, however, has not “implemented any of these agreements.”
“I returned full-handed from this meeting. Although the President did not have a positive view on the Istanbul summit, he wanted the summit to be held in Kabul,” Hekmatyar said.
Emphasizing the importance of the creation of the High Government Council, Hekmatyar stated that the organization will consist of eight factions including the Taliban, which should be engaged in war and peace issues in Afghanistan.
He stated: “The High Council consists of the leaders of the seven effective parties in the war and peace of Afghanistan, and it must be the highest authority on the peace process of Afghanistan. The president should represent the government.”
The Presidential Palace, however, has not commented on the agreement.
Fatima Murchal, a Deputy Spokesperson for the Presidential Palace, stated that Ghani’s meetings with Karzai and Hekmatyar were aimed at strengthening internal consensus over the Afghan peace process.
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UK’s Reform party pledges visa ban affecting Afghanistan and five other states
The British political party Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, is set to impose a blanket visa ban on Afghanistan and five other countries — including Pakistan — as part of its proposed crackdown on illegal migration and states refusing to accept deported nationals.
In a speech set for Monday, the party’s newly appointed “shadow” home secretary, Zia Yusuf, will outline plans to halt all visas for diplomats, students, workers, VIPs and tourists from Pakistan, Somalia, Eritrea, Syria, Afghanistan and Sudan. Reform says these governments fail to cooperate in accepting back deported migrants and convicted criminals.
Pakistan received more than 160,000 UK visas last year, making it one of the biggest visa recipients. However, British officials say Islamabad accepts back only a small fraction of rejected asylum seekers and has resisted pressure to take back individuals convicted in high-profile criminal cases.
The move – which mirrors US President Donald Trump’s visa ban on 75 countries – would be a key element in Reform’s strategy to deport up to 288,000 illegal migrants from the UK on five charter flights a day.
On legal migration, Yusuf will say a Reform government would terminate all welfare payments to foreign nationals, including the 1.3 million currently receiving UC, up from around 900,000 in 2022.
Yusuf is expected to say that years of weak immigration enforcement have undermined public trust and that a Reform government would secure Britain’s borders and make people feel safe.
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Ex-US envoy Khalilzad condemns Pakistan air attacks on Afghanistan
He described the situation as a tragedy for both Pakistan and its neighbors, urging the Pakistani leadership to reconsider its policies and change course.
Former U.S. Special Envoy for Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, has strongly condemned Sunday’s airstrikes by Pakistan on Afghanistan. He stated that these attacks killed and wounded numerous innocent women, children, and elderly.
Khalilzad pointed to Pakistan’s long history of misgovernance, interference in minority rights, manipulation of democratic processes, and repeated military takeovers as the root causes.
He described the situation as a tragedy for both Pakistan and its neighbors, urging the Pakistani leadership to reconsider its policies and change course.
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Japan contributes $2.08 million to World Bank Trust Fund for Afghanistan
Japan has remained one of the major donors to Afghanistan’s humanitarian and development efforts.
Japan has signed a $2.08 million contribution agreement with the World Bank to support humanitarian and livelihood programs in Afghanistan, its diplomatic mission in Kabul said on Sunday.
The funding will be channeled through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), a multi-donor trust fund administered by the World Bank that finances essential services and development programs in the country.
In a statement, Japan said the contribution is intended to support people in need and promote livelihoods among vulnerable Afghans, including women and young people.
“Japan stands with the Afghan people,” the statement said.
Japan has remained one of the major donors to Afghanistan’s humanitarian and development efforts.
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