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Peace won’t be found in silence or fear, says AIHRC chair

One year ago today – February 28 – Afghans were buoyed by the signing of the US-Taliban agreement in Doha, which they hoped would bring peace. Instead, today, a year later, targeted killings have spiked leaving thousands of civil society activists, government officials, journalists and even doctors fearing for their lives.
Shaharzad Akbar, the chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), wrote in an op-ed piece, published in the Washington Post, that “every night, I lie awake wondering who will be next. I think of a colleague whose teenage son checks his car every morning for magnetic bombs. A husband saying goodbye to his wife as she leaves for work, wondering if today will be the day she is killed on her way to the office.”
She said that a year after the deal was signed, instead of ushering in peace “one of the most tangible changes has been an increase in targeted killings, mostly unclaimed, that have created an environment of terror and fear.
“There were nearly three times the number of such attacks in 2020 compared with 2019; the casualties include the deaths of 11 human rights defenders and media workers in the past five months,” she wrote.
Akbar pointed out that some of Afghanistan’s most important gains, its activists, community leaders and scholars, are being silenced at a time when, after the US-Taliban deal, Afghans had hoped for a reduction in violence and for inclusive intra-Afghan negotiations.
“While the Taliban denies involvement in most targeted attacks, it benefits from the environment of fear and hopelessness around the peace process and the lack of critical voices demanding an inclusive peace.
“This reign of terror for Afghan civilians must end in order for a real peace process to begin,” Akbar wrote.
She also pointed out that as the United States reviews its Afghanistan policy, it still has leverage — including the existing UN sanctions on the Taliban, the Taliban’s desire for international recognition and legitimacy, and the presence of international forces in Afghanistan — to help stop these attacks and encourage a ceasefire and an inclusive peace process.
She stated that her AIHRC colleagues know what it is to feel terror as the organization has lost three of its staff members in the past 18 months.
Akbar pointed out that these high levels of violence are forcing families to flee the country.
“Every day I hear of another friend, journalist, academic, women’s rights activist or businessperson leaving the country. Their departures are creating an absence that will take another generation to fill. Those who can’t leave feel silenced by fear and have little chance of influencing the peace process,” she wrote.
Akbar also noted that it has been years since the last mass demonstration by Afghans – “for fear of attacks”.
She also said that following the recent wave of assassinations, public debate has closed down, even in the virtual sphere. “This is even more true beyond Kabul, in rural areas where conflict has been the most savage.”
Akbar stated that while US President Joe Biden’s team has signaled that it will withdraw its last troops as per the agreement with the Taliban, if the group reduces violence. she said: “This is welcome but not enough. Even with overall violence levels down, targeted killings are silencing the voices needed to build pressure for peace.”
“The United States does not want Afghanistan to collapse into a catastrophic civil war as soon as it withdraws, after 20 years of assistance. But the narrow focus of the US-Taliban deal ignored the wider needs of the peace process, including the importance of civic space and the protection of civilians. This approach should be urgently reconsidered in Biden’s review,” she said.
Akbar stated that public participation is not a bonus that is “nice to have” but rather an inclusive process that builds momentum for peace and boosts the credibility of the process.
Bringing traditional and nontraditional civil society voices to the table from across Afghanistan will bring a sense of urgency and bottom-up pressure on the parties.
She also stated that public participation can best be guaranteed through a ceasefire and that the US and its allies should utilize their leverage with both sides and the region to continue to push for an interim and immediate ceasefire that will create an opportunity for national engagement.
“An immediate end to targeted killings, a ceasefire and the restoration of civic space will allow for broader inclusion in the talks, reviving hope and confidence in the process,” she said.
Akbar stated that the US can encourage the Taliban and the Afghan government to create this enabling environment for peace. Afghans could then force hope back onto the table.
“We will not find peace in silence and fear,” Akbar stated.
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Eid prayer led by IEA leader in Kandahar: Mujahid
Abdul Salam Hanafi, the Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs, called on opposition groups to return to Afghanistan and participate in the country’s reconstruction.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, announced on Sunday that the Eid al-Fitr prayer was held at the Eidgah Mosque in Kandahar, where Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Supreme Leader of the IEA, led the prayers.
Thousands of people attended the event, marking a significant religious occasion.
Other IEA senior officials gathered for the Eid prayer at the ARG (Presidential Palace) in Kabul.
Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, took the opportunity to address the public, stating that the Islamic Emirate is ready to engage with the world based on mutual respect. He also emphasized the importance of unity and solidarity among the Afghan people.
Baradar stressed that rebuilding the country requires internal unity and that no foreign entity can achieve this task for Afghanistan. On security, he highlighted the achievements of the past three years, asserting that under their administration, Afghanistan has become fully secure.
He reaffirmed that the IEA is committed to fostering international relations through an “economy-driven policy.”
Abdul Salam Hanafi, the Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs, called on opposition groups to return to Afghanistan and participate in the country’s reconstruction.
Hanafi reiterated the IEA’s desire for economy-driven relations with all regional and global powers based on mutual respect.
Mohammad Yousuf Wafa, the Governor of Balkh, also affirmed that the current system will not be undermined. He stated, “This system was established through great sacrifices, and it is our collective duty to defend it.”
The Eid prayers and the speeches of the IEA leadership underscored a message of unity, security, and a desire for positive international engagement.
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Syria’s president al-Sharaa forms new transitional government
The government will not have a prime minister, with Sharaa expected to lead the executive branch.

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa announced a transitional government on Saturday, appointing 23 ministers in a broadened cabinet seen as a key milestone in the transition from decades of Assad family rule and to improving Syria’s ties with the West, Reuters reported.
Syria’s new Sunni Islamist-led authorities have been under pressure from the West and Arab countries to form a government that is more inclusive of the country’s diverse ethnic and religious communities.
That pressure increased following the killings of hundreds of Alawite civilians – the minority sect from which toppled leader Bashar al-Assad hails – in violence along Syria’s western coast this month.
The cabinet included Yarub Badr, an Alawite who was named transportation minister, while Amgad Badr, who belongs to the Druze community, will lead the agriculture ministry.
Hind Kabawat, a Christian woman and part of the previous opposition to Assad who worked for interfaith tolerance and women’s empowerment, was appointed as social affairs and labor minister.
Mohammed Yosr Bernieh was named finance minister, read the report.
It kept Murhaf Abu Qasra and Asaad al-Shibani, who were already serving as defence and foreign ministers respectively in the previous caretaker cabinet that has governed Syria since Assad was toppled in December by a lightning rebel offensive.
Sharaa also said he established for the first time a ministry for sports and another for emergencies, with the head of a rescue group known as the White Helmets, Raed al-Saleh, appointed as the minister of emergencies.
In January, Sharaa was named as interim president and pledged to form an inclusive transitional government that would build up Syria’s gutted public institutions and run the country until elections, which he said could take up to five years to hold.
The government will not have a prime minister, with Sharaa expected to lead the executive branch.
Earlier this month, Syria issued a constitutional declaration, designed to serve as the foundation for the interim period led by Sharaa. The declaration kept a central role for Islamic law and guaranteed women’s rights and freedom of expression, Reuters reported.
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US citizen detained in Afghanistan has been freed
A source said earlier that Hall was freed on Thursday following a court order and with logistical support from Qatar in its role as the United States’ protecting power in Afghanistan.

American citizen Faye Hall said on Saturday she had been released by the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) after being detained in Afghanistan last month, Reuters reported.
“I’ve never been so proud to be an American citizen,” Hall said in a video posted by President Donald Trump on Truth Social. “Thank you, Mr President,” she added. “God bless you.”
Hall’s release was announced earlier by former U.S. Special Representative to Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad on X.
A U.S. official said Adam Boehler, the special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, along with Qatari officials and others, negotiated her release. Hall was arrested in February with a British couple, Barbie and Peter Reynolds, read the report.
British media reported that the couple, in their seventies, had been running projects in schools in Afghanistan for 18 years, deciding to stay even after the IEA returned to power in 2021.
There was no mention of the couple, whose family has pleaded for their release amid concerns over their health.
A source said earlier that Hall was freed on Thursday following a court order and with logistical support from Qatar in its role as the United States’ protecting power in Afghanistan.
Hall was received at the Qatari embassy in Kabul and confirmed to be in good health after undergoing medical checks, the source said.
Several Americans are still detained in Afghanistan, Reuters reported.
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