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Taliban: Prisoner Swap Did Not Take Place
The Taliban militant group confirmed that the exchange of Haqqani network prisoners with the two kidnapped professors from the American University of Afghanistan (AUAF) did not take place.
In a phone call with Ariana News, the group’s spokesman Zabihulla Mjujaheed said, Anas Haqqani, Hafiz Rashid and Mali Khan were expected to be transferred to Qatar and Taliban would hand over the two AUAF professors to Americans inside Afghanistan but for unknown reasons the swap did not happen.
According to the Taliban official, the three top insurgent commanders are still in Bagram Prison.
“[The] Taliban demanded release of 82 prisoners in exchange for [the] two professors but the Afghan government released only three of them,” Abdul Shokur Motmaein, a former Taliban official, said.
Meanwhile, Afghanistan’s First Lady Rula Ghani, on Thursday, admitted that the prisoners swap for two AUAF professors “did not work.”
Speaking at US Institute of Peace in Washington DC, Rula Ghani said,“I am not quite sure why, but probably some party did not do what they promised they are going to do, so, unfortunately, the two professors may not be released.”
President Ashraf Ghani, in a televised press conference on Tuesday, confirmed that Anas Haqqani, Haji Mali Khan and Hafiz Rashid, three top Haqqani Network commanders, have been “conditionally released” in exchange for the release of two foreign university professors who were kidnapped by the Haqqani Network in 2016.
Ghani added that the negotiation was made in close cooperation with the U.S. in order to pave the way for face-to-face negotiations with the Taliban.
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IEA urges World Bank to resume work on 7,000 incomplete projects
Officials at the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) say 7,000 incomplete projects of the World Bank are at risk of destruction in Afghanistan. They call on the World Bank to resume the work of these projects.
According to them, discussions have been held with the World Bank about these projects, but there has been no result yet.
“7,000 incomplete projects are being destroyed, and if the work is not started, these projects will be destroyed. We ask the World Bank to resume the work of these projects as soon as possible,” said Noorul Hadi Adel, the spokesperson of MRRD.
Meanwhile, members of the private sector also ask international institutions to resume their work in Afghanistan.
According to the officials of this sector, with the start of these projects, job opportunities will be provided for thousands of people in the country.
“These projects create employment for our people and the country will grow a lot,” said Mirwais Hajizadeh, a member of the private sector.
However, economic experts stated if the work of these projects does not start soon, they will be destroyed and the investments made in them will be wasted.
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Ten people killed by floods in Helmand
Ten people have been killed and six others injured by floods in Helmand province in the past week, local officials said on Friday.
According to officials, seven of those were members of the same family, and they were killed in Kajaki district last night.
“Most of the people moved from vulnerable areas to high lands and mountains, and thanks Allah the number of casualties is low,” Sher Mohammad Vahdat, the head of information of the Directorate of Information and Culture in Helmand, said adding rescue teams and security forces have been dispatched to help people.
It is said that the telecommunication system has also been disrupted due to the effect of floods in Kajaki district. Floods have also destroyed thousands of acres of agricultural land.
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UN envoy meets Indian foreign minister to discuss Afghanistan
Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, met with the Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in New Delhi and discussed issues related to Afghanistan, it was announced on Thursday.
During the meeting, Otunbayeva thanked India for “its critical humanitarian support and longstanding friendship for the Afghan people” and discussed the importance of regional and international cooperation to address prevailing challenges in Afghanistan, UNAMA said on X.
Jaishankar also said on X that the sides exchanged views on the current situation in Afghanistan.
“Underlined that India has provided wheat, medicines, pesticides and school supplies. Appreciate the role of UN agencies as partners in these endeavors,” he said.
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