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Russia Questions Reports of Unidentified Helicopters Sighted in Afghanistan
Russia Foreign Ministry has asked Afghan, U.S. and NATO officials to provide a “rational explanation” about reports of unidentified helicopters providing support to ISIS-K militants in Afghanistan.
“We’ve taken note of new reports about unmarked helicopters ferrying the fighters of ISIS Afghan branch, as well as weapons and munitions for them, in eastern Afghanistan,” Russia Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told reporters during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Zakharova also pointed to the brief capture of Tora Bora, a strategic cave in Pachiragam district of Nangarhar, by IS fighters on June 14 which was recaptured by Afghan security forces during a clearing operation.
“Some reports say that shortly before this, unmarked helicopters delivered over 50 armed extremists to reinforce the fighters who were preparing an offensive on Tora Bora, as well as a container full of weapons and munitions,” she added.
IS militants also known as Daesh is widely active in some parts of Nangarhar province and there were reports of the group activities in some other provinces of the country as well.
“It is symptomatic that neither the Afghan authorities nor the U.S. and NATO military contingent officials in Afghanistan have offered a rational explanation for the increased number of flights made by unidentified helicopters providing support to ISIS fighters in many Afghan provinces, Zakharova stated,” Silence in this case is becoming increasingly conspicuous.”
She further asked Western media to ask these questions from the Pentagon, the White House and the U.S. State Department.
Immediately there was no reaction from U.S. officials regarding the statements made by Moscow while Afghan ministry of defense have rejected the report and called it baseless.
Afghan and U.S. forces have conducted many counter terrorism operations against the IS fighters in Nangarhar province during the last two years.
Reports of unidentified helicopters landing in Taliban controlled areas in Sar-e-Pul and Ghazni districts of Afghanistan have also been published during the last couple of months.
In a latest report by an official U.S. watchdog, U.S. officials have expressed concerns about the security situation in Afghanistan as Russia, Pakistan and Iran are providing support to the insurgents fighting the Kabul government.
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At least 1,500 families affected by recent floods: IRW
The Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) organization has reported that the rains and floods of the last week have claimed the lives of many Afghan and incurred huge financial losses.
According to the organization, a total of 1,500 families have suffered as a result of the recent floods and hundreds of livestock have also been lost.
IRW added that following the recent rains, 900 houses were partially or completely destroyed and 93,000 hectares of agricultural land was damaged.
This comes amid an ongoing economic crisis in Afghanistan which has left millions of people reliant on aid.
The disaster management ministry meanwhile confirmed earlier that 99 people died and 64 others were injured as a result of the heavy rains.
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Russia says US facing humiliation in Ukraine like in Vietnam and Afghanistan
Russia said on Sunday U.S. lawmakers’ support for $60.84 billion more in aid for Ukraine showed that Washington was wading much deeper into a hybrid war against Moscow that would end in humiliation on a par with the Vietnam or Afghanistan conflicts.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said it was clear that the United States wanted Ukraine “to fight to the last Ukrainian” including with attacks on Russian sovereign territory and civilians, Reuters reported.
“Washington’s deeper and deeper immersion in the hybrid war against Russia will turn into a loud and humiliating fiasco for United States such as Vietnam and Afghanistan,” Zakharova said.
Russia, she said, will give “an unconditional and resolute response” to the U.S. move to get more involved in the Ukraine war.
The United States lost more than 58,000 military personnel in the 1955-75 Vietnam War, which ended with Communist North Vietnam’s victory and takeover of the South, while hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed.
In the 2001-2021 war in Afghanistan, the U.S. reported 2,459 dead and over 20,000 wounded in the conflict which ended with the withdrawal of U.S.-led coalition forces and return to power of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA).
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Iran says water is an important factor in expansion of ties with Afghanistan
Iran’s special representative for Afghanistan, Hasan Kazemi Qomi, said on Sunday that water is an important factor in the expansion of bilateral relations, expressing hope that the flow of water to his country will continue.
Qomi said this in a meeting with Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Amir Khan Muttaqi in Kabul, the ministry said in a statement.
The envoy expressed gratitude for removing obstacles to the flow of water from the Helmand River to Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran.
Meanwhile, Muttaqi noted that there were good rains in the country this year, as a result of which, after several years of severe drought, Helmand River’s water flowed to Nimroz province of Afghanistan and into Sistan and Baluchestan province of Iran.
He assessed the relations between Afghanistan and Iran as “friendly and positive” and hoped relations will expand further in various fields.
During the meeting, Iran’s envoy also thanked the Islamic Emirate for its stance on Israel’s attacks on Gaza and for having condemned the attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus.
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