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Saleh says another key suspect in Kabul University attack arrested
Afghanistan’s First Vice President, Amrullah Saleh, said on Wednesday that they have arrested another suspect behind the deadly attack on Kabul University early this month.
According to Saleh the person, named Rahmatullah, has been taken into custody and is believed to have been one of the masterminds behind the attack that killed at least 22 people, mostly students.
The university attack came just a week after a previous bombing outside another education facility in Kabul that killed 24 students.
In both instances ISIS (Daesh) claimed responsibility.
On Wednesday, Saleh said: “Kabul University and Kosar Danish cases are a crime against humanity and we bring together Afghans and the world against the crime. We hope that the human rights commission ignores criticisms and works practically.”
Saleh’s remarks came after the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) stated that “students and educators must be ensured safety and security while attending school, without any threat or fear for their lives and to be able to work, study, and learn in a protected and safe environment.”
Professors, lecturers and students from universities around the world also weighed in this week and signed and sent out a letter condemning attacks on educational facilities in Afghanistan and listed their demands.
Signatories were from academics at top universities, including Stanford and University of California.
They demanded that the Afghan government, the United States, the European Union, and other international stakeholders use their influence to investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of these “calculated attacks on civilian populations and protected sites, such as universities and educational centres.”
They also called for the rights of students and educators to be safeguarded and hold all actors engaged in the war in Afghanistan accountable and pressure them to comply with the Geneva Convention and respect civilian lives during war.
Saleh’s announcement meanwhile came after his recent statements that in addition to this arrest, another two key planners of the attack are in custody while a third was killed in an operation by security forces.
On Saturday, Saleh said at a high-ranking security meeting that a member of the Taliban's Haqqani Network was behind the attack.
He said the country's intelligence agency NDS had taken the main perpetrator, identified as Aadil, into custody and that this suspect had once studied at Kabul University’s faculty of Sharia before joining the Taliban.
Saleh also said on Facebook the suspect told officials that the Taliban had aimed to defame the government and make it appear weak.
But the Taliban has rejected government accusations of involvement in the latest attack.
"Claim by #Kabul admin deputy [vice president] of detaining #Kabul Uni attackers & linking them to Haqqani Sahib's personnel are fabrications. All these allegations are an attempt to divert attention away from joint #Kabul-#ISIS crime & deceive the public," the group's spokesman Zabihullah Mujahed tweeted.
The attack was widely condemned by the Afghan government and the international community.
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Canada sent 19 failed asylum seekers back to Afghanistan last year
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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