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Taliban Demands Release of 82 Prisoners in Exchange for Two Professors

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(Last Updated On: October 24, 2022)

The Taliban militant group has given a list of 82 prisoners – to be exchanged with two foreign university professors – to the U.S. Special Envoy for Afghanistan Reconciliation.

Wahid Muzhda, a pro-Taliban political analyst on Thursday told Ariana News that the list includes key members of the group including designated governors, war commanders, and two key members of the Haqqani Network, Anas Haqqani and Hafiz Rashid, who are kept in Bagram, Pul-e-Charkhi and Afghan Intelligence agency prisons.

Kevin King and Timothy Weeks from Australia were teaching at Kabul’s American University of Afghanistan (AUAF) before gunmen took them hostage near the campus in August 2016.

Meanwhile, government sources said the U.S. chief negotiator Zalmay Khalilzad has told Afghan leaders that releasing of these inmates will facilitate the resumption of Afghan peace process including the intra-Afghan talks.

Recently, the Afghan National Security Advisor Hamdullah Mohib said Khalilzad discussed the release of two professors during his latest visit to Kabul.

Mohib further explained President Ashraf Ghani’s new plan for peace that requires Taliban to announce at least a month of ceasefire before the start of any negotiations.

For the past couple of years, the government was ready for negotiations with the Taliban without any pre-condition and that has changed now, he added.

Here in Kabul, Afghan officials are holding meetings with foreign diplomats on daily basis, discussing the peace process.

On Wednesday, President Ghani’s National Security Advisor met with the Russian Ambassador to Afghanistan Aleksandr Mantytsky in Kabul where they discussed the regional consensus for peace.

In addition, in a video message sent to media outlets, Spokesman of the National Security Council Kabir Haqmal re-emphasized on the government’s Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process.

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IEA urges World Bank to resume work on 7,000 incomplete projects

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

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

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

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

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(Last Updated On: April 19, 2024)

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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