Daily Evacuation Brief | April 12, 2023
LAST 24 HOURS
TALIBAN-RESISTANCE CLASH IN PARWAN – Taliban forces launched a raid on a suspected National Resistance Front safe house Parwan Province. Other sources said the raid occurred in the Shatel District of Panjshir Province. The raid was carried out at night and 8 NRF fighters were killed in the melee that lasted several hours. Among the dead were Akmal Amiri and Nasir Ahmad Andrabi, both of whom were Commanders in the NRF. Commander Amiri’s loss was, particularly disheartening as he was considered an extremely capable leader and had a long history of battling ISIS and the Taliban. It is not clear how many casualties the Taliban incurred during the raid. The operation was surprising for the way it was carried out. Typically, operational security has not been a hallmark of the Taliban forces and this operation appears to have achieved complete and total surprise. If future operations adhere to similar operating principles, the NRF and other Resistance forces could be in for a long Summer.
PAKISTAN’S DEFENSE MINISTER CALLS OUT THE TALIBAN FOR SHELTERING TTP, AGAIN – Khawaja Asif has not been bashful about stating the facts as he sees them. In a recent interview with the Voice of America, he reaffirmed earlier statements that the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) continues to use Afghanistan as a base from which to launch attacks. Historically, the Taliban respond to these claims by 1) denying that terrorist organizations operate in Afghanistan and 2) they make behind-closed-door pledges to deal with the problem. There is some evidence the Afghanistan Taliban have turned a blind eye to Pakistani terrorism operations in Afghanistan in the recent past. Some have even opined the Taliban may have provided crucial intelligence to Pakistan that is thought to have resulted in the murders of 2 prominent TTP Commanders in Eastern Afghanistan earlier this year. With the massive anti-terrorism campaign that was recently launched across Pakistan, it was only a matter of time before Pakistan began calling out the Taliban for their perceived inaction in dealing with the TTP.
TALIBAN LEADERS HEARING MIXED MESSAGES FROM THE UN – UNAMA and the United Nations as a whole are threatening to suspend aid to Afghanistan over the Taliban’s decision to enforce the December 2022 decree that bans women from working for humanitarian aid groups. The UN has ordered its staff to ‘work from home’ while it decides what to do but has continued to threaten the Taliban with a serious cut or total ban on humanitarian aid unless it reverses its policies. Sources in Kandahar say the ruling clique is not inclined to take these threats seriously and they point to recent calls made by the UN for donors to contribute more funds for aid programs in the country. The source said the consensus among the Mullahs in the Supreme Leader’s inner circle is that the UN is simply making empty threats. The source said that a call from leaders in Kabul to hold a meeting to discuss a potential halt of aid was denied by Kandahar. Leaders in Kabul are apparently furious over the lack of attention to the problem and that there is a sense that Kandahar is disconnected from reality because it doesn’t have to actually govern while Kabul must deal with the shortages in resources on a daily basis.
NEXT 24 HOURS
NO REPORTED THREATS
REGIONAL ROUNDUP
IRAN
The number of cases of female student poisonings crossed the 300 barrier on Monday. An excellent mapping source for the poisonings can be viewed HERE.
Iran’s remaining Jewish community released a warning on its social media sites for Jews in Iran to avoid celebrating Passover publicly. The community was urged to celebrate al-Quds Day in order to avoid persecution. It is said the community will celebrate a week later in order to keep the peace.
The Army Chief, Abdolrahim Mousavi, responding to provocative statements made by Israel’s military Chief of Staff, said that Israel is ‘too small’ to constitute a threat to Iran.
PAKISTAN
More economic bad news hit the country as the stock market plunged and the rupee lost ground to the dollar on Monday.
Pilots from Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) are threatening a strike over unpaid wages. The company has a considerable debt load and reports from February and March suggest that at least a portion of its workforce has not been paid recently.
A detachment of Islamabad Police arrived in Lahore on Monday and were carrying the latest court summons for former PM, Imran Khan. The team is expected to visit Khan’s residence and deliver the summons today.
TAJIKISTAN
An Imam of a Mosque in the Kushonion District has been sentenced to 6 years in prison for kicking out musicians for his nephew’s wedding and berating guests for singing.
A court in Dushanbe has sentenced a dissenter who had recently been deported from Germany to 7 years in prison. Human rights groups are concerned he will be subjected to torture while imprisoned.
Citizens are bracing for an increase in the cost of water that is expected to be put into effect at the end of the month. Rates are expected to increase by 20% and will strain budgets during an exceptionally difficult economic time.
UZBEKISTAN
3 Uzbek nationals escaped from detention in Indonesia on Monday. The men were being held under suspicion of being terrorists and they attacked their guards with knives and fled the detention center. 1 of the Immigration Security guards was killed in the attack and 1 of the Uzbeks drowned during the escape. A nationwide manhunt has been launched.
The government formally announced a constitutional referendum was scheduled for 30 April.
Kyrgyz authorities accused Uzbek border guards of abducting a local shepherd near the village of Kok-Tash on Monday. Efforts are being made to secure his release.
SPOTLIGHT RESETTLEMENT
Afghans' American Dream Clashes With Housing Crisis: Part 1
By Valentina Pasquali - Law 360
Many of the Afghan refugees evacuated to the U.S. after their country fell to the Taliban in August 2021 believed safe housing and robust government and community support awaited them in the richest nation on earth. Instead, they were confronted with a stripped-down resettlement system ill-equipped to handle nearly 100,000 refugees during a historic housing crunch.
AFGHAN NEWS
Two Commanders and Eight Members of Freedom Front Killed in Clashes with Taliban in Panjshir
By 8AM Media
On Tuesday, April 11, sources told Hast-e Subh that following the clash in the Shatal district of Panjshir province on Monday night…
By Shadi Khan Saif - ABC
In a major setback to relief efforts in Afghanistan, the United Nations (UN) will limit its operations in the war-ravaged country, following the Taliban's ban on…
Women Hold “Eid Bazar” in Herat
By Nasir Ahmad Salehi - TOLO News
The sellers said that they are trying to bring the attention of the people to purchasing domestic…
REGIONAL NEWS
TTP Using Afghan Soil against Pakistan, Countries like India Providing Help, Says Khawaja Asif
By Manoj Gupta - News 18
Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif has said that the TTP is using Afghan soil even today for attacks in his country, especially Khyber…
Kazakhstan sends large shipment of aid via railway to Afghanistan
By Ariana News
Balkh officials said Wednesday a large shipment of humanitarian aid arrived by rail from Kazakhstan on Tuesday and was handed over to the…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
US special envoy embarks on ‘outreach’ to region over Afghanistan crisis
By AMU TV
The US Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West is expected to meet with numerous stakeholders this week to seek solutions to…
How a botched letter from Canada condemned one family to torment in Afghanistan
By Ehsanullah Amiri - Toronto Star
For the family of a man who worked as a fixer for Canadian media in Afghanistan, the difference between freedom and a hellish…
THE DAILY WTF
Forbes '30 Under 30' honoree's charity accused of mistreating refugees, sued for fraud
By Olivia Rubin - ABC News
Late last year, a former Afghan refugee who has been widely celebrated for his humanitarian work evacuating Afghans and Americans from…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 86.43 AFN (as of 12 APR 2023)