Daily Evacuation Brief | August 10, 2022
LAST 24 HOURS
A fire broke out in the Barchi Plain area of Kabul when a market stall selling oil caught fire and the fire spread to a nearby electrical transformer which is causing power disruptions in Southwest Kabul. No casualties were reported, but the power issues may take weeks to repair, and Kabul residents are already dealing with occasional blackouts and/or interrupted cellular and internet services.
TACTICAL ANALYSIS: The NRF attacks on two Taliban positions in Takhar province (detailed in the Conflict Tracker below) were significant for several reasons:
The first attack represents the largest coordinated offensive maneuver the NRF has conducted to date with several hundred NRF troops converging on the Taliban base and conducting simultaneous assaults from three different directions.
The base itself bears historical significance as it was a main staging point for Ahmad Shah Massoud’s resistance.
A successive ancillary operation was launched against the Taliban headquarters in Marmaz. The planning and coordination involved in executing both operations illustrate a complex grasp of tactics that the Taliban lacks.
Both operations were conducted at night. Since the NRF began campaigning against the Taliban, they have been far more successful at conducting night operations than their foes. At this point, it is safe to say that the NRF owns the night.
Amnesty International and other international human rights organizations have characterized the recent attacks against Hazaras and Shiites as crimes against humanity. While the condemnations are not new, it places more pressure on the Taliban to conduct aggressive counter-terrorism operations against ISIS-K. The Taliban have had some small successes in neutralizing purported ISIS-K cells but will have to scale their operations rapidly to meet the threat.
Damaged crop estimates are beginning to arrive at the Ministry of Agriculture after widespread flooding wreaked havoc on forecasted crop yields. Paktia province officials claim that 70% of cultivated land has been wiped out. The devastating numbers increase the likelihood of a more acute food security crisis during the coming winter months.
Local residents in Andarab have reported a drone sighting in the region in the past 48hrs. The Taliban has not commented on the reports, and there has been no official corroboration of anyone operating a drone over the country at this time.
NEXT 24 HOURS
A Ministry of Defense delegation is expected to visit Taliban border security positions near the Durand Line to assess the situation and prepare a report for the senior leadership. It is thought that a joint meeting between Pakistan and the Taliban to try and lower tensions is currently in the works. No further incidents of violence have been reported but reinforcements have been deployed on both sides of the border.
SPOTLIGHT OPINION
Opinion: Biden’s Afghanistan exit decision looks even worse a year later
By Peter Bergen - CNN
Last week, President Joe Biden took a victory lap when he announced that the US had tracked down and killed its most wanted terrorist, al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who was living in a house in Kabul, Afghanistan. Don’t expect a similar celebration on August 30, the first anniversary of the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, which ended the longest war in American history. Any realistic assessment of that action shows that it will long be seen as a defeat rather than a victory – and it’s likely no one will own up to the responsibility for the decision.
AFGHAN NEWS
Doctors in Kabul Accused of Colluding With Pharmacists
By Yahya Ahmadi – TOLO News
Patients and pharmacists in the capital have complained about doctors writing illegible prescriptions that can only…
I don't believe US killed Afghan people by mistake: Karzai
By MEHR News Agency
He said at the time of the collapse of the former government and the takeover by the Taliban, he had feared for his safety, not because of…
REGIONAL NEWS
10 stabbed to death in Iran, Afghan man arrested
By Ariana News
Iranian police detained an Afghan man who is suspected of fatally stabbing 10 farmworkers in the southern part of the country, local media…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
Bipartisan bill would end Afghan evacuees’ legal limbo
By Rebecca Beitsch – The Hill
Lawmakers on Tuesday introduced a bill that would provide a pathway to citizenship for those evacuated from Afghanistan, a first attempt to end their legal limbo….
By SBS News
Only 6,000 permanent humanitarian visas have been granted to Afghan nationals fleeing their homeland out of more than 211,100 people seeking Australia’s…
US: 'We Can Still Reach Out And Touch' Terrorists in Afghanistan
By Madina Morwat – TOLO News
“I think in the last ten days, in the strike that was carried out on Ayman al- Zawahiri, the leader of al-Qaeda and the most wanted terrorist on…
THE DAILY WTF
6,500 Afghans evacuated to UAE still stuck in limbo awaiting U.S. resettlement
By Camilo Montoya-Galvez – CBS News
Fatima's application to enter the U.S. on humanitarian grounds has been pending for her entire…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 90.01 AFN (as of 10 AUG 2022)