Daily Evacuation Brief | August 22, 2022
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LAST 24 HOURS
Taliban Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has appointed Abdul Qayyum Zakir as the new special commander for Taliban forces in Panjshir and Andarab. There are longstanding reports of the Kandahari Taliban leadership’s unhappiness with the lack of progress against Resistance factions in the North, and the NRF’s recent successes appear to have spurred the Supreme Leader to take a more proactive role. Commander Zakir is considered to be one of the Taliban’s more capable leaders, having joined in 1997 and held several leadership roles since then.
The Ministry of Education and Ministry of Justice jointly announced the formation of 17 Sharia law faculties in universities across the country. Sharia law is expected to supplant the justice system reforms that have been made over the previous two decades.
In a potential precursor to a national policy, the police chief for Daikundi province has warned police officers that they may face expulsion from the security forces if legitimate complaints about misconduct are levied against them. Since the Taliban took over, non-combatants have had to deal with a lack of accountability among Taliban security forces; hopefully, this reform is upheld and applied in additional provinces.
About 50 people are estimated to have died from flooding over the last 24 hours, although the exact figure will be further clarified as the districts that experienced the worst of the recent storms report the damage and casualties it has caused. In Logar province alone, 3,000 residences were destroyed and 20 Afghans were killed over the last 24 hours, including 9 children.
The Minister of Borders, Tribes, and Tribal Affairs went to Wakhan to meet with elders and hear the local population’s grievances. After the Taliban’s disagreement with Pakistan about the establishment of a trade corridor to China, the Wakhan region's prominence has increased given Kabul’s reputed concern that local leaders may have supported the Pakistan corridor as a means to generate badly needed income and trade.
NEXT 24 HOURS
With the new special military commander’s appointment in Panjshir, we assess there will be a short break in Taliban offensive maneuvers while the newly appointed commander evaluates the situation and forms a new strategy to confront the NRF. However, the NRF seems to have gained much-needed confidence from recent successes and will likely continue a limited objective campaign. Sources indicate that NRF planning has begun on a new coordinated attack that will build on lessons learned from the last major offensive. Fighting is expected over the next 24 hours but will primarily consist of localized light skirmishes.
SPOTLIGHT ANALYSIS
Do No Harm: America Must Put Afghans First
By Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili – National Interest
The past two decades should make clear that the United States’ ability to promote stability and prosperity around the world does not depend on resources but on ideas and strategy. For twenty years in Afghanistan, neither the goals nor the rationale for the intervention was clear—to the people of Afghanistan, the American public, or the international community.
AFGHAN NEWS
Taliban Supreme Leader Appoints Special Military Commander for Panjshir Province
By Saqalain Eqbal – Khaama Press
Abdul Qayyum Zakir, who once served as the Taliban government’s Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Defense, is regarded as one of…
‘My Hope Died Forever’: Taliban Restrictions Are Forcing Afghan Women Out Of The Workforce
By Hamed Ahmadi – Huffpost
Afghan women continue to face severe human rights abuses, and some of them are particularly hard-hit by unemployment and…
At least 20 People Killed, 30 Wounded in Logar Flooding
By Abdul Ghafoor Saboori – TOLO News
The provincial department of disaster management said aid teams are in the area to provide the people with necessary…
REGIONAL NEWS
Taliban links with Russia and China do not bode well for a relationship with the West
By Rick Fawn – The Sunday Post
Through force and terror, and also diplomatic cunning, the Taliban in Afghanistan in the past year undid two…
India delivers 10th consignment of medical aid to Afghanistan
By Ariana News
The consignment, which is part of India’s humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan program, was handed over to the…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
By Oma Seddiq – Business Insider
Afghanistan's presidential palace was strangely quiet. As Durani Jawed Waziri walked down the long hallway to her…
THE DAILY WTF
Afghan Soil Will Not Used Against Other Nations, Deputy PM
By Bakhtar News Agency
Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, Deputy Prime Minister for political affairs, in a meeting with the European Union EU Chargé d’Affaires said that Afghanistan’s soil will not be used against…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 88.23 AFN (as of 22 AUG 2022)