LAST 24 HOURS
INTERPOL REPORT SAYS ARMS SMUGGLING FROM AFGHANISTAN IS CONTINUING – As part of an international effort, arms smuggling was tackled in ten countries under the auspices of an INTERPOL program to combat arms trafficking. During the investigation in Pakistan, it was discovered that several smuggling routes are used weekly to bring weapons into the country. Hundreds of weapons were recovered in the areas near the Afghan border and 614 arrests have been made so far. Kabul called the report a ‘fabrication’ and questioned the data assembled by the authors.
TALIBAN INVITES HEAD OF JUI-F PARTY IN PAKISTAN TO KABUL FOR TALKS – Maulana Fazl ur Rehman, the head of the JUI-F party was approached by the Charge d’Affaires of the Taliban diplomatic post in Pakistan and invited to attend talks in Kabul. Apparently, both the TTP and the Afghan Taliban felt he could play a positive role in discussions and could act as a trusted figure in future discussions with Islamabad.
PROTESTORS IN CHAMAN SAY FRIDAY IS DEADLINE FOR ACCEPTING DEMANDS – Protestors on the Pakistan side of the Spin Boldak border crossing have been engaged in protests for several weeks now. At issue are the new policies put in place by Islamabad that require Afghan and Pakistani citizens to possess passports and visas to cross the border. The groups have periodically blocked the crossing to commercial traffic and say they will continue to do so until the policy is reversed. After a round of recent talks with Provincial government officials broke down, leaders of the group now say the Government has until Friday to accept their demands. While no specifics were mentioned by the protestors about what would happen if the Government sticks to its policy plans, sources in Islamabad said that blockades would likely be employed to halt traffic at the important border crossing.
NEXT 24 HOURS
BALOCH PROTESTORS BEGIN MARCH FOR JUSTICE – Several thousand Baloch protestors began their march to Islamabad from Quetta yesterday. The protestors are marching to call attention to the Baloch Genocide they say has been carried out against their people. There has been no indication that violence is expected along the route of the march, terror groups could potentially target the marchers or the Pakistani security forces detailed to escort the column along the route.
SPOTLIGHT HISTORY
Rare Insight Into Iran’s Decision Not to Wage War Against the Taliban in 1998
By Ali Alfoneh - AGSIW
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council remains a black box, and very little is known about the strategic decision-making process in Iran. However, often provoked by factional struggles for power, current and former regime officials occasionally end their silence and talk openly. For example, when Kayhan Daily, which at times is perceived as the mouthpiece of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on November 25 accused former reformist President Mohammad Khatami of attempting to provoke a war with the Taliban in 1998 in the wake of the Taliban’s killing of 12 Iranians, the reformist camp responded. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps was the main proponent of a war against the Taliban, former reformist officials claimed. Kayhan’s intention was probably to absolve the Taliban of the killing of Iranian nationals in 1998, improve relations with Afghanistan’s Taliban government, and at the same time take a jab at Iranian reformists. However, with their response, the reformists not only undermined the whitewashing of the Taliban in the eyes of the Iranian public but also provided much-needed insight into strategic decision making in Iran.
AFGHAN NEWS
In first, Kabul says Pakistani Taliban militants imprisoned in Afghanistan
By Riyaz ul Khaliq - Anadolu Agency
In a first since their return to power in 2021, the interim Taliban administration in Afghanistan said that over the last year, it has acted against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan…
U.S.-based organization allocates $110 million for child education support in Afghanistan
By AMU TV
In a recent announcement, the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) disclosed its approval of grants amounting to $110 million to enhance children’s education in Afghanistan, as stated in…
Taliban rule sparks surge in female suicides in Afghanistan
By CNN
CNN's Anna Coren looks at the heartbreaking consequence of the Taliban's misogynistic rule over Afghanistan as suicide in…
REGIONAL NEWS
KP Governor okays constitution to streamline Afghan trade
By The Pakistan Observer
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor, Haji Ghulam Ali has expressed his consent over the constitution of a steering committee with the task of…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
UN report exposes deepening human rights crisis in Afghanistan under Taliban rule
By AMU TV
In a new report released on Friday, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) underscores a worsening human rights crisis in the country under…
THE DAILY WTF
Oppressed by the Taliban, she swallowed acid. Now her siblings are trying to save her life
By Hilary Whiteman & Anna Coren & Abdul Basir Bina - CNN
Arzo is so weak she spends most of her day lying on a thin mattress in a dimly lit room under a ceiling fan that steadily circulates the polluted air of…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 69.86 AFN (as of 17 DEC 2023)