LAST 24 HOURS
FEMALE LED PROTESTS IN HERAT BROKEN UP – The Taliban are said to have violently dispersed an impromptu women’s rally in Herat on Sunday. The women held the rally to show solidarity with those who were killed at the education center blast but also used the venue to call for free and unfettered access to education. Approximately 100 marchers gathered on the campus of Herat University and marched on the Governor’s Office downtown. They were stopped short of the office by Taliban security forces who reputedly beat several women with sticks and fired in the air several times. Journalists covering the event were warned not to report on the incident and several had their names recorded by Ministry of the Interior agents who were interspersed among the protestors. A second rally was held on the campus of Herat University but those students were not allowed to go onto the streets by a Taliban security detail that had arrived earlier. Unconfirmed reports claim that some women were arrested but we have yet to substantiate these reports.
BLACK MARKET DOCUMENTS INVESTIGATION CONTINUES — The Ministry of the Interior announced they had arrested an employee of the National Identity office as well as two agents (positions unspecified) for selling identity cards. The investigation by the Ministry is reputed to be a major one and has also resulted in arrests in the Passport Directorate and those selling black market Pakistan Visas.
TALIBAN REPOSITIONING IN THE NORTH – Multiple sources in the Ministry of Defense reported that orders have gone out to Taliban commanders in Takhar, Panjshir, Balkh, and Kandahar to move hundreds of fighters to Badakhshan. Sources claimed that several worrisome reports had prompted the repositioning of forces to Badakhshan. Chief among concerns for the Minister of Defense were unsubstantiated claims of drone activity and worries that Tajikistan forces were actively assisting the NRF with logistics and intelligence. An additional concern for the Taliban involved rumors of more defections among several of their units serving in the province. For now, it seems the main effort for the Taliban will be in Badakhshan.
TALIBAN BEGINS TO ACKNOWLEDGE THEY HAVE A TERRORISM PROBLEM – The Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kabul was the latest de facto government agency to concede they have a domestic terror problem. While previously, most Taliban responses to the terrorism question have sought to minimize the issue and/or blame it on foreign elements, the past two months have seen a shift in the propaganda strategy. While not acknowledging the problem directly, the press releases now blame ‘sectarian separatists’ as the culprits. While seemingly a small thing, such an acknowledgment will provide neighbors and the international community with ammunition to further question the regime’s legitimacy and its claims of a new era of security.
NEXT 24 HOURS
TALIBAN TROOP MOVEMENTS, AN OPPORTUNITY – As the leadership vacuum among Taliban units in the North continues to cause headaches for Kabul/Kandahar, the reshuffling of forces provides an opportunity for Resistance forces to target undermanned Taliban security facilities. The Resistance has demonstrated skill in employing ambush tactics in the contested North. It is probable that attacks against weakened Taliban positions could intensify before the Winter months set in.
SPOTLIGHT ANALYSIS
The Taliban are Planning Their Move on Central Asia
By Micheal Rubin - 1945
Throughout the two-decade U.S. war in Afghanistan, the Kremlin played a double game. President Vladimir Putin did not want the United States to win for that would humiliate Russia that, as the Soviet Union, lost a brutal war in Afghanistan. He also did not want the United States to lose, for that could mean the empowerment of the Taliban and the export of its extremism into the former Soviet states of Central Asia. This led to contradictions in which Russia leveraged its influence to expel the United States from Central Asian bases and cultivated the Taliban while simultaneously facilitating logistical routes across Russian territory to keep the American war going. As far as the Russians were concerned, the ideal scenario was for both the United States and Taliban to bleed each other dry into perpetuity.
AFGHAN NEWS
Taliban violently break up women’s protest in western Afghan city
By Al Arabiya
Authorities dispersed a women’s rally in Afghanistan’s western city of Herat on Sunday, with protesters claiming they were beaten by Taliban forces who fired shots in…
UN's Bennett: 'Five People' Keeping Girls’ Schools Closed
By Banafshu Binesh - TOLO News
“I was told that there are five people who are keeping the girls’ schools closed, five very powerful people, in the ... hierarchy, including the…
CNIC employee, two agents held over illegal activity
By Ahmad Sohaib Hasrat - Pajhwok Afghan News
Three people have been arrested over creating a Computerised National Identity Card (CNIC) in the absence of applicant…
REGIONAL NEWS
Taliban must step up, take responsibility for its citizens’ lives
By Saeed Azimi - The Tehran Times
Iranian officials quickly reacted to the tragic incident, highlighting that the Taliban must step up to ensure security for all Afghan citizens, regardless of their…
Turkish Airlines to resume Afghanistan flights
By Ariana News
Turkish Airlines will resume flights to Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan in March next year, it was…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
Door of negotiations is open to all countries including US: IEA
By Ariana News
The Deputy Prime Minister for Political Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Mawlavi Abdul Kabir says the door of…
Afghans still waiting for decision on relatives year after State pledge
By Jade Wilson - The Irish Times
Afghan Admission Programme promised ‘up to 500 places’ for at-risk family members but some applicants claim relatives…
THE DAILY WTF
Serving People & Country with Honesty is the Main Goal for IEA, Says Kabir
By Bakhtar News Agency
No gap between the government and the people in Samangan, both sides have mutual good relations and all officials are…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 88.43 AFN (as of 3 OCT 2022)