LAST 24 HOURS
US ESTABLISHES TRUST FROM FROZEN FUNDS — The US government officially announced that it is creating a trust fund “to benefit the Afghan people” using Afghanistan’s frozen central bank reserves. The funds are being transferred in the wake of a failed compromise with the Taliban government in an attempt to alleviate the humanitarian/economic crisis in the country. The $3.5 billion is being transferred to a Swiss bank, which will help run the fund alongside a trustee board that includes unnamed Afghan economic experts. The move is meant to prevent the Taliban from directly accessing the funds, and future transfers to Afghanistan’s central bank will have to be in line with several criteria imposed by the US before disbursements are made. More details are available in the Department of State announcement.
TALIBAN INVESTIGATE MASSACRE — The Taliban said it was investigating videos of a purported massacre of NRF prisoners in Panjshir province.
HIGH TALIBAN CASUALTIES IN PANJSHIR — While the Taliban have admitted to some losses in the Panjshir fighting, the official casualty numbers seem to be contradicted by photos of bodies being moved out of the province. One unofficial tally made by a student-run social media site claims the following graves registration movements have been made over the previous five days: 45 bodies to Kandahar, 22 bodies to Ghor, 60 bodies to Uruzgan, 11 bodies to Takhar, 6 bodies to Kunduz, 18 bodies to Helmand, 12 bodies to Zabul, 9 bodies to Wardak, 14 bodies to Baghlan (TOTAL = 197). Additional observers claim that a similar number of Taliban have been killed in the mountains, but the bodies could not be recovered. If true, the fighting in Panjshir has been the bloodiest since the Taliban takeover.
NOTED NRF COMMANDER KILLED — Noted Resistance commander Haji Malik Khan was killed in the fighting in Panjshir. NRF losses are said to have been heavy in the Abdullah Khel Valley. Fighting across Panjshir has been intense and sustained.
MORE FIGHTING ON DURAND LINE — Casualties have been reported on both the Afghan and Pakistani sides of the joint border. Fighting between Pakistani and Taliban border security forces broke out when the Pakistan Army forces were attempting to complete the construction of a border post along a section of the Durand Line in Paktia province. Pakistan reported that 3 Army soldiers had been killed and the Taliban has yet to release a casualty count from the scuffle. Security forces on both sides of the border remain on high alert.
IRAN CALLS FOR INCLUSIVE GOVERNMENT — The Iranian Foreign Minister reiterated his government’s call for Afghanistan to form an inclusive government.
NEXT 24 HOURS
GIRLS’ SCHOOLS TO REOPEN? — With the US’ recent release of frozen funds for Afghanistan, there may be an announcement from the Taliban concerning the reopening of girls’ schools across the country. Many sources close to the negotiations believe the funds were being used as a bargaining chip to open access to education for women.
NRF RECOVERY OPPORTUNITY — The Taliban may soon be facing difficult decisions regarding the deployment of troops within the country. With the issues on the Pakistan border likely necessitating a large repositioning of forces, the active front in Panjshir may see the loss of hundreds of fighters and vehicles. It is not clear if the Resistance forces would be able to exploit any potential weaknesses resulting from a decrease in troops, but it would certainly give them time to resupply and reconsolidate after the heaviest fighting in the country to date.
SPOTLIGHT ANALYSIS
Empowering Afghan Women and Their Civil Resistance
By Mojib Rahman Atal – The Diplomat
After the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, the international community lost everything that it had invested in the last two decades in Afghanistan. Certainly, the U.S. and the international community were not prepared for such a disastrous outcome from its “unwanted state-building mission” post 9/11.
AFGHAN NEWS
UNAMA 'Gravely Concerned' by 'Human Rights Violations' in Panjshir
By Farshad Daryosh — TOLOnews
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan said that it was “gravely concerned by the latest allegations of serious human rights violations in Panjshir and elsewhere."
Russian Embassy in Kabul Suspends Services after Embassy Bombing
By Saqalain Eqbal – Khaama Press
The Russian embassy in Kabul, the Afghan capital, has stopped all consular services, including the issuance of…
REGIONAL NEWS
Taliban rejects reports about JeM chief Masood Azhar seeking refuge in Afghanistan
By Rezaul H Laskar – The Hindustan Times
The Taliban setup in Kabul on Wednesday rejected reports that Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar has sought refuge in Afghanistan and…
SGPC Condemns Afghan Govt's Decision of Stopping Sikhs from Ferrying Out Guru Granth Sahib
By News 18
As per the information, a group of 60 Afghan Sikhs was scheduled to come to India on September 11, 2022, but they could not reach here, as they were not…
Russia Offers Excuses for Taliban Closing Schools for Girls
By Akmal Dawi — VOA
“We note efforts by the new Afghan government to ensure the rights of women and girls in the areas of marriage and property inheritance,” a Russian representative told the U.N. event…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
US sets up Afghan relief fund with frozen central bank money
By Fatima Hussein — AP News
A year after the tumultuous U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Biden administration said Wednesday it will transfer $3.5 billion in frozen Afghan central bank funds to benefit the Afghan…
What It’s Like to Get Texts Every Day From Afghans Fleeing Taliban Persecution
By Kate Kovarovic – The Bulwark
The crisis in Afghanistan never ended—not for the allies we left behind, and not for the volunteers helping them…
40% of evacuees from Afghanistan have left Japan over poor support
By Kyodo News
Around 40 percent of the 169 people who fled to Japan from Afghanistan following the Taliban's return to power in August last year have left their new home due to what they say was pressure…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 88.21 AFN (as of 15 SEP 2022)
