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USA is finally out of Afghanistan

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Afghanistan: More than $1bn pledged for Afghanistan


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Aid organisations have warned there is an urgent need for food and medical supplies


More than $1bn (£720m) in aid has been pledged for Afghanistan, following warnings from the United Nations of a "looming catastrophe".

The plea for global support was made at a conference in Geneva, following the Taliban's takeover last month.
The UN said the country was facing a major humanitarian crisis.

After decades of war and suffering, it was "perhaps their most perilous hour", Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
The poverty rate was "spiralling" and public services were close to collapse, he told the conference.

"Many people could run out of food by the end of this month just as winter approaches," he warned.

The UN had called for $606m to be raised, saying this would bring "vital relief" to millions.

Mr Guterres said it was unclear how much of the more than $1bn promised would go towards the UN appeal.
The UN has urged the Taliban to give aid workers unimpeded access.

Even before the Islamist militants retook control of Afghanistan in August, fighting had forced more than 550,000 people to flee their homes.

An estimated 3.5 million people are currently internally displaced within the country. Afghans have also had to deal with a severe drought.


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The conference on Monday was attended by top UN officials as well as aid organisations including the Red Cross and various governments.

The UN said about a third of the money it was seeking to raise would be used by its World Food Programme (WFP), which earlier said many Afghans did not have access to cash to afford sufficient food.

"We are quite literally begging and borrowing to avoid food stocks running out," WFP deputy regional director Anthea Webb told Reuters news agency.
 
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"We are quite literally begging and borrowing to avoid food stocks running out," WFP deputy regional director Anthea Webb told Reuters news agency.

My understanding is some European countries, especially Germany and the UK, are keen to help in Afghanistan. It maybe because of mostly self-serving reasons: More misery in Afghanistan, more flight to the West. So better pay for $1 meal to an Afghan in Afghanistan instead of a $10 meal in London.
Here is an opportunity for Pakistan to help and also make some $$. Most aid should be going through Pakistan, if not a lot of it made/originated in Pakistan.
 
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My understanding is some European countries, especially Germany and the UK, are keen to help in Afghanistan. It maybe because of mostly self-serving reasons: More misery in Afghanistan, more flight to the West. So better pay for $1 meal to an Afghan in Afghanistan instead of a $10 meal in London.
Here is an opportunity for Pakistan to help and also make some $$. Most aid should be going through Pakistan, if not a lot of it made/originated in Pakistan.

Agreed.
 
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A flight of Pakistan's national flag carrier, PIA landed at the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul on Monday, resuming international flights to Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover last month, the airline said in a statement.

The flight brought a group of international journalists to Kabul and returned with World Bank officials and some journalists, PIA Chief Executive Officer Arshad Malik said in a statement, calling the flight "very important," adding that the entire world is expecting them to restore air connectivity with Afghanistan.

He also expressed hope that the flight service to Kabul would be fully restored soon.

The purpose of the flight is to promote goodwill between Pakistan and Afghanistan and to strengthen the operation on the basis of humanitarian sympathy, the statement added.

It was a chartered plane, which brought three journalists from Islamabad and flew back with 65 passengers, said a PIA official in Kabul.

On Sunday, the interim Taliban administration recalled security and other personnel who worked at the Kabul airport before Aug. 31, the day the US forces left the country.

When the Taliban took control of Kabul on Aug. 15, international commercial flights were halted, while the US forces reportedly damaged the airport, including Afghan national carrier planes, hangers, workshops, and offices, before they withdrew completely from the country on Aug. 31.

After the withdrawal of the US forces, the Qatari and Turkish technical teams arrived the next day to help restore the airport so it could reopen.
 
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The flight brought a group of international journalists to Kabul and returned with World Bank officials and some journalists, PIA Chief Executive Officer Arshad Malik said in a statement, calling the flight "very important," adding that the entire world is expecting them to restore air connectivity with Afghanistan.

PIA revival and huge profitability on the horizon and no better man than Mr. Arshad Malik at the helm right now. I think this guy personally went to Kabul around those crazy days between 15 August and 31 August to supervise PIA's operation. Such a dedicated, efficient professional!
 
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PIA revival and huge profitability on the horizon and no better man than Mr. Arshad Malik at the helm right now. I think this guy personally went to Kabul around those crazy days between 15 August and 31 August to supervise PIA's operation. Such a dedicated, efficient professional!


Pakistan needs them.
 
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Timeline:
The dramatic first month of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan



Here's is a timeline of main events centring on Afghanistan under the Taliban rule.

Reuters

On August 15, 2021, Taliban took over the Afghan capital, Kabul, bringing to an end a 20-year-long war. What followed was chaos, protests, a suicide attack followed by drone strikes, assurances by the Taliban of protecting human rights and granting a general amnesty and the announcement of a new government.
It has been a month since the fall of Kabul.

Here's is a timeline of main events centering on Afghanistan under the Taliban rule.


The dramatic first month of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan


Aug 15

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Taliban fighters enter Kabul. As foreigners and Afghans scramble to leave the country, there is chaos at Kabul airport, during which several people are killed.
Aug 17



US President Joe Biden breaks silence on withdrawal from Afghanistan. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid holds first press conference since fall of Kabul; says women's rights will be respected, there will be no reprisals.
Aug 18



Anti-Taliban protests erupt in eastern city of Jalalabad. At least 3 people are killed.
Aug 19



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Scenes of chaos at Kabul airport persist. Several more people are killed as Taliban members open fire, causing a stampede. Anti-Taliban protests break out in Asadabad and Kabul, amid reports of former Taliban enemies being rounded up for questioning.
Aug 21



Taliban say they will investigate reports of atrocities and protect people's rights. Also say the airport chaos is not their fault; they are trying to provide a smooth exit for those with correct paperwork.
Aug 23



Haji Mohammad Idris is named acting governor of Aghanistan's central bank amid economic turmoil.
Aug 24



The World Food Programme says millions of Afghans could soon face starvation.
Aug 26



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A suicide bomb attack near Kabul airport kills scores of people, including 13 US troops. The attack was claimed by the militant Islamic State.
Aug 27



The US military launches a drone strike against an Islamic State "planner".
Aug 29



A US drone strike kills 10 members of a family in Kabul. Taliban condemn the attack.
Aug 30



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US General Frank McKenzie, head of US Central Command, announces the completion of the US troop withdrawal, ending the 20-year war. The Taliban declare independence for Afghanistan.
Aug 31



Long queues at banks, rising prices for staples and people taking risky land routes to try to leave Afghanistan are among the first challenges for the Taliban.
Sept 3



Taliban say they have seized control of Panjshir province, the final holdout held by anti-Taliban fighters. The resistance movement says they are still fighting.
Sept 4



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Kabul airport reopens for aid flights and domestic services.
Sept 7



The Taliban announce their new government.
Sept 9



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The first commercial international flight under the new Taliban government leaves Kabul carrying more than 100 foreigners.
Sept 13



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Donors pledge $1.1 billion for Afghanistan as aid dries up.
Sept 14



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Thousands of people protest in southern city of Kandahar over Taliban plans to evict families from a former military colony.
 
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Afghan 'leadership' always asking some foreign power to intervene with military help! Yup, go all the way to the mid 1970s and onward to see how different 'leaders' kept relying on either the Soviet or the American support. The latest Ghani regime was but one latest incarnation of their glorious history. As General Tariq Khan said about the Ghani regime: This is the only regime in the world which wants occupying powers to stay.
Here is what the Panjshir Paper Lion Massoud Jr. wants. But Biden is not biting on this--yet!



Struggle for Control of Afghanistan Comes to K Street
Ahmad Massoud, a leading figure in the resistance to Taliban rule, hired a lobbyist to seek military and financial support in the United States.



WASHINGTON — A leading figure in the Afghan resistance has retained a Washington lobbyist to seek military and financial support in the United States for a fight against the Taliban, according to a lobbying contract and a representative of the resistance leader.

Ahmad Massoud, the leader of one of the most prominent groups of fighters seeking to oust the Taliban from power, signed the contract this week with Robert Stryk, who built a lobbying practice during the Trump administration working with clients that others on K Street were wary of representing.

The contract, which was filed with the Justice Department on Wednesday evening and indicates that the work will be pro bono, comes as an array of Afghan constituencies are seeking lobbying help as they jockey for recognition in Washington and the international community.

While Afghan opposition groups have support from some Republicans in Washington, the Biden administration has made clear that it has no interest in playing any further role in a civil war in Afghanistan.


The administration is also seeking to balance opposition to the Taliban’s rule with the need for cooperation on issues like evacuating remaining Americans and American allies from the country.

Three lobbyists said they heard the Taliban are seeking representation on K Street as they seek international funding and legitimacy. It is unclear how such an arrangement could be structured to comply with sanctions expected to restrict the finances of the Taliban, which the United States considers a terrorist organization.

And a well-financed Afghan group that has been active in Washington, the Afghanistan-U.S. Democratic Peace and Prosperity Council, could become a vehicle for representing members of the country’s since-disbanded parliament who are discussing the possibility of forming a government in exile, according to a person familiar with the conversations.

The council had retained a handful of Washington consultants before the fall of the Afghan government to lobby the United States to support the country’s military. And, since the Taliban takeover, the council has been promoting protests against the Taliban, as well as messages from former members of parliament opposing Taliban rule and criticizing the Biden administration’s handling of the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan.

A representative for Mr. Massoud said that a primary motivation for his lobbying campaign was to stop any move by the United States and other governments to grant legitimacy to the Taliban — or anyone other than Mr. Massoud — as the rightful leader of Afghanistan.
 
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Taliban hands over seized cash, gold to Afghan central bank

September 17, 2021

The Taliban had handed over about 12.3 million U.S. dollars cash and some gold to Da Afghanistan Bank (DAB), the country's central bank, a bank statement said Thursday.

The cash and gold bars found from the houses of former administration's officials and local offices of former government's intelligence agency have been returned to Da Afghanistan Bank's treasury, the bank said in a statement.

"The officials of Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan by handing over the assets to national treasury proved their commitment to transparency," the statement said.

After taking over the capital Kabul on Aug. 15, the Taliban announced the formation of a caretaker government on Sept. 7, appointing several acting ministers and an acting governor to the Afghan central bank.
 
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Furnished building available for Rent..
Earlier Used as Indian consulate.. Kandhar Afghanistan.


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Turn it into a counter-terrorism and de-radicalisation building - the irony will not be lost on any one ..
 
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The biggest challenge for Taliban is get out of economic mess they are in. This country is largely been dependent on US economic aid.


Governing a country is far more difficult
 
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