The Afghanistan page - 2003 and earlier - news archive

"A new committee has been formed at the grand assembly (loya jirga) meeting to ratify a constitution for Afghanistan. It is trying to resolve differences that led many delegates to threaten boycotting the process on Tuesday. The BBC has learnt both sides have made a number of concessions in late night talks - but some amendments to the draft constitution are still disputed."

"For most women, life has not changed much since the ousting of the Taliban. While ostensibly there are increased opportunities: women can go to school, receive health care and gain employment, in reality few women can take advantage of these possibilities and they are largely restricted to Kabul. According to the many aid workers and Afghan women that I spoke to, women continue to be very fearful of the armed US-backed mujahideen who exert control over much of the country. Most women, even in Kabul, still wear the burqa (the head to toe garment that covers the whole body) as a protective measure against public humiliation and physical attack. The U.N and international human rights groups recently released reports detailing increased incidents of beatings, kidnappings and rape by U.S-funded regional warlords and their militia, stating: "local militia commanders...violate women's rights and commit sexual abuse with impunity"."

"The US-appointed leader Hamid Karzai appears to be trying to set himself up as the Emir of Afghanistan, or possibly just the Pashtun part. This is consistent with past US policy in Afghanistan. Recall that the US govt spent a lot of taxpayers money shipping fundamentalist Islamic textbooks to help out the Taliban regime."

"A huge bomb blast has killed at least six people - including four police officers and a security official - near the airport in the Afghan capital. A suicide bomber is believed to have detonated the device when police tried to arrest him. The dead included the head of the Afghan defence minister's personal security, and several other people were critically injured in the blast."

"Afghanistan's Warlords Still Call the Shots. The entire loya jirga process is oriented toward the status quo. Nothing in the draft constitution addresses Afghanistan's warlord-dominated power dynamic. All of the real decisions are still being made behind closed doors by men with guns. " By John Sifton, originally published in The Asian Wall Street Journal

"Two rockets hit a residential area in the north of the Afghan capital, Kabul, late on Sunday. They landed several kilometres from the site where hundreds of delegates at the loya jirga (grand council) are debating Afghanistan's new constitution. A house was damaged in the attack, but there were no injuries. The authorities in Kabul and Nato-led peacekeeping forces say remnants of the former Taleban want to disrupt the historic meeting."

"The Bush administration has suffered two legal setbacks in its efforts to curtail the rights of those it accuses of being involved in terrorism. A federal appeals court has ruled US authorities do not have the power to detain a US citizen seized on US soil as an "enemy combatant". And a court said detainees being held by the US military at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba should have access to lawyers. However, analysts say both rulings could be overturned by higher courts."

"There have been dramatic scenes at the loya jirga, the grand council meeting in Kabul which will ratify a new constitution for Afghanistan. Proceedings were disrupted after a female representative told the council that mujahideen fighters at the loya jirga had brought war to the country. She called for them to be tried in international courts."

"US-led forces in Afghanistan are expanding peacekeeping operations outside the capital, Kabul. The move is an attempt to improve security ahead of elections next year. Soldiers and development workers have been sent to the southern region of Kandahar - the former Taleban stronghold - to extend the authority of President Hamid Karzai. It is the eighth such peacekeeping group - or Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) - to be deployed."

"The US military in Afghanistan has revealed that six children died in a raid on suspected militants in the eastern province of Paktia last week. News of the deaths came shortly after the US apologised for killing nine children in a separate raid in the neighbouring province of Ghazni. About 2,000 troops backed by Afghan forces are pursuing militants in the south-east in a land and air assault. US officials have warned they will not be deterred by civilian casualties."

"Human rights groups in Afghanistan are becoming increasingly frustrated at the lack of any process to investigate crimes against humanity committed during the country's 23 years of war. The problem is, some of the former commanders who might find themselves accused sit in positions of office or still have power. That has put them out of reach, according to the seasoned analyst, Andrew Wilder, from the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit. "A very short-term compromise was made in 2001 after the collapse of the Taleban that we need stability, therefore let's bring all these warlords into the tent and keep them on our side," Mr Wilder says. "We created this culture of impunity, where you can get away with anything and never be held to account if you are powerful and influential. Unless we address that and push more of a justice agenda, I don't think we are going to get peace and stability here." "

"Hundreds of US paratroopers have taken part in a mission to root out insurgents near Khost town, in eastern Afghanistan, American officials say. It is the latest phase in Operation Avalanche, which US military officials say is their biggest operation since the Taleban fell in 2001. The Taleban has been regrouping in the region in recent months. US officials are still investigating an air raid on a village near Kabul at the weekend, in which nine children died."

"The United Nations has demanded an immediate investigation into an attack by an American warplane that killed nine children playing in the compound of a house in southern Afghanistan. The American military claims a former Taliban militant, Mullah Wazir, who had boasted of attacking aid workers, was killed in the attack on the town of Makur, near Ghazni. Afghan officials in Ghazni said Mr Wazir had not been at the building during the raid. "

"Local villagers in Afghanistan have contradicted US reports that the target of an air strike that killed nine children also died in the raid. Patches of dried blood and a pitiful pile of children's hats and shoes are the only evidence that remains of a bombing raid that went dreadfully wrong. Seven boys, two girls and a 25-year-old man were killed when two A-10 American planes fired rockets and bullets into a group of villagers sitting under the shade of a tree. US officials said they were acting on extensive intelligence and had killed a former Taleban militant, Mullah Wazir. But local Afghans told the BBC's Crispin Thorold the intended target had left the village 10 days earlier. "

"In its recent report, "Afghanistan: No-one listens to us and no-one treats us as human beings", Amnesty International described Afghan women's struggles with forced marriage, in addition to other abuses. To defend against forced marriages, AI urges that a woman's right to choose a spouse freely, including forbidding child marriage, should be specifically mentioned in clauses in the constitution that make reference to the family. Similarly, women should also be guaranteed the same rights and responsibilities as men in marriage and at the termination of marriage. "

"The death of five United States soldiers in a helicopter crash just north of Kabul yesterday gave Americans an unpleasant reminder of the unresolved campaign in Afghanistan, the second and often forgotten front in President George Bush's war against terrorism. The cause of the incident - in which eight soldiers were also wounded - was still not clear, 24 hours after the MH-53 helicopter went down after it left coalition headquarters at Bagram Air Base."

"General Andrew Leslie, deputy commander of the international peace force in Afghanistan, said: "The security situation in Afghanistan is not getting any better. And if the international community does not do something, it's bound to get worse." "

"A United States military helicopter has crashed in Afghanistan killing five American soldiers. Seven others were injured in the crash near Bagram air base, US Central Command said in a statement. "The cause of the crash is unknown and under military investigation," the statement said. Helicopters from the Bagram base have been used as part of a US offensive against suspected al-Qaeda and Taleban members in remote areas of the country."

"The United Nations refugee agency began pulling foreign staff out of southern and eastern Afghanistan yesterday - a decision that could hit tens of thousands of Afghans - after a French aid worker was killed."

"A draft Afghan constitution has been unveiled, setting out a new political system and defining the role of Islam. It calls for the creation of an Islamic republic, with a presidential system, and where citizens have equal rights. The draft will be debated by a loya jirga grand assembly next month, paving the way for possible elections next year." Get the document itself at http://www.constitution-afg.com/draft_const.htm

"The following photos are taken by a RAWA member who had a trip to Kabul in October 2002. From hundreds of photos taken, we have selected only a number of them and posted them here. Her main focus has been to document the destruction of Kabul. Through many years passed from the horrible infighting of fundamentalist bands in Kabul in 1992-96, but still you can find signs of destruction caused by the barbarism of Jehadi fundamentalists. The same people, who brought all the miseries to the people of Kabul and destroyed 90% of the city, again have high positions in the transitional government. "

Opium growing is coming to dominate Afghanistan's economy, providing roughly half the war-shattered country's wealth, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned.

"The Afghan Government is embarking on an ambitious scheme to disarm 100,000 militiamen within two years. President Hamid Karzai launched the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Rehabilitation Programme in the northern city of Kunduz on Friday. However, there are still doubts whether Afghanistan's warlords will co-operate with the plan. Estimates say there are as many as 400,000 militiamen in Afghanistan. "

"A spokesman for President Hamid Karzai in Afghanistan has confirmed that former Taleban Foreign Minister Wakil Ahmad Mutawakil has been released from US custody at Bagram, north of Kabul. Mr Mutawakil was the most senior Taleban in custody, and - according to the spokesman - is among a number of Taleban who have made proposals of talks to the government. The spokesman said the government had yet to make up its mind on the offer."

"I have been in Kabul for a month now working for the UN concerning the elections due next year and am monitoring the political situation in a country with Bush as the real president. After a month Kabul is becoming familiar. Everything is beige. Mud brick houses, dust, and endless brown hills around the city. Got used to not seeing many women. Most are still in blue Burqas. Girls are at shool again but women have not exactly got liberation. As families sqeeze into estate cars women are squashed into the boot. There is a ministry of women but it is weak especially outside Kabul."

"Two years after the ending of the Taleban regime, the international community and the Afghan Transitional Administration (ATA), led by President Hamid Karzai, have proved unable to protect women. Amnesty International is gravely concerned by the extent of violence faced by women and girls in Afghanistan. The risk of rape and sexual violence by members of armed factions and former combatants is still high. Forced marriage, particularly of girl children, and violence against women in the family are widespread in many areas of the country. These crimes of violence continue with the active support or passive complicity of state agents, armed groups, families and communities. This continuing violence against women in Afghanistan causes untold suffering and denies women their fundamental human rights. "

"WANA, Pakistan - U.S. warplanes taking part in the anti-terrorism campaign in Afghanistan (news - web sites) dropped three bombs that landed about 50 yards inside Pakistani territory on an empty field, residents and Pakistani intelligence officials said Friday."

"Last week Kabul was shocked by the bulldozing of several houses in Sherpur village located between upscale residential area of Wazir Akbar Khan Mena and Share Nao. The military claimed the now prime land belonged to the Ministry of Defense and that lots were assigned in it for many cabinet ministers and ranking officials of the government dominated by members of the Northern Alliance. "

(photos) "In early September 2003, over 30 families in the Shirpur area of Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul were forcibly evicted from their homes and then their houses were destroyed in front of them. Shirpur is close to WA Khan, which is a luxury area so some ministers and high level authorities are trying to remove the houses of poor people from there and built their own buildings. Many of those evicted were badly injured during the operation as their flimsy houses crashed down around them. According to residents and witnesses, the chief of police of Kabul (Basir Salangi) himself led the operation. "

"Five Afghan soldiers were killed and five wounded in a Taliban ambush on a convoy in the southeast of the country, according to Aljazeera’s correspondent. … Since 25 August about 1000 Afghan soldiers, supported by hundreds of US troops and aircraft, have been pounding Taliban and al-Qaida bases in Zabul's Daychopan mountains, 245km northeast of Kandahar."

Former environment minister Michael Meacher speaks out in the Guardian comment column about 9-11 and the project for the new american century

"The change of regime in Afghanistan has fuelled a determined campaign to hunt down the country's remaining snow leopards, conservation groups say. They believe the animals are one of the world's most endangered big cat species. Pelts sell for up to $1,000, and hunting has gone up sharply since the Taleban went. Before that, there was no market for the skins."

"U.S. Victory in Afghanistan On Brink of Collapse Less than two years after the Taliban was ousted from Kabul and al- Qaida dispersed from its safe havens, Afghanistan is edging again toward a chaotic abyss. All the signs are there: The Taliban has regrouped and is posing an increasing challenge to the remaining U.S. forces. Osama bin Laden and Taliban leader Mullah Omar are still at large and thought to be hiding in the rugged Afghanistan-Pakistan border region. Afghan warlords who helped defeat the Taliban are now in the opium business, defying the authority of the ineffectual central government, which has neither a credible army nor the means of running the country's fledgling institutions or repairing its decrepit infrastructure."

"Prominent members of the Afghan government and warlords supported by the US are implicated in "violent criminal offences" including robbery, extortion, rape and kidnapping, a leading human rights watchdog has said. In a report released on Tuesday, Human Rights Watch says abuses have created a "climate of fear" that threatens to derail the debate over a new constitution and plans for elections, due to be held in June 2004."

Andy Newman, Secretary of Swindon Stop the War Coalition writes to Julia Drown about the situation in Afghanistan

"The volatility in Afghanistan was also raised in a letter sent by more than 80 aid organisations to the United Nations on the eve of a Security Council meeting to discuss events in the country. The position was so bad, they said, that people had started to reminisce about the "better days" under the ousted Taliban regime."

Testimony from respected Human Right Watch organisation to the US House of Representatives committee on International Relations: "Our most recent research shows that, in many districts and villages in Afghanistan today, families are now living in a constant state of fear. Most of the country is in the hands of warlords and gunmen-fighters in Afghanistan's past wars-who are now terrorizing local populations under their authority, robbing houses at night, stealing valuables, killing people, raping young women and girls, raping boys, seizing land from farmers, extorting money, and kidnapping young men and holding them until their families can pay a ransom. ... ... UNICEF estimates that in some provinces, the attendance rate for girls [at school] is as low as three percent. ... the United States has a split strategy in Afghanistan-supporting Hamid Karzai on the one hand, but cooperating with local warlords to hunt former Taliban on the other. Indeed, U.S. officials have for the most part just stood by and allowed local military leaders to seize control of local governmental offices-not only military bases, but health departments, trash collection offices, transportation ministry officers, and so on."

"According to Army Lt. Gen. Dan McNeill, the commander in charge of coalition forces in Afghanistan, the U.S. military will continue to work with Afghan warlords--because they provide "stability and security." Meanwhile, Afghanistan is suffering through a growing refugee crisis, a harsh winter and shortages of food. An estimated 700,000 people are internally displaced--many of whom are in danger of both starving and freezing to death. In the first two weeks of December alone, at least 41 children died of severe cold at camps for Afghan refugees on the border with Pakistan."

"Human Rights Watch said that reports from around the country indicate that government troops and officials regularly target women and girls for abuse, often invoking vague edicts on dress and social behaviour. In many areas, local police and troops are enforcing Taliban-era restrictions, including banning music and forcing women and adolescent girls to continue wearing burqas. Human Rights Watch said that many of these local forces have received weapons and assistance from the United States"

"The Afghan tragedy continues, as Mubin Haq explains: More than 10,000 tonnes of bombs have fallen on Afghanistan since 11 September--half of what fell on London in the Blitz. The UN estimates there are 14,000 highly volatile cluster bomblets littered across vast areas of Afghanistan. The unexploded bombs are yellow soda-can sized objects, very similar to the yellow food packets dropped by the US. According to Oxfam there are some 50 to 100 victims of landmines and unexploded ordnance every week"

"The U.S. government has done little to alleviate the extreme humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, let alone rebuild the country. U.S. contributions through UNICEF for Afghanistan have been less than a third those of Japan even though it was the United States that played a huge role in creating the crisis, through its decade-long support for various mujahedin factions as well as through the bombing campaign last fall. In fact, today, as winter approaches, 6 million Afghans -- a larger number than before Sept. 11, 2001 -- are once again on the brink, dependent on humanitarian aid to get through the next months."

"JONATHAN NEALE. In the summer of 1972 I was an anthropologist doing fieldwork in Afghanistan. I went to visit a friend from a poor nomad family in the TB sanatorium in Kabul. It was the only such facility in Afghanistan, and I had used what influence I had to get him admitted. We chatted with the other patients. He asked me for money to pay bribes to the hospital cooks so they would give him meals. I expressed surprise that he had to pay bribes even for that. 'Afghanistan, Zulumistan,' another patient said. It was a proverb: 'The land of the Afghans, the land of tyrants.'

The tyrants are worse now. There has been no lack of dreams and idealism in Afghanistan these last 30 years. Ordinary Afghans, both Communists and Mujahadeen, have fought with great courage over many years. Their leaders have betrayed their ideals utterly. Worse than that have been the outside powers that have played the Great Game with the arms and legs and skulls of Afghans. They, the rulers of Russia and the US, but also Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, India, Iran, Uzbekistan and now Britain, are the true tyrants. They have taken a poor and desperate place, and made it a hell."

"The US Government has bought all rights to all the pictures of Afghanistan and surrounding areas taken by the privately operated Ikonos high-resolution imaging satellite. The US National Imagery and Mapping Agency (Nima) has "assured access to imagery in support of Operation Enduring Freedom", the name for the military campaign against terrorist and military targets in Afghanistan. Under the terms of the contract, Space Imaging, the company that operates Ikonos, will not "sell, distribute, share or provide the imagery to any other entity"."