Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Thursday, March 28th, 2024

MPs Want Deputy Finance Minister Sacked

MPs Want  Deputy Finance Minister Sacked

April 12, 2012

KABUL - Several infuriated lawmakers on Wednesday threatened that the house would summon the finance minister if he failed to sack his deputy by Sunday. They slammed deputy minister, Mustafa Mastoor, for saying that MPs had earlier rejected the national budget because the ministry did not raise their ...

Strategic Partnership with Australia Discussed

Strategic Partnership with Australia Discussed

April 12, 2012

KABUL - Foreign Minister Dr. Zalmai Rassoul and visiting Australian Defence Minister on Wednesday expressed satisfaction over progress in bilateral discussions on a long-term strategic partnership.
Rassoul, who received Stephen Smith at the Foreign Ministry in Kabul, expressed the gratitude of the Afghan government and people for ...

Transition a Needed as Russia Interested in Stable Afghanistan: Putin

Transition a Needed  as Russia Interested in  Stable Afghanistan: Putin

April 12, 2012

MOSCOW - A NATO transit point in Ulyanovsk is needed, as stability in Afghanistan is in Russia's national interests, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said.
"It's necessary to very pragmatically approach issue of defining what is to our advantage, whether it is consistent with our national ...

Ghazni to have First-Ever International Airport

Ghazni to have First-Ever International Airport

April 12, 2012

GHAZNI CITY - Ghazni Governor Musa Khan Akbarzada on Wednesday laid the foundation stone of the first-ever international airport in the southern province.
Speaking at the ground breaking ceremony, the governor hoped the mega project would be completed by the end of the current ...

Telecom Sector Earns $190m Revenue

Telecom Sector Earns $190m Revenue

April 12, 2012

KABUL - Afghanistan's fast-growing telecommunication sector's revenue crossed a staggering $190 million (9.5 billion afs) this solar year -- a neat $30 million jump, compared to last year.
In an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News, Telecommunication and Information Technology Minister Amirzai Sangin said the ...

Paradigm Shift in Night Raids: Pentagon

Paradigm Shift in Night Raids: Pentagon

April 11, 2012

WASHINGTON - There is a paradigm shift in how night operations would be conducted in Afghanistan, the Pentagon said on Monday, a day after Washington and Kabul inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the issue.
"This is a fundamental paradigm shift in how these operations are being conducted," Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John Kirby told reporters during a conference call from Kabul.
The MoU codifies what is happening in the country, as the Afghans are ...

Afghan Carpet Exports Decrease 95% in Five Years

Afghan Carpet Exports Decrease 95% in Five Years

April 11, 2012

KABUL - Transit problems with Pakistan and a lack of cooperation from the Afghan government have been key reasons for a 95 percent drop in exports of Afghan carpet in the last five years, an Afghan Chamber of Commerce and Industries (ACCI) official said Tuesday.
ACCI Vice-Chairman Khanjan Alokozay said the lack of Afghanistan's ...

Land Grab in Qalat Continues: Officials

Land Grab in Qalat  Continues: Officials

April 11, 2012

QALAT - With real estate prices shooting up, powerful warlords are trying to make a quick buck by seizing state-owned land, rendering many poor individuals homeless in Qalat, the capital of southern Zabul province, an official revealed on Tuesday.
The municipality and residents complain about the rampant pratice as locals are deprived of land. "Amid soaring prices, dozens of acres ...

MP Urges ISAF to Aid Afghan Forces in Nuristan

MP Urges ISAF to Aid  Afghan Forces in Nuristan

April 11, 2012

KABUL - A member of the Wolesi Jirga, or lower house of Parliament, on Tuesday called for international troops to help Afghan security personnel in Kamdesh and Barg-i-Matal districts of eastern Nuristan province.
Hamidzai Lali, a member of Wolesi Jirga's Security Commission, told a ...

Police Among 17 Killed in Suicide Attacks

Police Among 17 Killed  in Suicide Attacks

April 11, 2012

LASHKARGAH/HERAT CITY - Seven policemen were among 17 people killed in two separate suicide attacks on government offices in southern Helmand and western Herat provinces on Tuesday, officials said. More than 60 others were wounded. The daring assaults came two days after NATO-led troops transferred ...

Wolesi Jirga Rejects Budget for Second Time

Wolesi Jirga Rejects  Budget for Second Time

April 10, 2012

KABUL - A majority of parliamentarians on Monday rejected for a second time the proposed budget for the current fiscal year, saying inequalities in provincial allocations were yet to be corrected.
On March 18, the Wolesi Jirga refused to endorse the accounts due to uneven allocations to provinces and a hefty $80 million (3.9 billion afs) bailout package for the ailing Kabul Bank. Of the 133 legislators present during Monday's session, 62 voted against the budget, while 48 supported it. The rest of lawmakers abstained from voting.
Mohammad Azim Mohseni, a ...

Sallam Zaeef Flees Amid Life Threat

Sallam Zaeef Flees Amid  Life Threat

April 10, 2012

KABUL - Former Taliban Ambassador Abdul Sallam Zaeef has fled Afghanistan to the United Arab Emirates, fearing for his life after US forces attempted to search his home, Al Jazeera reported.
A source close to Zaeef told Al Jazeera that US forces had tried to search his home in Kabul twice over allegations of involvement in an international terror plot, but Zaeef's government-provided bodyguards ...

Indonesia Saves 120 Afghan Migrants from Leaking Ship

Indonesia Saves 120 Afghan  Migrants from Leaking Ship

April 10, 2012

JAKARTA - Indonesia says it has rescued 120 Afghan migrants from a leaking wooden ship headed to Australia.
An official called Joko from the National Search and Rescue Agency says they received a distress call from the ship's captain on Sunday and went to their aid. The Afghans were taken by tanker to a port on the western ...

Obstacles to Strategic Pact Removed: US, NATO

Obstacles to Strategic  Pact Removed: US, NATO

April 10, 2012

KABUL - With the signing of agreements on night raids and prisons' transfer had removed key obstacles to the Afghan-US strategic cooperation pact, NATO and Pentagon said on Monday.
Hoping the strategic deal would be inked before the Chicago summit in May, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters in Kabul that leading the raids and taking control of all prisons were major Afghan ...

India Wants Investment in Afghanistan

India Wants  Investment in Afghanistan

April 10, 2012

KABUL - The Indian steel minister, Beni Prasad Verma, said on Monday that his country was interested in investment in landlocked Afghanistan.
The visiting Indian union minister inked an agreement with Mines Minister Wahidullah Shahrani on developing Afghanistan's iron-ore reserves and promoting its steel ...

Karzai Hails Afghan Control in Night Raids Deal

Karzai Hails Afghan  Control in Night Raids Deal

April 10, 2012

KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday hailed an agreement with the United States over controversial night raids by Special Forces as consolidating Afghan sovereignty.
Night raids by international troops targeting insurgents in their homes have been a stumbling block in efforts by both countries to reach ...

Afghanistan, U.S. Reach Deal on Controversial Night Raids

Afghanistan, U.S. Reach Deal on Controversial Night Raids

April 09, 2012

KABUL - Afghanistan and the United States reached a deal on Sunday to curb night raids on Afghan homes, giving Kabul a veto over the operations despised by most local people and clearing the way for a wider pact securing a U.S. presence.
Night raids on suspected militants have helped fan rising anti-Western sentiment ahead of a withdrawal by most Western combat troops to be completed by 2014, but are backed by NATO commanders as a key anti-insurgent tactic. Their conduct had been one of the biggest hurdles in negotiations on a broader strategic pact governing a future U.S. role in the ...

Crocker Expects Strategic Pact before Chicago Summit

Crocker  Expects Strategic Pact before  Chicago Summit

April 09, 2012

KABUL - US Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan C. Crocker on Sunday welcomed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on special operations, giving Afghans the control of controversial night raids.
The MoU was an important illustration of the US commitment to Afghan sovereignty, as the allies moved forward to completing the transition of ...

Stern Action Urged to Stem Corruption

Stern Action Urged  to Stem Corruption

April 09, 2012

KABUL - An anti-graft network on Sunday backed President Hamid Karzai's initiative to further probe anomalies in the Kabul Bank that faced a major financial crisis last year
The Afghan Anti-Corruption Network (AACN) supported the appointment of the Special Prosecutor's Office and a Special Tribunal to ...

Kabul to Host Final Talks on Taliban’s Doha Office

Kabul to Host Final  Talks on Taliban’s Doha Office

April 09, 2012

KABUL - Afghan and Qatari officials would hold more negotiations before signing a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the opening of Taliban's liaison office in Doha, a foreign ministry spokesman said on Sunday.
Qatari Foreign Minister Dr. Khalid Bin Mohamed Al Attiyah would soon ...

Senators Mock Appreciation Letters

Senators Mock Appreciation Letters

April 09, 2012

KABUL - Several Meshrano Jirga members on Sunday criticized their colleagues and the house secretariat for distributing commendation letters to government officials, instead of trying to enhance their efficiency and motivate them to work devotedly.
"This practice has been a reason why government officials have ...

Afghanistan to Launch its First Space Satellite

Afghanistan to Launch  its First Space Satellite

April 09, 2012

KABUL - Afghanistan's first ever space satellite will be installed within the next six months, according to Afghan Minister of Communication and Information Technology Amir Zai Sangin.
Sangin stressed at a press conference in Kabul on Sunday that the new satellite would give Afghanistan a greater connection to the ...

Sports Can Help Bring About Peace: Zakhilwal

Sports Can Help Bring About Peace: Zakhilwal

April 09, 2012

KABUL - Finance Minister Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal, also the patron of the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB), says that sports -- specially cricket -- could play a key role in bringing peace and stability to the country.
He was addressing a reception ceremony in Kabul last night for the national team, which returned from the United Arab Emirates after ...

Opium is Emerging as a New Gold: UN

Opium is Emerging as a New Gold: UN

April 08, 2012

WASHINGTON - Opium is emerging as a new gold standard in Afghanistan, where traders and farmers are hoarding the drug as a source of ready cash t o hedge against the risk of a power vacuum when foreign troops leave, the country's UN drugs tsar said.
Fear is mounting amongst Afghans and foreign governments alike that the planned pullout of most NATO combat troops by the end of 2014 and Afghan national elections in the same year could see the country engulfed in more conflict. "You see suddenly people are rushing to opium and cannabis as in the euro zone we were rushing to the Swiss franc before the ...

List of Absentee Lawmakers Unveiled

List of Absentee Lawmakers  Unveiled

April 08, 2012

KABUL - lower house of Parliament -- on Saturday announced a list of scores of lawmakers who remained absent from the legislature last month without informing the assembly secretariat.
Announced by Secretary Abdul Sattar Khwasi, the list includes Abdul Rab Rassoul Sayaf, a lawmaker from central Kabul province, Mir Amanullah Gudz, Baktiash Seywosh, Ezatullah Atif, Syed Ali Kazmi and ...

2nd Phase of Security Switch to Cover Kapisa

2nd Phase of  Security Switch to Cover Kapisa

April 08, 2012

MAHMOOD RAQI - The central province of Kapisa would be included in the second phase of security transfer from foreign soldiers to Afghan forces, a senior official said on Saturday.
Security Transition Commission Chairman Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai said this during a visit to the province to assess the current security ...

High Demand Behind Increased Drug Production: Muqbil

High Demand Behind Increased Drug Production: Muqbil

April 08, 2012

HERAT CITY - The counternarcotics minister on Saturday listed high international demand and the easy import of chemicals as the main reasons behind drug smuggling and production in Afghanistan.
Addressing a news conference in western Herat province, Zarar Ahmad Muqbil, asked the international community to accept "its ...

Afghan Forces Ready For Night Raids: MoD

Afghan Forces Ready For Night Raids: MoD

April 08, 2012

KABUL - The Ministry of Defense on Saturday said the Afghan National Army (ANA) was ready to fully take control of night operations and an accord on the transfer was expected to be inked soon between Afghanistan and the US.
Brig. Gen. Dawlat Waziri, the ministry's deputy spokesman, told ...

Taliban Have No Option But Negotiation: Patey

Taliban Have No Option  But Negotiation: Patey

April 08, 2012

KABUL - The Taliban have no other option but to negotiate with Afghan government, outgoing British Ambassador to Afghanistan William Patey said in an exclusive interview with Tolo news.
Patey stressed that it was impossible for the Taliban to gain power through war and said they should choose the path of ...

Current Judicial System, Illegitimate: Dr. Abdullah

Current Judicial System,   Illegitimate: Dr. Abdullah

Saturday April 07

KABUL - The election commission and the judiciary have to be independent and international observers should be allowed to monitor the 2014 presidential vote, a key opposition leader said on Thursday.
Afghans wanted an independent poll panel that was committed to ensuring transparency in the election, former foreign minister Dr. Abdullah Abdullah told a gathering in Kabul."There is need for reforms in the electoral process to assure the people that the election will be transparent," said the leader of the National Coalition of ...

Afghan Commandos Graduate, Ready to Lead Night Raids

Afghan  Commandos Graduate, Ready  to Lead Night Raids

Saturday April 07

KABUL - Afghan Army Commandos are ready to take responsibility for the contentious night raids independently of NATO-led forces, the army Special Forces chief General Sayed Abdul Karim said at the seventh graduation ceremony of Afghan commandos in Kabul Thursday.
The commandos were fit to launch operations against insurgents in Afghanistan, Karim told the people attending the graduation of the 144 ...

Karzai Orders Inquiry in Kabul Bank’s Losses

Karzai Orders  Inquiry in Kabul Bank’s Losses

Saturday April 07

KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai ordered the appointment of a special prosecutor and tribunal to investigate the near-collapse of Kabul Bank.
Karzai also ordered that hundreds of millions of dollars in outstanding loans be repaid in two months, The New York Times reported ...

Key Meeting on Gas Pipeline Project in Late May

Key Meeting  on Gas Pipeline Project in Late May

Saturday April 07

KABUL - The Afghan minister of mines has held talks with senior officials in Ashgabat on a gas pipeline running from Turkmenistan through Afghanistan to Pakistan and India, a spokesman for the ministry in Kabul said on Friday.
A feasibility study for the multibillion-dollar Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline, long delayed by ...

Pak Leaders Oppose ISAF Supply Resumption

Pak Leaders Oppose  ISAF Supply Resumption

Saturday April 07

ISLAMABAD - Two senior Pakistani opposition leaders on Friday vehemently opposed the reopening of a key supply route for NATO-led troops in neighboring Afghanistan.
The supply line was closed immediately after 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) ...

U.S. Drone Attacks to End after 2014: Rasool

U.S. Drone Attacks  to End after 2014: Rasool

Saturday April 07

DUBAI - Foreign Minister Zalmay Rasool said on Thursday Afghanistan would not be used as a launch pad for U.S. drones attacks on neighboring countries after NATO combat forces leave by the end of 2014.
"Afghan soil will not be used against any country in the ...