NAYPYITAW, 18 August 2021, (TON): A youth leader from the Mandalay Protest Alliance Force, was arrested by the junta’s forces while driving near Mandalay University.

Plainclothes soldiers, arriving in domestic vehicles, stopped a motorbike driven by activist Kyaw Thiha, who is in his 20s, beat him, and took him with them at gunpoint, according to an eyewitness.

Thura Aung, a friend who had been staying with him and another leader of the alliance, said that over 20 troops later inspected Kyaw Thiha’s former home in Patheingyi Township at 8pm that night.

Thura Aung told media “They also raided the place where we were staying. We’re all on the run now. I still don’t know about our other comrades, but I’m in a safe place now.”

The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force has been a frequent target of the brutal crackdowns by the military on anti-coup resistance.

Junta vehicles drove into the protest column in both May and June, injuring demonstrators. Six protesters including a university lecturer were arrested near Mandalay University on the morning of June 14 after the column was hit by a car driven by military personnel.

The Mandalay Protest Alliance Force formed when multiple Mandalay protest columns joined forces to revolt against the dictatorship. They include Daung Sit Thi (Peacock Warriors); All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU); Academics; Labourers; Farmers; Mandalay University Students; BEHS (7) Students; and Sein Pan.

KABUL, 17 August 2021, (TON): The Taliban declared the war in Afghanistan over after taking control of the presidential palace in Kabul while Western nations scrambled to evacuate their citizens amid chaos at the airport as frantic Afghans searched for a way out.

President Ashraf Ghani fled the country on Sunday as fighters from the group entered the capital virtually unopposed, saying he wanted to avoid bloodshed, while hundreds of Afghans desperate to leave flooded Kabul airport.

Mohammad Naeem, the spokesman for the Taliban's political office, told media "today is a great day for the Afghan people and the mujahideen. They have witnessed the fruits of their efforts and their sacrifices for 20 years."

"Thanks to God, the war is over in the country."

It took the Taliban just over a week to seize control of the country after a lightning sweep that ended in Kabul as government forces, trained for years and equipped by the United States and others at a cost of billions of dollars, melted away.

Naeem said “the form of the new regime in Afghanistan would be made clear soon, adding the Taliban did not want to live in isolation and calling for peaceful international relations.”

He said “we have reached what we were seeking, which is the freedom of our country and the independence of our people. We will not allow anyone to use our lands to target anyone, and we do not want to harm others."

A Taliban leader told media “the fighters were regrouping from different provinces and would wait until foreign forces had left before creating a new governance structure.”

BAGHDAD, 17 August 2021, (TON): The defence ministry said “four Turkish soldiers were killed in two separate incidents in northern Iraq where they are battling Kurdish militants.”

The ministry said “three soldiers died and two were injured when an improvised explosive device went off in an area where Turkish forces have been conducting an operation against fighters from the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).”

It said “another soldier was killed and one wounded in a shootout with Kurdish fighters near a Turkish military base.”

Turkish forces routinely conduct operations against PKK bases in rugged mountains in northern Iraq.

The group is listed as a terrorist organisation by Turkey and its Western allies.

Turkish troops have maintained a network of bases in Iraq since the mid-1990s under security agreements struck with Saddam Hussein’s regime.

LONDON, 17 August 2021, (TON):  British Prime Minister Boris Johnson proposed to organize a summit of leaders of the G7 countries in a virtual format to discuss the situation in Afghanistan.

This is stated in a statement by the office of the head of the British Cabinet, distributed on Monday following his telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron.

The statement says “the Prime Minister announced his intention to hold a virtual meeting of the G7 leaders on Afghanistan in the coming days. He pointed out the need for the international community to take a unified position on Afghanistan, both in terms of recognizing any future government, and in terms of working together to prevent humanitarian and migration crises.”

Global community misjudged situation in Afghanistan, German top diplomat says “German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas has stated that the current situation in Afghanistan demands evaluating errors and searching for answers.”

He said “there is nothing to embellish here. We, the global community, misjudged the situation in Afghanistan.”

KABUL, 17 August 2021, (TON): At least five people were killed as thousands packed into the Afghan capital's airport on Monday, rushing the tarmac and pushing onto planes in desperate attempts to flee the country after the Taliban overthrew the Western-backed government.

US soldiers fired warning shots as they struggled to manage the chaotic evacuation.

Senior US military officials said “the chaos at Kabul airport left seven people dead, including some who fell from a departing American military transport jet. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to publicly discuss ongoing operations.”

One witness told Reuters he had seen the bodies of five people being taken to a vehicle. Another witness said it was not clear whether the victims were killed by gunshots or in a stampede.

Meanwhile, a Pentagon official said “US soldiers had killed two armed men at the airport.”

The official said, insisting on anonymity “in the thousands of people who were there peacefully, two guys who had weapons brandished them menacingly. They were both killed.”

Some of the thousands of Afghans trying to flee clung to the side of a US military plane before takeoff, in a widely shared video that captured the sense of desperation as America's 20-year war comes to a chaotic end.

ISLAMABAD, 17 August 2021, (TON): Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Monday slammed India for its "partisan and obstructionist actions" after Pakistan was denied the opportunity to address a United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting on Afghanistan for the second time this month.

India, the UNSC president for the current month, had earlier denied Pakistan the opportunity to speak during the council's meeting on August 6.

In a series of tweets, Qureshi termed the development "unfortunate" and pointed out that after Afghanistan, it was Pakistan that had "undeniably" been a victim of the decades-long conflict in the neighbouring country.

He said "at this critical juncture in the destiny of Afghanistan, India's partisan & obstructionist actions, repeatedly politicising this multilateral platform [whose] raison dêtre is peace, speaks volumes of their intention for [Afghanistan] & the region."

Talking about Pakistan's efforts, the foreign minister said “the country continues to demonstrate a constructive role in Afghanistan, including facilitating peace that is Afghan-led and owned among many economic and humanitarian efforts."

He noted that the Pakistani Embassy in Kabul was "working tirelessly" to issue visas and evacuate diplomats, staff of non-governmental organisations operating in Afghanistan and media personnel.

He added "Pakistan cannot stress enough the importance of the international community to remain engaged and involved in Afghanistan in a constructive manner."

LUSAKA, 17 August 2021, (TON): Zambian president-elect Hakainde Hichilema slammed the southern African country's outgoing "brutal regime" while promising a "better democracy" in his debut address to the nation, hours after winning the top job in a landslide.

Speaking shortly after his predecessor Edgar Lungu conceded defeat, the business tycoon and veteran opposition leader said his camp had been victims of a "brutal regime that is exiting".

He pledged "I will be a president of all Zambians, of those that voted for me and of those that did not."

After a campaign dominated by the country's economic woes and marred by sporadic violence, Hichilema garnered 2,810,757 votes against 1,814,201 for the incumbent Edgar Lungu, according to nearly final results.

Lungu conceded defeat, saying he congratulated "my brother Hichilema for becoming the seventh republican president."

In a nationally televised address, Lungu thanked Zambians for "a great opportunity to be your president. I will forever cherish and appreciate the authority you invested in me."

The electoral commission proclaimed Hichilema president-elect in the early hours of Monday, bringing the curtain down on Lungu's nearly six-year reign.

NEW YORK, 17 August 2021, (TON): The UN Security Council on Monday called for talks to create a new government in Afghanistan and an end to fighting and abuse after UN chief Antonio Guterres warned of "chilling" curbs on human rights and mounting violations against women and girls.

The 15-member council issued a statement, agreed by consensus, after Guterres appealed to the body to "use all tools at its disposal" to suppress a global terrorist threat from Afghanistan and guarantee respect for human rights.

Guterres told the Security Council "we cannot and must not abandon the people of Afghanistan."

The Taliban entered the capital Kabul on Sunday and President Ashraf Ghani left Afghanistan, the culmination of a rapid offensive by the militants to take back the country 20 years after they were ousted by a US-led invasion.

The return to Taliban rule came as US and other foreign forces were leaving the country after two decades.

KATHMANDU, 17 August 2021, (TON): Major political parties of Nagaland have agreed to come together and form an all-party government in the state to facilitate an early solution to the vexed Naga political issue and achieve an acceptable solution.

This is the second time that the northeastern state will have an all-party government.

The first such government was seen in 2015 when eight MLAs of the opposition Congress merged with then ruling Naga People's Front.

The decision on the formation of the Nagaland United Government was taken unanimously by the ruling People's Democratic Alliance or PDA partners, the Nationalist Democratic Progress Party, the BJP and two Independent MLAs, which are supporting the PDA government.

Modalities to include the principal opposition party Naga People's Front in the proposed government was also discussed and adopted unanimously, said the state's Parliamentary Affairs Minister Neiba Kronu.

The resolution to form the all-party government was signed by nine legislators including Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, Deputy Chief Minister Yanthungo Patton and Leader of the Opposition TR Zeliang.

KATHMANDU, 17 August 2021, (TON): Minister for Home Affairs, Bal Krishna Khand, has directed the authorities concerned to prepare for the repatriation of Nepalis living in Afghanistan.

Home Minister Khand invited officials of Foreign Ministry, Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Civil Aviation as well as chiefs of four security bodies at the Home Ministry and issued directive to them in this regard.

Expressing the view that it would be appropriate to make an action plan to bring Nepali citizens living in Afghanistan back to the country by coordinating with the international community.

He said “an action plan should be prepared in order to bring them homes along with arrangements of PCR test, holding centre and quarantine in view of coronavirus pandemic once they return to Nepal."

The Home Minister shared that today’s cabinet meeting has made a necessary decision regarding the rescue of Nepalis from Afghanistan, asking all the bodies for coordination and information exchange.