KATHMANDU, 16 August 2021, (TON): The International Relations Committee under the House of Representatives has instructed the government to resort to all diplomatic means for the immediate evacuation of all Nepalis in Afghanistan.

Stating that the Nepali citizens could be left in the lurch while the Taliban insurgents were trying to take over Afghanistan’s capital Kabul and violence were being ensued in one of the SAARC member states.

The Committee has instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to evacuate Nepalis from Afghanistan to Nepal at the earliest.

Secretary at the MoFA Bharatraj Poudyal said that they had been observing the incidents in Afghanistan for some time now and the Ministry was seriously working towards repatriating Nepalis from there.

Poudyal said “the condition of Afghanistan was turning from bad to worse. The government is concerned about the security of Nepalis there. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is taking the issue into serious consideration and coordinating efforts with Nepali Embassy in New Delhi in India to rescue Nepalis there.”

LONDON, 16 August 2021, (TON): UK troops have arrived in Kabul to help evacuate any British citizens and employees who are from Afghanistan, the Defense Ministry said Sunday, as British lawmakers were called back to Parliament from their summer break to discuss the worsening situation in Afghanistan.

Authorities said “parliament will be recalled for one day on Wednesday to debate the government’s response to the crisis. Prime Minister Boris Johnson also met with his Cabinet’s emergency committee Sunday as the Taliban advanced into Kabul, the Afghan capital.”

After the meeting, Johnson said the priority is to get British citizens, as well as Afghans who helped UK forces in Afghanistan over the past 20 years, out “as fast as we can” in the next few days.

“The ambassador is working round the clock, has been there in the airport to help process the applications,” he told Sky News.

“We certainly have the means at the moment to get them out. It’s just a question of making sure that they’re able to do it over the next few days.”

Johnson said that the “vast bulk” of UK embassy staff and officials have already left Afghanistan.

The Sunday Telegraph reported that the UK’s ambassador to Afghanistan, Laurie Bristow, would be airlifted out of the country by Monday evening. The Foreign Office declined to comment on that report.

 MALE, 16 August 2021, (TON): Three newly appointed foreign ambassadors to the Maldives have presented their credentials to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

Jeon Woonjin, the newly appointed Ambassador of South Korea to the Maldives, presented his credentials to President Solih at a ceremony at the President’s Office.

A meeting between the two was held following the credentials ceremony at which President Solih congratulated Jeon on his appointment and the commencement of his term. President Solih also extended his gratitude to South Korea for supporting the Maldives’ candidature during the 76th Nations General Assembly (UNGA) elections, held in June.

Ho Thi Thanh Truc, the newly appointed Ambassador of Vietnam to the Maldives presented her credentials to President Solih during a ceremony held this afternoon at the President’s Office.

Ambassador of Vietnam to the Maldives Ho Thi Thanh Truc (L) present her credentials to President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih.

During a meeting held afterward, President Solih noted that the two countries are set to mark the 46th year of diplomatic relations this year – expressing that he hoped for further bilateral discussions and exchange of high-level visits in order to even solidify the partnership more and also explore additional avenues of cooperation.

RIYADH, 16 August 2021, (TON): Saudi Arabia’s air defenses have intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi militia in Yemen toward the Kingdom’s southern region, state TV reported Sunday.

The Arab coalition said the missile was targeting the city of Najran, adding it is taking all operational measures to protect civilians and civilian objects from hostile attempts.

The militia repeatedly targets populated areas in Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the Arab Parliament strongly condemned the attack, and called on the international community to take firm stances and immediate, decisive and deterrent measures to stop the continued threats by the Houthi militia against civilians and civilian objects, “which represent a flagrant violation of international laws and aim to threaten the security and stability of the Kingdom” and the Arab region.

Secretary-General Dr. Yousef Al-Othaimeen said the OIC supports all measures taken by the Kingdom to preserve its security and stability and the safety of citizens and residents.

The Arab Parliament also reiterated its solidarity and support for Saudi Arabia.

The UAE and Bahrain also issued similar statements condemning and denouncing the Houthi attempts to attack civilians and infrastructure.

NAYPAITAW, 16 August 2021, (TON): A group of unidentified attackers shot and killed five police officers on the Yangon circle line.” 

The gunmen rode the train and then launched the attack when it stopped at a station near Ahlone Township, the worker said on condition of anonymity, citing a railway police officer who is familiar with the case.

He said “one of the policemen shot back at the gunmen,” though he added that none of the attackers were killed or captured. “Passengers and other people on the train were safe as they were asked to get off before the shooting happened, I heard.”

Lance-corporal Win Zaw Latt and three privates died at the scene, he added. Two corporals, Myint Htay and Kyaw Zin, were sent to the 500-bed Defense Services Orthopaedic Hospital in Mingalardon Township, he added. Myint Htay later died at the hospital.

Soldiers came to collect the bodies of the four police officers at the station and did not make any arrests, he said. No one has claimed responsibility for the killings.

DHAKA, 16 August 2021, (TON): Speakers at a discussion urged the international community to play a stronger role in assisting Bangladesh diplomatically to put pressure on Myanmar to take Rohingyas back.

They said “Bangladesh government has done as much as possible from its side to protect Rohingyas by sheltering them when they fled Rakhine in face of persecution, and now repatriation is the only solution for this crisis.”

Academicians, diplomats, government officials, researchers and security experts joined the webinar "Humanitarian Norms, National Security and the Rohingya Policy of Bangladesh", organised recently by Central Foundation for International and Strategic Studies (CFISS).

Dr ASM Ali Ashraf, professor at Dhaka University's Department of International Relations, suggested that the best course of action to deal with this crisis is repatriation.

The humanitarian aspect played a primary role during the initial period of the exodus, but now it is time to focus on Bangladesh's internal security, he said.

He pointed out "The mass influx has changed the scenario of Cox's Bazar through deforestation, tension between Rohingyas and locals, arms and drugs trafficking among Rohingya groups, and the threat of rising extremism among them, which cannot be eliminated."

Ashraf said, "The Bangladesh government has done the best that was possible for these persecuted people, but now it is the responsibility of the international community to come forward and guide, through proper diplomatic channels, to arrange repatriation."

WASHINGTON, 16 August 2021, (TON): US Secretary of State Antony Blinken rejected widespread comparisons between ongoing American withdrawal from Afghanistan and its hurried exit from Vietnam almost half a century ago.

After the Taliban moved further into the Afghan capital, American diplomats were evacuated from their embassy in the fortified Wazir Akbar Khan district by helicopter to the airport as local Afghan forces, trained for years and equipped by the United States and others for billions of dollars, melted away.

Images of American helicopters shuttling back and forth led some to compare the situation to US's desperate exit from Saigon, Vietnam in 1975.

Back in Washington, when asked if images of helicopters ferrying personnel to Kabul airport were evocative of its retreat from Vietnam, Blinken told media: "Let's take a step back. This is manifestly not Saigon."

Blinken's comments come days after US President Joe Biden had not only rejected any similarities between the two withdrawals but also all but shut the door of any hasty departures.

Biden said in a press conference "there’s going to be no circumstance when you’re going to see people being lifted off the roof of an embassy of the United States from Afghanistan."

DHAKA, 16 August 2021, (TON): Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Commissioner Md Shafiqul Islam said that there has been a recent trend in Bangladesh in which the Taliban has appealed to people all over for joining the war in Afghanistan.

He said “some people from Bangladesh have already been motivated to join the war with the group.”

He said while talking to reporters after checking the overall security at Bangabandhu Memorial Museum at Dhanmondi 32 "we think some people have been caught in India, and some are trying to reach Afghanistan on foot in various ways."

He said all intelligence agencies of the government, including DMP, are active in this regard.

NEW DELHI, 16 August 2021, (TON): As the Taliban stormed into Kabul today, India has put in place contingency plans to evacuate hundreds of its officials and citizens from the Afghan capital.

Officials familiar with the development said the Indian government will not put the lives of its staffers at its embassy and Indian citizens in Kabul at risk and plans have already been finalised in case they require emergency evacuation, reports our New Delhi Correspondent.

One of the officials said "the government is closely monitoring the fast-paced developments in Afghanistan. We will not put the lives of our staff at the Indian embassy in Kabul at any risk."

Asked when the Indian staffers and citizens in Kabul will be withdrawn, they said decisions will depend on the ground situation there.

It was learnt that a fleet of the C-17 Globemaster military transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force is on standby to undertake evacuation missions.

LONDON, 16 August 2021, (TON): Nobody should bilaterally recognise the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday, adding it was clear that there would be a new administration in the country very shortly.

"We don't want anybody bilaterally recognising the Taliban," Johnson said in an interview clip, urging the West to work together on Afghanistan through mechanisms such as the United Nations and NATO.

"We want a united position amongst all the like-minded as far as we can get one so that we do whatever we can to prevent Afghanistan lapsing back into being a breeding ground for terror."

Taliban insurgents entered Kabul on Sunday, President Ashraf Ghani left the country and the US Embassy said the capital's airport, where diplomats, officials and other Afghans had fled, had come under fire.

Johnson said "the (UK) ambassador is working round the clock, has been there at the airport to help process the applications."

Asked whether he would have expected the country to fall to the Taliban so quickly, he replied "I think it's fair to say that the US decision to pull out has accelerated things."