MALE, 20 July 2021 (TON): Maldives’ President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih urged to set aside differences and grievances as the Maldivian people celebrate Eid al-Adha.

In a message to convey Eid greetings, President Solih said that the Maldivian people must give utmost priority to promote inclusivity and social harmony as they celebrate the holy day.

He urged the Maldivian people to embody the essence of Eid al-Adha by extending greetings to each other and projecting kindness and forbearance, especially to the elders of the families.

He said “without a doubt, these bonds symbolize the unity which must exist among us. All events to celebrate Eid symbolize the aforementioned sacred bonds. Eid celebrations exist to eliminate the weakening of these bonds and renew it.”

He urged the Maldivian people to learn from the powerful link between the Holy Hajj and Eid al-Adha celebrations, and to work together for the sake of national prosperity.

MALE, 20 July 2021 (TON): Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has sent 500 kg of the famous Harivanga mango to Maldivian President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih as a gift.

The gift was presented by Bangladeshi High Commissioner to Maldives Nazmul Hassan to Chief of Protocol at Maldivian Foreign Ministry Aishath Shan Shakir.

The Harivanga mango is a mango cultivar produced in the northwest part of Bangladesh, especially in the Rangpur district.

Shan, who previously served as Maldivian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, thanked High Commissioner Nazmul Hassan and PM Sheikh Hasina on behalf of President Solih for the gift, which she described as a symbol of the strong friendship between the two countries.

ABUJA, 20 July 2021 (TON): Intense gunfire from bandits caused a Nigerian fighter jet to crash in northwestern Zamfara state, but the pilot survived by ejecting from the aircraft.

Nigeria’s air force said that the crash occurred on Sunday as the Alpha jet, a light attack aircraft, was returning to base from a mission on the Zamfara-Kaduna border.

The jet “came under intense enemy fire which led to its crash”, an air force statement said, but pilot Abayomi Dairo successfully ejected.

“Luckily, the gallant pilot, successfully ejected from the aircraft,” air force spokesman Edward Gabkwet said.

Using his survival instincts, the pilot, who came under intense ground fire from the bandits, was able to evade them and sought refuge in nearby settlements awaiting sunset.

The pilot found his way to an army base “where he was finally rescued”.

A video from the armed group Boko Haram taking responsibility for the attack circulated online, but it turned out to be fake as it was recorded in April.

KABUL, 20 July 2021 (TON): The Afghan Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammad Haneef Atmar spoke with his Pakistani counterpart Shah Mahmood Qureshi about an ongoing investigation into the abduction of the Afghan ambassador’s daughter, expressing deep concern over the remarks of the Pakistani Interior Minister.

Atmar said that "unprofessional remarks and premature judgments could strongly affect bilateral relations and the credibility of the ongoing and still incomplete investigation."

Pakistan’s interior minister appeared skeptical of the Afghan government’s version of events.

Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed said “she was not kidnapped, we have simply registered a case in which [she] says she was kidnapped۔”

Atmar reaffirmed Afghanistan’s commitment to cooperate with the government of Pakistan in pursuing the investigation to apprehend and prosecute the perpetrators of the crime and to ensure the security of Afghan political missions and diplomats in that country.

To this end, he said, an Afghan delegation will visit Pakistan, and subsequent actions will be taken regarding the return of the Afghan ambassador and diplomats, based on the delegation’s assessments and findings.

KABUL, 20 July 2021 (TON): The report said “figures by aid agencies indicate that at least 500 civilians have been maimed or in some way severely injured in the last month of fighting in the northeastern province of Kunduz. Over 130 of them are children.”

The report issued by local aid agencies covers incidents between June 11 and July 17. It shows that most of the children affected in this period have been maimed or have received serious damage to a body part, particularly limbs.

Most of them are either children or teenagers whose limbs have been amputated or they have sustained damage to the face.

Najibullah Omarkhil, the acting governor of Kunduz said “we helped 315 families… we are monitoring others”

Meanwhile, those affected by the conflict in Kunduz in recent years gathered in the provincial capital and called for an immediate end to the violence.

Sharifa, a displaced person in Kunduz “we were displaced three times in the past month. Four members of our family have been wounded.”

Naqibullah, a displaced person in Kunduz said “I was wounded in clashes one-and-a-half months ago. We want peace. We are tired of war.”

KATHMANDU, 20 July 2021 (TON): Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and congratulated him on winning the vote of confidence in the parliament."

Modi said “we will work together to further enhance the wide-ranging cooperation between India and Nepal.”

Likewise, PM Deuba also shared details of the conversation on his social media timeline.

In another tweet, Modi extended a congratulatory message to PM Deuba with best wishes for his successful tenure.

He said "I look forward to working with you to further enhance our unique partnership in all sectors, and strengthen our deep-rooted people-to-people ties."

BAGHDAD, 20 July 2021 (TON): An explosion ripped through a busy market in the Iraqi capital Monday killing at least 35 people, according to medical sources, in an apparent suicide bombing ahead of Eid holiday celebrations.

According to a photographer “in one of the worst attacks in Baghdad in recent years, body parts of victims lay scattered across the previously bustling market, that had been crowded with shoppers buying food ahead of the Islamic festival of Eid Al-Adha.”

Medics said that some 60 people were also wounded in the blast.

Iraqi President Barham Salih called the bombing in the densely populated majority-Shiite suburb of Sadr City a heinous crime, and offered his condolences.

Salih said in a message on Twitter “they are targeting our civilians in Sadr City on the eve of Eid,” Salih said in a message on Twitter.”

Eight women and seven children were among the dead, according to a medical sources, who said the toll lay between 28 and 30 killed.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but two security sources told media it was caused by a suicide bomber wearing an explosive belt.

ISLAMABAD, 20 July 2021 (TON): According to Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) “Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan, Nong Rong, met Chief of Army Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa at the General Headquarters to discuss the recent bus tragedy in Kohistan.”

The meeting was held in the backdrop of the July 14 incident in which at least nine Chinese nationals and four locals were killed and 28 others sustained injuries when a coach carrying them to an under-construction tunnel site of the 4,300-megawatt Dasu hydropower project fell into a ravine in the Upper Kohistan area after an explosion.

Discussing the matter in the meeting, the Chinese ambassador and Gen Bajwa stressed the need to thwart designs of all inimical forces challenging the resolve of Pakistan and China, particularly strategic cooperation between the two sides.

The army chief extended heartfelt sympathies and deepest condolences to the government of China and its people on the incident, underlining that Pakistan Army greatly values its brotherly relations with its time-tested friend.

Gen Bajwa also assured full cooperation and security of Chinese citizens working in Pakistan.

The ISPR said “both the sides agreed on the need for continuous engagement and coordination for peace and stability in the region.”

NAYPYITAW, 20 July 2021 (TON): Junta soldiers shot and killed four volunteer night guards at a village in Sagaing Region’s Shwebo Township overnight on Saturday.

Residents told media that villagers in Seikkhun heard soldiers fire about 30 rounds late in the evening, then more gunfire early on Sunday morning at around 6am.

The resident said “because it was already dark, no one dared to go outside and look.” The next morning the villagers saw the bodies of Thet Soe, Htay Hlaing Win, Aung Paing Htwe and Aung Hein Kyaw near the local police station.

A resident said that they didn’t let anyone near the bodies. They took the bodies to Shwebo and then sent them back on a social services vehicle, with all the bullets from their faces removed. We had to cremate them right away.

A second villager told media that soldiers were patrolling Seikkhun. There were also unconfirmed reports that the military had detained people.

After the killings in Seikkhun, soldiers travelled to the nearby village of Tettu, where they were met with residents who fended them off using hunting rifles at around 9am.

The soldiers then continued to the village of Palaing a few miles away, where they once again met with armed resistance from locals.

By TON Research Section 

New clouds of infighting are looming on Afghanistan political horizon, after the Americans forces have almost pulled out their troops from Afghanistan. A new tug-of- war is started between different warring factions of Afghanistan as the Taliban has taken the control of  all the important routes leading to its neighboring countries like trade-routes linking Pakistan with southern Afghanistan, the fall of  town in Spin Boldak  and important trade-road between Spin Boldak, Chaman and Kandahar customs now are under the command  of Taliban. The area is situated quite near to  the Durand Line border with Pakistan besides, it Islam Qala and Turghundi in Herat province, Shir Khan Bandar in Kunduz and Abu Naser Farahi border port in Farah province also fall to Taliban forces.

The critical armed conflict in Afghanistan over the last two decades was destructive to civilians that caused massive human rights abuses and war crimes by all sides. These abuses fueled conflict in several ways, including by inspiring recruitment to the insurgency, rendering political talks nearly impossible. Successive U.S. administrations have largely perceived human rights as an obstacle rather than think it vital to address Afghanistan’s problems. This approach was cataclysmic. The ground reality was worse long before the Taliban re-emerged, through frivolous opportunities and the indifference of U.S. generals about atrocities being committed by Afghan forces, the U.S. military, CIA units and  consistent failure  to do something positive in the last two decades since 2001, and this way U.S. decisions and policies essentially stage to embrace for failure.

Throughout the period, U.S chose allies in ousting the Taliban and committed severe human rights abuses. These warlords were a source of insecurity and they generated wide-spread anger, undermined efforts for good governance at the local and national levels, and paved the way for Taliban to obtain support for recruitments from among the Afghan masses.

After Northern Alliance forces ousted the Taliban from the north in the past, their militias carried out systematic attacks on Pashtun villages, raping women, executing civilians, and snatching livestock and land. Such attacks occurred in late 2016, when militia forces under the former vice president, brutally attacked on Pashtun villages in Faryab, accusing them of supporting the Taliban. In November 2001, forces massacred 2,000 Taliban prisoners who were surrendered outside Kunduz. The area is known as Dasht-e Laili, where there are thousands of graves. By 2006, local militias had destroyed the grave site. But the Taliban and their families has not forget these gruesome killing.

NATO's 20-year military mission in Afghanistan has all but finished still almost 1,000 mainly US troops remain on the ground to protect diplomatic missions and Kabul's international airport. Under a deal with Taliban, the US and its NATO allies agreed to withdraw all troops in return for a commitment by the Taliban not to allow al-Qaeda or any other group to operate in the areas they control. The last Intra-Afghan talks aimed at reaching a comprehensive peace settlement in Doha, Qatar, in September 2020, represented a major step toward deciding the Afghan conflict. The two sides have met intermittently but no result appeared on the two key issues that were central to talks reducing violence and determining the future structure and orientation of the Afghan state.

The Taliban spokesman has already made it clear that diplomats, NGOs and other foreign civilians would not be targeted by the Taliban, he further said that "We are against the foreign military forces, not diplomats, NGOs and workers and NGOs functioning and embassies functioning. We will not pose any threat to them," he said. The Taliban spokesman described the current government as "moribund" and mentioned the country as the "Islamic emirate” and envisaged theocratic basis for governing the country.

AT the moment, the Taliban is fully focusing to secure the withdrawal of foreign forces and has said in the past  that they want to seek an independent, sovereign, united, developed and free Afghanistan with an Islamic system in which all people of the nation can participate without discrimination” and is committed to protect certain rights with conditions, such as “all rights of women given to them by Islamic law” and “freedom of speech within the parameters of Islamic principles and national interests.”  Peace in Afghanistan is still far-away goal to be achieved. Regional dynamics, and the involvement of outside powers, directly affected the conflict in Afghanistan. The neighboring state widely considered most important in this regard is Pakistan, which has played an active, and by many accounts played positive role in Afghan affairs for decades.                                                                                                           

Due to the rising differences among Afghan leadership as every faction wants a lion share in the formation of Afghan government the intra Afghan dialogue at Doha was not that much significant as it should be . Now the Taliban, in a day-light reality has occupied the major parts of Afghanistan and is still advancing in many areas.  It is the need of hour for all Afghan warring groups to stop hurling allegations on each other for a lasting peace in Afghanistan to restore peace and normalcy in the region because a politically stable Afghanistan is also in the best interest of Afghanistan itself and the whole of south Asia, particularly Pakistan. The Afghan groups should realize that without Taliban representatives the government in Kabul cannot last for a long time. Despite all these odds let’s hope for the best future of Afghanistan.