SCA MORNING PRESS CLIPS

epubdos : Afghanistan

Prepared for the U.S. Department of State

Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs

By TechMIS
www.TechMIS.com

Mobile User Copy

TO:	SCA & Staff
DATE:	Tuesday, August 27, 2024 6:30 AM ET

Afghanistan

Biden mourns US service members killed in Kabul airport attack 3 years ago (The Hill)

The Hill [8/26/2024 9:20 AM, Alex Gangitano, 18752K, Negative]
President Biden mourned the three-year anniversary of the attack at the Kabul airport, in which 13 U.S. service members were killed.

He named the 13 service members in a statement Monday, also noting that more than 100 innocent Afghans were killed in the airport bombing.

“These 13 Americans—and the many more that were wounded—were patriots in the highest sense. Some were born the year the war in Afghanistan started. Some were on their second or third tour. But all raised their hand to serve a cause greater than themselves—risking their own safety for the safety of their fellow Americans, Allies, and Afghan partners,” Biden said.

The chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal was one of Biden’s first major foreign policy moves as president, and Republicans have continued to criticize him and his administration over his handling of the exit. The troops died when a bomb went off at the airport as U.S. forces were working to evacuate thousands of U.S. citizens and Afghan civilians.

“Today, our longest war is over. But our commitment to preventing attacks on our homeland—or our people—never will be. We will continue to disrupt terrorist activity, wherever we find it. We will continue to deliver justice to terrorists who plot against America—just as we have over the last three years with the leader of al-Qaeda and the global leader of ISIS,” Biden said Monday.

Biden and first lady Jill Biden traveled to Dover Air Force Base three years ago to observe the dignified transfer of the U.S. service members who died in the suicide bombing.

Harris marks anniversary of Kabul airport attack, backs Biden decision (The Hill)

The Hill [8/26/2024 9:50 AM, Alex Gangitano, 18752K, Negative]
Vice President Harris, the Democrat nominee for president, marked the third anniversary of the suicide bombing at the Kabul airport, when 13 U.S. service members were killed.

“Today and everyday, I mourn and honor them. My prayers are with their families and loved ones. My heart breaks for their pain and their loss. These 13 devoted patriots represent the best of America, putting our beloved nation and their fellow Americans above themselves and deploying into danger to keep their fellow citizens safe,” she said in a statement.

She named the 13 service members and said she is also thinking about the service members who died in Afghanistan over the duration of the war.

Harris also backed President Biden’s decision to withdrawal from Afghanistan, calling it the right decision.

“As I have said, President Biden made the courageous and right decision to end America’s longest war. Over the past three years, our Administration has demonstrated we can still eliminate terrorists, including the leaders of al-Qaeda and ISIS, without troops deployed into combat zones. I will never hesitate to take whatever action necessary to counter terrorist threats and protect the American people and the homeland,” she said.

The Afghanistan withdrawal was one of Biden’s first major foreign policy moves as president, but it proved to be one of the most tumultuous with the Taliban once again having swiftly taking over Kabul.

Republicans have continued to criticize him and his administration over the handling of the exit. The troops died when a bomb went off at the airport as U.S. forces were working to evacuate thousands of U.S. citizens and Afghan civilians.

Harris has been hit with criticism over the withdrawal on the campaign trail as Republicans will work to associate and blame her for any shortcomings of the Biden administration.

On Monday, former President Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery to mark the anniversary, seeking to turn the chaotic pullout against Harris. He was joined by family members of the service members, some of whom also spoke at the Republican National Convention.

Biden also mourned the troops on Monday, reinstating a commitment to preventing future terrorist attacks and disrupting terrorist activities.

Trump visits Arlington Cemetery to mark Afghanistan withdrawal anniversary (The Hill)

The Hill [8/26/2024 9:42 AM, Brett Samuels, 18752K, Neutral]
Former President Trump visited Arlington National Cemetery on Monday to mark the three-year anniversary of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan as he sought to turn the chaotic pullout into a resonant line of attack against Vice President Harris.

Trump was joined by family members of some of the 13 U.S. service members who were killed in a bombing at Abbey Gate during the withdrawal for a wreath laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

The former president descended the steps alongside family members to lay a wreath, listened to taps, then returned to the top of the steps and repeated the process twice more for others being honored Monday.

Trump and his campaign have repeatedly attacked President Biden over the Afghanistan withdrawal, referring to it as the most “embarrassing moment” in the nation’s history. Trump and his allies have continued those attacks since Harris replaced Biden atop the Democratic ticket, pointing to Harris’s own comments that she was the last person in the room with Biden as he finalized his decision on the withdrawal.

“This is the third anniversary of the BOTCHED Afghanistan withdrawal, the most EMBARRASSING moment in the history of our Country,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “Gross Incompetence – 13 DEAD American soldiers, hundreds of people wounded and dead, AMERICANS and BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF MILITARY EQUIPMENT LEFT BEHIND.”

“You don’t take our soldiers out first, you take them out LAST, when all else is successfully done,” he added. “Russia then invaded Ukraine, Israel was attacked, and the USA became, and is, a laughing stock all over the World.”

Family members of the 13 service members killed during the Afghanistan withdrawal spoke on stage at the Republican National Convention, where they criticized Biden and said Trump had shown more sympathy for their loss.

Both Biden and Harris issued statements Monday marking the three-year anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal.

“Today and everyday, I mourn and honor them. My prayers are with their families and loved ones,” Harris said in a statement. “My heart breaks for their pain and their loss. These 13 devoted patriots represent the best of America, putting our beloved nation and their fellow Americans above themselves and deploying into danger to keep their fellow citizens safe.”

Harris reiterated Biden “made the courageous and right decision to end America’s longest war.”

“Over the past three years, our Administration has demonstrated we can still eliminate terrorists, including the leaders of al-Qaeda and ISIS, without troops deployed into combat zones,” she said. “I will never hesitate to take whatever action necessary to counter terrorist threats and protect the American people and the homeland.”

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) announced Monday that Congress will award the families of those killed in the Afghanistan withdrawal the Congressional Gold Medal.

Trump sparked controversy earlier this month when he said during a reception that receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, may be better than receiving the Medal of Honor.

Gen. McMaster says Trump bears some responsibility for chaotic Afghanistan withdrawal (CNN)

CNN [8/26/2024 10:52 PM, Jack Forrest, 24052K, Negative]
Retired Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, who served as national security adviser under former President Donald Trump, said Monday his onetime boss bears some responsibility for the US’ chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021.

McMaster told CNN’s Anderson Cooper that the former president had made a decision in 2017 to maintain a US presence in Afghanistan, but that Trump then changed his mind. The Trump administration ultimately entered into an agreement with the Taliban requiring US troops to withdraw from the country by May 2021. President Joe Biden, after he took office, pushed that withdrawal date back to August.

"He couldn’t stick with the decision," McMaster, who served as Trump’s national security adviser from early 2017 until April 2018, said on "AC 360." "He didn’t stick with the decision. And I think people were in his ear and manipulated him with these mantras: ‘End the endless wars’ and ‘Afghanistan is a graveyard of empires’ and so forth."

Asked by Cooper if Trump bears some responsibility for the heavily criticized withdrawal during the Biden administration, McMaster responded, "Oh, yes."

Trump on Monday participated in a wreath laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on the third anniversary of the attack at Kabul airport’s Abbey Gate that killed 13 US military service members.

Trump was joined by some family members of the fallen service members. The former president regularly attacks the Biden administration - and recently Vice President Kamala Harris, now his 2024 Democratic rival - over the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

McMaster, in his new book, "At War with Ourselves: My Tour of Duty in the Trump White House," wrote about his perception that Trump often sought the praise and approval of strong-men foreign leaders like Russian President Vladimir Putin and Philippines’ former President Rodrigo Duterte so he could be seen as a similarly strong leader.

"I’m trying to explain really the strength in some of the aspects of the president’s character, but also the vulnerabilities. And of course at times I was reluctant to write some of this because I thought I don’t want to give if he’s reelected kind of a playbook of how you can maybe manipulate Donald Trump," McMaster said Monday.

McMaster breaking his silence on Trump’s tenure in the White House comes as Americans weigh whether they want to place the Republican presidential nominee back in the Oval Office or make Harris their new commander in chief.

While at times critical of the former president, McMaster offered Monday a unique and nuanced insight into Trump’s decision-making process.

"I did see him learn and adapt and really evolve his understanding of situations. People would often say to me, ‘Does he listen, does he?’ Yes, he does. But oftentimes when he does come to what I think is a really solid conclusion based on talking to a wide range of people getting a wide range of views, oftentimes he can’t hang onto that decision and then policy becomes unmoored," he told Cooper.

Trump tapped McMaster, a three-star general who served with distinction in the 1991 Gulf War and the Iraq War, to be his national security adviser in February 2017.

McMaster lasted just over a year in the Trump administration and was replaced by former US ambassador and Fox News analyst John Bolton - who himself released a book detailing a troubling and shocking series of allegations about his time working for Trump.

Asked whether he’d serve in a Trump administration again, McMaster said he would not.

"I think, Anderson, I will work in any administration where I feel like I can make a difference, but I’m kinda used up with Donald Trump," he said.

And on whether he’d work in a Harris administration, McMaster said, "I don’t know if I would be effective there either based on probably my different points of view and what is a sensible policy toward the Middle East, or really fill in the blank."

Taliban reject UN concerns over laws banning women’s voices and bare faces in public (AP)

AP [8/26/2024 11:12 PM, Staff, 48844K, Negative]
The Taliban on Monday rejected concerns and criticism raised by the United Nations over new vice and virtue laws that ban women in Afghanistan from baring their faces and speaking in public places.

Roza Otunbayeva, who heads the U.N. mission in the country, UNAMA, said Sunday that the laws provided a “distressing vision” for Afghanistan’s future. She said the laws extend the “ already intolerable restrictions “ on the rights of women and girls, with “even the sound of a female voice” outside the home apparently deemed a moral violation.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the main spokesman for the Taliban’s government, issued a statement warning against “arrogance” from those who he said may not be familiar with Islamic law, particularly non-Muslims who might express reservations or objections.

“We urge a thorough understanding of these laws and a respectful acknowledgment of Islamic values. To reject these laws without such understanding is, in our view, an expression of arrogance,” he said.

Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers on Wednesday issued the country’s first set of laws to discourage vice and promote virtue. They include a requirement for a woman to conceal her face, body and voice outside the home. They also ban images of living beings, such as photographs.

“After decades of war and in the midst of a terrible humanitarian crisis, the Afghan people deserve much better than being threatened or jailed if they happen to be late for prayers, glance at a member of the opposite sex who is not a family member, or possess a photo of a loved one,” Otunbayeva said.

In response to the UNAMA statement, Mujahid added, “We must stress that the concerns raised by various parties will not sway the Islamic Emirate from its commitment to upholding and enforcing Islamic law.”

In rare public criticism of Afghanistan’s rulers, the Japanese Embassy in Kabul expressed its deep concern about the continuing restrictions on women and girls as announced in the laws.

The embassy said Monday on the social platform X that it would keep urging authorities to “listen to the voice of Afghan women and girls for education, employment, and freedom of movement” for the future of the country.

Taliban condemn UN criticism of morality law as insult to Sharia (VOA)

VOA [8/26/2024 7:52 PM, Ayaz Gul, 4566K, Negative]
Taliban leaders in Afghanistan expressed outrage Monday at the U.N.-led objections to their new vice and virtue laws that silence women in public and require them to cover their faces.

“Non-Muslims expressing concerns over these laws or rejecting them should first educate themselves about Islamic laws and respect Islamic values,” said Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesperson for the Taliban government, which is not recognized by any country.

“We find it insulting to our Islamic Sharia [law] when they object due to a lack of knowledge and understanding,” Mujahid stated on social media platform X.

His response came a day after the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) decried the enactment of the morality law as a “distressing vision” for the impoverished country’s future.

“It extends the already intolerable restrictions on the rights of Afghan women and girls, with even the sound of a female voice outside the home apparently deemed a moral violation,” UNAMA chief Roza Otunbayeva said Sunday.

The Taliban announced last Wednesday the ratification of their law on “the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice," forbidding women from singing, reciting poetry or speaking aloud in public, and requiring them to keep their faces and entire bodies always covered when outdoors.

The 35-article law imposes severe restrictions on the personal freedom of Afghan men and women and empowers the Taliban Ministry of Vice and Virtue to enforce it. The ministry’s controversial policing of public morality is already under criticism from the U.N. and global human rights groups.

The legal document prohibits the broadcasting and publication of images of living beings, as well as content believed to violate Sharia or insult Muslims in accordance with the Taliban’s interpretation of Islam.

“After decades of war and in the midst of a terrible humanitarian crisis, the Afghan people deserve much better than being threatened or jailed if they happen to be late for prayers, glance at a member of the opposite sex who is not a family member, or possess a photo of a loved one,” Otunbayeva stated.

Mujahid, while responding to the UNAMA chief’s statement and objections from other foreign critics, said Monday that “such uncalled-for concerns” would not deter them from “upholding and enforcing Islamic Sharia law” in Afghanistan.

The Taliban introduced the morality law against the backdrop of their wide-ranging restrictions on female members of Afghan society. Since returning to power three years ago, the de facto rulers have banned Afghan girls from attending school beyond the sixth grade and women from working in most fields, as well as taking part in public activities at large.

UN rights chief calls for repeal of Afghan law turning women into ‘shadows’ (Reuters)

Reuters [8/27/2024 5:40 AM, Emma Farge, 5.2M, Neutral]
The United Nations human rights chief on Tuesday called for Afghanistan’s Taliban to immediately repeal a set of "egregious" laws that it said were attempting to turn women into shadows.

High Commissioner Volker Turk said the passing of new laws last week "cements policies that completely erase women’s presence in public, silencing their voices and depriving them of their individual autonomy, effectively attempting to render them into faceless, voiceless shadows."

"This is utterly intolerable," he said, addressing journalists via a spokesperson at a U.N. press briefing.

It’s Not a Dystopian Novel — It’s Afghanistan Today (Human Rights Watch)

Human Rights Watch [8/26/2024 11:00 AM, Sahar Fetrat and Heather Barr, Negative]
Imagine a country where everything — everything — about how your life unfolds depends on your gender. If you’re a girl, you’re banned from all education once you finish the sixth grade. As an adult woman, you are banned from many jobs — you and your children may go hungry as a result. You cannot leave the house without a male family member chaperoning you.

Places where women used to gather and talk or seek help — beauty salons and domestic violence shelters — have been closed by order of the Taliban. You can only go to the doctor if a man takes you there. You and all women around you are banned from taking part in sports, going to a gym, or to the park. Girls are mostly confined at home, doing housework until they are told to get married. Many marry and become mothers very young. Some resist and fight back — taking to the streets to protest or opening secret schools. They face arrest, torture, and detention.

Men and boys? None of this applies to them, although they can also face arrest and torture if they dare criticize the rules. They can also be punished — sometimes brutally — if “their” women and girls step out of line.

This isn’t a dystopian novel. This isn’t a story from history, either. It’s Afghanistan right now, and the Taliban’s crackdown on women and girls is steadily deepening.

The Taliban regained control of Afghanistan on August 15, 2021. On August 14, millions of girls were in school. More than a quarter of the members of parliament were women. Women were government ministers and judges and professors and helicopter pilots. Women were singers and painters and conceptual artists and actors. There was a girls’ orchestra. All of that is gone now.

There’s an important lesson here: The trajectory of human rights — especially women’s rights — does not move in just one direction. Things can go backward. They did so three years ago. In front of the rest of the world, the Taliban have continued dismantling all rights for women and girls, creating a system of persecution, segregation, and almost total seclusion for women and girls.

Afghanistan is a powerful example — but far from the only example — of how human rights can slip away in the blink of an eye, no matter how hard people fought to gain them. This could happen to anyone reading this now. Afghanistan is setting the bar for how bad — how dystopian — things can be for women and girls. Politicians around the world seem appalled by the Taliban, but not so much as to do something about it.

But is there really anything anyone can do? The Taliban have proven to be relentless in reducing women and girls to reproductive and domestic servants.

There are no easy answers, but there are answers.

With growing clarity, we know what does not work. Raising concerns about women’s rights in diplomatic meetings with the Taliban, as diplomats have assured us for years that they do without fail, does not appear to have had any positive impact. Holding high-level meetings — like the recent Doha 3 meeting — where the Taliban smiled for the cameras and looked important, and Afghan women were nowhere to be seen, are actively harmful.

Afghan human rights defenders, and organizations like Human Rights Watch, have increasingly called for an approach that doesn’t treat the Taliban like naughty schoolboys who should see the error of their ways, but instead holds them to account for their crimes. Governments should say clearly that there is no place for Taliban abuses and they should never treat Taliban officials as leaders in good global standing.

Government leaders should demand that Afghan women be invited to all international meetings on Afghanistan and speak out quickly and forcefully in support of threatened or attacked Afghan women’s rights protesters and other rights defenders. When meeting with the Taliban, diplomats should skip the smiling photo ops and avoid places that make the Taliban look important — better to meet in Kabul or Doha without photos — and ensure that women are well represented in their delegations, including, whenever possible, Afghan women.

Governments should work together to use international law and institutions to increase pressure on the Taliban. They should support the International Criminal Court prosecution of Taliban leaders for committing the crime against humanity of gender persecution.

Governments should seriously consider including gender apartheid as a crime in the proposed crimes against humanity treaty. They should also bring a case against the Taliban for failing to abide by the UN convention on women’s rights before the International Court of Justice. And the UN Human Rights Council should renew the mandate of the UN human rights expert on Afghanistan and create a new mechanism to collect and preserve evidence of crimes committed in Afghanistan, including against women and girls.

A dire humanitarian crisis is continuing in Afghanistan; almost 24 million people need food and other assistance. Part of the reason people can’t get by — especially women and women-headed households — is because the Taliban are barring women, including women aid workers, from their jobs. Donors can help by continuing to send funds and directing those funds specifically to women and girls — to programs targeted to them, including underground efforts to assist, protect, educate, and mobilize women and girls. They should also welcome to their countries the brave women and girls making dangerous journeys to flee Taliban abuses.

Afghan women’s right defenders are risking everything to fight for their rights. There are ways that every country around the world can help make the present and the future less dystopian for Afghan women and girls, and less dangerous for women and girls everywhere. They just need to decide to act.

Kamala Harris on the Afghanistan Withdrawal (Wall Street Journal – opinion)

Wall Street Journal [8/26/2024 5:46 PM, Editorial Board, 810K, Neutral]
Kamala Harris is working hard to hide her policy views from the public, but now and then she opens a window on her worldview, and it isn’t reassuring. One example came Monday on the third anniversary of the terrorist bombing at the Kabul airport that killed 13 Americans trying to defend the chaotic U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The Vice President praised the dead servicemen and women. “Today and everyday, I mourn and honor them,” she said in a statement.

But if she has any regrets about President Biden’s policy, she isn’t sharing them. “As I have said,” Ms. Harris noted, “President Biden made the courageous and right decision to end America’s longest war.”

It’s good to know what she thinks, but it doesn’t reflect well on her judgment as a potential Commander in Chief. The withdrawal decision was arguably the worst of Mr. Biden’s Presidency, as he ignored the advice of nearly all of his advisers that a date-certain, total retreat would likely result in the collapse of the Afghan government and a Taliban takeover. Keeping a few thousand troops in support of the Afghan forces could have prevented the catastrophe and its consequences.

Listen to retired Marine Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, who was in charge of Central Command at the time of the Afghan fiasco, speaking recently on the School of War podcast:

Host Aaron MacLean: “What do you think the consequences are broadly of the collapse and us not being there?”

Gen. McKenzie: “Well, I think on several levels, I think [Vladimir] Putin’s invasion of Ukraine was directly driven by this. I think the Chinese were emboldened as a result of it. I think that more operationally, I think ISIS-K flourishes now in Afghanistan. The attack in Moscow just a few months ago is only a sign of things to come.

“Our ability to actually look into Afghanistan, understand what goes on in Afghanistan, is such a small percentage of what it used to be that it is effectively zero. So we predicted these things will happen, these things are happening. Our ability to, again, apply leverage here is quite limited.”

Mr. Biden was indeed warned about all of this—and so was Ms. Harris if she was in the White House Situation Room as she likes to say she has been for all of this Administration’s major security decisions. The needless deaths of those 13 Americans were the worst result, but the withdrawal also marked the end of Mr. Biden’s ability to deter adversaries around the world.

That Ms. Harris now embraces this failure suggests more of the same ahead if she wins in November.

Pakistan

Wave of Attacks Rattles a Restive Province in Pakistan (New York Times)

New York Times [8/26/2024 4:14 PM, Christina Goldabum and Salman Masood, 831K, Neutral]
The violence began with blasts that ripped through a military camp in Pakistan’s Baluchistan Province late Sunday night, killing at least one soldier. Around the same time, armed men stormed into at least four police stations in the province, spraying bullets at officers and setting police vehicles on fire, local officials said.

By daybreak, militants had destroyed a bridge, bringing the major railway that runs across it to a halt. Then early Monday morning, the violence hit its apex when gunmen held up traffic on a major highway, shooting and killing nearly two dozen people.

Over a 24-hour period, the new wave of violence carried out by an armed separatist group has seized Baluchistan Province in southwestern Pakistan and left at least 38 people dead, worsening the country’s already deteriorating security situation.

The spate of coordinated attacks in Baluchistan began on Sunday, as the group, the Baluch Liberation Army, or B.L.A., announced that it was starting a new operation across the province. The B.L.A. is one of several insurgent groups that has demanded the province’s independence from the central government in Islamabad.

The deadliest single attack in the campaign so far unfolded in Musakhel, a district in Baluchistan, officials said, when armed men stopped traffic on a highway and demanded that passengers on buses and trucks show them their identity cards, officials said.

The gunmen forced some of the passengers out of the vehicles, and then shot and killed them, officials said. Nearly all of the victims were from Punjab Province, officials said, and the gunmen set at least 10 buses and trucks ablaze before fleeing the area.

Pakistani officials immediately condemned the attacks and instructed the authorities to carry out an investigation into them.

“No form of terrorism is acceptable in the country,” Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a statement. “Our fight against terrorism will continue until the complete elimination of the scourge.”

Some security experts and analysts say the coordinated attacks point to an intelligence failure by the country’s powerful military, which has long been the ultimate authority in the country. The Pakistani authorities have said in recent years that they had quelled the decades-old insurgency, but the recent attacks were a worrying sign that the B.L.A. has become more capable than ever before, analysts say.

“This is the peak of the critical phase of the insurgency,” said Muhammad Amir Rana, the director of the Pak Institute for Peace Studies, which monitors extremist violence and is based in Islamabad. He added that the recent violence demonstrated a higher degree of coordination and planning by the B.L.A. than in previous attacks. Pakistan military officials say that security forces responded to each of the attacks and killed at least 21 insurgents.

“Security forces and law enforcement agencies of Pakistan in step with the nation, remain determined to thwart attempts at sabotaging peace, stability and progress of Baluchistan,” according to a statement from the military’s media wing.

Terrorism across Pakistan has surged since United States troops withdrew from neighboring Afghanistan in 2021 and the Taliban seized power.

Since the Taliban takeover, some militant groups have found safe haven on Afghan soil while a Taliban-led crackdown on the Islamic State affiliate in the region has pushed its fighters into Pakistan.

During the Taliban’s first year back in power, the number of terrorist attacks across Pakistan rose by around 50 percent compared with the year before, according to the Pak Institute for Peace Studies. Over the past two years, the number of violent attacks has continued to rise.

The violence has fueled tension between the Pakistani authorities and Taliban officials, who have denied offering support or protection to militant groups including Baluch separatists. It has also stoked concerns that the region could become a haven for international terrorist groups and that a wider conflict could break out in Pakistan’s border areas.

So far, the Pakistani authorities have been unable to quell the violence. American military support in the form of arms, intelligence, financing and more that once flowed freely into the country has dwindled since the American withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Many militants are armed with advanced U.S.-made weapons and equipment that they seized after the U.S.-backed Afghan government collapsed, according to Pakistani authorities.

The Pakistani police have said they feel underequipped to handle the new wave of violence. Residents in areas affected say they are increasingly frustrated by the government’s response. Some have accused the country’s powerful military of being more focused on meddling in Pakistani politics than providing security.

Baluchistan, an arid province that stretches between the borders with Afghanistan and Iran and the Arabian Sea, has been the scene of much of the violence. The province, which is roughly the size of Germany, is resource rich but home to only about 12 million people.

The region is also the site of a Chinese-operated deepwater port in Gwadar, a key piece of China’s Belt and Road Initiative in Pakistan, which has been a vital source of foreign investment and also a target of militant anger.

Since Pakistan’s founding in 1947, the province has endured several insurgencies driven at least in part by exploitation of its resources, and in recent years, militants have targeted Chinese development projects in the region. In response, those groups and residents in Baluchistan have faced heavy state repression and human rights abuses, human rights groups say.

The B.L.A. has been among the most persistent insurgent groups. Founded in the early 2000s, the group appeared to have been significantly weakened by 2020 after years of counterinsurgency operations and rifts among separatist groups. But in recent years, it has roared back — a feat highlighted by the operation that began on Sunday.

“Our fight is against the occupying Pakistani military,” the Baluch Liberation Army said in a statement before the attacks. “If the police interfere, we will attack them as well.”

The announcement coincided with the 18th anniversary of the death of Nawab Akbar Bugti, an influential tribal leader in Baluchistan who took up arms against the federal government in 2005 and was killed by the Pakistani military a year later. His death injected new energy into to the insurgency in the region, analysts say.

The spate of attacks rattled residents of the province, many of whom were already on edge after the uptick in violence over the past three years.

“Last night’s attacks and the previous ones have shown that the militants are highly organized,” said Ishaq Hayyat, a resident of Quetta, the capital of Baluchistan Province. “The attacks have really increased public fears — we’re concerned about our safety.”

Separatist group claims multiple attacks that killed over 40 people in southwestern Pakistan (AP)

AP [8/27/2024 3:02 AM, Abdul Sattar, 456K, Neutral]
A separatist group claimed responsibility for multiple attacks in southwestern Pakistan that killed more than 40 people but insisted it did not harm civilians, as authorities on Tuesday sent the bodies of 23 victims to their home districts for burial.

The outlawed Baluchistan Liberation Army group warned in a statement overnight into Tuesday of more attacks, saying that 800 of its well-trained fighters took part in the first phase of the shooting and bombing attacks that began late Sunday and ended on Monday.

It warned the second phase of the attacks would be “even more intense and widespread.”

Twenty-three people and 14 security officials were among the dozens killed by insurgents in multiple attacks in the restive southwest, the highest one-day death toll in recent violence in the area.

The attacks drew nationwide condemnation.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday there would be no peace talks with insurgents who took up arms against the state, killed innocent people and attacked security forces in Baluchistan.

He said the latest attacks in Baluchistan seek to harm Chinese-funded development projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which includes building and improving roads and rail systems to link western China’s Xinjiang region to Pakistan’s southwestern Gwadar port on the Arabian Sea.

In recent years, BLA and other militants have also attacked Chinese nationals working on CPEC projects.

Shafique Ullah, a local administration official, said 14 people from the eastern Punjab province and nine Baluch were among the 23 people killed by BLA after they were offloaded from their vehicles on a highway in Musakhail, a district in Baluchistan early Sunday.

The bodies were sent to their home districts on Monday, he said.

Funerals for the 14 security officials killed in the assaults were held in Baluchistan overnight.

The government has vowed to punish the attackers and their facilitators.

BLA has targeted security forces for years in small-scale attacks, but the latest violence indicated it was now much more organized.

Sarfraz Bugti, the chief minister in Baluchistan, told reporters in Quetta on Monday that operations against the insurgents were still underway, adding that “those who killed our innocent civilians and security with be dealt with a full force.”

Baluchistan has been the scene of a long-running insurgency in Pakistan, with an array of separatist groups staging attacks, mainly on security forces. The separatists have been demanding independence from the central government.

Although Pakistan says it quelled the insurgency, violence has persisted in Baluchistan.

More than 70 dead after militant attacks in Pakistan’s Balochistan (Reuters)

Reuters [8/27/2024 3:42 AM, Saleem Ahmad and Saud Mehsud, 5.2M, Neutral]
At least 73 people were killed in Pakistan’s province of Balochistan when separatist militants attacked police stations, railway lines and highways and security forces launched retaliatory operations, officials said on Monday.

The assaults were the most widespread in years by ethnic militants fighting a decades-long insurgency to win secession of the resource-rich southwestern province, home to major China-led projects such as a port and a gold and copper mine.

"These attacks are a well thought-out plan to create anarchy in Pakistan," Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said in a statement.

Pakistan’s military said 14 soldiers and police and 21 militants were killed in fighting after the largest of the attacks, which targeted buses and trucks on a major highway.

Balochistan’s chief minister said 38 civilians were also killed. Local officials said 23 of them were killed in the roadside attack after armed men checked passengers’ IDs before shooting many of them and torching vehicles.

"People were taken off buses and killed in front of their families," Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti said in a televised press conference.

Rail traffic with Quetta was suspended following blasts on a rail bridge linking the provincial capital to the rest of Pakistan. Militants also struck a rail link to neighbouring Iran, railways official Muhammad Kashif said.

Police said they had found six as yet unidentified bodies near the site of the attack on the railway bridge.

Officials said militants also targeted police and security stations in Balochistan, Pakistan’s largest province by area but least populated, killing at least 10 people in one attack.

The Baloch Liberation Army (BLA) armed militant group took responsibility for the operation they called "Haruf" or "dark windy storm". In a statement to journalists they claimed more attacks over the last day that have not yet been confirmed by authorities.

The group said four suicide bombers, including a woman from the southern port district of Gwadar, had been involved in an attack on the Bela paramilitary base. Pakistani authorities did not confirm the suicide blasts, but the provincial chief minister said three people had been killed at the base.

The BLA is the biggest of several ethnic insurgent groups battling the central government, saying it unfairly exploits gas and mineral resources in the province, where poverty is rife. It wants the expulsion of China and independence for Balochistan.

Monday was the anniversary of the death of Baloch nationalist leader Akbar Bugti, who was killed by Pakistan’s security forces in 2006.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif vowed that security forces would retaliate and bring those responsible to justice.

Bugti, the chief minister, said more intelligence-based operations would be launched to weed out militants. He hinted at curtailing mobile data services to stop militant coordination.

"They launch attacks, film it and then share it on social media for propaganda," he said.

General Li Qiaoming, commander of China’s People’s Liberation Army Ground Forces, and Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir met on Monday, though a Pakistani military statement released after the meeting made no mention of the attacks.

European Commission spokesperson Nabila Massrali said the EU condemned the attack.

PASSENGERS KILLED

On Sunday night, armed men blocked a highway, marched passengers off vehicles, and shot them after checking their identity cards, a senior superintendent of police, Ayub Achakzai, told Reuters.

As many as 35 vehicles were set on fire on the highway in the area of Musakhail.

"The armed men also not only killed passengers but also killed the drivers of trucks carrying coal," said Hameed Zahir, deputy commissioner of the area.

Militants have targeted workers from Pakistan’s eastern province of Punjab whom they see as exploiting their resources.

In the past, they have also attacked Chinese interests and citizens in the province, where China runs the deepwater port of Gwadar, as well as a gold and copper mine in its west.

The BLA said its fighters targeted military personnel travelling in civilian clothes. Pakistan’s interior ministry said the dead were innocent citizens.

Six security personnel, three civilians and one tribal elder made up the ten killed in clashes with armed militants who stormed a station of the Balochistan Levies in the central district of Kalat, police official Dostain Khan Dashti said.

Officials said police stations had also been attacked in two southern coastal towns, but the toll had yet to be confirmed.

Pakistan PM Sharif says militants want to stop co-operation with China (Reuters)

Reuters [8/27/2024 3:50 AM, Gibran Peshimam and Asif Shahzad, 5.2M, Neutral]
Attacks by separatist militants in Pakistan’s southwestern province of Balochistan aimed at stopping development projects that form part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Tuesday.

The assaults begun on Sunday, killing more than 70, were the most widespread in years by ethnic militants seeking to win secession of the resource-rich province, home to major China-led projects such as a strategic port and a gold and copper mine.

"The terrorists want to stop CPEC and development projects," Sharif said in a televised address to cabinet, adding that the purpose was also to drive a wedge between Islamabad and Beijing.

CPEC, said to have development commitments worth $65 billion, is part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s Belt and Road initiative.

Pakistan has not been able to fully build the infrastructure needed to tap mineral resources in poverty-stricken Balochistan, and has sought China’s help in developing the province.

In Beijing, China condemned the attacks and vowed to keep up firm support for Pakistan in counter-terrorism efforts.

"China is ready to further strengthen counter-terrorism security co-operation with the Pakistani side in order to jointly maintain regional peace and security," Lin Jian, a foreign ministry spokesperson, told a regular news briefing.

Beijing has previously flagged concerns about the security of its citizens working on projects in Pakistan, particularly in Balochistan. Six Chinese engineers working on a dam project were killed in March in the northwest.

Separatist militants have consistently targeted Balochistan’s deepwater port of Gwadar, run by China.

A militant group, the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA), took responsibility for this week’s simultaneous attacks on police stations, railway lines and highways in the province, the largest but least developed of Pakistan’s four.

Pakistan court acquits man charged with cybercrime linked to British riots (Reuters)

Reuters [8/26/2024 11:10 AM, Mubasher Bukhari, 42991K, Negative]
A Pakistani court on Monday acquitted a local man of cybercrime offences involving the spread of fake online information which fuelled riots in Britain, his lawyer said.

The riots began after false information circulated online wrongly blaming an Islamist migrant for the killing of three young girls in a knife attack in the northern English town of Southport in late July.

Farhan Asif, who ran a web publication, was arrested in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore and charged last week by the country’s Federal Investigation Agency (FIA.

"He has been absolved in the investigation," his lawyer Rana Rizwan Akhtar told Reuters TV, saying the investigation agency could not find any basis to prove that his client was involved in any illegal activity.

The court acquitted the accused after the agency submitted its report, he said.

Asif had provided the agency with all of his social media accounts and access to all of his devices, he said.

The accused had posted an article on his X social media account which said that the attacker was a Muslim immigrant, and also shared pictures of the killings, according to the case registered against him.

Imran Khan says he is running to be Oxford chancellor from jail ‘to give back’ (The Telegraph)

The Telegraph [8/26/2024 5:13 PM, Ben Farmer, 29812K, Neutral]
Imran Khan has said he is running to be Oxford’s new chancellor from jail because the university helped him in his early years and he wanted to “give back”.

The former prime minister of Pakistan told The Telegraph from his prison cell that he would be a passionate advocate for the university, where he studied more than 50 years ago.

Mr Khan will stand to replace 80-year-old Lord Patten despite having been in prison for more than a year on charges he says are politically motivated to keep him from regaining power.

In his first public comments on his application, the former international cricketer said: “Oxford University helped me a lot in my formative years. As chancellor, I would passionately advocate for Oxford, championing its values of diversity, equality and inclusion, both in the UK and abroad.

“I am committed to giving back to the world the resilience, determination and integrity that life has taught me, even when the odds are stacked against me.”

Mr Khan, 71, studied philosophy, politics and economics at Keble College from 1972 to 1975 and also captained the university cricket team.

Lord Hannan, the Tory peer and former MEP, this week threw his support behind Mr Khan, describing him as a “towering figure in the worlds of philanthropy, sport and politics” and saying: “He would make a superb chancellor for the world’s foremost university.”

Mr Khan faces a formidable field in the race to be the new figurehead of the university. Leading rivals include Lord Hague, the former foreign secretary, Lord Mandelson, the Labour grandee, and Lady Angiolini, the prominent lawyer who led the inquiry into the rape, abduction and murder of Sarah Everard.

While Mr Khan may be considered a wildcard entry, his application could help raise awareness of his imprisonment and put pressure on the Pakistan government and the country’s powerful military leadership.

More than 250,000 Oxford alumni will vote in an online ballot later this year. The successful candidate will serve a 10-year term, supporting Prof Irene Tracey, the current vice-chancellor.

India

Biden speaks with Modi about Indian premier’s recent visit to Ukraine, situation in Bangladesh (AP)

AP [8/26/2024 6:04 PM, Aamer Madhani, 31638K, Neutral]
President Joe Biden spoke with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, days after the most prominent leader from a nation that maintains a neutral position on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine visited Kyiv.

Modi said in a posting on X that he spoke to Biden about “India’s full support for early return of peace and stability” in Ukraine. He said the leaders also discussed India’s concern about the safety of Hindus and other religious minorities in neighboring Bangladesh after this month’s ouster of the country’s long-serving prime minister.

The White House said Biden commended Modi’s engagement with Ukraine as well as his visit last week to Poland, one of Ukraine’s closest Eastern European allies.

“We welcome any other country that wants to help President (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy work towards this just peace, and any country that’s willing to come at that discussion by starting with President Zelensky’s perspective, by hearing him out,” White House national security spokesman John Kirby told reporters.

Zelenskyy and Modi during their meeting last week discussed at length Ukraine’s peace formula, which prioritizes territorial integrity and the withdrawal of Russian troops, according to the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

“We say it very loudly and clearly that we support the respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Modi said during the meeting. “It’s our highest priority.”

The Kyiv visit came after Modi last month met with Putin in Moscow. Zelenskyy had criticized Modi for the visit with Putin, which came on the same day Russian missiles struck across Ukraine, killing scores of people. During the visit, Modi was photographed giving Putin a warm embrace.

India, which has a long-running relationship with Moscow, has largely avoided weighing in on the Russian invasion.

India started building a strong relationship with the then-Soviet Union in the mid-1950s during the Cold War, then strengthened those ties over conflicts with neighbor Pakistan.

The Soviet Union helped mediate a cease-fire between India and Pakistan to end the 1965 war over control of the disputed Himalayan territory of Kashmir. Then, during India’s war with Pakistan in December 1971, the Soviet Union used its veto power to support India at the United Nations, while the U.S. ordered a task force into the Bay of Bengal in support of Pakistan.

Early in the war, Biden referred to India as “somewhat shaky” as he was rounding up allies to squeeze Moscow’s energy income.

India has become a key buyer of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the U.S. and its allies that shut most Western markets off to Russian exports. India now gets more than 40% of its oil imports from Russia, according to analysts.

But as a key economic and strategic ally in the Indo-Pacific, the White House has sought to play down Biden and Modi’s differences over Russia’s war in Ukraine as the war in Europe grinds on.

Modi said he also discussed the situation in Bangladesh, where Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled to India this month.

Her ouster was triggered by student-led protests against a quota system for government jobs. After clashes between protesters and government forces that led to hundreds of deaths, the movement grew into a broader rebellion against the leader and her government.

There have dozens of attacks against against Hindus and other religious minorities in Bangladesh since Hasina’s ouster.

Modi said during the call with Biden he underscored “the need for early restoration of normalcy, and ensuring the safety and security of minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.”

Biden took part in the call from Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, where he is vacationing with family.

Biden, Modi discuss Ukraine war after PM’s visit, situation in Bangladesh (Reuters)

Reuters [8/26/2024 7:45 PM, Kanishka Singh, 37270K, Positive]
U.S. President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday discussed the Russia-Ukraine war following Modi’s visit to Ukraine, along with the situation in Bangladesh where protests led to the ousting of former leader Sheikh Hasina earlier this month.

Modi posted online that he discussed the situation in Ukraine with Biden over the phone and "reiterated India’s full support for early return of peace and stability." He also said the two leaders stressed "the need for early restoration of normalcy, and ensuring the safety and security of minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh."

The White House issued a separate statement, saying Biden commended Modi’s recent visit to Poland and Ukraine, and that both leaders expressed "support for a peaceful resolution of the conflict in accordance with international law, on the basis of the UN Charter."

Last week, Modi visited Ukraine in the first visit by an Indian prime minister in modern Ukrainian history. It came at a volatile juncture in the war launched by Russia in February 2022. Moscow is making slow gains in eastern Ukraine as Kyiv presses a cross-border incursion.

Modi urged President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to sit down for talks with Russia to end the war and offered to help bring peace.

Modi’s Ukraine visit followed a visit he made to Russia in July where he embraced President Vladimir Putin on the same day that a deadly Russian missile strike hit a children’s hospital. That visit angered Ukraine and the U.S. State Department said it raised concerns with India about ties with Russia.

Moscow has been a large weapons supplier to India since the Soviet Union days. Washington in recent years has looked to woo New Delhi to counter China’s influence.

Modi said the two leaders also discussed the situation in Bangladesh where about 300 people, many of them university and college students, were killed during protests that began in July with students agitating against quotas in government jobs before the events spiraled into demonstrations to oust long-serving former Prime Minister Hasina.

An interim government headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus was sworn in after Hasina fled to India. Attacks were reported against Muslim-majority Bangladesh’s minorities, especially Hindus, amid the protests.

Hindu nationalist Modi’s own government in Hindu-majority India has faced criticism over the years over attacks on minorities, especially Muslims.

Indian Port Unions, Officials to Meet in Attempt to Avert Strike (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg [8/26/2024 6:09 AM, Weilun Soon and Rajesh Kumar Singh, 27296K, Negative]
Union representatives from India’s state-run ports are expected to meet government officials on Tuesday in a last-ditch attempt to stave off strikes planned for the following day.

The worker groups will be meeting with the India Ports Association, a state agency, in New Delhi to discuss their demands, according to Narendra Rao, a working committee member of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions. If union leaders find the terms suggested by the ports association unfavorable, they will call for industrial action the next day.

The strikes are expected to affect ports including those in Mumbai, Kolkata and Tuticorin in the south of the country, according to a notification seen by Bloomberg News.

The unions have been in negotiations with the government since 2021 to try and increase the port worker’s pay, but have so far failed to come to an agreement. The planned strikes will affect container traffic as well as oil and gas tankers.

India’s 12 largest ports handled 818 million tons of cargo in the year through March, a 4.4% increase over the prior year, according to the shipping ministry.

The rape and murder of a female doctor in India sets off an outcry over women’s safety (NPR)

NPR [8/26/2024 12:58 PM, Ruchi Kumar, 37088K, Negative]
On August 9, the body of a 31-year-old doctor trainee was found at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata. The woman had been raped and murdered.

The case has once again brought to the forefront the discussion of women’s safety in India — with special concerns voiced by women who are medical professionals.

“My first reaction was that of absolute horror. I could feel the anger in my bones,” says Dr. Kamna Kakkar, a resident doctor from Delhi. “Hospitals are supposed to be places which are safe and revered like temples. When I don the white coat to save lives, I expect to be provided safety.”

Her thoughts were echoed by the seven female doctors and nurses interviewed for this story — and are similar to points raised on two WhatsApp groups by over 200 medical professionals in India.

Along with protests demanding better security measures for women, these medical professionals are speaking out about the lack of respect they are afforded in their workplace. They say they’re not safe at work nor do they have safe resting places when they do shift work. They’re also calling attention to sexual harassment from peers and patients alike.

According to details made public by courts and police, the woman who was raped and murdered — she cannot be named by law — was found with extensive injuries in the seminar hall of the hospital, where she was resting at the end of a 36-hour shift late night shift. A police volunteer — a unpaid civilian recruited for minor policing duties — was detained in connection with the crime.

India’s Supreme Court speaks out

The brutality of this case, as well as the increasing frequency of reports of sexual crimes against women in India — from 25,000 rape cases in 2012 to 31,000 a decade later — has sparked nationwide anger and condemnation. In response, the Indian Supreme Court, last Tuesday, announced it would hear the case surrounding the woman’s murder,and ordered a national task force to investigate workplace safety for doctors.

The Supreme Court announcement came after more than a dozen protests by medical professions, and thousands of citizens across India.

One of India’s largest unions representing doctors, the Indian Medical Association, is demanding increased security protocols — “no less than an airport” — for all hospitals. In a statement, they called for deployment of more security personnel and closed-circuit TV for surveillance.

The infrastructure at most public hospitals isn’t built with regard to women’s safety, doctors told NPR. Women doctors typically don’t have specially-designated bathrooms or safe places to rest or sleep. “In one instance I know, a lady doctor was made to sleep inside the ward because no doctor’s duty room was provided to her,” Dr. Kakkar said,

On August 16, following the rape and murder in Kolkata, that association, which counts over 360,000 doctors as members, announced a nationwide strike to demand safer spaces for women medical professionals. Participating doctors refused services to non-emergency patients. While exact figures weren’t collated, the Supreme Court appealed for doctors to return to work, saying that their strike had denied medical care to Indians across the country.

A history of gender violence

Gender-based violence has been a long-standing issue in India. Nearly one in three women in India has reported experiencing some form of violence, according to a national health survey conducted by the Indian Ministry of Health, sampling nearly 725,000 women across the country.

New laws in the wake of a 2012 gang rape in Delhi have instituted stricter punishments for violence against women, including longer sentences and even the death penalty in cases of rape. Yet the number of confirmed cases of rape has risen from 337,922 in 2014 to 445,256 in 2022, the most recent year for which data is available.

The enactment of more laws is not the solution says Karanjeet Kaur, a columnist for Indian daily The Print.

“In India, the problem has never been that the laws are not friendly toward women. The problem has always been the uneven application of, those laws,” Kaur says. "There’s very little that Indian women can really hope for if especially if they are from historically disempowered, communities.

This high-profile case also has brought attention to India’s low rates of employment of women. One reason is that they lack safety in their commute and in their workplaces. And yet the rape of a doctor in a hospital, was still shocking, Kaur says, even though a survey from 2015 reported that about three-quarters of doctors reported experiencing violence in their workplace.

Doctors, she says, “"are considered next to God,” while many Indians also identified with the challenges she faced in becoming a doctor, only "to have her life so callously and so brutally taken away from her."

NSB

Bangladesh floods leave 23 dead, 5.7 million people affected (Reuters)

Reuters [8/26/2024 11:58 AM, Ruma Paul, 42991K, Negative]
The death toll from devastating floods caused by relentless monsoon rain and overflowing rivers in Bangladesh has risen to 23, with around 1.24 million families stranded across 11 districts, officials said on Monday.

As floodwaters recede slowly, many of the 5.7 million affected people remain isolated and in urgent need of food, clean water, medicine and dry clothes, above all in remote areas where blocked roads have hindered rescue and relief efforts.

The Bangladesh Meteorological Department said that flood conditions could persist if the monsoon rains continued, as water levels were receding very slowly.

Around 470,000 people have taken refuge in 3,500 shelters in the flood-hit districts, where around 650 medical teams are on the ground to provide treatment, with the army, air force, navy, and the South Asian country’s border guard assisting in rescue and relief operations, authorities said.

Vast areas of land are submerged, posing a significant threat to crops if the floodwaters linger for an extended period, agriculture ministry officials said.

An analysis in 2015 by the World Bank Institute estimated that 3.5 million people in Bangladesh, one of the world’s most climate-vulnerable countries, were at risk of annual river flooding. Scientists attribute the exacerbation of such catastrophic events to climate change.

"Countries like Bangladesh with negligible emissions and whose people have shown super resilience deserve immediate funds to address the impacts of climate change and frequent disasters," said Farah Kabir, director of ActionAid Bangladesh.

"We need to recover from the losses and damage we have faced, as well as build resilience to future impacts and take on green development pathways."

In one of the worst-hit districts, Noakhali, 56-year-old Shukuri Begum lost her home as it was swept into a pond by the floodwaters, according to ActionAid. Terrified, she fled with her grandchildren to a neighbour’s house, but couldn’t stay there long as it was no longer safe.

"I have a son with physical disabilities, and we couldn’t bring him with us. We had to stack beds and leave him on top, hoping he would be safe. I don’t know what’s waiting for us," ActionAid quoted her as saying.

Disinformation About Attacks on Minorities Threaten Stabilization Efforts in Bangladesh (The Diplomat)

The Diplomat [8/26/2024 7:44 AM, Nazneen Mohsina and Roshni Kapur, 1156K, Negative]
Following the resignation of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, a wave of disinformation claiming that Bangladesh’s religious minorities, i.e. mainly its Hindus, are being targeted has been propagated by Hasina’s supporters and sections of India’s Hindu right-wing.

False narratives about the alleged “genocide” of the Hindu community in Bangladesh, which are often accompanied by doctored footage, have gained traction across mainstream and social media platforms. They have heightened fears among minority communities. Fact-checkers have identified numerous instances of old images and unverified claims circulating online, with much of the fake news traced back to bots and trolls originating in India.

The disinformation campaign not only aims to distort perceptions about Bangladesh’s internal affairs but also intersects with broader geopolitical and ideological battles. The portrayal and characterization of the interim government, alongside the ascent of Dr. Muhammad Yunus, as a harbinger of chaos and religious persecution, risks exacerbating regional tensions and the fragile peace between Bangladesh and India. Relations between the two countries have further deteriorated after New Delhi allowed Hasina to stay temporarily in India until she receives asylum.

Additionally, the misinformation about the attacks on Bangladesh’s Hindus has the potential to inflame communal tensions within India, contributing to an increasingly volatile regional atmosphere.

Divergent Reactions

Hasina’s ouster and the subsequent establishment of an interim government under Yunus have elicited complex and varied responses both within Bangladesh and internationally. Domestically, the transition has triggered a mix of relief and apprehension, reflecting the polarized nature of Bangladeshi politics. While some view Yunus as a beacon of reform and a potential stabilizing force, others are skeptical of his ability to manage the country’s deep-seated political divisions and economic challenges. There are a few who even consider him a U.S. stooge.

Internationally, reactions have been similarly divided. Many Western nations have expressed cautious optimism about the interim government’s capability to foster democratic reforms and restore stability. In India, however, the reaction has been notably more charged, particularly among the Hindu right, which has long viewed Bangladesh through a communal prism. New Delhi seems to perceive the fall of Hasina — a leader often seen as aligned with Indian interests — as a strategic loss.

Hindus comprise around 8 percent of Bangladesh’s nearly 170 million population. Hasina’s party, the Awami League (AL), known for its secular and pro-India stance, has traditionally portrayed itself as a protector of Hindu interests in Bangladesh, though the ground reality often differed. This dynamic resulted in India’s Hindu right-wing viewing AL’s political fortunes as directly impacting the safety and status of Hindus in Bangladesh. This perception fuels much of the current disinformation campaigns, as the Indian right-wing seeks to protect what it perceives as its geopolitical and ideological interests.

Coordinated and Multipronged Propaganda Campaign

The disinformation campaign has relied heavily on several false narratives, each designed to stoke fears, deepen divisions, and undermine efforts to stabilize the country at a time when the situation on the ground remains volatile. Some of these claims include the ongoing “genocide” of Bangladeshi Hindus and the involvement of foreign actors in the student movement.

Some Indian media outlets have reported such stories with sensationalist headlines such as “Hindus slaughtered in Bangladesh, over one crore refugees may enter West Bengal: Suvendu Adhikari.” Many of these claims are posted on social media with hashtags such as #HindusAreNotSafeinBangladesh, #Hindus, #SaveHindusinBangladesh, #AllEyesOnBangladeshiHindus, #HelpBangladeshiHindus, and #HindusUnderAttack.

While some Indian/Hindu groups may have legitimate concerns about the plight of Bangladeshi Hindus following the surge in attacks across the country, much of this exaggerated and sensationalized coverage of the unfolding developments appears to be an attempt to fuel ethno-nationalist sentiments to reiterate the trope that Hindus are a besieged community and justify their continuous otherization of certain groups, particularly Muslims, within India.

Tropes of the involvement of a “third force” and foreign actors were also circulating at the height of the student demonstrations. DW’s Director for Asia Debarati Guha said in an interview that a “third force” was involved in the protests. Awami League leaders, including Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, were peddling the narrative that “some foreign intelligence element” was involved in the demonstrations without providing concrete evidence. For these groups, the political change is a “coup” or “anti-India conspiracy” that was hatched in collaboration with Pakistan and China.

The protest movement in Bangladesh was a bottom-up, secular, student-led, and student-owned expression of power following years of political, legal, and economic grievances. However, vested interests are falsely claiming that political opponents, extremist forces, and/or foreign actors hijacked the protests in a bid to sow distrust, confusion, and division.

Such baseless claims not only mischaracterize the uprising but also undermine its agency. The protests evolved into a mass mobilization that saw an awakening of the public to engage in nonviolent activism and mount pressure on the Hasina administration to resign.

While many claims of attacks on Hindus are fake or exaggerated, it is also true that minority communities, their houses, places of worship, and businesses have been vandalized amid the breakdown in law and order.

It’s not uncommon for chaos and instability to ensue following the sudden ouster of a regime and when there is a political vacuum. Many police officers went into hiding over fear of reprisals due to their heavy-handed handling of the demonstrations. Accordingly, the attacks on minorities seem motivated by political rather than communal factors, given that those affiliated with the AL, even in the most vague sense, have been the most affected.

According to the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, Oikya Parishad, there have been “205 incidents of persecution” across 52 districts. However, the exact figures and motivations for the deadly violence have been hard to ascertain.

There have also been concerted efforts to protect minority communities from further attacks. The caretaker regime has condemned the violence, and locals have volunteered to protect minority neighborhoods and places of worship.

The sensationalized depiction of violence against Hindus in Bangladesh exacerbates communal fears and contributes to a volatile atmosphere. This environment not only amplifies anxiety but also creates conditions conducive to actual violence. Ultimately, these narratives divert attention from the actual sources of communal discord and protect entrenched political interests.

The widespread propaganda risks stoking further tensions and fear as Bangladesh tries to recover from the trauma and instability that unfolded during the student-led protests. It will not only discredit the new caretaker government but also the country’s efforts to restore law and order following Hasina’s exit.

Hasina benefited from India’s political patronage, with New Delhi prioritizing its security and economic interests over concerns about democratic backsliding under her government. However, India’s unwavering backing of Hasina has negatively impacted its regional standing. Her departure from the political arena, coupled with the disinformation campaign by some Indian groups, is likely to intensify anti-Indian sentiments in Bangladesh and reaffirm the narrative that New Delhi is seeking to destabilize its neighbor.

The ongoing disinformation campaign, especially propaganda efforts spearheaded by some Hindutva groups in India, risks exacerbating regional tensions and undermining the efforts of Bangladesh’s caretaker government to stabilize the country. The campaigns not only misrepresent the situation on the ground but also fuel communal fears and political instability, posing significant risks to regional peace and security.

Sri Lanka’s Dissanayake a strong contender for president with his alliance’s focus on working class (AP)

AP [8/27/2024 3:59 AM, Krishan Francis and Bharatha Mallawarachi, 456K, Neutral]
A political alliance centered on the working class has emerged as a strong contender in Sri Lanka’s presidential race, announcing itself to be the agent of change that millions of people called for when an unprecedented economic crisis led to disillusionment with traditional political parties.

Anura Kumara Dissanayake, leader of National People’s Power alliance and its presidential candidate, says he’s serving those who were part of public protests that ousted then-President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022. Protesters blamed Rajapaksa for an economic collapse that resulted in severe shortage of essentials such as fuel, cooking gas, medicines and food.

“The people of our country have a great expectation for a change” Dissanayake told The Associated Press. “They wanted a change and we are the agents of that change. All the other candidates are the agents of the old, failed, traditional system.”

Unsustainable debt, poorly timed tax cuts, ill-planned import bans, economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the government’s insistence on spending scarce foreign reserves to prop up the country’s currency, the rupee, led to the economic collapse in 2022.

Hundreds of thousands held street protests and took control of vital buildings such as the president’s office and prime minister’s office. Rajapaksa fled from his official residence minutes before irate protesters stormed in. He later fled overseas and resigned.

Current President Ranil Wickremesinghe was elected by a majority vote from Rajapaksa backers in Parliament to cover the remainder of the term. Critics say the Rajapaksa family, many of whom held different posts in the government before the ouster, received Wickremesinghe’s protection in return for their support for laws passed by him through Parliament. People were angry about corruption, nepotism and economic mismanagement that the powerful family fostered.

Dissanayake says the people’s wishes for a change were not realized because the protesters did not have a plan beyond ousting the president and weren’t equipped to take charge. Wickremesinghe sent police to disperse them soon after he took charge.

Wickremesinghe negotiated a bailout package with the International Monetary Fund. In the two years since, inflation dropped from 70% to around 5% under his administration. Interest rates came down, the rupee rebounded and foreign currency reserves have increased. Creditor countries such as India, Japan and France have agreed to defer debt repayments until 2028, giving the island nation space to rebuild its economy.

But professionals and businesses complain of higher taxes, and all people are affected by the high cost of living. The system overhaul people expected has not been realized and critics say economic recovery means little under a corrupt system with no accountability.

Dissanayake says his administration can be the change people want: a sound economy in a corruption-free society.

NPP is a political movement made up of 21 different groups including political parties, youth groups, women’s groups, trade unions and other civil society groups. Dissanayake’s original party is the People’s Liberation Front, which is the key force behind the NPP coalition.

Dissanayake says despite his party’s long-held policy of nationalizing the country’s resources, they accept economic freedom and foreign trade. He plans to uphold the agreement with the IMF while his administration negotiates changes to ease the burden on the public.

“We can’t come out from the existing IMF program because we entered into the IMF program only after the country was financially collapsed. We believe there could have been another alternative. But now all the bilateral and multi-lateral agreements have been placed inside the IMF basket,” Dissanayake said.

“More attention should be paid to the hardships faced by the people when moving forward with the IMF program,” he said.

Dissanayake said that his administration will not seek to punish anyone accused of human rights violations and war crimes during Sri Lanka’s brutal 26-year civil war.

He said he would instead focus on investigating alleged human rights violations and seeking an agreement with the victims’ families, he said. Both government troops and separatist Tamil Tiger rebels were accused of grave human rights violations during the war that led to the United Nations human rights council calling for investigations and prosecutions.

“On the question of accountability, it should not be in a way to take revenge, not in a way to accuse someone, but only to find out the truth,” Dissanayake said. “Even the victims do not expect anyone to be punished. They only want to know what happened.”

The People’s Liberation Front — which has waged two bloody insurrections to take over the government in a socialist revolution in 1971 and 1987-89 that killed tens of thousands — backed a military solution to the civil war that ended in 2009.

Whichever candidate wins the presidency will have an intricate geopolitical balance to maintain between China and India, both of which hold Sri Lankan debt and are vying for control in the region. While China is economically secure, Sri Lanka is physically closer to India.

Dissanayake says his government will handle the geopolitical rivalry with utmost care.

Sri Lanka’s presidential election will take place Sept. 21. A record 39 candidates were approved to run, though one candidate died since.

Wickremesinghe is also running, largely on public approval for his economic reform plan.

The more reliable opinion polls have, until recently, put Dissanayake at a significant lead over his main rivals, said political analyst Jehan Perera. “Regardless of their accuracy, AKD is a viable candidate to win the presidency,” he said, referring to Dissanayake by his initials.

“Those who want change above all will prefer to vote for AKD as he has the least connections with the business and political elites who have been running the country,” he added.

Unprecedented Crossovers in Sri Lanka’s Presidential Race (The Diplomat)

The Diplomat [8/26/2024 1:03 AM, Rathindra Kuruwita, 1156K, Neutral]
Sri Lanka’s political landscape has always been a turbulent one, characterized by shifting allegiances and strategic maneuvering, especially as national elections approach.

As the much-anticipated presidential election on September 21 nears, the country is witnessing an unprecedented wave of political crossovers, reshaping the dynamics among the main candidates.

The scale of these defections, particularly from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), has sparked intense debate about their potential impact on the election’s outcome. With the public’s growing disillusionment with traditional political figures, the upcoming election is set to be a critical moment in Sri Lanka’s political history, raising questions about whether these defections will truly influence the vote or merely underscore the electorate’s frustration with the status quo.

There are 38 candidates in the fray. Four of them, including Anura Kumara Dissanayake representing the National People’s Power (NPP), President Ranil Wickremesinghe contesting as an independent candidate, opposition leader Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), and Namal Rajapaksa of the SLPP, are the main contenders.

Over the last two years, the SLPP has been hemorrhaging MPs. Of the 145 SLPP leaders who won seats in parliament in the 2020 general election, almost 130 crossed over to support President Wickremesinghe, SJB leader Premadasa and the Mawbima Janatha Party (MJP) of businessman Dilith Jayaweera. Most of them — close to 100 MPs joined Wickremesinghe after the election was officially announced in late July 2024. The SJB and the NPP have not been affected by large-scale crossovers.

The million-dollar question is whether the 100 SLPP MPs who joined Wickremesinghe have brought with them significant votes.

In the 2020 election, the SLPP obtained over 6.85 million votes but the popularity of the party has plummeted since. Most Sri Lankans blame the Rajapaksas, the family that controls the SLPP, for the current economic crisis. The consensus in Sri Lankan political circles is that the overwhelming majority of those who voted for the SLPP have moved to the NPP, Wickremesinghe and SJB. The people who would vote for the SLPP now probably are hardcore Rajapaksa loyalists.

The impact of MPs who decided to change their party affiliation is a widely studied topic. There have been many instances around the world where political parties have been destabilized by crossovers.

Closer to home, in 2001, defections caused the collapse of the People’s Alliance government led by then-President Chandrika Bandaranaike, a little over a year after her alliance won a closely fought parliamentary election. Her rival, United National Party’s (UNP) Ranil Wickremesinghe won the 2001 election.

A few years later, the UNP suffered a serious setback when 17 of its MPs joined Mahinda Rajapaksa. These defections hurt the party’s reputation. Looking superficially at these two examples from recent Sri Lankan political history, one can conclude that the defections adversely affected the SLPP, and that the massive defections from the SLPP in recent years, might boost Wickremesinghe’s electoral performance.

However, there are significant differences between the abovementioned occasions and the current moment.

First of all, these defections would have only a marginal impact on the SLPP, which is a party by the Rajapaksas for the Rajapaksas. Of course, the defection of close to 100 MPs would have an impact on the morale of the SLPP, and of the SLPP organizational structures that have been weakened by the defections. However, even if the 100 MPs remained with the party, the SLPP would have come in fourth.

Poll surveys dating from 2023, as well as those involved in measuring public sentiment have placed the SLPP as the least favorite mainstream political party. Most Sri Lankans see the Rajapaksas as corrupt and directly responsible for the 2022 economic crisis. The overwhelming majority of the SLPP vote has split between the NPP and the SJB, with most SLPP voters shifting support to the former.

Even before the defection of the MPs, SLPP was polling at about 8 percent. Those who remain with the SLPP are die-hard Rajapaksa loyalists, who would vote for anyone from the Rajapaksa family. It is unlikely that the defecting MPs would be taking a chunk of the remaining SLPP votes with them. Their support won’t bring in millions of votes to Wickremesinghe.

The other difference is that in 2001 and 2007, the defecting MPs joined a party that was bound to win. In July 2001, the LTTE attacked the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA). Most Sri Lankans blamed Chandrika Bandaranaike government for the lapse in security. Following the attack, Sri Lanka’s GDP growth was at a negative 1.4 percent, the first time the country saw negative growth since independence.

In the circumstances, the UNP was seen as the obvious replacement. In 2007, the UNP dissidents joined Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was at the height of his power. The Sri Lankan Army was steadily defeating the LTTE and the overwhelming majority of Sri Lankans were behind the war effort. The UNP was losing ground politically and it was universally acknowledged that the party would be decimated in the coming elections. These predictions proved correct. Unlike in 2001 and 2007, when defecting MPs joined a party poised to win, the current defectors are rallying behind a candidate who is not seen as the obvious next choice.

The upcoming presidential election in Sri Lanka will serve as a litmus test for the country’s political landscape, marked by unprecedented crossovers and shifting allegiances. While these defections have undoubtedly affected the SLPP and boosted Wickremesinghe’s camp, they may not translate into significant electoral gains. The erosion of public trust in the SLPP, primarily due to the Rajapaksas’ perceived role in the economic crisis, suggests that the party’s core support base has dwindled to a small, yet loyal, faction.

The larger question remains whether the defectors can sway enough votes to make a meaningful difference in the election. Wickremesinghe’s lack of popularity, as evidenced by the low turnout at rallies organized by these defectors, indicates that many voters may be skeptical of politicians who switch sides for personal gain. This skepticism is further amplified by the widespread criticism on social media, where the electorate voices its frustration with political horse-trading.

As the election approaches, the true impact of these defections will be revealed. Will they bolster Wickremesinghe’s campaign, or will they simply highlight the public’s disillusionment with the existing political order? In any case, the upcoming election promises to be a pivotal moment in Sri Lanka’s political journey, with the potential to reshape the country’s future in profound ways.

Central Asia

Moscow Court Sentences Ukrainian Ex-Envoy To Kazakhstan In Absentia (Radio Free Europe)

Radio Free Europe [8/27/2024 5:22 AM, Staff, 1530K, Negative]
The Basmanny district court in Russia sentenced former Ukrainian Ambassador to Kazakhstan Petro Vrublevskiy in absentia to six years in prison on August 26 on a charge of inciting ethnic hatred.

Earlier this year, Russian authorities issued an arrest warrant for Vrublevskiy and placed him on the country’s registry of terrorists and extremists.

Vrublevskiy found himself at the center of a scandal in August 2022 -- about six months after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine -- after he said in an interview with noted Kazakh blogger Dias Kuzairov that "the more Russians we kill now, the fewer of them our children will have to kill in the future."

Moscow and Russian organizations in Kazakhstan then demanded that Astana expel the diplomat for his controversial statement, but Kazakh authorities refused, though they did ask Kyiv to replace him.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in early October 2022 that Moscow was "outraged" by the fact that Vrublevskiy remained in Kazakhstan, adding that the Kazakh ambassador to Russia had been summoned over the issue.

In response, the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said that the tone of Moscow’s request to expel the Ukrainian ambassador was "dissonant to the character of the allied mutual ties between Kazakhstan and Russia as equal strategic partners."

The Kazakh side also said at the time that Astana and Kyiv have a "full understanding" of the situation and that a decision on the diplomat leaving Kazakhstan would be made solely by Kyiv.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy sacked Vrublevskiy in mid-October 2022.

The Kazakh government under President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev has been trying to juggle its good ties with Ukraine, its Western allies, and Russia since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine.

While not openly condemning Russia’s aggression, Toqaev has publicly stated that his country would not recognize Russian-occupied entities in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

Kazakh businesses last year set up so called "invincibility" yurts (traditional nomadic felt tents) in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, and several other Ukrainian cities, to provide local residents with food, tea, warmth, and the possibility of charging electronic devices.

Kyrgyz Ex-Customs Official Matraimov’s Pretrial Detention Extended (Radio Free Europe)

Radio Free Europe [8/26/2024 5:08 AM, Staff, 1530K, Negative]
The Birinchi Mai district court in Bishkek told RFE/RL on August 26 that it had extended until at least October 26 the pretrial detention of Raimbek Matraimov, the former deputy chief of Kyrgyzstan’s Customs Service who was at the center of a high-profile corruption scandal involving the funneling of close to $1 billion out of the country.

Matraimov and three of his brothers -- Tilek, Ruslan, and Islambek -- were extradited to Kyrgyzstan in March from Azerbaijan, where they were in hiding.

Raimbek, the most notorious of the brothers, was charged with money laundering and the abduction and illegal incarceration of unnamed individuals as part of the 2020-21 corruption scandal.

In February 2021, a Bishkek court ordered pretrial custody for Matraimov in connection with the corruption charges. He received a mitigated sentence that involved fines amounting to just a few thousand dollars but no jail time.

The court justified the move by saying that Matraimov had paid back around $24 million that disappeared through corruption schemes he oversaw.

In November last year, the chairman of the state security service, Kamchybek Tashiev, accused Matraimov and crime boss Kamchy Kolbaev (aka Kamchybek Asanbek), who was added by Washington to a list of major global drug-trafficking suspects in 2011, of "forming a mafia in Kyrgyzstan."

Matraimov left Kyrgyzstan in October 2023 after Kolbaev was killed in a special security operation in Bishkek. In January, the Kyrgyz Interior Ministry said Matraimov was added to the wanted list of Kyrgyzstan’s State Committee for National Security.

In 2019, an investigation by RFE/RL, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, and Kloop implicated Matraimov in a corruption scheme involving the transfer of hundreds of millions of dollars out of Kyrgyzstan.

In March 2024, a court in neighboring Uzbekistan sentenced a close associate of Kolbaev, influential Uzbek crime boss Salim Abduvaliev, to six years in prison on charges of illegally possessing and transporting arms and explosives.

Abduvaliev is believed to have ties with top Uzbek officials and leaders of the so-called Brothers’ Circle, a Eurasian drug-trafficking network that included Kolbaev.

Turkmenistan’s Crackdown On Abortion Puts Lives At Risk, Doctors Warn (Radio Free Europe)

Radio Free Europe [8/27/2024 4:16 AM, Farangis Najibullah, 235K, Negative]
Medical sources in Turkmenistan say officials continue to limit women’s access to abortion, threatening doctors who perform them and denying women a consultation to discuss their options for unwanted pregnancies.

Several health-care workers in Turkmenistan told RFE/RL on condition of anonymity that doctors were warned that performing an abortion will cost them their license, even if the procedure was carried out within the limits specified by law.

“After getting warnings from the Health Ministry and law enforcement agencies, doctors are immediately turning away women who come to inquire about an abortion. They are not even being given doctor’s appointments,” an Ashgabat physician said on August 20.

Health-care workers said doctors are only allowed to terminate a pregnancy when the fetus shows no signs of life inside the womb. Authorities also strictly control how doctors prescribe abortion pills to patients.

The medics said the clampdown on abortion is forcing women to resort to unsafe options, putting their lives at risk. It has also paved a way for bribery as some medics continue to carry out abortions secretly for large sums of money.

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity fearing reprisals by the authoritarian government.

RFE/RL cannot independently verify the claims. Turkmen officials did not respond to our requests for comment.

Turkmenistan unveiled a law in 2022 that permits terminating a pregnancy without a medical reason within the first five weeks. Previously, the period during which women were allowed to terminate an unwanted pregnancy without a health reason was 12 weeks.

The law on the Protection of Public Health also stipulates that terminating a pregnancy could be allowed at up to 22 weeks for “social” or “medical” grounds if the “medical advisory commission” concludes that such reasons are applicable.

The law doesn’t explain the “medical and social” reasons or the makeup of the advisory commission. After 22 weeks of gestation, the pregnancy can only be terminated for health reasons based on the decision of a specially established council of doctors, the law says.

In reality, however, “authorities don’t even take into consideration the exemptions that the law allows,” a Turkmen doctor told RFE/RL.

The law had sparked concern among medics who said the five-week deadline is too short because many women don’t even know at this point that they are pregnant.

The law was adopted in May 2015, but it was not made public or enforced until seven years later. Authorities have not publicly given any reason for their decision to limit abortions.

Dangerous Methods

The restrictions have triggered a spike in illegal abortions, bribery, and the use of unsafe methods by women desperate to end their unwanted pregnancies.

According to RFE/RL sources, some gynecologists in Ashgabat charge between $500 and $1,000 for a clandestine abortion. That is higher than the average monthly salary in Turkmenistan.

In the cities of Turkmenbashi and Balkanabat in Balkan Province, the amount of the bribe varies, depending on how advanced the pregnancy is.

“In the first two months, doctors charge [the equivalent of] $1,430. However, the termination of advanced pregnancies -- from three months and beyond -- can cost up to [the equivalent of] $14,300,” said a doctor from the Balkan region.

Although most secret abortions take place in hospitals, the patients are deprived of post-abortion care and cannot defend their rights or ask for any guarantees in case of complications.

The women who can’t afford bribes often risk exceptionally dangerous methods, said an obstetrician from Ashgabat.

“Some women use a potassium permanganate douche for several hours to try to end their pregnancy. This is extremely dangerous,” the doctor said. “There were cases that some pregnant women used high doses of medications that induce periods.”

‘The Poor Suffer Most’

The Progres Foundation, a U.S.-based NGO that supports progressive initiatives in Turkmenistan, says impoverished women with limited resources and education suffer the most.

The foundation, which brings together activists and experts, has called for adequate access to safe abortions and post-abortion services in Turkmenistan.

The NGO also highlights a dire need in the country for women to have improved access to contraceptive pills, sexual and reproductive health services, and information including family planning, particularly in rural areas.

Only 47 percent of women of a fertile age in Turkmenistan have access to modern contraceptives, according to the group. It also raised concerns about a lack of training of Turkmen health workers on women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights.

The law on Protection of Public Health allows abortions only in state medical facilities, but according to 2022 official statistics, there were only 95 reproductive health offices and 76 licensed gynecologists to provide abortions in the country, where the number of women of reproductive age is estimated to be about 1.6 million.

According to the country’s Criminal Code, doctors who carry out abortions outside state hospitals or without a legal ground to do so face up to two years of correctional labor. The law also provides for up to two years in prison if the person performing an abortion does not have a license.

Uzbekistan’s Tightrope Between Individual Religious Expression and Secular Governance (The Diplomat)

The Diplomat [8/26/2024 3:04 PM, Niginakhon Saida, 1198K, Neutral]
In the sweltering midday heat of early August, 41-year-old Manzuna Abdupattayeva, a single mother, was on her way to a local grocery store in Zangiota District of Tashkent region to pick up some bread and dairy products when she was unexpectedly stopped by police officers who asked her to present her identification.

Dressed in a headscarf and wearing a facemask, she calmly explained that she works at a nearby furniture factory where the air is filled with dust, and due to her allergies, she often keeps the mask on. She further apologized, stating that in her hurry to run errands, she had forgotten to remove the mask.

Unable to provide identification or a medical certificate to confirm her condition, Abdupattayeva found herself in a legal bind. Days later, she appeared in court facing charges under Article 184.4 of the Administrative Code, which penalizes individuals for appearing in public places in a way that does not allow for personal identification. The law stipulates a fine ranging from $270 to $540.

During the hearing, the judge took into account Abdupattayeva’s circumstances – her status as a single mother, her challenging socioeconomic situation, and her clean legal record. In light of these factors, the judge opted for leniency, reducing her fine to $135.

In less than a year, nearly 800 people have been charged under the same law.

Uzbekistan is a Muslim majority nation with a population exceeding 37 million. Officially, 94 percent of people in Uzbekistan follow Islam. This figure, however, needs a closer re-examination. Many in Uzbekistan are culturally Muslim; they associate with Islamic traditions and identity, but they may not actively practice the faith. Tashkent takes immense pride in the country’s Islamic heritage, which extends far beyond the Soviet colonial era and plays a crucial role in the country’s nation-building efforts. While striving to build a secular state aligned with international legal standards, the government enforces strict controls over the narrative and practice of religion.

In 2021, Tashkent abolished the administrative penalty for wearing “prayer clothes” in public due to the lack of a clear definition of such attire, rendering Article 184.1 of the Administrative Code ineffective. Despite this immediate change, it took an additional two years for the provision to be formally removed from the code. Instead, the Senate approved Article 184.4, which addresses situations where personal identification might be obstructed while in public. The article includes exceptions for face coverings , such as wearing a medical mask, provided a citizen has a certificate confirming the necessity; wearing headgear to ensure safety in traffic or at the workplace and other instances are also allowed by law.

“These new norms do not affect the freedom of belief of our citizens at all. On the contrary, it… only means [that] any social relations are governed on the basis of the Constitution and laws,” said the head of the Senate, Tanzila Narbaeva.

Since then, the number of citizens charged under the article has steadily increased from a dozen cases per month in early 2024 to almost 200 cases in June alone. Most of those charged are women.

“In the database of court decisions, there are a total of 789 cases registered under Article 184.4 of the Administrative Code. In most cases, it was associated with women (rarely with men),” reported Gazeta.uz. It noted that the real number might be a few cases less, as some decisions involving a single defendant were reloaded into the database.

Although specific details are not provided, it’s possible that some of these cases are related to women who cover their face with a mask or niqab, a veil that covers the face except for the eyes, worn according to the individual’s personal religious beliefs.

It is also worth noting that a significant portion of the reported offenses under article 184.4 — 52.7 percent — occurred in Andijan. This high incidence rate may be partly attributed to Andijan being the second most densely populated region in Uzbekistan, with 792,8 people per square kilometer. Additionally, the region’s greater religiosity compared to other parts of the country could be a contributing factor.

Last year, two months prior to the law being approved, Grand Mufti of Uzbekistan Nuriddin Kholiqnazarov called on people for moderation in their Islamic practices, including in their attire and appearance.

“Islam also teaches moderation in clothing. Don’t wear obscene clothes shaming yourself to the whole world. Or don’t wrap yourself in black imitating Arabic (culture). Do not cover areas (of your body) that are not required to be covered,” said the mufti, explaining that in the Hanafi school of jurisprudence followed by the majority of Muslims in Central Asia, women are not required to cover their faces, hands, or feet.

Following his remarks, the official Telegram channel of the Muslims Board of Uzbekistan posted a couple of videos featuring other imams reinforcing the message that women do not need to cover their faces. This message was further echoed by imams at local mosques and then uploaded to their official Telegram channels, in a coordinated campaign to clarify the requirements for modest dress.

The Grand Mufti also urged men to keep their beards groomed.

“[B]oth the companions of our Prophet (peace be upon Him) and the ulema of our school in many of their instructions recommended that the beard should be no longer than one kabza (the width of the palm) and should be kept in order,” he said.

Having studied the court database of the same article applied for men, Kun.uz concluded that growing a “messy (ungroomed) beard” is defined as covering one’s face in a public place to the extent that one cannot be identified.

In May, a 22-year-old man was confronted by police at a local market in Jizzah during a preventive raid aimed at “improving the religious environment.” On August 13, during an open court hearing, the judge found the man guilty under Article 184.4 and imposed a $135 fine.

Several cases involving young men wearing niqabs have garnered significant attention in the local media, sparking public discussion and debate. On June 19, police apprehended a 23-year-old man at Chorsu market for walking around in a black niqab. He was charged with obstructing the duties of internal affairs officers under Articles 194 and 195 of the Criminal Code, as well as violating Article 184.4 of the Administrative Code. The man received a sentence of 15 days of detention and a $270 fine.

Then in July, a 42-year-old man was detained for wearing a hijab and a medical mask, resulting in a seven-day detention and a fine. In August, another young man faced similar punishment under Article 184.4 for wearing a hijab and covering his face with a mask near a children’s playground in Andijan.

The reasons for these men’s behavior remain unknown, while some speculate the cases might have been staged.

These developments highlight two key trends. In “New Uzbekistan,” under President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s more relaxed governance, there has been a noticeable increase in individuals more actively adhering to Islamic norms, pushing the norms sometimes in ways that differ from official state interpretation. However, these developments also demonstrate that Tashkent is determined to maintain a singular interpretation of Islam in public life and uphold the country’s secular nature. This essentially signals to the public that practicing one’s religion is best kept within the private sphere.

A small tax on the super-rich could raise big revenue in the Caucasus, Central Asia – report (EurasiaNet)

EurasiaNet [8/26/2024 4:14 PM, Staff, 57.6K, Neutral]
A recent study published by an advocacy group finds that imposing a modest tax on top earners can generate hundreds of millions of dollars in much needed revenue for countries in the Caucasus and Central Asia. The added revenue could go a long way in addressing social and economic challenges connected with global warming and climate change, the study adds.

The working paper, titled Taxing extreme wealth: What countries around the world could gain from progressive wealth taxes, contends that a comparatively small tax paid by the top 0.5 percent of income earners in every country around the globe could collectively raise more than $2 trillion. The paper, published by the UK-based Tax Justice Network (TJN), uses the example of Spain’s wealth tax as the basis for its global model of super-rich taxation.

“Global challenges, in particular the climate crisis, inequality, and the cost-of-living crisis come along with substantial financial needs,” the report states. “A moderate, progressive wealth tax could help countries to raise these urgently needed funds. The proposed tax would seek a reasonable contribution from the top 0.5 percent wealthiest individuals in each country, who, on average, possess more than 25 per cent of a society’s total wealth.”

Under the TJN plan, the super-rich in every nation would pay taxes on assets above a pre-determined threshold, calculated on a sliding scale ranging from 1.7 percent to 3.5 percent. The plan sets a high net-worth threshold to ensure that the middle class is not punished by the tax.

According to the working paper’s estimates, wealthier states of the Caucasus and Central Asia could raise hundreds of millions of dollars in added revenue. In Kazakhstan, the richest state in the two regions, over 61,000 citizens would be eligible to pay the wealth tax. The minimum asset threshold for those facing the tax in Kazakhstan would be $819,381. TJN’s estimate, adjusted for existing taxes and other factors, indicates that its proposed wealth tax could generate an additional $3.7 billion in revenue for the Kazakh government. Those funds could have come in handy to speed recovery efforts for areas of Kazakhstan that were devastated by flooding this spring. Residents of at least one hard-hit area staged protests in May over what they contended was inadequate government assistance.

Elsewhere, the introduction of the TJN plan could generate roughly $695 million in added revenue for the Uzbek government, which has been running up big deficits of late as it strives to retool the country’s economy. Under the TJN formula, the Caucasus’ richest state, Azerbaijan, could add more than $241 million to its state coffers. The poorest nation in the two regions, Tajikistan, could generate about $54 million.

The working paper makes an argument that the super-rich should feel a moral obligation to help defray the consequences of global warming. “The wealthiest citizens bear more responsibility for carbon emissions, both due to their more excessive consumption, as well as to their investment habits,” the report states.

TJN does not outline an action plan to secure international adoption of its super-rich taxation proposal. For the proposal to work, the introduction of stringent international transparency rules would be needed, the report acknowledges, urging the creation of a Global Assets Registry. The chances that any such mechanism will come into being in the foreseeable future seem slim to none.

“Existing tax systems offer opportunities for the super-rich to engage in international tax abuse, primarily through the use of secrecy jurisdictions to shield their fortunes,” the report states. “Therefore, the implementation of a moderate, progressive wealth tax must be accompanied by a move towards full beneficial ownership transparency for all types of companies and assets."

Twitter

Afghanistan

Freshta Razbaan
@RazbaanFreshta
[8/26/2024 1:57 PM, 5K followers, 7 retweets, 23 likes]
Three years ago today, on August 26, 2021, as the United States was withdrawing from Afghanistan, a devastating explosion occurred. Thirteen American service members, alongside dozens of Afghan civilians, lost their lives. These brave soldiers didn’t just fall; they sacrificed themselves in an effort to save their Afghan allies, those who had stood with the U.S. through thick and thin. These heroes left behind more than just memories; they bequeathed a legacy of bravery, sacrifice, and loyalty. Their mission, however, remains incomplete. The echoes of their sacrifice resonate today because many of those allies, the faithful partners of the United States, still haven’t reached safety. The mission these soldiers died for isn’t just about withdrawal; it’s about honor, duty, and ensuring that those who believed in the American promise are not left behind. For the United States to truly honor the courageous sacrifice of these 13, it must see through the commitment to bring all allies to safety. Their legacy demands it; their sacrifice compels to finish what they gave their lives for. This isn’t just about closure; it’s about fulfilling a promise made in blood and bravery. Let their sacrifice be the beacon that guides to ensure no ally is left to fend for themselves. The mission they died for isn’t over until every last one of U.S partners is safe. That’s the true tribute to their memory, to their undying spirit of service.

Heather Barr
@heatherbarr1
[8/27/2024 1:49 AM, 62.9K followers, 5 retweets, 5 likes]
Every time you think there’s nothing left for the Taliban to take from women, they find more things to take. Now women’s voices may not be heard outside the home, and they are banned from singing.

Heather Barr
@heatherbarr1
[8/26/2024 12:32 PM, 62.9K followers, 119 retweets, 207 likes]
It’s not a dystopian novel--it’s Afghanistan today. Afghan women’s rights defenders are risking everything to fight for their rights, while the Taliban crackdown deepens every day. Time for the world to do much more to stand with them. https://zantimes.com/2024/08/26/its-not-a-dystopian-novel-its-afghanistan-today/…

Sara Wahedi
@SaraWahedi
[8/26/2024 12:02 PM, 91.6K followers, 8.6K retweets, 30K likes]
We have reached a critical tipping point. The Taliban has now banned any interviews or questions from journalists on women and girls’ education. They are making it clear – women and girls will not return. We warned this day would come. The world didn’t listen.

Sara Wahedi
@SaraWahedi
[8/26/2024 12:45 PM, 91.6K followers, 417 retweets, 2.9K likes]
Every single country. Every single news channel. Every diplomatic envoy. Every NGO working in Afghanistan. United. Speak out. Hold your governments accountable. Yes, we are at the tipping point.

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[8/27/2024 2:22 AM, 231.6K followers, 29 retweets, 82 likes]
Afghan women are responding to the Taliban’s ban on women speaking in public by launching a campaign and singing out loudly.

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[8/26/2024 11:43 PM, 231.6K followers, 13 retweets, likes]
After all the Taliban’s bans, a ban on women breathing must be in the pipeline

Habib Khan
@HabibKhanT
[8/26/2024 10:09 PM, 231.6K followers, 5 retweets, 22 likes]
The Taliban flogged 12 people, including women, in Zabul province for various crimes, including sexual relations outside of marriage, which is criminalized under their laws. The Supreme Court sentenced them to 20 to 39 lashes and prison terms ranging from one to six years.

Lynne O’Donnell
@lynnekodonnell
[8/26/2024 11:11 AM, 27.3K followers, 28 retweets, 60 likes]
Normalising the extremes of any behaviour threatens everything in between. As it is with women’s rights & behaviour in #Afghanistan, where a new normal is threatening the hard-won gains of #women across the globe https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/article/2024/aug/26/taliban-bar-on-afghan-women-speaking-in-public-un-afghanistan?CMP=share_btn_url

Lynne O’Donnell
@lynnekodonnell
[8/26/2024 7:41 AM, 27.3K followers]
Doha Debates podcast explores 20 years of failed #Afghanistan negotiations @ForeignPolicy https://www.gulf-times.com/article/689293/qatar/doha-debates-podcast-explores-20-years-of-failed-afghanistan-negotiations

Pakistan

Amnesty International South Asia, Regional Office
@amnestysasia
[8/26/2024 3:23 AM, 91.2K followers, 1.2K retweets, 2.2K likes]
PAKISTAN: Authorities in Pakistan urged to be transparent about internet disruptions and surveillance tech.@AmnestyTech noted today: “The opacity of the Pakistani authorities regarding the use of monitoring and surveillance technologies that block content, slow down and control internet speeds is an alarming concern. Time and again, the use of such technologies, including national firewalls, has proven to be incompatible with human rights. Read more: https://amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/08/pakistan-authorities-must-be-transparent-about-internet-disruptions-and-surveillance-tech

Madiha Afzal
@MadihaAfzal
[8/26/2024 1:39 PM, 42.9K followers, 11 retweets, 28 likes]
“The armed men checked identity documents, reportedly singling out those from Punjab to be shot, before setting the vehicles alight, officials alleged.” Horrific. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w671eng9go

Lynne O’Donnell
@lynnekodonnell
[8/26/2024 7:70 AM, 27.3K followers]
Gunmen kill more than 35 in multiple attacks in southwestern #Pakistan https://www.rawstory.com/gunmen-more-than-35-in-multiple-in-southwestern-pakistan/

India

Narendra Modi
@narendramodi
[8/26/2024 12:21 PM, 101.3M followers, 7K retweets, 37K likes]
Spoke to @POTUS @JoeBiden on phone today. We had a detailed exchange of views on various regional and global issues, including the situation in Ukraine. I reiterated India’s full support for early return of peace and stability. We also discussed the situation in Bangladesh and stressed on the need for early restoration of normalcy, and ensuring the safety and security of minorities, especially Hindus, in Bangladesh.

Jon Danilowicz
@JonFDanilowicz
[8/26/2024 8:27 AM, 7.4K followers, 23 retweets, 78 likes]
It is noteworthy that the U.S. and Indian readouts of the call between @POTUS and @narendramodi differed so dramatically on the #Bangladesh issue. It would be useful to get clarification from the @whitehouse on this discrepancy. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/08/26/readout-of-president-joe-bidens-call-with-prime-minister-narendra-modi-of-india-2/

Derek J. Grossman
@DerekJGrossman
[8/26/2024 1:46 PM, 91.9K followers, 66 retweets, 350 likes]
Wondering if Modi had the audacity to blame Biden for US-inspired coup against Hasina and AL in Bangladesh, per the unfounded conspiracy theories and allegations of most Indians on this platform. Highly doubt it! US-India strategic ties are strong. Cope.

NSB

Awami League
@albd1971
[8/26/2024 5:26 AM, 645.9K followers, 83 retweets, 358 likes]
Awami League president #SheikhHasina has urged countrymen to stand beside the flood-affected people. She also called upon leaders, activists, and supporters of #AwamiLeague and its front and associate bodies and people of different sociocultural backgrounds and professions to unite to support the flood victims. Expressing deep concerns over the recent floods, Sheikh Hasina said that the flood has suddenly taken a serious turn in some south-eastern districts of the country. #BangladeshFlood #BangladeshCrisis

Brahma Chellaney
@Chellaney
[8/26/2024 2:38 PM, 265.5K followers, 181 retweets, 445 likes]
There are around 750 U.S. military bases spread across at least 80 countries but none in the Bay of Bengal. This may explain U.S. interest in Bangladesh, which, according to this paper, "could be a key logistics node" and basing anchor for the U.S. Navy.

Sabria Chowdhury Balland
@sabriaballand
[8/27/2024 1:06 AM, 6.9K followers, 4 retweets, 4 likes]
The Interim Government has been in existence for 2 weeks. It has more that 15 years worth of total destruction of every institution in #Bangladesh to fix. But, @bdbnp78 wants a “roadmap” to the election right now. Where was the BNP when students were being slaughtered? Let’s not forget that at that time, the same person who is now relentlessly wanting election news, Mirza Fakhrul, said that they give “moral support” to the students. “Moral support” to young people who were risking their lives to fight fascism. Now, the “moral support” group is impatient thinking it will automatically get power. Anyone who has not understood that Bangladesh 2.0 will not be a tennis ball between two dynasties has understood nothing of the July Revolution. Reminder: the BNP has never joined in the #IndiaOut & #BoycottIndia movements. Let’s ask ourselves why. @trahmanbnp We hoped chief adviser would present a roadmap: Mirza Fakhrul https://en.prothomalo.com/bangladesh/politics/wd4t4x3vaw #

Sabria Chowdhury Balland
@sabriaballand
[8/26/2024 9:00 AM, 6.9K followers, 2 retweets, 2 likes]
The movement that toppled Sheikh Hasina is not an Islamist revolution. The students at the forefront of the movement are committed, conscientious patriots who wish to see nothing more than a functional, fair, and free #Bangladesh. They are democrats and they wish to see a truly democratic Bangladesh, as do all Bangladeshis. They are the furthest thing imaginable from Islamists or militants. Neither is Bangladesh an Islamist country nor a hotbed of militancy. Hindus are not in danger in Bangladesh. Minorities are safer there than in India https://theprint.in/opinion/hindus-are-not-in-danger-in-bangladesh-minorities-are-safer-there-than-in-india/2237712/ via @theprintindia

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[8/27/2024 3:02 AM, 109.6K followers, 34 retweets, 34 likes]
President Dr Muizzu Prioritises the Advancement of Human Resources within Government and State Institutions, Says the Vice President https://presidency.gov.mv/Press/Article/31437

The President’s Office, Maldives
@presidencymv
[8/27/2024 3:01 AM, 109.6K followers, 40 retweets, 46 likes]
Vice President @HucenSembe attends the official launching of the Maldives Executive Leadership Programme. The programme entails experience exchange programmes focused on government development and modernisation. The Maldives Executive Leadership Programme is conducted under the Government Experience Exchange Programme (GEEP) of UAE.

Embassy of Nepal, Washington, D.C.
@nepalembassyusa
[8/26/2024 4:38 PM, 3.4K followers, 6 retweets, 19 likes]
The Embassy is closely following up the missing case of Mamta Kafle and expresses its sincere thanks to Manassas Park Police for the progress it has made so far as the case has already moved to the court proceedings.

Embassy of Nepal, Washington, D.C.
@nepalembassyusa
[8/26/2024 4:38 PM, 3.4K followers, 4 likes]
The Embassy also appreciates the members of Nepali Diaspora in the US, media, and all other individuals for their outpouring of sentiment and support to Mamta and her one-year-old daughter.

Ranil Wickremesinghe
@RW_SRILANKA
[8/26/2024 9:45 AM, 322.6K followers, 6 retweets, 38 likes]
Annual Convention of Organization of Professional Associations of Sri Lanka (OPA) https://x.com/i/broadcasts/1OdJrXnowPpKX

Eran Wickramaratne
@EranWick
[8/26/2024 11:44 AM, 69K followers, 5 retweets, 10 likes]
Had a fruitful, cordial and interactive discussion with GMOA ExCo today representing SJB. They presented a 12-point proposal on the development of the health sector, & an 08-point proposal to overcome doctor brain drain. While maintaining the principle that every doctor must have the freedom to decide on their future, we discussed the constraints in increasing the output of doctors, namely, increasing the number of teaching hospitals and the intern training stations. We also discussed SJB proposals to pursue international exchange programmes for medical professionals, and enhancing medical tourism in Sri Lanka.

M U M Ali Sabry
@alisabrypc
[8/26/2024 6:23 AM, 6.3K followers, 12 likes]
Pleased to receive @NachoSAmor, Chief Observer of the EU Election Observation Mission to Sri Lanka 2024 at @MFA_SriLank this afternoon. I assured the support of Sri Lanka to ensure an independent and transparent election process @EUEOMSrilanka2024.

Harsha de Silva
@HarshadeSilvaMP
[8/26/2024 11:48 AM, 356.4K followers, 25 retweets, 162 likes]
Prabashwara,’ Sri Lanka’s 1st humidity & temp-controlled warehouse, is almost a reality despite political & trader resistance. With @sjbsrilanka Govt set to take office, I’m ready to open it, improve produce quality, secure fair prices, & reduce post-harvest losses #agri #lka

Central Asia

MFA Tajikistan
@MOFA_Tajikistan
[8/26/2024 8:02 AM, 4.9K followers, 1 retweet, 5 likes]
Presentation of Tajikistan’s Tourism Opportunities: "Tajikistan Day 2024" https://mfa.tj/en/main/view/15601/presentation-of-tajikistans-tourism-opportunities-tajikistan-day-2024

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[8/26/2024 4:47 PM, 198.2K ollowers, 6 retweets, 25 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev inaugurated the thirteenth "Sharq Taronalari" International Music Festival, which brings together artists from around the world. He emphasized that the festival has become a bridge connecting cultures and strengthening friendship among nations. More than 400 participants from 80 countries have come to #Samarkand to showcase their art.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[8/26/2024 3:16 PM, 198.2K ollowers, 2 retweets, 7 likes]
During his working visit to #Samarkand, President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev also visited the Hazrati Khizr complex, where he honored the memory of the First President, Islam Karimov, by laying flowers at his grave.

Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s Press-service
@president_uz
[8/26/2024 9:40 AM, 198.2K ollowers, 2 retweets, 37 likes]
President Shavkat #Mirziyoyev commenced his working visit to #Samarkand with a visit to the mausoleum of Imam Bukhari. The development of the new complex is intended to honor the legacy of Imam Bukhari and uphold spiritual values. The President reviewed the ongoing construction and underscored the necessity of establishing a modern and secure complex that will serve as a robust spiritual foundation.

Javlon Vakhabov
@JavlonVakhabov
[8/26/2024 4:44 AM, 6K followers, 1 retweet, 2 likes]
Uzbek Prime Minister Abdulla Aripov (@GOVuz) became the highest-ranking foreign leader to visit Afghanistan since the Taliban’s 2021 return to power. The $2.5 billion in trade and investment deals signed between the two sides, just days after the third anniversary of the collapse of the Afghan Republic, illustrate Uzbekistan’s growing bilateral relationship with the Taliban government.

Uzbekistan is expected to send a new ambassador soon. Earlier this year, Taliban officials stated their intention to dispatch an ambassador to Uzbekistan. One of those agreements is a preferential trade deal which, from October 1, will see the cancelation of duties on a number of Afghan products entering Uzbekistan.

Earlier this year, @president_uz Shavkat Mirziyoyev signed a decision outlining new rules and regulations for the Termez International Trade Center area, a free-trade zone in city of Termez on the Afghan-Uzbek border, including the allowing of payments in U.S. dollars, Russian rubles, euros, Chinese yuan, as well as Uzbek som. The decision also paved the way for Afghan and Pakistani citizens to lease and own shops and buildings in the area. In addition, the decision allowed foreign citizens to enter the area without a visa for 15 days.

The Ayritom-Hairatan border post – the site of Afghanistan-Uzbekistan Friendship Bridge – just outside of Termez now operates 24 hours a day, allowing traffic to flow. There is a hope to increase mutual trade to $3 billion. In the January-June 2024 period, trade turnover between Afghanistan and Uzbekistan was $461 million. More details: https://thediplomat.com/2024/08/uzbekistan-forges-ahead-deepening-relations-with-taliban-ruled-afghanistan/

{End of Report}

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