Suspected Taliban kill government mapmaker and merchant in south Afghanistan - Aug 26

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AFP) - Suspected Taliban insurgents have shot dead a government mapmaker and a merchant as the two walked through a city in southern Afghanistan. The gunmen, riding motorcycles, attacked the men on Thursday as they were walking home in Lashkar Gah, the capital of Helmand province.

"The two were killed by armed Taliban on motorbikes," provincial police director Amanullah Khan told AFP. "We have launched a search operation in the area to arrest the perpetrators."

A purported spokesman for the ousted Taliban regime, Abdul Latif Hakimi, claimed responsibility for the attack in a telephone call from an undisclosed location.

He claimed the mapmaker, named as Amanullah, was the acting governor of the province, but the police director said the victim was "just a cartographer, nothing else".

Taliban attacks in the country's south and east have soared ahead of Afghanistan's first legislative elections in decades, to be held on September 18. Nearly 1,000 people have died in political violence so far this year.

India to announce fresh financial assistance to Afghanistan

NEW DELHI, Aug. 26 (Xinhua) -- India will announce a fresh financial aid package to the war-ravaged Afghanistan during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's two-day visit to Kabul, starting from Sunday.

"The prime minister will announce fresh assistance to the reconstruction of Afghanistan, which will take our already extensive developmental assistance to that country to a new level, " India's Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran said Friday.

India is among the top six contributors to Afghanistan's reconstruction. New Delhi has committed over 500 million US dollars as assistance to Kabul since 2002 and is helping it in areas as diverse as infrastructure, education, healthcare and social welfare.

However, this time, Saran said, the focus will be on small developmental projects that would benefit people at the grassroots level, and in the reconstruction of the country at the local community level. Singh will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Afghanistan in the last 29 years.

India wants access to Afghanistan - BBC News, 26 August 2005

India says Pakistan is hindering its attempts to provide assistance to Afghanistan by not allowing it transit access through Pakistani territory. India is forced to despatch people and goods to Afghanistan via Iran, rather than through Pakistan, foreign secretary Shyam Saran said.

He made the allegations ahead of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Afghanistan on Sunday. It will be the first visit of an Indian prime minister in 29 years.

"Part of the difficulty we have in reaching assistance to Afghanistan is because we have to take a rather circuitous route through Iran to get to Afghanistan precisely because we do not have transit as yet through Pakistan," Mr Saran told journalists in Delhi.

He said that Manmohan Singh will announce $50m of new aid while he is in Afghanistan Former Afghan king Zahir Shah will also lay the foundation stone of the new Parliament House in Kabul which will be constructed by India.

"We want Afghanistan to emerge as a democratic, independent, sovereign country fully in mastery of its own destiny," Mr Saran said. India has been a strong supporter of the Northern Alliance, who fought against the Taleban in Afghanistan and are an influential part of the current government.

Since the fall of the Taleban India has increased its diplomatic presence in Afghanistan and stepped up economic assistance. So far it has provided $500m in assistance to Afghanistan, Mr Saran said.

Cost of a safe election in Afghanistan rises - Financial Times, UK 08/25/2005 By Jo Johnson

As Taliban insurgents bent on disrupting the first parliamentary elections in modern Afghanistan's history step up a campaign of terror, western officials in Kabul are taking a crash course in spotting potential suicide bombers.

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (Una-ma), which is helping the Afghan government to hold the vote, is an international organisation that provides its staff with a list of some of the tell-tale signs of the would-be assassin.

Ninety-five per cent of suicide bombers operate alone, according to a poster displayed in Unama's fortified compound in Kabul, and will exhibit behavioural tics that may include wearing sunglasses, appearing either agitated or elated, mumbling and reciting Koranic passages, protecting genitals, being freshly shaved or with short hair, bearing marks on arms and having wires protruding from bulky clothing.

The cost to the international community of securing a free and fair election next month is rising. In a sign of the human resources challenge in Afghanistan, due to years of middle-class flight and the Taliban's hostility to female education, it has fallen to a non-Afghan specialist to take up the challenge of organising the first parliamentary vote. Peter Erben of the centre for transitional and post-conflict governance, who has been seconded to the UN as chief electoral officer, is Danish.

Post-conflict elections are expensive and usually unsustainable without international funding, and Afghanistan's will be no different. Last year's presidential election cost $170m, including the external voting programme for refugees in Iran and Pakistan, compared with the government's annual revenues of $300m.

For the September parliamentary and provincial government polls, the joint election management body has a direct budget of $159m. This figure excludes significant security costs.

Nato, for example, has deployed 2,000 extra troops to join the 8,000 already in the country under the banner of the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf). About 700 more US troops will join the 18,000-strong coalition force. Whereas Nato troops patrol Kabul and the relatively calm northern and western provinces, the US-dominated coalition is focused on the hunt for militants in the south and south-east.

The US military, overstretched by Iraq and keen to share more of the burden with Isaf troops operating under a UN mandate, has lost more soldiers in Afghanistan this year than in any since the Taliban was toppled in 2001. A statement from the Taliban on Tuesday promising the jihad against foreign forces and the Afghan government would not target civilians at polling stations was little comfort.

A top international official who specialises in security issues distinguishes between the flashpoints in the northern belt, where feudal warlords with illegal militias, who tend to be hostile to the Taliban, hinder reconstruction efforts, abuse human rights and terrorise their people, with those in the south and east, where the coalition faces a determined insurgency by Taliban groups operating across the porous border with Pakistan.

"The combination of a lack of natural and ethnic barriers with Pakistan means insurgents operating in this southern belt can retreat easily to Pakistan, regroup, reform, have some R&R and then come back," says the official. "They only need to run 200m across the border and the hunt has to stop. What does a Pakistani patrol of five guys do when they meet a group of 200 Taliban crossing the border? The problem is a lack of will and a lack of capability."

Much of the Pakistani establishment, which agreed only reluctantly to back the US war against the Taliban regime, still believes Afghanistan remains Islamabad's natural sphere of influence. Many in the Pakistan military and intelligence services worry not only that Afghanistan could be used by India as part of an encircling strategy it has not gone unnoticed that Manmohan Singh, India's prime minister, will visit Kabul next week to lay the foundation stone for the new national parliament building and also to foment Pashtun nationalism in two Pakistani provinces.

"The Pakistanis are concerned at the presence of Indian consulates in Jalalabad and Kandahar, a short jump away from Pakistan, and fear the Indians might use [President Hamid] Karzai's Pashtun nationalist discourse to revive a movement that aims to dismember the Pakistan's Baluchistan and North-West Frontier provinces," says the security official. "Pakistan has belatedly discovered since the presidential election that there is a strongly anti-Pakistan discourse in the Karzai cabinet."

Pakistan formally denies supporting the Taliban. Khurshid Kasuri, foreign minister, says Pakistan has no desire to encourage extremism in Afghanistan that rebounds on itself. "We have very friendly relations with Afghanistan. Three years ago, trade between us was $30m, now it's $1.2bn. We've given $100m in aid and committed another $100m. We have everything to gain from stability in Afghanistan. Politicians find it convenient to blame others for their problems."

It is a stock response that few diplomats find convincing. "Neighbouring countries must realise that stability in Afghanistan is in their interest. We have 10m Pashtuns in Afghanistan and 20m in Pakistan, as well as 1m Afghan refugees in Iran and 2m refugees in Pakistan," says Hikmet Çetin, Nato senior civilian representative in Afghanistan. "[President Pervez] Musharraf is doing his best but needs support."

‘Pakistan has vital stake in Afghanistan’s stability’ - By Khalid Hasan

WASHINGTON – Daily Times: Munir Akram, Pakistan’s permanent representative to the United Nations, told a Security Council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan on Tuesday that no other country had a more vital stake in the establishment of peace, security and prosperity in Afghanistan than Pakistan.

Akram said Pakistan shared the concern over increased insecurity in Afghanistan. The causes were several and complex and a comprehensive strategy for success that addressed the security, political, economic and social objectives of Afghanistan was necessary. Even without the burden of violent insurgency, the reconstruction of Afghanistan faced a truly formidable combination of challenges, including the pervasive drug economy and some of the worst social and economic indicators in the world.

The Pakistani envoy said, “Apart from Afghanistan itself, no other country has a more vital stake in establishment of peace, security and prosperity in that country than Pakistan. Peace in Afghanistan is essential for tranquility and development of Pakistan’s own border regions. Peace will enable the nearly three million Afghan refugees who remain on our soil after 20 years, virtually without any International support, to return home voluntarily, and in dignity and honour.

“Peace and economic revival in Afghanistan will accelerate the already burgeoning trade and economic cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan. And peace in Afghanistan will open up the shortest transit routes for trade, energy, raw materials and goods between Central Asia, South Asia and the world, with enormous economic benefit to Afghanistan, Pakistan and all the countries of the region.”

Akram emphasised that there is no ambiguity in Pakistan’s commitment to help the government of Afghanistan and the international coalition in restoring security and achieving the other agreed goals of the Bonn process. Cross-border traffic was one – but not the major – element in Afghanistan’s insecurity matrix, he pointed out. He told the Security Council that Pakistan was making an “enormous effort” to help deal with this situation and has mounted a determined campaign to eliminate al-Qaeda and Taliban elements on its side of the border. He said the terrorist movement now operated largely through splinter cells in many countries.

“We have deployed 75,000 troops, for the first time in history in the frontier tribal areas of Pakistan, for pacification and interdictions, largely with the concurrence of the tribes involved. Seven hundred posts have been established along the border. Four thousand troops are being added for interdiction duties in the run-up to the Afghan Parliamentary elections. Our troop strength on the border … is higher than the combined strength of the national and international military presence within Afghanistan. We are therefore disappointed that these great efforts, which are being made by Pakistan at considerable sacrifices of human and financial means, have not been mentioned in the secretary general’s report.”

Akram told the Council that the effort to prevent two-way flow of Al Qaeda, Taliban, tribal or criminal fighters was a cooperative effort between Pakistan, Afghanistan and US forces in Afghanistan promoted through the Tripartite Commission. In particular, Pakistan relies on aerial and electronic real time intelligence from the US to succeed in interdiction operations for which Pakistan has created a Rapid Reaction Force. Pakistan, he stressed, supported the continuation of the presence of the US and international forces in Afghanistan until peace and stability were fully restored there and a viable Afghan National Army could assume full responsibility for the country’s security.

Most of the coalition’s fuel, food and other supplies came from Pakistan. Those who therefore raised doubts on Pakistan’s commitment to peace and security in Afghanistan, he said, often by exaggerating the threats from cross border movements, were those who wished to find excuses for their own failure or those, “some of whom we have heard here, who wish to poison relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan”.

CIA'S EXASPERATION WITH PAKISTAN - by B.Raman

The exasperation of Porter Goss, the Director of the US' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), with Pakistan's role in the hunt for Osama bin Laden and other remnants of the Al Qaeda, is evident from his remarks on bin Laden during an interview with the "Time" magazine which has been carried by it this week

2. The interview has come in the wake of the arrest of one Hamid Hayat, a US citizen of Pakistani origin, his father and some others by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) earlier this month. They belonged to a 2500-strong Pakistani community living at a place called Lodi near Sacramento in California. Hamid and his father have been charged by the FBI with covering

up from the law enforceement agency the fact regarding his having attended a six-months jihadi training at a camp near Rawalpindi during a visit to Pakistan in 2003-04.

3. Hamid was reported to have told the FBI that the camp was being run by the Al Qaeda, but the indications are that it was actually being run by theHarkat-ul-Mujahideen (HUM--which now calls itself the Jamiat-ul-Ansar), a virulently anti-US Pakistani jihadi terrorist organisation, which is a member of Osama bin Laden's International Islamic Front for Jihad Against the Crusaders and the Jewish People formed in 1998. Its then Amir, Maulana Fazlur Rahman Khalil, who was released by the Pakistani authorities after having been detained for some months last year without being prosecuted, was a co-signatory of bin Laden's first fatwa of 1998 against the US.

4.The Pakistani authorities have sought to ridicule the FBI's charge against Hamid by pointing out that it was inconceivable that a jihadi training camp attended by hundreds of trainees, as claimed by him, could be located in or near Rawalpindi, where the Pakistan Army's General Headquarters are located.

Coincidentally, Yasin Malik, the head of the Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), one of the jihadi terrorist organisations of India's J&K, during a recent visit to Pakistan, revealed that hundreds of members of his organisation had been trained in the late 1980s in a camp at the very same place, which was being run by Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, a Kashmiri, who used to be a member of the Government of Nawaz Sharif and is now the Minister for Information in the Cabinet headed by Shaukat Aziz.

5. Amongst the members of the present Cabinet, he is considered as close to President Pervez Musharraf. He has had a long history of association with the HUM and Maulana Fazlur Rahman Khalil and had obtained for the HUM a large plot of land near Rawalpindi for starting a jihadi training camp.

6. Embarrassed by the disclosure of Yasin Malik, Sheikh Rashid strongly denied running any such training camp and maintained that he was only running a humanitarian camp for the refugees from J&K. Yasin Malik also subsequently retracted from his statement and accused the media of misreporting him. He asserted that what he had said was that Rashid was looking after the refugees. He denied having said anything about jihadi training organised by Sheikh Rashid.

7. The loud-mouthed Sheikh Rashid, who has many enemies in Pakistan because of his proximity to Musharraf and his habit of frequently dropping the name of Musharraf, found himself contradicted not only by Benazir Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party (PPP), during whose Government the jihadi training camp was started, but also by G en. (retd) Mirza Aslam Beg, who was the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) at that time, Brig. (retd) Nasurullah Babar, who was the Interior Minister in Benazir Bhutto's Cabinet, a former officer of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and Hashim Quereshi, a co-founder of the JKLF, who had hijacked an Indian Airlines aircraft to Lahore in Pakistan in 1971.

8. While all of them asserted that it was correct that Sheikh Rashid was running a jihadi terrorist training camp, the PPP revealed that the ISI, without the clearance of Benazir, had got transferred hundreds of acres of land in the suburban areas of Islamabad for starting his training camp. Hashim quereshi, who corroborated the allegations against Sheikh Rashid during a media interview, was asked whether any other member of the present Cabinet had been associated with jihadi terrorism. He replied: "It would be easier to answer who are the members of the present Cabinet who were not associated with terrorism?"

9. From a study of the various statements emanating from these persons, it is clear that the camp at which Hamid attended a jihadi training course was probably the same as the one run by Sheikh Rashid on behalf of the HUM in a large plot of land got transferred to him by the ISI. However, the name of the camp as given by Hamid in his statement to the FBI slightly differs from the name as given by the critics of Sheikh Rashid. According to the FBI, Hamid had given the name as Tamal, whereas the critics of Sheikh Rashid have given the name as Tarnol.

10. While the White House, the State Department and the Pentagon have been very generous in their praise of the co-operation received from Gen.Pervez Musharraf and the Pakistani military-intelligence establishment in the so-called war against terrorism, their positive perception of the Pakistani Army's role is not shared by their officers at the field level--- either by the American Army officers deployed in the Afghan territory across the Pakistani border or by the US diplomats in Kabul or by the US intelligence officers posted in Afghanistan as well as Pakistan.

11. The American Army officers have been particularly outspoken in giving expression to their dissatisfaction over the effectiveness of the combing operations conducted by the Pakistani Security Forces in the Waziristan area of the Federally-Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The Pakistan Army's claim that the Security Forces had fought vigorously against the foreign terrorists, who had taken shelter in this area, losing during their operations nearly 230 officers and men has not been satisfactorily corroborated. There are grounds to suspect the casualty figures given by the Pakistan Army.

12. During the last few months, the Pakistan Army has practically suspended its combing operations in the area, claiming that most of the foreign terrorists operating from this area have been killed or captured or driven into Afghanistan. This claim is not accepted by the US Army officers who have been demanding that the combing operations be resumed.

13. The Pakistan Army has also not taken any action to arrest Mulla Mohammad Omar, the Amir of the Taliban, and other Taliban leaders who have been operating from the Pashtun areas of Balochistan. Since the end of winter, these remnants, with the help of the survivors of the Al Qaeda operating from the Waziristan area, have stepped up their acts of violence in Afghanistan.

There have also been one or two acts of suicide terrorism, involving Arabs, suspected to be of the Al Qaeda.

14. The differences between the US officials in Afghanistan and their Pakistani counterparts came to a head last week when Geo TV, a private TV channel of Pakistan, interviewed a leader of the Taliban, who assured the viewers that both Mulla Omar and bin Laden were alive and well. In an interview to an Afghan TV station, Zalmay Khalilzad, the US Ambassador to Afghanistan who is under orders of transfer to Iraq, asserted that Mulla Omar and other Taliban leaders were operating from Pakistan. He asked: "If a TV station can get in touch with them, how can the intelligence service of a country which has nuclear bombs and a lot of security and military forces not find them?" The Pakistan Foreign Office strongly protested against Khalilzad's TV interview and described his remarks as irresponsible.

15. It is against this background that one has to see the comments of Porter Goss, which apparently reflect the exasperation of his own officers in the field. India has always been saying that Musharraf has not taken any action to dismantle the training infrastructure of the pro-Al Qaeda Pakistani jihadi
terrorist organisations in Pakistani territory. While this was not disputed by the US, it was at the same time not exercising adequate pressure on Musharraf to dismantle these camps because the US apparently felt that these were being used only to train jihadi terrorists to operate in J&K. The reported revelation by Hamid that these camps ere also being used to train jihadis from the Pakistani community in the US for operating in US territory has come as a shock to the US agencies.

16.In his interview to the "Time", Goss made the following points: It was unlikely bin Laden would be brought to justice until "we strengthen all the links" in the chain in the US-led hunt for terror suspects. "In the chain that you need to successfully wrap up the war on terror, we have some weak links . When you go to the very difficult question of dealing with sanctuaries in sovereign states, you're dealing with a problem of our sense of international obligation, fair play. We have to find a way to work in a conventional world in unconventional ways that are acceptable to the international community." Asked if he had a good idea where bin Laden is, he said: "I have an excellent idea of where he is."

17. He did not mention Pakistan by name, but it was apparent that he was talking of Pakistan. On the Afghan side of the border, it is the 16,000-strong US troops, which have the responsibility for the hunt for bin Laden. If he was in Afghan territory, there was no reason why Goss should have talked of sanctuaries in sovereign states, weak links etc. If bin Laden was in Iranian territory, there was no reason why he should have refrained from naming Iran since the US relations with Iran are already at the rock-bottom.

18. His reference to the need for working in unconventional ways in a conventional world is intriguing. Is he talking of the need for the US Special Forces operating clandestinely on their own in Pakistani territory in order to kill or capture bin Laden, with or without the concurrence of Musharraf? Is the State Department refusing to agree to this? If he has such an excellent idea of where bin Laden is, why is the CIA not using the Predator aircraft to kill him?

(The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India, New Delhi, and, presently, Director, Institute For Topical Studies, Chennai, and Distinguished Fellow and Convenor, Observer Research Foundation (ORF))

Canadian troops hand out radios in Afghanistan - CTV.ca News, Aug 26 2005

Canadian troops in Afghanistan are handing out free radios to help counter the messages of fear and hate propagated by the Taliban. "We're distributing them to everybody. Workers, students, basically anyone of voting age," Master Cpl. Kevin Langlois told CTV News.

According to Langlois, most Afghans are illiterate and depend on oral communication for information. One of the stations broadcast by the radios is overseen by the brother of President Hamid Kharzai. His station asks voters to get involved in politics, and questions candidates on how they'll rebuild Afghanistan's damaged infrastructure.

"This election is their say as to what shape this country will take," Qayum Kharzai told CTV News. He says Afghanistan has a dangerous political climate that lends itself to extreme views and potentially dangerous leaders.

"If politics is about slogans and symbolism, I am afraid ethnic issues and these things flare up and in that case the worst people get elected," Qayum Kharzai said.

Security leading up to the elections remains a big concern. The potential for violence is there each day, with almost daily news of another attack on those who preach peace or dare to fight against the insurgents.

In the latest violence, Taliban clashed with Afghan and U.S. troops in the southern Uruzgan province. Five Taliban were killed and two were captured in that fight.

The Sept. 18 elections are the last phase of a plan for Afghanistan's political development. The plan was agreed upon by Afghan factions and the international community at a conference in Bonn, Germany -- days after the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001. With a report by CTV's Matt McClure

Press Briefing by Adrian Edwards Spokesperson for the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and by United Nations Agencies in Afghanistan - Kabul – 25 August 2005

ط SRSG briefs Security Council on Afghanistan

The Special Representative, Jean Arnault, has been in New York this week, where has been briefing members of the UN Security Council on the situation in Afghanistan.

As you may have seen the Security Council on Tuesday condemned “terrorist acts or other forms of violence” aimed at disrupting the political process. It also called on the international community to make up the current shortfall in funding for the September elections, which now stands at USD $22.8 million.

In his briefing to the Council, Mr. Arnault said that while troubling developments on the security front were a reminder of the hurdles that Afghans faced in rebuilding their country, he was confident that by year’s end a representative new National Assembly would be established, and with it the elements of Afghanistan’s political transition outlined in the Bonn process would be successfully completed.

ط UNHCR repatriation of Afghans from Pakistan’s Tribal Areas

The number of Afghans seeking UNHCR help in repatriating from the Kurram and Bajaur areas in Pakistan has been rising ahead of the Pakistan Government’s August 31st deadline for closing refugee camps.

Some 100,000 Afghans have been living in refugee camps in the two areas, approximately 32,000 in Bajaur and 68,000 in Kurram. In addition some 21,000 and 48,000 respectively are living in these areas and outside the camps.

As of Monday some 30,000 had registered to return from Kurram, with 13,000 having gone through UNHCR procedures to receive repatriation assistance. In Bajaur, and also as of Monday, some 3,331 had registered for repatriation.

The Pakistan government has given the 100,000 Afghans living in refugee camps in the two areas the choice of going home under the UNHCR voluntary repatriation programme or relocating inside Pakistan.

ط UNHCR assists Internally Displaced families

The UN Refugee Agency together with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is also helping 287 internally displaced persons return to their villages in Baghlan province. The group, which consists of 59 families, has been living in the Batikot and Khogyani districts of Nangarhar province.

As with other internally displaced persons, the families are given plastic sheets, took kits, household items and wheat to help their reintegration.

ط Demobilization and Reintegration

Reintegration has passed the 60,000 mark this past week with 60,154 former officers and soldiers having entered or completed this final element of the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration programme. This represents the overwhelming majority of the 61, 611 who have demobilized.

Ammunition survey
With the ammunition survey some 671 bombs weighing 500 and 250 kg have been discovered at Anobah, in the Panjsher. The Afghanistan’s New Beginnings Programme has so far transported 224 of these to Jebal Saraj for disposal.

Disbandment of Illegal Armed Groups (DIAG)

With the Disbanding of Illegal Armed Groups programme, a further 531 weapons are verified as having been handed over since the number I was able to provide you with a week ago. This brings to 8,868 the number of weapons confirmed as having been handed in since June 11 when the DIAG programme officially started, and is in addition to a significant quantity of ammunition has been taken into safe custody [17,204 boxes of ammunition and 23,617 individual pieces sets].

Graduation ceremony for 20 high-ranking officers

In other developments Afghanistan’s New Beginnings Programme, in partnership with the Ministry of Defence, signed a contract with the Afghan Development Training Centre to provide business management training for 200 high-ranking officers.

Last Saturday 20 former high-ranking officers graduated from the training centre. Once trained, the graduates have a choice to start their own business, take a 10-day training workshop in Japan, or work for the government.

ط Radio programme focuses on women’s participation in upcoming elections

Sayara Media & Communication has just finished producing a mobile radio production entitled “Women in Movement”. The 13 episodes encourage women to participate in the upcoming elections.

Each episode is unique in nature, meeting women in places they work such as a refugee camp in Nangarhar, a jewelry manufacturer in Bamyan, a hospital in Herat, and a beauty parlor in Kabul.

The 13 episodes have been compiled in a 1-hour format CD, copies of which are on the side table. With us today is one of the producers, Hashema Hashemi, who is available to answer your questions afterwards.

ط AIHRC releases Annual Report

The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) has just released its annual report for the period June 2004 – May 2005. The 50-page report highlights the commission’s mandate and work through five programmes: Transitional Justice; Monitoring and Investigation; Human Rights Education; Women’s Rights; and Child Rights.

Among its areas of concern, the report states that the human rights situation of Afghan women has not significantly improved. Promoting human rights remains at the heart of their work following years of war and civil conflict.

This area is seen as a long-term process to develop a culture of tolerance and respect that will support and protect the human rights of all Afghans.

As part of its monitoring process, the report records human rights violations and abuses received by the AIHRC. In the past year alone 2698 human rights complaints were lodged, representing 4236 different human rights violations.

The report also highlights the commission’s efforts to protect Afghans. So far their work has resulted in the closure of four illegal detention centres, released close to 1400 illegally detained persons and through advocacy efforts has ensured the building of child correction centers in four provinces (Mazar, Gardez, Khost, and Kunduz).

ط Afghan journalist and Human Rights Assistant awarded scholarships

I hope you will all join me in offering congratulations to Shoaib Sharifi of IRIN News who is here today and has recently been awarded the Sky News Trish Ennis bursary to study for a Masters in International Journalism at The City University in London.

Those of you who attend these briefings regularly will know Shoaib well, and how committed a journalist he is. Last year he won a best journalist of the year award from the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission. We wish you every success in your studies.

I would also like to congratulate Frozan Ali, a Human Rights Assistant with UNAMA. She will be leaving shortly for Boston Massachusetts in the United States after being awarded a four-year scholarship to study Political Science and International Relations at Simmons College.

The scholarship is part of the college’s programme to help educate Afghan women. She will be joining another colleague, Adela Raz, who works in the Central Field Office and will be beginning her second year in International Relations.

Questions & Answers:

Question: There was some concern expressed during the Security Council meeting on the vulnerability of the Afghan elections to security threats. What can you say about that?

Spokesperson: Security remains a paramount concern, not only for the elections but for the period beyond that. It is clearly difficult for the Afghan government to deliver the services that people need in an environment where there are security problems. It is also difficult for everyone, ourselves included, to carry out work to maximum effect in such an environment. So security is a concern. Mr. Arnault raised this issue at the Security Council. He has also raised this issue before. It is quite clear that we need effort and cooperation inside the country from all the various partners to deal with this problem, and that includes military action. [But] there’s also a need for action to deal with external factors outside this country, including funding, and including training of Anti Government Elements and related problems. So this is an issue that has to be dealt with on several levels. That said, we are looking forward to an election which is just three weeks away, and we are confident that at this stage it will go ahead. As you have heard from the JEMB in the last few days, the election timeline is on track. This is a massive election. It is an historic election. It is bringing the power to vote down to individual Afghans in an election, and in which there will be secrecy of ballots. Such guarantees are there to make sure that this is both a credible and an acceptable election. So, yes there is a security problem, but the elections are going ahead.

ط Today’s guests

Today, UNICEF is launching its “Advance Afghanistan” campaign to help draw attention to the rights of children, as Afghanistan looks to the future with the prospects of a newly elected Parliament and provincial councils.

To launch this campaign and to tell you about it we are honoured to have with us today UNICEF’s Representative in Afghanistan, Bernt Aasen, and three celebrities who are lending their support to this important project: singer Gul Zaman, actress Anisa Wahab, and athlete Norgis Rahimi.

Remarks by Bernt Aasen, UNICEF Representative to Afghanistan, at the launch of the “Advance Afghanistan” campaign

I am delighted to be here today, amongst some very distinguished company, to launch UNICEF’s Advance Afghanistan campaign. Afghanistan stands on the threshold of a new chapter in its history, with the prospect of democratic elections now just weeks away, and the opportunities that a new Parliament and provincial councils will create for the people of this country.

Children may not be able to vote themselves in the coming elections, but that does not mean they do not count. In fact, we all have a responsibility to ensure that the rights of children are not overlooked in the coming weeks, months and years – because children depend upon their leaders to make the right choices, the right investments, the right decisions for them. After all, those same children will – in years to come – take on the role of leaders of this nation in their turn.

I’m very proud to be able to call upon everyone in Afghanistan – parliamentary candidates, community leaders, elders, leaders of the religious community, law makers, teachers, parents – to put children first and to ensure that we consider their rights, and their needs, as Afghanistan faces the future.

The “Advance Afghanistan” campaign, which we are launching today, asks simply that as key decisions are being made about the country’s future, the rights of children are not overlooked. It asks those who have an interest in the future success of this country, to ensure that the right decisions are made with and for children. UNICEF will be working closely with the new Parliament and provincial councils with a commitment to ensuring that children are put on top of the agenda; this campaign asks that everyone in Afghanistan makes a similar commitment.

I must thank our friends in the spheres of arts, culture and sports – including Mrs. Wahab, Ms. Rahimi and Mr. Zaman here today – who have agreed to add their voice to this campaign. I must make special mention of one young actress, Marina Gulbahari, who is also supporting the campaign, but could not join us today – because she did not want to miss classes at school. That, I believe, says something very profound about the determination of young people to play their part in the reconstruction of their country.

It is only by investing today in such children, in their health, in their education and in their protection, that Afghanistan can truly move forwards. If the nation speaks up for its children, for every child, we can advance Afghanistan. With that introduction, I will leave the floor to our distinguished supporters.

Anisa Wahab – actress (translated from Dari)

I am so glad that I am here, before you. The children of today, are the men of tomorrow and they are the future of this country. Therefore a great deal of attention should be made to them and necessary facilities should be provided to them. I have a story to tell you while I worked as a teacher in Peshawar teaching students from grade 2 to grade 8. I was teaching them the rights of children towards their parents and vice versa, as well as the rights of children towards government and vice versa. I once asked a student where he was from. He did not know he was an Afghan living as a refugee. Hearing this really upset me that there are Afghan children living abroad who don’t know anything about their origins. It is the duty of parents and their teachers to teach and inform them they are Afghans. However the situation has forced them to take refuge in other countries. It is very important for children, who are our future, to know their origins and where they come from exactly.

As for myself, as an actress, while I am getting a little older and unable to play certain children roles on television, I am playing those roles on the radio. In every movie I have acted in, there have been children involved and I really enjoyed that. I love children and they should be given appropriate attention and should be given recreation facilities and facilities for education. Children should be the focus of attention in this society.

Norgis Rahimi – athlete (translated from Dari)

I was asked to make an advertisement for children in Afghanistan on behalf of UNICEF. Everyone is aware of the children situation in Afghanistan. Following the war, children were affected the most. To avoid the wars we suffered under, I have a question to ask: How can we help the children of Afghanistan? This is not an easy question to answer. We need to thoroughly think about this question and find an appropriate answer. The country of Afghanistan is like an orphan. When we didn’t act properly they have bitten us. Now that they see that this orphan child can be a good child, this country is beginning to help. We should see what UNICEF is doing for the children in Afghanistan. A lot of work has been done, but much more needs to be done. This country can be rebuilt. Sooner than can be imagined. Maybe nobody believes it, but it can happen. And we hope that UNICEF, with the cooperation of other countries, takes the first step towards resolving the problem of Afghan children in the country. Afghanistan is the heart of Asia and it has the best talents within itself. We should try to improve these talents in order to gain the best results. In the past there has been some jealousy towards Afghanistan. It can be compared to a tree bearing many fruits. But they have damaged this tree and we should have cooperation with one another and take care of this tree so that it may bear more fruits.

We need to take practical steps to resolve these problems. Children have suffered greatly. We need to stop doing this and help them with the cooperation of UNICEF – help build a better future for our children.

Questions & Answers:

Question: Why have children not been at the heart of the agenda? Does this have to do with a lack in international funding, lack of understanding?

Norgis Rahimi (translated from Dari): After September 11, 2001 our country
faced a lot of problems and nobody listened to the children.

Question (translated from Dari): You talked about problems of the country and problems facing children, but the problem these days is the identity of the new generation of Afghanistan, and the rate of illiteracy among the new generation. We are now in the age of post-modernism and technology, but three years after the Bonn Agreement we only see building going up in this country and other things unrelated to these problems. The problem facing us is the problem of the new generation and it should be given some attention. Does the UNICEF want to resolve this problem or simply make mention of it?

Bernt Aasen: At UNICEF we believe that the problems of Afghanistan need to find solutions designed by Afghans themselves. We believe that the international community is here to support you. We believe that you need to find the solutions to the problems of Afghanistan and you have a elected a President and you are now electing the national assembly who will play major roles in defining the politics and the priorities of this country. And I totally agree with you – if this country had lived 100 years without paved roads, it could probably live for a couple of more years without paved roads. You cannot accept that girls are not in school. You cannot accept that women are dying during childbirth and pregnancies because there are no women working in health facilities. And I totally agree with you and invite you to join the campaign as a spokesperson.

Dollar signs in Afghan eyes as gas pipeline gets new lease of life - By Paul McGeough Chief Herald Correspondent in Kabul - August 25, 2005

The Washington sisterhood's campaign against the Taliban, led by the Feminist Majority Foundation, had thwarted ambitious plans by the US energy firm Unocal to build a strategic pipeline across the wastelands of Afghanistan.

But what a difference a war makes. In the new Kabul, the $US3.8 billion ($5 billion) gas project is being resurrected and one of the finer pairs of hands on this dog-eared brief are those of Mary Louise Vitelli, a fortysomething New York lawyer.

She explains that in the 1990s she was fighting a very different war. Far from the battlefields of Washington, she was working in Russia, on a World Bank attempt to reform the former Soviet Union's antiquated coal industry.

What she remembers of the US capital makes her prefer Kabul. "Washington was the most sexist place I've ever worked," she said. "Here the minister sets a different tone. He has women in key senior jobs and I'm welcomed in the provinces. I'm the team leader and there is no problem."

Her boss, the Minister for Mines and Industries, Mir Mohammad Sediq, brims with the kind of confidence that separates the stayers from the faint-hearted in the global resource development race.
Afghan optimism about the Unocal project is understandable. If the pipeline goes ahead, the Afghan Government might make up to $US300 million a year (the equivalent of its ostensible budget) purely from transit fees along a pipeline that will enter Afghanistan's north-west corner, follow the ring road that skirts the spread-eagled Hindu Kush and exit through the still restive south-east.

"De-mining [clearing landmines] is not a problem; land acquisition is not a problem," Mr Sediq said. "We can get the construction teams in, so the only outstanding matter is security. We have secured our road construction projects, so we can secure a pipeline. I'm confident that security is not an issue," he said.

Representatives of the four governments that are a party to the pipeline project - Afghanistan, India, Pakistan and Turkmenistan - are to meet in the Turkmen capital, Ashgabat, soon, where they hope to sign off on Turkmenistan's capacity to supply gas and Pakistan's willingness and ability to buy it, and on the outline of a private consortium to build and operate the pipeline. Ms Vitelli is more measured than the minister, but that does not undercut her enthusiasm. "At this stage it's still a conversation," she said.

However, she points to Asian Development Bank funding of a feasibility study because of the potential bonanza for Kabul; the likelihood of resource add-ons because Turkmenistan's huge gas deposits are believed to extend into Afghanistan; and the combined force of renewed international support for Afghanistan.

Then there is a $US17.4 million exploration of Afghanistan by the US Geological Survey to establish what volumes of mineral and energy resources are in the country. Ms Vitelli predicts more certainty for the project after the Ashgabat meeting.

"We'll see more potential investors here then. The big ones are sniffing around and the rough-and-readies are coming already. Yes, there are some from Australia," she said.

A Washington analyst with PFC Energy, Saad Rahim, has doubts about the pipeline's immediate prospects. "The proposed route goes through some of the worst areas in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Neither government can enforce security in these areas. Neither India nor Pakistan really needs the gas and there are questions about whether Turkmenistan can even provide it."

NATO's civilian representative in Kabul, Hikmet Cetin, is concerned about Afghan fighters mimicking insurgents in Iraq. "People here are able to see what the Iraqi insurgency can do despite the presence of 150,000 foreign troops. Why not do the same in Afghanistan," he asked.

The Feminist Majority Foundation is not ready to bless the venture. "Not enough is known … for us to say it should proceed," a spokeswoman said.

Drive against Afghan DPs kicks off in Islamabad

ISLAMABAD, August 24 (Pajhwok Afghan News): Taking a step closer to the expulsion of refugees from Pakistan's twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad, the Capital Development Authority (CDA) has launched an operation to close down shops and other businesses owned by Afghans.

The drive kicked off on Tuesday with scores of CDA personnel in trucks raided shacks, shops, kiosks and makeshift cabins belonging to Afghan refugees in Peshawar Mor, Karachi Company (G-9 Markaz), Sabzi Mandi (vegetable market) and elsewhere.

Pakistan's Interior Ministry had asked refugees to quit the twin cities by September 15, saying the step had been taken for security reasons. It had warned those blowing the deadline would be driven out by force.

Capital Development Authority Chairman Pervaiz Ahmed said the kiosk-removing campaign represented a precursor to the expulsion of refugees from the twin cities.

Speaking to Pajhwok Afghan News, the CDA chairman said: "They must know we are not joking with them. Our announcement is final and use of force cannot be ruled out if they fail to leave the cities by September 15."

At present, said Pervaiz Ahmad, police personnel had been deputed at the market's entry and exit points to check national identity cards and let in Pakistani citizens alone.

Humayun Abbasi, a commission agent in the Islamabad vegetable market, confirmed police and CDA officials were combing the areas and collecting information from locals about the Afghan refugees. He added it would be very difficult for the refugees to continue with their businesses here.

Camp closure deadline extension ruled out

PESHAWAR – The Dawn, Aug 24: Afghan refugee camps in Bajaur and Kurram will be closed by August 31 and no further extension will be granted. The Commissionerate Afghan Refugees and UNHCR will, however, continue to extend all kinds of assistance to facilitate the refugees’ repatriation to Afghanistan.

This was stated by Sahibzada Muhammad Anis, Commissioner Afghan Refugees, NWFP during his visit to Bajaur refugee camp the on Wednesday.

He informed Afghan Refugees of the area that it was a most appropriate time for them to go back and take part in reconstruction and rehabilitation of their country. He also met with elders of Afghan Refugees in Bajaur and briefed them on legal aspects and other procedures involving their repatriation of Afghanistan.

He also held a meeting which was attended by political agent Bajaur Faheem Wazir, the representative of UNHCR, the additional commissioner Afghan Refugees and assistant political agents Bajaur.

Mr Anis visited IRIS Validation Centre and witnessed the process adopted for repatriation of the Afghan refugees. He directed the Afghan commissionerate staff to provide maximum facilities to those returning to their country.

Mr Anis said that the camp at Bajaur would be closed by 31st August, therefore, the Afghan refugees of the area should focus on their repatriation. He informed them that under the UNHCR policy all repatriating Afghan refugees were being paid and given food assistance inside Afghanistan.

He said once repatriation process was over, the entire health and other facilities set up for them would be wound up.

Pakistan's census of Afghans provides first detailed profile of the population - Source: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) By Jack Redden, UNHCR Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, August 24 (UNHCR) – An analysis of the information gathered during the census of Afghans in Pakistan by the government earlier this year has revealed a young population whose families arrived mainly in the early years of the conflict in Afghanistan.

The findings are included in a new publication containing the wealth of data gathered about Afghans who were living in Pakistan at the time of the census, which was conducted from February 25 to March 11 by the government of Pakistan with the assistance of the UN refugee agency.

"The census of Afghans, undertaken in all locations in Pakistan, shows that 548,105 Afghan families, constituting 3,049,268 individuals, currently reside in Pakistan. This census presents the clearest quantitative and qualitative demographic data to date on Afghans in Pakistan," says the report on the analysis.

The picture that has emerged shows an Afghan population that has been in Pakistan for many years. Just over half said their families had arrived in 1979 and 1980, the period when the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan triggered the biggest exodus. In fact, 80 percent of all Afghans said their families had arrived by the end of 1985.

"The census also shows a young population," the report said. "Some 19 percent of Afghans in Pakistan are under the age of five, compared to about 14.8 percent of Pakistan's population in this age group."

"This demographic profile underlines the fact that much of the Afghan population was born in exile, and points to the considerable challenge ahead for the Afghan government to ensure sustainable reintegration by providing schools and employment for returnees," it said.

The data is proving a valuable tool as the government of Pakistan and UNHCR press ahead with planning for the management of the Afghan population after the end of the UNHCR voluntary repatriation programme. The current agreement expires in March 2006.

That programme has assisted more than 2.5 million Afghans to return from Pakistan since 2002, including 245,000 so far this year. That suggests there were in excess of 5 million Afghans living in Pakistan at the start of the programme, a higher figure than believed at the time.

However, there had never been a census of Afghans in Pakistan and earlier population estimates did not include the natural population increase from births. In addition population figures were kept only for Afghans in refugee camps, ignoring those living in cities. Assuming an annual 3 percent growth rate, the finding of the census provides a realistic image of the Afghan population in Pakistan over the last 25 years.

There also had been no documentation of the normal population flows across the border, which have increased since the end of the Taliban government. A study earlier this year showed that more than 10,000 people crossed the Torkham border alone in each direction every day. This was reflected in the government's acknowledgement that not all Afghans in Pakistan would be of concern to UNHCR.

A working group that includes the governments of Pakistan and Afghanistan, plus UNHCR, is using the analysis to help in planning a proposed registration next year of all those recorded in the census. The data has provided the most detailed profile ever compiled of Afghans in Pakistan.

By far the largest ethnic Afghan group in Pakistan is Pashtun – nearly 82 percent – as was expected because Pashtun populations live on both sides of the border and because other ethnic groups have returned in larger numbers since the end of the Taliban regime in Kabul in 2001.
Some 62 percent of Afghans live in North West Frontier province with 25 percent in Balochistan, 7 percent in Punjab and 4 percent in Sindh. Some 58 percent of the population were living outside camps while 42 percent were in UNHCR-assisted camps. The census also indicates that 62 percent of the Afghans living in Pakistan originates from six provinces in Afghanistan – 17 percent Nangarhar, 11 percent Kabul, 10 percent Kandahar and 8 percent Kunduz.

Few Afghans have regular jobs. Some 55 percent of households said their livelihood came from daily labour, which may even understate the situation because a further 20 percent described themselves as self-employed. Only 9 percent said they were employed.

More than 17 percent of Afghans told the enumerators they intended to return to Afghanistan during 2005 – a total of 532,000 – which is a bit higher than the 400,000 Afghans that UNHCR predicted would return to Afghanistan during this year.

But the reasons cited for not returning showed a shift from that given by Afghans earlier in the repatriation programme. More that 57 percent said a lack of shelter and access to land in Afghanistan was stopping them from repatriating, with a further 18 percent naming a lack of livelihood opportunities there. The census responses underline the need for continuing development assistance in Afghanistan.

Interestingly, security concerns inside Afghanistan – once the main reason given for not returning from Pakistan – was named by less than 18 percent of all those in the census.

The census included a wide range of questions including current residence, place of origin, length of stay in Pakistan, livelihood, ethnicity, and intentions to repatriate. It was carried out by 3,143 government staff under the Population and Census Organisation, with UNHCR teams monitoring.

Participation was mandatory for all Afghans who arrived in Pakistan after December 1, 1979, the month in which Soviet troops invaded Afghanistan and triggered a mass exodus of refugees to Pakistan and Iran. Only those who were included in the census will be eligible to be included in a registration, which will provide some form of identification.

Afghan abuse sentence 'lenient' - BBC News, 25 August 2005

The Afghanistan government has said it is disappointed by the punishment given to American troops convicted of abusing two Afghan detainees who later died. The government has said the two soldiers - sentenced up to three months in prison - had been shown unexpected leniency.

These were the first judicial sentences given to any US soldier convicted of abuse in Afghanistan since 2001. A US-based human rights group has condemned the sentence as too lenient.

A spokesman for the Afghan president Hamid Karzai said the soldiers should have been severely punished. One soldier has been sentenced to two months in prison, another to three months.

"The punishments given to those soldiers were very light and unexpectedly lenient, presidential spokesman Karim Rahimi told the Associated Press. "This is a very serious issue. They should receive severe punishments." He said the government was planning to take up the matter with US authorities.
A member of the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission also criticised the sentences. "These punishments are a joke. They all should have got 20 years in prison or be sentenced to death," Ahmad Shah Midad told Associated Press. "A person's life has been taken. They must be punished properly."

The US has been under intense pressure for several months following allegations of abuse by its forces in US-run detention centres. Specialist Glendale Wells pleaded guilty at a military court of pushing a detainee known as Dilawar against a wall. He also admitted doing nothing to prevent other soldiers at the US base at Bagram from abusing him.

In December 2002, Dilawar died at the base - after suffering what an internal US investigation revealed were repeated beatings by American troops while chained to the ceiling by his wrists.

The BBC correspondent in Kabul, Andrew North, says two other soldiers have also been convicted in connection with the case, but neither were jailed - including one who faced more serious charges.

The New York-based group Human Rights Watch said the two month prison sentence given to Specialist Wells was very disappointing. The punishment did not match the gravity of the crimes, said John Sifton, Human Rights Watch's lead researcher on Afghanistan.

He said it was another sign of what he called the US military's consistent failure to take abuse allegations seriously. "These accused soldiers and their superiors were involved in numerous abuses and two detainee deaths," he said. "Yet all the officers so far have escaped punishment."

In May the deaths of Dilawar and another inmate, along with other allegations of abuse, were detailed by the New York Times, citing a 2,000-page document leaked from a US army investigation. Afghan President Hamid Karzai said he was shocked and demanded action from the US.

Afghanistan's Sikh Gurudwaras being restored - Sikh Sangat News, Aug 24, 2005

There are smiles on the faces of Sikh residents of the bustling Afghan capital where the fundamentalist Taliban militia contributed much to the desecration of Sikh shrines.

The historical gurdwaras in Afghanistan are Gurdwara Bhai Nand Lal Goya (Ghazni), Gurdwara Guru Nanak Dev (Jalalabad), Gurdwara Baba Shree Chand (Kabul), Gurdwara Karteparwan (Kabul), Gurdwara Koth Sahib (Kabul), Gurdwara Kotha Sahib (Ghazni), Gurdwara Baba Nanak (Kabul), Gurdwara Guru Har Rai (Kabul), Gurdwara Khalsa Dewan and Chashma Sahib (Sultanpur)

After considerable delay, authorities here have cleared the gurdwaras of both encroachers and rubble. Kabul boasted of eight towering gurdwaras before the mujaheddin groups opposed to President Najibullah began to target Kabul from the outlying districts.

Seven of the gurdwaras were destroyed in the fighting in the 1980s. Only one gurdwara associated with Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, survived and remained operational. The Khalsa School, which once had over a thousand students, is now in ruins.

The hugeness and solid building material of the gurdwara structures proved to be their undoing because different groups turned them into bunkers.

Amid the numerous mud houses, the gurdwaras were the only concrete structures with large basements that were meant for 'langar' (free meals) and car parking. One of the basements is so large that it can accommodate over 200 cars.

Residents of Kabul said that while the Taliban had destroyed ancient statues of Mahatma Buddha, Sikh shrines had been destroyed in the U.S. attacks.

The Sikh population migrated during the fighting, and the Taliban rule further worsened the situation. The militia encouraged the encroachers to occupy the abandoned gurdwaras. With the return of the Sikh community all the gurdwaras have been reclaimed by the Guru Singh Sabha and their restoration work has been undertaken.

Sabha president Ravinder Singh is bitter. He said that the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) in Amritsar has not cared to respond to the requests of the Sikh community in Kabul to assist them in rebuilding the gurdwaras.

Under the new constitution, though Afghanistan has been named the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, it ensures due representation to Sikhs and guarantees their religious rights.

The Loya Jirga, which drafted the new constitution last year, had Sikh members, including a woman. The nine-member Election Commission, constituted to conduct the parliamentary elections next month, has a Sikh representative.

All this has given confidence to the community and they are re-establishing their trade and business both in Kabul and in other places like Kandahar, Ghazni and Jalalabad. But they are still waiting to shift their families from India, the US and Europe where they fled during the Taliban regime.

Uzbek Senate Backs U.S. Eviction From Base - AP August 26, 2005

TASHKENT, Uzbekistan - The Uzbek Senate on Friday endorsed the government's decision to evict U.S. troops from an airbase that has been an important hub for American military operations in Afghanistan.

Uzbekistan's ties with Washington have deteriorated since the Bush administration joined other nations in urging an international investigation into the suppression of a May uprising in the eastern Uzbek city of Andijan.

Uzbekistan's president, Islam Karimov, who has ruled the Central Asian nation for 16 years and tolerates no dissent, blamed the violence on Islamic militants.

He has rejected the demands for an outside inquiry, and, facing Western criticism, has found a strong support in Russia and China. Both of them are wary about the U.S. military presence in the strategic and resource-rich region.

The 93 Senators present at the session voted unanimously to support the July 29 order from Karimov's government giving the United States six months to vacate Karshi-Khanabad, an airbase in the southern Kashkadarya region.

No further action is necessary from the lower chamber, as the government-loyal, 100-seat upper chamber has the final say on parliamentary decisions.

The vote was not necessary to confirm the government's order. Rather it was seen as an attempt to give that ruling a symbolic show of popular support and legitimize it in the eyes of the international community.

"We know that fundamentalist moods arise wherever U.S. bases appear. Enemies of the United States appear wherever there is a U.S. military presence, and we don't want to be caught in-between," Kashkadarya governor Nuritdin Zainiyev said before the vote.

The head of the Senate's foreign relations committee and the country's former foreign minister, Sadyk Safayev, said the people of Kashkadarya had demanded the troops leave, alleging they had caused environmental damage. He also questioned the need for the troops in Afghanistan.

Uzbekistan issued the demand for the U.S. withdrawal just hours after hundreds of Uzbeks who had fled to Kyrgyzstan after the Andijan uprising were relocated to Romania, a staunch U.S. ally, by the United Nations refugee agency.

"If the U.S. is a friendly country ... how could they prevent the return of Uzbek refugees from Kyrgyzstan?" Senator Surayo Abdukhojayeva demanded.

The United States and other Western countries harshly criticized Uzbekistan for using force against mostly unarmed civilians in Andijan on May 13. Rights groups said up to 750 people died in the crackdown. The government put the death toll at 187.

Zainiyev also complained that Uzbekistan had spent $160 million to maintain the infrastructure of the Karshi-Khanabad base since the arrival of U.S. troops, and the U.S. "didn't pay anything."

The base has been an important staging point for U.S. military operations in Afghanistan since the earliest days of the war, which began in October 2001. More recently, the base has been used to move supplies, including humanitarian aid, into northern Afghanistan. It also is a refueling point for transport planes.

[Disclaimer: The content of this news bulletin does not necessarily reflect the view or policy of the Afghan Government, unless specifically stated as such. The collection of articles and commentaries from Afghan and international news sources is provided for informational purposes, and accuracy of the news is the responsibility of the original source.]