In this bulletin:

• Karzai condemns killing of health workers
• Bomb hits Kabul taxi as Afghan violence kills 10
• Afghanistan Suicide Bomber Kills Girl in Kabul, Military Says
• Over 600 Suspected Taliban Killed in Southern Afghanistan - July 25, 2006
• Violence spreads into west Afghanistan
• Australian troops headed to dangerous Uruzgan province in Afghanistan
• Afghanistan is not close to anarchy
• Afghanistan flays Israeli attacks on Lebanon
• Afghan Government, UN launch $76.4million drought appeal
• Germany promises more aid to Afghanistan
• Afghan send-off for slain Canadians
• Ancient Persian drawing found in Afghan Buddhist cave
• Afghanistan to send 128-member contingent
• Pro-Taleban Militants in Pakistan Free Four Soldiers, Extend Cease-fire by a Month

Karzai condemns killing of health workers

KABUL, July 25 (Pajhwok Afghan News): President Hamid Karzai has condemned the killing of a doctor and his driver in the central Ghor province as security officials claimed arresting a suspect in the area.

In a statement released here, the president said the enemies of Afghanistan were involved in the brazen act of terrorism. By killing the health staffers, the enemies wanted to increase the difficulties of Afghan people, he said.

Meanwhile, security officials in the central Ghor province Tuesday said they had arrested a man allegedly involved in killing of the two people.

Dr Mohammad Zahir and his driver Naqeebullah were shot dead while traveling in the province. The two were employees of a foreign non-governmental organisation (NGO) World Vision working in health sector in the province.

Provincial police chief General Shah Jehan Noori told Pajhwok Afghan News the detainee had been identified as Mulla Ahmad Shah. He was arrested in Ghalmin area. He said the documents recovered from the man revealed his connection with al-Qaeda.

Bomb hits Kabul taxi as Afghan violence kills 10 - 25/07/2006 - 11:46:48

A roadside bomb along a busy Kabul road killed two Afghans today as fighting in the eastern provinces left a US-led coalition soldier and seven suspected Taliban dead, officials said.

The bomb in Kabul – the latest in a series of blasts that have rattled nerves in the capital – killed a man and a woman travelling in a taxi, and wounded four others, said Faiz Ahmad Hotaq, a police official.

In the eastern Kunar province, a coalition soldier, whose nationality was not disclosed, was killed yesterday in a firefight with militants, a coalition statement said.

Seven militants were also killed in Paktika province in clashes with coalition soldiers, it said. One coalition soldier was slightly wounded.

Violence has escalated sharply in Afghanistan this year, as Taliban-led rebels have stepped up attacks, particularly in their former southern heartland, drawing a tough response from Afghan and foreign forces.

More than 600 suspected Taliban militants have been killed in the US-led offensive in southern Afghanistan, the coalition said.

Nato-led forces are preparing to take over command of security operations there, a move that could lead to a reduction in the more than 21,000 US troops in Afghanistan.

The US military said today that two American engineer soldiers were seriously wounded in a roadside bomb attack in eastern Khost province.

The two were on their way to a road project on Sunday between the towns of Khost and Gardez when they were attacked, the military said. Their injuries were serious but not life threatening.

President Hamid Karzai, meanwhile, condemned the fatal shooting of an Afghan doctor and a driver for the international Christian relief and development organisation World Vision on Sunday after they delivered medicines to the town of Charsada in Ghor province – a rare attack in a relatively stable region.

Karzai said in a statement that the two were killed “at the instructions of foreigners,” but did not elaborate.

Afghan officials often accuse eastern neighbour Pakistan of providing a haven for Taliban-led guerrillas who have stepped up their insurgency this year, often targeting government officials and aid workers. Pakistan denies it, saying it does all it can to prevent cross-border infiltration by militants.

Afghanistan Suicide Bomber Kills Girl in Kabul, Military Says

Jul 25 (Bloomberg) -- An Afghan girl was killed and three civilians were wounded today when a suicide bomber detonated explosives in the capital, Kabul, the U.S. military said.

``This is truly a despicable act,'' coalition spokesman Thomas Collins said in an e-mailed statement. ``A family has been ruined and the dreams of an innocent little girl are lost forever.'' Afghan and police and coalition forces are investigating the blast, the military said.

In two other statements, the U.S. military said a coalition soldier and seven insurgents were killed yesterday in separate clashes in eastern Afghanistan.

The U.S.-led coalition has faced increasing violence as it seeks to extend the influence of President Hamid Karzai's central government from Kabul into more remote eastern and southern parts of Afghanistan. Hundreds of insurgents have been killed by the military since operations expanded in April and May.

The coalition soldier, whose nationality wasn't given, was killed in combat with a group of insurgents who had attacked a patrol near Dag village in Kunar province, the military said. The military used air strikes, gunfire, and mortars to repel the rebels.

In a separate clash in Paktika province, to the south, Coalition forces in Bermal district clashed with about 60 insurgents, killing seven of them, the military said.

Over 600 Suspected Taliban Killed in Southern Afghanistan - July 25, 2006

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — More than 600 suspected Taliban militants have been killed since a U.S.-led offensive began last month in southern Afghanistan, a coalition spokesman said Tuesday.

Col. Tom Collins said the 600 militants have died in combat since Operation Mountain Thrust started June 10. The offensive is aimed at crushing the deadliest spate of Taliban violence since the hard-line regime's 2001 ouster.

More than 10,000 U.S.-led troops have been operating in former Taliban strongholds across southern Afghanistan. The region has witnessed the brunt of the deadliest upsurge in Taliban-led violence since the hard-line regime's 2001 ouster. The bloodshed also threatens to spread into previously calm western Afghan provinces.

Violence spreads into west Afghanistan - The Associated Press Tue, Jul. 25, 2006

KABUL, Afghanistan - Heavily armed Taliban militants in pickup trucks attacked a district police headquarters Monday and killed three officers Monday, while authorities killed four suspected suicide bombers as the violence that has ravaged southern Afghanistan crept into the west.

Two coalition soldiers, meanwhile, were seriously wounded in a suicide car bombing near Kandahar, and two Afghans working for an international aid group were gunned down after delivering medicine to a town in Ghor province.

The fighting between resurgent Taliban-led rebels and Afghan and foreign troops came as NATO-led forces prepared to take over command of security operations in the hard-line militia's former southern heartland, a move that could lead to a reduction in the more than 21,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The insurgents took their fight into western Farah province, which has been largely spared from the violence that has claimed more than 800 lives, mostly militants, since mid-May - the bloodiest couple of months in Afghanistan since the military invasion that ousted the Taliban regime in late 2001.

Hundreds of Taliban fighters drove into the town of Bakwa in about 35 pickup trucks late Sunday and launched a major assault on a district police and administration headquarters, firing machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, said Gen. Sayed Aga Saqib, the Farah police chief.

The militants fled early Monday toward neighboring Helmand province after a five-hour clash, carrying an unknown number of militant casualties with them, he said. The clash left three police dead, and seven wounded.

Also in Farah, four suicide bomber suspects riding on two explosive-laden motorbikes were killed after they were challenged by police as they drove through the provincial capital late Sunday, Saqib said.

Two of the suspects in the attack were shot dead by police, while the other two were killed when police shot at their bike and detonated their explosives, Saqib said. A boy passing by was also killed and his father wounded in the blast.

In southern Kandahar province, a suicide car bomber seriously wounded two U.S.-led coalition soldiers Monday when he struck their convoy in Daman district, on the main highway to Kabul, said Col. Tom Collins, a coalition spokesman. He declined to give the soldiers' nationalities or identities.

In western Ghor province, gunmen on Sunday killed a doctor and a driver for the aid agency World Vision as they were driving back from delivering medicine to the town of Charsada, said Karimuddin Razazada, Ghor deputy governor. It wasn't immediately clear who was responsible.

Australian troops headed to dangerous Uruzgan province in Afghanistan

The World Today - Tuesday, 25 July, 2006

ELEANOR HALL: Already in Afghanistan, Australian troops are heading straight for an area described as one of the most dangerous in the world.

About 240 Australian soldiers and engineers will soon go into the Uruzgan province, in Afghanistan's volatile south, to help rebuild infrastructure.

But one security adviser working in the region has told The World Today that he believes the troops will be too busy ensuring their own safety to help with reconstruction.

The security adviser, who says he can't give his full name for legal reasons, says it's becoming more and more dangerous in the region and that already many aid projects have shut down.

He is speaking here to reporter Josie Taylor.

SECURITY ADVISER: A lot of programs have shut recently, or are ineffective. A lot of the implementing partners of larger agencies have got limited projects at the moment, purely through the security in the region... is not permissible.

JOSIE TAYLOR: And how... what's your description of the security in the region at the moment, or particularly in Afghanistan and southern Afghanistan?

SECURITY ADVISER: The security since Ramadan, which is sort of October last year, has been progressively getting worse, and it started in districts several hundred kilometres out from regional centres, city centres such as Kandahar and Lashkar Gah, and during the last six to eight months, progressively the fighting has been moving closer and closer into the city.

Now, it's on the edge of the cities at the moment. Last week there was an attack on Lashkar Gah, which... where members of the insurgency were on the bridge just out from Lashkar Gah. There's been attacks in the city.

It's very hostile in a lot of the close lying districts and district centres just west of Kandahar City, so it has progressively got worse over a long period of time, and nothing's been done to sort of curb the problem - or nothing successfully has been done.

JOSIE TAYLOR: Where does this relate to where Australian troops are at the moment?

SECURITY ADVISER: Well, the Australian troops are going into Uruzgan (inaudible) with a reconstruction team. I don't think that they'll be doing much reconstruction at all. I think they'll be covering their own butts, if I can say that.

Uruzgan, when the 22nd MEU, which is the Marine Expeditionary Unit, were out there, they were in the holes fighting. It's been a traditional stronghold of the insurgency. There was no counter-narcotics there in 2006, and it's seen as a pocket of... a safe haven, if you will, of insurgent forces.

The, well... the only real, or Uruzgan, the provincial capital being Tirin Kot, the only real permissible area is a one-kilometre radius around Tirin Kot, so I can't see them actually getting out and doing much work up there, nor with the Dutch.

The main routes... there's three main routes to Tirin Kot from Kandahar City, the main route going straight up the middle, and one alternate route west and one alternate route east.

They're all compromised. I have no military convoys to move up there, with close air support, fast jets, a lot of equipment that unfortunately we won't have. It's very dangerous, Uruzgan, probably the most dangerous area in the country.

JOSIE TAYLOR: David, how much control does the Taliban actually have? From your description it sounds like it has effective control of certain areas?

SECURITY ADVISER: There's large military forces in all the major cities and centres, but districts and district centres have got a lot of Talibs floating around in them.

JOSIE TAYLOR: Is that getting worse? Are you seeing the Taliban taking more control of more areas?

SECURITY ADVISER: It's very hard to say Taliban or insurgent - it's a mix of tribespeople, which have been really... tribespeople are actually pissed off with the counter-narcotics operations.

It's local tribes, which are trying to feed their families, which are getting extorted by corruption within the Government. It's criminal elements, it's drug lords, it's drug-smugglers, it's Taliban, it's insurgency, it's... there's no one quick fix, and that's the problem at the moment.

A lot of these elements are sort of banding together under the one banner to destabilise the country, and we're seeing a lot of threat letters - don't work for the infidels, NGOs are bad - the whole psyche on the street towards foreign influence has changed, where in the last couple of years it's been fairly permissive to get aid work done.

And now we're seeing evidence of insurgents basically entering villages straight after the Americans, Canadians, whichever foreign forces, plus aid workers, have been, and then they're saying don't come back to this area, you can't work with aid workers or otherwise you'll pay the price, rah, rah, rah.

And it's starting to turn the local populace. The Government's losing popularity day by day, and something really needs to be done to curb these problems.

ELEANOR HALL: And that's a security adviser who wants only to be known as 'David', speaking from Southern Afghanistan to reporter Josie Taylor.

Afghanistan is not close to anarchy - The Guardian, Letters to the Editor, 07/24/2006

In your report on Lt Gen David Richard's presentation to the Royal United Services Institute (July 22), you suggest he described the situation in Afghanistan as "close to anarchy". The relevant passage from the presentation is reproduced for clarity: "The current lack of unity and coordination between the numerous different organisations and agencies often manifests itself in a situation close to anarchy, both military and civil ... Add to this the multifarious agendas of the many NGOs; well-meaning but uncoordinated and lacking in strategic direction, and you have a recipe for confusion, disaffection due to promises undelivered and aggravated distrust of western intentions amongst the Afghan population."

There was no suggestion Afghanistan was close to anarchy, but a specific comment on the lack of coordination among the international community. General Richards, as the commander of the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) in Afghanistan, then went on to say how the international community and President Karzai had addressed this issue through the creation of a new and powerful mechanism to decide on, and then implement, the government's policy.

I hope this sets the record straight so your readers do not misunderstand what the general said, or form a false impression of the situation in Afghanis-tan. The country does indeed face many challenges, but is certainly not close to anarchy, due to the dedicated efforts of the soldiers and other members of the international community, and the determination of the government and people of Afghanistan.

Lt Col Chris Borneman - Chief information officer, International Security Assistance Force, Afghanistan

Afghanistan flays Israeli attacks on Lebanon – KUNA 07/25/2006

KABUL - The Afghan government on Tuesday slammed the air raids by Israel on Lebanon and called for an immediate halt to the killing of innocent civilians.

President Hamid Karzai's chief spokesman Karim Rahimi said civilians were becoming target of the attacks and it must be halted with immediate effect. He said this while addressing a routine news conference here. This is Afghanistan's first official reaction to the Israeli attacks on Lebanon, which were started on July 11.

The spokesman said the Afghan government condemned the killing of children, women and innocent citizens, in the attacks. He said Afghanistan had seen long wars and the Afghans could better feel the agony of the Lebanese people. The Afghan official urged the need for resolution of the dispute through peaceful means.

About 320 civilians have so far been killed in air raids and missile attacks on Lebanon over the fortnight. The attack was launched after the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers by Hezbullah militia. (end) gk.

Afghan Government, UN launch $76.4million drought appeal - Source: United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) July 25, 2006

To support the urgent needs of more than 2.5 million peopled affected by drought and food insecurity, the Government of Afghanistan and the United Nations today launched an appeal for nearly $76.4 million, covering an initial period of six months.

"This year's drought could be much worse than in previous years," warned Afghanistan's Vice-President, Mohammad Karim Khalili, speaking to reporters at a press conference this morning. Joining him at the launch were government ministers, including those responsible for agriculture and rural development, as well as representatives of the United Nations family in Afghanistan.

The country is facing an imminent food crisis due to inadequate rainfall in April and May and an expected shortfall in this year's rain-fed wheat harvest.

The possible impacts of the drought include families consuming their harvest much sooner than usual, leading to steadily increasing malnutrition, as well as consuming seeds before next year's planting season.

In addition, animals and household assets will be sold, and an increase in poppy cultivation could be seen in parts of the country.

"It's not just a question of lack of rain,” stated Christopher Alexander, the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General. "It's a question of livelihoods being in jeopardy, children being unable to continue their study, people selling their livestock… families having to move… This is a human crisis. These are real, acute, basic human needs that need to be addressed now."

Priority needs under the appeal are for 67,000 tonnes of cereals, 14,500 tonnes of other commodities and up to 26,140 tonnes of feed concentrate. In addition, 4,500 tonnes of high quality autumn and spring seeds are requested with 6,750 tonnes of fertilizer.

Support is also requested for emergency water supplies, strategic water points, communicable diseases control and nutritional interventions. In addition, an emergency employment component forms part of the appeal to initiate cash for work programmes to rehabilitate rural infrastructure and enhance local purchasing power.

The Emergency Response Commission of the Government will lead the drought response process, with the support of designated ministries, the United Nations and international partners.

Germany promises more aid to Afghanistan

Germany would keep its promise to provide Afghanistan with 80 million euros (about 100 million dollars) this year to help the war-torn country, a German minister said on Monday.

German Economic Cooperation and Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul made the remarks after meeting visiting Afghan Finance Minister Anwar ul-Hag Ahadi in Berlin.

Germany, the fourth largest donor after the U.S., Japan and Britain, would stand by Afghanistan, Wieczorek-Zeul said, adding that a key part of the aid will be used in improving energy supplies of Afghanistan.

Earlier this year, at the London conference on Afghanistan, Germany pledged 80 million euros in aid each year until 2010.

Germany has about 2,700 troops in Afghanistan as part of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). Recently ISAF troops had been attacked by suicide bombers.

Wieczorek-Zeul noted that Germany would not reduce its aid to Afghanistan at "these difficult times." Source: Xinhua

Afghan send-off for slain Canadians - Jul. 25, 2006. TERRY PEDWELL CANADIAN PRESS

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Hundreds of Canadian and other coalition soldiers in Afghanistan bid a tearful farewell early Tuesday to two fallen comrades.

A lone bagpiper played as the bodies of Cpl. Francisco Gomez of Edmonton and Cpl. Jason Warren from Montreal were gently carried from two Canadian Forces Light Armoured Vehicles onto a C-130 Hercules at Kandahar Air Field.

Tears streamed down the face of Bombardier Ryan Shudra, a reservist from the 20th Field Regiment, based in Red Deer, Alta, as he carried Cpl. Jason Warren's Tam O'Shanter behind his flag-draped coffin.

Shudra was one of eight soldiers injured Saturday when Warren and Gomez were killed in a suicide attack.

A bomber had detonated a car filled with explosives beside their Bison armoured vehicle as they made their way back to Kandahar from fighting west of the southern Afghan city.

Gomez and Warren were the 18th and 19th Canadian soldiers to be killed in Afghanistan since early 2002.

Brig.-Gen. David Fraser, the Canadian commander of coalition forces in southern Afghanistan, was among those who watched as the two coffins were placed in the aircraft, and then flown back to Canada.

"It's not easy, and it doesn't get any easier every time I see one of those coffins," Fraser said after the ceremony in an interview with The Canadian Press.

"It's gut-wrenching." As coalition commander in the Kandahar region, Fraser has been to a number of such ceremonies recently, representing both Canada and other countries.

"I'm the commander of not just Canadians, but eight other nations here in a brigade," the general said. "Every soldier wounded or killed is important to me. They're all special. But when I see Canadians it touches closer to home."

"I've sent two of my own protection team home." However, despite the casualties, Fraser said he is more determined than ever to see the international mission in Afghan through to the end.

Gomez and Warren were in a Bison armoured vehicle on Saturday — at the tail end of a large convoy — when about 600 Canadian troops were returning from more than two weeks of fighting in Helmand province, west of Kandahar.

The blast that killed them was one of two suicide attacks that day.

A second explosion, about 30 metres from the first one, killed up to eight Afghan civilians and injured dozens of others after a man wearing explosives walked into a crowd.

The violence in Afghanistan has intensified and spread out in recent days.

Two American soldiers were seriously hurt Monday when they drove past a van packed with explosives that had slowed down in front of them.

In Kandahar Monday, Afghan government and police officials met with community elders and provincial officials from the city and outlying areas to discuss the latest suicide attacks.

They collectively vowed revenge for the Canadian soldiers' deaths, and for recent events in which Afghan flags were burnt in Helmand province.

"The flag burning was very worst act of the Taliban," one provincial council

member was heard saying by an interpreter. "We will never forgive them and we will take revenge."

Council members urged Afghan civilians to report strangers or suspicious people to local police in an effort to stop the suicide attacks.

"We shouldn't let any unknown person come to our streets," they said. "And if a person is suspected we must tell the police and hand over that person."

Ancient Persian drawing found in Afghan Buddhist cave - July 25, 2006

TOKYO (AFP) - Japanese researchers said they found a seventh-century painting of a mythological Persian bird in Afghanistan's Bamiyan ruins, showing the region's Buddhism was influenced by pre-Islamic Iran.

The team unearthed an image of what appears to be a Simorgh, the giant and powerful bird that figures prominently in Zoroastrian-era Iranian legends.

The faded painting emerged after Japanese researchers removed soot from a Buddhist cave in Bamiyan, the region where Taliban Islamic extremists dynamited the world's tallest standing Buddha statues in 2001.

"This is the first time a vivid image of this creature was confirmed" in Bamiyan, an expert involved in the project at Japan's National Research Institute for Cultural Properties told AFP.

"This image shows that Iranian myth and Persian views were reflected in Bamiyan Buddhism. It indicates the influence of people from Sogd, the areas north of Afghanistan which covers what are now Uzbekistan and Tajikistan," he said.

However, the Japanese team called for more research, saying that some scholars believed the image could instead be a Griffin from Greek mythology. Alexander the Great conquered Afghanistan in the fourth century BC.

The picture portrays the creature with an eagle's head, wings and a lion's torso of gold, silver, blue and red facing off with a bull.

Inside the same cave, researchers also found a design of a boar and a lion facing each other.

"Fragments of similar images have been found in other caves and areas. But this is the first time we see so many pictures of animals in one place," said the researcher, who did not want his name used for the group project.

The Japanese team employed a special chemical to remove the soot without harming the mural in June and July. It also used the project to train Afghan workers.

Japanese researchers have spearheaded the drive to preserve what is left of Bamiyan.

The Taliban, ignoring world protests, dynamited two 1,500-year-old Buddhist statues carved into the sandstone cliffs of Bamiyan in March 2001, branding them un-Islamic.

Afghanistan to send 128-member contingent - Daily News - Sri Lanka July 24, 2006 - Countdown to the South Asian games with Dinesh Weerawamsa

The babes of South Asian Games - Afghanistan, has confirmed that they would field a 128-member contingent for the Colombo SA Games. They will compete at 13 of the 20 disciplines included in the Games proper. They will field four athletes (for men's events) and six boxers.

They Afghans have shown a keen interest on martial arts like Karate-do, Judo and Wushu. They have also confirmed by numbers that they would compete in Wrestling and Taekwondo.

In team sports, Afghanistan will take part in soccer and volleyball (men's). Meanwhile, Sri Lanka has finalised its judo team for the eight-nation Games.

The Lankan team comprise Madura Milan (SL Navy), M.G.G. Bandara (SL Navy), S.K. Hapuarachchi (Police), R.D.K.V.C. Gunasekera (Police, captain), R.R.M.U.B. Bambaradeniya (Air Force) and M.S. Pushpakumara (Police).

Sri Lanka judo captain Gunasekera, a bronze medallist at the South Asian Championships in India, will compete under 81kg weight category. The Lankan team is coached by V.S. Perera and Miyoco Echiko. Going back to our segment of the SA Games history that we have been discussing in this countdown series, we will have a look at the third SA Games in India. The subcontinent's mega event came to India for the first time when

Calcutta became the host city from November 19-28, 1987. Making the full use of the home conditions, the Indian gold haul went up to 91, out of their total 155 medals.

Saman Rawat was the most impressive India female athlete with triple gold medals (in 1,500m, 3,000m and 10,000m) while P.T. Usha completed a double by winning women's 200m and 400m.

India retained their soccer 'crown' in Calcutta in 1987 and in addition, they bagged the gold medals in basketball, volleyball and kabaddi. In swimming, Sri Lanka's Julian Bolling was the star attraction with three gold medals in 200m freestyle, 400m freestyle and 400m individual medley. But India won six of the seven table tennis gold medals.

Pro-Taleban Militants in Pakistan Free Four Soldiers, Extend Cease-fire by a Month - By VOA News 23 July 2006

Pakistani officials say pro-Taleban militants in a semi-autonomous tribal region bordering Afghanistan have freed four soldiers taken hostage in April and extended a cease-fire by another month.

The move came a day after Pakistan released 32 men who had been in jail from five months to two years on suspicion of involvement in attacks on security forces in North Waziristan.

In June, the militants called a month-long cease-fire to give time for tribal elders to broker a settlement to end the bloodshed in the region.

The rebels also had a number of demands, including the withdrawal of army troops from new checkpoints and replacing them with tribal police, and the release of tribesmen detained during military operations.

Pakistan is a key U.S. ally in the war against terrorism. Taleban and al-Qaida militants have been using the rugged border dividing Afghanistan and Pakistan as their hideout. It is believed that al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden also is hiding in the region.

[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.]