In this bulletin:

• Afghans' doubt grows, poll finds
• NATO forces hit Taliban
• No change to Afghanistan expected after US elections: US official
• Afghanistan will miss Rumsfeld
• Karzai nominates members for peace commission
• Mixed reaction to Karzai's offer
• Karzai Discusses Worsening Security In RFE/RL Interview
• Taliban fighters talk tactics  while safe in Pakistan
• Pakistan thinks it is succeeding in Afghanistan!
• Gangs plot to topple British ally
• Iran wants Afghan refugees to leave by 2010
• Clinton weighs in on Afghanistan
• Troops hunt for bomber's helpers
• 'Expected'
• Morning exercises
• Call charges to drop by 50 per cent in three years

Afghans' doubt grows, poll finds

The New York Times 11/09/2006 By Carlotta Gall - Afghans have lost a considerable amount of confidence in the direction of their country over the past two years, according to an extensive nationwide survey.

While the national mood remains positive on the whole, the number of people with negative or mixed views on the trajectory of the country has grown significantly since a similar survey in 2004, according to the Asia Foundation, which conducted both surveys.

"The number of Afghans who feel optimistic is lower than on the eve of the 2004 presidential elections," the survey found.

It was the largest opinion survey conducted in Afghanistan. In it, 44 percent of Afghans interviewed said the country was headed in the right direction, compared with 64 percent in 2004 on the eve of the first democratic presidential elections in Afghanistan. Twenty-one percent said the country was headed in the wrong direction - compared with 11 percent in 2004 - and 29 percent had mixed feelings. Four percent were unsure. Security was the main reason for the increased concern, the survey said.

Financed by the U.S. Agency for International Development, the survey was conducted by the Asia Foundation, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, and by local partners, who interviewed more than 6,000 people from June through August this year in rural and urban areas of all but two of Afghanistan's provinces. The main goal of the survey, which was released Wednesday, was to determine the attitudes of Afghans toward the political process, public policy and development progress.

The national mood was almost identical across the different ethnic groups, but varied according to region.

Security was the main source for optimism among those who said the country was headed in the right direction. But among those who expressed pessimism, more than half said the biggest problem was a lack of security, the Taliban threat and warlords. Indeed, two southern provinces were excluded from the survey because of security problems.

Respondents listed the economy and unemployment as other big issues. Fifty-four percent said they felt more prosperous than they had under the Taliban, but 26 percent said they felt less well off. On a local level, unemployment was cited as the biggest problem, while security and a lack of infrastructure and basic services like electricity and water featured less prominently.

Corruption, which has become one of the main criticisms of the government, was less of a concern for respondents than unemployment and lack of services, with only 8 percent naming it as the biggest problem locally. But when asked specifically if corruption was a problem nationally, 77 percent of respondents said it was, and 60 percent said it had increased.

The survey showed strong support for democratic elections, and strong approval of the newly established national institutions, including the Afghan National Army, of which 87 percent approved, and the Afghan National Police, of which 86 percent approved. A similar amount expressed trust in the electronic media, and 57 percent in nongovernmental organizations, whose performance has often been criticized. The justice system, local militias and political parties were not trusted, the survey said.

Eighty-six percent supported equal rights for women. Freedom of speech also received wide support.

Deep respect for religion also was apparent. Sixty-one percent said religious leaders should be consulted on issues and problems. Sixty percent of those surveyed said an Islamic nation could attain democracy without becoming Westernized, while 35 percent said democracy challenged Islamic values.

NATO forces hit Taliban

NATO launched airstrikes as clashes in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar killed 28 suspected Taliban militants, The Associated Press reported on Thursday, quoting police officials.

Canadian troops from a NATO-led security force and Afghan police forces identified a Taliban position in the district of Zhari late Wednesday and, with close air support, killed 22 suspected militants, said the district police chief, Ghulam Rasool Aga.

A NATO spokesman, Major Luke Knittig, confirmed that NATO and Afghan forces clashed with a group of insurgents who had attacked them with small arms fire, but had no immediate details on militant casualties.

Earlier Wednesday in Zhari, Afghan forces battled Taliban fighters for three hours. Six militants were killed and four were wounded, Aga said.

No change to Afghanistan expected after US elections: US official

Thu Nov 9, 6:08 AM ET KABUL (AFP) - US policies and commitment to Afghanistan will likely be unchanged after the Democrats' win in US mid-term elections and replacement of Donald Rumsfeld as defence secretary, a top US official said here.

The stabilisation of Afghanistan was in the US national interest and both Democrats and Republicans were committed to the task, the US assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs told reporters in Kabul on Thursday.

The Democrats' wresting of Congress from the Republicans and President George W. Bush's replacement of Rumsfeld on Wednesday were not expected to see changes towards Afghanistan, Richard Boucher said.

The United States is the main supporter of post-Taliban Afghanistan, having led the offensive to topple the extremist regime in late 2001 months after the September 11 attacks blamed on Al-Qaeda leaders being sheltered here.

It has 20,000 troops in Afghanistan and is the main funder of efforts to rebuild the country. Rumsfeld made several trips here during his six years in office to reaffirm support for President Hamid Karzai's government.

"There is very strong support among both Republicans and Democrats for the mission in Afghanistan for the efforts we are making here, the funding is needed to support Afghanistan...," Boucher said.

"So I have every confidence that kind of support is going to continue whatever the make-up of Congress," he said.

He said there was commitment in the United States from the president down and "all sides of politics" for Afghanistan.

"It's a national effort on part of the United States here and something that is very important to our national interest and helping Afghanistan is something we all agree on and we are all very committed to," he said.

Afghanistan will miss Rumsfeld

November 9, 2006 - KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Afghan government officials say U-S Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will be missed.

But U-S Army officials on the ground say Rumsfeld's resignation won't change the mission. The chief U-S military spokesman in Afghanistan says "the global war on terror continues in Afghanistan."

President Hamid Karzai's chief of staff says the government is sad that Rumsfeld has resigned and grateful for his support but doesn't expect any changes in U-S policy.

Rumsfeld was the architect of the war in Afghanistan, which toppled the country's Taliban rulers in 2001.

There are currently 23-thousand U-S troops in the country. They are battling an upsurge in Taliban attacks that has made 2006 the bloodiest year in Afghanistan since the regime was ousted.

Karzai nominates members for peace commission

Pajhwok 11/09/2006 By Danish Karokhel - KABUL - President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday named a commission to finalise arrangements for the tribal Jirga.

Former jihadi leader and chief of the Afghanistan Milli Islami Mahaz Pir Sayed Ahmad Gilani has been nominated as chief of the commission.

Member of the Wolesi Jirga or lower house of parliament Haji Mohammad Mohaqiq and former chief justice Maulvi Fale Hadi Shinwari were assigned the job of deputies, while Minister for the Parliamentary Affairs would supervise the secretariat of the said commission.

Spokesman for the commission Hasan Ahmadzai told Pajhwok Afghan News the members had already been selected. He added the secretariat would be responsible for nominating members for the proposed Jirga.

Urging sincerity on parts of the respective governments, Ahmadzai said the Jirga would help ensuring security in areas on both sides of the divide.

Spokesman for the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs Asif Nang said the Pakistani side has promised to start preliminary measures in this regard in latter half of the current month.

He hoped the Jirga would solve the security as well as other problems faced by people living on both sides of the Durand Line.

Mixed reaction to Karzai's offer

BBC 11/09/2006 By Matt Prodger in Kabul - Afghan President Hamid Karzai's offer to hold talks with the leaders of two prominent insurgent groups has had a mixed response.
A few days ago President Karzai said he was willing to negotiate with the Taleban leader, Mullah Omar.

But it was his offer of talks with an Afghan warlord, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, which has provoked most controversy. The insurgency has claimed the lives of more than 3,000 militants, civilians and Afghan and Nato troops this year.

Controversial figure - The insurgents, fighting both the Afghan army and troops from the Nato-dominated International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), fall into three crude categories.

The Taleban, al-Qaeda and a 30-year-old mujahideen faction called Hezb-e-Islami, headed by Mr Hekmatyar, one of Afghanistan's most notorious warlords. Taleban and al-Qaeda militants have shown little interest in co-operating with Afghanistan's Western-backed government.

But Mr Hekmatyar, in hiding and increasingly isolated, is the controversial figure. He was first lionised for his resistance to Soviet occupation in the 1980s and, later vilified for his part in the fighting among mujahideen factions which killed more than 25,000 civilians in the early 1990s.

Mr Hekmatyar is a veteran of the ever-shifting alliances of convenience which have characterised Afghanistan's recent history. A supporter of Osama Bin Laden in 2003, he was labelled a terrorist by the United States.

President Karzai's offer of talks with Mr Hekmatyar, an alleged war criminal, has horrified many Afghans who would like to put the era of the warlords behind them.

Yet some politicians have accepted it as part of a forgive-and-forget policy of reconciliation and, still more, point out sceptically that this government already has its share of warlords in its ranks.

Afghanistan is finding it hard to break free from the actors who trod the stage in its bloody past.

Karzai Discusses Worsening Security In RFE/RL Interview

RFE/RL 11/09/2006 - KABUL - Afghan President Hamid Karzai met with the director of RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan, Akbar Ayazi, for a wide-ranging interview in Kabul on November 9. This is the first portion of that interview, with other installments to be added later today.

RFE/RL: Mr. President, the people of Afghanistan have different concerns. So far as we know and read in the reports, security is the top concern of the Afghan people. In the past 18 months, the security situation in the southern and eastern provinces -- even in the Tagau and Nejrab areas close to Kabul -- has deteriorated. From your point of view, why has the security situation become so bad? Why are the opponents of the central government attacking and committing suicide bombings.

Hamid Karzai : In the name of God the all merciful and forgiving, without doubt the security situation in Afghanistan in the past 1 1/2  to two years has deteriorated. And there are different reasons for this. This situation also is a cause of concern for us. One reason is that our security forces in different areas and districts -- and particularly in those areas where we are facing attacks -- are very weak. Two or two-and-a-half years ago, the people of Kandahar informed me and the people of Helmand informed me that the police forces in the districts are very weak. Their numbers are limited and they are not well-equipped. I started talking with the international community about it and tried to get more support for our police forces. At first, it was decided that the number of police in the [Afghan National Police] force would be 62,000. We told the foreigners that the material and financial support that they are offering is limited and should be increased. We told them that the amount of support is not enough to train so many police. These discussions continued for a long time. Finally, six months ago, the international community was convinced that our security forces in the districts are, indeed, very limited -- and that they would give us more support in this regard. And so it was decided that we hire local people in the districts and train them to be police because this is our tradition -- that people take care of their own security. In this way, the number of police was increased from 62,000 to 82,000 people. Furthermore, it was decided that the income of these people would be increased and that they would be given better equipment. This means we have increased the size of our police force by 20,000. This means it was our own weakness -- the weakness of our system and the weakness of our government. We did not have enough police and our police were not trained.

Q: And all these efforts caused new problems and people began complaining that you have created new militia forces. Is that correct?

A: Yes. While we were talking with the foreigners I told them that if you don't agree very quickly, we will be exposed to attacks. People are crossing our borders. They burn our schools. They kill our children. They destroy our houses and assassinate our clerics and our tribal leaders. So [I told the international community] if you don't agree with me soon to raise the number of our police and give them better training and equipment, then I will be forced to use local measures. Local measures means that I invite the local elders and ask them for their help -- to send their young people to defend the country. The foreigners had the impression that we were going to create local militia forces. The fact is that the Afghan people don't like militia forces at all. But the foreigners didn't realize this. They couldn't differentiate between the local people and the militia forces. This was the first reason.

The second reason is that Afghanistan over the past 30 years was always faced with foreign interference -- the meddling of the neighboring countries. Little by little, Afghanistan lost its sovereignty. Every neighboring country had its own interests and their own people in Afghanistan. And Afghanistan itself had no voice. It appeared that Afghanistan was an independent country. But in reality, it wasn't independent at all. When the new government was established, when the international community entered Afghanistan, and when Afghanistan stood again on its own feet in the international arena as an independent and respected country, those elements who were supported by foreign [neighboring] countries -- and were governing this country and were abusing this country -- it was hard for them to accept the new realities. [It was hard for them] to tolerate a new and independent Afghanistan with its own identity and flag and whose leaders would appear as the equals of other leaders in the world and delivering speeches like the leaders of the rest of the world.

So in order to weaken this development and progress, to end the improvements that were introduced to the life of this country and change Afghanistan back to a country that they could govern again, they started sabotage acts in our country. So they sent their bombs, their destructive weapons, and most of all, they used our own sons -- those who were uneducated and poor. With lots of tricks and hypocrisy, they deceived our sons and sent them back to Afghanistan to fight against us. They started broad propaganda. For example, in neighboring Pakistan they are creating propaganda that there is no Islam in Afghanistan -- that there is no call to prayer in Afghanistan. And God forbid they are saying that there are only infidels in Afghanistan and that Afghanistan is not moving toward progress and prosperity. [They say] that the Afghan people are becoming hungry and facing calamity.

From the other side, our own publicity was very weak. So, to make it short, I can tell you that the first reason was foreign meddling, terrorism, and the creation of fear in Afghanistan. This means the foreigners were training extremists and terrorists against us and making negative propaganda against us. The other reason was our own internal weakness.

Q: Mr President, you mentioned that foreign countries -- especially Pakistan -- are meddling in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and that they are using Afghan youth to carry out terrorist attacks against Afghanistan. Recently, you said that you invited [former Taliban leader] Mullah Mohammad Omar and [former Prime Minister and head of the Hizb-e Islami] Gulbuddin Hekmatyar for talks. You said that if they are ready for talks, that you would open a dialogue with them. This happened at a time when the chief of Afghanistan's Peace and Reconcilliation Commission, Sebghatullah Mujaddedi, called Hekmatyar a murderer. And the international forces call these people terrorists. The people of Afghanistan are asking how this can happen. What is your comment on this?

A: Mr. Mujaddedi said that these people can come and talk. And we are ready to talk about peace with them. But the government of Afghanistan and the Peace and Reconcilliation Commission cannot take responsibility for their past or for what they have committed. Rather, the people of Afghanistan and the parliament should make the decision about what they have done in the past. So it is up to the people and the parliament to decide whether to forgive them or not.

Q: Some of your opponents claim that the agreement between the government and the tribal elders of the Musaqala District of Helmand Province is a compromise with the Taliban. What is your reaction to this?

A: This is really an important issue. There are some suspicions in society about this. And these suspicions should be removed. Two or three months ago, the governor of Helmand Province approached me and said that the British forces want to leave this area. [He said] the elders of this district told the [provincial] government that they have problems with air strikes and military operations -- which were really going on there. These people suggested that they will ask the Taliban to stop their operations in this district. The elders said that the Afghan government should also do something so that the Taliban would not have any reason to carry out attacks in this district. These elders had drafted an agreement. [The governor of Helmand said that] he, himself, had read that agreement. And then [the governor] added that some tribal leaders and elders want to see me. So they came [to Kabul] at the beginning of the month of Ramazan. And I talked with them. Afghanistan is fundamentally a democratic country. Our life is based on jirgas (councils) and talking with tribal elders. In every part of our country where the elders, the tribal leaders, and the religious leaders who guide society all cooperate, there is peace and the government will function. If they do not cooperate, then nothing will work. It is like this in every democratic society in the world. So I am deeply convinced that the people could organize their lives better and advance their situation and bring peace to society. If they want this, they can achieve it. That is the reason that I accepted the advice of these tribal elders. So I agreed with them and I told them, 'Fine. Do your preparations. But the schools must remain open. There should be peace and the local police will be trained and sent to your districts.' The elders [of the Musaqala district] promised me that there will not be any saboteurs allowed in this district. They said they would return to Musaqala and see how things work. They said that if things are not working, they would let me know. Later, they sent me a video from there. The video showed that they had convened a big meeting there. It was a big jirga. And the elders and the tribal leaders spoke at this jirga and they said in their speeches that they want peace. They don't want destruction. And they said they will not let those who destroy Afghanistan enter their district. These elders asked the government for more help in reconstruction. They asked for the reconstruction of their mosque. And we accepted all of that. This means that I trust everything these elders say. I trust them and I accept them. They are the true sons of this country and they are more faithful than anyone else in this country. But I have received two reports recently. One report says that a very respected religious leader named Nurul Haq Akhundzada has been threatened by people who seem to be Taliban, or are Taliban. They have not only threatened him, but also humiliated him. I talked about this with the governor [of Helmand]. And now, I am going to talk about this with the elders who have come to Kabul again. Another tribal leader has disappeared. These two incidents need to be investigated. If it is proven that the Taliban entered this district and have committed these crimes, in that case, there will be lots of suspicion about this agreement. And the elders of this district should answer to me about why this has happened. There should be peace in that district and the rule of law should be practiced. There should be governmental institutions and the constitution of Afghanistan should be implemented. If that is not the case, then there will be doubts about this agreement. In that case, the government will be forced to intervene and get rid of these destructive elements.

Q: Now that we are talking about the security problems in the southern part of Afghanistan, I'm sure that in your private discussions with NATO that you have asked them to bring some changes to their strategies to avoid the killing of innocent local people. However, this has not been done. Rather, the number of civilian deaths have increased. Even recently, many innocent people were killed in Helmand Province. How can this be avoided?

A: Yes. Unfortunately, in this war against terrorism, ordinary Afghans have suffered a lot. They were sacrificed and they tolerated a lot of suffering. After the tragedy of September 11th in New York, when the international forces entered Afghanistan and started the war against terrorism, we began to say that this war is in our interest because the people of Afghanistan wanted to free themselves from the visible and invisible foreign occupation, from the the calamity of terrorism, and from foreign interference. This was the reason that we have joined hands with the international community. The terrorists not only occupied us -- they killed our people, martyred our sons, burned our vineyards, destroyed our villages and towns, and tried to create hostility among the people of our country. They also were humiliating our history and our cultural identity. So it was very important for us that a force enter this country and help to save us. This was the reason that the Afghan nation decided to join hands with the international community and that we cooperated with them. This was also the reason that we accepted a very high number of sacrifices. Many parts of our country were bombarded. In different operations of the war against terrorism, many houses were destroyed. But the people accepted all this. Now, the more progress we make and the more our system is established, the degree of our tolerance toward terrorist activity is decreasing. This means that we expect such terrorist activities will decrease. And that is the reason that we, for the past three-and-a-half years -- if not every day then certainly on a weekly basis -- discuss the issues of terrorism with the international community. And to find out how we can lower the threats of terrorism in this country. It is normal that in antiterrorism operations there are casualties. But we are trying very much, by developing and using new mechanisms, to avoid casualties. Many things have decreased. For example, the number of searches of Afghan houses [by coalition forces] has gone down. And many other problems are being reduced. But it is true still that air strikes are killing people. We have asked [NATO and the United States] to avoid such casualties .They are also trying very hard. We all try our best to reduce casualties as much as possible. Especially through air strikes. But his can only happen if, instead of looking for terrorists on Afghan soil, we look to the real sources of terrorism -- which is outside of Afghanistan -- and get rid of them. Afghanistan proposed this long ago. That we should look for the real sources of terrorism outside of the country. We once again propose that we should go to the real sources, to the places where the terrorists get their financing, to the places where they are getting their training. There are no terrorists in Afghanistan. There are no extremists or destructive people in this country. Yes, there are thieves. It is true that there are insecurities because of criminal activities there. But we don't have terrorists in Afghanistan. And we hope that the international community will focus on the real sources of terrorism.

Q: It is good that you mentioned the real source of terrorism. Many people think that it is Pakistan. But in recent days, and particularly on Wednesday, November 8, there was a big suicide attack against recruits at a military training center in Pakistan. There was also an explosion in Quetta, Pakistan. Is this a result of the actions and reactions of terrorist groups?

A: I am not saying that. The Afghan government does not say that the source of terrorism is in Pakistan. No matter where the source of terrorism is, the Afghan government says that the world should [support us]. A lot has been done in this regard. And we have reached agreements. Wherever the source of terrorism is, wherever the terrorists are financed, we should stand against them. If these centers are in Afghanistan, the world should come and tell us. You see that [NATO and coalition forces] go out every day in Afghanistan in search of terrorists. But if these centers are in Pakistan or in another country, then we should approach those areas and take measures to stop them. I am very sorry about the events [on November 8] in Pakistan that caused the deaths of 42 Pakistani soldiers in a suicide attack. This must show us very clearly that this campaign, this jihad against terrorism, is the duty for all of us. And we should fight this jihad together. I have told the government of Pakistan -- my brother, the president of Pakistan, Mr. [Pervez] Musharraf -- that Afghanistan is a brother of his country. Afghanistan is his friend and his partner. And the interests of Afghanistan lie in a progressive, stable Pakistan. And the interests of Pakistan are in a stable and progressive Afghanistan. So let us join hands and save Afghanistan and Pakistan from this evil. I am hopeful that the jirga I have proposed -- which will be convening between the people of both countries -- will investigate the roots of all the evil and get rid of terrorism. So we are hoping the jirga will reach this conclusion. Afghanistan is looking for a solution and knows that there is no other way than to destroy the roots of terrorism. Superficial measures today or tomorrow cannot rid us of this problem. We should go to the root cause of extremism that brings about terrorism and get rid of it.

Q: You mentioned an interesting point -- the jirga between the tribal elders on both sides of the so-called Durand Line. The majority of people in Afghanistan do not know exactly what this proposed jirga is about. Can you please explain it to the people of Afghanistan what its purpose is and what you want to achieve?

A: The purpose of convening this jirga is quite clear. It is to bring peace to the region. To bring peace to Afghanistan and Pakistan. As a result of that, peace will be established in the whole region and terrorism will disappear. The purpose is that no explosions take place in Afghanistan which cut our young boys into pieces. Why did I propose this jirga?

Q: So it was your proposal for this jirga?

A: Yes. I proposed this jirga in Washington during a formal dinner party that was organized by President [George W.] Bush for myself and President [Pervez] Musharraf. I made the proposal there to convene such a jirga. Why did I propose it? Five years ago, when the foundations of the new Afghanistan were laid down, life returned. Hope returned to the people of Afghanistan. But at the same time, there were also problems. What we wished was to be able to live in peace inside our country and in peace with our neighbors. But our wishes did not materialize the way we expected -- that the removal of the Taliban and Al-Qaeda would bring an end to terrorism. In defeating these elements, our hope was for absolute peace in Afghanistan. We hoped that the mothers and sisters of Afghanistan would be free from bombs and attrocities and war. But unfortunately, it did not happen that way. There was peace all over Afghanistan. But in areas that lie close to the border of Paksitan, those provinces faced dangers again after one or two years. Again, they were faced with war. So we started talking about this with the world community, with the neighboring countries, and particularly, with our brotherly country Pakistan. I have visited Pakistan five or six times and there, during my first meeting with the president [Musharraf], he said at a press conference that Pakistan apologizes for any mistakes it may have made. And I told him in response that the Afghan nation thanked the nation of Pakistan -- that Pakistan had taken us in its arms and allowed us to live for 30 years in the country as refugees. We did live there for many years under good circumstances. The nation of Pakistan honored us and treated us like their brothers. They opened the door of their soil to us. They opened the doors of their houses where we lived. We started our jihad [against Soviet occupation] from Pakistani soil and they cooperated with us. So we thank Pakistan for all of that. We want to improve our lives and live with each other in a peaceful and brotherly atmosphere. Unfortunately, that peace and prosperity that we wished for did not materialize. In less than two or three years, at least 2,000 of our people have been martyred. My government and I, in order to avoid such casualties, worked very hard. I talked with America. I talked with the United Nations, with European countries, with NATO, and with our neighboring countries. I went to every country [that I could]. I talked to China, to Islamic countries, to Arab countries, and to Pakistan. There have been five or six rounds of negotiations. Different delegations have been sent at different levels. But the result that the Afghan people wanted has not been achieved so far.

So, at the meeting of the president of the United States with myself and the president of Pakistan, I decided to present specific proposals. And one of these important, specific proposals was the convening of a jirga. And this was a demand of the Afghan people. Three months before that, I met with the representatives of all the provinces of Afghanistan. At that meeting, it was [first] proposed that we should convene such a jirga in order to find a way to bring an end to the war and to the destruction -- a war that is going on but which we do not know where it is coming from. To bring this out into the political scene and expose it and talk openly about it. Who is complaining about Afghanistan? Who is scared of Afghanistan? If they have complaints, why do they have complaints? And what Afghanistan wants is that the two nations have a formal dialogue about all of these things. We hope to resolve these problems through dialogue. That is why I have made this proposal for this jirga. To fight terrorism in a better way and in a clearer way so that we are able to get rid of terrorism in Afghanistan, in Pakistan, and in the region.

Q: Some Afghans fear that Pakistan will try to put the Durand Line issue on the table during this jirga. Is Afghanistan ready to discuss the issue of the Durand Line at such a jirga? Is this possible? Or is the agenda of these discussions already prepared in advance?

A: The agenda is prepared ahead of time. The agenda of the discussion is about peace and the removal of terrorism. There is no place for any other issue in it and there will be no talks on any other issue. This jirga does not have the authority to discuss the Durand Line or to make decisions about it. This is a question that goes higher than the authority of such jirgas. This issue cannot be decided on the basis of my signature or the government's approval. This is a question for the people of the two nations. It is beyond the authority of a jirga that is convened for the purpose of peace. So there is no place [there] for discussions on this issue.

Q: Another main concern of the people of Afghanistan is the issue of corruption. So far, we are watching the situation and reading the reports. After security, people are complaining about the high rate of corruption. You have announced a campaign against corruption several times. The prosecutor-general has even declared a jihad against corruption. But no results have been achieved. We all hope that this issue will be resolved very soon. So, do you still hope for results and positive conclusions soon?

A: This is a very good question. From the very beginning of the establishment of this government, we started different efforts. We discussed the reasons for the increase in corruption -- why and how it has happened. But getting rid of corruption in the Afghan administration is an absolute necessity. This is not only necessary for the survival of Afghanistan as a nation that is hopeful for progress and development and for an accountable system that Afghanistan is going to create. It is also very important for the reputation of Afghanistan within the international community. It is also important to ensure the continuation of aid that Afghanistan is getting. If we don't get rid of corruption in Afghanistan, the progress and development that we hope to achieve -- the prosperity that we wish for our people -- will not be achieved in Afghanistan. So, in order to improve our lives from the conditions that we have today, it is necessary for our administration to become healthier. This means that corruption must be removed from all national, provincial, and local administrations. Honesty and transparency must be established. We have made different efforts in this regard. There were some results, but not what we had hoped for. So our prosecutor-general has launched a very good campaign. It is a broad campaign. And I absolutely support his efforts. We should take steps in accordance with the laws of Afghanistan and remove corruption from the Afghan administration. This effort is continuing. The prosecutor-general has made these efforts and there are some good results, too. In many cases, these measures will be even broader and stricter.

Q: Sometimes it is alleged that Afghan officials themselves are blocking the efforts of the prosecutor-general to root out corruption in Afghanistan. The recent reaction of the governor of Balkh Province in Mazar-e Sharif -- accusing the prosecutor-general of having a political agenda and trying to settle personnal vendettas -- is one example of this.

A: Yes. It should be clear, perfectly clear, that I have given the prosecutor-general the authority to act according to Afghan law -- to work with full authority and all the possibilities available to root out corruption. And I am standing absolutely behind him. I have made that absolutely clear.

Q: Another important issue in the news recently is that Pakistan wants to mine the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan -- or even build a fence there. This has captured the attention of the Afghan people and is a very important issue to them. What is your position on Pakistan's proposal to build a fence and mine the border region?

A: This issue was raised once before in the past. The position of Afghanistan is very clear about this. That is, that barbed wire or [land] mines cannot get rid of terrorism. Barbed wire and mines can only separate people. In this matter, we can say that one brother would be living on one side and another brother would be on the other side. One cousin would be living on this side and another on the other side. One of our girls would be married on this side and another would be married on the other side. So people come and go to both sides. This is one people living in this area. So raising barbed wire there would only separate families and tribes. It would only be a physical separation and it would not prevent terrorism. We have told [Islamabad] this very clearly. In order to get rid of terrorism, we should address the root causes of it and find the real source of these evils. And I'm very hopeful that we will work even more together on this. We are in touch with the Pakistani regime and government.

The recent measures that [Pakistan] has taken show that they are going to act seriously. They are also sacrificing their people in this campaign and we are very sorry about that. So we share this grief with them. We should look at this question in a different way. We should see whom terrorism affects, who has been hurt by terrorism, who is grieving as a result of terrorism, and who has been destroyed by terrorism. It is the Afghans and the Pashtuns who are the victims.

It has been 30 years now that the Afghans have been burning in this fire. It is the wars, the interferences -- and in the last 10 to 12 years, terrorism -- that have harmed every household in Afghanistan. Kandahar is suffering from these pains. Jalalabad is suffering from these pains. Badakhshan, Bamiyan, Mazar-e-Shariff, Fariyab, Herat, Paktia -- every household in Afghanistan has been burned by this fire. Their children have been killed by terrorists. Their houses have been destroyed by terrorists -- particularly, in the last four to five years. And particularly, in those provinces of Afghanistan that are neighboring Pakistan. Their children are deprived of going to school. Almost 200,000 children in Helmand, Farah, Kandahar, Nimroz, and Zabol, Oruzgan, Paktika, Paktia, and Konar -- they cannot go to school. In Tagab [a district northeast of Kabul] and other areas as well. It is the same in Pakistan. There, the Pashtuns are hunted by terrorists. They are killed by the hands of terrorists. And also, they are being accused by the terrorists. This is a conspiracy. This is cruelty being imposed upon Afghans and the Pashtuns. And we should prevent that.

So these people are suffering a lot. We must protect these people from such cruelty. This is not only the duty of these tribes. It is also the duty of this region. And it is the duty of the international community to pay attention to this issue -- so that the historical people of this area are not wrongly accused. They are suffering from terrorism and are also accused by terrorists. I am paying very close attention to this issue.

And that is the reason that I have sent letters to the people and to the government of Pakistan, as well as to Esfandiar Wali Khan [the chief of the National Awami Party in the Northwest Frontier Province of Pakistan] and to Mahmud Khan Aczkzai [a Pashtun leader in Balochistan Province]. I have also sent a letter to Maulana Fazoolu Rahman, [leader of the coalition of Islamic parties in Pakistan] asking him to join hands and save Afghans and Pashtuns from this suffering and these calamities. If you look, the Afghan clerics are being killed. In Kabul, innocent people are being martyred. They are killed in suicide bombings. In Kandahar, the religious leaders are being assassinated. In Konar Province, the elders are being martyred. And in Paktia, teachers are being martyred. And in the same way, the same things are happening to the Pashtuns in Pakistan -- especially in North Waziristan. The tribal elders and religious scholars are being martyred. Their heads are being cut off. Recently, they took a religious scholar out of a madrasah and they cut off his head -- saying he was a spy of the United States. Nearly 200 tribal elders and religious scholars have been martyred in this part of Waziristan. Who is doing that? Why are such atrocities being committed against these people? Is the purpose to suppress these people? To make them become poor and desperate? What are the reasons for this and who is doing it? It is quiet clear that serious measures should be taken to save the Afghans in Afghanistan and the Pashtuns in that area.

Q: What will be the effects on Afghanistan as a result of the resignation of the U.S. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and the success of the Democratic Party in the U.S. legislative elections? And particularly, what effect could this have on your foreign policy?

A: The results of the U.S. election in which the Democrats won a majority in the House of Representatives is an internal affair for the United States. It shows the freedom and democracy of America. It should be a matter of pride for the American people. We consider this an internal matter of the United States.

Fortunately, Afghanistan enjoys the support of the whole U.S. nation. Both big political parties in the United States -- the Democrats and the Republicans -- are supporting Afghanistan. And we thank them both for their help. President George W. Bush gave me the assurance that any change occurring in the peoples' institutions of the United States will not have an effect on Afghanistan. Rather, they are all supporters of Afghanistan. The resignation of Mr. Rumsfeld is their decision and we respect their decision. However, Mr. Rumsfeld is a friend of Afghanistan -- a good ally and supporter in the war against terrorism. I have great respect for him. He is a very knowledgeable man, a very smart person, and a very resolute person. And I am proud to have his friendship.

Q: When you started your term as president of Afghanistan, you were one of the most popular presidents in the world. Some critics believe now that you are not as popular with your own people as you were before. Do you agree with this? And what are your thoughts about this as the country faces increased corruption and insecurity?

A: I am very happy that I was so popular among the Afghan people. God should bless the Afghan people for voting for me. They liked me. But it is true that there are difficulties in the country. There also will be difficulties in the country in the future.

There is no doubt that people are angry. When a family is hit by a bomb and I am the president here with the responsibility -- when a suicide bomb takes places and murders the people of this nation -- I am the president of this country and it is my responsibility to bring peace to these people. The people know that such tragedies make me very, very sad. Very, very sad. It is certain that the people expect me, and ask me as the president, to bring protect them against the bombs and suicide attacks and against the corruption. They want protection against abusive officials. I am making an effort every day to do what I can. I do everything within my physical and legal powers. But if the nation does not stand behind me the way it was before, and if there is discontent among the people, I know they are right. We must accept that and try to implement all the promises that we have made to the people -- to improve their security and to improve their lives. This means that the nation is always right and the government is always to be blamed.

Q: Imagine that your term as the president was over. Can you describe how you imagine it will be?

A: If our jirga with our brother country Pakistan is successful and we agree on security in our fight against terrorism, life will be prosperous. Every country has some internal problems. We will also have them. We will not worry too much about it. We will manage that. There will be an end to corruption. There will be an end to the problems of drugs. There will be reforms within our administrations. We will have more schools and education. It all will happen. But what is important is that the relations in the region improve. Between ourselves and Pakistan, there is this one problem; there is a problem of terrorism and extremism in which our Afghanistan has been damaged a lot. So if we get closer with Pakistan, and if we fight terrorism in the right way so that terrorism is finally removed from this area, things in Afghanistan will change dramatically -- no matter who is governing the country, myself or somebody else. They will have an easy job and the country will be progressing.

(Interview conducted by RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan Director Akbar Ayazi; translations from Dari and Pashto by Hashem Mohmand in Prague; transcription by Ron Synovitz)

Taliban fighters talk tactics  while safe in Pakistan

The Christian Science Monitor 11/09/2006 By Suzanna Koster - In a rare interview, Afghan militants describe how they operate.

BALOCHISTAN PROVINCE - The 22-year-old doesn't look like the traditional turbaned Taliban commander. His black hair shoots out at all angles from beneath a red cap. He smiles easily and has a neatly trimmed beard.

But Hilal says he is the co-leader of 200 Taliban fighters who operate across the border in Afghanistan. "Two years ago, we only attacked Afghan officials, but now we have so many Talibs that we can attack Americans," he boasts.

In a rare interview with a Western reporter, Hilal and three other Afghan Taliban fighters describe how they slip into Afghanistan, attack NATO and Afghan forces, and return to Pakistan to rest.

"Everybody in the neighborhood knows we are Talibs," says Noman, a 19-year-old fighter with a blue-white block-printed turban. "Paki-stan is a little bit free for us."

The interview was conducted over two days in a small house made of yellow mud in Pakistan's Balochistan Province. The fighters, who won't give their real names, say they are here for a refresher course in Taliban ideology in a Pakistani religious school.

"We are enormously organized," brags Mustafa, a 20-year-old wearing a black turban usually favored by conservative Muslims. "Even British defense officials say they face a lot of problems from the Taliban."

A year ago, such confident talk from Taliban fighters could have been chalked up to bravado. But with more than 50 suicide attacks in the past six months, resistance by large Taliban units in the increasingly volatile provinces of Kandahar and Helmand in the south, and a greater willingness of Taliban fighters to come out into the open and speak their minds are all indications that the Taliban resurgence is no longer a matter of conjecture.

This year has been a difficult one for the US, coalition, and Afghan forces. With US commanders handing control of the south over to its British, Canadian, Dutch, and other allies in NATO, the Taliban are making the transfer a bloody one. How NATO forces fare in the south could determine whether the democratically elected government of President Hamid Karzai  and indeed, the experiment in Afghan democracy itself  succeeds or fails.

Commander Hilal says that currently 40 of his troops are in Afghanistan fighting, and 160 are "refreshing their ideology" in Pakistan. Hilal says that he discusses military plans by cellphone and satellite phone with higher Taliban commanders who are all in Afghanistan.

Hilal says his fighters operate in groups of 20 to 25 men in the Afghan provinces Ghazni and Zabul. There are 35 groups active in Zabul's capital, Qalat, and 20 to 25 in the rest of by American forces controlled province.

Mustafa, in the black turban, says that the Talibs cross the border alone or in twos. Depending on the crossing point, he says  listing Pakistan border cities of Chaman, Badini, and Torkham  it takes one or two nights to join up with other Taliban fighters, he says. "The majority have Pakistani identity cards, so crossing the border is no problem," he says.

The Taliban fighters return to a different house in Pakistan every month, but say that they must be very careful in Afghanistan, says Noman, a gaunt-faced young man who says he wants to learn English. But Mustafa adds that they are no longer in hiding in Afghanistan. "We are now 200 to 300 at a time and can roam around freely," he says.

Prior to every mission, they get training in one of the many training camps in the Afghan mountains, says the 22-year-old Ali, who is quiet through most of the interview.

Afghanistan and NATO officials regularly accuse Pakistan of harboring Taliban leaders. Pakistan officials say they are doing everything they can to remove them.

On Wednesday, a suicide bomber killed 35 Pakistani soldiers in a brazen attack at a military base in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, leaving the Army shaken and a Taliban peace deal in tatters.

"Never has there been so many military casualties in one attack," says Ramiullah Yusufzai, a Peshawar-based journalist who has covered the Pakistan military's campaign against militants since 2001.

Hours after the attack, an organization calling itself the Pakistan Taliban, which had never come forward before, phoned Mr. Yusufzai to claim responsibility. The caller told Yusufzai that the bomber prepared a suicide video before carrying out the strike, suggesting a parallel in tactics used by Taliban militants in Afghanistan.

The four fighters say they all studied at an Afghan madrassah (religious school) before the American forces entered Afghanistan in 2001. Hilal fled to Pakistan when his fellow students at the madrassah were arrested after the Taliban regime was toppled. In 2003, he says, he joined the jihad.

In their Afghan camps, "we get training, even suicide education. There are many groups saying how we suicide bomb, lay mines, or use Kalashnikovs," he says. Suicide attacks are not for him, he says. "It takes a lot of training. You have to think about target time, because maybe you blow up yourself but nobody else."

All of their ammunition is inside Afghanistan and is used against non-Muslims, says Mustafa. "There is a lot of ammunition in Afghanistan to use against the non-Muslims. We hid it in depots after the fall of the Taliban."

The Afghan forces are the targets are considered "non-Muslims" because they work with the Americans. "All the checkpoints are covered by Afghan troops, so we go for them first," he says.

A month ago, Hilal says his forces attacked a military convoy in Zabul's provincial capital, Qalat. He says they killed 35 Afghan troops. Two Taliban fighters were injured.

The Taliban fighters also pride themselves on blocking the main highway between Kandahar and Kabul.

Mustafa says he's in favor of the international reconstruction work in Afghanistan. But Noman interrupts, raising a finger. "We are not in favor of reconstruction work, because it happens in the name of Christianity. This is why we close the schools. The government completely changed the books. A was for Allah, now it stands for Aass [mule in Pashto], J was for Jihad, now it stands for Jawary [maiz in Pashto]. With pamphlets, letters, and by taking the teachers "into confidence," Noman says they try to close down the schools  if necessary, by force.

More than 160 Afghan schools have been attacked this year, according to The Associated Press.

The fighters say ordinary Afghans give them vehicles, fuel, food, medicine, and information. "There are many business men who help us. We were given 10 vehicles in Kandahar and 15 in Helmand. Sometimes they give us security. They say, 'He is not a Talib, he is my family member.' That is jihad," says Noman.

The interview has been watched by a silent little observer: an 11-year-old boy on a wooden seat. His parents have sent him to Noman for religious training. He brings food to the Taliban fighters in the house. When he is grown, he says shyly, he wants to be a fighter. "Now I am still a kid, but when I have a beard I can join."

Correspondent David Montero in Islamabad, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

Pakistan thinks it is succeeding in Afghanistan!

www.newkerala.com - By I. Ramamohan Rao - New Delhi, Nov 9: The latest incident in Dargai in the North West Frontier Province has warned Pakistan that it may be the victim of the serious miscalculation in its Afghan policy.

No country, including the United States, has such a clear and consistent Afghanistan policy, except Pakistan, which is systematically implementing it to achieve its defined objectives. On the one hand it is milking the United States of billions of dollars in the name of fighting the terrorists as a 'frontline state' against terrorism, while on the other utilizing the same dollars to recruit, train, arm and sustain the Taliban cadres across the Durand Line- killing the Americans with their own taxpayers' money. Its singular aim is not to allow a peaceful, stable, moderate and democratic Afghanistan but instead have a government in Kabul, which is not only cooperative but also not friendly towards its traditional enemy, India.

Ever since the Taliban were thrown out after 9/11 attacks on America, they have been unable to digest the loss of the strategic depth against India they had very meticulously carved out though they were forced to cooperate under the 'bombing to stone age' threat. Their strategy is showing the desired results as the current situation in the south and southeastern Afghanistan provinces bordering Pakistan is developing. They have not only turned the Pushtuns away from their traditional anti-Pakistan and Pashtunistan demand, but also directed their whole ire towards north.

Pakistanis are pursuing the same strategy, which they employed against the Soviets to bleed the US and the allied forces till they are forced to run away, knowing fully well the inability of the developed western nations to take the rising number of casualties. They are aware of that the rich societies of the West do not accept the body bags. On the other hand they have no dearth of highly motivated jihadis to lay down their lives for the cause of driving out the infidels (Kafirs) out of Afghanistan.

By cooperating with the Americans in 2001, Pakistan not only evacuated hundreds of its armymen facing certain death at the hands of Uzbek Warlord General Abdur Rashid Dostum and the Northern Alliance in Kuduz, but along with them brought out several known Taliban commanders, including the dreaded Mullah Dadullah who is now killing the US and allied soldiers withy the same ferocity with which he killed thousands of Shia Hazaras in Bamiyan and Tajiks and Uzbeks in Mazar-e-Sharif in 2001.

Any intelligence with the name, including the CIA would vouch as to how the ISI managed the escape of of Osama bin Laden, Mullah Omar and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar and the entire leadership of al Qaeda and Taliban in 2001 as their were hardly any Taliban/al Qaeda casualities and the cadres remained almost intact. Tactically, for some time these elements lied low and protected by the Pakistan Army and ISI in the lawless tribal areas on the two sides of the Durand Line while the Musarraf Government dispossessed the Americans of billions of dollars on the pretext of 'hunting' Osama - Mullah Omar and company.

Occasionally, whenever the American put on some heat on them, Pakistanis killed or captured some small and unwanted small fish to convince the Bush administration of their sincerity. They flaunt that they have deployed 80,000 troops in the tribal borders to fight the terrorists. But, in fact this very large deployment of forces facilitated the uninterrupted flow of jihadis into Afghanistan to keep the fight on.

Simultaneously, the ISI, which during the Taliban days had 1,70,000 operatives within Afghanistan, maintained its sleeper cells, most of which have again been re-activated now that the Taliban are on the offensive again. It is very well known that Mullah Omar lives in Quetta and conducts the Taliban operations in southern Afghanistan provinces of Helmand, Kandahar, Oruzghan, Pakitiya, Paktika and Zabul while Gulubuddin Hekmatyar, another ISI old hand is in Bajaur agency to keep his Hizb-e-Islami fighters operational in Khost, Nangarhar and Nooristan and even his home province Badakshan.

The Americans and the NATO leaders know it fully well and mapped the ISI training camps, infiltration routes and confronted the Pakistanis with documents. So much so, the overall NATO Commander in Afghanistan, Lt Gen David Richrads even gave the exact address of Mullah Omar in Quetta. A leaked British Defence Department report also blamed entirely the ISI behind the resurgence of Taliban.

Eyewitnesses collaborate the NATO air reconnaissance photographs of the Pakistani Border Guards at the Chaman-Spin Boldak border not only allowing the trucks carrying jihadis into Afghanistan but also waving good luck to them in their 'sacred' mission against the American 'kafirs'. Taliban are not only moving freely in the streets of Peshawar, Quetta, Miranshah, Wana and Bajaur, but also have their 'spokesmen' giving interviews to journalists, regular press statements on satellite phones, issuing press releases and holding press conferences claiming the responsibility for suicide bombings and other attacks within Afghanistan.

Lately they have started taking newsmen embedded on tours on their expeditions. Of all the news organizations, BBC Correspondent David Loyn travelled and lived with the Taliban gurrellas for several days and filed dispatches eulogising the Taliban and their zeal.

Mullah Omar has now appointed the legendary Mullah Jalaluddin Haqqani as the Overall Field Commander of the Taliban militia. It is the same Haqqani of the Soviet era fame who captured Khost from Najibullah forces in 1991 after that Soviet withdrawal. Again a creation of ISI, Haqqani, and the cleric was an ally of the US. At one time, after the Taliban rout from Afghanistan following 9/11, the ISI called him to Islamabad and offered him the Presidentship of Afghanistan on the promise of de-linking from Mullah Omar and carving out a 'moderate Taliban' to hoodwink the Americans. But Haqqani refused and returned to Ghulam Khan in the mountains to keep the fight on.

Mullah Haqqani is now operating from the safe sanctuary of North Waziristan provided by the Pakistan agreement with the Taliban. Ironically, Musharraf as the way to tackle the insurgency is touting the agreement. He advocates similar agreements with Taliban in Afghanistan and quotes the British 'arrangement' with the Taliban in Musa Qala of Helmand.

The regular arrival of coffins of jihadi 'martyers' in Miranshah are greeted by the people and used to motivate the youth. More than 60 such coffins have come for burial in North Waziristan alone. Several injured jihadis are also getting treatment in Pakistani towns of Peshawar, Quetta and other places.

President Hamid Karzai is the most worried man as it is his job, which is on the line. With no fault of him, he is being criticized for all the mess in the south. He had been repeatedly telling Pakistan to hold its hand of support and rein in ISI from creating all the trouble. But Pakistan has been stonewalling all his charges and telluing him to put his own house in order and claiming that Pakistan has deployed 80,000 on its side while on the afghan side the troops are inadequate. Karzai even gave the list of Taliban leaders and training camps in Pakistanbut Musharraf dismissed it as an old one. Musharraf even went to the extent calling Karzai an 'Ostrich' ducking the danger rather than fighting it.

Despite all this, Bush, Blair and other western leaders publicly praise Pakistan for its support to the fight against terrorism, even though their own commanders and diplomats tell them about the dual game of the Pakistanis.

They seem to have been charmed by Musharraf by selling them the idea of involving the Taliban through Waziristan type agreements and they have forced the proposed holding of tribal jirgas both Afghanistan and Pakistan to be jointly addressed by Musharraf and Karzai. But, here again, Musharraf again is likely to outsmart Karzai who does not have the machinery and the expertise if ISI to back him. Jirgas are not going to be the solution.

Already sponsored reports are circulating that some European Union states have started talking of replacing Karzai with some another leader, more acceptable to the militants. One name taking the rounds is that of the former President, Prof Sibghtullah Mojaddedi who is currently the Chairman of the Upper House of the Afghanistan Parliament. Poor Karzai may get the boot for no fault of his own but because of the guiles of the Pakistani establishment.

The only way, by which the situation can be stemmed, if the US and NATO has to achieve its objectives in Afghanistan and beyond in Central Asian region, is to force Pakistan to stop its nefarious designs even if the 'stone age' like threat has to be repeated. The rouge Pakistan state, which is the originator of most of the terrorist strikes throughout the world, may it be New York, London, Mumbai, Malegaon or Kashmir or the nuclear proliferation to Iran Libya or North Korea understands only the tough speaking.

But at the moment that seems to be little far fetched, as the Pakistanis know fully well that the US and the allies cannot maintain themselves in Afghanistan without the logistical their support. They offer the only land route to the landlocked country because the other way is from the Gulf through Iran, which is out of the question considering the shape in which the US-Iranian relations are. The US forces are using a number of Pakistani bases and all supplies are from the Karachi and Gawadar ports.

But Pakistan may find itself that its carefully worked out strategy may go wrong. The bombing of the madrassa in Bajour followed by the Dargai suicide attack on Pakistani army and the latest US election results may force Musharraf to change his strategy. --- ANI

Gangs plot to topple British ally

The Times 11/09/2006 By Anthony Loyd - Attempts by warlords and criminals to sack the Governor of Helmand would dash peace efforts, writes our correspondent

The Afghan carrying Britain's hopes for stability in Helmand province was fighting for his political survival yesterday. A delegation of warlords, drug smugglers and police officers have urged President Karzai to dismiss Mohammed Daud, the Governor of Helmand.

He responded with his own ultimatum: refusing to return from Kabul to the province unless his corrupt deputy is fired. Should Mr Daud be sacked, Britain's attempts to bring peace to the province will suffer a big setback by becoming dependent on the same criminalised authorities who are seen as responsible for much of the original instability. Mr Daud has been praised by British commanders and diplomats for his administrative skills and integrity, which set him apart from Helmand's corrupt officials. Yet he cut a solitary figure yesterday, sitting alone in a hotel foyer in Kabul.

"They are against peace and against law and order," he said. "Though some have rank and are still on the payroll, most of them are criminals who have misused their government posts to torture, rob, loot and smuggle drugs. They are the very ones who have driven people into assisting the Taleban."

British officials have made clear to Mr Karzai the risk of dismissing Mr Daud. But the President, who is expected to make a decision this week, is notoriously susceptible to internal pressure and has strong personal links to the men agitating for an end to Mr Daud's tenure.

Sher Mohammed Akhunzada, Helmand's former governor, is the principal figure seeking Mr Daud's dismissal. A fierce fighter and staunchly anti-Taleban, Mr Akhunzada was nevertheless accused of being a prominent figure in Helmand's drug trade and embroiled in numerous personal vendettas. He was sacked from the governorship of Helmand in December last year .

However, Mr Karzai and Mr Akhunzada, now a senator, are close friends. Although Mr Karzai responded to British pressure and made Mr Daud the Governor, it was a conditional appointment. Mr Akhunzada's brother, Amir, a man with his own criminal credentials, was made Mr Daud's deputy and has sought to undermine and discredit him.

Mr Daud's decision to press for a conditional withdrawal of British troops from the town of Musa Qala last month intensified the sentiment of local militia commanders and police officials against him.

Sources involved with the withdrawal say that Mr Karzai needed much convincing to agree to the move and has remained suspicious of it ever since. Although Musa Qala has remained peaceful since the pull-out, it is unclear whether the Taleban now control the town.

The 90-strong delegation seeking the Governor's dismissal have asked Mr Karzai to rethink the Musa Qala agreement, as well as firing Mr Daud. Abdul Wali Khan, the delegation's leader, said: "Daud has given the Taleban Musa Qala as a sanctuary. We need an experienced fighter as governor of Helmand. Daud is a weak man, too afraid to step out of his office."

Diplomats say that Mr Khan and his delegation fear that Mr Daud's crackdown on criminal elements and Mr Akhunzada's power base will hit their drug profits. "They have a record for murder and mayhem. They are not attractive people," one diplomat said.

CONFLICT ZONE

• Helmand province is four times the size of Wales
• It produces 20 per cent of the world's opium, and 42 per cent of Afghanistan's total output
• Of the 5,800 British troops in Afghanistan, 4,200 are in Helmand
• There are reported to be several hundred Taleban fighters in the area, mainly recruited from the local population
• Fighting has focused on the region's capital, Lashkar Gah, Sangin and Musa Qala
• There was fierce fighting in Musa Qala over the summer, but the British negotiated peace with local leaders and withdrew. However, critics claim that the town now welcomes the Taleban
• US development agencies built irrigation canals and a hydroelectric dam in the province but the programme was abandoned in 1978 after the Communist coup

Iran wants Afghan refugees to leave by 2010

AFP 11/08/2006 By Stuart Williams

TEHRAN - Iran is stepping up efforts to encourage its two million-strong community of Afghan refugees to finally return home by 2010, the country's top immigration official has said.

Tehran's aim remains to repatriate all Afghan refugees who fled the wars that devastated their country, currently 950,000 registered refugees along with a similar estimated number of illegals, Ahmad Hosseini told AFP.

"We have not set a target date but we are hoping that by 2010 with the help of the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) the Afghan dossier will be closed," he said.

Hosseini said the only Afghans who would be able to remain in Iran in the long term would be those with Iranian-born mothers who will qualify for Iranian citizenship under a new law passed by parliament earlier this year.

"A percentage of the registered Afghans will fall within this law and a percentage must return," said Hosseini, director general of the bureau of alien and foreign immigrant affairs.

Millions of Afghans, mostly Shiite Hazara or Sunni Persian-speaking Tajiks, fled to the relative security of Iran from the wars that devastated their country from the Soviet invasion to the Taliban.

At the peak, Iran was hosting around four million Afghans.

Since the fall of the Taliban, which persecuted Afghanistan's Shiite minority, Iran has been working with UNHCR and the new Kabul authorities on a voluntary repatriation programme.

Some 1.4 million have left over the past four years but there is growing impatience in Tehran that now only a relative trickle of Afghan refugees are going home each month.

"Since the beginning of this (Iranian) year around 10,000 people have left. Those remaining in Iran, for different reasons, have not shown enthusiasm for the voluntary repatriation programme."

Hosseini said Iran, along with Afghanistan and UNHCR, would now look at new methods to step up the repatriation of the registered Afghans, although he emphasised that coercion was not among them.

Upping incentives for Afghans to leave could include giving would-be returnees cash allowances, reconstruction ventures in the Afghans' home regions and providing reassurance over the security situation there.

But he said there could also be more restrictive measures -- as a host country Iran has the power to determine a refugee's place of residence, lower subsidies and start taxing them.

"We hope that if the Afghan situation improves and we can enforce restrictions on residence and cut subsidies and within three years we will finish the (repatriation) work," he said.

"But there is no force for the refugees who have been registered and identified," he emphasised.

Hosseini said there was no question of the Afghans remaining in Iran long-term as refugees. They would either qualify for citizenship under the new law or have to leave.

"The Afghans will not merge into society. This is utterly dismissed by the government."

The official complained that Afghans -- who mainly work in the construction and sanitation industries -- took work away from Iranians as they accepted lower wages and did not require insurance from employers.

"There is also a security problem with drug smuggling. The presence of Afghans harbours economic, security and social problems," he said.

Hosseini rejected suggestions the recent spike in violence in Afghanistan could deter refugees from going home, saying most came from relatively stable areas around the cities of Herat and Mazar-e Sharif and not from the insurgency-ridden south.

He called on the international community to help Iran by delivering more reconstruction aid to Afghanistan to attract refugees to return, saying current levels from unsatisfactory.

Hosseini added that Iran also wanted more help and recognition from Europe for its role in preventing Afghan, Bangladeshi and Pakistani would-be migrants crossing the Iranian border with Turkey.

"We are not the border guards for the Europeans ... We expect them to invest in the countries to cut the reasons for migrating and secondly they should help us through bilateral cooperation to improve the security of the borders," he said.

Clinton weighs in on Afghanistan

CBC 11/09/2006 - Former U.S. president Bill Clinton has urged Canadians to continue the Afghan mission, calling it a chance to help a "genuine Muslim moderate democracy prevail" that should be distinguished from the Iraq war.

Clinton also offered his take on the mid-term elections south of the border during two Canadian fundraisers on Wednesday.

At his first event of the day, a $500-per-plate fundraiser for the Catholic Family Counselling Centre in Kitchener, Ont., Clinton urged the country to keep its soldiers in Afghanistan.

"I ask Canadians to disassociate whatever you think about Iraq and the mistakes made there from the security interests we all have in seeing a genuine Muslim moderate democracy prevail in Afghanistan," said Clinton.

"We may not be able to save it, but if we can, we should because we will all be at great risk if al-Qaeda can roam freely."

More than 2,000 Canadian troops are serving in Afghanistan's volatile southern Kandahar region. Forty-two soldiers and one diplomat have died since the mission started more than four years ago.

U.S. should beef up Afghan deployment, Clinton says Clinton said the United States should send 8,000 more soldiers to the country to support the NATO-led mission. There are already about 18,000 American soldiers in Afghanistan, sent during the U.S.-led invasion following the Sept. 11 attacks.

"If we lose in Afghanistan and the Taliban come back, it will not only be a nightmare for the Afghan people, but it will create greater options of movement for the al-Qaeda leadership, and increase the likelihood that they will be able to mount and conduct more global terrorist operations."

 Clinton, a Democrat, also took a swipe at his Republican successor, criticizing the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush and calling its 2003 invasion of Iraq a "serious mistake."

Americans turfed 'hard-headed ideological' politics - At a fundraiser for the Jewish National Fund of Ottawa later in the day, Clinton spoke about the Democratic gains during Tuesday's mid-term elections in the U.S.

The former president said he was glued to the television until the early morning as the results rolled in, giving the Democrats control of the House and the Senate for the first time in more than a decade.

Americans soundly rejected "hard-headed ideological" politics, said Clinton. He repeated his criticism of the war in Iraq, citing its now debunked claims that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction.

He also criticized U.S. President George W. Bush's handling of tensions with North Korea, saying by "branding someone evil, you can hardly invite them over for a drink."

Former prime minister Jean Chrétien and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May attended the fundraiser. Clinton's appearance at the Kitchener fundraiser stirred controversy when it was first announced in the summer.

A southern Ontario bishop urged Catholics to boycott the event, saying Clinton's support for abortion, his marital infidelity and his promotion of condom use to prevent the spread of AIDS go against Catholic Church doctrine.

Troops hunt for bomber's helpers

BBC News / Wednesday, 8 November 2006 - Pakistani authorities are searching for people who helped a suicide bomber kill 42 soldiers on Wednesday.

The attack took place in the town of Dargai at an army training school in North West Frontier Province. It is not far from Bajaur where last week the army said it killed some 80 militants during air strikes on a religious school (madrassa).

It is the deadliest attack on the army since it began operations against pro-Taleban and al-Qaeda militants. An investigator in the Pakistani city of Peshawar told Associated Press news agency that a probe into the attack along the Afghan border was progressing well.

Security across the country had been stepped up and intelligence officials said a sketch of the suicide bomber was being prepared. Sniffer dogs were hunting for an accomplice of the bomber, who was reported to have fled into fields after the blast.

Emotions in the region have been running high since an air strike on a religious school (madrassa) last week in the neighbouring area of Bajaur, in which the army said 80 militants were killed.

Local people insisted the dead were innocent religious students. In recent days, local tribesmen had openly threatened suicide attacks against the army and many in Pakistan say Wednesday's attack was in retaliation against the Bajaur incident.

A man claiming to represent "Pakistani Taleban" called up The News newspaper and claimed responsibility for the attack.

According to the newspaper's website, in a phone call to The News from an undisclosed location, the Pashto-speaking man said, "The military is claiming that it attacked the madrassa to kill militants. We insist that it was an unprovoked attack and those killed were young students and children."

The caller said the Americans too were "definitely involved" in the attack but "we would also fight those playing in the hands of the US", he said.

The BBC's M Ilyas Khan says Wednesday's attack could undermine recent agreements between the military and pro-Taleban militants in other border areas.

'Expected'

The army base targeted in Wednesday's suicide bombing is about 40km (30 miles) south-east of the bombed madrassa.

"The attack was carried out by a man who got down from a car wearing a chaddor [cloak] and walked into the parade," Interior Minister Aftab Sherpao said.

"After the Bajaur incident this was expected, but we will continue the fight against terror. We condemn it, innocent lives were lost."

The US government condemned the army camp attack and praised the efforts of the Pakistani government in tackling militants.

Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai issued a statement saying, "Terrorists want to disrupt the peace and stability in Pakistan, therefore Afghanistan and Pakistan must unite against terrorism and extremism and destroy their root causes."

Morning exercises

An eyewitness, Aurangzeb, told the BBC he saw soldiers picking up scattered body parts minutes after the explosion.

"The victims were dying. Their shoes and caps were scattered all over the place," he said.

It appeared that most of the men who died were military recruits who had been doing morning exercises.

Dargai is a stronghold of a banned pro-Taleban movement, Tehreek-e-Nifaz-e-Shariat-Mohammadi (TNSM).

The head of the madrassa targeted last week was a TNSM member. He was killed in the attack.

The TNSM led thousands of tribesmen across the border into Afghanistan to take on American forces after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001. Many never returned.

Pakistan has deployed nearly 80,000 troops along the border to hunt militants who sought refuge after the ousting of the Taleban in Afghanistan in 2001.

Pak refuses land route facility to
India to import sheep from Afghanistan

www.newkerala.com

Islamabad, Nov 9: Pakistan has reportedly rejected India's request for transit facility to import sheep from Afghanistan through the Peshawar-Lahore land route via Wagha Border. Instead, it advised New Delhi to use the Karachi sea-route for the purpose.

New Delhi had sought permission from Islamabad to use the land route via Wagah border to import sheep from Afghanistan, which is cheaper as compared to the Karachi sea-route.

"India was informed to use the Quetta-Karachi route for this purpose," The Nation quoted sources in Pakistan Ministry of Commerce as saying.

They further said that India feels that the Quetta-Karachi route was costlier and not viable to import sheep from Afghanistan. Pakistan is likely to cash its geo-political location by providing transit facility to neighbouring countries for the passage of their goods to earn millions of dollars as transit fee, they added.

Currently, Pakistan is providing the transit facility to Afghanistan under the Afghan Transit Trade Agreement (ATTA), but Islamabad says under this agreement smuggling of goods into Pakistan was on the rise.

The government is also reviewing the transit facility to Afghanistan under ATTA, the sources said.

Pakistan has so far received requests for providing its land route for trade from various countries including India, Central Asian Republics (CARs), China and Iran.

Call charges to drop by 50 per cent in three years

Mustafa Basharat - KABUL, Nov 7 (Pajhwok Afghan News): Two leading cellular phone companies on Tuesday said call charges in the country would reduce by 50 per cent in the coming three years as stated by the Communication Minister earlier this week.

The minister, during a news conference, had said that call charges would likely to drop partly due to the competition among more cellular companies and partly due to the installation of the optic fibre network across the country.

Three cellular companies Roshan, AWCC and Areeba are presently operational in the country while a fourth in the name of Etisalat is likely to start functioning next year.

Dr Najibullah Kamali, public relations officer with Roshan, told Pajhwok Afghan News they were charging high call rates because their service was provided to the consumers via satellite.

The rates would automatically drop after the installation of the optic fibre network as announced by the minister, said the official. Besides, competition among the companies would also effect upon the coming down of charges as well as rates of the subscriber identity module (SIM) cards.

He said the SIM cards had register considerable decline during the previous few months as once its price was 15,000 afghanis, which has now come down to 500.

[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.]