In this bulletin:

• President Karzai Strongly Condemns Terrorist Attacks - v
• President Karzai Discusses Afghanistan in New York
• Statement by the Prime Minister on the deaths of four Canadian Forces members
• Afghans say they net al Qaeda plotters in Kabul raid
• Taliban asked not to fight against Pak army'
• Troops will stay Afghanistan: PM
• Afghan in late bid for Kofi job
• Bush, Karzai, Musharraf to meet Sept 27
• Leaders to tout troops' role in Afghanistan
• Karzai hopes to convince Canadian politicians of need for Afghan mission
• CBC INDEPTH: AFGHANISTAN - Q&A: Canada's mission in Afghanistan
  Taleban fight 'hard but winnable
• Troop casualties will not affect Canada's resolve in Afghanistan: MacKay
• In Kabul schools, fear of Taliban return
• Eight Bahrainis held for planning trip to Afghanistan
  

President Karzai Strongly Condemns Terrorist Attacks - v Date of Release: 19 September 2006

Arg, Kabul – H.E. Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, strongly condemned the terrorist attacks that happened in Kabul, Kandahar and Herat today which killed at least 18 civilians and 4 Canadian soldiers and wounded dozens.

According to reports, in Kandahar a suicide attack was carried out while Canadian soldiers were handing out candies to children killing 4 Canadian soldiers and wounding at least 27 civilians, mostly children. The two other attacks took place outside a mosque in Heart, killing 10 people and wounding at least 18, and in Kabul where a suicide bomber blew up his car in Kabul, killing 3 policemen and wounding 9 other people.

The President expressed his deep regrets at the death of civilian Afghans and of Canadian soldiers and said “These terrorist acts are shocking and despicable and I condemn them in the strongest possible terms. Today’s heinous acts of terrorism are against the values of Islam and humanity.” The President expressed his heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the families of the victims and prayed for the full and speedy recovery of the injured.

Office of The Spokesperson to the President of Afghanistan

President Karzai Discusses Afghanistan in New York - Date of Release: 19 September 2006

Arg, Kabul – H.E. Hamid Karzai, President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, arrived in the US on Sunday evening beginning his four day visit to New York.

On Monday president Karzai attended the High Level Symposium on Child Survival (MDG4) at UNICEF. The president briefed the audience on Afghanistan’s health and mortality problems and described the progress Afghanistan’s health infrastructure has made in the last five years.

The President emphasized that those health problems that continue to affect the children and people of Afghanistan are preventable and can be drastically reduced with increased international resources and assistance.

On Monday evening the President addressed the “Asia Society” on Afghanistan’s progress in the past five years. The President emphasized that the progress Afghanistan has made is a testament to the strong will of the Afghan people and their hope for a better future as well as the assistance of the international community. He encouraged the international community to commit the resources necessary to rebuild those institutions that were destroyed or neglected in the past 30 years of war.

Building human capacity and strengthening Afghanistan’s security institutions will lead to Afghanistan standing on its own feet. The President stated that the fight against terrorism in Afghanistan must encompass the regional sources of terrorist funding, indoctrination and training. In the interest of global security Afghanistan’s regional partners in the war on terror must be sincere in their commitments to root out the sources of terrorism.

In addition to his public engagements the President met with H.E. Ms. Tarja Halonen, President of Finland and Mr. George Soros, Chairman of the Open Society Institute. In the meetings the President discussed Afghanistan’s progress in the past five years, the war on terror and the need for the continued assistance to the rebuilding of the institutions of Afghanistan.

Today, the President will attend the opening session of the United Nations General Assembly, as well as a UN roundtable on democracy and a dinner for the Heads of Delegations hosted by H.E. George W. Bush, President of the United States of America. The President will also hold a bilateral meeting with H.E. Romano Prodi, Prime Minister of Italy and tour the New York Stock Exchange where he will ring the closing bell and discuss investment in Afghanistan with the NYSE’s board of directors.

Office of The Spokesperson to the President of Afghanistan

NATO says Taliban have suffered biggest defeat since 2001

by Bronwen Roberts PANJWAYI, Afghanistan (AFP) - NATO's top general in Afghanistan said that a major offensive this month handed the Taliban their biggest defeat since 2001, as troops forged ahead with two new operations.

The proclamation by British Lieutenant General David Richards came despite three suicide attacks on Monday blamed on the Islamic movement. The blasts killed 21 people including four Canadian NATO soldiers.

"We have comprehensively defeated the Taliban in their biggest defeat since 2001," Richards told reporters after visiting troubled Panjwayi district in southern Kandahar province, which was at the centre of Operation Medusa.

NATO says it killed more than 500 rebels in two weeks of fighting in the Taliban stronghold beginning on September 2. At least 13 civilians and five Canadian troops also died while 14 British airmen were killed in a plane crash.

"It should go down in history and it could go down in history as the turning point in this campaign," the general said.

But he said that NATO forces still needed more troops. "What I wold like now is more troops, of course, to ram home the advantage, because that means we can maintain momentum," he said.

As he spoke Afghan police and troops, together with hundreds of NATO soldiers from Italy , Spain and the United States , forged ahead with an offensive codenamed Operation Wyconda Pincer in western Farah province.

The operation was launched Monday after officials in Farah last week called for reinforcements following a surge in violence, which some suggested had occurred because Taliban had been pushed out of the south.

"The operation is ongoing," said Major Luke Knittig, a spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF).

Afghan police said they had killed 11 Taliban rebels in two clashes overnight in the neighbouring province of Helmand , where thousands of British troops are stationed.

On Saturday, the separate US-led coalition announced the launch of another offensive, Mountain Fury, involving 7,000 Afghan and foreign soldiers in the east, including some along the border with Pakistan .

However the three powerful blasts Monday -- near the southern city of Kandahar , in Kabul and in Herat in the west -- appeared to be a Taliban response to NATO's claims of success.

In the first a suicide attacker on a bicycle blew himself up as Canadian NATO troops handed out pens and notebooks near where Medusa had taken place. Four Canadians were killed and around a dozen soldiers and 25 civilians, mostly children, were wounded.

Hours later a suicide car bomb exploded in the capital Kabul -- the fourth there this month -- killing four policemen and wounding 11 civilians, officials said.

Afghan police said they had arrested on Tuesday an alleged member of a team that was planning bombings and suicide attacks in Kabul for Taliban and Al-Qaeda militants.

In Monday's third attack, a suicide blast outside Herat 's landmark mosque killed 13 and wounded 18. It was the worst such attack in the city, which sees relatively little of the daily unrest in east and south Afghanistan .

The insurgency, which started after US-led forces ousted the Taliban from government after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States , is going through its bloodiest phase yet this year.

More than 2,000 people have been killed, most of them rebels.

British Defence Secretary Des Browne warned Tuesday that NATO's credibility was at stake in Afghanistan after it was surprised by the strength of resistance from the Taliban.

"The Taliban's tenacity in the face of massive losses has been a surprise, absorbing more of our effort than we predicted it would and consequently slowing progress in reconstruction," he told a London think-tank.

NATO has made an urgent call for around 2,000 extra troops and equipment to tackle the resistance in the lawless and opium-producing south.

Statement by the Prime Minister on the deaths of four Canadian Forces members

September 19, 2006 Ottawa, Ontario

Prime Minister Stephen Harper today issued the following statement on the deaths of four Canadian Forces members:

"I wish to send my heartfelt condolences to the loved ones of Corporal Glen Arnold, Corporal Shane Keating, Corporal Keith Morley, and Private David Byers, who were killed by a suicide bomber yesterday in the Panjwayi region of Afghanistan.

“We are all deeply grateful to these brave soldiers who gave their lives so that the people of Afghanistan would have hope for a brighter future. I also send my sincerest wishes for a speedy recovery of the soldiers and Afghan civilians who were wounded in this desperate and cowardly attack.

“Canada supports this important mission, and we will not be deterred by ruthless attacks by Taliban insurgents. The senseless killing of Canadian troops while they were conducting a patrol in the community and interacting with Afghan locals, including children, clearly illustrates the lengths the enemy is willing to take in their opposition to the reconstruction of Afghanistan and the improvement of conditions for all Afghans.

“All Canadians respect and honour these brave soldiers for their sacrifice. We will continue to support the Canadian men and women on the frontline who are ensuring that Afghanistan does not fall back under the grip of the Taliban."

Afghans say they net al Qaeda plotters in Kabul raid

KABUL (Reuters) September 19, 2006 - Afghan police have arrested four al Qaeda-linked militants and seized more than a dozen bombs that were to have been used against the government and foreign forces in Kabul , police said on Tuesday.

Afghanistan is undergoing its worst phase of violence since 2001 with Taliban insurgents battling foreign and government troops in parts of the countryside, and a series of blasts in towns and cities.

All four of the suspects were Afghan, senior police official Ali Shah Paktiawal told Reuters. Three of them, two Muslim preachers and a Kabul University student, were arrested in a raid on a Kabul mosque on Monday. A fourth suspect was seized on Tuesday.

"We discovered more than 15 bombs hidden in the mosque," said Paktiawal. "They have confessed to having direct links with al Qaeda and were talking of using them against the government and foreign forces as part of their jihad (holy war)," he said.

The Taliban were ousted in 2001 for refusing to hand over al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. The two groups are believed to work closely together. Paktiawal said the bombs found at the mosque were highly sophisticated and must have come from overseas.

He said the suspects were part of a bigger al Qaeda network operating in Kabul and the hunt was on for other members. About 2,500 people, most of them militants, according to foreign forces, have been killed in Afghan violence since January.

Nineteen people, including four Canadian soldiers and eight Afghan policemen, were killed in three blasts on Monday, in the southern province of Kandahar , the western city of Herat and Kabul .

The level of violence, in which more than 130 foreign troops have also been killed, has alarmed Afghanistan's Western allies that had regarded the country as a success in the war on terrorism.

'Taliban asked not to fight against Pak army'

ISLAMABAD, Sep 17 (Pajhwok Afghan News): Taliban military commander Mulla Dadullah Akhund has said he visited North Waziristan and South Waziristan in Pakistans tribal areas about three months ago and advised the Taliban there not to fight their countrys armed forces.

I told the Pakistani tribal militants that fighting in Waziristan was in the interest of America. My argument was that we should fight the US, UK and armies of other Western countries, he told Pakistani newspaper in a satellite phone call from an undisclosed location.

Mulla Dadullah, who is the most wanted Taliban leader after Mulla Mohammad Omar, argued that the Taliban fight was with the Americans and their allies and not with the Pakistan Army.

As for President General Pervez Musharraf, we know he has been siding with President Bush against fellow Muslims. At the behest of the US, he waged war against the Taliban in Waziristan and is now publicly proposing to Mr Karzai to jointly fight the Taliban and Talibanisation, he maintained.

The Taliban commander said the Pakistan Taliban would be justified to retaliate if President Musharraf broke the truce and went back on his word for peacefully resolving the conflict. Violation of the terms of the recent peace agreement in Waziristan would cause problems and destabilize the area, he stressed.

Mulla Dadullah, who lost a leg while fighting the Northern Alliance some years ago, claimed 500 suicide bombers were at his disposal to launch them any time. Other Taliban commanders have their own list of fedayeen and it is growing with names of more and more volunteers, he said. He also claimed 12,000 Taliban fighters were resisting US-led foreign forces under his command in four southwestern provinces.

We have no shortage of fighters. In fact, we have so many of them that it is difficult to accommodate and arm and equip them. Some of them have been waiting for a year or more for their turn to be sent to the battlefield, he contended.

According to Mulla Dadullah, the Taliban would be launching new and bigger attacks in Afghan cities from spring next year. Presently, we are focusing on guerrilla attacks. But by spring, we would have sufficient strength to launch even bigger attacks, he said. He felt Kabul would be specially targeted as it was Afghanistans capital and the headquarters for the US and other Western forces.

Asked about the possibility of holding talks with US, Nato and Afghan authorities, Mulla Dadullah said all foreign forces should first withdraw from Afghanistan and apologise for attacking and destroying our country and people. They attacked us; we didnt go to the US to fight them. We are fighting for our religion and homeland, he said.

As for Hamid Karzai, Mulla Dadullah stressed that he had abandoned Islam and joined the ranks of non-Muslims. Once the Americans and their allies leave Afghanistan, we and Karzai would sit together as Afghans and sort out our problems, he said.

Mulla Dadullah said deployment of more Nato troops in southern Afghanistan would not make any difference to the Taliban. He opined that the US had cleverly handed over dangerous provinces to the British, Canadian and Dutch troops and withdrew their own troops from there.

He said only 14 Taliban fighters, and not 500 as claimed by Nato, were killed in the recent fighting in Panjwai district in Kandahar. You know in an earlier battle the Afghan government announced my capture from Panjwai. They tell lies to raise the morale of their demoralized soldiers, he maintained.

Regarding the Taliban claim that they had acquired new weapons, Mulla Dadullah said it was true only in case of anti-aircraft missile. He said the missiles were effective against low-flying US and Nato aircraft.

Mulla Dadullah said Taliban were in control of a number of districts in the south and had set up a parallel administration complete with Uloswal (district administrators), judges and other officials. He said Taliban in those areas decide disputes according to Shariah.

Troops will stay Afghanistan: PM

Australian Associated Press Pty Limited (AAP) September 19, 2006
Australian troops will not leave Afghanistan despite it becoming more dangerous, Prime Minister John Howard says.

Violence involving the Taliban, Afghan and NATO troops is growing in intensity across Afghanistan , despite assurances the insurgents are on the defensive.

Three bombings on Tuesday killed at least 19 people across the country, including four Canadian soldiers in an attack that tested NATO's claim of success in driving militants from the volatile southern region.

Mr Howard said Canada had suffered enormously and was carrying a very heavy burden in Afghanistan. "I think we all have to understand that Afghanistan has got a lot more dangerous and our own forces are exposed to a lot of danger," he said.

"The British are, the Americans are, and they are carrying a very heavy burden and they are fighting in some of the very dangerous areas. "But we have to maintain our commitment in Afghanistan ."

Mr Howard said leaving Iraq or Afghanistan to the control of terrorists would be an enormous blunder. He said Australia wanted all the countries involved in Afghanistan to stay the course, along with an even greater European contribution. "We will stay there until we assess our mission has been completed," he said.

Afghan in late bid for Kofi job - The Australian 09/19/2006 By David Nason

FORMER Afghan finance minister and world renowned academic Ashraf Ghani has joined Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga as a late entry in the race to succeed Kofi Annan as UN Secretary General.

Dr Ghani, 57, the chancellor of Kabul University and an expert on the economies of developing nations and post-conflict reconstruction, told London's Financial Times newspaper he was counting on the strength of his ideas to win the post. "In the public debate so far, I have yet to see a clear articulation of vision, an analysis of the central issues and a program for change," he said.

Dr Ghani is the seventh candidate to nominate for the post and the second Muslim, following Jordan's UN ambassador, Prince Zeid Ra'ad Zeid al-Hussein.

Ms Vike-Freiberga, a former psychology professor who was raised in Canada, was nominated by Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania at the weekend.

She called on the world to take seriously a woman candidate. "Half of humankind has never been represented at the helm of the UN," she said.

Ms Vike-Freiberga is known to enjoy US support but her chances are considered remote given the UN's informal rotation system that decrees the next secretary-general must come from Asia.

But many UN watchers regard Dr Ghani as a serious prospect. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 to serve as finance minister in the US-backed government of President Hamid Karzai, Dr Ghani had a stellar career at the World Bank and taught at some of the world's leading universities.

Importantly, he has worked in the US, Russia and China - all nations with veto powers over the final nomination to be sent to the General Assembly - and has had wide media experience.

Dr Ghani was Afghanistan's finance minister from June 2002 to December 2004 during which time he secured international aid pledges worth more than $US28billion.

In 2003, he was voted Asia's most outstanding finance minister but after Mr Karzai won the 2004 election, he asked to leave the Government and be made chancellor at Kabul University.

Ms Vike-Freiberga, aiming to be the first woman to hold the post of UN secretary-general, said the principle of regional rotation should not dominate the selection process.

"I hope that the choice made by the Security Council and the General Assembly will be based solely on the candidates' qualifications, personal qualities and vision of the future of the UN," she said.

But China, the key player in negotiations, has insisted that an Asian succeed Mr Annan. The last Asian secretary-general was Burma's U Thant who held the job from 1961-1971.

The other candidates this year are South Korean Foreign Minister Ban Ki-moon, the UN's head of information and public affairs Shashi Tharoor of India, Thailand's deputy prime minister Surakiart Sathirathai and Sri Lanka's former UN under-secretary general for disarmament affairs Jayantha Dhanapala.

Mr Ban is the favorite after winning two straw polls taken in the Security Council where the 15 members were required to "encourage", "discourage" or offer "no opinion" on each. A third straw poll is planned for September 28, although the form it takes is not yet decided.

The final vote is expected next month. Mr Annan's term expires on December 31.

The winning candidate needs at least nine council votes and no veto from any of the five permanent members before he or she is referred to the General Assembly for final ratification.

Bush, Karzai, Musharraf to meet Sept 27

NEW YORK (AFP) - US President George W. Bush will host the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan on September 27 for joint talks aimed at defusing tensions between the neighbors over cross-border violence, the White House said.

The three-way meeting will come after Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf comes to the White House on September 22, followed by Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai on September 27.

The joint discussion at the White House "will provide the three leaders an opportunity to discuss further cooperation in enhancing the trilateral relationship," Bush spokesman Tony Snow said in a statement.

The news came as the US president prepared for a speech to the United Nations General Assembly to defend his "freedom agenda" of spreading democracy as an antidote to the frustrations he says fuel extremist violence.

Washington , which says the neighbors are close allies in the war on terrorism, has sought to defuse tensions over a bloody resurgence of the Taliban militia ousted from power in Afghanistan by US-led forces in late 2001.

Last week, the Afghan government angrily rejected Musharraf's assertion that the Taliban had its "roots" in the Afghan people, saying it was a creation of Pakistan .

The Pakistani leader also said that Afghanistan 's Taliban militia had become more dangerous than Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda network, which carried out the September 11, 2001 terrorist strikes on the United States .

The neighbors have been at loggerheads over the insurgency, which Afghan officials say is being plotted by Taliban leaders who fled across the border into Pakistan after the regime was toppled.

"Both in Afghanistan and in the international community, everybody knows that the Taliban were created as a political, military movement by Pakistan 's intelligence ... and is still being supported by certain circles across the border," an Afghan foreign ministry statement said.

The angry statement came days after Musharraf said during a visit to Afghanistan last week that he was committed to helping Afghanistan crack down on Taliban fighters.

The Taliban has been waging a tenacious insurgency against NATO-led troops in southern Afghanistan, particularly in the region around the city of Kandahar, with fighters slipping over the border from neighboring Pakistan .

The militia swept up from Kandahar to take control of most of Afghanistan by 1996 before they were ousted by a US-led military coalition for refusing to hand over bin Laden after the September 11 attacks.

Musharraf said the supreme leader of the Taliban, Mullah Mohammad Omar, was leading the insurgency and that he was certainly hiding in Afghanistan and not Pakistan, although he acknowledged Osama bin Laden might be in his country.

Afghan officials, including some high-profile government members, insist that the fugitive Mullah Omar is hiding in Pakistan.

Leaders to tout troops' role in Afghanistan - By CP

W ASHINGTON -- Prime Minister Stephen Harper will be promoting Canada as a key global player at his first UN speech tomorrow, while trying to mollify critics at home who say the Afghanistan mission is exacting too high a price.

Observers also expect Harper to appeal for more help from the international community, especially top European allies, as he highlights Canada's contributions in the war-torn country and defends the switch from peacekeeping to active combat.

It's a delicate line for Harper, who has been accused of aligning his foreign policy, even some of his phrasing, too closely with U.S. President George W. Bush.

However, in a speech to Parliament on Friday, Afghanistan's president will try to convince Canadian skeptics about the need for this country's continued involvement in Afghanistan.

Hamid Karzai will not make specific references to the NDP party, which has called for the withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan, nor will he target other MPs who personally oppose the military mission.

He wants to avoid being dragged into domestic politics, but he does want Canadian politicians to hear his message, said Afghanistan's top envoy to Ottawa.

"He is going to explain the Afghan perspective and convey the wishes and hopes of the Afghan people," said Omar Samad, Afghanistan's ambassador to Ottawa.

The New Democrats have been calling on Harper to bring the troops home and the Bloc Quebecois is demanding an emergency parliamentary debate.

Karzai hopes to convince Canadian politicians of need for Afghan mission - Canadian Press - Alexander Panetta -Tuesday, September 19, 2006

OTTAWA (CP) -Afghanistan's president hopes to convince Canadian skeptics about the need for this country's continued involvement in Afghanistan during a speech to Parliament on Friday.

Hamid Karzai will not make specific references to the NDP, which has called for the withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan, nor will he target other MPs who personally oppose the mission.

He wants to avoid being dragged into domestic politics - but he does want Canadian politicians to hear his message, said Afghanistan's top envoy to Ottawa.

"He is going to explain the Afghan perspective and convey the wishes and hopes of the Afghan people," said Omar Samad, Afghanistan's ambassador to Ottawa.

"And hopefully, maybe, somebody in the audience will realize that reality lies somewhere other than where they thought."

The speech to Parliament will be a highlight of Karzai's two-day trip beginning Friday.

He will also meet with the families of Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan, as well as Prime Minister Stephen Harper and interim Liberal Leader Bill Graham.

Karzai has no current plans to meet privately with NDP Leader Jack Layton, whose party massively endorsed a troop pullout during their recent convention.

Karzai is aware of the growing controversy over the mission, and he has expressed some surprise about the nature of the debate in Canada.

"He thinks there is probably excessive focus on the military aspect when Canada's role is more than just military," Samad said.

Karzai will emphasize the humanitarian role Canada plays in his country and how it can continue to help in several areas, including human rights, governance and developmental work.

Karzai's visit comes on the heels of a suicide attack that killed four Canadian soldiers and brought Canada's death toll in Afghanistan to 37.

Armed with a bomb so powerful it killed a cow 70 metres away, an attacker plowed into a group of soldiers while they dispensed candy to local children.

The attack Monday signalled a Taliban shift back to guerilla tactics after scores were slaughtered in head-to-head warfare against Canadian-led NATO troops.

The NDP and several international observers have suggested that pro-Taliban insurgents should be consulted in peace negotiations.

NATO officials admitted that such high-stakes talks were already under way with some insurgent groups in the Panjwaii region last month.

However, a subsequent international assault on insurgents in the area appeared to have scuttled any negotiations.

Samad said ex-Taliban sympathizers have been welcomed with open arms into the new, democratic Afghanistan.

But he said that invitation does not include what he described as Taliban war criminals and foreign fighters who have entered the country.

"You won't see any negotiations taking place with Mullah Omar," he said.

"The door has been open for (Taliban supporters) all along, and thousands of them have given up on militancy and extremism.

"I'm not talking about non-Afghans who are supportive of terrorism, violence and extremism."

CBC INDEPTH: AFGHANISTAN - Q&A: Canada's mission in Afghanistan
CBC News Online | September 20, 2006

Canada's mission in Afghanistan has shot up to the top of the political agenda in Ottawa as the government defends the military's role in the country as more soldiers die.

Against that backdrop, Afghanistan President Harmid Karzai visits Canada this week and will address Parliament on Friday. CBC.ca spoke to Omar Samad, Afghanistan's ambassador to Canada, about the visit, our role in the country and why it's our duty to be there. Samad, 45, has served as ambassador since 2004. He spoke to CBC.ca producer Kenny Yum.

Q: Your president will be visiting Canada as the political debate about our mission to Afghanistan is heating up. What will be his message?

Samad: The president of Afghanistan will speak directly to the Canadian people and their representatives and explain the significance of Afghanistan in terms of security, post-conflict reconstruction, post failed-state recovery, regional and global security and other aspects of our relations at this point. He will also thank the Canadian people and government for their steadfast support in various fields over the past five years. He will express Afghanistan's condolences to the families and colleagues of Canadians who have lost their loved ones in Afghanistan.

Q: What has to be done in Afghanistan?

Samad: The needs in Afghanistan are everything that a country has to rebuild after 25 years of warfare and destruction, which means that it's anything from institutions to infrastructure to social political order and security. That is why the international community as a whole, and not just Canada, has realized since 9/11 that having ignored and forgotten Afghanistan after the Soviets withdrew its troops in the late 1980s was a mistake because it resulted in transforming Afghanistan into a centre for international terrorism and a failing state that was taken over by extremists and terrorists.

Q: So you say we have a duty to be there?

Samad: [The foreign countries involved in Afghanistan] realize and recognized the mistakes of the past and the responsibility for today. I think that there is some mistaken notions that this is just about fighting and warfare and that this is just a clash of civilizations, as some people think of it. The reality is that it's to make up for the mistakes of the past and to rebuild a country that should have been put together 15 years ago.

Q: You once described it as a noble cause. Can you explain that?

Samad: It's noble because the human values that are enshrined in the world including Canada are helping Afghanistan by providing hope and opportunity to millions of women, children and men who otherwise would have no chance of a better life. When you provide schooling to a girl or boy who five years ago had no access to school, it's noble. When you provide health care to a woman who is pregnant, it is noble. When you prevent extremists and terrorists from taking a society hostage and imposing the draconian mindset on the people, it is noble.

Q: What do you think about the political debate happening in Canada now?

Samad: We obviously know that all Canadians, regardless of their political persuasions, have the right to express themselves and to take positions. All we're saying is to clarify and let's provide enough precise and accurate information for people to have a better-educated judgment about the Canadian role in Afghanistan. I think that there are certain notions that exist within society here and especially among some political interest groups that are far from reality.

Q: What are the notions?

Samad: For example, the notion that Canadians are invaders and occupiers. I would invite any of them to go and see for themselves because the Afghans have invited the foreign security to help us. The notion that Canada is following the footsteps of the United States, for example, is far from reality. The notion that we should solve the problem by bringing the Taliban into the political governance circles of Afghanistan. That would be an Afghan domestic issue that the Afghan people would reject because they rejected the Taliban mindset and ideology.

Q: NDP Leader Jack Layton has expressed some of those ‘notions' and he's the head of a political party.

Samad: A political party has a political persuasion and political interest in mind so I'm not going to discuss the pros and cons of particular groups and decisions.… And I invite, whether it's Mr. Layton or anyone else who has misgivings and particular positions about Afghanistan, to come a few days in the country and visit several provinces and talk to real Afghans.

Q: Have you talked to him?

Samad: Yes, I have had discussions with the NDP, not with Mr. Layton himself. Their position obviously seems to be shifting over time. At the end of the day, it will be the Canadian people who will decide what is best for Canada in the world.

Q: Troops are usually the focus of news reports and therefore the debate. What else is being done in the country?

Samad: There are all types of efforts in Afghanistan. There is a very vibrant private sector and it is spearheading economic growth. There is a civil society that we have never experienced before in our history. There is a free press that is unheard of in the whole region. They have so much access and freedoms under the law. Now, is everything successful? No. We are still at the very beginning of reconstruction and development but in order to help the country recover, you have to function within a secure environment, and that is why the security in the few provinces in the south and in the east and we are doing everything we can to roll that back and give Afghans the peace to rebuild their lives.

Q: Our mission in Afghanistan was extended two years this past spring. What kind of timeline do you think there is?

Samad: I don't think anyone can give the timeline at this juncture and it really depends on how we meet the criteria that we have set for security development, governance and overall recovery. I know as conditions improve over time, that timeline will shorten and the goal for Afghans is to stand on their own feet as soon as possible. Nation-building is not the job of a few days or a few months. It will take years.

Taleban fight 'hard but winnable' - Britain 's Secretary of State for Defence Des Browne - Tuesday, 19 September 2006 BBC News

The threat posed by the Taleban in Afghanistan has been underestimated, the UK defence secretary has admitted. Des Browne said the fight had been "even harder than we expected" but insisted Nato was pursuing a "noble cause" and its mission would succeed.

Addressing the Royal United Services Institute, he also urged other Nato members to respond to a call for 2,500 extra troops for Afghanistan. The Nato force in the southern Helmand province includes some 4,000 UK troops.

"Nato nations must decide whether to back their investment, re-affirm their original intent and send a clear signal that Nato as an alliance is strong and determined to see the task through," Mr Browne said.

BBC political correspondent Gary O'Donoghue said the comments were an indication that the government was losing patience with the failure of Nato to find extra troops to bolster those already in Helmand.

Poland has already announced it will send 1,000 extra soldiers to Afghanistan next February, joining 100 already on the ground. Meanwhile, Canada has promised its contribution to the Nato force will remain in Afghanistan .

Foreign minister Peter MacKay made the pledge after four Canadian soldiers were killed by a suicide bomber on Monday.

Mr Browne said critics who cited the failure of the Soviet Union in Afghanistan in the 1980s and the British in the 1800s did not understand the nature of the mission.

"We are not invading," Mr Browne said. "We are there at the invitation of a government which has legitimacy and support."

Mr Browne said security in the north and west of the country has brought "real change" with new schools and hospitals, more jobs and the return of refugees.

"Success won't be what we understand to be security and prosperity and proper governance but it will be progress and it will be massively worth it," he said.

But he added: "The Taleban's tenacity in the face of massive losses has been a surprise, absorbing more of our effort than we predicted it would and consequently slowing progress on reconstruction."

British soldiers have been involved in heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan in recent weeks and 19 have lost their lives this month.

UK troops have been fighting Taleban fighters in southern Afghanistan after taking over from a US-led coalition in July.

The area is where most of Afghanistan 's opium production is concentrated and sees regular deadly violence blamed on Taleban fighters or drug lords.

Mr Browne said the Taleban were adept at forming "alliances of convenience" with drug barons and criminal gangs who recruited foot soldiers from among Afghan tribesmen.

"If we cannot persuade them to put down their guns, then we will struggle to make progress, and there will be a real danger that their deaths will motivate others to join the fight, and potentially turn this into a conflict of a different kind," Mr Browne said.

“But I do not believe we are at that stage." He said Nato's progress rested on convincing ordinary people to "back peace, to back the view of the future represented by the Afghan government".

Troop casualties will not affect Canada's resolve in Afghanistan: MacKay
Mon Sep 18

MONTREAL (AFP) - Canadian troops will remain in Afghanistan until the country's borders are secure and democratic institutions are in place, Foreign Minister Peter MacKay said after four Canadian soldiers were killed in south Afghanistan.

Four Canadians with the NATO force in Afghanistan were killed on Monday and several others wounded in a suicide bombing attack as the troops were distributing pens and notebooks to local children.

Canada's conservative government, facing increasing criticism over its foreign policy, defended the Afghan mission as a worthy cause despite recent casualties.

Canada would leave Afghanistan "when Afghans are able to control their borders, when they are able to exert their own democratic principles," MacKay said after a meeting with his Australian counterpart, Alexander Downer.

"I believe, in spite of some casualties and some very high cost as far as our investment there with the men and women in uniform, these are values and principles worth fighting for," MacKay said.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper defended the Afghan deployment in parliament, saying the circumstances of the latest attack -- in which Canadian soldiers were distributing gifts to children -- illustrated the nobility of the mission.

"I think nothing more than this incident illustrates the evil that they are fighting and the goodwill and the nobleness of the cause that they are taking to the Afghan people," Harper said.

But Jack Layton, leader of the opposition New Democratic Party (NDP), demanded the withdrawal of the Canadian contingent, and said: "This government simply doesn't know what it's doing in Afghanistan."

Opinion polls show declining support for Canada's contribution to the NATO force. A survey by the Ekos Institute published Monday in Canadian newspapers had 49 percent opposed to the mission and 39 percent in favor.

Since 2002, Canada has lost 36 soldiers in Afghanistan, of which 28 died this year. The suicide bombing coincided with a report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, a left-leaning think tank, that concluded Canadians at the Kandahar base in southern Afghanistan were more likely to be killed than US soldiers in Iraq.

If the rate of troop deaths continues at the present rate, the mission could cost the lives of 108 soldiers or more by the end of the mission's mandate in February 2009, the report said.

In May, Harper announced a two-year extension of the military deployment in Afghanistan through February 2009. And last week, the government said it would send an additional 200 soldiers and tanks to reinforce the 2,500-strong contingent.

In Kabul schools, fear of Taliban return
Students learning English in co-ed schools that proliferated since 2001 view the US skeptically.  By Scott Peterson | The Christian Science Monitor from the September 19, 2006 edition KABUL, AFGHANISTAN

Glory and service to country seem to drive the students taking private English lessons in one of the many foreign language schools that have opened here since the Taliban fell. They aspire to be doctors, engineers, and journalists - to elevate themselves above the decrepitude and insecurity they see all around them.

"I want to be an astronaut!" announces 14-year-old Arsalan. So does his little brother. Their friend, Seeyar, is determined to be president. "He's on the land," says Arsalan. "We'll go to the stars!"

But those youthful dreams - expressed boisterously by these boys and more shyly inside a classroom of a dozen male and female students in their late teens - give way to details of fear about a Taliban resurgence and heartfelt concern about the US intent regarding the Muslim world.

Tamana's family returned to Kabul from Pakistan after US-led forces toppled the Taliban in 2001. "When I came, everything was destroyed, and people were destroyed," recalls Tamana, who wants to become a television journalist. "People couldn't say their opinion. They were fighting their brothers."

A pervasive fear is that the string of Taliban suicide attacks, and fighting between NATO and US forces in south and east Afghanistan, is a prelude to the Islamist militia again regaining control.

This recently opened school - along with many other language and computer schools in the capital - would be closed; women would be forced again to wear burqas.

"My family has decided they should remain in Afghanistan for the time being, because we can get an education," says Espozhmai, her hands covered in traditional henna, who was secretly home-schooled by her mother during the Taliban era. "We will decide what to do, if the Taliban takes Kabul."

Afsoon's family is also staying. "We don't want to live like refugees again," she says of the 11 years her family lived in Isfahan, Iran.

"We decided to stay, because my mother said: 'Afghanistan needs people like us to rebuild. If we don't reconstruct it, who will?' " Afsoon recalls of the dinner table conversation.

"I want to fight, to save my country," vows Fareshda, whose gentle face and slipping headscarf belie her desire to take on the Taliban and their uncompromising rules. "My family is happy, because they are in their own country."

"Our problem is our people. They are uneducated. They all the time are used as a tool by someone else," says teacher Shayan. "The first time the Taliban took control of Afghanistan I stayed. But if they come again, I will leave Afghanistan. I can't stand a second time."

So what do these students say are Afghanistan's three greatest needs today?
"Security," says Fareshda. "Solidarity," says Tamana, the aspiring journalist.

"Peace. We need peace," says Assiya, who wants to be a doctor. "If the situation stays like this, I'm sure the Taliban will come," says Ahmad, a recently graduated pharmacist who claims the US is supporting the Taliban with cash, because otherwise they "could not fight against the 25 countries of NATO.

"If they come, they will put rules on people," he says, adding that the US should build a wall along the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where the Taliban draw much support. "If they come by force, what can people do?"

Indeed, the Taliban may already be trying to cause harm in Kabul, according to a letter sent recently by the Ministry of Interior to top Afghan education ministers, warning that the Taliban has imported writing pens with a special gas mechanism that will "render people unconscious and clean [erase] their memories."

The Taliban, the letter said, planned to specifically distribute the pens to private foreign language and computer schools where men and women learn side by side.

But the Taliban - and problems of electricity shortages, insecurity, and weak government - are not the only things weighing on these young minds. The class quickly turns into a session in which an American visitor is peppered with questions.

"Why do the Americans attack Islamic countries?" asks teacher Farid. A chorus erupts from the class as students demand an answer. Shayan tries to explain the reason for Afghanistan: "They attacked to save us from the Taliban and Al Qaeda," he says.

"The US government, especially Bush, is against Islam. He attacks Muslim countries," says Tamana, the journalist-to-be. She dismisses the examples of US-led airstrikes against Bosnian Serbs in 1995, to save Muslims in Sarajevo, and bombing of Serbia in 1999 to relieve pressure on Kosovar Muslims, as "minority" cases.

"Why did the Americans attack Iraq?" asks Farid. "Why do the Taliban do suicide bombs?" asks Wais, who works in a trendy clothes shop. "Do you think this time the Taliban will be democratic?" he asks sarcastically, prompting muted laughter. "If they come back, we'll have to escape again to Pakistan."

"Why didn't the Americans eliminate the Taliban?" asks Farid, shaking his head.
"We appreciate the role of the US in Afghanistan," says Shabana, a shy girl who hopes to become a doctor. "We want the US Army to be here for a long time. We need your help."

"Apparently they are here to help us reconstruct, to help us stand on our own feet. But we'll be happy if they fight the Taliban now and stop them," says Afsoon. "Unless civilians are harmed by their attacks. They should be very careful."

Eight Bahrainis held for planning trip to Afghanistan
By Habib Toumi Gulf News (UAE) / September 19, 2006

Manama: Eight Bahraini would-be jihadists, all in their early twenties, have been arrested for planning to go to Afghanistan to fight in the 'holy war,' official sources revealed yesterday.

But their lawyer called, in another statement sent to the media, for their prompt release, saying that it was not fair to pre-judge them and make them pay 'a high price for their intentions.'

According to security sources, authorities made the first arrest last week after they discovered chemical material at the home of a Bahraini man who attempted to flee the country via the King Fahd Causeway, Bahrain's 25-km link with Saudi Arabia.

Seven other Bahrainis, allegedly members of the same group, were subsequently arrested on suspicion of having close links with the first detainee, the sources added.

One of them admitted taking four passports to an embassy in Manama to apply for visas that they would eventually use to reach Afghanistan. Two suspects who had not handed over their passports for the visas attempted to leave Bahrain, but were arrested by the police.

According to the leader of the group, the seven Bahrainis had planned to go to Afghanistan to join Islamist fighters, the sources noted.

An interior ministry spokesman said in a press statement yesterday that the detention was in line with the laws and also aimed at 'protecting young people from getting involved in issues that would endanger their lives and jeopardise their future.'

But lawyer Abdullah Hashem contested the arrest, saying that the young men should not have been detained merely for their intentions.

"We are confident that the detainees are innocent because there is no crime here. We are also sure that there is no link between the detainees and terrorist organisations," Hashem said in a statement to the press.

The lawyer was referring to the case of six Bahrainis who were arrested twice in 2004 after security authorities suspected them of plotting to carry out terrorist attacks against several official and tourism establishments. The six pleaded non-guilty and Hashem who was defending them said that they could not be tried because there was no case against them.

[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.]