In this bulletin:

• Suicide bombing in Kabul suburb kills two: police
• Warlord claims credit for Kabul bombing
• Negligence led to deaths in big Afghan bomb-inquiry
• Finnish frustration as Karzai pardons bombers
• Norway complains against release of Afghan bombers
• White House fears Pak political upheaval could affect war on terror
• Britain probes alleged friendly fire killing in Afghanistan
• Afghan police destroy heroin factory in NE Afghanistan
• Afghanistan's new drug problem: Marijuana cultivation up 40 percent in 2007
• Neutral team to probe abuse of women prisoners
• Chinese metal producer vows to protect environment in copper mining in Afghanistan
• Kabul facing "unregulated" urbanisation
• Afghanistan to boost agri exports
• Afghan Wireless Launches Per-Second Billing
• Lashkargah drainage system project launched
• Journalists urged to unmask rights violators
• Gates charity to help battle polio worldwide
• Children increasingly affected by conflict
• Canadian becomes first woman to serve at Afghan police substation
• Afghanistan: ICRC conducts conference on Islam and IHL
• Hong Kong, Oman, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia win

Suicide bombing in Kabul suburb kills two: police

Kabul (AFP 11.27.07) - A suicide car bomb aimed at US-led coalition soldiers exploded Tuesday in an upmarket Kabul suburb that is home to foreign embassies and aid agencies, killing at least two Afghans, police said.

The insurgent Taliban movement claimed responsibility for the blast in the Wazir Akbar Khan suburb, close to the Pakistani embassy and a World Bank building and opposite an Afghan defence ministry office.

"It was a suicide bombing targeting foreigners," said Kabul criminal investigation police chief, General Alishah Paktiawal. "We have two martyrs. One was a passer-by and the other was a gateguard."

At least three other Afghan guards were also wounded, interior ministry spokesman Zemarai Bashary said.

A guard outside a World Bank premises was lightly wounded, a spokesman for the group told AFP, adding all the windows of the building were blown out.

The bomber's vehicle was reduced to its charred engine and the force of the explosion shattered windows for several streets.

The target was a US-led coalition convoy of armoured Landcruiser vehicles, two of which were badly damaged, an AFP reporter said.

"It was coalition soldiers. There were no injuries," coalition spokesman Lieutenant Colonel David Johnson told AFP.

Walid Miran, in his late 20s, said he had parked his car steps away from the bombing site behind a wall when the blast hit and he fell to the ground.

"There was a huge light. Then the whole area turned dark like it was night. For several seconds I could hear glass, metal and sand dropping around me.

"As it got clear, I saw several people with bleeding faces running away," said the embassy employee, who was covered in dust.

A tailor, whose shop was 100 metres (yards) away, said: "The blast sent pieces of metal and flesh even to the front of my shop."

One of the main spokesmen for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahed, said his group was responsible for the attack. Afghan media said the radical faction of former prime minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar had also claimed responsibility.

The blast came a day after a bomb planted on a dust road used by Italian military forces on the outskirts of the capital tore apart a car, killing four Afghan men.

Police said it was not clear if Monday's attack was motivated by personal enmity or was the work of "enemies of Afghanistan," a term used to refer to insurgents from the Taliban movement and other rebel outfits.

On Saturday a suicide bomber blew himself up as Italian military engineers worked on a footbridge in Paghman, a town 25 kilometres (15 miles) west of Kabul.

One Italian soldier and eight Afghans, three of them children, were killed. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Tuesday's bombing was the first in years targeting the Wazir Akbar Khan neighbourhood, the main collection of foreign nationals in the city of more than three million people.

Suicide attacks and kidnappings, including of foreign nationals, have increased in and around Kabul in recent months, with the Taliban vowing to step up their use of both tactics in their campaign to topple the government and drive out its international allies.

Warlord claims credit for Kabul bombing

CNN, 11/27/2007 - KABUL - An anti-government group led by Afghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar claimed responsibility for a suicide bomb attack on a convoy of U.S. contractor SUVs near the U.S. Embassy in Kabul Tuesday morning, an Afghan police official said.

Kabul Detective Police Commander Alsiha Paktiwal said two people -- including the bomber -- died and four others were wounded, but private security sources told CNN three people died in the blast.

There were no U.S. casualties, according to the sources, although the identities of the dead were not immediately provided.

The explosion, which could be heard across the city, took place in the Wazir Akhbar Khan neighborhood -- an upscale district of Afghanistan's capital -- about 7:45 a.m. (10:15 p.m. ET).

Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami has claimed responsibility for the bombing, the police chief said.

Hekmatyar is a marginalized Afghan warlord who in July called on all Islamic fighters in Afghanistan -- including the Taliban -- to stop bomb attacks against Afghan civilians and religious leaders.

But there is an indication Hekmatyar, has not completely abandoned his warlord ways -- he signs off with the statement, "Long live the mujahedeens and death to the enemies of Islam."

Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-Islami was one of the groups that helped end the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s. But the group was blamed for widespread violence during that period and many believe that led Afghans to embrace the Taliban.

During his tenure as Afghanistan's prime minister in the early 1990s -- before the Taliban took control -- Hekmatyar enjoyed immense support from neighboring Pakistan. He found himself at odds with Islamabad after it sided with the United States following the September 11, 2001, attacks.

His alliances are unclear. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has tried to include Hekmatyar and other former Afghan warlords in the government, "for the sake of peace in Afghanistan."

But Karzai's cozy relationship with the United States has rankled Hekmatyar and other warlords who are opposed to foreign forces in Afghanistan.

Hekmatyar has also split with many of his Hezb-e-Islami commanders, some of whom plan to form a political party in Afghanistan, a former top mujahedeen commander in Afghanistan recently told CNN.

Negligence led to deaths in big Afghan bomb-inquiry

Tue Nov 27, 2007

KABUL, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Official negligence contributed to the death toll in Afghanistan's biggest suicide bombing, which killed 72 people, most of them schoolboys, this month, the interior minister said on Tuesday.

A suicide bomber blew himself up on Nov. 6 as local schoolboys lined up to greet a group of opposition parliamentarians visiting a sugar factory in the town of Baghlan in the relatively peaceful north.

Fifty-two schoolboys, six parliamentary deputies and five teachers were among the 72 killed.

Opposition lawmakers staged a mass walk-out from parliament on Monday, accusing President Hamid Karzai's government of inaction against officials they accused of not doing enough to protect the visiting delegation and civilians in Baghlan.

"Enquiries indicate a range of negligence and carelessness occurred in various related governmental levels," Interior Minister Zarar Ahmad Moqbel told a news conference.

"Those involved in negligence or carelessness will be sacked, replaced or prosecuted based on the extent of their guilt," he said. "We are hopeful that we will learn the names of those involved in negligence from judicial authorities soon."

The parliamentary walk-out was led by members of the National United Front, made up of many former warlords who fought the Taliban before U.S.-led forces helped them overthrow the hardline Islamist movement in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

The front has grown increasingly vocal in its criticism of Karzai on a range of issues, from his failure to tackle the country's worsening security situation, to official corruption and the alleged involvement of some officials in the drugs trade.

A number of conspiracy theories have also emerged since the hardline Islamist Taliban, responsible for more than 140 suicide attacks in Afghanistan this year, denied they carried out the Baghlan bombing.

Moqbel did not comment on which group might have been behind the attack, but ruled out any attempt by members of the government to eliminate opposition parliamentarians.

He said the bomber's body had been brought to Kabul and was undergoing forensic examinations. Some witnesses said police at the scene opened fire wildly after the attack, killing and wounding many who had survived the blast.

A number of the victims appeared to have suffered bullet wounds, but at least some of those may have been the result of the ball bearings packed in the bomber's suicide vest.

"The incident was a suicide attack," said Moqbel. "After the blast the bodyguards and armed men there opened fire ... The investigation and documents in hand indicate that three people were wounded by firing."

There was no indication Mostafa Kazemi, the most senior opposition deputy killed in Baghlan, was among those shot dead. Moqbel said he had died from the suicide bomb.

He said some relatives had requested victims be disinterred for post-mortems to be carried out. Most of the dead were buried soon after the bombing according to Muslim custom, without proper examination.

Finnish frustration as Karzai pardons bombers

Newsroom Finland, 11/27/2007 - Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan, has pardoned five of the seven people originally sentenced to death for planting a bomb that killed a Finnish peacekeeper in Maimana last spring, Norwegian paper Verdens Gang reported on Monday.

The death penalties had been commuted to 20-year prison terms before the full pardon.

Lieutenant-Colonel Ali Mättölä, who has commanded Finnish soldiers in Afghanistan, said he had heard about the pardon from a Norwegian soldier about three weeks ago.

"It goes without saying that one is frustrated," Col Mättölä added. Col Mättölä said the case was typical of Afghanistan's culture of governance.

Norway complains against release of Afghan bombers

STOCKHOLM, Nov 27 (Xinhua) -- Norway has raised strong complaints against the decision by Afghan authorities to release the five Afghan bombers who attacked the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Northern Afghanistan in May this year.

"It just gives a wrong signal that people who have been sentenced for such acts are allowed to walk free," Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said in a statement.

Stoere added that an explanation is needed of how it is possible for someone who was first sentenced to death to have the sentence reversed to 20 years in jail, only to be released because of a religious festival.

The five Afghan bombers were sentenced to 20 years in jail, but Afghan President Hamid Karzai signed a decree to release them after they spent just three months in prison, Norwegian broadcaster NRK reported.

The bomb attack killed one Finnish and one Afghan soldier, and injured three Norwegian soldiers.

White House fears Pak political upheaval could affect war on terror

TopNews, India, Posted November 26th, 2007 by Mohit Joshi

Washington - U.S. efforts to defeat the Taliban and Al Qaeda forces along the Afghan border could come unstuck if there is no end in sight to the ongoing political upheaval in Pakistan, an intelligence report published in the US media has claimed.

According to a U.S. National Security Council report, both the Taliban and Al Qaeda maintain headquarters, logistical support and training camps in the tribal belt along the Afghan border, which increases U.S. concerns about the possible repercussions of the current political impasse in Pakistan.

However, the report acknowledges that it is still too early to predict whether the situation in Pakistan will go out of control.

The Dawn quotes the Washington Post as saying that the White House believes that the war on terror in Afghanistan has not met strategic goals set this year.

The main conclusion of the report, prepared earlier this month, is that while individual military battles against the Taliban have been successful, other areas remain wanting.

U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates is quoted as saying that the US Special Operations Command has been lobbying for a more active role along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.

Several experts believe that the United States can no longer afford to leave the Pakistani military to clean up its side of the border.

"Unless we resolve the safe-haven issue, this is not going to succeed," the papers quotes Henry A. Crumpton, a CIA veteran who led the agency's successful 2001 Afghanistan campaign against the Taliban and Al Qaeda,” as saying.

The White House report also notes that many foreigners, mostly Pakistani, join the Taliban, but the main source of new recruits remain unhappy Afghans. (ANI)

Britain probes alleged friendly fire killing in Afghanistan

LONDON (AFP) — Britain has launched a formal investigation into a reported friendly fire incident in which two Danish soldiers died in southern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence said Monday.

Danish television reported on Sunday that the Danish troops, who died on September 26, were killed by missiles fired by British forces who mistook them for Taliban fighters.

"We are working closely with the Danish government to establish the details and the causes of this incident and there is a Board of Inquiry into it ongoing," said an MoD spokesman.

"It would not be appropriate to comment further before the Board of Inquiry is complete," he added.

According to the Danish TV2 television station Sunday, British troops from the International Security Assistance Force believed they were fighting Taliban when they launched six to eight missiles at a position held by 14 Danish soldiers.

The British forces kept firing for nearly an hour without noticing that it was another ISAF position, killing Danish soldiers Thorbjoern Ole Reese, 22, and Mikkel Keil Soerensen, the TV station's correspondent said.

Two Danish soldiers said they knew they had been fired on by the British because they found remains of British missiles in their position, on one side of the Helmand river in the Upper Geresk Valley.

The two soldiers' deaths brought to six the number of Danish troops killed in Afghanistan. Denmark currently has 550 soldiers in the country, mostly in Helmand province under British command.

The MoD spokesman declined to forecast when the British investigation into the incident would conclude.

"Every time we have a serious incident we launch one of these boards of inquiry. It looks at the individual circumstances of the incident," he told AFP. "If it's a complicated matter it will take longer than if it's a straightforward matter."

There have been several incidents of friendly fire in the international effort against the Taliban, which involves troops from nearly 40 countries and which was launched after the invasion of Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States.

Afghan police destroy heroin factory in NE Afghanistan

KABUL, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- During an anti-narcotics operation, Afghan police have destroyed a heroin factory in Tashkan district of northeastern Afghan province of Badakhshan, said a statement issued by the Interior Ministry on Tuesday.

Afghan police Monday attacked a heroin lab belonging to two military commanders in the area and entered the factory following a two-hour fighting, the statement said.

Some 32 kg opium and weapons were confiscated and one person from the suspected drug smugglers gang was arrested, it said, adding that the two military commanders escaped.

The post-Taliban Afghanistan with an estimated output of 8,200 tons of opium poppy in 2007 once again topped poppy growing nations in the world.

Afghanistan's new drug problem: Marijuana cultivation up 40 percent in 2007

The Associated Press - Tuesday, November 27, 2007

KABUL, Afghanistan: The fields of Balkh province in northern Afghanistan were completely free of opium poppies this year, a success touted often by Afghan and international officials. But one look at Mohammad Alam's fields tell the story of another emerging drug problem.

Towering, 3-meter (10-foot) cannabis plants flourish in Alam's field, part of a wave of farmers turning to marijuana. The crop can be just as profitable as opium but draws none of the scrutiny from Afghan officials bent on eradicating poppies.

Cannabis cultivation rose 40 percent in Afghanistan this year, to 70,000 hectares (173,000 acres) from 50,000 hectares (123,550 acres) grown in 2006, the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime estimated in its 2007 opium survey.

It is being grown in at least 18 of Afghanistan's 34 provinces, according to the survey released last month.

The report singles out Balkh as a "leading example" of an opium-free province, saying that other provinces should follow "the model of this northern region where leadership, incentives and security have led farmers to turn their backs on opium."

However, a small section of the report addressing cannibis says the increase in its cultivation "gives cause for concern."

"Cannabis has also spread to the north of Afghanistan and is observed to have increased particularly in Balkh province," according to the survey.

One of those Balkh farmers, Alam, said he knows that growing marijuana is illegal but says he has to grow it to feed his children. He said the government cannot provide jobs or find markets for legal crops.

"The government cannot provide a good market for other crops like cotton, watermelon and vegetables, so I have to grow marijuana instead of poppy," said Alam.

Drug dealers from the southern poppy growing provinces of Kandahar and Helmand travel north to buy marijuana and take it to Pakistan, Alam said.

Gen. Khodaidad, Afghanistan's acting counter-narcotics minister, who like many in Afghanistan uses only one name, said the government doesn't yet have a good handle on marijuana.

"This is also a big problem for Afghanistan," he said. "More people will become addicted. It is very cheap. Hashish is more harmful (than poppies) to the people of Afghanistan."

The U.N. said cannabis yields around twice the quantity of drug per hectare as opium poppies and requires less investment to grow it. Given that, cannabis farmers could earn the same amount per hectare as opium farmers, the U.N. drug report said.

"As a consequence, farmers who do not cultivate opium poppy may turn to cannabis cultivation," the report said. Afghanistan already grows some 93 percent of the world's opium.

Akbar Khan, a 35-year-old farmer from Balkh province, said that if legal crops could command higher prices, farmers would grow those.

"We know marijuana is an illegal crop, but we are very poor and we have to grow it to help our families survive," he said. "I don't like growing poppy or marijuana. I don't want people to become addicted to these things, but I have to feed my children and I have no other way."

Neutral team to probe abuse of women prisoners

KABUL, Nov 25 (Pajhwok Afghan News): A parliamentary commission on women affairs Sunday discussed the formation of a neutral panel to investigate allegations of sexual assaults on women prisoners in the Pul-i-Charkhi Jail.

Legislator Fauzia Kofi said this in a chat with media professionals after a meeting with women inmates, who were allegedly subjected to sexual abuse. But the Ministry of Justice has rejected the accusations, saying a delegation it sent to the prison could not substantiate the charges.

Parliamentarian Najiba Sharif told Pajhwok Afghan News the parliamentary panel recommended representatives from the Ministry of Justice, directorate of prisons, Afghanistan Independent Human Right Commission (AIHRC) and the attorney-generals office be tasked with probing the problems facing women prisoners.

She added the issue of sexual abuse also figured at the meeting of the commission. The composition of the investigating team would be announced later on, the lawmaker continued.

Fauzia Kofi observed: We are representatives of women; we must discuss their problems and protect them from abuse. She recalled a delegation had been sent a month ago to the same prison to look into the plight of children and abuse of women inmates.

Chinese metal producer vows to protect environment in copper mining in Afghanistan

NANCHANG, Nov 26, 2007 (Xinhua) -- Jiangxi Copper Corporation, which is to develop copper mine in Afghanistan together with China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC), has pledged to protect local environment in the mining.

"We will abide by international standard and develop the copper mine with high-tech measures, so as to ensure environmental protection during the process," said Zha Kebing, assistant chief engineer of Jiangxi Copper Co. Monday.

Jiangxi Copper Co. has invested about 800 million yuan (106.7 million U.S. dollars) in recent years to reduce energy consumption, realize resource recycling and improve environment, said Zha.

Founded in 1979, the Jiangxi company boasts the largest copper production base in China. It is also a large producer of gold and silver and has been listed in Hong Kong, Shanghai and London.

Last year the company achieved a revenue of 31 billion yuan (4.13 billion U.S. dollars), in which nearly 3 billion yuan (400 million U.S. dollars) was gained in the form of recycling economy.

"By reclaiming rare metal and sulfur dioxide and generate electricity with the afterheat, we have improved the value of one ton of copper ore from 160 yuan to 600 yuan (21.3 to 80 U.S. dollars)," said the engineer.

MCC beat bids by Strikeforce, part of Russia's Basic Element Group; the London-based Kazakhmys Consortium; Hunter Dickinson of Canada; and U.S. copper mining firm Phelps Dodge by offering 808 million U.S. dollars to obtain a 30-year lease for developing the the Aynak mine 30 km east of Kabul.

Discovered in the early 1970s, the mine is estimated to contain 11.3 million tons of copper and recognized as one of the world's largest.

Kabul facing "unregulated" urbanisation

KABUL, 26 November 2007 (IRIN) - Gul Ahmad and his eight-member family live in a two-room shack in slums up on a hill in the north of Kabul city.

Ahmad does not own a house. His monthly government salary is about US$60, half of which goes on rent. There is no electricity, drainage, tap water, school, clinic or other facility in the area.

Kabul is the victim of a "rapid, unregulated and unequal" urbanisation, according to Yusuf Pashtun, the minister of urban development, and Pietro Calogero, a PhD researcher on urban development at the University of California.

From an estimated 500,000 people in early 2001 Kabul's population has soared to over three million in 2007, according to the Afghan Central Statistics Office.

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) says over one million Afghan returnees from Pakistan and Iran have settled in Kabul. Tens of thousands of people have also flocked to the capital from across the country for various reasons, the Ministry of Urban Development said.

However, the rapid population growth has not kept pace with service delivery. Only two percent of Kabul residents have regular access to electricity, while over half of them lack access to sanitation, said Mohammad Yasin Hellal, an official at the Kabul Municipality offices.

Kabul's limited health services are also stretched and cannot meet the overwhelming demands of poor patients.

"The number of patients is three times beyond our capacity," said Nasreen Oriakhel, head of Kabul's Malalai maternity hospital. "This hospital was built for 150 patients, but now around 600 patients seek treatment every day."

Officials at the Ministry of Urban Development estimate that at least 180,000 babies are born every year in Kabul, one of the highest birth rates in Asia.

The unprecedented rush into Kabul has lead to a massive increase in the construction of all kinds of dwellings - mainly in illegal slums.

"Almost 70 percent of houses and commercial buildings have been built irregularly and in contradiction to the Kabul city master plan," Pashtun told IRIN. "The rapid urbanisation process in Kabul… has been utterly unregulated and in many cases is against our plans for urban development."

Pashtun said his ministry needed adequate funding, professional staff and at least 15 years to solve the crisis.

"Urbanisation in Kabul has strikingly been unequal. It has made a small fraction of rich and powerful richer, and the majority of the poor poorer," said Calogero.

Wealthy commanders, senior government officials and other influential individuals have widely grabbed, redistributed, sold and used public land in Kabul and in many other parts of the country for their personal interest, said Pashtun.

Pashtun believes there is a powerful "land mafia" in Kabul operating with impunity.

"The mafia brazenly grabs public and state-owned land and builds irregular houses and commercial centres or sells land to other brokers," Pashtun said. The mafia is very powerful and has links everywhere, he added.

Mushrooming slums in and around Kabul not only lack basic services and infrastructure, they are also highly vulnerable to floods, earthquakes, avalanches and other natural disasters common in Afghanistan, experts say.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of irregular houses were damaged and over 130 people died in several provinces, including Kabul, in flooding and avalanches in 2007, Afghanistan's disaster management authority said.

While the population of Kabul is estimated to surpass seven million by 2015, Afghan officials are still struggling to implement a master plan devised for Kabul in 1970 according to which no more than two million people can be housed in the capital.

In the past six years, the government of Afghanistan has channelled the bulk of international aid into rural development programmes as a strategy to improve services outside the capital and indirectly ease the flow of people into the capital.

However, the emphasis on funding rural development over and above urban development has deprived Kabul and other urban centres of adequate development resources, Calogero's study found.

"Afghanistan will not overcome its widening urbanisation challenges by rural development alone," said Calogero. "There should be more funding for urban development and building urban infrastructure because people will choose to live in urban areas."

Minister Pashtun agrees, but says his main challenge is "the lack of professional capacity in the government" to effectively plan and implement different aspects of urbanisation.

Afghanistan to boost agri exports

By Indian Financial Express - Monday November 26, 2007

Afghanistan wants to boost its exports of dry fruits, fresh fruits and vegetables, marbles and natural stones to India, and in return is seeking greater Indian investments in the agro processing, construction sector, and in trade and services.

"Our exports to India have declined since over a decade due to the disturbed situation in our country. Now our exports to India are only around $30 to $40 million. We want to increase our exports to India and want to attract more of Indian investment, which is now flowing at the rate of $10 to $15 million," Omar Zakhilwal, president and CEO, Afghanistan Investment Support Agency (AISA), told FE.

He said that his country has exportable varieties of dry fruits like almond, fig, raisins, apricot, pistachio, and fresh fruits like grapes, pomegranates, melons, apples, and medicinal herbs. "The growing middle class in India, with their rising income, would like to consume these healthy food from Afghanistan," he said, and added that Indian investors can also take the opportunity to invest in the agro processing sector in his country.

Zakhilwal was in India last week and addressed the representatives of the Indian industry at an interactive session hosted by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). The Afghanistan government has launched a regional economic cooperation programme, which includes countries like Pakistan, India, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and West Asian countries. The first meeting of this group was held in Kabul in December 2005, followed by a meeting in Delhi in November 2006. The next meeting is in Islamabad in March 2008.

Afghanistan expects that with its new membership to SAARC, its trade relations with India and other countries of South Asia would get a boost.

Afghan Wireless Launches Per-Second Billing

cellular-news.com November 26, 2007 - Afghanistan's Afghan Wireless has launched per-second billing on its GSM network - the company announced today.

In a press briefing at its’ headquarters, Afghan Wireless Managing Director, Mr. Amin Ramin said: "I must emphasize that we at Afghan Wireless believe in offering strong value propositions to Afghanistan. We have always tried hard to give them more than their expectations. We have ensured Microwave connectivity, widest coverage in the country, simple call rates, amazing call quality, superb connectivity even on highways, and today we are announcing the Per Second Billing PLUS for the entire Afghan Wireless family."

Afghan Wireless Communication Company (AWCC), headquartered in Kabul, is the largest private investor in Afghanistan. Afghan Wireless is also the largest employer of Afghans in Afghanistan, employing approximately 3,000 people directly and another 30,000 indirectly

Lashkargah drainage system project launched

Abdus Samad Rohani  - LASHKARGAH, Nov 22 (Pajhwok Afghan News): The drainage system in Lashkargah, capital city of southern Helmand province would be improved and cemented with the financial help of UN Habitat.

Saleh Mohammad, the head of UN Habitat in Helmand province told Pajhwok Afghan News on Thursday that work on three drains have already been started. He said that the project would cost $150,000 and would be completed in three months.

Haji Ghulam Mahiuddin, the mayor of Lashkargah remarked that the project would be detrimental for the cleanliness of the city and added that another organization would reconstruct the city roads that have been damaged recently.

Haji Samad Ali, a resident told this news agency that since the inception of the city no care had been taken about its cleanliness and this project would greatly benefit the residents.

Journalists urged to unmask rights violators

Pajhwok News Agency, 11/27/2007 Zubair Babakarkhel - KABUL - Speakers at a three-day training programme here on Monday called upon news outlets and journalists to expose brazen human rights violations committed during the last three decades of conflict in Afghanistan.

Organised by the Killid Group with financial support from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) and Open Society Institute (OSI), the three-day programme is aimed at training journalists from different provinces in effectively unmasking violators of basic human rights.

In a brief speech to the participants, Deputy Interior Minister Gen. Abdul Hadi Khalid acknowledged some high-handed individuals intentionally trampled the rights of Afghans in an attempt to perpetuate their personal privileges.

Police under the Interior Ministry had also contravened the law in certain cases because of professional limitations, admitted Khalid, who told the trainees: Security personnel are paying close attention to your work and need your cooperation.

He stressed the role of writers and newsmen in discouraging rights abuses in the prevailing circumstances in the country. The intelligentsia could help stop rights abusers in their tracks, the deputy minister believed.

On the occasion, a senior advisor to Afghanistans Academy of Sciences referred to consistent rights abuses under the various governments over the last 29 years. Its the duty of journalists and intellectuals to investigate the situation during that period and lay bare the criminals, Habibullah Rafi observed.

A number of commanders had been in breach of fundamental rights during war years, he alleged. And that malfeasance continued to date, the professor pointed out. Those carrying out suicide attacks, dropping bombs on towns and killing women and children are criminals.

Killid Group head Shaheer Ahmad Zaheen, in an exclusive chat with Pajhwok Afghan News, said they would try to improve professional skills of a large number of journalists from different provinces.

They would be taught how to prepare investigative reports on rights violations and which sources they should use for digging out the requisite information, Zaheen concluded.

Gates charity to help battle polio worldwide

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awards $100 million to Rotary International, which says it will match the grant.

By Charles Piller, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer - November 27, 2007

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced Monday that it would give $100 million to Rotary International's efforts to eradicate polio worldwide. It is the foundation's largest such grant. Rotary said it would match the grant.

"We have very few opportunities to improve the world's public health in a permanent way, and this is one," said Dr. Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organization, which leads the eradication campaign in coordination with UNICEF, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and Rotary, a worldwide volunteer group.

"We are closer to this goal than ever before. All four of the remaining polio-endemic countries are largely on track to reach very ambitious milestones," Chan said, referring to India, Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

William H. Gates Sr., co-chairman of the foundation, said he hoped the grant would spur others to contribute.

Polio, which can cause paralysis and death, is spread person-to-person or through contaminated water. Since the eradication campaign began in 1988, the number of annual cases has fallen by more than 99%; 735 cases have been detected this year through Nov. 20, including new outbreaks in seven nations that previously had eliminated the disease.

Immunizing every child -- particularly in the conflict zones of Afghanistan and Pakistan -- presents a formidable challenge. Part of the problem, said Dr. Bruce Aylward, who directs the eradication effort, is that for each case of paralysis, about 200 asymptomatic -- and often undetected -- infections take place. Asymptomatic individuals remain healthy but spread the polio virus.

Children increasingly affected by conflict

KHOST, 27 November 2007 (IRIN) - Razmi Khan, 12, was once the most outstanding student in his class, but is unable to go to school. He was badly wounded by a missile as he walked to a mosque in Nader Shah Kot District in the southeastern province of Khost on 17 November. He was taken to a local hospital where surgeons amputated his left leg to save his life.

"I cannot walk to school with one leg," Razmi told IRIN.

The missile, which also wounded another child and four adults, was fired by Afghan and international forces during a joint military exercise, Gul Qasim Khan, the governor of Nader Shah Kot District, and Col Israr Khan of the Afghan army, said.

Razmi Khan's parents said army officers and provincial officials had sympathised with them, but there had been no compensation.

As sympathies fade, Razmi Khan is gradually realising that as a disabled person he has to cope with many new difficulties: He cannot play football with his friends, ride his bicycle or go to mosque.

In Baghlan Province where on 6 November a heavy explosion and a subsequent shootout killed 60 children and over 12 adults, many parents are grieving for their lost sons and daughters.

"My sons had committed no sin, so why did they kill them," whined Roqia, a bereaved mother of two schoolchildren killed in the incident.

In Helmand Province a widow is mourning her 15-year-old son who was hanged by Taliban insurgents for having US dollars in his pocket.

"A child's first right is the right to life. This is being denied in Afghanistan on an ever-increasing scale," the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said in a Child Alert report in October 2007.

Afghanistan's Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) estimates that over 1,400 Afghan civilians have lost their lives and hundreds of others have been wounded in armed hostilities, aerial strikes, suicide attacks and improvised explosions in the past 11 months.

Although there is no verified data on the exact number of non-combatant victims of the ongoing violence in Afghanistan, children are believed to be among the main victims, said Hangama Anwari, a commissioner on the rights of children at the AIHRC.

"Children are particularly vulnerable to the harms of war and are exposed to greater risks than others," said Anwari based on her studies of Afghan children in the conflict.

According to Afghanistan's Ministry of Education, over 237 schoolchildren have been killed in different security incidents in the past three years. However, the AIHRC says the actual number of child victims is several times higher than that.

"We do not have the capacity, resources or access to investigate and verify all the security incidents involving children all over the country," Anwari said.

The AIHRC, supported by UNICEF, is working to set up a mechanism whereby the plight of Afghan children in conflict-affected areas will be monitored in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1612. The resolution is dedicated to the rights and protection of children in a war situation and sets out the responsibilities of parties to the conflict.

The AIHRC has repeatedly accused all sides in the armed conflict of not doing enough to protect and ensure the safety of children and other civilians during military hostilities.

Through its monitoring initiative, which will be launched in 2008, the rights watchdog will consistently remind all warring parties about their obligations to protect children during conflict, Anwari said.

Canadian becomes first woman to serve at Afghan police substation

PASHMUL, Afghanistan - A couple of months ago, Cpl. Jennifer Lettre was close to calling it quits and asking to return to Canada.

Lettre had gone through her military police training and was excited about serving in the Afghan theatre. But she quickly discovered that being a woman in the male-dominated Afghan culture does not open many doors.

"We were training for a year with all those guys and then they left us behind," at Kandahar Air Field, she said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

"I was upset. I told my boss I want to go on the checkpoints," Lettre said. "I even thought about going back in Canada. I told myself, if I can't do my job (in Afghanistan) because I am a girl I don't want to be here."

But in the end 'being a girl' paid off for the 26-year-old from Granby, Que., thanks to new tactics by the Taliban in which they sometimes disguise themselves as women or use women to transport weapons.

Lettre is now the first and only female military police officer stationed at an Afghan National Police substation, a step up she figures from the air field detention centre where she worked with two other female MPs.

"Right now, the Taliban men are wearing burkas because they know they are not going to be searched (by men)," said Lettre, referring to Afghan cultural and religious prohibitions.

"The ANP chief of police here wanted a woman for the search. So he asked for a woman so he can do his job correctly and be sure there are no men wearing burkas passing some stuff," she said.

So in addition to helping train the Afghan police, Lettre is chiefly responsible for searching any women that come through the checkpoints.

"I think since they were never, never searched before . . . they (the Taliban) have been doing this for a long time," she said.

"It's not just them wearing burkas it's also them hiding stuff on the women because they know they are not going to be searched," she added. "We have to check and see if she is a woman and if she is carrying drugs or weapons."

The Zhari district near this police substation is rife with Taliban activity. Ambushes involving Canadian and humanitarian convoys are common as are rocket attacks on police outposts and forward operating bases.

In the past it was unheard of for an Afghan police officer to ask for help from a woman. "I suggested that we must have a woman," said Mohammad Safai, ANP chief at the substation.

"This area is dangerous and maybe some men are forcing their women to carry weapons. I suggested we must have a woman because of searching women. It is good for us."

Lettre had expected a firestorm once the Afghan policemen partially under her control learned they would be taking orders from a woman. But she said it has worked out fine so far.

"They didn't want some woman on their checkpoints because of the religion thing but the first night I arrived here they all came to the table and sat with me with the interpreter and asked me all the questions," Lettre chuckled.

"They were really interested in what I am doing and actually it was pretty good. No apprehensions."

"They tell me: You are like our little sister."

Lettre hasn't found any men dressed as women yet. But she said it is going to take a while even to get the women used to being searched.

"We had six women in one car and two of them were feeling okay with the fact I was going to search them but four others didn't want to. They are not comfortable," she said.

"They wanted to know what I was going to do. Now we try and find different ways of talking to them, talking to their husbands. It's going to take a lot of adjustment."

Taliban men dressing in burkas or having women transport ammunition and weapons for them is relatively new, said Safai.

He said information from Kabul indicates the Taliban are planning to increase their attacks through suicide bombings and improvised explosive devices.

As for his men taking orders from a woman, Safai said his men do what they are told.

"I explained for them it is the rules of police that we must search women," he explained. "She is doing a good job. She is a police girl and she is pretty good."

Afghanistan: ICRC conducts conference on Islam and IHL

Source: International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) - November 27, 2007

Kabul/Geneva (ICRC) – Sixty (60) religious leaders from four eastern provinces of Afghanistan took part in a conference on Islam and International Humanitarian Law (IHL) held at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) sub-delegation in Jalalabad from 28 to 29 November. During this event, similarities and differences between Islamic values and humanitarian law were discussed with a view to ensuring that the victims of the armed conflict in Afghanistan are better protected and assisted.

"Poor security conditions are preventing us from reaching the people affected by the fighting," said Patrick Schwaerler, head of the ICRC sub delegation in Jalalabad. "We always network to develop a constructive dialogue with all the relevant sectors of the society in order to explain our impartial and humanitarian action hoping this way, to create the security conditions we need to carry out our activities. This conference was a unique opportunity for establishing closer ties with very influential religious leaders from the region", he added.

The ICRC has been present in Afghanistan since 1987. Its internationally recognised mandate provides for monitoring the respect of International Humanitarian Law by all persons bearing arms. It works to minimize the effects of war on the population.

Hong Kong, Oman, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia win

Gorkhapatra (Nepal) - KATHMANDU, Nov. 26: Hong Kong struggled to one wicket victory over Malaysia while Oman strolled to 10 wickets win over Thailand in their second matches of group A of the ACC U-15 Elite Cup-2007 here on Monday.

In the group B matches, Abdul Wahid claimed five wickets as Saudi Arabia cruised past Kuwait by 41 runs and Afghanistan coasted to eight wickets win over Singapore.

With 25 and 21 runs from Niaz and Nizakat Khan Hong Kong had a scare of 9-wicket loss in 38.3 over in its chase of rather small target of 118 runs posted by one of the favourites Malaysia. With two consecutive wins Hong Kong tops the table in Group A. Ahmad Adnan and Nadeason claimed three wickets each for Malaysia but could not able to stop Hong Kong from victor Winning the toss Malaysia had elected to bat and was all out in 33.2 overs with 117 runs on board.

Amarul Rusli scored highest 39 runs for Malaysia but other batmen fell prey to the bowlers of Hong Kong. For Hong Kong Aizaz Khan picked three wickets giving 24 runs. Nizakat and Niaz claimed two wickets each to restrict Malaysia to a small total. Nizakat Khan was judged Man of the Match for his all round performance.

Oman had little to show its cricket chasing the 62 runs target posted by Thailand. Oman accomplished the target in 9.2 overs scoring 66 runs without any loss of wickets. Vatsal Mukund Mehta hit 23 runs not out off 45 balls and Kunal Parshant hit unbeaten 17 runs off 16 balls for Oman.

Earlier, Jai Baluat and Isha Kalar batted 21 and 14 runs respectively for Thailand but Oman's bowler S. Haroon took three wickets in six overs for 15 runs to limit Thailand. B. Kartik and P. Pandya claimed two wickets each for Oman.

In the Group B matches, Afghanistan won the toss and invited Singapore to bat first at Lab School Ground. Reja Gultabi smashed 63 runs, as Singapore accumulated 161 runs for the loss of nine wickets in the allocated 40 overs. Hramat Ullah posted unbeaten 87 runs and Anbar batted 53 off 54 balls for the third wicket as Afghanistan battered Singapore by eight wickets in 27 overs.

Similarly, Saudi Arabia winning the toss and batted to score 190 runs for five wickets in 32 overs. In reply, Kuwait was all out in 20.5 overs in 101 runs. Abdul Wahid of Saudi Arabia was judged Man of the Match for his five wickets off 9 overs.

[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.]