In this bulletin:

• Mass grave unearthed in northern Afghanistan
• Afghan clashes claim 24 Taliban, two Indians: officials
• Afghanistan: 8 dead, 7 wounded in attacks
• India to continue road construction in Afghanistan: Antony
• Indian Trainers for Afghanistan
• Clash leaves 4 Afghan police dead
• Kouchner says Pakistan must help Kabul end violence
• Bernier unveils security training facility in Kandahar
• Canada to establish new benchmarks for Afghan mission: Bernier
• German Army Chief Wants More Troops in Afghanistan
• Over 400,000 people receive food aid amid soaring prices
• Are Afghanistan's aid millions well spent?
• Afghanistan: Warlordism 'Is Winning' Versus Democracy
• Coalition helicopter drops weapons into Taliban hands, Afghan officials say
• US asks SKorea to send personnel to Afghanistan
• Hundreds of Afghans languishing in Balochistan jails
• Afghan refugee turns rug exporter in Pakistan

Mass grave unearthed in northern Afghanistan

Reuters / April 12, 2008 - MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan - Afghan authorities have discovered a mass grave containing at least 100 bodies believed to be victims of a Taliban massacre in the 1990s, security officials said on Saturday.

The grave was discovered in the northern province of Balkh, about 15 km from the city of Mazar-i-Sharif.

Provincial security official Abdurrauf Taj said about 100 bodies had been found in the grave, which is about 100 metres from a residential area. "We expect the number may rise," Taj told Reuters.

Residents of the area said they suspected the dead were members of the Hazara ethnic minority, massacred after the Taliban captured the area in the late 1990s. "These were all innocent people killed by the Taliban," said shopkeeper Mohammad Sami.

Provincial security commander Sardar Mohammad Sultani said the dead may have been massacred by the Taliban and investigators hoped to determine the truth.

None of the bodies were being moved until a team from Kabul inspected the site, Sultani said. Mass graves from Afghanistan's three decades of war are occasionally unearthed in different parts of the country.

Last year, a grave containing several hundred bodies was found in the northeastern province of Badakhshan. (Reporting by Thair Qadiry; Writing by Jonathon Burch; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Afghan clashes claim 24 Taliban, two Indians: officials

Sat Apr 12, 7:19 AM ET - KABUL (AFP) - Afghan security forces supported by foreign military aircraft killed 24 Taliban rebels in clashes in the southern province of Zabul, authorities said Saturday.

The operation in Zabul -- one of the most Taliban-troubled regions -- was designed to secure a key highway to the capital Kabul, Zabul deputy governor Gulab Shah Alikhail told AFP.

"We had an operation against Taliban last night. During the operation, in which foreign military's air force was used, 24 Taliban were killed and eight others were injured," he added. He said the clashes began late Friday and continued into Saturday.

Zabul, which borders Pakistan, sees regular Taliban attacks. On Tuesday, 17 civilian roadworkers were killed in an attack on their convoy near the main town of Qalat.

Three Taliban militants were killed in a subsequent operation against the attackers by Afghan and foreign security forces. Meanwhile, two Indian engineers and an Afghan policeman died in a Taliban suicide attack in the southwestern province of Nimroz, authorities said.

Two bombers simultaneously struck a convoy carrying Indian and Afghan road construction workers. Officials said a third suspected attacker was captured with an explosive-filled jacket after the blasts, in which he was injured.

"There was a suicide attack carried out by two suicide bombers against Indian roadworkers who were working on a bridge" in the province's Khash Rod district, provincial governor Ghulam Dastgir Azad told AFP.

"Two Indian engineers and an (Afghan) driver were killed. Three Indians and an Afghan policeman were injured," he said.

A Taliban purported spokesman, Yousuf Ahmadi, claimed responsibility but gave a different version of the attack.

He said two mines planted by the insurgents were detonated, after which a bomber blew himself up. "It was carried out by our mujahdeen (holy warriors)," he told AFP by phone.

"First they detonated two mines that we had buried in the area. "After police and the Indians gathered there, one of our devoted members carried out a suicide bombing."

Saturday's bombing was the second targetting Indian roadworkers this year. An Indian engineer was killed in a similar attack in the same area in January, in which six Afghan policemen also died.

The latest attack follows a suicide car bombing in the southern province of Kandahar which killed eight civilians Thursday.

Including the latest casualties, more than 60 people -- including a Polish soldier serving with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force -- have been killed in violence in less than two weeks.

The Taliban were ousted from power in a US-led invasion after they refused to hand over Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden, wanted by the United States for the September 11, 2001 attacks in Washington and New York.

Since then, the remnants of the hardline Islamic militia have been waging a guerrilla insurgency aimed at toppling the US-backed government in Kabul and driving out the tens of thousands of foreign troops based here.

Afghanistan: 8 dead, 7 wounded in attacks

KABUL, Afghanistan, April 13 (UPI) -- Suspected Taliban fighters launched two separate attacks in southern Afghanistan, killing eight police officers and wounding seven others, police said.

Police said four officers were killed and seven were wounded when their patrol unit was attacked in Helmand province late Saturday, CNN reported Sunday.

The officers were monitoring a market in the Gerishk district at the time of the attack, District Police Chief Khair Mohammad Sheja said. Two militants were taken into police custody Sunday.

Four more officers were killed in a separate attack on their unit in Kandahar province Saturday. The officers were destroying poppy fields when they came under fire, Police Chief Sayed Agha Saqib said.

An unknown number of militants were killed by police in a subsequent battle, CNN reported.

India to continue road construction in Afghanistan: Antony

April 12, 2008 -Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Notwithstanding the killing of two Indian road construction workers by suspected Taliban in Afghanistan India on Saturday said it would continue to help the rehabilitation process in that country by ensuring security of Indians engaged in that process.

Defence Minister A K Antony told reporters here that when his Afghan counterpart had visited Delhi recently, India had expressed concern over the security threat faced by Indian workers engaged in the rehabilitation process in Afghanistan.

Expressing shock over the death of the two BRO personnel, Antony said India had sought details of the attack and arrangements were being made to transport the bodies.

"It is a rude shock. This tragedy has happened when the road construction was in its final phase. We are in constant touch with the Afghan government", he said.

Instructions had been issued to provide emergency relief to the members of the bereaved families, he said.

Indian Trainers for Afghanistan

Strategy Page

April 12, 2008: Afghanistan has asked India for help in training counter-insurgency troops. India has lots of experience in dealing with Islamic terrorism, and in counter-insurgency. India not only has defeated a major outbreak of Islamic terrorism in its northwest (Kashmir), but is also dealing with tribal separatists in the northeast and communist rebels in the eastern parts of the country. Afghanistan would also like some help with maintaining its Russian helicopters, something else India has lots of experience with.

India has been supplying humanitarian aid to Afghanistan since 2001, and has been accused (mainly by Pakistan) of supplying military assistance. But aside from sending some security personnel to protect Indian aid workers, there has been no military involvement. But now that will change.

The Afghans blame Pakistan for many of the problems plaguing the country, including the Taliban (both before and after September 11, 2001), and the inability of Pakistan to shut down Islamic terrorist operations inside Pakistan. An Afghan military delegation is also on its way to visit Kashmir, and see how India has dealt with its Islamic terrorism problem there.

Clash leaves 4 Afghan police dead

KABUL, April 12 (Xinhua) -- Four policemen were killed as Taliban militants attacked them in Afghanistan's southern Helmand province on Saturday, provincial police chief Syed Aqa Saqib said.

"The police were busy destroying poppy-cultivated fields in Maiwand district this morning when Taliban rebels opened fire and police encountered. Four police constables were killed on the spot," Saqib told Xinhua.

He also added that some Taliban insurgents had been killed in the firefight but could not say the exact figure.

Moreover, Afghan police in operation against narcotics destroyed a heroin lab in Badakshan province northeast of Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said.

Conflicts and Taliban-related violence have left more than 380 people dead so far this year in war-torn Afghanistan, where Taliban militants recently have vowed to launch the "Spring offensive" to intensify their guerrilla-style attacks on national army and foreign troops.

Kouchner says Pakistan must help Kabul end violence

April 13, 2008 - KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AFP) - Canadian Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier and his French counterpart Bernard Kouchner made a joint visit to the NATO air base in southern Kandahar, where both countries have troops deployed to help Kabul fight Taliban rebels.

Kouchner said Sunday that Taliban violence in Afghanistan could only be stopped with the aid of Pakistan, where rebels operate in lawless border areas.

"Further military means are needed in order for the process of securing Afghanistan to proceed... but there must also be a regional view, particularly with regards to neighbouring Pakistan," Kouchner told AFP.

He said he had on Saturday discussed with Afghan President Hamid Karzai efforts to step up security along the common border, which is 2,500 kilometres (1,550 miles) long, runs through difficult terrain and is difficult to patrol.

Ties between Kabul and Islamabad have been fragile, with each accusing the other of not doing enough to tackle Islamic extremists behind a wave of deadly suicide blasts and other bombings on both sides of the porous border.

"This is an Afghan-Pakistan problem, but this incredible looseness which allows all sorts of trafficking cannot be allowed to continue," Kouchner said.

"This border problem needs to be resolved, and if we can take part in that process, that would be great," he added, saying he had plans to meet with Pakistan's new leadership, without providing details.

Kouchner and Bernier had travelled to Kandahar -- birthplace of the Taliban movement -- earlier Sunday in separate planes, to wrap up their two-day joint visit to Afghanistan.

They visited the French air force contingent serving with both the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and a separate US-led coalition.

Canada has around 2,500 troops in southern Afghanistan, 82 of whom have been killed since 2002.

France earlier this month pledged to nearly double the number of its forces in Afghanistan to 3,000. It currently has about 1,600 soldiers based in the Kabul region, and 160 troops at Kandahar air base.

A total of about 70,000 foreign soldiers, most of them under NATO command, are still locked down in Afghanistan battling the Taliban insurgency, launched shortly after they were ousted from power in late 2001.

Bernier unveils security training facility in Kandahar

Last Updated: Sunday, April 13, 2008 - CBC News - After a day-long visit to Afghanistan's capital, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier continued his tour to the Central Asian country on Sunday by discussing the latest efforts to train Afghans for a larger security role in their nation.

He said he was in the country to listen to the concerns of diplomats, humanitarian aid workers and military officials like Brig.-Gen. Guy Laroche, the commander of Canadian forces in Afghanistan.

Bernier began his day by touring military facilities at Kandahar Airfield with his French counterpart, Bernard Kouchner. The two men inspected military equipment, including Canadian armoured vehicles and French Mirage and Rafale fighter jets.

But a key part of their visit took place at Canada's provincial reconstruction team at Camp Nathan Smith, on the other side of Kandahar city, where Bernier unveiled a newly built $111,000 training centre.

Canadians will be using the centre to train members of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and Afghan National Police (ANP) to take over security duties in Kandahar province.

Bernier said he will monitor the facility's success when he returns to Canada. "We have to go back in Canada and will have a discussion about the future of our mission, so we will have to set benchmarks on the training of the ANA, the training of the ANP," Bernier said.

"It was important to have a meeting with the general and other officials to understand pretty well what is the challenges that we face concerning the training of the national army and the national police."

The Canadian government is hoping Afghanistan's army will be able to take over leadership of military operations in the south by 2011.

Canada to establish new benchmarks for Afghan mission: Bernier

(CP) - KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Canada is poised for a discussion about its mission in Afghanistan that will establish "benchmarks" for success in the ongoing effort to train local security forces in Kandahar province, Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier suggested Sunday.

Bernier arrived at Kandahar Airfield after a day of high-level meetings with his French and Afghan counterparts and other diplomatic officials in Kabul on Saturday.

He said he was in the country to listen to the concerns of diplomats, humanitarian aid workers and military officials like Brig.-Gen. Guy Laroche, the commander of Canadian forces in Afghanistan.

Bernier made specific reference to Canada's efforts in Kandahar to train the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police, a vital component of both the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's long-term plan for Afghanistan and also Canada's eventual exit strategy.

"We have to go back in Canada and will have a discussion about the future of our mission, so we will have to set benchmarks on the training of the ANA, the training of the ANP," Bernier said.

"It was important to have a meeting with the general and other officials to understand pretty well what is the challenges that we face concerning the training of the national army and the national police."

On Saturday, Bernier told a news conference in Kabul that Canada would be adhering to the benchmarks established in the Afghanistan Compact, established by donor countries during a conference in London in 2006.

"We have benchmarks for corruption, we have benchmarks for the training of the ANA - it's all in the compact that we signed in 2006," he told the news conference.

Bernier later said he was talking specifically about Canadian benchmarks for the country's efforts in Kandahar province - targets that would work within those established by the compact, which apply to Afghan security forces across the country.

Bernier didn't elaborate Sunday on the specific issues regarding training, but the compact itself calls for an ANA of some 80,000 soldiers by the end of 2010 that is fully trained, organized, equipped, "democratically accountable," "nationally respected" and "ethnically balanced."

"What's in the compact is in line with what we will do here," he said. The ANA remains some 20,000 troops short of the 2011 target, according to a NATO report on the Afghan mission released earlier this month.

The report described the ANA, established in May 2002, as having grown in "size and capability, confidence and credibility" as it continues to work alongside the soldiers of the International Security Assistance Force, the banner that flies over NATO's military mission.

"In many cases the ANA is now engaged in or leading major operations," the report said.

Earlier in the day, Bernier greeted French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner on the tarmac and watched him clamber aboard new French Air Force jets for the benefit of the cameras.

Later, the pair boarded a helicopter for an afternoon visit to Canada's Provincial Reconstruction Team at Camp Nathan Smith, on the other side of Kandahar city.

Bernier snipped the yellow ribbon and grinned for the local media at a newly built $111,000 training centre.

He later watched intently as Canadian mentors - soldiers, police officers and corrections officials - demonstrated the policing and counter-IED programs they provide for local security officers.

Insurgents plant IEDs, or improvised explosive devices, that frequently inflict casualties among Canadian and coalition forces as well as civilians in Afghanistan.

As much as Canada would like to be able to focus its entire mission in Afghanistan on development and rebuilding, it can't be done until the country is safe, Bernier said.

"You cannot have development when the situation is not secure, so we have to have security before," he said.

"We will put a little more emphasis on development, because we know at the end, people must be able to work, must be able to live, and to do what they dream to do."

German Army Chief Wants More Troops in Afghanistan

The German army's chief of staff wants more troops in northern Afghanistan following a string of recent attacks on German soldiers and their Afghan helpers, he said in a magazine interview published on Sunday, April 13.

Wolfgang Schneiderhan told the weekly magazine Focus that the 3,500-strong mission in northern Afghanistan was stretched to the limit. He also said he expects more attacks on his troops by insurgents, although the north is widely seen as more peaceful than the restive southern part of the country.

The number of troops "takes away flexibility for me to react quickly to any worsening in the situation. I will argue this when the extension of the mandate comes up for discussion in the autumn," Schneiderhan said.

According to the online edition of DerSpiegel magazine, Schneiderhan went further in a recent meeting with a parliamentary defense committee, telling ministers that recent attacks were evidence of an "alarming development."

Schneiderhan told the committee in a meeting behind closed doors that the situation in the north was "not quiet and not stable" and that German troops were being faced with "new challenges" as a result of an increase in violence, Spiegel reported.

German troops have been attacked three times in recent weeks. No German soldiers were killed but other attacks have killed seven Afghans working as helpers for reconstruction teams, Spiegel said in an article published on Sunday.

Since 2002, 26 German troops have been killed in Afghanistan. The soldiers, whose number hovers in reality around the 3,200 mark due to troop fluctuations, is part of NATO's 47,000-strong International Security and Assistance Force.

Berlin has resisted pressure from NATO allies to deploy its forces in the south of the country where US, British and Canadian soldiers are bearing the brunt of a tenacious Taliban insurgency.

In late February rockets were fired at German forces' barracks in Kunduz, and last Wednesday there was a suicide attack on a German patrol. A bomb attack on a German armored vehicle in late March injured three German troops.

"Our soldiers are not cowards. They went straight back out on patrol," Scheinderhan told the parliamentary committee, rejecting suggestions that Germany has chosen a less dangerous option by limiting its mission mainly in the north.

Over 400,000 people receive food aid amid soaring prices

KABUL, 13 April 2008 (IRIN) - To counter growing food insecurity in the country, more than 400,000 Afghans have so far been assisted through a joint UN and government "safety net" programme over the past two months, the World Food Programme (WFP) said.

Skyrocketing food prices, particularly for wheat flour, and a shortfall in domestic agricultural production have pushed millions of vulnerable Afghans into the "high risk" category of food insecurity, UN and Afghan officials say.

Average wheat prices in Afghanistan have increased by 67 percent over the past 12 months and Afghans who are not involved in agriculture now spend on average 75 percent of their income on food, WFP reported on 11 April.

To meet the growing needs of some 2.5 million vulnerable Afghans affected by soaring food prices, on 24 January the Afghan government and WFP appealed for US$77 million to deliver 88,000 metric tonnes (mt) of food aid.

"More than one third of the planned food aid has already arrived in the country," Rick Corsino, WFP's representative in Afghanistan, told IRIN, adding that relief food had already been distributed in Kabul, Jalalabad and Kandahar, with other urban areas to follow soon.

"In Afghanistan food insecurity is a result of problems associated with both food accessibility and availability," he said.

In addition to providing a "temporary safety net" for 2.5 million food-insecure people, WFP is assisting about five million less vulnerable Afghans through its "routine" programme in 2008, Corsino said.

WFP's beneficiaries include about two million students who receive fortified biscuits, wheat and cooking oil.

With rising prices of staples such as wheat and rice having caused food riots in a number of countries around the world, the government and aid agencies in Afghanistan are keen to prevent any escalation of social unrest in the war-ravaged country.

"Hungry people are often pushed to do things to improve their situation… the government and the UN are aware of the potential for growing dissatisfaction when people cannot afford food, therefore we are sharpening our targeting and trying to make sure that we address this as quickly as possible," WFP's Corsino said.

But higher food prices are also affecting WFP's own purchasing power and in turn its ability to feed the 73 million people in 78 countries who benefit from its food assistance. According to Corsino, WFP paid $230 per tonne of wheat in 2007; now it pays $360 – a 57 percent increase.

For 2008, the food agency says it needs at least $500 million more than the $2.9 billion already budgeted.

WFP's temporary safety net for 2.5 million Afghans will end in mid 2008, at which point the UN and the Afghan government will assess the need for aid programmes beyond that.

Aid agencies say a good harvest in neighbouring Pakistan – which is a major exporter of food to Afghanistan – may contribute to a decline in food prices.

A good domestic harvest and increase in cereal production, chiefly wheat, will also mitigate the impacts of food prices for many ordinary Afghans, experts say.

However, the continuation of the Pakistani government's strict ban on exports of food stuffs to Afghanistan would contribute to continued food price inflation.

Are Afghanistan's aid millions well spent?

By George Arney - BBC World Service's Assignment, Kabul, Sunday, 13 April 2008

An array of foreign aid agencies are delivering assistance to the Afghan people to help them rebuild their shattered country.

But are there too many different groups all trying to do the same thing - and are the billions of dollars pouring into the country being well spent?

The sheer number of foreign aid organisations that have gone into Afghanistan since the fall of the Taleban in 2001 - military-led reconstruction teams, profit-making corporations, private contractors, UN agencies and traditional NGOs - is bewildering.

But inevitably, questions are being asked about whether the muddle and waste that arises is contributing to the declining popularity of the central government. And there is a feeling that some of the foreigners are beginning to outstay their welcome.

"People expect their government to deliver services to them," says deputy rural development minister Asif Rahimi.

"They say yes, we have been receiving aid during the war, during the Taleban, even during the Soviet invasion. Now we have an elected government in Afghanistan, we expect the ministries to come and help us.

"When they see non-governmental actors come in, they say the government is not a very good government. And with the government going to those places, it does not have support among the population.

"Especially if the non-governmental organisations leave that area they create a vacuum, which can be felt by the anti-government elements."

A typical NGO operating in Afghanistan is British charity Children In Crisis, which is working to provide education to children who would otherwise be on the streets or trying to support families.

Their local director Feizin Amlani stresses that the charity is working on "capacity building" - aiming to train local staff so that they can eventually take over the work.

"CIC prides itself on being an expert in training and building capacity, with the future being them able to run their own projects," she says. But it is clear that in other areas, there are few signs of handing over.

Much of the capacity-building is being done in government ministries by highly-paid foreign consultants, some earning as much as $500,000 each year.

In one ministry, four different teams of consultants from four different countries were found unbeknownst to each other - all working on the same project.

And these foreign consultants do not get much chance to mix with ordinary Afghans outside the workplace. Because of security concerns, they are almost totally cut off from the realities of everyday life in Afghanistan.

"The US embassy staff are in complete lockdown - they cannot go anywhere at all," says Feizin Amlani.

"Lockdown means you stay in your compound... NGOs are not as restricted, but we can't walk anywhere. Everything is in the vehicle."

In a typical Afghan tea house are two young Kabulis: Rush, 22, a guard and interpreter; and Mahdi, a former driver for an NGO who has now joined the Afghan army. Both are very critical of the foreign presence in the city.

"I'm angry - the foreigners came here to help the poor people of Afghanistan, but unfortunately they are spending money in restaurants on alcohol, on fuel for sightseeing vehicles," says Rush. "They are spending all their money on themselves."

And Mahdi adds that he feels "very sad" on seeing foreigners "driving in their big cars and living in their big mansions."

"That money could help the economies of the poor Afghan families," he adds. "All my friends and all Afghans think like this - the foreigners here are acting like movie stars. They drive big cars, use big guns.

"At night they are getting Chinese and Russian girls for playing. They have no sense of where they are and what they are doing."

According to Matt Waldman, who is Oxfam's policy adviser, the anger felt by some Afghans about the amount of money spent on what looks to them like foreigners' luxurious lifestyles is compounded by the inefficient way that much of the aid is delivered. "We have seen a lot of aid has been wasted," he said.

"Many of the big donors give a substantial portion of their aid to contractors - and as in Iraq, we see that many of those contractors have very big profit margins, often over 20% - sometimes as high as 50%. "In one particular project, there may be as many as five contractors."

Mr Waldman says he knows of Afghan contractors making profits that high, but adds that international contractors would not reveal their figures.

This is one of the flaws in the international aid system. Over the past 20 years, US aid has been effectively privatised - and US contractors are under no obligation to reveal how much profit they make.

However, Bill Wood, at the US Embassy in Kabul - known to some NGOs as "Fortress America" - vigorously defends the US aid efforts.

"We are spending our money to employ experts who are experts, to do a difficult and complicated job," he says. "To the degree that we can spend the money inside of Afghanistan to employ Afghans, we do that."

But Oxfam has warned of a humanitarian disaster unless there is a change in direction of aid effort, and Matt Waldman says that there is a desperate need in particular for more rural aid.

If this is not forthcoming, he believes stability will remain elusive - critically undermining the work in the country since 2001. "I have no doubt that there is a significant link between poverty and insecurity," he says.

"I think we have to consider the lives of ordinary Afghans who are living in extremely difficult circumstances. In that case, people will be forced to desperate measures, and that may include fighting for militants or growing poppy [for heroin]."

Afghanistan: Warlordism 'Is Winning' Versus Democracy

Ordinary Afghans are becoming increasingly concerned about their future as the power of warlords appears to be growing in Afghanistan.

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, April 13, 2008

RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan broadcaster Jan Alekozai spent the past month in Kabul and eastern Afghanistan, where he was often approached by students, local officials, and Afghan tribesmen who expressed their concerns about corruption, security, and distrust in the government. He spoke to RFE/RL correspondent Ron Synovitz about those concerns.

RFE/RL: During the past month when you were in Afghanistan, outside of your own efforts to speak with people from different segments of Afghan society, how were ordinary Afghans able to approach you and what were some of their concerns?

Jan Alekozai: I participated, for example, in a meeting [in Jalalabad]. It was the celebration of orange blossoms -- a huge traditional gathering with 10,000 to 12,000 people. Someone announced my name -- Jan Alekozai from Radio Free Afghanistan. When the meeting was over, hundreds of people approached me -- students from high schools and from universities. They were asking, "Do the Westerners and the Americans know our problems -- that aid money is coming from the Westerners but it goes into the pockets of [corrupt] people in the government offices."

That was their concern when they talked to me because they know I am running a call-in program on the airwaves of Radio Free Afghanistan. There were lots of concerns. They were desperately approaching me and asking those things -- if we could bring their concerns to government officials. And they were expressing their concerns about their future and their lives, security, and education.

RFE/RL: What did Afghans tell you bothered them most about the security situation in Afghanistan?

Alekozai: People think now that [troops from] 37 countries or more are there in Afghanistan the security should be much, much better. They should terminate the warlordism and the private militias. [Instead], those people have connections with the governmental officials and they still have protection from the government. And that brings insecurity. In Kabul, especially, but also elsewhere in other parts of the country.

People want the international community to stop the private militias -- the groups that are so powerful. That's the main concern of the people, for security. And also, they should promote democracy. Real democracy. And work for that.

People are scared. They cannot say anything because of [the warlords]. We are an international radio [station]. We do something. But our correspondents, even, cannot say something against those warlords because they are very powerful. They could be killed easily or harmed easily. That's the situation. Everybody is asking why the international community doesn't hear.

RFE/RL: Who do Afghans think is responsible for the strengthening of warlords in Afghanistan today?

Alekozai: No. 1, the international community -- or especially the Americans. They say: "Why have the Americans brought those people into power -- the warlords? They knew they were warlords." And [Afghans] can name them for you -- from the vice president to the deputy ministers and ministers. Quite a few were brought from outside.

In parliament, well-known warlords are there. In that situation, how do you expect [the] implementation of democracy and the rule of law -- unless those people are removed from their positions and weakened, at least, and educated people are given a chance -- [those] who think positively about the betterment of their country. Not for themselves. Those [warlords] are collecting money and putting the money in their pockets. They do little or nothing for the society and for the people.

RFE/RL: How do Afghans think the warlords have been able to consolidate this power?

Alekozai: In parliament, 65 percent [of the lawmakers] are warlords. There is no question. A few of them are ordinary Afghans or politicians. But most of them are warlords. They are much stronger than they were six years ago or five years ago, because now they get more money, more security from the international community, more bodyguards. They get stronger and stronger.

RFE/RL: Are there any specific examples of complaints from people about the increased power of warlords?

Alekozai: If you started from parliament or from the high governmental officials, you can see that warlordism is stronger than in years past. Television and other media cannot operate independently, if they do something and the next day they are in trouble in the parliament or with the high governmental officials.

RFE/RL: So if there is a conflict in Afghanistan now between warlordism versus democracy, which is winning?

Alekozai: At present, the warlordism is winning. If the international community does not pay attention -- strongly -- not by words. By action. They should eliminate the warlords. [The international community] thinks some of them are very strong. But they don't have public support.

I'm stressing this point. They are not that strong. They don't have public support because always they were thinking about themselves, their own pockets. They invest money outside of the country. People say that the Westerners, or in some ways they say the Americans, support these warlords. Otherwise they are nothing. They [say the warlords] were not powerful but [the Americans] made them powerful. And that was a main concern [of the Afghans].

It's very easy to remove them and bring in some people who have no connection with the warlords. And that would be real democracy that the people would enjoy.

RFE/RL: Does this disdain for warlords contribute to feelings of anti-Americanism or to negative views about the international community?

Alekozai: I never heard people saying that they don't want Americans or international forces in their land. That was interesting for me. Even mullahs -- the clerics I talked with and tribesmen. There were just a few who -- like Taliban or pro-Taliban people -- who said, "Oh, they are infidels."

But the majority of people, they never talked about that issue -- why [foreign troops] are here. [Ordinary Afghans] think there is some propaganda from other neighboring countries saying, "They are occupying your country." But to be honest, I haven't heard that from [ordinary Afghans]. They say, "Those people are here to help us." The only problem is that they don't trust the [Afghan] government. They also think that money is coming [to Afghanistan] from the international community and from the Americans. But it goes into the wrong hands and into the wrong pockets.

RFE/RL: What about the reconstruction work being done by international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or by foreign troops on the provincial reconstruction teams, the so-called PRTs?

Alekozai: People say their general feeling is that they think the PRTs are doing well. They trust them because they say they are foreigners and they are not corrupt -- so far. But they don't like NGOs and there is no question that they don't trust the Afghan government at all. Still, people hope the PRTs will be doing well and probably will do something about road construction, about schools and other things. People count on PRTs.

RFE/RL: U.S. officials often talk about the schools that have been built by PRTs as a positive step in the reconstruction of Afghanistan. Is this enough?

Alekozai: I've seen many schools that have been built and that are being built right now in different parts of eastern Afghanistan. There's no doubt about it. Nice schools. But there is no teacher. No chairs -- students are sitting on the floor. No electricity. No running water. No books. No [teaching materials]. No lab. What will be the quality of education in that situation?

RFE/RL: International media also report about greater rights and freedom for Afghan women since the collapse of the Taliban regime. How did that situation appear to you in the provincial regions as opposed to Kabul?

Alekozai: About the civil society or civic society, the participation of women is zero in the provinces. Girls are going to school. There is no doubt about it. But they cannot walk, for example, in a park -- or even with their families.

Still the work is not done for the promotion of democracy and freedom. I think the culture is the same, with little changes in the mentality of the society. It is very bad. And it will continue like that now six years after the Taliban. The mentality is still very strong. The Talibanization or fundamentalist ideas are still very, very strong.

RFE/RL: All of these insights from ordinary Afghans suggests that Afghan President Hamid Karzai's popularity has declined dramatically since he was elected in 2004. Does Karzai have a chance to win reelection in the ballot that is scheduled for 2009?

Alekozai: As a journalist, one should talk with various people or people [with different political perspectives.] I learned [from doing this that something like] 25 percent or 20 percent will vote for Karzai. And I have doubts about [whether Karzai will even win that much of the vote.] It will be very difficult for him to get 20 percent. They need an alternative or another government.

RFE/RL: Are ordinary Afghans talking about any potential candidate who they think would help reign in the power of warlords?

Alekozai: In the eastern part of Afghanistan -- even in Kabul -- people were talking [about this] when I was sitting with them. They said [former Interior Minister] Ali Ahmad Jalali. His name was being mentioned by people now. [They were saying] he is coming and he is a stronger man and he can do something. He can eliminate warlordism. They were talking about him, saying that if he is [a candidate] that people will vote for him and he will be the winner. That was the expectation of some when I talked to them.

Coalition helicopter drops weapons into Taliban hands, Afghan officials say

The Associated Press - Sunday, April 13, 2008 - KABUL, Afghanistan: A coalition helicopter trying to supply Afghan police with munitions dropped supplies in the wrong location and Taliban fighters later recovered the weaponry, an intelligence official said Sunday.

A member of parliament, however, said he didn't believe the arms drop was an accident.

Amrullah Saleh, the head of Afghanistan's intelligence service, told a parliament security committee "coalition forces" intended to place weapons, ammunition and food at a police checkpoint in a remote section of the southern province of Zabul in late March.

"By mistake it was dropped somewhere far from the checkpoint. Later the Taliban came and they picked it up," Saleh later told reporters. In his testimony he said a "small box" had been dropped but did not say how many weapons were inside.

It was not clear whose helicopter left the supplies. NATO's International Security Assistance Force and the U.S.-led coalition said it was not theirs.

Hamidullah Tukhi, a lawmaker from Zabul, told the security commission the weapons were placed 100 meters (300 feet) from the home of a Taliban commander named Mullah Mohammad Alam. He said the supply drop contained heavy machine guns, AK-47s, rockets and food.

Lawmakers discussed the issue with President Hamid Karzai and U.S. Gen. Dan McNeill, the top NATO commander in Afghanistan, he said.

"I think Gen. McNeill himself said that it was a mistake, but I don't believe it," Tukhi said, adding he did not know which nation dropped the supplies.

Saleh told journalists Tukhi's version of events was based on "rumors."

Maj. Richelle Dowdell, a spokeswoman for NATO's ISAF, said the helicopter involved was not NATO's. Lt. Richard Ulsh, a spokesman at the U.S. base at Bagram, said the U.S.-led coalition was not involved either.

US asks SKorea to send personnel to Afghanistan

Sat Apr 12, SEOUL (AFP) - The United States has asked South Korea to send civilian and police personnel to Afghanistan, less than four months after Seoul withdrew its military forces, officials said Saturday.

Yonhap news agency quoted officials as saying Washington had asked Seoul to send a provincial reconstruction team (PRT) and also a small police force to train local police. Newspapers carried similar reports.

South Korea sent 210 engineering and medical troops to Afghanistan in February 2002 and withdrew them last December.

Insurgents who took 23 South Korean church volunteers hostage last summer and murdered two of them had demanded the forces be pulled out, which Seoul said was already scheduled.

Yonhap said the issue is likely to be raised when President Lee Myung-Bak meets US President George W. Bush next week. In an earlier report, it said the United States was asking for a team of between 200 to 300 people, with South Korea paying the full cost.

It said South Korea could either send its own troops to guard the civilian team or use US forces. Any military deployment would need approval from the Seoul parliament.

"The government has no official position on the matter yet," an unidentified official was quoted as saying.

"But we will have to start reviewing the case soon, as a request like this -- asking for us to take charge of the training of local forces -- is far beyond a request of just a couple of police officers."

The conservative new legislature elected last Wednesday is expected to back a new deployment of personnel, and Lee has made the strengthening of the US alliance a top priority.

But the official said the government believes it might be accused of inconsistency if it supports a new personnel deployment so soon after withdrawing.

"Thus, the decision will be made after an overall consideration of the effect it will have on Korea-US ties and the extent of local and international criticism," he added. "The decision will take time."

Hundreds of Afghans languishing in Balochistan jails

NNI, Pakistan, 04/11/2008

QUETTA - Hundreds of Afghan citizens - mostly manual workers - arrested by Pakistani security forces for illegally entering that country are languishing in jails in the southwestern Balochistan province.

In search of job opportunities to support their impoverished families, thousands of Afghans travel to different areas within the country besides sneaking into neighbouring states. One detainee Noor Gul, belonging to the southern Ghazni province, is being held in a prison in Tafton - a Balochistan town bordering Iran.

Arrested a month back, he complained, he has since been languishing in jail, and that his fate remains uncertain. Some of the illegal immigrants have been imprisoned for the last eight months, Gul told Pajhwok Afghan News. "They are poorly treated by prison authorities and given food once a day," the man alleged. Akhtar Muhammad, a resident of the northern Kunduz province, was jailed 17 days ago.

He does not know the reason for his detention. "We don’t know when we will be released," he remarked. The Afghan consul-general in Quetta confirmed the imprisonment of hundreds of his compatriots in Tafton jails. "We have several times requested the Pakistani authorities to lets us visit the prisoners but they are making lame excuses."

Afghan refugee turns rug exporter in Pakistan

By Rabia Ali, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNCHR) In Lahore, Pakistan 

LAHORE, Pakistan, April 11 (UNHCR) – Haji Nasim's life is like an intricately woven carpet, one that weaves through the rugged region from one end of Afghanistan to the opposite end of Pakistan.

Born in Pashtun Kot in north-western Afghanistan's Faryab province, the ethnic Uzbek grew up in a family that made and traded in carpets. The family moved to the Afghan capital, Kabul, soon after the Soviet invasion in late 1979. Haji Nasim and his brother ventured further and in the mid -1980s set up a carpet showroom in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore, trading in carpets made in Afghan refugee villages in Pakistan. His brother stayed in Pakistan but Haji Nasim returned to Kabul.

"I was still hopeful that the situation would improve in Afghanistan and therefore did not decide to stay in Pakistan," he said. "Unfortunately, things deteriorated and we had no choice but to take refuge in Pakistan in 1988."

The family business flourished in Lahore, and in 1996, Haji Nasim decided to move beyond carpet trading to carpet manufacturing. "At that time, hand-made carpets with vegetable dyes were very popular in the United States and it seemed to be a profitable business," said the savvy businessman.

In 2000, he registered his company, Nasim Carpet Private Limited, in Lahore. At its peak, the company employed over 10,000 people, mostly of Turkmen, Hazara and Tajik ethnicities. Currently, some 5,000 workers are involved in different stages of carpet making, such as designing, wool dyeing, spinning and weaving. In addition to his factory in Lahore, he has commissioned work in different refugee villages throughout Pakistan.

The company exports some US$3 million worth of carpets every year with the "Made in Pakistan" label. Some 90 percent of the carpets go to the United States, where Haji Nasim deals with 10 different companies and has won an award in a carpet exhibition in Atlanta. The rest of the exports go to Europe.

He recently set up a sales centre in San Francisco "to know about the trends and to be able to deal more directly with the customers." But while he is eager to expand his business in the West, his heart remains in Pakistan.

"I am really grateful to the people and government of Pakistan because they gave the refugees all the facilities needed to establish and grow their business," said Haji Nasim, adding that it takes two hands to clap: "Hardworking refugees availed the opportunity and have proven themselves. Refugees involved in carpet weaving are always self-reliant and never depend on any kind of aid because they can earn a living themselves."

There are an estimated 20,000 Afghan carpet weavers in Pakistan, according to the registration of Afghans in Pakistan conducted from October 2006 to February 2007.

[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.]