SENTIDO > GLOBAL > TOPICAL UPDATES > AFGHANISTAN UPDATES

AFGHANISTAN MIRED IN NARCO-TERRORISM, POVERTY, FACTIONALISM
13 June 2004

The question of "the other war" has been raised more and more this week, obscured as it was not only by Iraq, the prison scandal, and now the national mourning of President Reagan. There is very little reliable news about Afghanistan filtering through to the American public over the mainstream airwaves, or indeed through cable.

Last Monday, Rep. Kucinich, campaigning in New Jersey, told a group of supporters: "We are seeing in Afghanistan the creation of a narco-terrorist state."He noted that poverty is still spreading and deepening, that warlords are consolidating power by brutality and drug-trafficking, and people are being driven to desperation, even as Taliban factions seeks to reclaim its hold on the chaotic country. [Full Story]

AFGHAN CRITIC UNDER UN PROTECTION
19 December 2003

An Afghan woman who has been outspoken in her critique of warlords who continue to dominate regional Afghan politics is now to be protected by the UN. Malalai Joya is a delegate to the constitutional lloya jirga conference, from the province of Farah, in western Afghanistan. She tiraded the warlords at the conference, prompting UN fears that there would be violent retaliation against her by the factions targeted by her criticism. The UN moved her from the delegates' residence to a heavily guarded UN facility, though she still attends the talks.

Warlordism has been a concern of international experts and observers since before the war to oust the Taliban. Afghanistan suffered brutally under warlord factionalism from the time the Soviets were forced out until the rise of the Taliban, and much of the opposition to the Taliban was led by warlords, whose wealth and organization facilitated their role in the resistance. Taliban brutality was another agony for the Afghan people, but fears of a Taliban resurgence are rooted in widespread public fear of the lingering warlord influence over regional politics. [For more: Salon]

LLOYA JIRGA TO PROMOTE NEW CONSTITUTION
14 December 2003

Afghan leaders are meeting to discuss the ratification of a new constitution. The BBC reports that the 500 delegates "include former communists, mujahideen fighters, Pashtun tribal leaders, and Western-based exiles", offering a broad spectrum of interested parties and ethnic groups from across the country. The lloya jirga (grand council) is a thousand-year old Afghan tradition, and has been selected by the UN as a centerpiece for the process of instilling and securing modern democratic institutions in Afghan society.

ATTACK ON MUSHARRAF
14 December 2003

On the same day that Saddam Hussein was captured in Iraq, news from Pakistan indicates that President Musharraf was the target of a bomb which exploded on a bridge as his motorcade crossed. The Musharraf government has said that no one from his entourage was injured and that the bridge suffered minor damage. While Musharraf has enemies within Pakistan, as well as among fundamentalist Hindus in India and Kashmir, it is suspected that radical muslim opponents of the General's rule were responsible for the attack.

The provinces bordering Afghanistan have seen increasing influence by radical muslim clerics and political parties, and some observers have suggested that Osama Bin Laden may have fled there after the bombing of Tora Bora.

TALIBAN RESURGENCE FEARED
13 December 2003

New reports, both official and anecdotal, suggest a possible surge in support for the Taliban in Afghanistan and along the border with Pakistan. Afghan President Hamid Karzai denies the resurgence, and says his government is firm in its commitment to ward off fundamentalist return.

Karzai acknowledged that Taliban loyalists are a threat to individuals, but asserted that Afghan security is not threatened by any broad movement. He also indicated that he had asked the US to discontinue bombing raids aimed at individual terrorist suspects, as they raids were alienating Afghans. One such recent attack killed fifteen children by mistake. The deaths put great pressure on Karzai and eroded public confidence in the ability of US and Afghan operatives to curtail Taliban activities.

UN reports suggested that the border with Pakistan was porous and provided a means of escape and cover for Taliban insurgents.

DEAL SAID TO BE IN WORKS TO RETURN BRITONS FROM GUATANAMO
30 November 2003

9 British citizens, detained in Afghanistan and held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, by the US military, may soon be returned to Britain. The deal is not yet worked out, but it has been suggested that an arrangement will be made in time for Christmas. The detainees would be returned to the United Kingdom either to be tried there or to serve out prison sentences which may arise from as-yet unobtained confessions.