India and Taliban deepen ties as Pakistan-Afghan conflict intensifies

They say, the enemy of my enemy is my friend!

"India and Afghanistan are deepening ties amid the Taliban-ruled nation's ongoing armed conflict with Pakistan, as New Delhi looks to ramp up pressure on Islamabad and Kabul seeks help in developing untapped natural resources. ..."

India and Taliban deepen ties as Pakistan-Afghan conflict intensifies - Nikkei Asia "Taliban Doha chief says natural resource development 'will be mutual benefit'"

Afghanistan’s ‘Catastrophic’ Hunger and starvation since Taliban takeover in 2021

Bad news! Will the Taliban be able to manage and govern to the benefit of the people in this situation?

Total population of Afghanistan: Approx. 44 million.

"Afghanistan faces a historic surge in malnutrition, as aid cuts, displacement, and drought leave two-thirds of the country’s population facing serious or crisis levels for acute malnutrition, reports the AP. 

“We have a catastrophic nutritional crisis on our hands,” ... UN's World Food Program, noting that levels of malnutrition are the highest ever recorded in the country at 17.4 million people.  

Driving hunger: After the 2021 Taliban takeover, foreign aid plummeted and economic collapse left many without a lifeline for nutritional assistance. Since then, conditions have only worsened because of drought, earthquakes, and the return of 5.3 million Afghans expelled from Pakistan and Iran. 

 

U.S. aid cuts last year delivered a devastating blow, and donors have since struggled to keep pace with the needs. ..."

Global Health NOW: Afghanistan’s ‘Catastrophic’ Hunger

Source

Killed by an Afghan terrorist in Washington DC

R.I.P. Sarah Beckstrom was only 20 years old ambushed by a coward killer!

How much is the senile, demented and corrupt former 46th President to blame for this?

CIA says alleged National Guard shooter worked with agency’s paramilitary units in Afghanistan

Bad news! Headline of the day!

The wild, hurried and shameful withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 comes to mind ordered by the senile, demented and corrupt 46th President (see one of the famous photos below).

"... Officials have identified the alleged suspect as Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, and said the Afghan national was let into the United States by the Biden administration in August 2021 under Operation Allies Welcome, a rushed evacuation operation later criticized for failing to properly vet those brought into the country. ..."

CIA says alleged National Guard shooter worked with agency’s paramilitary units in Afghanistan | Just The News

Taliban rules unnecessarily increased the number of killed and maimed female victims of a recent earthquake

Will the Afghan women stand up to these Taliban absurdities!

"In the days following deadly earthquakes in eastern Afghanistan in August ...

 

Women bear the brunt: The majority of the 2,200+ people who died were women and girls, who were more likely to sleep inside structures that collapsed. 

Taliban restrictions prevented men from aiding many injured women, forcing the few female workers available to travel treacherous terrain with male guardians. 

Women’s exclusion from medical schools also meant a diminished female health workforce to assist in the crisis. ..."

"... They also briefly barred female U.N. staffers from reaching earthquake-devastated areas. ... 

Amid the aftermath, as aid groups and Taliban bureaucrats were assisting those injured and left homeless by the earthquake, other Taliban officials twice suspended most internet and cellular reception throughout Afghanistan, complicating aid efforts. ..."

Global Health NOW: High Costs of Malaria Funding Cuts; Navigating Taliban Taboos to Care for Women; and Iran’s Transgender Care Paradox

How the Taliban are Monopolising Central Asia's Water

Recommendable! Serious stuff! How many wars in the past were fought over water disputes?

Are Pakistan and Afghanistan Heading for War? with James Ker-Lindsay

Recommendable!

Afghan Hackers Refuse to Log Off bringing their country into the digital age

Some young Afghans are trying to modernise Afghanistan. Unfortunately, some them are doing it while living in exile.

Caveat: I did not read the whole article.

"When Afghan software developer Ahmad Zia Yousufi talks about hacking, he doesn’t mean breaking into systems. For him, hackathons—intense competitions where coders build solutions in 48 hours or less—are a way to test ideas and push boundaries.

“Hackathon is a hobby for me,” he said. “It’s fun, but it’s also about proving that Afghan talent can compete globally.”

Yousufi, now based in Germany, is part of a generation of young Afghans who tried to push their country into the digital age before the Taliban’s 2021 takeover. His journey, with its mix of entrepreneurial success and devastating setbacks, mirrors Afghanistan’s troubled relationship with technology and education. ..."

Afghan Hackers Refuse to Log Off - by Ahmad Mansoor Ramizy "After the Taliban takeover forced the closure of his startup, Afghan software developer Ahmad Zia Yousufi now works from exile to keep Afghan youth—especially women—connected to the digital world."

China, Pakistan and Taliban Hold Trilateral Summit in Kabul with Palki Sharma

Recommendable!

The ICC is Pursuing Charges of Gender Persecution Against the Taliban leadership. Will it Succeed? Really!

Good news? Call me skeptical! If it succeeds, will it be exploited for other (e.g. ideological) purposes?

Is this not a matter that the people, in particular the women, of Afghanistan have to primarily resolve themselves without much external interference?

If Afghan women do not like to be subjugated etc. they may opt to emigrate! The more women emigrate for this reason, perhaps the better!

"A decision by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to pursue arrest warrants against senior Taliban leaders could reshape how the world responds to authoritarian regimes that systematically strip women and girls of basic human rights.

In January, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan announced that his office is seeking arrest warrants for two Taliban officials on charges of crimes against humanity for gender-based persecution—marking the first time this charge is being tested in the court’s history and the first serious legal effort to hold perpetrators accountable. ..."

"... After a thorough investigation and on the basis of evidence collected, my Office submits that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Supreme Leader of the Taliban, Haibatullah AKHUNDZADA, and the Chief Justice of the “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan”, Abdul Hakim HAQQANI, bear criminal responsibility for the crime against humanity of persecution on gender grounds, under article 7(1)(h) of the Rome Statute. ..."

The ICC is Pursuing Charges of Gender Persecution Against the Taliban. Will it Succeed? "For the first time in its history, the ICC is testing gender persecution as a crime against humanity—targeting the Taliban's brutal treatment of women and girls"

Statement of ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan KC: Applications for arrest warrants in the situation in Afghanistan

In policy shift, US State Department ends some bounties on Taliban’s Haqqani network leaders

Interesting move!

This disaster also happened under the senile, demented and corrupt 46th President:

"... The Taliban conducted a lightning-fast takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 and swept into the Afghan capital of Kabul on August 15. The chaotic and deadly non-combatant evacuation operation by the U.S. was conducted through Hamid Karzai International Airport while the U.S. military relied upon a hostile Taliban — including the Haqqani Network — to provide security outside the airport. ..."

In policy shift, State Department ends some bounties on Taliban’s Haqqani network leaders | Just The News "Counterintuitive move in Trumpworld: The Taliban seized Afghanistan following Biden's disastrous withdrawal in 2021. Now, the Trump administration has dropped millions of dollars in bounties targeting Taliban leader Sirajuddin Haqqani."

American held hostage since December 2022 by Taliban released, headed back to US

Are the Taliban scared of President Trump? 😊 Or how incompetent was the former 46th President (called sleepy Joe by Trump)?

"He is the third hostage to be released by the Taliban since January.

The State Department said his release was brokered by U.S. and Qatari negotiators, according to The Associated Press. ..."

American held hostage by Taliban released, headed back to US | Just The News "George Glezmann was taken by the Taliban in 2022 while traveling through the Middle East as a tourist."

Mr. Glezmann

Munich terrorist attack by Afghan asylum seeker with 28 injured taken over by extremism and terror prosecutors

Had the terrorist used a heavier car with more horsepower, the casualty count would have been much higher including deaths! Glück im Unglück (blessing in disguise)!

Excessive data protection laws in Germany are ridiculous!

The German government run DW news service euphemistically called the terrorist attack a "case". Can you believe it!

Pakistan-Afghanistan: Taliban Declare 360-Degree War Against Pakistani Army with Molly Gambhir

Very recommendable!

India Holds High-Level Talks with the Taliban with Palki Sharma

So Pakistan and India are competing for the Talibans?

Why Pakistan and the Taliban are Fighting (Again)

Recommendable!

Afghan Women Harvest Saffron; Breath Of Fresh Air In Afghanistan

Recommendable! Saffron instead of opium poppies!

Taliban Attend UN COP29 Climate Summit in Azerbaijan with Palki Sharma

Recommendable! Palki sums it up quite well!

Don't you feel the Climate already cooling off noticeably with the Taliban participating? 😊

How the Taliban is attracting Chinese tourists

Afghanistan is open for tourism? Chinese tourists like adventure?

India-Taliban: India's Envoy for Afghanistan Meets Taliban Defense Minister For The First Time

Good news! Will India manage Afghanistan in the future?