April 24, 2000

Afghan ex-guerilla commander killed in Pakistan
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, April 24 (Reuters) - Unknown gunmen killed a former Afghan guerrilla commander living in the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar, police said on Monday.

Taliban, opposition clash in Nangarhar
ISLAMABAD (NNI): The clash between Taliban and supporters of a former Afghan commander Hazrat Ali left scores of people dead and wounded in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar, reports Radio Tehran.

US asks Pakistan to encourage Taliban for talks with opposition
ISLAMABAD (NNI): The United States has hoped that Pakistan would use its influence to make the ruling Taliban agree on talks with the Afghan opposition.

Taliban repulse opposition attack
ISLAMABAD, April 23: Taliban militia on Sunday repulsed an opposition attack in the northern Afghan province of Baghlan, a report said.

Easter Marked in Taliban Territory
By KATHY GANNON
.c The Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - A baby girl hugged her stuffed pink bunny rabbit as a choir sang Easter hymns in the background. Her mother gently rocked the child's carriage, keeping time to the music.

Afghanistan excluded from ECO ministerial conference
ISLAMABAD (NNI): Afghanistan has not been invited to the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) two-day communication minister conference begins in Islamabad on April 27, officials and diplomatic sources said Sunday.

Man publicly executed in Afghanistan
Reports from Afghanistan say that a public execution took place in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif yesterday of a man for alleged murder.

Indians lose interest in gas pipeline project
By Kamal Siddiqi - DAWN (Pakistan)
Pakistan's hopes of pushing through an important gas pipeline project between Iran and India, which would result in Pakistan getting a transit fees of $500 million annually were dashed, when Indian officials snubbed the idea this week.

Saudi says pact with Iran to focus on crime, drugs
DUBAI, April 24 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's Interior Minister Prince Nayef said a security cooperation pact the kingdom plans to discuss with its non-Arab neighbour Iran would focus on fighting crime and drug trafficking.

Starting afresh in Afghanistan
BBC
By Owen Bennett-Jones
"It's a beautiful refugee camp - it really is."
It was a strange turn of phrase but it came from a woman who has seen more than her fair share of camps - she works for the UN refugee agency - and she had a point. Compared to many, Akora Hatak, just outside the