July 21, 2000

The Taliban: Engagement or Confrontation? US Senate - Foreign Affairs Subcommittee for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs Hearing, July 20, 2000. Testimonies courtesy of: US Dept. of State for Hon. Karl Inderfurth, Hon. Peter Tomsen, Mr. Hamed Karzai and Dr. Zieba Shorish-Shamley For text click here

U.S. Calls Taliban Rule “Horrendous,” Seeks Broad-Based Settlement
Pakistan - in Hot Seat - Urged to Withdraw Taliban Support
By Omar Samad
WASHINGTON - July 20, 2000 - AAR - The Senate’s Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, chaired by Sen. Sam Brownback (R-Kansas),

Bomb explodes at a fuel store in Afghan capital
KABUL, July 21 (Reuters) - A bomb exploded at a private store selling fuel oil in a northern suburb of the Afghan capital Kabul, the third bomb to rock the city in less than two weeks, residents said on Friday.

Fuel Depot Explodes in Afghanistan
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Dozens of giant containers filled with fuel exploded in Afghanistan's beleaguered capital, filling the night sky with giant plumes of smoke and sending frightened residents scurrying for cover, witnesses said Friday.

22 killed as Taliban jets bomb Bagram - Frontier Post (Pak.)
BAGRAM (Ariana) - At least 22 people were killed in a fresh fighting between the Taliban and Northern Alliance forces in Bagram, north of Kabul on Thursday.

US rules out arming anti-Taliban alliance in Afghanistan
WASHINGTON, July 20 (AFP) - A senior US official on Thursday ruled out offering development or military aid to the northern alliance battling Afghanistan's Taliban, despite mounting frustration at the staying power of the fundamentalist militia.

Power of Afghanistan's Taliban Waning, State Department Says
Washington, July 20 (Bloomberg) -- Afghanistan's ruling Taliban is seeing its power decline, although the country is still ``the gateway to some of the greatest evils in the world,'' a U.S. State Department official said.

Afghanistan Said Terror Center Under Taliban Rule
By Christopher Wilson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Since their 1996 takeover, Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have crushed human rights, waged a relentless war against northern rebels and turned the country into a gateway for exporting terror and drugs around the world, witnesses told a U.S. Senate hearing

India, Iran call for end to Taliban rule in Afghanistan
NEW DELHI, July 20 (AFP) - India and Iran on Thursday called for an end to the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and said a broad-based government should assume power in the capital of the war-torn country.

Zahir Shah's peace mission ends on disappointing note
ISLAMABAD (NNI): Though Pakistan has expressed support to any plan acceptable to the people of Afghanistan for the solution of the Afghan conflict, atmosphere is still not conducive for bringing peace to this war-ravaged country, reports BBC on Thursday.

War no solution to Afghan conflict: Sayyaf
ISLAMABAD (NNI): Blaming the ruling Taliban for continuing conflict in Afghanistan, Professor Abdul Rab Sayyaf, chief of Ittehad?e-Islami, on Thursday said the war is not a solution to Afghan imbroglio.

On the Statement by the EU on Unhindered Access to Humanitarian Aid to the Civilian Population
July 20, 2000
The Islamic State of Afghanistan warmly welcomes the statement by the European Union with regard to ìunhindered access of
humanitarian aid to the civilian population in Afghanistanî and fully shares the concerns expressed therein.

Pakistan-Iran-Pipeline
Islamabad guarantees security of Iran-India gas pipeline New Delhi, July 20, IRNA- Visiting Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Mohsen Aminzadeh here Thursday said that Tehran had received an official document from Islamabad that guarantees the security of

US, Russia to join hands for solving Afghan issue
By Amir Mateen - The News International (Pak.)
WASHINGTON: The United States and Russia will work together in finding a solution to the Afghan problem and in countering the threat emanating from Afghanistan.

United States to support peace moves on Afghanistan
By Our Staff Correspondent - DAWN (Pak.)
WASHINGTON, July 20: The US administration will support any Pakistani initiative to find common ground with Iran and other states in working together on a peaceful solution to Afghanistan's civil war.

Taleban police refuse to regret over shaving of heads of Pakistanis
KABUL (July 21) : The Sports Department chief in Afghanistan has condemned the recent arrest of twelve Pakistani football players but the police have not shown any regret over this incident.