Afghanistan News December 14, 2005

December 14, 2005

Afghanistan dismisses U.N. report on opium production
Wednesday December 14, 3:30 PM
(Kyodo) _ Afghanistan's Counter Narcotics Ministry has dismissed as "irresponsible" a United Nations report that illicit opium production in the country is likely to increase again in 2006 after dropping in 2005.
The ministry said in a statement released Tuesday that eradication programs to destroy poppy fields would be "more forceful than ever before."

It also quoted Counter Narcotics Minister Habibullah Qaderi as saying, "I think Afghanistan has established an effective foundation this year to build on for the years to come in its counter-narcotics campaign."

Doris Buddenberg, representative of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime for Afghanistan, announcing the results of a survey on opium situation in 2005, warned Monday that the survey showed that in many provinces there will be "an increase in the cultivation in 2006."

Buddenberg said that the reason behind the expected increase is economic problems of farmers and increasing pressure by drug traffickers and drug mafia on the farmers to cultivate poppy.

The ministry's statement said it "finds recent remarks of the UNODC representative who has said poppy cultivation was expected to increase in 2006 as irresponsible."

"The ministry strongly calls on the world body to avoid remarks that create confusion among the Afghan public," it added.

A Counter Narcotics Judicial Taskforce has been established and more than 300 cases have been handled and more than 500 drug traffickers have been either detained or imprisoned, the statement said. It also said more than 100 tons of drugs and precursors have been seized and destroyed by the taskforce this year alone.

Afghanistan, which provides 87 percent of the world's illicit opium, saw a 21 percent drop in areas planted with opium poppies this year, according to U.N. figures.

The U.N. survey report for 2005 said that the total export value of opium was estimated at $2.7 billion, which is similar to the 2004 level of $2.8 billion and equivalent to 52 percent of the country's gross domestic product.

More than 80 percent of the profit is made at the trafficking level, while less than 20 percent goes to farmers, the report showed.

Despite considerable financial assistance from donor countries such as the United States and Britain to eradicate narcotics, Afghanistan remains the world's largest supplier of illicit opium.

AFGHANISTAN: TALIBAN DECREE AGAINST KARZAI DOWNPLAYED
AKI, Italy
Kabul, 13 Dec. (AKI) - The Afghan government has downplayed a recent decree issued by the Taliban calling on Afghans to kill president Hamid Karzai. "By fabricating such propaganda and labeling marks against the president, the enemies of Afghanistan attempt to sabotage peace in the country and create problems for the people," presidential spokesman Mohammad Karim Rahimi was reported to have said at the weekly news briefing in Kabul on Tuesday.

The 12-page decree, written by three Taliban Muslim scholars and approved by a 100-member council of the militant group, was circulated in the south of the country, in which they referred to Karzai as a puppet of infidels (United States and Britain) and called on Afghans to kill him. The US and Britain are also referred to as enemies of Islam and in the decree Afghans are urged to join the Jihad (holy war) until the US-dominated foreign troops pull out of the country.

"The President is a good Muslim and a servant of the Afghan people and any conspiracy against him will be foiled," Rahimi said.

The spokesman stressed that the role played by the international community in Afghanistan, that of building schools, roads and other facilities, would continue as long as the country needed it.

The Taliban decree was issued just a week before the newly elected Afghan parliament is set to convene for the first time in the capital Kabul.

Southern Afghanistan is traditionally the stronghold of the hardline Taliban, whose regime was brought down during the US-led invasion of Afghanistan following the 11 September bombings in 2001. The Taliban fighters have since been waging an insurgency against the US-backed Karzai government and US forces in the country. More than 1,000 people have been killed in the violence this year alone.

Army chiefs warn: 'We're not ready for Afghanistan'
The Scotsman via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News - Dec 13 7:00 PM
BRITAIN is set for a U-turn on its commitment to send thousands of troops to fight in Afghanistan next year, with some in the army now questioning whether the mission should be abandoned altogether.

Military commanders say that lessons have not been learned from the run-up to the Iraq war and that political prevarication has left them unable to make adequate preparation for the mission, which had been expected to involve up to 5,000 troops.

Instead, an additional fighting force of only about

1,000 soldiers - almost certainly paratroops - is expected to be sent to Helmand province, in the south of the country, probably backed up by Apache helicopter gunships.
The government had initially been keen to make an impact in Afghanistan when the UK-led Allied Rapid Reaction Corps (ARRC) takes over responsibility for peacekeeping in May. Ministers hoped British involvement could kick-start the faltering process of rebuilding the country, but their enthusiasm seems to have waned. And with winter closing in and no preparations in hand for the arrival of UK soldiers, the government has still to make a formal announcement on the deployment.

It is understood orders are yet to be placed for the construction of the accommodation which will house the soldiers when they arrive.

Senior officers are in despair over the chaos surrounding the mission. Opium production in Afghanistan has returned to pre-invasion levels, the police force is in disarray and there is an active and growing insurgency.

It took months of wrangling to persuade other NATO members to agree to supply troops. But one senior officer described the efforts of coalition partners as "shambolic", accusing the Dutch government of demanding United States military protection for its troops before agreeing to send them.

Another officer accused the Germans of a complete failure in their mission to rebuild the country's police force. He said German forces had trained little more than 200 officers in four years, and when the new police force was deployed in Kabul, they had promptly disappeared. "In many ways, Afghanistan is in a worse position now, four years on from the war there, than Iraq is," he said.

"It is going to take years to resolve it and the insurgency is getting worse. It is being squeezed in some places but that simply means it moves to other areas."

The Ministry of Defence has consistently refused to discuss in public the number of troops it planned to send to Afghanistan, but speculation fuelled by briefings from military sources in June suggested a force of about 5,000 was being considered.

A decision was expected to have been taken and announced months ago, but discussions with coalition partners have hindered preparations and Britain's ongoing commitment in Iraq has also had to be taken into account.

While General Sir Michael Jackson, the head of the army, has indicated that Britain could start withdrawing troops from Iraq next year, senior MoD sources have suggested that the Afghan deployment is not dependent on any such withdrawal.

However, there is frustration in some parts of the army that no decision has been taken on the Afghan mission and one officer said that, unless a sizeable force was deployed, it was unclear what Britain hoped to achieve.

"There are people asking if we should be doing it at all," he said. "A lot of money has been committed, but it will probably take a lot more. There has been discussion about a rethink, maybe not doing it at all, though that does not seem very likely."

Another military source said the complex negotiations required to build a NATO coalition were hindering the deployment and threatening its chances of success. "Unless it is sorted out, they will just have to put up some spin-related successes and leave it at that," he said. "Whitehall wants to see results and they will trumpet the short-term gains but it won't help towards long-term withdrawal."

Britain currently has about 900 troops in Afghanistan, mainly in Kabul and the northern provinces, where they are involved in what the MoD says are peace support operations.

Under the ARRC plans for next year, Canada is expected to send 2,000 troops but Dutch ministers have postponed a decision on their deployment of 1,000 soldiers until next week, amid concerns about security in the more dangerous southern part of the country. The US is anxious for the NATO force to take over from its Regional Command South, based at Kandahar air base. That would allow it to withdraw up to 4,000 soldiers, reducing its commitment in Afghanistan to 14,000.
By: GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN -- 14-Dec-05

AFGHANISTAN: Strong earthquake rocks northeast
14 Dec 2005 08:36:50 GMT
KABUL, 13 December (IRIN) - A strong earthquake measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale struck northeastern Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan early on Tuesday morning.

Officials were still trying contact isolated communities to determine whether the quake caused any casualties.

The US Geological Survey said the quake's epicentre was in the remote Hindu Kush region of northeastern Afghanistan. It struck shortly before 02:30 local time.

The quake, felt in several Pakistani cities, including Muzaffarabad and Balakot, as well as in India's capital, New Delhi, came after October's massive regional quake of 7.6 magnitude, which killed more than 80,000 people in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and Pakistani-administered Kashmir and more than 1,200 people in Indian-administered Kashmir.

"[So far] we have not received any reports of casualties from all the provinces," Dad Mohammad Rasa, a press officer at the interior ministry, said.

The quake was centred about 100 km southeast of Faizabad, capital of Afghanistan's northeastern Badakhshan province.

"I was worried when I felt the strong shocks at night. I thought it might cause widespread damage, but fortunately there have been no causalities so far," Abdul Majid, Governor of Badakhshan province, said, adding they had contacted all districts in the province except Wakhan, a remote mountainous area.

"We are currently trying our best to contact Wakhan district," Majid noted.

Other officials confirmed that damage appeared light. "Only some mud-built homes were damaged in the district of Keran-o Munjan in Badakhshan," Mohammad Afzal, a local official said.

The last major earthquake to hit Afghanistan was in March 2002. The epicentre was in the south of Badakhshan province and killed nearly 2,000 people.

WB approves $80 mln to Afghanistan
KABUL, Dec. 14 (Xinhuanet) -- In the continuation of its support to the Afghan government, the World Bank (WB) approved a grant of 80 million US dollars to Afghanistan on Tuesday, said a press release of the bank received here Wednesday.

"The program supported by the grant is at core of the government's objective to build an accountable and effective state. This is critical for successful poverty reduction," Jean Mazurelle, the bank's country manager for Afghanistan, noted in the press release.

In the press release the world's leading lending agency also appreciated the post-war Afghanistan for its recovery from the war aftermath and promised more assistance.

"The government has made significant progress in implementing important economic reforms since 2004. Notable among these achievements are improvements in fiduciary standards, adoption of modern civil service, budget and procurement laws and initiation of a significant merit-based recruitment process," the bank stressed in its statement.

The World Bank has contributed over 900 million US dollars to the post-war Afghanistan since 2002 with major part being soft loans.

Taliban Growing in Afghanistan
NewsMax 12/12/2005
Amidst the opium-producing poppy fields and among the old stomping grounds of Osama bin Laden, the Taliban is growing again in Afghanistan.

Arnaud de Borchgrave, editor at large for United Press International, told Fox News Channel Monday that the fiercely anti-Western Muslim fundamentalists are regaining control of portions of Afghanistan and Pakistan, which is "good news for Osama bin Laden."

De Borchgrave visited Afghanistan before the Asian earthquake where the Taliban "seems to be spreading its wings" again where once they had been driven away by U.S. and Pakistani troops.

"It was quite clear that the Taliban has control of some areas," de Borchgrave said. "The Pakistanis seem to be focusing on al-Qaida, but not the Taliban. There's no question that the Taliban is gaining strength."

DeBorchgrave said the situation in Afghanistan is "tenuous" despite recent polls that indicate Afghanis are optimistic about their future.

"It depends how you take these polls," he said. "There is no way of getting a very accurate picture of what is going on in Afghanistan. Nothing has happened with the drug culture. Half of the Afghanistan GDP – nearly $3-4 Billion – comes from drug smuggling. It's not good."

Poland agrees to extend military missions in Afghanistan, Syria, Balkans
People's Daily - Dec 13 6:41 PM
The Polish government has agreed to extend its military missions in Afghanistan, Syria and the Balkans for the next year, a government statement said on Tuesday.

The decision will later be presented to President Aleksander Kwasniewski for final approval, the statement said.

It said 120 Polish soldiers in Afghanistan will stay there for another year, serving in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and participating in an anti-terror mission codenamed "Enduring Freedom."

The statement said 367 Polish soldiers in Syria will continue to serve as UN peacekeepers to supervise border security between Syria and Israel and control the truce until June 30, 2006.

The Polish Military Contingent of 400 men in Kosovo, Serbia, and some other Balkan countries is supposed to stay there until the end of 2006, mainly responsible for observing the implementation of international accords and assisting humanitarian aid in the region.

Another group of 300 Polish soldiers will continue to serve in EU military operations in the Balkans until November 2006 and their duty is to observe implementation of peace agreements in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Source: Xinhua

Three New Private Universities to Open in Afghanistan Next Year
Asia Pulse 12/12/2005
JALALABAD - Three private universities will be set up in the country next year, Minister for the Higher Education Amir Shah Hasanyar has said.

He was in this provincial capital of the eastern Nangarhar province to inaugurate a USAID- assisted project on judicial training in the Law Faculty of the Nangarhar University the other day.

In an exclusive interview with Pajhwok Afghan News, the minister expressed satisfaction over the role played by his ministry in modernising the law and judicial system in the country. He said opening of the new project would prove a milestone for reforms in the system.

He said the government had selected four provinces, including Kabul, Balkh, Nangarhar and Herat for starting the programme and the first such institution had been established from Nangarhar.

In the initial stage of the programme, the minister said, two teachers of the Nangarhar University would be sent to the United States and four to India to get training on new teaching techniques.

Regarding the US$6 million grant announced for the Nangarhar University, the minister said an amount of $500,000 had been transferred and further amount would be given to improve its standard.

He said the Higher Education Ministry had prepared a 10-year plan which would improve standard of the universities across the country. At least three private universities would be opened in the country next year.

He said the government wanted to promote academic activities in the universities instead of political activities. In order to improve literacy rate in the country, the government has planned a credit system, which would be introduced soon. With the implementation of the proposed credit system, the education standard of Afghanistan would come on a par with the international level, added the minister.

He said universities across the world concentrate on education and research but there was little or no research in Afghanistan and the ministry was trying to reactivate that branch of education in our universities. He said the Nangarhar University of Science and Technology was not formal with the ministry and its teachers would be adjusted in other departments.
Regarding complaints that some teachers of the university were working with NGOs, the minister said any teacher who was found working with an NGO would be sacked from his job. Nangarhar University is the third biggest educational institution in Afghanistan. (Pajhwok Afghan News)

G-Wagon used in Afghanistan likely saved soldier lives; experts, reporter
TERRY PEDWELL Mon Dec 12, 4:58 PM ET
OTTAWA (CP) - Three Canadian soldiers and a journalist injured by a bomb in Afghanistan may well have been killed had it not been for the light-armoured vehicle they were travelling in, say military experts and the reporter involved in the blast.

"It's lucky they weren't in an Iltis," said Scott Taylor, editor of Esprit de Corps military magazine, referring to the light-duty, open-top jeeps once used by Canada's military in Afghanistan.

The soldiers and a foreign journalist were injured Monday when a roadside bomb exploded near their G-Wagon - an enclosed vehicle with armour plating and thick, shock-resistant windows. One soldier suffered a broken leg, another had a broken ankle and foot.

Military officials believe the bomb was an improvised explosive device. The blast struck as the Canadians patrolled near the town of Maywand, about 90 kilometres west of Kandahar.

The vehicle's front end was crushed, but the rest of it, including windows and entire passenger compartment, remained intact. "They probably would have been killed" had they been patrolling in an Iltis, said Taylor.

"There's absolutely no protection on an Iltis whatsoever." An American helicopter evacuated two of the soldiers to a U.S. field hospital at Kandahar.

Col. Steve Bowes, commander of the Canadian operation in Kandahar, said the third soldier and the journalist walked away with minor injuries and went back at work.

The military was not releasing any names, although next of kin have been notified.

The soldiers were members of the 3rd battalion, Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry, based in Edmonton, said Capt. Brian Hillier.

The journalist involved, Tim Albone of Global Radio News, said he believes the armour of the Mercedes G-Wagon prevented even worse injuries to himself and the soldiers.

"I'm convinced that is what, and in fact that is what the soldiers say, saved our lives," Albone said.

The Defence Department awarded a $130-million contract to Mercedes-Benz Canada in 2003 for 802 Gelaendewagens, or G-Wagons, and 150 Armour

Protection Systems for the vehicles. The military later bought more of the vehicles and armour kits, bringing the total to 1,159 by late last year.

The initial order came after two Canadian soldiers died when their Iltis struck a landmine near Kabul.

Sgt. Robert Short and Cpl. Robbie Beerenfenger were killed instantly on Oct. 2, 2003 while patrolling a dirt road along the Jowz Valley, roughly three kilometres southwest of Camp Julien, the base camp for Canadian soldiers in Afghanistan until it closed two weeks ago.

A third soldier in the vehicle was injured, as were two other soldiers in a second Iltis.

In another incident, Cpl. Jamie Murphy died and three other soldiers were seriously injured when a suicide bomber jumped onto their Canadian Forces Iltis in January 2004 while they patrolled a Kabul street.

The aging fleet of Bombardier-made Iltis jeeps had long been criticized as offering virtually no protection for Canada's soldiers in world hotspots.

While it's not heavily armoured, the G-Wagon was welcomed by the military as a vehicle that could better protect soldiers, even if it didn't lend itself well to Canada's so-called "hearts-minds" strategy of winning support of the locals in Afghanistan by being approachable during patrols.

The G-Wagon is designed to protect soldiers from small arms fire, hand grenades as well as anti-personnel land mines, and military officials say they are pleased with how the vehicle has performed under fire.

"The G-Wagon's got armour protection that meets NATO Level 1 protection," said Maj. Daryl Morrell. "We have a great deal of confidence in this vehicle."

The bomb Monday went off during a rountine morning patrol. The incident is being investigated by a group that includes some American specialists, Bowes said.

"They are conducting a forensic investigation to determine the nature of the explosive and how it was detonated." Bowes said the incident will not deter his

troops. "If anything, it will strengthen the resolve of our soldiers." Canada has about 250 soldiers running a

provincial reconstruction team based in Kandahar. It was the third incident involving Canadians in three weeks. On Nov. 24, a LAV III armoured personnel

carrier rolled over while trying to void a collision.

Pte. Braun Scott Woodfield of the Royal Canadian Regiment based in Gagetown, N.B., was killed. On Dec. 7, the Defence Department said three members

of the secretive JTF-2 special operations force had been wounded in Afghanistan.

One soldier was sent to hospital, the other two were treated and returned to their unit. Operations of JTF-2 are shrouded in secrecy and few details of their actions are ever released.

Afghan Daily Report
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty [ 12 December 2005 ]
List Of Presidential Appointees To Afghan Parliament Revealed
The list of the 34 members of the Council of Elders (Meshrano Jirga) in the Afghan National Assembly appointed by President Hamid Karzai was announced on the official Bakhtar News Agency's website on 9 December (http://www.bakhtarnews.com). According to the Afghan Constitution, the president chooses one-third of the 102-member upper house, half of whom should be women. The list includes former Afghan President and current head of the Commission for Strengthening Peace and Stability Sebghatullah Mojaddedi; former Defense Minister Marshall Mohammad Qasim Fahim; mujahedin-era Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Sabur Farid; Arsala Rahmani, the former deputy minister of higher education under the Taliban and one of the main supporters of Kabul's reconciliation efforts with members of that regime (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 17 February 2005); former Helmand Province Governor Mullah Sher Mohammad Akhundzada; and Qurban Ali Ramazan, a brother of Ashraf Ramazan, an elected member of the People's Council (Wolesi Jirga) from Balkh Province in northern Afghanistan who was gunned down in September. One of the 17 female appointees is current Minister for Martyrs and the Disabled Sediqa Balkhi, whose work at the ministry has come under criticism. The National Assembly is set to open on 19 December. AT

EU Report Hails Afghan Polls, Despite Shortcomings

The head of the EU Election Observer Mission, Emma Bonino, presented the final report on Afghanistan's 18 September elections for the People's Council and provincial councils in Kabul on 10 December, according to an EU press release. "Overall, given their complexity and operational challenges, the elections are an accomplishment, although there were notable shortcomings to be addressed in the future," she said. Bonino praised the preparations of the elections and the election-day procedures; however, she said that "post-election-day developments revealed significant deficiencies." Bonino added that democracy is not confined to elections alone and that the Afghans should think about society and civic culture. The EU mission had 159 observers monitor the polling process in 29 out of Afghanistan's 34 provinces. AT

Neo-taliban Kill 10 Policemen In Southern Afghanistan...

Nine policemen were killed and two were injured in an attack on 9 December in Garmser district of Helmand Province, Peshawar-based Afghan Islamic Press (AIP) reported on 10 December. In a separate attack in nearby Zabul Province, the neo-Taliban attacked a security post, killing one policeman and wounding another. AT

Suicide Bomber Misses U.S. Convoy, Kills Civilian

A suicide bomber targeting a U.S. military convoy in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan missed his target, but killed an Afghan civilian and himself, Peshawar-based AIP reported on 11 December. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. AT

Afghan Air Force Considers Female Pilots

As the Afghan Air Force begins its recovery, the Defense Ministry is looking at the possibility of female pilots joining the force, state-run National Television of Afghanistan reported on 10 December. Currently, 58 pilots are scheduled to receive training, including two female pilots, Captain Latifa and Captain Lailoma. According to Captain Lailoma, women have proven that they are able to help their country by serving in the air force. AT

Afghanistan considering electricity import from Iran
Tuesday December 13, 2005 (2324 PST) PakTribune.com, Pakistan
TEHRAN, December 14 (Online): Afghanistan has been holding talks with Iran on purchase of electricity. The request was set forth during the Regional Economic Conference recently held in Kabul by the country`s Ministry of Commerce, Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah announced.

President Hamed Karzai, in a speech given in the opening ceremony of the event, had emphasized on his nation`s pressing need for electricity and other officials reiterated the government`s priority plans on urgent supply of this energy to sustain the country`s ever-increasing growth.

Negotiations held with the Iranian officials on the sidelines of the conference to this end, nominated Iran to supply basic electricity need of this neighboring country for the ease of energy transfer due to long border shared by both countries. Iran used to export electricity to Afghanistan via Taibad border point.

Power Project Lights up 400 Houses in Afghanistan's Bamyan
Dec. 12
BAMYAN CITY (Asia Pulse) - Four hundred families in Shiber district of the central Bamyan province have been extended electricity for the first time, officials said on Sunday.

Residents of Kaloi village in the Shiber district were receiving 60 kilowatts of power from two water-run turbines funded by the Agha Khan Development Network (AKDN), they added.

Engineer Nek Aalam, Regional in charge of the AKDN in Bamyan, told Pajhwok Afghan News the project costing US$150,000 had been launched in early 2003.

Mohammad Anwar Wahidi, a resident of Qala-i-Sofaid area, said: "Our far-flung village, as in deed our province, was paid little attention in the past. The power supply to our houses is thus something incredible."

The first AKDN-funded power supply scheme in Bamyan was jointly inaugurated by Deputy Governor Mohammad Ibrahim and provincial police chief Gen. Ghulam Ali Wahdat.