Afghanistan News December 20, 2005

December 20, 2005

Afghan Parliament Has 'Confusing' Session
By AMIR SHAH, Associated Press Writer
KABUL, Afghanistan - Afghanistan's first popularly elected parliament in more than 30 years struggled with the business of government Tuesday in its first full session, haggling over procedural issues and failing to select leaders.

The national assembly, inaugurated Monday, is this country's final step in its transition to democracy after the ouster four years ago of the hard-line Taliban.

The country has had no elected national assembly since 1973, when coups and a Soviet invasion plunged it into decades of chaos that left more than 1 million people dead. The Taliban's rule ended in late 2001, when it was deposed by the U.S.-led invasion for sheltering Osama bin Laden.

The parliamentary inexperience was apparent Tuesday, as the newly seated lawmakers haggled over procedural matters. The debate on how to select the bodies' leaders was to continue Wednesday.

"It's still a confusing situation," delegate Mirahammad Joinda said. "Everybody is backing their own side. It's not clear what will happen."

The body also has been criticized for including many regional strongmen, raising concerns about whether it can be effective politically.

More than 30 delegates made statements before the assembly Tuesday.

The session almost broke down when a delegate said all the human rights abusers and "criminal warlords" to be brought to justice.

Among those in the parliament with violent pasts are Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, a militia leader accused of war crimes by Human Rights Watch, and Abdul Salaam Rocketi, a former Taliban commander who since has reconciled with the government.

Another winner was the former Taliban leader who oversaw the destruction of two huge 1,500-year-old Buddha statues during the fundamentalists' reign.

Afghans voted for the 249-seat lower house in September and elected provincial councils that then chose two-thirds of the 102-seat upper chamber. President Hamid Karzai appointed the remaining 34.

Most of the government's power is concentrated in the hands of the president, although parliament will be able to pass laws and veto Cabinet selections.

Afghan parliament starts work with warlord vying for top position
by Waheedullah Massoud
KABUL, Dec 20 (AFP) - Afghanistan's first parliament in more than 30 years got down to work Tuesday with a key warlord accused of rights abuses in the running for the important position of speaker.

A statement attributed to the leader of the Taliban regime toppled in a US-led attack meanwhile dismissed the legislature inaugurated on Monday as a US forgery and vowed the American "invaders" would be forced out.

The parliament is the final step of a transition to democracy launched after the extremist Taliban regime, which imposed harsh Islamic law on war-weary Afghanistan, was toppled in a US-led invasion four years ago.

The new parliamentarians, many of them former warlords, spent the first day of work bickering over procedures to elect the speaker, a key position for which the strongest candidates are former resistance leaders.

One of them, anti-Soviet warlord Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, has been accused by rights groups of human rights violations in the civil war that followed the end of the 10-year Soviet occupation in 1989.

The other is Mohammad Yunous Qanooni, who came a distant second to Hamid Karzai in last year's presidential election and since then has been a leading figure in the opposition to the US-backed president.

In the horse-trading leading up to a vote for the position of speaker, one of Sayyaf's former enemies, Haji Mohammad Mohaqeq, withdrew his candidacy and pledged his support for the warlord with whom his forces once exchange fire across the capital, Kabul.

"I withdrew in favour of Ustad Sayaf and agree to be his deputy if he gets elected," said Mohaqeq, himself accused of severe rights abuses during the 1992-96 civil war that killed about 50,000 people in Kabul.

The other contender, Qanooni, was a key political advisor of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance led by late resistance hero and military commander Ahmad Shah Masood.

The high number of parliamentarians who were involved in the years of war that ruined Afghanistan has been widely condemned, including by ordinary Afghans and other legislators.

MP Malalai Joya said after Monday's emotional inauguration ceremony that the future of the parliament was "very dark because of the presence of warlords, drug lords and those whose hands are stained with the blood of the people."

A handful of the parliamentary seats have gone to members of the Taliban movement that was ousted in a US-led attack in 2001 after they did not surrender Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, their ally.

A statement attributed to the Taliban's one-eyed leader Mullah Mohammad Omar however dismissed the parliament as a forgery by the United States to justify its "invasion".

"Americans have a policy whenever they decide to carry out a military invasion of a country -- they fake documents for their invasion," the statement said read to AFP by a purported Taliban spokesman said.

"We assure all Muslims and Afghans that ... they (the United States) will not be able to firm their steps in Afghanistan but as in Iraq, we will force them out with our resistance," it said.

Taliban rebels waging an insurgency against the new government are mostly active in southern and eastern Afghanistan with a bloody insurgency leaving more than 1,500 people dead this year.

The main targets of their attacks are Afghan security forces and a US-led coalition of about 20,000 troops hunting down Taliban and other militants.

Afghanistan: Parliamentary Session Ends 30-Year Legislative Drought
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty [ 19.12.2005 - 13:22 ]
The ceremony -- held under tight security -- was attended by President Hamid Karzai, former King Mohammad Zahir Shah, and U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney.

Karzai swore in 351 new legislators, including former warlords and Taliban officials, former communists, technocrats, and women.

Karzai's recited the oath of office in Afghanistan's two official languages, Dari and Pashto.

During an emotional speech accompanying the event, Karzai said that Afghanistan is rising triumphantly from the ashes of invasion. He paid his respects to those Afghans who had died for the cause of Afghan freedom and said they will be never forgotten.

"This land has resisted for thousands of years, and it will remain standing for all eternity," Karzai said. "Respected representatives of the Afghan people, with the formation of the National Assembly, the main pillars of the Afghan government are now completed under our constitution."

Karzai said the parliament is crucial for the establishment of a safe and secure country, but he added that much work remains.

NATO and the European Union today hailed the parliament's first session. NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer called it "a visible sign that the democratic process is taking hold." The EU called the inauguration a "historic occasion."

Little Experience
But some analysts believe it could take months before the parliament will be able to fully perform its duties. Many of the legislators have little or no experience in politics and scant knowledge about how a parliament functions.

In a recent interview, Joanna Nathan, a Kabul-based analyst with the International Crisis Group (ICG), acknowledged that the deputies will need help, but she said she remains optimistic.

"Politics is a part of everyday life in Afghanistan, so I think it's not right to say that they are completely inexperienced in politics," Nathan said. "But, yes, they are going to need a lot of support to begin with, learning their way. Some of them will be illiterate, but I’m not too worried. Leaders will emerge there pretty quick, and they'll know what they are doing. They know about politics."

She said the new parliament represents an opportunity for people from all over Afghanistan to have their voices heard.

"Until now, there has obviously only been an executive," Nathan said. "And we really see that there is a chance to pull together a lot of people from a lot of different backgrounds, perhaps from different factions in the past, from different sectarian groups, getting some women in there obviously and bringing them all together to give them a voice on the future direction of Afghanistan."

Seyed Abdollah Faramarz, editor in chief of the Afghan newspaper "The Voice of the Dawn," told RFE/RL in a recent interview that, despite its shortcomings, the new parliament is a step forward.

"Despite all the problems, we have one hope: If the parliament will be able to have an influence on the system to a certain degree, to have a role in reforming the bureaucratic system of the country, it would be a good step," Faramarz said. "Until now, there was a gap, and the government was acting alone. It is better than not having a parliament, and it is a positive step."

Many have expressed concern over the bloody pasts of some of the new members of parliament, including Abdul Rasul Sayyaf, a powerful former commander who has been accused of war crimes by the U.S.-based group Human Rights Watch.

Sayyaf said today that the parliament "represents the reality of Afghanistan."

Human Rights Watch's Asia research director, Sam Zarifi, is quoted by news agencies as saying that "lots of Afghans are disappointed and cynical because they feel like people who perpetrated serious human rights abuses have been allowed back in the parliament."

Historic Role For Women
For others, the convening of parliament is a day of hope, especially for the country's women. Twenty-five percent of the seats in the People's Council (Wolesi Jirga), the lower house of the parliament, were reserved for female candidates.

Malalai Joya, a female legislator who caused an uproar early in the country's post-Taliban transition by denouncing the role of powerful mujahedin figures, has vowed to stand up against those warlords who have been elected to parliament.

"Today, our people are concerned that the election took place in an armed environment, and that is why our people and the international community should not have expected democratic elections, which didn't take place," Joya said. "We witnessed that those with money, power, and backed by foreign countries came into the parliament. Their presence pollutes our parliament as a legislative source. But we shouldn't forget that some real and true representatives of people also came into this parliament. But, unfortunately, they are in a minority."

Shukrai Barkzai, another female deputy, told Radio Free Afghanistan today that the members of the new parliament should respect new ideas, work to pass effective laws, and teach nonbelievers about the value of democracy.

Karzai calls upon parliamentarians to work hard for Afghanistan
2005-12-19 21:07:15
KABUL, Dec. 19 (Xinhuanet) -- Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday called upon the newly elected parliamentarians to serve the people honestly and take the nation towards prosperity.

"This is your responsibility to serve the people of Afghanistan without discrimination in line with the guidance of Islam the religion and the Constitution," Karzai told the newly elected members of parliament (MPs) while administering their oath.

The first-ever Afghan parliament in three decades formally opened amid tight security at the renovated Parliament House Monday morning.

With the opening of the parliament session Monday morning, the last phase of the historic Bonn agreement towards stabilizing democracy in the post-Taliban nation has completed.

Majority of the 351 members of the two-chamber House are the former foes who fought against each other for power and had been involved in the past 25 years of war, civil strife in the country.

As a precautionary measure, all the roads leading to the Parliament House as well as important government buildings have closed and the vehicles entering the city are thoroughly checked.

Afghan troops and police backed by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and the US-dominated coalition forces stationed in sensitive areas in the city besides patrolling the streets to prevent any untoward incidents.

Hailing the achievements made by the government in the past four years, Karzai said: "Afghanistan is no more the isolated country as it was during Taliban regime. Today we have parliament, we have legitimate government, we have 1.5 billion US dollars foreign exchange reserve and we have the international support in rebuilding our country."

Over 6.5 million Afghan girls and boys had begun going to school since the collapse of Taliban four years ago while the strength of Afghan National Army (ANA) has reached over 34,000, he said.

"It is essential to have a strong army and air force to defend the country's geographical borders," he added.

On the government foreign policy, Karzai said: "Our foreign policy is based on non-interference in others' internal affairs and respect international law."

Afghanistan wants friendly relations with the Islamic countries,strategic cooperation with western world and enhancing relations with the regional nations, he said.

"Our relations with the United States is based on mutual cooperation and strategic partnership as both countries are fighting terrorism and supporting liberalization of economy," Karzai said.

He said: "China as an old friend of Afghanistan has significantly contributed to rebuilding our country, so we want to further boost relations with this Asian power."

The president said that his government would continue with the anti-drug campaign and work hard to give an end to corruption in government departments.

"Without ethnic and regional discrimination we must work for the welfare and prosperity of Afghanistan. This is our right to get united and struggle collectively for the regaining of the honor of this phoenix, Afghanistan," Karzai said.

Canada welcomes inauguration of Afghan parliament
OTTAWA (AFP) - Canada praised Afghan lawmakers for convening their first parliament, calling it a major step in establishing democracy in the country.

"Canada congratulates the newly elected Afghan parliament on convening for the first time. This is a day for Afghanistan to reflect with pride on the remarkable progress it has made and to look with confidence to the future," Canadian Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew said in a statement.

"The opening of the first session of parliament is an important milestone in Afghanistan's democratic development an expression of the democratic right of the Afghan people. It will undoubtedly play a key role in helping to build transparent and accountable democratic institutions," he added.

Afghanistan opened its first session of parliament on Monday after three decades of occupation and war with an emotional ceremony attended by US Vice-President Dick Cheney.

The sitting of the first Afghan parliament since 1973 was crucial to securing the future of the war-ravaged country, President Hamid Karzai said after swearing in the 351 new parliamentarians.

Key 'al-Qaeda militant' surfaces
BBC News Monday, 19 December 2005
The Arab television, Al Arabiya, has shown a video tape of a militant who claims to have escaped from the main American base in Afghanistan.

The purported militant, Abu-Yahya al-Libbi, is said to be one of four detainees who escaped from the Bagram airbase in July.

US officials did not identify them at the time but described the men as "dangerous enemy combatants".

In November, US prosecutors said that one of the four was Omar al-Faruq.

Al-Faruq was seen as one of Osama bin Laden's key lieutenants in Asia.

It is not clear what Abu-Yahya al-Libbi - also identified as Hassan Qayid - is doing in the Al Arabiya video.

There has been no reaction to the tape from the American military.

Al-Arabiya claims that the other detainees who escaped from Bagram are Muhammad Ja'far al-Qahtani, who is a Saudi national, Abdallah al-Hashimi, a Syrian national and Omar al-Faruq who is described as an Iraqi national.

Scheffer to Meet on PKK, Afghanistan, Cyprus
Zaman Online, Turkey By Foreign News Desk Monday, December 19, 2005
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer came to Ankara on Sunday to hold a series of contacts relating to combating the terrorist organization the Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK), and the issues of Afghanistan and Cyprus.

Scheffer will meet with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul and Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul during his contacts that are expected to last a few days.

Since the secretary general is visiting Ankara following the US Federal Bureau of Investigation and Central Intelligence Agency directors’ visits is another aspect that makes his visit important.

In today’s Erdogan-Scheffer meeting, the issues relating to the PKK, Afghanistan, and Cyprus will be discussed.

Ankara is most likely to convey its request to include the PKK in the NATO’s terror list.

Turkish authorities will underline the necessity of an active international fight against this terror network.

Another item on the agenda, Afghanistan, will focus on the duty distribution of NATO troops in this country and the implementation of the decisions NATO foreign ministers reached on December 8.

A detailed evaluation of the duties Turkish soldiers will undertake as a part of restructuring the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) is also expected.

Three Italians hurt in Afghan suicide attack suicide attack
20 Dec 2005 14:58:17 GMT
KABUL, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Three Italian peacekeepers were slightly wounded in a suicide car bomb attack in the western Afghan city of Herat on Tuesday, and at least one attacker died, a spokesman for the NATO-led peacekeeping force said.

In a separate incident, the governor of the eastern province of Nuristan escaped injury after 20 rockets were fired at his vehicle on Monday, his spokesman said.

The attack on the peacekeepers in Herat occurred on the road from the city's airport into town, said Lieutenant-Colonel Riccardo Cristoni, a spokesman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.

Taliban spokesman Qari Mohammed Yousuf said his movement had carried out the attack, the latest in a spate of suicide bombings in Afghanistan claimed by the guerrillas.

He identified the dead bomber as Mullah Asadullah, a native of the province of Farah, which adjoins Herat province.

Cristoni said the blast had hit one of two ISAF vehicles driving in convoy.

"Three Italians were slightly injured by flying glass from their vehicle," he said, adding that they were being treated at the Spanish military hospital at Herat airport.

Monday morning's attack on Nuristan Governor Tamin Nuristani caused no injuries but destroyed four houses, his spokesman Ghulam Mullah said.

The incident occurred in the province's Kamdish district, where he was trying to resolve a tribal dispute. Mullah said the attackers had not been identified.

The suicide attack in Herat came four days after a suicide car bomb attack on two Norwegian peacekeeping vehicles near the Afghan parliament killed the attacker and slightly wounded two passers-by.

The Taliban also claimed responsibility for that attack.

A session of parliament, Afghanistan's first for more than 30 years, was inaugurated on Monday without incident, despite Taliban threats.

Tuesday's blast followed a surprise visit by Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero to Herat on Monday to visit Spanish troops.

NATO plans to expand its peacekeeping operations into southern Afghanistan next year. The area had been the most troubled by the Taliban insurgency, which has escalated in the past year.

Long term involvement in Alishing District to increase food security
Source: Danish Committee for Aid to Afghan Refugees (DACAAR) 19 Dec 2005
Kabul, 19 December 2005 - DACAAR expands development activities in Alishing, Laghman Province through new funding from the European Commission. The aim is within a holistic approach over the next two years, to reach a substantial and sustainable increase in food security and productivity and supply real improvement to economic life and livelihoods in Alishing District.

Both wings of DACAAR will be involved in the activities, the Rural Development Programme (RDP) to take care of extension and capacity building activities, and the Water and Sanitation Programme (WSP) to be responsible for activities related to provision of drinking water. The activities are designed to supplement the ongoing National Solidarity Programme (NSP).

Target groups will include all social subdivisions in the population, with attention to reach also the most vulnerable and ignored groups. Women are in particular considered important to reach in order to increase economic opportunities and livelihoods within the families. In total around 115,000 people in 167 villages are intended to benefit from the comprehensive rural development activities in Alishing.

DACAAR has since 1996 assisted Alishing district in provision of safe water supply through digging of wells. Since 2003, DACAAR has furthermore been involved in development activities in the district through the ongoing National Solidarity Programme (NSP). Main activities will consist of continued and strengthened capacity building of community development committees, regular extension service in all aspects of agricultural production, market surveys, infrastructure projects, forming of producer associations, establishing of women resource centres, sanitation facilities, health and hygiene education, and general training in literacy and accountancy skills. To increase economic activities in the district, development activities will be supported by DACAAR’s micro-finance programme MADRAC planned to be extended to Alishing District from mid 2006.

‘The government of Afghanistan has adopted a national strategy towards rural development, and asked NGOs to work in close collaboration on this. DACAAR, now contributing with both our Rural Development and Water and Sanitation Programme is pleased to be able to contribute with this new and holistic approach to improve lives and livelihoods in Alishing in eastern Afghanistan. The strategy aims, as a very central point, on strengthening local capacities and own efforts in communities. It is a core aspect, that development is driven by communities themselves, with the strongest possible attention to own wishes and capacities’, says Erik Toft, Chief of Programmes, DACAAR.

Contacts:
Chief of Programmes Erik Toft
Kabul, Afghanistan Tel.: +93 (0) 799 55 79 82
E-mail: erik.toft@dacaar.org
Public Information Officer Alexandra Strand Holm
Kabul, Afghanistan Tel.: +93 (0) 799 33 77 53
E-mail: a.strand.holm@dacaar.org

US to cut troop level in Afghanistan
By Charles Aldinger Tue Dec 20, 7:59 AM ET
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has ordered a cut in the number of American troops in     Afghanistan to about 16,000 from a current 19,000 by next spring, the     Pentagon said on Tuesday.

Defense Department spokesman Bryan Whitman told Reuters that the orders, signed by Rumsfeld on Monday, mean that most of the 4,000 troops from the Louisiana-based Fourth Brigade of the Army's 10th Mountain Division will not be sent to Afghanistan early next year on rotation as previously scheduled.

The move came as the Pentagon was also considering when to begin reducing the U.S. military presence in     Iraq below a "baseline" level of 138,000 expected to be reached by early February. There are now about 150,000 U.S. troops in the country in a force built up recently to help provide security for elections.

    President George W. Bush and Rumsfeld are under mounting pressure from some members of Congress to quickly begin reducing the Iraq force amid waning public support for the war in that country.

Rumsfeld gave the Afghan order on a recommendation from the senior U.S. commander there, Army Lt. Gen. Karl Eikenberry, because Afghanistan's own army and police forces are growing and     NATO is increasing its international security assistance peacekeeping force, or ISAF, in the country, Whitman said.

The New York Times, quoting a U.S. military official, reported on Monday that 1,300 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division brigade would be sent to Afghanistan as scheduled, but that about 2,700 others would instead remain in Louisiana on stand-by.

AFGHAN SECURITY GROWING-PENTAGON
"The overall level of (Afghan and NATO) security forces in the country is growing," Whitman said of the Pentagon plan not to replace returning members of the U.S. 173rd Airborne Brigade now stationed in southern Afghanistan.

The American troop reduction has been anticipated since NATO agreed to assume control of an American command in southern Afghanistan next year. The Atlantic alliance is looking to raise its 9,000-strong ISAF force to about 15,000 troops from early next year.

NATO plans to spread its bases in the north and west, and the capital, Kabul, to the more volatile south, a center for many insurgents.

Bush and Rumsfeld have refused to set any timetable for withdrawal from Iraq, where more than 2,100 Americans troops have died since the March 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled President     Saddam Hussein.

Army Gen. George Casey, commander of U.S. and coalition fores in Iraq, told reporters last week that he is considering whether and when to make further cuts in the level of American forces in that country beyond the level of 138,000 troops which will be reached in late January or early February.

Defense officials told Reuters this month that the military had drawn up tentative plans to cancel the deployment of two Army brigades to Iraq in what could be the start of a reduction of U.S. forces there.

But small groups of the two brigades, which each include about 3,500 troops and hundreds of supporting soldiers, could be sent to help train Iraqi security forces, according to the officials, who asked not to be identified.

The officials said the two Army brigades in question -- one from the 1st Armored Division headquartered in Germany and the other from the 1st Infantry Division based at Fort Riley, Kansas -- have been scheduled to replace U.S. troops that will soon be rotated out of Iraq.

Afghan President thanks Iran for financial support
Pravda Ru - Dec 20 12:31 AM
Afghan President Hamid Karzai praised the Islamic Republic of Iran for financial support for reconstruction of the war-shattered country, IRNA reported. Speaking in the inaugural ceremony of Afghan parliament, he said current relations between the two countries are on mutual respect and non-interference in each other's affairs.

"We sincerely thank Iran for aiding the country's reconstruction efforts, campaign against terrorism, cutting the hands of foreign saboteurs and Iranian hospitality to Afghan refugees," he said. As an independent country, Afghanistan is interested to broaden ties with other countries and cooperation with neighboring states on mutual respect, said the president.

"Restoration of stability in Afghanistan would be to the benefit of all neighboring states as well as other countries in the world, he said adding that the country is considered as an integral part of Muslim World. Afghanistan has put expansion of political ties with the Islamic and Arab countries on its agenda."

Campaign against poverty and terrorism would not being materialized without collective cooperation between parliament and government, he underlined. A number of domestic and foreign parliamentary and political officials attended the opening ceremony of Afghan parliament, reports IranMania.

Spanish PM visits troops in Afghanistan
Tuesday, December 20, 2005 Daily Times, Pakistan
MADRID: Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero made a surprise visit to Afghanistan on Monday to meet with Spanish troops in the troubled country, officials said.

Zapatero, who was accompanied by Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos and Defense Minister Jose Bono, was expected to visit Herat and Qal’eh-ye Now in the west of the country, Cadena Ser radio station said. The defense and foreign ministries would not immediately confirm the stops. afp

More Turkish Troops to Go to Afghanistan
By Suleyman Kurt Tuesday, December 20, 2005 zaman.com
The issue of sending more Turkish troops to Afghanistan came to the agenda during a one day visit North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary-General Jaap De Hoop Scheffer made to Ankara Monday.

Turkey warmly approached the demand of deploying more troops in Afghanistan as part of new NATO undertakings to take place in this country next year. He met the expectations regarding the issue of the terrorist organization Kurdish Workers’ Party (PKK) confirming, “Without a doubt the PKK is a terrorist organization.”

Scheffer met Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul to discuss the fight against terrorism, Cyprus, and the developments in Afghanistan.

In the talks, the situation of the “teams of restructuring provinces” in Afghanistan also came to the agenda.

Accordingly, Turkey will establish a team in the region, the location of which will be determined at a later date. NATO will need more troops to protect the restructuring teams in five provinces around the capital Kabul.

Scheffer said he would be pleased if Turkey were to establish a Restructuring Progress Team. Minister Gul communicated Turkey’s affirmative view on a comprehensive United Nations backed solution to the Cyprus problem.

Scheffer also looked warmly at the Turkish theses on Cyprus. “I understand your attitude. It takes two to tango.”

Scheffer pointed out the solution cannot be solved only in Ankara, and this situation is of interest to Brussels and the Greek Cypriot Administration as well.

In the talks, Ankara asked NATO’s attitude towards the terrorist organization the PKK as struggle against terrorism continues. In an appendix issued by NATO in 2003, the PKK is cited as “a terrorist organization,” and updating this document is on the agenda. Scheffer yesterday responded in a gratifying way: “There is no doubt in my and our allies’ minds that the PKK is a terror network. The PKK is on the terrorist organizations list of NATO, the EU and the US, too.” The conference given by Scheffer at Bilkent University in Ankara was protested by members of the press who were asked to leave the place that had been assigned to them.

In another part of Ankara and for a similar reason, French Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie conducted contacts in the Turkish capital and suggested a joint responsibility with Turkey be undertaken in the frame of the International Security Assistance Force in Kabul, Afghanistan.