Islamic Emirate Army Chief: US Controls Afghan Airspace

According to Fasihuddin Fetrat, American drones occasionally fly over the Afghanistan’s airspace.

The Chief of Army Staff of the Islamic Emirate says that Afghanistan’s airspace is still under the control of the United States.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with TOLOnews, Fasihuddin Fetrat said that the country’s airspace is still managed by the United States and that this country violates Afghanistan’s airspace.

According to Fasihuddin Fetrat, American drones occasionally fly over the Afghanistan’s airspace.

“Drones occasionally patrol, and it [Afghanistan’s airspace] is still occupied by the Americans. It may enter Afghan territory from the soil of one of the neighboring countries,” said Fasihuddin Fetrat, the Chief of Army Staff of the Ministry of Defense of the Islamic Emirate

Fetrat also rejects claims about the arrest of forces from the previous government, saying that no one has been arrested for this accusation so far.

“I definitely reject this, it has no basis, and no one who was in the previous regime has been arrested, imprisoned, or beaten so far, this is incorrect. If they commit a crime, they still do not have judicial immunity,” added Fasihudin Fetrat.

According to Fetrat, the exact number of armed forces active within the Ministry of Interior, intelligence, and Ministry of Defense has reached 500,000, and the army has reached 172,000.

“We are in the initial stages, when the rule of the Islamic Emirate began, and we tried to build the Afghan army, the number that was considered was 200,000, and we are gradually progressing. We hope to complete the number we had in mind next year,” stated the army chief of staff.

About the border clashes with Pakistan, the senior security official of the Islamic Emirate says that these clashes have occurred in response to the incursions of Pakistani border forces along the Durand Line.

“It is clear that we call this line an imaginary line, occasionally invasions and assaults occur that our forces cannot ignore, and no solution is found through discussions, and the other side [Pakistan] tries to use force, in which case we also allow our forces to use force,” said Fetrat.

Fasihuddin Fetrat, in another part of his speech, rejects claims about the sale of American weapons in the country, saying that the Islamic Emirate urgently needs the leftover military equipment and does not allow anyone to sell it.

Islamic Emirate Army Chief: US Controls Afghan Airspace
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UNSC to Meet on Afghanistan on Wednesday: Faiq

But the Islamic Emirate is not optimistic about this meeting and says that UNAMA in seeking to emphasize negative points.

The United Nations Security Council is reportedly set to hold a meeting on Afghanistan on Wednesday.

The Chargé d’Affaires of the Afghanistan Permanent Mission to the UN, Naseer Ahmad Faiq, told TOLOnews that the special representative of the UN Secretary-General and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), Roza Otunbayeva, will present a three-month report on the situation in Afghanistan.

“The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to hold a meeting on the situation in Afghanistan on March 6, where the special representative of the United Nations Secretary-General, Roza Otunbayeva, will participate and give explanations to the members of the Security Council about the situation in Afghanistan in the last three months,” he said.

But the Islamic Emirate is not optimistic about this meeting and says that UNAMA in seeking to emphasize negative points.

The spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, Zabihullah Mujahid, said that the meetings of the UN on Afghanistan will be positive when they reflect the realities of Afghanistan.

“As per our experience I am not hopeful, as it’s clear that they take the opportunity to speak about Afghanistan, they discuss the negative points, magnify it and than report on it,” Zabihullah Mujahid said.

“I think that the meetings of the UN Security Council about Afghanistan have been ineffective as there is still an opposition of views between the decision-maker members of the UN Security Council. in my opinion, the reason why the various meetings of the Security Council regarding the Afghanistan issue have not been effective and have not yielded results, is that there are still disagreements among the decision-making members,” Mohebullah Sharif, a political analyst, told TOLOnews.

This is the second meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Afghanistan this month.

UNSC to Meet on Afghanistan on Wednesday: Faiq
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Miller: Treatment of Women, Girls in Afghanistan ‘Deplorable’

Miller said that the US is committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan and has contributed $2 billion to Afghanistan since August, 2021.

US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller in a press briefing criticized the treatment of women in Afghanistan, saying: “The treatment of women and girls inside Afghanistan is deplorable,” he said. 

Miller also said that the US is committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan and has contributed $2 billion to Afghanistan since August, 2021.

“We have said it many times that the treatment of women and girls inside Afghanistan is deplorable. So the United States remains committed to supporting the people of Afghanistan. And we also remain the single largest provider of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, including providing over $2 billion in lifesaving and sustaining assistance to the Afghan people since August of 2021,” he said.

Rejecting the remarks of Matthew Miller, the Islamic Emirate said that the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan are protected within the framework of Islamic Sharia and that the world uses the issues of human rights as a political tool against the Islamic Emirate.

“They use human rights issues as a means for their political goals and they want to achieve their political goals, which they do not achieve, and this condition of theirs is inappropriate. If they do not cooperate with the Islamic Emirate, and prevent progress, it means that it will affect the people living in Afghanistan and they are oppressed and their rights are lost,” said Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesman of the Islamic Emirate.

Earlier, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, at a conference of the Human Rights Council criticized the continuous violation of human rights in Afghanistan, particularly the rights of women.

Miller: Treatment of Women, Girls in Afghanistan ‘Deplorable’
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Outcry forces Home Office to allow Afghan youth orchestra to go on England tour

The Home Office has been forced into a U-turn and has now granted visas to the Afghan youth orchestra for their tour of England, after its earlier refusal threw their planned tour into chaos days before it was due to begin.

The band of 47 exiled musicians aged between 14 and 22 had been working for months on their repertoire for the shows, which are due to start at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London on Thursday.

The Home Office had initially refused their visa applications but overturned the decision on Monday after public criticism.

The musicians are also booked to play in Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool.

Diana Johnson MP, the chair of the home affairs select committee, wrote on X: “Excellent news and glad the @ukhomeoffice have done the right thing. Thank you to everyone who made this happen.”

The orchestra’s director, Dr Ahmad Sarmast, said the group have performed freely in Switzerland, France, Italy and Germany among other countries since they were chased out of their home country by the Taliban. Sarmast had described the Home Office’s initial decision as “heart-breaking”.

One of their most recent concerts was at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Among those helping them get out of Kabul were the international classical music stars Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma.

After fleeing to Qatar from their home country when the Taliban retook power in 2021, the orchestra is now based in Portugal, where the players were granted immigration rights and are in education at Portuguese music schools, according to Sarmast.

He said the Home Office had initially told them it was not convinced by the information the orchestra provided about the status of the students, saying it was vague.

Speaking to the Guardian before the Home Office’s U-turn, Sarmast said: “The group has been denied visas for entry to the UK to complete this wonderful tour called Breaking the Silence.

“We have played all over the world since we left [Afghanistan] but we never faced this.”

The orchestra said the refusal was a “significant blow” that “deprived these young musicians an opportunity to raise awareness through music about the gender apartheid against Afghan women and denial of cultural rights of the Afghan people by the Taliban”.

The orchestra is part of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM), which was established in 2010. When the Taliban retook power its campus in Kabul was seized as a command centre, its bank accounts were frozen, its offices ransacked and its instruments left abandoned.

Last summer the Taliban shared a picture of officials presiding over a bonfire of musical instruments and equipment. Playing and listening to music is heavily restricted under the regime.

In 2014 the ANIM symphony orchestra was performing at the French cultural centre in Kabul when a bomb ripped through the venue. Sarmast was knocked unconscious, both eardrums were perforated leaving him deaf, and he received serious shrapnel injuries. After months of treatment in Australia, he recovered his hearing.

“The main purpose of the orchestra is not only to share Afghan music in exile while it is banned and suppressed [under the Taliban] but to achieve cultural diplomacy – people to people – across the world,” he said.

“This denies our people the opportunity to let people in the UK know about what is happening in Afghanistan and share the beauty of Afghan music.”

The orchestra had prepared a repertoire of Afghan, south Asian and western classical music to perform at the Southbank Centre in London, the Tung auditorium in Liverpool, Stoller Hall in Manchester and at Birmingham Town Hall.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “Musicians and performers are a valued and important part of UK culture.

“Applications have to be considered on their individual merits in accordance with the immigration rules with the responsibility on applicants to demonstrate they meet these rules.”

Outcry forces Home Office to allow Afghan youth orchestra to go on England tour
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Home Office refuses Afghan youth orchestra visas days before London gig

A tour of England by the Afghan youth orchestra has been thrown into doubt days before it was due to begin because the Home Office has refused to grant visas to the musicians.

The orchestra’s director, Dr Ahmad Sarmast, described the decision as “heart-breaking” and said his band of 47 exiled musicians aged between 14 and 22 had been working for months on their repertoire for the shows that were due to start at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London on Thursday.

The musicians from Afghanistan were also booked to play in Birmingham, Manchester and Liverpool. Sarmast said they have performed freely in Switzerland, France, Italy and Germany among other countries since they were chased out of their home country by the Taliban. Nevertheless, the Home Office has refused visas and said they cannot appeal, Sarmast said.

One of their most recent concerts was at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Among those helping them get out of Kabul were the international classical music stars Daniel Barenboim and Yo-Yo Ma.

After fleeing to Qatar from their home country when the Taliban retook power in 2021, the orchestra is now based in Portugal where the players were granted immigration rights and are in education at Portuguese music schools, according to Sarmast.

But he said the Home Office had told them it was not convinced by the information the orchestra provided about the status of the students, saying it was vague.

“The group has been denied visas for entry to the UK to complete this wonderful tour called Breaking the Silence,” Sarmast told the Guardian. “We have played all over the world since we left [Afghanistan] but we never faced this.”

A Southbank Centre spokesperson said it was “extremely disappointed” by the Home Office decision and called for a U-turn.

“The orchestra is a beacon of hope and free creative expression: its brave young people have been forced to leave their homeland because of a repressive regime and they have found a home in Portugal, where they have refugee status,” the spokesperson said.

“This decision denies UK audiences the opportunity of being inspired by their brave work and they deserve the full support of the arts community as well as the UK government. We urge the Home Office to reconsider its decision.”

The orchestra is part of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM), which was established in 2010. When the Taliban retook power its campus in Kabul was seized as a command centre, its bank accounts were frozen, its offices ransacked and its instruments left abandoned.

Last summer the Taliban shared a picture of officials presiding over a bonfire of musical instruments and equipment. Playing and listening to music is heavily restricted under the regime.

In 2014 the ANIM symphony orchestra was performing at the French cultural centre in Kabul when a bomb ripped through the venue. Sarmast was knocked unconscious, both eardrums were perforated leaving him deaf, and he received serious shrapnel injuries. After months of treatment in Australia, he recovered his hearing.

“The main purpose of the orchestra is not only to share Afghan music in exile while it is banned and suppressed [under the Taliban] but to achieve cultural diplomacy – people to people – across the world,” he said.

“This denies our people the opportunity to let people in the UK know about what is happening in Afghanistan and share the beauty of Afghan music.”

The orchestra had prepared a repertoire of Afghan, south Asian and western classical music to perform at the Southbank Centre in London, the Tung auditorium in Liverpool, Stoller Hall in Manchester and at Birmingham Town Hall.

Assiya Amini, co-founder of Afghan Academy International, a UK Afghan community group, said: “The UK is an international focal point so this is unfortunate. It would have been great to have them here as they have been welcomed in other parts of the world. We didn’t expect this.”

The Home Office has been approached for comment.

Home Office refuses Afghan youth orchestra visas days before London gig
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Trump: We were crazy spending billions of dollars on Afghanistan war

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Former US president Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States was crazy to have spent billions of dollars on the war in Afghanistan.

“If they listened to me with Afghanistan, we would have been back a long time ago,” Trump said speaking at an election rally in Richmond.

He recalled that he had told Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) in a phone call not to kill US soldiers, and for 18 months no US soldier was killed in the country.

“This stupid fool (President Joe Biden) took over and we had that horrible airlift. He said he will never have anything like Vietinam. This thing blew Vietnam away with people on the airplane from 3000 feet up they started falling off the plane,” Trump said.

The former US president also said the US left behind military equipment worth $85 billion in Afghanistan, and abandoned Bagram military base.

“It is only one hour away from where China makes its nuclear weapons and now China occupies Bagram,” Trump said.

In November last year, Trump said if elected, he will regain control of Bagram Airfield.

IEA’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, however, said they will not allow Afghanistan to once again become a field of competition between regional and world powers.

Trump: We were crazy spending billions of dollars on Afghanistan war
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Islamic Emirate Spokesman:  UNAMA ‘Ineffective’ Over Past Year

Zabiullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, said that UNAMA’s reports were exaggerated and not based on facts on the ground.

The Islamic Emirate’s spokesperson said that UNAMA’s activities have not been effective over the past year.

Zabiullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate, said that UNAMA’s reports were exaggerated and not based on facts on the ground.

According to Mujahid, UNAMA has the responsibility to help Afghanistan reestablish diplomatic ties.

“They have to be more active, they have to strengthen Afghanistan’s relations with other countries. There is still a vacuum, they have to create trust,” said Mujahid.

Mujahid accused the UN of being affected by major world powers, saying that its decisions about Afghanistan have been doubtful.

“The United Nations decisions about Afghanistan have been doubtful and the organization is under the shadow of major powers of the world. The UN has met the expectation of nations about serving justice,” said the spokesman.

TOLOnews was not successful in reaching UNAMA for comments about the statements.

Political analysts have their own view about the coordination of UNAMA and the Afghan government.

“UNAMA is trying to melt the Islamic Emirate into the international liberal system, especially in the areas of political, social, economic and cultural areas,” said Aminullah Ehsas, a university lecturer.

“UNAMA is sharing all political issues of Afghanistan with the UN and is ensuring Afghanistan’s relations with the world,” said Aziz Maarij, a former Afghan diplomat.

UNAMA’s mandate ends on March 17 this year and the UN Security Council is expected to hold a meeting about the issue.

Islamic Emirate Spokesman:  UNAMA ‘Ineffective’ Over Past Year
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Deputy PM: Islamic Emirate not Isolated

Meanwhile, the acting minister of higher education said that the Ulema [Islamic scholars] have the responsibility of preserving the Islamic system.

The deputy prime minister for political affairs of the Islamic Emirate said that the current Afghan government is not isolated and is improving in political areas.

Speaking at a graduation ceremony of religious students in Kabul, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir said that the Islamic Emirate wants positive relations with the whole world.

“The Islamic Emirate is in practical engagement with the world, and it is not in isolation. All Afghans must be sure that we are neither in economic nor political isolation and these areas are getting stronger,” said Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, the deputy prime minister of political affairs.

Mawlawi Abdul Kabir added that the Islamic Emirate has free economic and trade relations with the regional countries and that the world has nobother option but to engage with the caretaker Afghan government.

He said that the Islamic Emirate wants positive relations with all countries including Russia and the US.

“We say to the world that they have no option but to engage with the Islamic Emirate, because there is no one to engage with as a representative of Afghanistan,” said Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, the deputy prime minister of political affairs.

Meanwhile, the acting minister of higher education said that the Ulema [Islamic scholars] have the responsibility of preserving the Islamic system.

“Your goal should not be to become materialistic; it is a fact that the government needs Ulema [religious scholars]. There is not an administration in the Islamic government which does not need a religious scholar,” said Neda Muhammad Nadim, the acting minister of higher education.

The acting minister of vice and virtue said that freedom of speech came to existence during Islam and that media should not abuse the freedom.

“I say to my dear brothers in the media, that the freedom of speech has been established by Islam. The freedom is for building not destroying,” said Muhammad Khalid Hanafi, the acting minister of vice and virtue.

Hanafi added that all people living in Afghanistan are equal under Islamic Emirate rule, and that the government wants to address all the problems of people.

Deputy PM: Islamic Emirate not Isolated
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EU provides $21 million aid amid dire humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan

The World Food Program recently announced a €21 million contribution from the European Union to the Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund.

This office declared on Friday, March 1, through a press release, that around 300,000 people in Afghanistan are expected to benefit from this amount of money.

However, the primary aim of this assistance, as stated by the European Union, is to improve food security and nutrition in the country.

Rafaela Iodice, the EU official in Afghanistan, mentioned that the European Union will continue its assistance to the people of Afghanistan.

These contributions come at a time when Antonio Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, previously stated that the organization has only been able to secure three per cent of the required budget to address the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. ‘

This is happening simultaneously with recent earthquakes in Afghanistan and the expulsion of migrants from neighboring countries, leading to an increased level of need within the country.

The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan remains dire, with millions of people facing extreme poverty, displacement, and food insecurity. Years of conflict, political instability, and now the Taliban’s return to power have exacerbated these challenges.

Many families lack access to necessities such as clean water, sanitation facilities, and healthcare. The ongoing violence and insecurity have also hindered humanitarian aid delivery, further worsening the plight of vulnerable populations.

Additionally, there is a severe shortage of shelters for internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees returning to Afghanistan.

Furthermore, the Taliban’s imposition of strict restrictions on women’s rights has had a devastating impact on their access to education and employment opportunities. Women and girls face significant barriers to attending school or pursuing careers, denying them essential pathways to empowerment and economic independence.

The rollback of women’s rights threatens to undermine years of progress in gender equality and jeopardizes the prospects of Afghan women and girls. The international community must prioritize the protection and support of Afghan women’s rights as part of broader humanitarian efforts in the country.

EU provides $21 million aid amid dire humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan
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Stanikzai Affirms Iran’s Water Rights But Says Afghans Victims of Drought

Stanikzai stated that currently there is enough water to meet the needs of Afghan citizens, not an amount that would be diverted towards Iran.

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, the deputy minister of Foreign Affairs, reiterated on Saturday that the Islamic Emirate is committed to paying Iran’s water rights in accordance with the 1973 pact between the two nations.

Stanikzai stated that currently there is enough water to meet the needs of Afghan citizens, not an amount that would be diverted towards Iran.

“You are better aware of the drought situation. Most of the time there is no rain, no snow. And sometimes if there is water, it is not enough to release to Iran because it does not solve our internal problems,” Abbas Stanikzai said.

The deputy minister of Foreign Affairs emphasized that in case of an increase in water in the Helmand River and the resolution of citizens’ challenges in this regard, it will honor Iran’s water rights.

He also responded to criticism from some Iranian authorities regarding water payments, stating that the acting Afghan government never intended to ruin its relations with Iran over water.

“They may sometimes have harsh words; I won’t say anything else in response to those harsh words, just that when we have excess water, we will give our Iranian brothers their water rights,” Stanikzai added.

Tensions between Iran and Afghanistan have been simmering over water rights from the Helmand River for over a decade, and these tensions have escalated since the return of the Islamic Emirate, prompting internal and external reactions.

Analysts have different views about the solution of this issue between the two countries.

“This requires both sides to engage in technical discussions and create a peaceful space to establish the position of both parties based on international laws,” said Sayed Muqadam Amin, an international relations analyst.

“Efforts should be made for both sides to resolve this issue through technical means and dialogue and not turn the issue of water rights into a contentious matter,” said Shaker Yaqoubi, an expert on economic issues.

Previously, Iran’s representative in the twenty-seventh Helmand River Commission meeting had demanded the allocation of Iran’s water rights by the Islamic Emirate.

Stanikzai Affirms Iran’s Water Rights But Says Afghans Victims of Drought
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