PARIS ,Sept 12,2021: The Taliban are lying and France will not have any relationship with its newly-formed government, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said late on Saturday before heading for talks in Qatar on Sunday to discuss future evacuations from Afghanistan.
“They said they would let some foreigners and Afghans leave freely and (talked) of an inclusive and representative government, but they are lying,” Le Drian said on France 5 TV.
Tashkent [Uzbekistan] September 12,2021: A group of Afghan Air Force pilots, who fled to Uzbekistan after the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, is expected to be transferred to a US military base in Doha.
Citing Wall Street Journal, Sputnik reported that the pilots will be transferred this weekend under a new agreement between the US and Uzbek governments, where they will be processed for onward travel, said people familiar with the matter.
The Taliban has promised amnesty to government officials and members of the military, but the pilots still fear for their safety and the Uzbek government has been under pressure by the Taliban to hand over the pilots, according to The Wall Street Journal.
However, it is unclear whether the pilots will eventually end up being transferred to the US, reported Sputnik.
“Through a lot of diligent work, we are hopeful that the pilots and military personnel, including the husband [of] one of my constituents, are going to get out of Uzbekistan this weekend,” Republican Representative for Texas, August Pfluger, told The Wall Street Journal.
“This was accomplished through constant work to hold the Biden administration’s feet to the fire,” he added.
There are currently 46 aircraft in Uzbekistan that flew over from Afghanistan, as well as pilots, crews, and their families, totalling some 585 people, according to the newspaper.
Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Suhail Shaheen has called on the pilots to return to Afghanistan as the country needs its people to rebuild itself.
The US military withdrawal from Afghanistan was completed on August 31, ending the nearly twenty-year American military presence in Afghanistan. Earlier this week, the Taliban announced the composition of Afghanistan’s temporary government comprising of 33 male members without any women representation.
Mullah Muhammad Hassan Akhund has been appointed as interim Prime Minister with two deputies Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar and Molavi Abdul Salam Hanafi.
The seizure of power has forced thousands of Afghans to flee for fear of reprisals from the militants.
Sept 11,2021:The United States has removed its most advanced missile defence system and Patriot batteries from Saudi Arabia in recent weeks, even as the kingdom faced continued air attacks from Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
The redeployment of the defences from Prince Sultan Air Base outside Riyadh came as Gulf Arab countries nervously watched the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan, including their last-minute evacuations from Kabul’s besieged international airport.
While tens of thousands of American forces remain across the Arabian Peninsula as a counterweight to Iran, Gulf Arab nations worry about the US’s future plans as its military perceives a growing threat in Asia that requires those missile defences.
Tensions remain high as negotiations appear stalled in Vienna over Iran’s collapsed nuclear deal with world powers, raising the danger of future confrontations in the region.
New Delhi, Sep 11,2021: The government has notified transfer of sale-bound Air India’s capital assets to Air India Assets Holding Company Ltd (AIAHL), the special purpose vehicle (SPV) created for warehousing part of airline’s loans, four of its subsidiaries, non-core assets, paintings & artifacts and other non-operational assets.
The move is being seen as a prelude to the national carrier’s imminent privatisation.
A senior Air India official said that the government has now completely stripped the airline of its assets and in case disinvestment does not go through it will have no assets to fall back on.
In its notification effecting the transfer of assets, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) in a notification said, “This notification shall come into force with effect from April 1, 2022 and shall, accordingly, apply in relation to the assessment year 2022-2023 and subsequent assessment years.”
The last date for the financial bid of Air India is September 15, 2021 and Tata group is being seen as the potential buyer.
Washington, Sep 11,2021: The seizure of Afghanistan by the Taliban Islamist movement (banned in Russia) was caused by the collapse of the Afghan political and military leadership, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said.
“What we saw was a collapse of the political and military leadership, and that triggered the collapse of the whole defense against the Taliban,” Stoltenberg told The New York Times newspaper.
The NATO chief stressed that a lot of analysis would be conducted to study whether the withdrawal of the US and its allies from Afghanistan had triggered the collapse of the Afghan government.
“My main focus is how we can preserve the gains made in the fight against terrorism and how you get people out of Afghanistan,” he added.
The Taliban entered Kabul on August 15, ending a weeks-long offensive and resulting in the collapse of the US-backed government.
Internationally recognized Afghan President Ashraf Ghani resigned and left the country for the United Arab Emirates. The seizure of power has forced thousands of Afghans to seek escape from the country for fear of reprisals from the militants.
Kabul [Afghanistan], September 9,2021: The Shia Ulema Council has called for an inclusive government in Afghanistan in which Shia Muslims will be represented and the rights of all minorities will be respected.
After the fall of the Republic of Afghanistan, the Taliban on Tuesday formed the interim “Islamic Emirate”, appointing hardliners in its new government who oversaw the 20-year fight against the US-led military coalition.
The cabinet members consist of many Taliban figures that are considered hardliners. The list announced by chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid was dominated by members of the group’s old guard, with no women included.
“Our demands should be taken seriously. We want honorable officials, Jafari Jurisprudence (Shia school) should be recognized,” said Ayatullah Salehi Mudaras, a member of the Shia Ulema, as quoted by TOLO News. This comes after a large gathering was held by the Shia Ulema on Tuesday.
Another member of Shia Ulema said that nobody should be deprived of his or her political and sectarian rights. “We want equal opportunity, without discrimination.” The participants further called for the equal treatment of ethnicities in Afghanistan.