Taliban accused of torturing journalists for covering protests - Al Jazeera English

Kabul, Afghanistan – Taliban fighters have been accused of beating and detaining journalists for covering protests in the Afghan capital Kabul, raising questions over the group’s promises on media freedom.

Two reporters for the Etilaatroz newspaper – Taqi Daryabi and Nematullah Naqdi – were detained by the Taliban while covering a women’s protest in the west of Kabul on Wednesday morning.

Two other journalists from the newspaper – Aber Shaygan and Lutfali Sultani – rushed to the police station along with the newspaper editor, Kadhim Karimi, to inquire about the whereabouts of their colleagues.

But the moment they reached the police station, they say, Taliban fighters pushed and slapped them and confiscated all their belongings, including mobile phones.

“Karimi barely finished his sentence, when one of the Taliban slapped him and told him to get lost,” Shaygan told Al Jazeera, adding that as soon as they introduced themselves as journalists, the Taliban treated them with disdain.

Torture in holding cell

The three men were taken into a small holding cell with 15 people in it, two of whom were reporters with Reuters and Turkey’s Anadolu Agency, Shaygan said.

It was while they were in holding that the three heard reports of the disturbing abuse suffered by Daryabi, 22, and Naqdi, 28, who were being held in separate rooms.

“We could hear their screams and cries through the walls,” the cellmates said of the piercing cries. “The cellmates had even heard the sounds of women crying from pain.”

Naqdi, a video journalist, left and Taqi Daryabi, video editor undress to show their wounds sustained after Taliban fighters tortured and beat them while in custody [Marcus Yam/Los Angeles Times]

Pictures posted by the newspaper online filled in the rest of the story. They showed clear physical evidence of the floggings and beatings with cables both men were subject to. Daryabi’s lower back, upper legs, and face were covered with deep red lesions. Naqdi’s left arm, upper back, upper legs, and face were also covered in red welts.

“They were beaten so bad, they couldn’t walk. They were hit with guns, they were kicked, they were whipped with cables, they were slapped,” Shaygan said.

He said the violence was so brutal that Naqdi and Daryabi had lost consciousness from the pain.

But it was not just journalists who seemed to meet this fate. Shaygan said a male protester was escorted into their cell by Taliban guards, clearly looking as if he too had been abused.

“He could barely walk, one of the other cellmates had to get up and help him in,” said Shaygan.

Stern warning

Though all five men were released after several hours in detention, Shaygan said they were issued a stern warning from a Taliban official before leaving: “What these protesters were doing is illegal and by covering such things, you all broke the law. We will let you go this time, but next time you won’t be let out so easily.”

At the time, protests were not outlawed but, within hours, the Taliban issued a decree saying any protests, along with their slogans, must be approved 24 hours prior by the Ministry of Justice.

A member of the Taliban forces points his gun at protesters, as Afghan demonstrators shout slogans during an anti-Pakistan protest near the Pakistan embassy in Kabul [Reuters]

Those claims of illegality by the official struck Shaygan and his colleagues as going directly against statements the Taliban have made about freedom of the press in their “Islamic Emirate”.

At an August 17 press conference, the group’s then-spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said: “Private media can continue to be free and independent; they can continue their activities … Impartiality of the media is very important. They can critique our work so that we can improve.”

Mujahid made similar claims at a private gathering of journalists working for foreign media late last month. At the time, Mujahid encouraged journalists to be transparent and report the realities of life in a Taliban-run Afghanistan.

But in the ensuing weeks, Afghan social media has been full of videos and pictures showing the group’s armed fighters trying to keep journalists from doing their job. During that time, the Taliban has repeatedly been accused of abuses against journalists.

These allegations range from the use of intimidation, physical violence, destruction and confiscation of property and detention of media workers.

Al Jazeera reached out to the Taliban for comment but it did not receive a response by the time of publication.

Amnesty decries reports of violence against the press

Amnesty International has decried the reports of violence and intimidation against the press.

“Journalists must also be permitted to report on the protests without fear of violence… The international community must use all leverage to demand that these basic rights are protected,” the rights group said in reaction to the Taliban’s alleged treatment of media workers during recent demonstrations.

Shaygan has been working with Etilaatroz, which is renowned for its investigative reporting, for four years. He says recent weeks have shown that the Taliban have “two faces,” one the leadership projects to the outside world and the one the Afghan people face on a daily basis on the streets.

I have no interest in working as a journalist in my country any more. My profession is dead there

Sulan Faizy, Afghan journalist based in Turkey

“On TV and at press conferences, their leaders are very mannered and speak of freedoms, but their fighters on the street act however they want,” Shaygan says that contrast is what makes reporting in a Taliban-run Afghanistan so difficult, “You never know what mood they’ll be in.”

Shaygan and his colleagues were surprised to find that other journalists who had been detained that day were in possession of letters from Mujahid that granted them “the right to operate” at virtually any location as journalists. This, he said, was further proof of the disconnect between the leadership and the foot soldiers of the Taliban.

“They don’t want us to operate freely, they just want media to parrot their propaganda to the world.”

Adding to his frustration and confusion is the fact that he and his colleagues were merely inquiring about the detention of their co-workers at the time of their detention and abuse, “We just wanted to find out what happened to our friends.”

Even though the media has continued to operate since the Taliban took over the country, journalists say their jobs have become increasingly difficult over the last three weeks.

The Taliban has not yet placed any outright restrictions on the media, but journalists speaking to Al Jazeera all said they fear the days ahead, especially now that the Taliban have named their caretaker cabinet.

Sulan Faizy, a journalist who worked with international media and is currently in Turkey with his family, said he has little hope for the future of the press in Afghanistan.

“I have no interest in working as a journalist in my country any more. My profession is dead there,” said the 37-year-old said.

“I’ve lived under the Taliban twice. I know what’s to come next for Afghans living under them. I will find another way to support my family,” he said.

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2021-09-09 13:10:15Z
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Egypt's Suez Canal blocked again by container ship - Metro.co.uk

The Suez Canal in Egypt has been blocked for the second time this year (Picture: Getty)

Boats were blocked from entering the Suez Canal for the second time this year after a container ship reportedly ran around.

Local media said the vessel became stuck at around the 54km point in the canal in Egypt.

The Suez Canal Authority was forced to temporarily suspend navigation while work to free the ship was ongoing.

Four ships were stopped inside the canal going towards Suez from Port Said, according to Al-Ain.

The Suez Canal in Egypt is one of the most important routes for world shipping (Picture: Marine Vessel Traffic)

Sky News Arabia reported that the vessel was successfully refloated a short time later and the channel was reopened.

The ship involved was reportedly the Coral Crystal, a Panama-flagged bulk carrier that was built in 2012.

It comes after the Ever Given — one of the largest container ships ever built – got stuck in the canal for six days in March, prompting chaos in worldwide shipping.

More: Egypt

The grounding of the 400m ship cost companies billions as goods could not be shipped around the world.

Specialist teams worked flat out for nearly a week on the huge operation to clear the blockage and one rescue worker died.

The canal authority is working on a multi-billion dollar project to widen sections of the canal in the hope that it can prevent large ships becoming blocked again.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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2021-09-09 11:25:00Z
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Taliban open fire to disperse female protesters in Kabul as the Islamists ban rallies - Daily Mail

Taliban open fire to disperse female protesters in Kabul as the Islamists ban rallies and beat journalists after they were humiliated by viral images of women standing up to them

• Taliban opened fire to disperse women defying a ban on demonstrations today 
• Protest organisers had cancelled rallies after the ban was announced last night
• Taliban said protests would not be allowed 'for the time being' amid a crackdown
• Comes as footage of women demanding rights in front of Taliban surfaced online
• Two journalists were also detained and severely beaten while covering protests  
• WARNING DISTRESSING CONTENT 

By Lauren Lewis For Mailonline and Wires

Published: 11:21 BST, 9 September 2021 | Updated: 13:29 BST, 9 September 2021

Taliban fighters opened fire to disperse female protesters in Kabul today hours after the Islamists banned rallies.

The militants announced a moratorium on demonstrations 'for the time being' last night after the group was humiliated by viral images of women standing up to them. 

Footage purporting to show women protesters taking to the streets today also shows militants in military fatigues preventing demonstrators from gathering and shouting at them to disperse. 

Gun shots and screams are then heard in the shaky footage, which MailOnline was unable to independently verify, before it hastily ends. 

There were other reports demonstrators gathered near the Pakistan embassy in Kabul in defiance of the ban.  

Harrowing images also emerged of journalists with angry welts and bruises after they were detained by Taliban fighters while covering protests. 

Protest organisers had called off demonstrations after the ban was announced on Wednesday night amid a noticeably stronger armed Taliban presence - including special forces in military fatigues - on the streets of Kabul. 

It comes after video posted online this week showed brave women demanding their rights in front of Taliban fighters and protesting the lack of female representation in the all-male government formed on Tuesday. 

The Islamists have taken a harsh stance to demonstrators - locking a crowd women in a basement to prevent them joining protests and whipping those who made to the rallies this week.  Footage also showed the militants threatening demonstrators with weapons and firing warning shots into the air to forcibly disperse crowds.

The protests are proving an early test for the Taliban who have seen a show of resistance since taking power on August 15 that was unthinkable under the extremist group's last regime in the 1990s.

Announcing the protest ban last night, Taliban officials said demonstrations would be banned 'for the time being' and warned violators 'will face severe legal action'. 

Taliban fighters in military fatigues opened fire to disperse female protesters in Kabul today hours after the Islamists banned rallies

Protest organisers cancelled rallies in Kabul on Thursday after the Taliban banned demonstrations 'for the time being' and warned violators 'will face severe legal action' after the group was humiliated by viral images of women standing up to them 

Armed Taliban fighters were seen this week threatening protesters with weapons as they try to quell a growing wave of demonstrations against their rule

Footage showed military personnel trying to stop women's rights activists protesting against the Taliban in Kabul this week

A Taliban fighter pulls his gun on a female protester in Kabul at a protest against the all-male administration on Tuesday 

Harrowing images emerged of two journalists with angry welts and bruises after they were detained by Taliban fighters while covering protest

Neamat Naqdi (left) winces in pain as his colleagues help him remove his shirt after he was severely beaten by Taliban fighters while covering protests on Wednesday 

Earlier this week armed fighters dispersed hundreds of protesters in cities across Afghanistan, including the capital Kabul, Faizabad in the northeast and in Herat in the west, where two people were shot dead.  

There was a noticeably stronger Taliban presence on the streets of Kabul on Thursday morning as armed fighters - including special forces in military fatigues - stood guard on street corners and manned checkpoints, according to AFP journalists.

An organiser of a protest outside the Pakistan embassy - where gunmen sprayed shots into the air on Tuesday to disperse a rally - told AFP on Thursday it had been cancelled because of the overnight ban. 

At the site of another planned protest in the city, there were no signs of a demonstration. 

It comes after a Taliban interim government, drawn exclusively from loyalist ranks, was announced this week with established hardliners in all key posts and no women - despite previous promises of an inclusive administration for all Afghans. 

Protests in recent days have targeted the cabinet. In Kabul yesterday a group of women bearing signs reading: 'A Cabinet without women is a failure,' held another protest in the Pul-e Surkh area of the city.  

'The Cabinet was announced and there were no women in the Cabinet. And some journalists who came to cover the protest were all arrested and taken to the police station,' said a woman in a video shared on social media.   

Brave Afghan women have marched through Kabul chanting 'freedom' while protesting against Taliban rule 

Afghan women who were veiled, but not wearing burqas, were seen marching through the streets of Kabul clutching 'freedom' signs and chanting this week before the Taliban banned protests

Pictured: A protest in Kabul on Tuesday, which came after the Afghan resistance leader called for a 'national uprising' against the group

There were reports of protesters, including women, being hit with the butts of rifles on Tuesday

Taliban forces walk in front of Afghan demonstrators as they shout slogans during an anti-Pakistan protest on Tuesday

A Taliban fighter stands guard in Kabul today after the Islamist group banned demonstrations 'for the time being' and warned of severe punishments for violators

It comes a day after Taliban fighters left two journalists with ugly welts and bruises after detaining them while they were covering protests. 

The pair were picked up at a demonstration yesterday and taken to a police station in the capital, where they say they were punched and beaten with batons, electrical cables and whips after being accused of organising the protest.

'One of the Taliban put his foot on my head, crushed my face against the concrete. They kicked me in the head... I thought they were going to kill me,' photographer Nematullah Naqdi told AFP. 

Naqdi and his colleague Taqi Daryabi, a reporter, who both work for Etilaat Roz (Information Daily) had been assigned to cover a small protest in front of a police station in Kabul by women demanding the right to work and education.

Naqdi said he was accosted by a Taliban fighter as soon as he started taking pictures.

'They told me 'You cannot film',' he said. 'They arrested all those who were filming and took their phones.'

Journalists Neamat Naqdi (left) and Taqi Daryabi (right) were detained and severely beaten by the Taliban while covering protests on Wednesday 

Journalist Neamat Naqdi (right) was left with lash marks on his thighs after he was detained while covering protests in Kabul on Wednesday. Taqi Daryabi (left) was left with ugly welts and bruises on his lower back after spending hours in Taliban custody

Neamat Naqdi (left) and Taqi Daryabi (right) arrive back at their offices with facial wounds after being severally beaten by the Taliban who are seeking to crush a growing wave of protests

It comes after two journalists, including pictured Nemat Naqdi who works for Afghan news outlet Etilaat Roz, were detained and severely beaten by the Taliban while covering protests

Naqdi said the Taliban tried to grab his camera, but he managed to hand it to someone in the crowd. Three Taliban fighters caught him, however, and took him to the police station where the beatings started.

Taliban officials have not responded to repeated requests for comment. 

'The Taliban started insulting me, kicking me,' said Naqdi, adding that he was accused of being the organiser of the rally. He asked why he was being beaten, only to be told: 'You are lucky you weren't beheaded'.

Naqdi was eventually taken to a crowded cell where he found his colleague, Daryabi, who had also been arrested and beaten.

'We were in so much pain that we couldn't move,' Daryabi said.

A few hours later the pair were released without explanation - sent on their way with a string of insults. 'They see us as enemies,' Taqi said.

The Taliban have claimed they will uphold press freedoms - in line with unspecified Islamic principles - although journalists are increasingly being harassed covering protests across the country.

In recent days, dozens of journalists have reported being beaten, detained or prevented from covering the protests, a show of resistance unthinkable under the Taliban's last regime in the 1990s.

Most are Afghan journalists, whom the Taliban harass more than the foreign media. 

Zaki Daryabi, chief of the Etilaat Roz newspaper, said the Taliban's words rang hollow.

'This official speech is totally different from the reality that can be observed on the ground.' 

There were other superficial signs of the Taliban tightening their grip.

Images on social media showed the country's main airport - previously dubbed Hamid Karzai International, after the first post-Taliban president - had been renamed Kabul International.

A public holiday scheduled for Thursday honouring Ahmad Shah Massoud, the famed anti-Taliban resistance fighter assassinated 20 years ago by an Al-Qaeda suicide squad, was also cancelled.

Meanwhile a senior Taliban official said yesterday that women would not be allowed to play cricket - a popular sport in Afghanistan - or possible any other sport because it was 'not necessary' and their bodies might be exposed. 

On Thursday Cricket Australia said it would cancel a historic maiden Test match against Afghanistan unless the Taliban backtracks on the ban on women playing sport. 

Taliban leaders have vowed to respect people's rights, including those of women, in accordance with Islamic sharia law, but those who have won greater freedoms over the past two decades are worried about losing them. 

Furious protesters took to the streets of the capital on Tuesday after the leader of the anti-Taliban resistance called for a 'national uprising' against the militant group a day earlier.

Pictures showed female demonstrators arguing with Taliban fighters as one woman stared down an M-16 rifle pointed at her face. 

Footage taken on a mobile phone shows a woman in an underground car park, panning around to reveal a crowd of women and some children gathered in the same space. The video is hastily cut short after a man's voice is heard shouting. 

Miraqa Popal, the head of news at Afghanistan's Tolo News outlet, shared the clip on Twitter, writing that some eyewitnesses said the women were held in Kabul's Azizi Bank 'to prevent them from joining protesters'.  

An Afghan woman shouts during a protest. Many women are concerned that hard-won rights will be curtailed under the new regime

A female protester speaks with a Taliban fighter during a protest in Kabul on Tuesday

Many women were among the protesters out in Kabul on Tuesday, where they were seen arguing with Taliban fighters

Footage taken on a mobile phone shows a woman in an underground car park, panning around to reveal a crowd of women and some children gathered in the same space

The Taliban this week announced an interim government made up mainly of ethnic Pashtun men including wanted terror suspects and Islamist hardliners, dashing international hopes for a more moderate administration. 

The Taliban's announcement of a new government on Tuesday was widely seen as a signal they were not looking to broaden their base and present a more tolerant face to the world, as they had suggested they would do before their military takeover.

Foreign countries greeted the interim government with caution and dismay on Wednesday. In Kabul, dozens of women took to the streets in protest.

Many critics called on the leadership to respect basic human rights and revive the economy, which faces collapse amid steep inflation, food shortages and the prospect of foreign aid being slashed as countries seek to isolate the Taliban.

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said no one in the Biden administration 'would suggest that the Taliban are respected and valued members of the global community.'

The European Union voiced its disapproval at the appointments, but said it was ready to continue humanitarian assistance. Longer-term aid would depend on the Taliban upholding basic freedoms. 

The new acting Cabinet includes former detainees of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, while the interior minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is wanted by the United States on terrorism charges and carries a reward of $10 million.

His uncle, with a bounty of $5 million, is the minister for refugees and repatriation. 

But even as the Taliban consolidate power, they face a monumental task in ruling Afghanistan, which is wracked with economic woes and security challenges - including from the Islamic State group's local chapter.  

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said any international legitimacy for the Taliban government would have to be 'earned', after leading a 20-nation virtual meeting on the Afghan crisis.

In Germany, Blinken said the ministerial talks were the 'starting point for international coordination' on dealing with the Taliban. Among the countries in the virtual meeting were European allies and historic Taliban backer Pakistan.

'The Taliban seek international legitimacy. Any legitimacy - any support - will have to be earned,' Blinken told reporters.

The European Union said the 'caretaker' government failed to honour previous vows of inclusion. China meanwhile said it welcomed the end of 'three weeks of anarchy', adding it 'attaches great importance' to the announcement of an interim government.

Qatar, the central intermediary between the Taliban and the international community in recent years, said the Taliban had demonstrated 'pragmatism' of late.

Former Afghan president Ashraf Ghani, who fled the country as the Taliban entered Kabul, apologised Wednesday to the Afghan people for how his rule ended.    

The Taliban top brass, from the UN-sanctioned leader freed by the US three years ago to the son of the one-eyed former chief Mullah Omar now serving as interior minister

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, Taliban co-founder and leader of the provisional government 

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, one of the co-founders of the Taliban, was freed from jail in Pakistan three years ago at the request of the U.S. government.  

Just nine months ago, he posed for pictures with Donald Trump's Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to sign a peace deal in Doha which today lies in tatters.

Last month, his forces seized Kabul and he is now tipped to become Afghanistan's next leader in a reversal of fortune which humiliates Washington.  

While Haibatullah Akhundzada is the Taliban's overall leader, Baradar is head of its political office and one of the most recognisable faces of the chiefs who have been involved in peace talks in Qatar. 

In September 2020, Baradar was pictured with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who 'urged the Taliban to seize this opportunity to forge a political settlement and reach a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire,' the US said in a statement

The 53-year-old was deputy leader under ex-chief Mullah Mohammed Omar, whose support for Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden led to the US-led invasion of Afghanistan after 9/11. 

Baradar is reported to have flown immediately from Doha to Kabul on Sunday evening as the militants were storming the presidential palace. 

Born in Uruzgan province in 1968, Baradar was raised in Kandahar, the birthplace of the Taliban movement.

He fought with the mujahideen against the Soviets in the 1980s until they were driven out in 1989.

Afterwards, Afghanistan was gripped by a blood civil war between rival warlords and Baradar set up an Islamic school in Kandahar with his former commander Mohammed Omar.

The two mullahs helped to found the Taliban movement, an ideology which embraced hardline orthodoxy and strived for the creation of an Islamic Emirate. 

Fuelled by zealotry, hatred of greedy warlords and with financial backing from Pakistan's secret services, the Taliban seized power in 1996 after conquering provincial capitals before marching on Kabul, just as they have in recent months.

Baradar had a number of different roles during the Taliban's five-year reign and was the deputy defence minister when the US invaded in 2001.  

He went into hiding but remained active in the Taliban's leadership in exile.

In 2010, the CIA tracked him down to the Pakistani city of Karachi and in February of that year the Pakistani intelligence service (ISI) arrested him.

But in 2018, he was released at the request of the Trump administration as part of their ongoing negotiations with the Taliban in Qatar, on the understanding that he could help broker peace. 

In February 2020, Baradar signed the Doha Agreement in which the U.S. pledged to leave Afghanistan on the basis that the Taliban would enter into a power-sharing arrangement with President Ashraf Ghani's government in Kabul.

He was pictured in September with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who 'urged the Taliban to seize this opportunity to forge a political settlement and reach a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire,' the US said in a statement.

Pompeo 'welcomed Afghan leadership and ownership of the effort to end 40 years of war and ensure that Afghanistan is not a threat to the United States or its allies.'

The Doha deal was heralded as a momentous peace declaration but has been proved to be nothing but a ploy by the Taliban.

The jihadists waited until thousands of American troops had left before launching a major offensive to recapture the country, undoing two decades of work by the US-led coalition.

Haibatullah Akhundzada, the future Emir of Afghanistan and the Taliban's Islamic figurehead

Haibatullah Akhundzada, the 'Leader of the Faithful,' is the Taliban's Supreme Commander with the final word on its political, religious and military policy.

Akhundzada is expected to take the title of Emir of Afghanistan.

Believed to be around 60-years-old, he is not known for his military strategy but is revered as an Islamic scholar and rules the Taliban by that right. 

He took over in 2016 when the group's former chief, Akhtar Mansour, was killed in a US drone strike on the Pakistani border.

After being appointed leader, Akhundzada secured a pledge of loyalty from Al Qaeda chief Ayman al-Zawahiri, who showered the religious scholar with praise - calling him 'the emir of the faithful'.

This helped to seal his jihadi credentials with the group's long-time allies. 

Akhundzada became head of the Taliban's council of religious scholars after the US invasion and is believed to be the author of many of its fatwas (Islamic legal rulings)

Akhundzada was tasked with the enormous challenge of unifying a militant movement that briefly fractured during a bitter power struggle following the assassination of his predecessor, and the revelation that the leadership had hid the death of Taliban founder Mullah Omar for years.

The leader's public profile has been largely limited to the release of annual messages during Islamic holidays.  

Akhundzada was born around 1959 to a religious scholar in the Panjwayi district of Kandahar Province.

His family were forced to flee their home during the Soviet invasion and he joined the resistance as a young man.

He was one of the first new Taliban recruits in the 1990s and immediately impressed his superiors with his knowledge of Islamic law.

When the Taliban captured Afghanistan's western Farah province, he was put in charge of fighting crime in the area.

As the Taliban seized more of the country, Akhunzad became head of the military court and deputy chief of its supreme court. 

After the US invasion in 2001 he became head of the Taliban's council of religious scholars and is believed to be the author of many of its fatwas (Islamic legal rulings), including public executions of murderer and adulterers and cutting the hands off thieves. 

Before being named the new leader he had been preaching and teaching for around 15 years at a mosque in Kuchlak, a town in southwestern Pakistan, sources told Reuters.  

Sirajuddin Haqqani, the son of the famed commander from the anti-Soviet jihad

Sirajuddin doubles as both the deputy leader of the Taliban movement while also heading the powerful Haqqani network.

The Haqqani Network is a US-designated terror group that has long been viewed as one of the most dangerous factions fighting Afghan and US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan during the past two decades.

The group is infamous for its use of suicide bombers and is believed to have orchestrated some of the most high-profile attacks in Kabul over the years.

An FBI wanted poster for Sirajuddin Haqqani, the son of the famed commander from the anti-Soviet jihad

The network has also been accused of assassinating top Afghan officials and holding kidnapped Western citizens for ransom - including US soldier Bowe Bergdahl, released in 2014.

Known for their independence, fighting acumen, and savvy business dealings, the Haqqanis are believed to oversee operations in the rugged mountains of eastern Afghanistan, while holding considerable sway over the Taliban's leadership council.

Mullah Yaqoob, the son of the Taliban's founder

The son of the Taliban's founder Mullah Omar.

Mullah Yaqoob heads the group's powerful military commission, which oversees a vast network of field commanders charged with executing the insurgency's strategic operations in the war.

His lineage and ties to his father - who enjoyed a cult-like status as the Taliban's leader - serves as a potent symbol and makes him a unifying figure over a sprawling movement.

However speculation remains rife about Yaqoob's exact role within the movement, with some analysts arguing that his appointment to the role in 2020 was merely cosmetic. 

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2021-09-09 10:21:33Z
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North Korea's military parade features hazmat suits and gas masks - BBC News - BBC News

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2021-09-09 12:05:35Z
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Taliban AGREE to let 200 Americans and foreigners fly out of Kabul - Daily Mail

Taliban AGREE to let 200 Americans and foreigners working in Afghanistan fly out of Kabul Airport on charter planes Thursday after rescuers claimed State Department was frustrating evacuation efforts

• Taliban authorities have agreed to let 200 Americans and foreigners leave
• New charter flights out of Kabul will ferry the evacuees, a US official said 
• It follows a standoff with charter plans stuck on the tarmac at Mazar-i-Sharif
• Organizers claimed State Department was not doing enough to facilitate flights
• But Secretary of State Blinken blamed the standoff on the Taliban 
• It's unclear if the flights out of Kabul will carry those stranded in Mazar-i-Sharif 

By Reuters and Keith Griffith For Dailymail.com

Published: 06:59 BST, 9 September 2021 | Updated: 07:07 BST, 9 September 2021

Taliban authorities have agreed to let 200 American civilians and other non-Afghans to depart on charter flights from Kabul airport, a U.S. official said.

The Taliban were pressed to allow the departures by U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad, said the official, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity on Thursday.

The departures were expected on Thursday, and an exact breakdown of how many US citizens and people from other nations will be on the flight has not been shared.

The official could not say whether these Americans and third-country nationals were among people who have been stranded for days in Mazar-i-Sharif 260 miles north of Kabul on charter flights that were barred from taking off.

Planes chartered to carry people out of Afghanistan have been stuck at Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport, with some organizers saying the State Department was not doing enough to facilitate their departure. 

The criticism came after an email leak suggested that the agency prevented several private flights from leaving Afghanistan with U.S. citizens and Afghan allies on board. 

 Taliban authorities have agreed to let 200 American civilians and third country nationals depart on charter flights from Kabul airport. The Kabul Airport is seen above

Grounded planes are seen at Mazar-i-Sharif International Airport, where hundreds of evacuees have been stuck and unable to leave Afghanistan in a standoff between the US and Taliban

Blinken met with refugees at the U.S. Air Base in Ramstein, Germany on Wednesday as the State Department faces criticism after leaked emails show it refused to let privately chartered planes land at the Doha, Qatar U.S. military base, even if they have Americans on board

Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday went on a charm offensive, saying the Taliban was to blame for the standoff and calling on the militants to allow the charter flights to depart from Afghanistan. 

Blinken said the United States was doing everything in its power to get the flights off the ground, but the Taliban was not permitting the flights to depart.

'We've made clear to all parties, we've made clear to the Taliban that these charters need to be able to depart,' Blinken said at a press conference in Germany.

The remarks came as Blinken met with Afghan refugees at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany. He also met with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas as the two counterparts discussed cooperation in efforts to process and resettle Afghan refugees. 

The two will hold a virtual 20-nation meeting on the crisis from the southwestern German U.S. Air Base.

The administration still insists there are only around 100 Americans left to be evacuated, while volunteer groups leading private evacuation efforts and Republicans claim there are more like 500 U.S. citizens still trying to get out.

Six planes chartered to evacuate Americans and allies from Afghanistan were blocked from leaving by the Taliban, it emerged over the weekend.

Blinken speaks to members of the US embassy and Mission Afghanistan in the Qatari capital Doha on Tuesday. Blinken blamed the Taliban for blocking charter flights

The de-facto ruler of Afghanistan, Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, is seen in a file photo

The State Department also refused to green light privately chartered flights out of Afghanistan that could have evacuated US citizens and Afghan special immigrant visa applicants, leaked emails reportedly show. 

The Department of Homeland Security says about 60,000 people have arrived in the US since August 17 from Afghanistan as part of the evacuation formally known as Operation Allies Welcome.

DHS said in the latest updated released Wednesday that 17 percent of those arrivals are U.S. citizens and permanent residents who were in Afghanistan when the government there fell to the Taliban.

The remaining 83 percent are a mix of people. They include those with Special Immigrant Visas, for people who worked as interpreters or in some other capacity for the U.S. or NATO. 

There are also other visa holders as well as applicants for visas who have not yet completed their processing. The remainder are various types of 'vulnerable' Afghans who would be threatened under the Taliban, such as women and human rights advocates.

DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas says a small number of evacuees have been prevented from entering the U.S. through 'multi-layered' security vetting but he declined to provide specific numbers of provide details about the cases. 

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2021-09-09 05:59:45Z
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Ashraf Ghani: 'I apologise that I could not make it end differently' - BBC News

Reuters

Former Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has apologised to the people of Afghanistan after fleeing to take refuge in the United Arab Emirates.

"Leaving Kabul was the most difficult decision of my life," he said, adding that he was sorry he "could not make it end differently".

Mr Ghani abruptly left Afghanistan as Taliban militants advanced on the capital on 15 August.

He said he had not intended to abandon his people but "it was the only way".

He also again denied the "baseless" allegations that he had travelled to the UAE with about $169m (£123m).

In a statement shared on Twitter on Wednesday, Mr Ghani said he had no choice but to leave the country in order to avoid widespread violence.

"I left at the urging of the palace security, who advised me that to stay risked setting off the same street-to-street fighting the city had suffered during the civil war of the 1990s," he wrote, adding that he did so to "save Kabul and her six million citizens".

He said he had devoted 20 years to helping Afghanistan become a "democratic, prosperous and sovereign state".

Mr Ghani added that he had "deep and profound regret that my own chapter ended in similar tragedy to my predecessors".

• Who is Ashraf Ghani?
• The frenzied final hours of the Afghan government

The 72-year-old former president, who has faced intense criticism from other Afghan politicians for leaving the country, said he would address the "events leading up to my departure" in the near future.

In a live Facebook address on 18 August, Mr Ghani said he was "forced" to leave Afghanistan by his security team because "there was a real chance that I would be captured and killed".

He said that when the Taliban entered the presidential palace in Kabul, "they started looking for me from room to room".

Denying claims that he had taken a large amount of money with him when he left the country, Mr Ghani said he was "not even allowed to take my sandals off and put my shoes on".

Earlier this week the Taliban, which seized control of Afghanistan in a sweeping offensive more than three weeks ago, announced the formation of an all-male interim government to rule the country.

• Who's who in the Taliban leadership

On Wednesday, dozens of women in Kabul and the north-eastern Afghan province of Badakhshan protested against the new cabinet, saying they would not accept a government with no women ministers.

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2021-09-09 04:16:27Z
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Afghanistan: Two journalists detained and beaten up for covering women's rights protests in Kabul, human rights group says - Sky News

Two Afghanistan journalists covering the women's protests in Kabul have been detained and severely beaten by Taliban security forces, Human Rights Watch has said.

Taqi Daryabi and Nemat Naqdi, from the Kabul-based media outlet Etilaat-e Roz, were detained and attacked on Tuesday.

The pair had been covering protests by women in the Afghan capital calling for an end to Taliban violations of the rights of women and girls.

Image: Taqi Daryabi was also detained and beaten up by Taliban authorities. Pic: Zaki Daryabi

The Taliban authorities took the two men to a police station and put them in separate cells before severely beating them with cables, according to Etilaat-e Roz.

They were both released on Wednesday and have been receiving medical treatment in hospital for injuries to their backs and faces.

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Zaki Daryabi, editor-in-chief of Etilaat-e Roz, said: "Two of my colleagues from who were detained by Taliban, beaten for four hours."

He added: "Under constant and brutal torture of the Taliban, the reporters lost their consciousness four times.

More on Afghanistan

"This is unacceptable. We want the Taliban to bring their soldiers to justice. We also all the media organisations stand together against this unacceptable torture."

Image: Afghan women's rights defenders and civil activists protest to call on the Taliban for the preservation of their achievements and education, in front of the presidential palace in Kabul

Human Rights Watch said the Taliban has been detaining and assaulting journalists imposing new restrictions on media work - and demanded it stops the assaults and drop the restrictions.

The organisation said Taliban members responsible for attacks against protesters and journalists should be appropriately punished.

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Taliban ban public protests in Afghanistan

Patricia Gossman, associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said: "Taliban authorities claimed that they would allow the media to function so long as they 'respected Islamic values', but they are increasingly preventing journalists from reporting on demonstrations.

"The Taliban need to ensure that all journalists are able to carry out their work without abusive restrictions or fear of retribution."

Human Rights Watch also reported that the Taliban authorities also detained a photojournalist named Wahid Ahmadi from Tolonews on Tuesday and released him later that day.

Image: Afghan women protest in Mazar-e-Sharif

The authorities reportedly confiscated his camera and prevented other journalists from filming the protest.

The Taliban has repeatedly promised to uphold women's rights since seizing power last month.

But many Afghans and international observers are deeply sceptical, with reports of fighters already breaking their pledge.

Image: Male and female students segregated by a curtain at a university in Kabul

Earlier this week, male and female students were segregated by a curtain down the middle of a classroom in one university in Kabul.

Meanwhile, witnesses have said that the Taliban have broken up women's rights protests in Kabul by firing shots into the air and using tear gas and tasers.

Women marched through the Afghan capital for the second day in a row on Saturday demanding their freedoms are guaranteed under the new Islamist regime.

The Taliban has since announced a ban on all protests in Kabul and other provinces in Afghanistan which have not got prior permission.

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2021-09-08 21:34:54Z
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