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... No. 68 _ February 1996
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J Prepared monthly by Afghanistan News Clipping Services

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.. AF6HANISTAN~ ENDLESS MISFORTUNE

Price: Pakistan: Rs.400 US$ 25 (Abroad: US$35)

Nattottts Aeetcucn:

Gradual JDeath

Afghanistan News Bulletin

No. 68 February 1996

Afghanistan:

CONTENTS

raKes; 123

Foreign Interest:

News Analyses 1

Mines 5

Taliban __ ~ 6

SCClRA 10

News Comments 19

General 42

UN 88

US 92

Iran 95

Uzbekistan 99

Pakistan 101

Photos 117

Cartoons 122

------------------------

------------------------

Afghan Gonel Kabul:

political Aspects ~_ 48

Peace Initiatives 53

Fighting 57

Food Crisis 64

Kabul Situation 71

----- Top Sto ry .-_ •• Afghanistan's Endless Misfortune

Refugees:

Page 1

Repatriation 75

Political Aspects 76

General 77

Leaders/Parties:

Hekmatyar (HIA) 79

Sayaf (IIA) 86

Afghanistan News Bulletin.

Published monthly by Afghanistan News Clipping Services (ANCS), Peshawar, Pakistan.

Founder: Fawad Ahmad Azizi Compiler: Tawfiq Ahmad Azizi

PRICE

Pakistan: Pak Rs.400.00 US$25. Abroad: US$ 35.00

1

The prevailing cl~ateof~ncertainty and controntationin the region and in Afghanistan requires ~hat

; .'; 'i ~; ~, 'Pakistan plays-its cards'carefully say~ DnRasul Bakhsh Rais ",.' i .•

Afghanistan's:endless misfortune

One wonders if It will be appropriate to refer to the situation Inside Afghanlstlln as a civil war anymore, as a number of centres of power with Independent administrations and military networks have emerged since the fall ofN'IIibullah regime in April 1992. These arc: [g , lamabad, Qandhar RI1d lIerat under the control of mostly Pushtun groups; Mazar.e·Shartf where the Uzblks have their own and the .rnost effective admlnlstratton; Hazarajat for the past decade and a half nave been ruled by the Hazara Shiites who have enjoyed material and political backing of the Iranian gov-

ernment. '

Only Kabul and a few northern provinces remain under the administration of the Rabbanl-Masud combine. With a terntorial base, an Independent administrative apparatus, ability to raise money through trade and foreign aid, these centres over time may acquire quite a different· politlcal personality. They are already condurting thelr foreign affalrs, freely entering Into relationship with other sovereign countries to seek economic and military assistance to consolidate their local power and fend off their rivals. Interestingly, none of the parties controlling these renl res has sought secession or denied its allegiance to Ihe 'Afghari nattonalisrn' .yet. But they do act arid behave as autonomous entities with a flare of sovereignty. At the moment they are keeping thelr options open, but this may not continue for ever. Development of this type acquire allfe of their own, and their direetlons become quite unpredictable. It needs to he emphasised that fragmented multl-ethnlc states are under enorrnous stress In the wake of reviving ethnic nationalism, and the countries like AfghanistR!1 may never emerge out of the rubble of R WAr, which isIast shaping along ethnic lines, In one.piece. The war Is once. agaln acqulrtng a dangerous international duncnslnn. Russla, the chief architect of the Afghan trngedy, still considers Afghanistan as a strategic backyard of Central Asia, a va.'" region which It v.;,.hes to retain a, a sphere of inllueuce. Afghanistan's relevance to RUSSian Interests In the region also stems from the fears of Islamic fundamentnllsni spilling 01'" to the Central AsiM stales. It has found Rabbanl more pliable and moderate than Afghans of the Poshtun variety. It has ,upplleil planes-load of printed Afghan currency to the Rahbani regime that has Injected life Into Its dry veins. It has now ously skewed. M,",ud, a venerated hero of the Afghan res is· started shipping military equipment through third parties. India tance, h as steeped too low in esteem among the Afghans, '0 who had been fumbling for. way to reenter Afghanistan has much so that all Afghan parties In the onposition seem to havc sneaked bark Into the country through tne Ulick smoke of intra- agreed on point agenda; his ejection from Kabn!. Opposition Afghan conflict. It has won OVer Rabbanl with cash, weapons, to Masud has reason tu be skittish. lie has been harsh, un-

an.1 maintenance technicians. compromising and often tricky.

Iran that until last.year synchronised lts pollry with Pakistan This also raises the question of the Icglthnacy of the Rab-

and confined Its support to the Shiite Hlzb·I·Wahrlat, one of the bani regime Including his defence minister Masud, which Is grouPWlittrrly opposed to the Kabul regime, has decided to root cause of the current phase of war. Rabbani was appointed throw Its weight behind Rabbanl. ltts unclear what Impelled President under the tern" of the Peshawar and lslamabad acIran to re-order Its priorities and get Itself deeply Involved In cords for a specific perind nlul specificpurpose of holdiJtg elccthe Afghan affalrs. Perhaps, it was the rise of the Taliban move- lions. He was to share power with the Hlzb-i-lslarui of Hekment and their capture of the Hernt region that raised the lre of matyar, He never did any of these things, and. rather kept the Iranian government. Its deputy foreign minister, Mr Alaud· himself giving extensions, while trying to present himself to the din Bourjerdl has been shuttling around to forge an anti-Tal- outside world a, a moderate, tolerant and enlightened Afghan iban cualitlon lnslde Afghanl,tan, Tehran has taken anadven- leaders they would wish to have in Kabul. This particularly adds turous course by training thousands .of Afghan troops to our pessimism. All peace accords agreed upon and to which associated 1I1th Isrnael Khan who i. reportedly planning to reo . all the Afghan groups solemnly pledged their support to haverapture lIerat In the coming spring. Persistent attempts by been violated more or less hy all of them. The old animosities, Iran, Ru.'lSla and India to stabilise the Ulegal administration of personal confltcts and clash of interests hove influenced beRabbanl may constitute yet another ominous chapter In the havlour of the warring parties more than any consideration of

tragic history of the Afghan war. peace, reconciliation, or reconst ruction of the country.

Encouraged hy the Innow of arms and. some foreign sup- Out past failures at evolving a peaceful sohition of the prob-

port,.Alunad Shah Masud la,planning a J;leciRivfl,ofLen.lvp., Icmnnde,'!I~blisbing n.liroarl-bascd gowrnf1ll\nt in ArghalliSl,an. against tht:Taliban in the near future, Unlortunately. Masud's should not ~iscourage us from m~king ~Iesh Ptart.': So 1ar." e(· : na~,J,I1,<I pUfl~~dous style,9r.)r6dfTShtu,lImlll\~I'Ii~\I%on, .rn'flo.fhtt.e.M't~'I'at\Onal cnmmumty have h~J).w~(ullY.l1ii¥I! BeHling tite AfRhan problem through military means are devi- equate to get Af~h3nistan out of this tunnel·of,\\arkneS'. AI·

though each of nOr assumptlons sugge.ling that Afghan groups would 'work together to restore peace has been exploded, I am stubborn enough to believe that any policy of marshaliing of military forces by any Afghan group or external power would be dangerouslyshortstghted. Betause more war may prolong the agony of Ute people, and may even reo

~ .... It!O~4-..J suit In the disintegration of the country. Such a process is already underway.

Pakistan hasa vested Interest In' supporting the territorial Integrity of

.~ _ ....... 1.1 Afghanistan, because the consequences of the dismemberment of Afghanistan may go well beyond Its boundaries. Already, .. 'e have suffered enough from the legacy of the Afghan war-now or illegal arms, drug trallicking and smuggling. Anarchy In the eastern, southern and' western Afghanistan, mostly dominated by the Pushtuns who don't have an Internattonal tegal personality of a recognised state.and therefore don't come under any International obligation, would complicate economic and security snuationof Pakistan. This would simply extend Pakistan's wild west (tribal belt) farther into Afghanistan and

. leave It vulnerable to all sorts of crimes, Local and International drug mafla which runs mulu-htlllon dollars

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ drug trade there would promote a

.. heroine-based political economy with

devastating effeclS on our values, soriety and ultimately influence our government and polities, if this is nol already happening.

Although the Afghan pence process L. lunging in several dl· recttous at once, we ran at least treasure the hope that a dialogue "mong the Afghans would begin In earnest. More than anyone Afghans need to end the war in order to save lives and keep the country united. There are enormous dlfflcultles In the way of a political settlement both Internal as well as external, Because of the nature of our interesrs we can't afford to be Indifferent to the events in Afghanistan, By gtvtng up hope and letting this unfortunate neighbouring country stew ill It. own juice, we may 1I0t escape from the effects of the civil war, no matter how hard we try. Let us not forget that we continue to host million" of Afghan refugees, whose repatriation depends on creating a peaceful envlronment and reliving of the economy that would sustain their survival. The prevailing climate of uncertainty andconfrontation both in the region as wen as In Afghanistan requires that Pakistan plays its cards carefully and doesn't abdicate its traditional role. It must promote a consensus among peace negotiators on arranging a peaceful transfer of power to a broad-based transtttonal government that would deruilltarise Kabul and hold free and fair elections; However, what will count most is that a pence settlement Is honoured by all the Afghan signatories and Ute foreign guarantors.

The author I. Director Area Study Centre, Quald·e·Azam

University Islamabad .

1lBBNEWS INTERNATIONAL 13 FEB 1996

Women In Afghanistan - a human

, rights catastrophe

PESHAWAR - With the end of whose homes are about to be hit. bles, they wanted to see how a

central authority in Afghanistan Many women recall how the baby was born in real life.

in 1992, the warring Afghan fac- warring factions in Kabul kllled Rape and otber torture: tions have played havoc with the civilians under siege. ,Rape of Women by armed guards lives of thousands of defenceless "The city'S watef supply had 'belonging to the various warring women and children during the 4- been cut during the war and we factions appears to be condoned year intra-factional war for eaptur- had to get the water from the few by leaders as a method of In tim 1- ing more and more territories, taps in the streets which were dating vanquished population and says an Amnesty International's workillg. But we were frightened of rewarding soldiers.

recent report on human rights togo out, for example, I saw a 12-

catastrophe in the war-torn year-old child who hSli'90ne to . In march 1994 a 15-ye~r-old Afghanistan. get some water. He had taken a gul was repeatedly raped m her

The lives of hundreds of thou- bucket with him, and was filling house in Kabul's Chel Soton dissands of Afghan women and ehil- that bucket. The boy was hit by a tnct after armed guards entered dren have been shattered in the bullet there. A sniper' decided to the house and killed her father for human rights catastrophe, that kill him. Only one shot was fired. allowing her to go .to school.

has devasteted Afghanistan in the The mother ran there to collect A young woman who left her past three years. Thousands have the dead body; a second shot was home ill Micro~ayan 3 Ul ~bul for tbeen killed in artillery attacks ap- fired and she was killed instantly. Peshawar, Pakistan, after In tense parently aimed deliberately at res- There corpses were left there as fightillg ill Janu~ry 1994 relates. identially areas by the various po- no one dared. collect them. Some ,"~lle day whel,l ~y father was litical factions, who have been days later, we saw stray dogs at walkmg by a bUlldmg complex, 4fighting for territory since April them.", .he heard screams of women com-

1992. Thousands of others have Killings by armed political ing from an' apartment block

been wounded. groups: Women related to men which had just been captured by

These gross human rights vio- sought by mulahldeen groups, or forces of general Dostum: He w~s lations of so many unarmed civil- who have themselves resisted ab- told by the people that Dostum s ian women have been committed duction or rape, have been delib- guards bad entered the block and with total impWlity. The eonstitu- erately and arbitrarily killed, were looting the property and raption has, been suspended and law sometimes in front of their fami- ing the women.

have become meaningless. The lies, or have been threatened witll Suicide to avoid rape:

judicial structures have been de- death by the warring factions. Several Mghan women have re-

stroyed;'arid the central author i- A family who left Afghanistan

tlesheve become virtually de- in mid-l994 relates how one night portedly committed suicide to funct. As a result, there has little in March thar year, members of avoid being raped. In at least one

f tI I D 's I h d oase, 'a father who saw mu-

prospect of any 0 ie perpetrators genera ostam s orces a en- jahideen guards coming for his

being brought to justice. tered their house' in old daughter reportedly killed her be-

The perpetrators are members Microrayan area of Kabul and fore she could be, taken away.

of the main Mujahideen groups killed their daughter. 'I

and warlords, or indeed anyone, "There were about 12 of them A number of families tell the who establishes control over a all carryingklaslmikovs With their story of Nahid, who threw herself

ke f A, I ..:.... TI ked to death to avoid being raped.

poe ' t 0 territory. s terntory taees covereo. ley as us to "Nahid was a 16-year-old high

changes hands after long battles, giv~ them our: daughter. We re-

an entire local population can be fused. They dld not accept .that school student living with her subjected to Violent retaliatory end ask, ed us to bring out daUgh- family in Microrayan. ill mid 1992

lk .1 W ked d her house was raided by armed

punishments by the victorious ter to ta to tnem.. e as an mujehtdeeniquards who had

forces. she came and told them that. she

Civman victims of armed did not want to go With, them. come to take her. The father and conflict: Most Afghan women One of them then lifted his kJash- family resisted. Nahid ran to tho have taken no active part in the nikov and shot my daughter in flfth floor of the apartment block fighting, yet their homes and front of our eyes. She was only 20 and tluew herself off the balcony.

, hbo hood h be t' d . bo f" I I She died instantly.

nelg' [ save n con UlU- an was Just a ut to InIS 1 ier Abductions and sexual

ally bombarded. A women who high school."

left Kabul in October 1994, said Several refugee families told libuse by armed political she had wnnessed a bomb explo- the story of a woman in labour groupa: Scores of Afghan women sion which killed over 70 people who had been taken to a hospital have reportedly been abducted at a wedding ceremony in Qala in Kabul by her husband, one and detained, by muiahldeen Fathullah district of Kabul when evening at about 10 pm in early groups, and commanders and the area was hit by several bombs 1994. "There WQS a curfew in them. used for, s~ual purpose, or a few months earlier. She saw the force at the time and cars were, sold into prostitution. YOWlgguls brother and 'sister of the groom 110t allowed!n the streets of have sufined the same fate. Most digging bodies out of the ground. Kabul. Armed guards· reported ~ve been ~ictim~ ~orbelongThere had been no fighting in that stopped the car at acheckpoint, mg to a particular religIOus or ethstreet for several days and no mih- telling the. husband that they, nic group by commanders or tary bases had been set up there. would take the woman to the hos- guards allied to an opposed fac-

Mujahideen groups justify such pita I themselves and that he tion. , .

attacks by sayillg that the target- should go back home. The next, We were a farming farn~ly. ed area was controlled by a rival day the husband went to, the Them were 10 of us In the family. faction. However, many, attacks guards to ask where bis wife wu? One Jamaat·e·lslami commander onresidennalareee appear to They reportedly showed him the whO had three wives carne with have been deliberately aimed at dead bodies of the' woman and his ~rmed guards to ~ur house, kiiling defeneeoless civilians. In the newly born 'baby, telling biili' asklhg to marry my sister who almost all cases, no warning is that since they had only seen was 15-year-old. ~y brother ob-

ivan to the unarmed residents videos .of woman delivering ba- jected and told hun that as a

" white-bearded' man, he should

not seek to marry such a young 'girl. But the commander's guards beat my brother. One of the guards pointed his klashnikov at my brotl18r's arm and fired a shot. His shirt was covered in blood. We were forced to give my sister away."

Another family who lived ill Darul-Aman ill Kabul before fleeing to Pakistan in May 1994 reported that unarmed people tried to live together as much as possible to deter attacks from armed guards. Despite this, armed guards still entered their houses .and on one occasion took a young woman with them.

"One late night, our houses were cordoned off by armed rnujahideen guards. This was about seven months ago (May 1994). There were about 20 armed guards. They ,said they were looking hr YOWlg women to take with them. Our men objected to this. TIley killed my husband and three other men in our house. They tied the hands of our two old men together. There were' two young women in our house; they took one at. them, In the morning, We buried the dead."

A woman who had fled to Pakistan went to Kabul in October 1993 to re-establish contact with her sister who lived in Karte Sekhi distriCt. She was detained by srrned guards Oil suspicion of spying for a rival faction.

They arrested us and took us to a house which they used as their base. They told us that we were spies. They showed us a number of containers in the house. They opened one of these containers, and I saw tl13t there Were gougedout eyes stuck to the sides of the container. They told us that these were the eyes of those who fought against them. I cannot tell how many there were, there could have been about 50 to 60 eyes. TIley told us that our eyes would be gouged, II we did not tell them who hod sent us there. I swore

that I was not a spy but they hit me with rifle butts on my shoulder and also on my legs. My sis, ter-in-Iaw was also beaten. We begged them not to beat us and told them that we did not belong to any part."

tar party at a hOtel, nere,

Abbasi also announced IaunchIg of NBP's Credit Card soon for

FRO N TIE ,~ post 19 FEB 1996

3

Too many cooks ...

Flash point

Fahd Husain

1m s there any chance that Afg, hani-

I . . stan may witness some sort of

i peace in the near future? Even

! diehard optimists may find it hard to answer i in the affirmative, A simple reason is that I too many players with too many interests I and too many axes to grind are involved in i the messy Afghan imbroglio where warring : parties are too willing to accept patronage

· which comes in the form of money, ammunition and influence.

· Confused? This is just the start. The situation becomes more and

· more complicated as one del ves into the finer details of who is doing what to whom and why. There are wheels within wheels whose constant churning can. confound even battlehardened pol.cy-rnakers and habitual arm-chair analysts. In fact, many such people are nowadays

· overhead reminiscing I fondly about the good old

· days when life was simple and straightforward:

Mujahideenwerethegood guys and the Soviets the Dad guys. Everyone was clear that the good guys 'lad to be supported and the objectives were simple - t,et the Soviet out.Those were the days. Now it

i', .eems a different ball game altogether.

Consider this: Afghan territory is carved out between four main groups which have t:heir own respective sponsors (though officially everyone denies it). The Taliban have t'ne largest chunk which amounts to 14 prov-

· ir Ices. Former communist and master of the n.orth General Abdul Rasheed Dostum conu -ols seven provinces. B urhanuddin Rabbani acid Ahmad Shah Masood are in possession or five provinces while a loose alliance of c-ommanders including Governor of

I Jalalabad, Haji Qadeer, has its writ over three. The future of Afghanistan lies in the

1 I';:.'nds of the Taliban, Rabbani and Dostum. That, however, is not entirely true.

Enter the outsiders: Pakistan, Iran, Saudi A rabia, Russia, India, Uzbekistan (restricted 10. Dostum only) and the UN (with the United Staiesobviously): These playershave their own respective agendas which are mostly at variance with one another. Their interests have now become inextricably linked with the ambitions of Afghan leaders. The end result is an explosive combination of power play and firepower which gains strength from instability and chaos.

I The situation thus remains tai lor-made for

, more of the same. Among the Afghan factions, Rabbani and Masood are not likely to accept any formula which does not revolve around them. And while the hunt for such a formula continues - UN envoy Mehmoud Mestiri having reached Kabul after a bout of illness - Rabbani remains busy in consolidating his position. It is now common knowledge-that he is receiving arms from three different sources: Russia, India and Iran. In addition, Russian and Indian technicians are also said to be stationed at the Begram airbase where they are helping in the maintenance of Rabbani's aircraft. Afghan currency is also being printed in Russia and then transported in cargo planes to Kabul.

On top of all this, it has been confirmed by

Ahmad Shah Ma$ood

those in the know that General Ismail, the former Governor of Herat, who was ousted by the Taliban, is getting ready for a renewed attack on Herat, He is presently based in the Iranian border-town of Mash had along with his supporters. According to reliable reports, military training is being imparted to 8,000 of his men. Arms and ammunition are also being provided to them. It is expected the attack will be launched soon after the advent of spring.

Who is imparting them training? "Nothing goes on.in Iranian territory without their permission and approval," a high level source in Islamabad has remarked recently.

On the other hand, the Taliban remain as rigid as before and appear in no mood for a

compromise solution. Althoughthey have been unable to take Kabul by force, they remain camped outside. Their negotiations with General Dostum are continuing for a

possible joining of hands but nothing concrete has emerged so far from these talks. The only thing going for both . is their resolute demand that Rabbani must relin quish power before any peace formulas can be discussed.

Pakistan, on its part, continues to say that it has no favourites in Afghanistan and that it is fully supportive of the UN and OIC efforts to broker a peaceful settlement. "Pakistan is the only country among those involved in the Afghan imbroglio which gains from peace," argues an Afghanistan analyst. He says a peace-

ful Afghanistan will mean a decrease in Iranian influence because Rabbani and Masood will, of course, not playa central role. Iran is also fearful thatin such a scenario, the Americans might be in a position to use Afghanistan as a base to launch covert moves against Iran. The present situation thus suits Tehran.

In the same vein, the argument goes that Russia too gains from instability. It is this chaos in Afghanistan which gives Russia a justification to keep its troops posted on the Tajikistan-Afghanistan border. Maintaining amilitarypresence in the "near abroad" (as Central Asia is now called by Moscow) is vital for Russia' s.long-term goals of keeping the Central Asian states within its fold. If there was peace in Afghanistan, there would be no justification for Russian troops on (be, border of Central and South Asia. In addition, peace in Afghanisian would also mean opening of the trade route between South and Central Asia. That would not suit Russian designs, goes the argument.

Pakistan thus remains the only player with a stake in peace. There is comfort in the knowledge that in normaItimes Kabul would be friendly to Islamabad, because Pushtuns form a majority of the Afghan population and they are traditionally pro-Pakistan. Similarly, peace would mean trade through Afghanistan to Central Asia.

All this, however, is a mere pipe dream because peace has been scared away by the Afghans and-their various sponsors. A fresh outbreak of host iii tics is next on the agenda. weather permitting.

NATION 01FEB1995

4

~fftanistan (~"'s Crtp.pina

Afgbanenc! .~. nOt insight

ISLAMABAD - On the Afghan On why, In some respects the most Dostum 5. The answer perhaps lies

front, as the scale and importance of powqful military force, the Taliban in the external support that Rabbani diplomatic activities go, the present are Qat represented at the Is~. a. b. ad enjoy. s. Me.anwhile in recent days gathering of Afghan leaders in Islam- ~ks~(lfficials maintain, "th~~ is no c~dia notes have been struck by abad is of some significance. It takes major difference in approach ~n ~4r Pakistani. and .Iranian . officials place against the backdrop of hard- the Talibans and the groups gathered on pmgress during thePak-Iran talks lined Afghan adversaries whose di- . here. When critical decisions have to on Afghanistan. "There was no great vidingIines are firm and unc. hanging. I· be arrived at they may well be air of optimism lnthe disc.ussions" There existS"a three way political w; represented." Nevertheless Taliban remarked. Pakistan's Foreign vide among the battling groups; the absence is intriguing. Secretary as he concluded talks. with Rabbani-Masud ruling group in Ka- It is unlikely that it is coincidental. Iran's pointman on Afghanistan, bul; the four party Opposition com- By. keeping them away from Alauddin Broujerdi.Broujerdi has prising General Rashid Dostum' s Jun- Islamabad at this juncture Islamabad been in regular contact with almost bush-i-Milli, Gulbadin Hilonatyar's maybe hoping to shed off the aUAfghanfactionsincludingrormer Hizbe Isl~i. Khalili' s Hi~~-i- W~- incessant criticism that the Taliban foes like GulbadinHikmatyar .and dat .and Sl~ghat~llah Mujjaddedi s are Islamabad's brainchild Yunas Khalis, Only deep mutual Nat.tonal L~~ra!t0n Front;. and the sponsored by Saudi Arabia. distrustbetweenTehranandDostum Tabban: Militarily the T~lbanand i Conversely for the Taliban this and the Taliban remain ..

Rabbam-Masud have nailed down I distancing may help build their Tehran of course has never been

each oth~r. "ndependentstanding'. this candid before - both about is

~ssenUally a balance of terror pre-I .However, whatever led to this support for Rabbani and its antipathy valls. Afghans caught betwee~ snow, I gathering by virtue of this gathering towards 'the tali ban; On Rabbani' s rocket attacks and food, clothing and ! taking place in Islamabad and all legitimacy the Iranian minister said shelter shprtag~~r~y .fo~ peace and : major institutions including the for Tehran whoever is in power in food. !he 1Oflexlbl!lty !nslde Afghan~ Foreign Office and the Pakistan army Kabul is there legitimately.

istan .. ~ largely denva1!ve of how Af~ playing host, meetings of. visiting Also while conceding that the gha~!stan' 8 three neighbours ha-.:e ACghanleaders with Pakistan's Prime Taliban are a reality that couldn't be POSlUO~¢ themselves. Isl~abad 18 Minister and President and their ignored Broujerdi said," what has known to support the Tal!ban and interviews on national television, it really worried Tehran about the Mosc0v.:, Tehran and ~ehh ~upport is clear that Islamabad remains a key Islamic movement is the involvement Rabbani-Masud. ~usslan airforce facilitator in the Afghan peace oftheyoungstersindrugtrafflcking." pl~es. are parked 10 Talukaan, bor- process. While Islamabad will never Responding to Indian presence in dtllJn~_K.un~uz do.~_to tile bo!der ~ be in a position to conclusively dictate Afghanistan the Iranian deputy TaJiklsf~. .. peace terms it will, more than.other minister remarked, "Pakistan'S

'. Interestingly the ~fg~an ga~enng regional countries, in a position to sensitivity to the Indian presence in 10 Is!am~bad has ,:o1Oclde~ Wl~ !e- create conditions for promoting t,ile Kabul is not something new. hran s high diplomatic acnvtty. Afghan peace process. To most Kabul does have relations With a Afghan leaders Pakistan is like a nUIUl)er of countries and. India is .

second home, Islamabad shares a one of them. .

2500 mile long border with·; Clearly cold war betweeI? Tehran Afghanistan which makes most .'~ridJslamabad has thawed Into free Tehran's pointman on Afghanistan, Afghan regions socio-economicallyfl0«tingopenly ~xpresseddifferences

. dependant on Pakistan. oyer Afghanistan. From Iran

J\lauddinBroujerdi, thejUDlordeputyAsma10rityofthegroupsopposing Pakistani officials claim that fo~ign minister was last week in Is- • di A' lli d lamabadonatwodaytrip.AlsoIslam- the Jamlat's Rabbani-Ahmad Shah accor mg to mencan sate ue an

abad-based deputy chief of the US Masud rule in Kabul gather in our ground intelligence reports 200 embassy John Holzman has been re- Islamabad. The critical question is cargofJights of arms and ammunition linking with Afghan leaders. Early· whether Rabbani-Masud will be recently flew into Batgram for this month he met Ahmad Shah Mas- . pressurised by abandoning power ~abbani. Th~,r. be"iev~ Teh~an' s ud at Batagram, in Kandhar, he met' volun~ly. or the dreaded battle for . prop Rabbanl~~Jec~ IS not Viable Taliban le.wers and is likely to have Kabul IS. stl~1 o~ the cards? In the long ru~ .. It will perpetuate met Dostum during his current stay in !Early mdl~atlons from Kabul are protracte~ c~vtl "war wl~h -no

Islamabad, . that Rabbani-Masud have no plans sett1~~ent-l~ Sight, they beheve .•

. in Islamabad the Afghans are busy to step down. Infect unconfirmed Within this context Islamabad s

strategizing Rabbani-Masud exit from . reports ini1!cate that Masud is rallying comm~~ent to Rabbani' s ~moyal. Kabul and are thrashing out an interim his forces to launch another major as a critical first step to englne~nng mechanism acceptable to all. Todate offensive against the Taliban an Afghan consens~s fo~ a national the UN special envoy former Foreigri currently based south of Kabul. gove.rnme~t essentially IS one that Minister of Tunisia Mahmood Mes- After all what gives Kabul the carries hl~h stak~s. It. ~ffe~ts tiri's efforts have yielded no consen- confidence to remain doggedly ~sl'amabads. relatlon~ with Its sus among the battling Afghan groups. en trenched in Kabul despite Im~~ce nel~hbours hk7 .I~n and Rabbani's recent offer to step down Islamabad's continuous assertion that China, It opens ~tselftocnuclsm by and his offer of presidency to Yunis Rabbani-Masud represent less than regional co~ntn~s that Is!~abad's Khalis have not been taken seriously.' 10 per cent of Afghanistan'S Tajik Af~han poh~y IS des!abdlslng the

For this potentially landmark Af- population; that they enjoy no region ~nd IS spreading so-~alled ghan gathering,. Is1amabad. is com" legitimacy among the battle-we8f)!,:"Islamlc. fundamentalls~." pletely denying itself and credit. Rath- Afghan people; that since Decembee .Islamabad. ~owever re~al~s er calmly Pakistani officials maintain 1994, when their term under the confident that Its ~fgh~ poh~y IS that this gathering was not at all struc- ' Islamabad Accord expired, Rabbani- the onl.Y. Ol~e ~at wdl.b~g national tured and planned by them. "It so Masud have illegally remained in reconcil .. ~tionlnAf~anl~tanandthat happens that all of them decided to be . Kabul, that opponents of the Kabul Rab~a~l s ouster IS mevltable:

here at the same time, weneverplanned regime control over 80 percent of Wlthl!l the broader regional this big together. However if th~ the Afghan territory-Rabbani only perspec!tve the sup~ort ~ine-u~ for want us to facilitate their get-together controls 5 provinces and the Rabbani and the Tah~~ IS obVIOUS: we would obviously oblige our opposition 27 provinces _ of these Tehran, Mo~cow, Beijing and De~h

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FRONTIER POS,)

Accord signed for mine clearance in Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD (PPl) - The United Nations Officer for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance to Afghanistan (UNOCHA) Wednesday signed an agreement with German govern ment represented by Juergen Kleiner, ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany, Islamabad, and by Martin Barber, UN coordinator for the emergency humanitarian programme. for Afghanistan.

This agreement provides US dollars-2,012530 to UNOCHA's mine clearance programme in Afghanistan. The German contribution will be used to fund one component of UNOCHA's programe"the Mine Dog Centre (MDC), which was established in 1989 and has been funded until the end of 1995 by USAID.

The mine Dog Centre uses specially trained doqs to locate

the presence of mines and unexploded ordinance buried in the ground or in the rubble of buildings. As opposed to manual mine detectors, demining dogs not only have the advantage of being able to detect plastic mines, but also increase the clearance rate by 60 per cent.

MDC currently employs 430 Afghan nationals who use-93 ac tive mine detection dogs Mine dog groups, sonsisunq of 19 men and 4 dogs, are used for clearing mines. During 1996, these groups aim to clear some 7 square km of priority land in ten provinces of Afghanistan.

Mine dog sets are deployed to assist mine field survey teams. It is expected that in 1996 survey teams, supported by dog sets, will mark and record some 20 square km of mine fields plus some 20 square km of battlefield

area.

Ambassador l'1lemer praised the devoted role that UNOCH plays in the delivery of humani tar ian assistance to Afghamstan. "1 am convinced that my govern merit's assistance will contribute to the creation of conditions con ducive to the return of refugees and to the reconstruction of Afghanistan"

Barber expressed his profound gratitude to the government of the Federal Republic of Germany for this generous contribution to the UNOCHA deminlnq pro gramme, support to the dernininq programme will encourage the re turn of reluqees to their homes and will help them to rebuild their lives. This generous contri bulion reflects Germany's historic friendship with Afghanistan Many Alqhan families will belle fit Irom It in future, Baller said.

Ghazni residents panic at rocket attacks

By MOHAMMAD ZAlDD PESHAWAR - After a yearlong calm Taliban are baffled over the intermittent 'mystery' rocket fire on Ghazni during the past three weeks and zhe insecurity calmed the streets of this historic city and trade centre in this south-eastern province of Afghanistan.

According to an eyewitness reports, for the past three weeks every night rockets are fired on Ghazni city from unknown locations, creating chaos and uncertainty among the residents. An eyewitness who arrived here from Ghazni on Tuesday informed that Taliban who had taken control of the province after defeating Qari Baba a year ago, have also not yet succeeded in unveiling the rnys-

tery over the rocket fire. A number of people have been injured and property damaged so far in the rocket fire. He further said that two to three rockets were slammed into the residential area of Ghazni city, the provincial headquarter. The eyewitness said that last week a rocket hit the Governor's House. However, no one injured in the attack except partially damaging a bathroom in the Governor's House. Governor ofthe province, Shafiqullah, who is from the neighbouring Uruzgan province, was not present during the attack.

Residents of the Ghazni believe that the rockets are fired by pro-Masood elements from the surrounding mountains. However, so far no concrete evidence has

been produced by anyone to substantiate the involvement of Kabul regime in the rocket fire. The rocket attacks have led to confusion and uncertainty in Ghazni, affecting business actiVities in the city.

Similarly despite amputation of thieves in public, theft cases have become a routine. Only recently 12 shops were looted by unidentified persons in main Ghazni bazar. The report further said that in order to curb the crimes hands of three thieves had been arnputed by Taliban in Ghaznl, It was learnt that highway robberies have also increased in the province. Taliban sources in Peshawar and Kandahar were not available for comments, when contacted on telephone.

FRONTIER POS,)

15 FEB 1996

6

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'l1lB NEWS INTERNATIONAL 1 3 FEB 19 9 6

Taliban" nab '·166- Mghan intruders

From Rihiniullih Yulufzal .

PESHAWAR: About 166 Afghans who Infiltrated Taliban-held Herat and Farah provinces in western Afghanistan to prepare ground for an assault from Iranian territory were apprehended by Taliban forces Monday.

. Taliban sources in Herat said about 100 armed men were nabbed from a village near the border town of Islam Qilla," another 55 from Sheendhand airbll$e area and 11 " from Herat city. The report was confirmed by" independent Afghan sources but the Rabbanigovernment or Iran have yet to comment on the incident.

According to the Taliban, the Infiltrators were sent by former'Herat Governor Ismail Khan from his base in the Iranian city of Mashhad and enjoyed Tehran's full backing. They said arms and wireless sets from recovered from the 100 men who had gathered near Islam Qilla. They said the 11 picked up in Herat city were almost all Heratis and were young. They opined that the 55 men nabbed

, .. ' ....

in "Farah province were trying to launch operations directed against the strategic Sheendhand alrbase.

Ties between the Taliban and Iranian government have deteriorated since September 5 last year whenthe former defeated Ismail Khan, the' pro-Rabbani Governor of Herat and four other provinces in southwestern and western Afghanistaft: Subsequently, the Taliban claimed to haVe repulsed Tehran-backed attacks on Islam Qilla and in borders areas 0(:

Far!ili and Nlmruz provinces. •

TheTaliban also presented to the press Iranian anus and vehicles they seized from the attackers. 'Tehran \i.e- " rued tne accuSation and 'said these arms and vehicles were given by'Iran to Afghan mtijahideen during the "jehad". Iran suspects the Taliban, who are mostly Sunni and Pashtoon, to be in the pay of the US, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia. On their part, the Taliban believe the Shia-dominated Iranian government has a pathological hatred for Sunnis and was supporting Rabbani regime out of their animosizy for the Sunni-based Taliban.

Two Afghans executed publicly

BUreau Report

PESHAWAR, Feb 9: Two Afghans charged with mUrder were publicly executed in the c.pital city of Khost province of Afghanistun by Taliban on Friday.

The two alleged murderers - Mohammad Ullah and Dur Mohammad - were reportedly arrested during the last week of January and subsequently tried by an Islamic . court which awarded them death punishment.

They had to be publicly hanged but. according to a reliable source at Miranshah in FATA, they were publicly executed bya firing squad.

Mohammed Ullah was charged with allegedly killing a Pakistani taxi-driver (a Khattak tribesman). An Afghan national had hired a taxi for a journey across the border where he murdered the driver.

According to the source, the father of the deceased. who is presently in Khost executed his son's murderer.

The other Afghan, Dur

Mohammed, executed on Friday was charged with killing his cousin over a dispute. He hailed from the Baghlan province of Afghanistan.

These were the first public executions since the Taliban took over Khost last year.

Two Afghan murder convicts executed by victims' fathers

KHOST, Afghanistan (AFP) - Two Mohammad, 27, and Mohammad Afghansconvicted by an Islamic court Allah, 28 - to the execution ground of murder. w.el'Cl publicly shothere by Ii in this dusty town before the Muslim the fathers of their victims, the first 'Friday prayers.

such executions on territory controlled Blindfolded, with their hands and

by the Taliban Islamic militia. feet tied, the pair lay slumped on the

With some 15,000 watching, two ground while an official read out the aged men, fathers of the two murder verdict passed this week by a court victims, carried out the sentence with presided by Taliban chief qazi (judge) Ak -47 rifles after rejecting appeals for Maulana I1yas.

forgiveness. Our Mohammad, convicted for the

Taliban security guards brought the slaying of his cousin Gul Mohammad two condemned Afghans - Our two years ago, shouted for mercy, but

NATlON

his uncle.. Shireen Mohammad, apparently unmoved. trained a Kalashinkov and fired a deadly burst.

After his blood-stained body was removed in an ambulance, the other convict was similarly gunned down.

He remained silent throughout. making no mercy appeal to his executioner, Faizullah, a former Pakistan army junior" commissioned officer, whose son Sardar Khan, a taxi driver, was kidnapped and killed in January 1995.

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Two Afghans executed

for murderIn Khost

From MOHAMMAD ZAHID KHOST - In an unusually tight security, two Afghans, condemned to death bya Taliban "court" on charges of murder, were riddled with bullets in the presence of about 20,000 distraught crowd here on Friday,

Before carrying out the executions, Khost Governot Abdul Baqqi Haqqani, addressing the, gathering, said Taliban were ready to render any sacrifice for,

• the establishment of Islamic system in Afghanistan. "Today dreams of hundreds of thousands of Afghans has come true as Islamic laws have been enforced in the Taliban-controlled areas," said the governor. He defended the decision of Taliban "court" of

convicting the two accused in accordance with the Islamic laws. The two men, he said, had confessed to their crimes and hence had to be punished under Qisas. At the same time, he urged the fathers of the victims to declare clemency for the killers. However, both the fathers insisted on execution of the killers by declaring thrice before the crowd that they wanted

Repair work on Khost airport in progress

F.P. Report

KHOST - Taliban have started repair work on the runway at Khost airport to connect the town with outside world.

Governor, Abdul Baqi Haqqani said that the work on one runway had been completed while the construction of the other strip , was in progress in order to start

international flights from Khost.

He said that soon we would be iri a position to start, cargo flights between Dubai and Khost.

According to reports majority of people from Khost are in the Gulf states and have established flourishing business there. With the introduction of cargo flights, Khost, like Ja1a1abad will become a centre of foreign goods which will be ultimately smuggled through various routes into Pakistan.

'{'HE NEWS lNTERNATlONAL

11 H:B 199b

Qisas (Islamic punishment for murderer) for their lost sons.

The two convicts, blind-folded and their hands and legs tied, were then taken out of a parked jeep with tinted glasses. The short-statured and bulky Our Mohammad was the first to face execution at the hands of his own uncle.' He was lined up against a big tree in the comer of the sprawling venue, once known as Sher Wali hotel famous for its comfort and delicious food. His last words were:

"Sherina, have a mercy on me". But the lamb and grey-haired Sherin returned his 'appeals' with abuses and followed by a burst of Klashnikov. Our Mohammad, in his late 20s, was silenced but still alive, prompting the trigger-happy Sherin to pump another round of 30 bullets into his body to avenge the killing of his 24-year-old son,

Oost Mohammad. I

The second execution under Qisas was carried out by Subaidar Faizullah Khan Khattak, the first Pakistani to "lawfully" kill an Afghan on his own soil. Faizullah Khattak was given a Klashntkov to kill

20 killed as Taliban chopper crashes

F.P. Report

PESHAWAR - Taliban helicopter abroad 20 persons crashed in Zebulon Friday. All the people including the pilot died in the in-

cident. '

According to reports pouring in from across the border, the helicopter was on its way from Ghazni to Kandahar when developed some fault and crashed in Oalat, the provincial capital of Zebull'rovince.

It could not be known whether the copter was carrying any important leader of the Taliban.

Taliban sources were not available to comment on the crash.

FRONTIER post 13 FEB 1996

Mohammadullah, the convict.

Khattak fired three shots, hitting head and heart of the 'killer' of his son. The firing by Khattak, who belongs to Kamar Mashani in Mianwali, apparently provoked grumbling among the crowd,

where several Arab nationals were also present. Khattak's son, Sardar Khan, was allegedly murderd by Mohammadullah in Laki Marwat last year. After finding a clue to the murder of his son, he lodged a report with Taliban in Khost. Taliban later arrested Mohammadullah from Nimroz

province of war-battered Afghanistan and tried him in an Islamic "court". Khattak has been'staying in Knost tor the last one month in connection with the case.

According to international hu~an Tights organisations, judicial system in Afghanistan is virtually non-existent and various warring factions are carrying out sentences, illcluding executions and amputations, with no legal safeguards.

Talibantake Mghanleader into custody

Bureau'Report PESHAWAR: An influential Afghan spiritual elder, Syed Bahauddin Jan Agha, has been taken into custody by the Taliban in Kandahar province. He was suspected to have been campaigning against the student militia.

Agha's followers told The News that he was picked up from Arghandab in Kandahar province, Afghanistan, where he had gone about ten days ago to meet his disciples. They said Agha was a spiritual man and had nothing to do with politics.

, tHE NEWS INTERt,ATIONAL 03 H:B1996

8

Affftanistan C~'wsCfippin8

Taliban face Iran-backed assault onHeroi

THE NEWS Il'-.,.ERNATIONAL

12 FE B 1996

atis at Tayabad across Islam Qila, thus pose a serious threat to Taliban. and c) Mercenaries from Kabul and The analysts, however, feel that the refugees from Persian speaking Iranian preparations, at this stage Norther provinces are likely to be when talks are in progress in Pakllilll1~~~ ~~~ $hil~~. , " istan, seem to be ill-timed and may

. 'As part 01 a possible war strategy, cause irreparable damage to the proex-Heratis will try to capture some cess of peace negotiations.

area along the border for face-saving PPIaddsthat a representative of as Iran also wishes to get her terri- the Taliban, Ehsanullah, has arrived tory cleared off. However, their in Islamabad to join the ongoing movement towards Herat and Shin- talks to put the civil war in dand will face tough resistance. Afghanistan to an end, Afghan

If Iranian Armour and Artillery sources said.

supported the attack it could be Taliban,. who control half of quite effective not withstanding the Afghanistan, have so. far been reluc· poor human material at their dis- tant to holdtaiks with any Afghan posal coupled with inadequate train- group.

ing to manoeuvre a large force of Sources maintained that another

over 3000 men. centraileader of the Taliban move-

Some reports suggest that Gen ment, Mullah Muhammad Rabbani, Ismail Khan may be able to capture who has no relations with Preside t Kuhsan District in the first phase and Rabbani, was also in Islamabad-·l

I 2 Afghan killers ,to be hanged in Khost

prayers

city. A .'.. III. 1IIl'l"!Il> r

Muhammad 'said in case ISLAMABAD: As key Afghan lead- from across the border, the Taliban ers continued their peace talks will declare war against Iran and will Monday, another round of war is bomb Iranian cities. He added that likely to ignite in western he had already warned the Iranian Afghanistan as reports are pouring Consul of serious consequences.

in from there that some pro-Iran Fighting has been reported from elements are reported to have Districts of Shindand and Islam Qila urged ex-Heratis to launch a fresh between Taliban and Pro Rabbani eloffensive against Taliban whoareements. This time, Iran sponsoredgiving tough time to Rabbani. Pro elements: are likely tp launch larger Rabbani forces are also poised to forces along differenlaxis.

indulge in the war against Taliban. The concentrations which have'

According to reliable sources, so far been reported include: a) Peapreparations by theex-Heratis are ple ex Kandahar and .Helmand going ahead across the border. across Nimroz province, b) Ex Her-

Mariana aaabar

Taliban militia seen to be squandering support.

The Taliban militia, who have been besieging Kabul, are beginning to squander the fund of sympathy they have enjoyed by pursuing a strictly religious goal and spuming all compro-

mise moves, diploma*

sources say. ,

"The Taliban is a Frankenstein," a thing that terrifies its own maker, a Western diplomat said. The maker, going by several diplomats and experts, is Pakistan, which, despite disclaimers, has never been able to shake off the charge of militarily backing the student militia.

When the Talibans sprang up on the Afghan scene in mid-I994,theories abounded of their being a joint creation of Pakistan, with its military backing and Saudi Arabia, with its funds. The United States was said to have blessed the venture.'

Of late, several reports speak of relations between Pakistan and the Taliban eroding and of the United States taking a dim view of the

"students" antics. ,

"One can't have a rational discussion with these people, they are too narrow-minded, too emotional," a Pakistani diplomat told AFP.

After vain attempts at pressuring the Taliban to release seven Russians held since August 1995 when their weapons-laden aircraft was downed while flying over Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, the Pakistani authorities are disappointed, diplomatic sources say.

The failure of the Taliban to make any notable presence at thc meeting of the Afghan opposition,

. held here since Wednesday to work out a joint strategy against the Kabul "dministration, could only heighten Pakistani. disquiet.

. A telling explanation for the Taliban absence was attributed to II source quoted by a daily: "Some leaders went on Umra (pilgrimage to Mecca) and others are in meditation in the last week of Ramadan," the Muslim month of fasting."

Thus, God comes before country: "They have a messianic. motive, nothing to do with politics," . says a French observer who works

in .territory.contro~led. by the Taliban. ''11Iey cannot compromise because they are fighting evil."

The Talibanradio based in their

,. strongh«;)ld in Kandahar issues a daily call to fight evil and Satan, whom they see as being incarnate in the man they are trying to banish from , Kabul, President Burhanuddin Rabbani.

The United States, which had once believedthe Taliban advance would slow down drug trafficking. is disenchanted: opium output is bountiful in Afghanistan, the world's top producer.

Iran, which has always been deeply suspicious of the Taliban rise, has never accepted the capture in -September by the militia of Herat province in western Afghanistan, at Its own eastern doorstep.

-AFP

From RalilmOliab Yusofzal PESHAWAR: Two Afghans, including one who murdered a Pakistani taxi-driver, would be publicly hanged in Khost town in Afghanistan on Friday.

This would be the first hanging in Khost after its fallto the Taliban last year. Both the men were awarded capital punishment by an Islamic court after it convicted them of murder.

A Taliban spokesman informed that one of the murderers rented a taxi driven by a Khattak tribesman from Pakistan for a JOUrney across the border. He said the taxi-driver was murdered inKhost province and his vehicle was snatched. The Taliban later apprehended the murderer and tried him ina Shariah court. He said the driver's father, hailing from Akora Khattak, was presently in Khost and may be present at the time of hanging of his son's killer.

The spokesman said the second murderer was an Afghan belonging to Baghlan province. He killed a fellow Afghan folloWing a dispute.

Khost province Governor Maulvi Abdul Baqi Haqqani is also scheduled to address a press conference on the occasion.

The Taliban have carried out several public executions of murderers in areas under their control since their emergence in September 1994.

They have also amputated the hands and feet of about seven thieves.

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9

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Iranian guard killed in border clash with Taliban

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- From I.mall khan the Iranian territory. Hundreds of

supporters of Gen. Ismail Khan, the ~ PESHAWAR: An Iranian border se- ex-Governor of Herat, had fled to -< curity guard was killed and two Iran following the fall of

Oz were wounded in 'cross-fire with Mghanistan's western province to Taliban in Afghanistan's western the Taliban on Sept 5.last year.

E=: Herat province bordering Iran. The spokesman said the Iranians <z TaUban leader Maulvi Ihsanullah were allowed to collect their dead

told The News here that the clashes and wounded on the night of the ~ took place on Tuesday night, the clashes and the one captured alive ~ night of Eidul Fitr, when Islamic stu- was handed ove:r to the Iranian Con..... dents militia patrolling the area in sui General by Governor of Herat, ;Z Islam Qilla encountered Intruding Mulla Yar Mohammad, on Thursday. - Iranian border guards. "The Iranian He claimed that the Iranians in re~ guards wanted our men to surrender sponse to strong protest from the ~ and lay down their arms. Our men Taliban leadership had apologised ~ fired at them. One Iranian guard for the intrusion. "We hope they will ;Z; was killed and two were wounded not repeat their mlstake," the

~ while one was captured alive." spokesman said.

IhsanuIlah is Governor General Maulvi Ihsanullah in his address

of five of Taliban-controlled Mghan to a Taliban gathering at Akora provinces of Khost, Paktia, Paktika, Khattak accused Iran of interfering

Wardak and Logar and is a member in Mghanistan's internal affairs by of Taliban's central executive com- supporting what he called the illegal mittee in their headquarters in Qan- . and un-Islamic Rabbani regime. "We dlhar.. asked the Iranian's why they fear us.

A Taliban spokesman in Herat We are both anti-Americans and said the militia was on red alert in want the unity of Muslim Ummah." anticipation of an Iranian-backed He said Iran was scared of Talattack by pro-Rabbani forces from fban turning Mghanistan into a

harbinger of Islamic movements throughout the world. "Iran knows the Sunni Muslims will look towards Mghanistan and not it.'

Ihsanullah lashed out at Washington for "blocking the resolution of Mghanistan crisis to prevent the Taliban from spreading their influence to the Muslim Central Asian Republics and Islamic movements the world over:

Brushing aside Iranian allegations of narcotics trafficking into Iran through the Taliban-controlled areas, Ihsanullah said the situation had been of its own making. "Iran has allowed infiltration of anti-Talihan people:

Earlier, the Taliban leader set two conditions for President Rabbani to remain in power. He asked Ralibani to enforce Sharia and sever his ties with the communists and Russia "How can we be subservient to someone who is a slave and agent. We don't feel the need to have further talks. We. are ready to surrender all area under our control to him if he accepts the two conditions:

i'aliban amputate three for robbery F.P. Report

PESHAWAR - Three Afghans had their right hands and left legs amputated Thursday in Paktia publicly after a Taliban "court' awarded them the punishment for highway robbery, sources confirmed here. The Taliban "court" also sentenced two others said to be involved in carjacking on highways 1O Zormat area in Paktia and Gardez, to one year imprisonment each, a Tahban source in Peshawar sakl

FnONTIEr~ POS,) 16 FEB 1995

.A[fftanistan (~"s CHpplna

Brojourdi due today

Dostum arrives for meeting with president, PM

ISLAMABAD, Feb 7: Afghan warlord General Abdul Rashid Dostum, whose forces are fighting those .of President Burhanuddin Rabbani, arrived in Islamabad on Wednesday for talks with Pakistani leaders, a Foreign Office spokesman said.

He said the General, who heads the Jumbish-i-Milli party, would meet President Farooq Leghari and Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto during his five-day visit.

It's probably the first time that Dostum, whose mainly ethnic Uzbek troops hold much of northern Afghanistan, has been received publicly in Pakistan since he rebelled against Rabbani in Jan 94.

The spokesman said only that Dostum would discuss the latest situation in Afghanistan with officials here.

The Kabul government has objected in the past to Official contacts between Pakistan and Afghan opposition factions. Ties between the two countries have been strained by since the ransacking of the Pakistan embassy in the Afghan capital in September.

Dostum has refrained from throwing his weight behind either side in the contest between govern' ment forces and the Taliban militia besieging Kabul since October.

Dostum has a history of changing sides. He belonged to the former Soviet-backed communist government, but withdrew support in April 1992, precipitating the fall of President Najibullah and the takeover of Kabul by mujahideen guerillas.

He was in alliance with Rabbani before joining forces with the president's rival, then-prime minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.

IRANIAN EFFORTS: Iranian deputy foreign minister Alauddin Brojourdi will arrive in Peshawar on Thursday as the efforts for peace in Afghanistan gain momentum with UN special envoy Mehmoud Mestiri preparing to see Afghan opposition leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in the war-shattered country.

Brojourdi will fly into Peshawar :rom Kabul where he met senior

Kabul administration officials as part of his efforts to broker reconciliation between the rival Afghan sides, diplomatic sources told APP on Wednesday.

The Iranian official .has been shuttling between warring Afghan groups and beleaguered Kabul regime led by President Burhanuddin Rabbani for quite some time in a bid to bring rapproachment between them.

He also plans to discuss Afghan issue with Pakistani officials in Islamabad.

Both Pakistan and Iran keep each other informed about their efforts for bringing peace in the neighboring Afghanistan as it will augur well for the economic development of the region.

Brojourdi last month offered to mediate between Islamabad and Kabul regime whose relations witnessed a bad patch aftel: an unruly mob ransacked Pakistan embassy in Afghan capital -Iast September resulting in the killing of an employee and wounding of over 20 other staffers including its ambassador Qazi Humayun.

Meanwhile, UN peace mediator Mehmoud Mestiri plans to visit Oulbuddin Hekmatyar, chief of his own faction of Hizb-i-Islaml tomorrow (Thursday),"-inside Afghanistan," Afghan sources said.

"Let's see what he has to say," a close aide of Hekmatyar told APP, when contacted.

RABBANI: President Burhanuddin Rabbani has announced that he is willing to sort out differences with Pakistan, Teheran radio reported on Wednesday.

The Afghan president told Iranian deputy foreign minister, Allauddin Brojerdi in a meeting in Kabul on Tuesday that Afghanistan was ready to setde differences with Pakistan.

In the meeting, Mr Brojerdi expressed Iran's concern about the prevailing position of ties between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Mr Brojerdi added that Teheran was ready to cooperate for the solution of problems between I Islamabad and Kabul.-APP/AFP i

Dostam in Islamabad, meets · Sheikh today

· ISLAMABAD (AFP) - Afghan Uzbek leader General Abdul Rashid Dostam, a key player in Afghanistan's factional war, arrived here for taIks aimed at resolving the conflict, a Foreign Office spokesman said Wednesday.

The spokesman saidDostam - who controls several important provinces in nw.thern Afg~ ~ would meet rep~n.~t;iVes of other Afghan factions ana 6ft1cJaJs during his stay here. Dostam arrived late Tuesday and is expected to stay in Pakistan for at least four days,· the Pakistani officJal said.

· Asked if the Uzbek leadEJ was here at the invitation of Islaniabad, the spokesman said he was visiting Islamabad like other. Afghan leaders. "We always accord warm welcome to Afghan leaders."

The visit is considered significant following reports from the Afghan capital that· the Taliban militia, which has been besieging KabuUor the past four months, was planning a new offensive to take the city. It was not known whether the Uzbek leader would hold'talks here With TaIiban lead· ers.Th.e t}YQ sides held ipconclusive negotiations in the past for mutual cooperation against the

Rabbani government. .

FPB~aua~:Dostam, on a five-day visit to Pakistan, will be meeting foreign secretary Najmuddin A. Sheikh here at the foreign office.

"Dostam held several meetings on Wednesday," an official said. He will also meet Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto and President Farooq Leghari during. his stay here. Islamabad is enjoying good

. relations with Dostam. Recently, some Pakistani engineers and experts also visited Mazar -1-Sharif - the stronghold of Dostam in northern Afghanistan - to look for the reconstruction of roads and other communication means destroyed during the Afghan war.

FRONTIER pOS,) 08 F E.B 199b

Sibghatullah Mujadd8dl

. Abdul R .. hld "","''''

6ulbaddln Het"""..,

Agencies . ' . to discuss heavy agenda relating to the Afghan conflict.

-The meeting, to. be attended by allllUljor stalwarts opISLAMABAD: As part of fresh initiatives to end the posing Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani's regime, Afghan crisis, the Supreme Coordirui.tion Council of J&. will discuss in detail various peace initiatives and evolve lamic Revolution of Afghanistan (SCCIRA) on Friday a strategy for the establishrnentof a broad-basedgovheld its preliminary meeting and discussed ways and errunent in Afghanistan acceptable to all Afghan parties means to find out a peaceful settlement to the thorny and groups.

issue. ' " Meanwhile, several top Afghan leaders held separate

"It was a brief and preliIpinarymeeting which dis- 'talks here Friday to reach an agreement on a future

cussed agenda for the high levelmeeting of the SO-setup in Afghanistan. '. .

CIRA," said Dr Ghairat Baheer, representative of Hizb-e-' " Ebnrier Afghan president Sibghatullah Mqjaddedi met IslamiAfghanistan. . . . 'UzbekGeneral Abdul Rashid Dostum, who flew into Is-

He Said here on Friday that the meeting was attended .lamabad Thesday to hold meetings with Pakistani and

. by chief of Junbish-e-Milli Afghanistan General Abdur Afghan leaders. .

Rashid Dostum, Chief of Jabha Nijat-e-Milli, Sibghatul- Dostum;'Who commands considerable. influence in lah Mlijaddediand representative. of Hizb-e~Wahdat several provinces in northern Afghanistan, also met (Khalili Group) Ustad Muhaqqiq, H~ said herepresented Ustad Muhaqqiq,vice-president of the pro-Iranian Shi-

. Hizb-e-Islaml (Hekmatyar), ' ,'. ite fa~,tilJn Hezb-e-Wahdat and Sadeq Modabbari of

Dr G~ did not disclose lIllY details of the ~day's' Harkat-e-Islami, sources said.

meeting and said, "It was j1¥'t a brief sitting ~ welcome . The Uzbek General earlier on Thursday discussed the

General Dostum." '._ .

The SCCIRA will fo~meet here. today (~) . ConUnued Qn Page

'. . ' . _ '"': I ._ . ...::..:...., " :_:::..!£:.:_(:i. ...... .:.._:.:. __ .".:_,

Cont/Bulld fro", ,..,. ' Mah!t\oud Mestiri.', '. along with Shiite Hezb-i-Wahdat and

. Mestiri also went to the eastern Mojaddedi's National Liberation Front Afghan situation with Pakistan gov- Afghan city of Jalalabad to discuss . are grouped in a four-party opposition ernment leaders and senior foreign of- peace prospects with former premier coalition, which also demands Rabfiee officials. The sources here did not Gulbaddin Hekmatyar.· bani's resignation to pave the way for

rule out the possibility of representa- . AfgllansoUfces said Hekinatyar, . transfer of power in Kabul.

tives of the Taliban militia joining the who heads his faction of Hezb-e-Is- Mlijaddedi en Thursday told Paktalks among the key rivals of embat- lami, was also expected in Islamabad istan Television that Rabbani was "not tied Afghan President Burhanuddin today (Saturday) to join the intra- sincere" in transferring power. RabRabbani, who holds power in Kabul Afghan dialogu~ aimed at ending the bani says he will step down, but he despite his two-year tenure ending in nearly four-year Afghan civll war. never said to whom he would tranSfer

December 1994. The Taliban militia, besieging the the power, MtUaddedi observed.

Diploinatic activity to resolve the Afghan capital, Kabul, for the past He said there would no vacuum if

Afghan conflict stepped up Thursday four months, wants to topple Rabbani the Afghan')resident declared that "I as Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and enforce Islamic law in the war have resigned," It would end the war Alauddin Broujerdi arrived in Islam- torn country. as Rabbani rivals were already conabad for talks with Pakistani officials Dostum's National Islamic Move- trolling 90 percent of their country.-

and UN Special envoy onAfghanistan ment and Hekmatyar's Hezb-e-IsIami APPIPPIIAFP

.Affftanistan (~ws Cfippina

Aftftanistan (~'\"sCfippln8

1 3

Consensus emerging on grand Afghan shoora

From ZAFFARULLAH KHAN . ,

ISLAMABAD - Afghan leaders Sunday started deliberations on the proposal of convening a grand Shoora (assembly) to evolve a consensus among rival factions for ending civil war in Afghanistan.

Three important meetings took place Sunday. The first was between General Abdul Rasheed Dostam and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. The two Afghan leaders exchanged, views on the. prevailing situation in Afghanistan;

Dostam, who heads his group, Jumbash-i-Milli Afghanistan, also called on Chief of the Army Staff General Jehangir Karamat and discussed with him matters of mutual interest for about 45 minutes. He was accompanied by Ustad Muhaqqiq of Hizb·:i- . Wahdat and Agha Nadin. "General Dostam seemed very satisfied after the meeting", said sources. It was the first meeting of General Karamat with any Atghan leader after assuming the office of COAS.

The third meeting was of Supreme Coordination Council of the. Islamic Revolution in which the Afghan leaders discussed various proposals for ending the civ· il war. The meeting was attended by chief. of Hizb-iIslarni Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, chief of Jumbish+Milli. General Rashid Dostam, represeptative of llizh-i; Wahdat Ustad Muhaqqiq and representative or Sibghatullah Mujaddadi's NationalIslamic Liberation Front.·~ '. ..).

Accorclioo" to sources, the counciJ diScu.ss9d QPthl the United Nations proposals as well as Rabbc!ni's offer of relinquishing power. There was a consensus at the meeting that Rabbani's otfer of stepping down was a bluff. The Council will ask Rabbani to decide the modalities for transfer of power. The conditions of the Supreme Council will be: (a) setting up of timeframe for the transfer of power, . (b) withdrawal of Ahmad Shah Masood's troops from Kabul city and (c) induction of about 1500 troops of the future pmsident of Afghanistan in the Afghan capital, a souroo told The Frontier Post.

However, in Sunday's meeting a proposal of convening a grand shoora was aJsoforwarded to which all' the groups of Afghanistan should be invited 'tQ evolve, . a broad consensus for the resolution of over decade old problem. Some of the Afghan leaders were, however, opposed to invitingRabbani and Masood to the proposed shoora. President Rabban1's government is in control of only four provinces of Afghanistan Whereas . the rest of Afghan groups are controlling 28 prov1ngeS. Sources said that the formation of a parallel government in Afghanistan could be the outcome of this' broad consensus among the Afghan groups:

FRONTIER rosr 12 FEB 1996 THE NEWS INTERNATIONAL

The meeting between General Dostam and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar continued for more than two hours. It was a one-to-one meeting in which the two tried 19 sort out their mutual apprehensions and mistrust which cropped up during the last six months when the two leaders last met. President Rabbani, during the same period, tried to win over General Dostam through Iranian deputy foreign minister. Dostam, intact. was offered share in the much coveted defence ministry of Afghanistan. Similarly, Rabbani also tried to lure Hekmatyar as he was keeping COIltact with the._HIA chief through his close ally Abdul Rab Rasool Sayyaf. However, according to sources the two leaders during their deliberations were able to sort out the mistrust to some extent.

The Taliban- remained missing from the taJks even on ,Sunday. However, officials told The Frontier Post

· that they were being kept informed about the development in the taJks. The sources said that Talihan lead.ers were staying away from the parleys due to "religious. reasons" as they were observing aitakaf,

APP ~: The top leadership of the four Afghan opposition coalition met for the second day in a LOW amlOstpolisibility of a grand alliance to pressure

;:i~ into stepping down. .

-, "There is a proposal for the formation of a grand

· front to unite all opposition groups including Taliban ~agaipStthe Rabbani regime," Afgharl opposition souq;e$ foldf,PP.

The efforts have been launched to rope in the powerful Taliban militia in the proposed grand alliance. "We are tryi'ng to contact TaIwan and hope they will side With us," the sources said:

"The Proposed grand alliance is meant to build up pressure on Rabbani to quit otherwise any possible action can be taken against him," the sources said.

PPI adds: The Afghan opposition groups have agreed on the establishment of a broad-based government representing all parties and factions.

. "The Afghan leaders are right now finalisinq a mechanism for transfer of power in Afghanistan to be purfn.place after Rabbani relinquish his power," said Malllvi .APduI Baqi Turkistani, representative of

Dostam.' ..

Twkililtani who also attended meeting among

· HeJanatYlir, Dostam, Muhaqqiq and Zabih Mujaddadi, told PPlthe opposition parties were also looking into ways ~d means for peaceful transfer of power and setting.up of a Commission to ensure representation of all faCtions in the government.

He said there was consensus among all the parties on transf~ of power in Afghanistan.

Dostumhas talks with COAS,

Hekmatyar

From Anjum Niaz

ISLAMABAD, Feb 11: Gen tlte Afghan leaders met face-to-face J ehangir Karamat, the after a gap of one year.

COAS, held an' hour-long Informed sources said nothing meeting with the Uzbek substantial was discussed during

the 130-minute meeting but both warlord of Afghanistan, Gen used the occasion to clear the air of Abdul Rasheed Dostum, in suspicion regarding each other's his office here on Sunday. intentions. Sources also tried disThis was Gen Karamat's pelling the impression that some-

thing major was going to come out first meeting with an at the end of the marathon sessions Afghan leader since taking among various Afghan factions over command of the army here for several days.

last month. Meanwhile, the supreme coordi-

What transpired during their nation council under Prof

Sibghatullah Mojaddedi continued meeting was not immediately talks with other Afghan leaders for

known, but according to an eye- the fourth consecutive day and witness account,' Gen Dostum decided to broaden their power appeared very "pleased and base from four political parties to satisfied" with his talks as he around 14. While all Afghans have came out of the room. Such pos- agreed that President Rabbani itive signals "augur well" for must step down, they are still Iookboth Pakistani leadership and ing for-a mechanism for the transchief of the Jumbish-i-Milll, fer of power. Prof Rabbani has

already called a bluff by offering to

sources told Dawn. hand over his position to Maulvi

Gen Dostum and Gulbadin Younas Khatis.

Hikmatyar have both extended The Supre.ue Coordinatio.n their stay in Islamabad to meet Council examined the pros and Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, who cons of such an offer, that could is now expected to return from eventually expose the bluff, Saudi Arabia on Monday. The two because it is uncertain how his leaders are also expected to call on, commander, Ahmad Shah Masood, President Farooq Leghari. would react and what would be the

While, ostensibly, there is no fate of his 15,000 strong army high-level Taliban representation #ould Maulvi Khalis take over.

at this grand Afghan get-together, DRAT OFFENSIVE: In a relatthe sources said some Tatiban lead- ed development, it is learnt, the ers were present in Islamabad and ousted commander of Herat,Gen had already held meetings. with Ismail Khan, now living in Iran,' Gen Dostum, "The top Taliban plans to say his Eid prayers at leadership is either away for Umra Masjid-i·Jamia in Herat city and is or is in Aitakaf (meditation) during expected to start an offensive the last week of Ramazan," they against the Taliban with Iranian said .. But this get-together moot has support, informed sources told

the blessings of the Tilliban, who Dawn on Sunday. .

are being kept informed about the Preparations for jl major offen-

daily developments here. sive were under way across the

Earlier, Gen Dostum held a two- ·Afghan·Iran border, Taliban leader hour meeting with Mr Hikmatyar, Mullah Yar Mohammad claimed, who arrived here on Saturday. The while warning of a strong retaliaUzbek general was accompanied by tion against Iran should Ismail two of his most trusted aides: Hizb- Khan mount the attack. "We will i-Wahadat leader Maulana bomb Iranian cities," he threatMuhauiqq and the Aga Khani spiri- ened, saying he had already tualleader Agha Nadiri, whose son warned the Iranian consul at Herat

is a general in Dostum's army. Both of serious consequences. ~ ...... ~~!:~~~~~~~~~!:~~

~y --~,.,

DAWN

12 FEB 1996

.Affftal1tstan (~"s Cfippina

Afghan .talks beading for nowhere

CD u.J u...

F.P. Bureau Report

ISLAMABAD - Though Afghan leaders continued their informal deliberations to end Afghan crisis bere on Monday, Pakistani officials said they did not attach high hopes to these consultations keeping in view rivalries and mutual mistrusts among different factions.

The advice which the Afghan leaders received from their Pakistani friends was that they should avoid bloodshed at all costs while maintaining unity in their ranks. No combmed meeting of Afghan leaders was held Monday though they informally held discussions.

High on the agenda of these discussions remained the UN peace plan, Rabbani's proposal for stepping down and formation of a grand alliance against Kabul regime The proposal to invite Rahbanl to talks on finalising the modalities of transfer of power was also discussed during these informal meetings.

Sources said the Supreme Coordination Council of Islamic Revolution which held deliberations during the last two days might announce a joint strategy before winding up the Islamabad parleys.

The chief of Hizb-i-Islami Gulbuddin Hekmatyar held a meeting with interior minister Nasirullah Babar and discussed with him the Afghan situation.

The sources said that the assembly of Afghan leaders in the federal capital had served some definite purposes like neutralising the efforts of Rabbani regime, which lacks legitimacy, in wooing some of the elements of Afghan opposition.

"The Afghan leaders have also been able to sort out their mutual distrusts which had cropped up over the years", said a source, adding "the unity displayed by the Afghan opposition during their stay in Pakistan has certainly some message for the

foreign forces supporting Rabbani regime."

Last and the most important point was' that Pakistan had regained its initiative in Afghanistan which it had lost due to lack of coordination with Afghan leadership over the past few years. All the leaders who assembled in Islamabad held India and Russia responsible for the civil war in Afghanistan. Both Hekmatyar and Dostam alleged that India was providing weapons to Rabbani regime which was aggravating the civil war in Afghanistan.

Dostam even provided evidence to the UN special envoy on Afghanistan, Mehmoud Mestiri, about the supply of arms to Rabbani regime from India and Ukraine.

. President Farooq Leghari during his meeting with' Dostam said that the sovereign'ty and geographical integrity of Afghanistan was vital for peace and stability in the region.

During about an hour long meeting with three Afghan leaders, Ustad Muhaqqiq and Agha Mansoor Nadri and Rashid- Dostam,Leghari expressed his concern over fragile peace in Afghanistan.

Highlighting the geo-political importance of Afghanistan, Leghari said, "the welfare of Afghans depends on peace in their country." After attaining peace. Leghari hoped that not only 1.4 million Afghan refugees, currently living in Pakistan, would be able to go back to their homeland, but it would also facilitate a system of mutual cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan on the pattern of European model". Such a model will be helpful for peoples movement across the border. It will also boost trade ties between the two countries", Leghari added. He also expressed Pakistan's interest in the reconstruction of war-torn Afghanistan provided peace returned there.

1 6

Afghanistan (~vvsCfippinB .

11lE NEWS INTERNATIONAL

.Joint action against Rabbani on the cards

By Raja Zulfikar ~ISLAMABAD: Consultations among

the four-party Afghan opposition (leaders continued the sixth day ron[ling. on Monday in Islamabad to 'shape up the hitherto incornplete strategy which. can unseat Afghan IPresidentBurhanuddin Rabbani and

make way for a broad-based interim. setup.

I A joint military action against President Rabbanimay be on the 'cards, should the proposal forwarded by the Hizb-e-Islami Chief, IGulbaddin Hekmatyar,is . okayed by ,other Afghan leaders.

Hekmatyar reportedly proposed (action against Rabbani if he continues his "stubbornness". "The pro'posal has not yet been rejected and instead parties concerned are giving lit a serious thought," source said ..

But as the negotiations continue Uzbek General of Jumbish-e-Milli Islami Rashid Dostum met President 'Farooq Ahmed Khan Leghari for a pre-scheduled session, lasting an hour.

Chief of the Jumliish-e-Milll,Afghan;stan, General Abdul Rashid Oostum with President Farooq Leghari at Aiwan-e.oSadi' In Islamabad on Monday.

"President: expressed concern over continued strife in Afghanistan and wished an Immediate solution to the problem so that the Afghans could return and live in peace," officials sources in Islamabad said.

The president underlined

Afghanistan's important geo-political position in the region-and expressed complete support for its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The president observed that the welfare of the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan lay in promoting peace

and tranquility ill the region so that the two could emulate the European example of free. trade and free movement of people.

He also expressed appreciation for normalcy prevailing in the north of Afghanistan and in this context praised General Dostum's efforts. He expressed Pakistan's keen interest in the reconstruction and rehabilitation of Afghanistan as soon as peace returns there. General Dosturn was accompanied by Ustad Muhaqqiq ofHizb-e-Wahdat and Agha Mansoor Nadiri from Baghlan,

"There has been and will be a detailed discussion on each aspect of the different proposals and a decision to the effect would be announced soon," Afghan sources said, denying difference among Afghan leaders during consultations.

There are indications that the congregation of Afghan leaders in Islamabad will end by Tuesday because "they are close to reaching an agreement. "

Joint actionagainst Rabbani on the cards

Continued from Page Hekmatyar today (Tuesday).

'. Meanwhile, the Afghan opposition During the session, which continued coalition has rejected the protest by till late Monday night, Hekmatyar's Afghan government over congregaproposal was seriously considered tion of the opposition leaders in Isand various leaders suggested unity" lamabad. They argue that the previamong them to forma grand opposi- ousaccord had been finalised-In tion alliance against Rabbani. . Islamabad when Nawaz Sharif was ll'

Reports suggest that there has not power.

been a decision. on the composition of The Kabul government had M(l1!' the future interim setup in day slammed the holding of high-level Afgharustanonce Rabbanistepsdown talks between Afghan opposition oris forced to do so. Different names groups in Pakistan, saying they for the next interim leader have been should have taken place in discussed and rejected, including that Afghanistan.

of YOlulUs Khalis. "In principle, we appreciate such

There were conflicting reports as meetings going. ahead, but only if to the participation of representatives they are held inside Afghanistan and of the Taliban. It was reported that not in Pakistan," a defence ministry Taliban leaders Maulvi Rahbani and spokesman said.

MaulviEhsanullah had met certain 'l\nything coming out of meetings SCCIRA officials. AFp, meanwhile, in Islamabad will not have any result Said Taliban representatives are in Is- and is likely to be fruitless," he added. lamabad but no formal dialogue has Hekmatyar also met Interior Minyet started between them and other isterMajor General (retd) Naseerularmed groups. Though according to -lah Khan Babar here Monday.

reports they are expected to meet It was learnt that the situation

l'HE NEWS INTERNATIONAL

presently prevailing in Afghanistan, with particular reference to various peace proposals as well as initiatives aimed at promoting intra-Afghan dialogue and establishing a broad-based government came under discussion during' the meeting.

Hekmatyar briefed Babar about the on-going meeting of the Supreme Coordination Council being held here to adopt a joint stand against President Rabbani's regime,

The interior minister reiterated Pakistan's Iong-standing position on the Afghan issue, supporting efforts of the UN and Ole for the solution or the Afghan crisis.

Meanwhile, Dr AbdurRenman, an emissary of the Kabul regime has arrived in Jalalabad, carrying President. Rabbani's message. He will hold talks with various Afghan leaders "01' the Nagrahari Shoora during his stay".

The chief of Ittehad-e-Islarni, Prof Abdul' Rab Rasool Sayyaf, who is an ally of President Rabbani,is already in Jalalahad ..

AftJhantstan (~'''S CrippinS

Afghan opposition leaders to support Taliban if attacked

ISLAMABAD, Feb 13: The Taliban on Tuesday received an unprecedented and overwhelming vote of confidence from all Afghan leaders at the conclusion of their gathering here, which lasted one week Leader of Jumbish-i-Milli Gen Abdul Rasheed Dostum told reporters before his departure for Tashkent that the Supreme Coordination Council of Islamic Revolution in Afghanistan (SCCIRA) had decided unanimously to support any party that came under attack from Kabul.

Sending a strong signal to President Rabbani and his commandar, Masud, the Uzbek warlord and a key player in intra- Afghan talks here was categorical in joining hands with the Taliban if they came under an attack from Rabbani-Masud forces in western or northern Afghanistan.

Informed sources said the battle for Kabul was imminent, with .- Masud receiving reinforcements, and added that the Taliban now enjoyed moral and a unified military support of SCCIRA and other opposition parties.

"The SCCIRA will not sit on the sidelines during a breakout of hostilities between Rabbani's and Taliban forces," informed sources told Dawll.

The Seven-day Afghan moot here afforded all the members of SCCIRA and other politicalparries to shed their traditional mistrust of each other, particularly of former communist Uzbek militia leader Dostum, and forge ahead a consensus for the ouster of Rabbani and setting up of an interim government.

Pakistan had pre-empted a possible alliance between Rabbani and Dostum by bringing Dostum together with other leaders wary of his past. "The bottom line for this grand gathering is that now nobody believes that Rabbani-Masud combine is sincere because all the leaders, including Dostum and the Taliban, have been fooled one time or another by them," said the sources, while referring to Dostum's alliance with Rabbani in 1992 and Masud- Taliban recent negotiations not to attack Kabul. The sources said people like Maulvi

Bureau Report

Yunus Khalis, who hated the Hizb-iWahdat Mazari group, were now willing to sit down with them while Dostum, persuaded by Nangarhar governor Haji Qadeer, had agreed to cooperate with the Pakhtuns, "Islamabad wants the Afghan leaders to discuss all the options and advice picked up here, with their leaders back home and either meet again in Islamabad or any other place convenient to all of them," said the sources. Meanwhile, it appears that the Foreign Office has got cold feet and in an undue baste tried doing some damage control throguh distancing itself from the Afghan moot by putting out a tersely-worded handout late on Tuesday evening after PTV had already put out a lead splashing Hekmatyar and Dostum's in-depth talks with the Press. It is interesting to note that both the Foreign Minister and the Foreign Secretary were out of the country during this period.

Najmuddin Shaikh, who only returned from Saudi. Arabia on Tuesday morning was instinctively alarmed by the "high air of expectancy" fuelled by specualtive reports in the print and electronic media regarding Pakistan's major initiative in resolving the Afghan crisis. "In order to save the Foreign Office skin, for they would have hell to pay, knowing there was no light at the end of the tunnel as far as Afghanistan is concerned", he quickly put out a clarification bringing the temperature down, said an insider. "The Press certainly has made a mountain of a mole hill and it was therefore incumbent upon Mr Shaikh to put the record straight", he told "Dawn". Besides Iran and Saudi Arabia must have been angry at Paksitan hijacking the peace talks, think observers. Another school of thought feels the high visibility of the "impromptu" and "unscheduled" Afghan moot here must have been a cause of embarrassment to Prime Minister BenazirBhutto who raised the Afghan issue with Crown Prince Saudi Arabia on Monday and to Foreign Minister Sardar Assef Ahmed Ali in Washington, who travelled all the way to the US to discuss Afghanistan.

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SCCIRAmay issue joint statement today

ISLAMABAD (PPI) -- The fourparty AIghan Opposition alliance, Supreme Coordination Council of Islamic Revolution in AIghanistan (SCCIRA) has finalized the joint statement which is likely to be issued today (Thursday), it is learnt.

According to Afghan sources. leaders of the member parties of the Shoora-e Harn Ahangi agreed to set up a ten-member commission with two members from eacn party to hold negotiations with other Afghan groups including President Rabbaru.

The sources said it hadalsc been decided that the SCCIRA members would work in consultation reiterating its readiness tc hold talks to all the groups considering it the only way to resolve the AIghan problem.

FRONTIER POS') 15 FEB 1996

1 p

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Afghanistan (~·ws Cfipping

Dostum warns Rabbani against attack on Taliban

From Rahimullah Yusufzai ISLAMABAD:. Afghan leader Gen. Rasheed Dostum warned here Tuesday that he and his allies would retaliate if the Rabbani government forces attacked the Taliban or any other opposition group.

In an exclusive interview with The News at the Islamabad international airport prior to his departure for Tashkent after a five-day Visit to Pakistan, he said the opposition parties would join hands to repulse any such attack anywhere in Afghanistan. "An assault on the Taliban, Hezb-i-Wah. dat, . Hezb-i-Islami, Pir Gillani's

Mohaz, Mojadeddi's ANLF or other opposition groups would provoke a joint counter-offensive against Rabbani regime," he explained.

Dostum, whose Junbush-i-Melli Islami party controls seven provinces ill northern Afghanistan, alleged that about 7000 Afghans with Iranian help were preparing to launch an assault on Taliban-held Herat province and other border areas in western Afghanistan. However, he expressed his ignorance about Taliban claims that they have apprehended 166 Afghans loyal to Rabbani regime who infiltrated Herat and Farah provinces from Iranian territory.

Gen. Dostum dismissed Kabul's allegations that his troops were massing at Salang north of Kabul to attack government forces. He maintained that his forces fought in defence when Kabul imposed war on him about one and half years ago. "Even now we have information that Kabul is preparing to launch attacks on its opponents and has launched propaganda to hide its intentions," he stressed,

Explaining the outcome of Afghan alks in Islamabad over the past five

taking him into confidence.

Admitting that he didn't meet any Taliban leader during his stay in Islamabad, Dostum said he and SCCIRA still wanted a grand alliance or all forces opposed to Rabbani regime. "But I must emphasise again that Taliban or any other group alone cannot rule Afghanistan," he contended. H(' made it dear his party had no candldate to head.an interim government. "We would ltave no objection if most parties agree on one name;" he said.

2 Reiterating his stance for a peace. ~ fuJ transfer of power in Kabul, Dos~ tum asked Rabbani to have mercy Oil i the Afghan people and. step down in J) accordance with the aspirations of 1> the Afghans so that an interim gov~ erruuent acceptable to all could-be-set

. 6: up. "We believe war cannot resolve

.• tile Afghan conflict. We remain CUi1l-

days, Dosuun said Prof. Sebghatullah mitted to a negotiated and peaceful Mojadeddi rejoined the Supreme Co- settlement," he added.

ordination Council of Islamic Revolu- Rejecting Kabul's objections as to tion of Afghanistan (SCCIRA) as head why their recent talks weren't held inof the anti-Rabbani alliance. He in- side Afghanistan, Dostum argued that formed that Harkat-i-Islami led by Dr the Islamabad parleys would have a Najibullah Sadiq Modabbir had been positive effect in restoring peace in admitted into the alliance as its fifth Afghanistan. He reminded Rabbani component party. He said a ten-mem- that he himself became Afghanistan's ber commission with two members president as a result of Islamabad acfrom each party had beer. formed cord that. was struck outside under Prof. Mojadeddi's leadership to Afghanistan.

coordinate SCCIRA activities and Asked about Gulbaddin Hekmattackle issues concerning the alliance yar's proposal t.hat Pakistan should and Afghanistan, host a meeting of aU Afghan leaders

According to Dostum, one major including Rabbani, Dostum said his SCClRA decision was that in future party would support any initiative none of its component parties would that could end bloodshed in talk to Kabul regime individually "In- Afghanistan and solve the Afghan stead, the SCCIRA would hold talks problem. Dostum termed his meetwith Kabul and others as an alliance," ings with Pakistan's President and he said. He reminded that one major other officials very positive. He said reason why Prof. Mojadeddi quit the he came to Islamabad on the invitaalliance was his objection that certain tion of pakistan government and also component parties of SCCIRA estab- availed the opportunity to meet his lished contacts with Kabul without SCClRA allies.

nIB NEWS INTERNATIONAL 14 FEB 1996

More fighting in Afghanistan

have been seeking his cooper- THE International Comation in ousting President mittee of the Red Cross on Rabbani. His expression of 'Monday resumed an emergency support for the Pushtun-domi- 'food airlift to Kabul following nated Taliban is considered vi- th"tlliockade of major land tal for maintaining rout~ to the besieged city. The Afghanistan's unity. In case he closure last month of the only joins hands with the Taliban, remaining arterial road via things are sure to get excee~- Jalalabad had led to dramatic ingly tough for t.he Rabb~m- deterioration in supplies of food Masood combine, Prime and fuel, prompting fears of Minister Benazir Bhutto visit- widespread starvation and ed Uzbekistan in recent days, a .deaths among the civilian popucountry known to be support- lation. Many highland provinces ing General. postum. Co.uld 'were also facing acute shortthe ~a!ter's VISIt, and a possIble ages, but the situation in Kabul decision to !hrow we!ght be- .was, by all accounts, desperate. hind the Tal!b~n, be hnked!o Almost entirely dependent on the pri~e minister's efforts rn 'external assistance, a humaniU~beklst~n? T,he answer t.o tariancatastrophe had been this qu~st!on WIll be~ome eVI- feared in the city during the dent within days'.h.ls hard.to .current freezing winter. The airsay whether Iran IS II'! the pic- lift operation, from Peshawar to ture or not, Both Pakl.stan ~nd . an airport in the north of Kabul, Iran ha~e been meetlO& tl~e was expected to last through and agam to resolve thel.r dif- 'February. One thousand tonnes ferences. over Afghanistan. of food is planned to be flown Th~ I~am~ns ~ave also sho~n into the city' during this month their inclination to talk WIth to alleviate the plight of its the Taliban on waysa~d 1.2 million residents, cut off means to secure peace 10 -from the outside world for Afghanistan. T_he fears are ~~at .. , nearly three weeks.

the new Taliban ?ffenslve. But obviously this is a stop!l1ight push t~~ Iram~ns bac~1 gap arrangement and does not IOtO a posiuon that. runs, provide a solution to the probcounter to that of Pakistan. lem of large-scale shortages and One hopes that those ~ho. hunger that stare the Afghan have encouraged the Talibani people in the face. Hundreds, it to launch a new ~uack on is .feared could die if normal Kabul are aware of Its conse-: supplies' are not resumed. quen.ces. The bes~ course for Although donor agencies have se~kmg .a. solutlo~ ,to .th~ responded with concern and Afghan civil war wllI.al~ays sympathy much depends on the lie _thr.ough. negonauons. attitude df the warring factions Continuing reliance on force within Afghanistan. They have has produced chaos and suffer-

ing for the Afghan people.' Islamabad would do well to' work with the OIC and the i United Nations if it really wants to restore its credibility

in Afghanistan.

FRESH fighting erupted in Afghanistan on Tuesday when ,the Taliban reporte~ly : launched another offensive against Kabul. Forces loyal to President Rabbani say they have repulsed what they term a probing assault by the student militia on a southern frontline of the beleaguered Afghan capital. The fighting was still continuing as the last reports filtered in, with the government jets pounding the Taliban positions around Kabul. Meanwhile, commander Ahmad Shah Masood, President Rabbani's principal ally. believes that the Taliban miaht force a new battle for thtcontrol of Kabul immediately after Ramazan, The rumblings of the guns around Kabul must be extremely worrying for its nearly one million inhabitants, most of whom have already moved towards the north of the city, "away from the fighting that is largely concentrated in the south and south-east. This winter added to the woes of this city, where more than 40 per cent buildings have been destroyed either by the mines or bombing by the Talib~n. Ima&ine 'his city's misery JO a punishIO!! winter, with no tuet..elec:ri'City and sewage system available for the people.

As a new and fearsome battle unfolds in days ahead, there are indications of a re-alignment in the forces pitching hard for a vantage position in the current fighting. General Abdul Rasheed Dostum, the powerful Afghan warlord controlling the north of the country. has arrived in Pakistan for consultations with the Pakistani leaders. The Taliban

FRONTIER pas')

08 FEB 1996

Affltanistan (~·WS CfippinB

1 9

Food airlift to Kabul

DAWN

07 FE 8 1996

shown little practical concern , over the suffering of the Afghan people beyond agreeing not to· obstruct or interfere with the) despatch, by air or land route, 'of food supplies. The bloody. internecine conflict unfortu-t nately is showing little sign of abating. Instead, there are indications, taking into account the t recent warning by commander Ahmad Shah Masood, that a new round of hostilities COUld.t erupt soon for the control of the capital Kabul. This would be very tragic indeed, raising the \ possibility of further disruption I' of vital food supplies. Indeed, it I is the squabbling and bickering ~ among the Afghan factions that~ has prolonged the ordeal of the Afghan people.

One sincerely hopes that thet current round of peace. talks under the aegis of the UN secreta.ry-general'S special envoy,t Mr Mahmood Mestiri, would pave the way for a long-delayed political settlement. MUCht depends on the will of the Afghan groups in this regard. Earlier, about 150 lorries carrying food supplies reportedly arrived in Kabul from the south-western town of Maidan Shahr after government forces cleared mines from their portion of the road. But unless major access routes open, normal supplies cannot be resumed. Warring parties must respond to ICRC efforts for getting the land routes opened by the end of the airlift operation.

20

~gftanistan (~,,'s',cnpplnB

Afghanistan

victim. of the proxy war

By MOHAMMADZAHID Gulbuddin Hekmetvar during atlons to a negotiating table. But it forPakistall Uuough saootaue acPESHAWAR - Despite ~. press conference in Peshawar re\ is an 9pen secret that Tehran, tiVi~ies. Mally~fghans are of the crease in the number of media- centIy went to. theexf~n~ of .SI'lY-' :wary of 'l'aIiball's presence III the belief that India never. wanted a tors, striving for restoring peace ing: "If I 'were Botro~BotfOi:I,s Western Af!1hAnistnn (horrtflrina peaceful Afghanistan because a to the war-tom Afghanistan, fears Ghali I would have replaced him Iran) is in search of installing IikB- stable government in Kabul would still eclipse hopes. The Afghan by another person and if Mestiri I minded government in Kabul. not serve the purpose.

situation was never so comphcat- would have opted for resignation". And at the ,moment there is no At the moment the sole benefic ed, as it is today,notw~ing Syed Ishaq Gilmni, chief otthe better choice for Tehran than the I!inry of the situation is the the fresh peace plans, inltl8ted Council of Understanding and, Rabbani-Masood duo. " . Rabhani regime. ObservtJrs say as from both Afghans and outsiders. National Unity of Afghanistan . Seve~ Afghan leaders critical long both Moscow and Yet the worst aspect, of the (CUNUA) has termed Mestiri's of Iranian government role in Washington do not reach another Afghan crisis. that it has. once mission as putting the cart before Afghani~t~ allege, that ..it is understanding over the future of again led to the mad race be- the horse. Criticising Mestiri's strengthemng the. illegal govern- Afghanistan there IS no threat to ~ween various.regional powers -:- role, GHani says that the UN envoy ment of President • ~a~bal_li. Rabbani government. However, m other words the proxy war. It IS has yet fully realised the Afghan However, Iran ~ is not hidl!lg Its still opposition parties if succeed~ fact that Afghanistan for the~politics adding "it is basically the closer relation With Rabbam gov- ed in removing the internal di!ferfust 16 years has fallen vlct~ to outside players who are prolong. ernm~nt. But Imntoo IS confront- eneas, they could pose a senous 4,the proxy war. Yet there was tune 'ing the war" ed With a ,l1ost of problell)s. The threat for the Kabul regime in fuwhen the country was heading for But those who are watching latest c:JeCisioh of ~S Congress of tuJe. The emerging developments

ace in the aftermath of the the game from a closer perspec- ~ll~catlng 820 mililon for destab- indicate that Taltban are no .Sovietwithdrawal from this war-tive do not agree with the idea JISUlgthe Ir~ian government has longer avoiding talks overthe Iuravaged country. But unfortunate- that. Mestiri has failed. The task created ser.lous co~cern for ture alliance ·with the antiIy the ~ple w~ were,iIltention- assigned to him is ing in the Tehran. While Gulf IS al!eady Rabbanlforces. At tbesame time ally denled political traming dur - 'rigilt direction thatirwhy he has . manned by ~ US marines, ItS ut- Kabul regime is' all out. to per- 4ing the. 'Jehad' against the been given the fresh mandate by most st~~gle ~ill be: to have suade them for talks. The Soviets, went for settling their po- the UN SecretarY-Gelleralto con- country ,mlts nelghbourUlg where Rabbani-Masood duo is not hesilitical rivalries through the barrel tinue his (Mestir!) peace miSSion it. ha~ Influence. :ro avert the tanttoholding talks with Taliban. of gun. , .. for Afghanistan. At the moment American danger It Is ready to But Taliban ,are no 10ngerenjCly\ng I Against this confusing back-. both. Washington and Moscow bargain with ~ther even at the the position they enjoyed till yesground peacemaking efforts had. want the same which is going on cost. of its neighbour. Will the terday. Their failure to capture luis given rise to hope last ~r. in AflJbanistan. Let the warring _Afghan leaders allow I~an to pl~y tarnished their image C?f invinc!Professor Anwarul Haq Abadl, an factions fi lit till exhaustion They such ~ role m. Afghamstan IS big ble. But still Tahban IS IOCce to .00 'Afghan political SCientist and themselve~ will come to tetms of question which has to be. an- reckoned within any future goVpresident of Afghan Millat Party, the UN But the fact is the Afghan swered only UI future. Engmeer ernment. The most important ro!e says hopes for the return of peace issue ~s taken such a turn Which Hekmaytar recently had ac~sed is now ~ing played by Jumbashlast summer were right because could not be solved through the Iran ofsupportlI_lg Rab~JlI gov-e-Milli's General Rashid Dostari,l. the~e w~s a ~sitiv~ change in mere sermons. If the UN is realy ernll_le~t and said that!t should He himself ,~ot vyingfor the lijPakistan s foreign poliCY, first the,interested in finding an earlier ,~fram Itself. from meddlmg III the ture leadership of Afghanistan but arrival of Sardar Wali to Pakistan and peaceful solution to the crisis Internal affalf~A?f A~ghanistlln. hehasall the qualifications of a and second UN envoy Malunoud ltrnust come u With a more de- Abeut .. "aslungton and king-maker tn the tutur goverp· Mestiri's peace mission. Prof. fined mande~ and concrete Moscow It IS ~d that both ~av~ ment. But general Dostam whojs Ahadi says that Sardar Wali, the: ste s It should not repeat. thlll an ~nderstandmg over ~ ebm.l- ruling. the northern part of ~ emmiso.r~ of fon~er king Zahir pa~ inlstakes of consulting obly, natIOn. of fun~am~ntahsmlll country inarelatlvely orpanisoo IShah, VISit to Pakistan was a. big the factional leaders and ignoring . AfghanIStan. winch IS a threat to manner, will not play his cards development in the peace pro- , both. Hekmatyar also says that until all other players are exhaustcess. He believe.s that Pak.istan tllwu::~n~e gbONPh~s so far ,nQtRuss~ans are responsible for the ed and ~av~no the strength f~r

plays a big role m the affaIrs of been able to realise peace in ongolll~: bloodshE_ld m further fighting.

any other country in the Afghan A~ hanistan other r iona! COUll- Afgh~~tan. Moscow Is.backlng

affairs, therefore, the warm weI- tri~s Iran Russia 8l~ tnd(a have ,~abbam-~asood duo to avenge come accorded to Sardar Wali by accelerated their activ}ties> in Its defeat m Afghalll~tan. It were c lamebad to ma~y was a new Afghanistan. Pakistan which is Moscow and Washmgton ~ho and major factorm the Afghan supposed to playa greater role in throuqha well-planned conspire-

politics. Prof Ahadi says that the . . cy dem~ power. to Pushtoon

change in the Pakistan govern- leadership In Kabul, says the 1

ment had an international support . Hezb chief and adds the then

hence it was said that the change ~he peace process of Afghanistan, government in Pakistan at that

was a right step in the peace pro- IS bemg Isolated tllrough a weH tune endorsed the plan. I

cess. But while Sardar Wall was planned conspiracy Prof Aha~1 India too holds a crucial card in

4· Pakistan Mestiri also embarked, seys that because of Pakistan s the Afghan gwne. Russia iscer- !

n his peace mission. And some pressure .Taliban have slowed tainly helping India in executing-

Afghan experts are of the belief down their attack on. Kabul. On its operation in Kabul. India from that the ooincidenoe dashed the tile other hand Ir.anPlan gov~~I1- the very beginning has been en. lhopes br the return of peace, last ~ent bas ~ltensified its activities joying good relations with

year, and thus the war continue to m Afghalllstan to safeguard Its Afghanistan. The reason is not claim its toll. Now Mastirt's diplo- ~ inter~~ts, The Ira~lan d~put~ that New Delhi has great love for macv in Afghanistan is on the foreign muuster Allaudm Brojoard! Afghans or is really interested in verlle of collapse. Most of the during the. past two months has putting an end to the sufferings of " Afghan facUonalleaders who in be~n making frequent visits to the people of this war-shatterd the past had rejected Mestiri's various par~8of Afghanistan. country. India's main interest in plans are now even opposing his T~ran says _It has baen endeav- AfghanIStan is to create problems

role. Hezb-e-Islami chief ounng to bung tile warrmg fac-

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AS so often in the past, Islamabad is once again at the centre of moves aimed at bringing about a political settlement in Afghanistan. Iranian deputy

II or the umpteenth time,major players with say an. d foreign minister, Allauddin interest in Afghanistan have renewed efforts to re- Broujerdi, arrived in Islamabad store peace in the unfortunate country. Attention is yesterday as part of the efforts focused on Islamabad, Kabul, Peshawar, Kandahar by both Iran and Pakistan to get and Jalalabad where sharp diplomatic manoeuvres are under- all the Afghan factions to sit way. The UN special envoy, Mahmoud Mestiri, hasn't given up across a common table. UN spedespite his earlier campaigns that came to a cropper to make cial envoy Mehmoud Mestiri the Afghan combatants agree to a shared power transfer mech- who is shuttling between anism. His latest shuttle diplomacy has already taken him twice Islamabad and Kabul in his bid to Kabul and also to Kandahar and Jalalabad. to develop a consensus among

the Afghan factions on a peace

Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister AlauddinBroqjerdi after one formula is already in Pakistan.

of his many trips to Afghanistan has had talks with Prime Min· Of equal if not more importance ister Benazir Bhutto and her foreign secretary. Although Pak- is the presence in Islamabad of istan and Iran's views on Afghanistan diverge, there seems to Afghan warlord General Abdul be a broad agreement to end bloodshed. Mr Broqjerdi also met Rashid Dostum whose forces Prof. Sayyaf, a major ally of beleaguered Afghan President are ranged against those Burhanuddin Rabbani, who has been trying to sell his peace of President Burhanuddin plan and improve Kabul's unfriendly relations ~tb Paldstan. Rabbani but who has yet to Then the presence of Gen. Rasheed Dostum in Islamabad and make up his mind whether to his particlpatlon in the talks on Afghanistan is another sign forge an alliance with the that things are moving. Taliban who have made several

All this is very reassuring for those who are pained by the unsuccessful attempts to storm

d th sui· Kabul.

senseless fighting in war-ravaged Afghanistan an e resui- To add to the impression that

tant s~erings of the Afghan people. For the past 18 ~ears, efforts for peace in Afghanistan Afghanistan. has seldom seen moments of happiness ?WIng to are gaining momentum, Radio the destru~e struggle for power ~tween armed factions that;, Tehran reported on Wednesday wrongly claim to speak for the voiceless Afghan people. Thei that the Afghan president told apathy of the West and others who backed the Afghan mU·:the Iranian deputy foreign minjahideen during their struggle against foreign occupation and ,i ister (who was in Afghanistan I communism has been disappointing for most Afghans. Lately, 'I prior to his arrival in they have also been critical of the UN role and its phlegmatic:1 Islamabad) that Afghanistan response to their plight. But, with the ole as usual unable to 'I was ready to settle its differperform any meaningful role in the conflict and the neigh- I! ences with Pakistan. Furtherbouring countries failing to win the trust of the Afghans to act i more, t~e UN special envoy.is as mediators, the UN remains the only credible forum to find I. p~epanng to se~ Gulbaddm a peaceful and negotiated settlement in Afghanistan. ~etyar, 'Yho IS also ra~ged

That recent deliberations on Afghan peace are being held against P!esIdent Rabbani, as . n..l~""'ft~ sh ws that Islamabad remains a key pl· ... er in the . part o~ hIS effo~ts to broker a

m r-~14l1 0 . . ~. ~ peace m Afgharustan.

Afghanistan enllgame. ~ stands to benefit th.~ most once Ii All these are hopeful signs peace returns~o Afghanistan. It would then be ~elieved of the : and represent a sense of movebw:den of hosting Afghan refugees and combatting acts of ter- I ment in a static situation after a ronsm sponsored from across the border. A peaceful and sta- .1 long time. In one sense the 4 ble Afghanist.an would also afford Islamabad an opportunity to i prospects for a peaceful solupursue munally beneficial trade with the Central Asian states I tion which could appeal to all through th. quicker land routes that lie in Afghanistan. Pak- the sides is brighter than at any 4 istan has tt> lend its full weight behind the efforts to bring time in the recent past since all peace bact to Afghanistan. While it should jealously guard its the warring sides have experiinterests! must resist the temptation of assuming the role of. enced at first hand the futility a kin~er in Kabul. : uf unilateral militarism. The 'Tali ban have been unable to

Fresh moves on Afghan front

take Kabul; Hikmetyar has been unable to make any headway on his own; Dostum is confined to his northern stronghold; and Rabbani and his defence minister Ahmed Shah Masood are 'in control of a besieged capital whose population as a consequence has seen its plight worsen with every passing day. This stand-off should help concentrate minds on the need for a peaceful settlement.

Even so, the odds are daunting because if anything is greater than the sufferings of the Afghan people it is the ambitions of the warring sides and the intense distrust that ' they harbour for each other. Peace formulae have been agreed upon in the past only to founder on the intransigence of the various factions. Transition dates for power-sharing have mostly been dishonoured on one pretext or another. Although the present momentum looks promising, it is not going to be easy to wash away the effects of the bitter and distrustful legacy of the past.

Still, there is no alternative to the search for a peaceful solution. Not only is it a question of bringing an end to the sufferings of the' Afghan people. A peaceful settlement in Afghanistan is of vital interest to Pakistan as well because disturbed conditions across our\~ western border have a spillover~ effect on us. What is more, continued turbulence in Afghanistan retards the efforts for regional cooperation. But whatever direction the present efforts take there is one thing that Pakistan must insist upon. The Rabbani government owes Pakistan an apology for the premeditated ransacking of our embassy in Kabul and for the wanton assaulting of our men posted there. It also owes Pakistan compensation fur the damage caused.

Afghanistan's piecemeal peace

'tHE NEWS INTERNATIONAL 10 FEB 1996

DAWN

o 9 FEB 1996

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AIfftanistan (~'ws CfippinB

Without Taliban, Afghan peace may not be possible

ISLAMABAD _ Barring the two governments in India and Russia of role, Thus, the Rabbani regime has

main power contenders in the last well militarily and financially backing the' already won over Hizbe Wahdat's Taliban movement Surp ris ingly I'n commander Khalili. Iranian deputy

over a year long battle for Kabul-, . ,

that is, Taliban and Rabbarii-Masood the biggest gathering of the factional foreign minister Alauddin Borujerdi

leaders of Afghanistan that has taken has also consistently 'tried to prevent duo's regime-the Afghan factional I place in the country since the Pesha- the rest of the Council members from leaders were Saturday busy negotiat- I war Accord of the eighties; the Tali- militarily supporting the Taliban. That ing with the officials of the United ' ban have no representation at all. he has failed to bring Dostum to the

Nations, Pakistan and Iran the ways "This countf);'s greatest dilemma is I side of Rabbani is another matter.

and means of setting up a broad-based that its successive governments have For its part, the United States appears

government in Afghanistan. run the Af~han policy in an ad-hoc' to be disinterested in the Afghan

Will that be possible, if the main style: If one government entirely situation as it exists now. This is what

power contenders are not made part of banked upon Hekmatyar, the next one comes . out clearly in the reported

the negotiating process? Informed of- completely ignored him, and started meeting between Clinton

ficlals anddiplomats and independent trying another horse-which is what administration's envoy Strobe Talbott

observers of the Afghan situation are the Bhutto regime has done by bank- and, the visitng FM Sardar Aseff in

pessimistic about any positive OUt- ing upon entirely on T,llliban," said an Washington, DC. The "external

come of the parleys among Afghani- independent authority., interference' Americans are talking

stan's key external players and its Otheri d d ~. th Irani

factional leaders, with the two main er 'In epen ent sources claim about may not reterjust to e an

that General Dostum's presence in involvement in Afghanistan; it may

ones being General Rashid .Dostum town is more of a commercial nature imply the alleged support Pakistan

and Gulbadin Hekmatyar. The posi- I Talib

tive outcome here means whether or ' than of a political one. The govern- has been providing to the I an.

not the whole exercise will serve Pa- mentwantshim to help itoutin the gas Since the rise of Taliban, one of the

kistan's security or economic inter- pipeline'project meant to supply Cen- consistent theme that the govemments,

tral Asian natural gas to Pakistan, for the media and the human rights

ests. which the government has signed some organisations of the west, including

Hameed Gul, who led Pakistan's accords: with the Central Asian re- the United States, have followed is

proxy war in Afghanistan in 1980' s as gimes. In addition, the National Hi~h- that tl).e human rights violations being

lSI chief, was of the view that the way Authority here intends to rebuild committed increasingly by the

peace initiatives were not likely to the road passing through the Taliban- 'fundamentalists' taliban, especially

'bear fruit by keeping the strong force controlled Herat province. and the highlighting the religious students'

of Taliban out. DO~!1m controlled Mazare Sharif so prejudices about the womenfolk.

''TheyholdI5provincesinAfgh~n- that one of the country's tl'ade routes About half of Afghanistan's

istan and are a force to reckon With. via Afghanistan to Central Asiastarts provinces that the Taliban are

They have been fighting Rabbani ~e- operating. ,controIlirtg are inhabited by the

.gime for years now. Peace negotia- Curren.Jly, the Taliban are said to be Pushtoons, which the Taliban

tions without them would be mean- positioned miles away, south and themselves by and large are. And, it

ingless" he viewed before a group of south-east of the Kabul city. It was in has been pointed out repeatedly inthe ~ ;j

journalists at the iftar party thrown by late last November that they had to local media that, if not politically, the <IS _

PML(N) secretary information M~~h- retreatfri>m their forWard positions in Taliban held Pushtoon areas of .~ .~

ahid Hussain on Saturday. the wake of a counter-attack on them Afghanistan are economically and _ ,.e

'On Saturday, it was hardto find out I by the Ahmad Shah Masood forces, culturally linked to Pakistan's Frontier ~~

" ", , • ,', " ", '.' " i which are well entrenched in and and Balochistan provinces. If this be ::; ~

aroto beunthdeKaSl'nbgulle·ThmOesYt saretabalsoill'sl'nreg' ~acrtedtor ~e gro~dthereality, ignoringdthfe TAaif ihban '§ ~

•. , actor m current roun 0 g an :I c

for 'the Rabbani regime.. Masood diplomcy in Islamabad will prove ~ ~

, expectstaIiban'sattackonKabulafter counter-productive. :2 ~

even the places where the Afghan Ramazan. On the other side, Masood appears . ~ c..

• leaders were stationed, what to .talk of "I(~ ~urpose behit,td the present to be as defiant of any peace move jj ~:€ t

seeing them in person. Some said they gatlienngm Islamabad IS to foster a an aimed at dethroning Rabbani, even if E ~ ~ =

were the guests of the secret service. .anti-Rabbani alliance, this will not be it is coming from UN special envoy a~ ~ 1l

Others were of the view that they, served for the simple reason that the Mahmood Mestiri. Himself, Masood ~ ;a.s

including Jumbish Milli Islami ch.ief leading anti-Rabbani forc~, is .being is believed to be enjoying the active

Abdul Rashid Dostum, were staying excluded from the process, S81d one military and financial backing of both 13 ~.5 ~ E' ~

at the State Guest House. , Arab diplomat. ' Iran and Russia, and even India. .~ ~ 13 ~ bO-

Eversince the 1993 rise of Taliban For quite some time, the Rabbani All said and done, if. by inviting the ~._ ~ ~.: ;;

from the Kandhar province. Pakistan regime has been trying to win over the tried and untried horses in Afghanistan, ~ 1; ~ e -;; ~

has been accused by Rabbani regime, support of the members of the Supreme Islamabad hopes to foster a second >.~.l!l 0 ~ ~

official newspapers in Iran, and the Coordination Council, the anti- effective military alliance against fa < :e:e.-s c

Rabbani alliance of Afghanistan's Rabbani-the first one being S u ~ 'O,.e ._

factional leaders, barring Taliban. Its Taliban-this will not do. What may ~ -s u ~~ c

ally Prof, Say~rs offer to Younas happenintheprocessisthatthecountry ff'Q 5'i e S

Khalis can' be seen in the same may annoy yet another Afghan)i! ~ • j

perspective. In this effort, the main faction-that is. Taliban.1t has already is ~ ~ -g : ~

extemalactorsupportingRabbani,Iran done the same to Hekmatyar. The ~ e] ~ 0

is also believed to be playing a key question is, can Pakistan afford to ~ ~ 8. E ~ ~ annoy Taliban? Another question is, ~ ~ '" ~ '~i

as things stand now in Afghanistan, <II u_

NATION 11 FEB 1996

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Wb,ose peace do they want?

I ~;. " ! ! - ." ,- -, - • .~

···'OAWN·· 'ByM.B.Naqvi ~~,i '.2 FE,8199B' '

t, THERE is a temptation to blurt out: inade and elections are held; It will have the evldent.fact that there wlU never be a general too many cooks are spoiling the same status and purpose as Mojaddadi's or agreement on a 'board-based' government Mghan broth. Islamabad hosted, earli- Rabbani'.:1n other words, it has tb be an ad hoc among Afghan leaders with military force at er in the week. and last week, a talka- affair. their command. ItIs a WUd goole'. chase that

The second is whoUy unclear. Others, lnelud- might not be there.

thon on peace-making in Mghanistan. tng the Americans and Iranians, see It as the There Is another reason Why major Afghan

Visitors Included Alauddln Brojourdl, the nralpolitik reUance on TaUban's victory, with or parties might naver be able to produce e 'broadIranIan Deputy Foreign MInIster, UN Secretary without Hekmatyar's and Dostum's cooperation based' government acceptable to all: It Is their Ceneral's representative Mehmoud Mestirl. that will redound to Pakistan's credit and shan narrow tision. Among the major claimants are Cen. Abdul RashldDostum of JumbIsM-MiUl. be a feather in its cap. That such is also the view Islamic parties - Identified with a distinct sect, Eng. Hekinatyar, ex- President Slbghatullah of many Pakistanis is known. Indeed this is what sub-sect or maslak or denomination - among Mojaddadi, TaUban and assorted Afghan makes this poqcy so controversial. Sceptics say whom each is simply unable to see why the othMujahldeen leader.; American officials were that a victory,in that country is a wIlI'o-tha-wisp. ers should be in a position to outvote, overrule also aetive. The President and PrIme Minister But even if it becomes possible 'for pro-Pak!stan or isolate it in an Islamic govemmentwhich will participated in talks with many of these digni- forces to take Kabul, the price for Pakistan will prepare an Islamic constitution and dispensation taries. The only notable absentee was Foreign be prohibitive. It will have to defend its proteges for the country for all time. The only really Minister Sardar Assaf Ahmed Ali, who had gone against every other Afghan force; an the latter acceptable Islamic constitution Is one that each on a Washington Yalnl at his own request curi- 81'1! sure to unite against that Kabul. Moreover, such party makes; othen' interpretations are ously at just this juncture and the brunt ofnego- Pakistan will have to go on pouring money, 'wrong' and unacceptable, In a largely backWard ,tialions had to be borne by Foreign Secretary. Weapons and civilian supplies to an embattled country emphasis on Islam can prove 10 be divl·

Sardar Assef Ali's absenee seems to be and besieged Kabul regime interminably. Can ,sive, as inde~ in actual Ufe It has proved to be explainable by two obvious factors: First. the we do so?' ' in over «dozen MusUm countries. It Is therefore urgency of responding to American pressures on 'Now, rigging up a government for a war-tom a dangerous course to formulate theobjetlive as the nudear and missile questions and conveying country, with many armies and parties with war forming a 'l)road·based' .Islamic government to to them the gravity of the crisis in India-Pakistan experienc;e on an ad hoc basis cannot be an easy make an Islamic constitution and usher in an

relations - with deterioration in the military Islamic dispensation. It is far safer to work for a

tension along Une of Control (LoC) in Kashmir workable and fair set of criteria ,that all reJiaiol1l

at a time when nuclear arms and missUe races ,denominations can wIIlinJIy accept.

are starting in the subcontinent whUe, incongru- Why no' 0 n e -h a S eve r The most disheartening featUre of the Afghan

ously enough, freer trade and granting of MFN 'though't of borrowi n.g the situation is not the inability of'Afghan party

status to India impends - and hopefully actlvat- leaders to agree to subordinate their partisan

.ingtheirmedialion. • Cambodianmethodology interests to common weal. They have no concept

Secondly, ties with .the US are the lodestar of common weal qua religious parties; they are

,with the help of which lslamabad is trying to to produce a democratic only concerned with what they think is right (in

:chart an its courses; involving them on one's own ' ,an absolute sense) and wrong (absolute again).

side by soothing their annoyances over not only '-'Afghan' government? In There is something else that Is dangerously badl the failure to sign up the NPT and CTBT in order to ensure absolute (quasi absolutely). It is the inability of outside

Geneva but the Pakistani decislon(?) to counter I, 1 powers' - Pakistan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, US,

PrlthiVi and the Indian Bomb threatS was more fai UN d .. China etc - to desist from Interfering In

urgent than the interminable Afghanistan crisis. atrness, a -a mlnlS- Afghanistan; they feel compeUed to do so for a

Some might say that the Foreign Minister was tered election _ after two variety of reasons, including their perceptions of

deUberate1y sent away justal the time. But that their own national security interests. They dare

will he too unkind. Anyhow, the Afghanistan or three years of UN, gov- not leave their proxies in the lurch or just short

talks in Islamabad have brought out the diver- of the goal of capturing seats of Influence in

gences of views between Pakistan and Iran, on emance for disarming the decision-making apparatus. This kind of interest

the one hand, and Pakistan and the u~, on the Af h facti d b virtually guarantees that there will be no 'broad-

other. It is known that China tOO feels rather g an acttons an esta - based' Islamic government in Afghanistan.

uncomfortable with Islamabad's Afghan design. li ·h· 1 f 1 Is there, then, no hope for the Afghan people?

What the situation has brought in the open is IS Ing ru e 0 aw - can To begin with, the outlook for the common

Pakistan's isolation over and in Afghanistan. cut through the, Gordian Afghans is quite bleak; no one is thinking of

Developments iflAfghanistan have also ocea- them at all, certainly not the outside powers.

sioned strange convergences of·views: the knot And yet, the. outlook WU1 become immediately

strangest is between Iran and the US, possibly clear and hopeful if the ordinary Afghan's wish·

the only one of its kind. Both dislike the prospect esare to be made the criterion. Why no one has

of Tallban, alone or In combination with or simple affair. There Is no agreed or known cri- ever thought of borrowing the Cambodian Hekmatyar's Hiz·I-Islaml and Gen. Dostum's 'teria for doing so. It is conceivable that there methodology to produce a democratic (freely Army, capturing Kabul. In comparison with this can, given a bit of goodwiU broad mindedness elected) Afghan government? In order to ensute unwelcome possibility, continuadon of President and idealism, be partial agreement over Who absolute fairness, a UN-administeredelettionRabbani's rule seems a lesser evil. No doubt, should not be a part of it and maybe even some after two or three years of UN governance for their specific recommendations about the compo-' agreement on a triterion of 'who to be included. ' disarming the Afghan parties and factions of aU sition of the next 'broad-based' government are But thlit would seem to be the limit. Few such kinds, establishing rule of law and givlng'equal miles apart. But they agree on discouraging groups - those passirig the general test of inelu- opportunities to aU Afghan schools of thought to Pakistan from what they think is helping and sion - can agree about who is to get what share project their Ideas through whatever neutral egging on TaUban and other pro- Pakistan forces Of power. No one can agree, for example,that Its media may be available - can cut through the to displace Rabbani and Ahmad Shah Masud. In rival should control eltlier the Army (defence Gordian knot.

the background, the Indians are seen to be bur- portfoUo) or security forces (Home department). It will be a fair solution. It will produce a pure. rowing their way into Afghanistan in the only It so happens that most Afghan parties are rivals Iy Islamic government, If also non-denominationway open to them; to respond to Rabbani's pleas aiming to capture 'real' power - determined, as al, There will be the least bloodshed. An agreefor help. Indians are also seen to be warming upa'minimum, to deity It to their rivals. menr on such a workable and fair solution can to Iranian schemes, as do theChihese. In other words, any ad hac efton either by OUt' be arrived at qUickly enough. Nagging questions

Insofar as Pakistan'. polley is concerned, it slders - all of whom are Interested parties with about finances and political wllI will remain seems to work on two levels: itsdetlaratory part local favourites that are in fact their proxies - unanswered so long as wide awake Afghan is that Pakistan has no favourites in Afghanistan or by local Afghan leaders is sure to faU uniess democrats and their outside friends do not and it is for the Afghan factions to unite and they meet one condition: they agree upon a cri- speak up for democratic values to be applied. agree on a 'broad-based' government to take terion, or a set of criteria, that will be perceived Interested, foreign powers have a reason _ over power from R,abbanl. It must be remem- by an Afghan parties, groups, commanders and greed. really - never to mention such a fair, bered that the envisaged new government will militias as being fair to all and workable. workable and indeed easy solution to a difficult

stili be an Interim one till the Constitution is Without this latter, it can be asserted as a self- problem.

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IT] he Deputy Foreign Minister of D . RashiO- --' .

Iran, Mr Alauddin Broujerdi, has r d Ahmad Khan tional Assembly wherein he said that P~-

sta~ that his country has con- with. General AbdulRashid Dostum further ~tan and ~ have no differences on restorsented to mediate between Afghanistan and embittered Pak.-Afghan relations. Early in mg pe:u:e in Afghanistan and that the two Pakistan following a request from the two to November, Foreign Minister Sardar Aseff countries remained committed to working iron ?ut their mutual differences. An Iranian Ahmad Ali paid a visit to Mazar Sharif together un~l peace was fully restored there. mediatory role between Islamabad and Ka- reportedly at the invitation of Rashid Both Pakistan and Afghariistan have been bul is an initiative of far-reaching signifi- Dostum to ensure his stay. in alliance op- compelled to seek Iranian mediation for a cance for the peace and security of the West posed to President Rabbani. Earlier a 12- number. of reasons. Firstly, the situation in Asian region which has been in turmoil for men,tber Paki~tani delegation, headed by the Afghan~stan has completely been stalethe last more than one and a half decade CItaU:man, Oil and Gas Development Cor- mated since the start of the Taliban' s current

Relations between Pakistan and the g~v- poranon, ~ Moeen Ahsan, had visited ~arch.on ~bul which initially scored stunernment of President Rabbani have deterio- Mazar Sherif and held talks with the officials nIng. v!cton~s. The fall of Kabul's Rabbani rated fast since last September when Pale Of. ~ o~ means to assist Dostum ad- administration which was thought imminent Embassy in Kabul was attacked by an angry n,tu,Ustratton in the reconstruction of the 0~1y' a few months ago has not taken place: mob for allegedPak. support to the Taliban. cmes and cooperation in gas, telecornmuni- Similarly, despite repeated attempts and In the attack, one person was killed and 20 cation and aviation. ~ounter-offensives,theRabbaniadministrahurt including Pak Ambassador to Afghani- These moves ~ere denounced by the gov- ~on ha~ not ~n able to dislodge the besiegstan. The sprawling building of the Pak ernment o~Preslde!1t Rabbani as a violation mg Tahban from their entrenched positions Embassy was completely destroyed in the of ~ghan sovereignty and as a bid for around Kabul. As a result, the situation in at?~k causing damage to property worth carving out a separate sphere of influence. Kabul has n:turned ~?reor less to that under millions of rupees. Pakistan held the govern- B~t.as a recent statement by the Foreign former President NaJlb~l~ when the capiment of President Rabbani responsible for Minister, .S~ ~seff Ahmad Ali, indi- !& surrounded by MUJahideen was subthe attack and demanded apology from the ca~,PakistanJustifiedthemonthegrounds Jec~ to rocket and artillery bombardment Ka~1 authorities. The Government of Af- of Its ~een desire to help the people of causing huge damage. to lives and property.

gh~stan, however, refused to apologise Afghanistan reconstruct their war ravaged Secondly, ~th Pakistan and Afghanistan

~d ms~ accused Pakistan of interfering countIy.... have recogn~sed ~at they nec:d each other

in the internal affairs of Afghanistan by Iran which ~ike Pakistan has a long com- and the connnuanon of the existing tension supporting the Taliban who had captured mon border With Afghanistan and still hosts !>etween. the two can hann their mutual Herat and were advancing towards Kabul. a large number of Afghan refugees, has, mteres~ m a number of ways. Forexample,

The Government of Paki stan retaliated by howev~r, followed a more pragmatic policy ~ghanistan cannot afford to lose the faciliwithdrawing (September 17) "diplomatic and maIntain~ close links with the govem- ties .of transit trade traditionally offered by and other facilities of hospitality it had ex- ment of President Rabbani. Iran was also Pa!ds~. For Pakistan, the continued civil !tnded on its territory to ~ faction in power perturbed. over fighting in Kandahar and strife in Afghanistan is a serious obstacle in m Kabul". Those facilities included large Herat which erupted following the emer- the way of Islamabad's bids to open trade offices, diplomatic establishments and other gen~e oftheT~liban in these areas. Since the routes with Ce~tral Asian Republics, rep~~ntative .agencies. Announcing this Tallb~ ~onsl~tt:d of mostly the students Moreo~er, the fmlure to ~top ~ct in d~lslon, P~stan Foreign Office also s~dymgm religious sc~ools located in Pa- ~gharus~ wo~d I~ to f!1te~~nalisahin~ that India was behind Kabul's anti- kistan, Islamabad, despite repeated denials, tlonofthelssue~lthsenouslmplicationsfor

Pakistanpropaganda.Fourdayslater(Sep- w~ .sus~~ to be behind the student ~otonly~~stanbutalsoforneighbourtember 21), Pakistan expelled 13 Afghan ffilhtIawhichmashortperiodofsixmonths tngc,?untri~~IranandPakistan.Already diplomats working in Afghan Embassy in,ovel!8n most of western Afghanistan. ~U~S1ll, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are proIslamabad. Pak-Afghan relations further Itis a matter of great satisfaction that both ytding. support to the Kabul administration de~orated when anti-Pakistani demon- ~stanand~di~,notallowtheir"differ- ~ VarIOUS forms ~d trying to block the strations were held in Kabul. Pakistan's ence of perceptions to grow into a "large l1?~ph of the Taliban by arranging reconForeign Minister Sardar Aseff Ahmad Ali ffilsund~tandin( on the role of~spective ctliation betweenRabb~ and his rivals like accused President Rabbani of inciting those players in ~e on~01ng tussle in~tan. General Dostum. Pakistan has repeatedly den,t0nstrations. Pakistan took further steps They remained in close con~wit!t each. charge~ the ~o.vern~ent of President against the Kabul administration by closing other and th~le~ers,?fthe twoCCNntries lost. Rabb~ ,?f rece1vtng ~ help from India. the offices. of Rabbani's party _ Jamiat-i- noopportuntty m taking uptheAfghan issue 'I Iran IS I~y posltloned to mediate beIslami _ and those of the parties allied with for mutual consultation when the situation I tween Pakistan and Afghanistan. While President Rabbani. There were reports that so warrant~d. Prime Minister Benazir I Islamabad- ~e~ ties are pleasant and free P~stan was deploying troops on Durand Bhutto, dunng her visit to. Iran early in I from ~y f'ri:ction, Tehran has maintained Line but those reports were denied by Noven,tber last y~, held talks on Afghani- i close links With the ~vernmentof AfghaniIslamabad. Although Pakistan maintained s~ With the Iranian leaders as a result of: stan, headed by ~Ident Rabbani. Iran has the position that it had no favourites in which ~two. ~ountries agreed to "coordi-] ~so he!d talks With anti-Rabbani factions Afghanistan, President Rabbani and his nate their POSItions closely" to promote a! mclu~m~ ~~neral Rashid Dostum' s Defence Minister Ahmad Shah Masud were peaceful settlement . ~ Jumbls~-I-Mtlh and the Taliban. It is generden~unced as. pro-India and anti-Pakistan. ~.December last, Iranian Deputy Foreign I ~Iy behev~ ~ the current lull in fighting P~stan dented that it was helping the Minister Alauddin Broujerdi visited Paki-] ~ Afghanistan IS a result of concerted IraT~ban ~~ at the same time, termed the stanand~etPrimeMinisterBenazirBhutto! man~ffo~forpeace. ~aliban as ,~turalleadership and not artifi- and Foreign Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh in This WI~ !,O! be the first Iranian initiative c~al players . On October 1, II more Afghan Islamabad. Afterthe meeting, Mr Broujerdi for ~onclltation between Pakistan and Afdiplomats were declared persona non grata told the newsmen that there was consensus ghanistan, During the mid-1970s, Iran by the Government of Pakistan and ordered between the two sides that a representative brou~ht Pakistan and Afghanistan close to to leave the country within 48 hours. Paki- government ,?f all Mujahideen groups was reaching what would .have been a historic stan ~o blamed Ka;bul fo~ a series of bomb the ~st so~utlon to the Afghan crisis. Paki- accord had ~neral Zia n?t usurped power b~as~mtheNWFPIncludingthebigexplo- stan sForelgn Office also issued a statement ~ugh a military coup In 1977. Iran has sion mPeshawar on December 21 in which onMrB~ujerdi'stalksinIslamabadsaying ~t s~es in peace not only in Afmore than ~ persons. were killed. Three that Pakistan and Iran emphasised the need ~lstan~u!tnthewh?leSouth-westAsian ~ys afte~ this devastating car bomb explo- for. a broad-based Afghan government region, It 18 m recognition of this fact .that sion, Pakistan ordered the expulsion of the which should be reflective of ethnic and Tehran has agreed to mediate between the Afgh~ C~nsul-General in Peshawar. de~ographic realities in Afghanistan. That t~o coun~es. By accepting Iranian media-

~akistan s al!tmpts to use trade routes P~s~ and Iran have further narrowed non, Pakistan and Afghanistan have disWIt!' • TurkmenIs~ passing through the their ~".ergence of perceptions on Afghani- played great wisdom. They have foiled the Taliban held temtory and officialcontacts stan IS clear frofn a recent statement by attempts by certain powers to sow the seeds Foreign Minister Sardar Aseff in the Na-. of sus~icion and mistrust between the two

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Newline-up in Afghanistan

THE six-day meeting of the Afghan Mujahideen leaders in Islamabad earlier this week is not expected to change the grim situation in that unhappy country. The Supreme Coordination Council partners and their two new- found allies have done precisely what the Afghans are known to excel in. They planned a common strategy against their common enemy but failed to draw up an agreed political approach to powersharing. In' other words, they managed to line up against President Rabbani and vowed to oust him from power. But there was no mention of any consensus on the composition of the interim government they wish to install to facilitate the transfer of power. In fact, the divisions ran so deep that the Taliban who share, the newly formed alliance leaders' animosity towards Rabbani kept away from the Islamabad deliberations, the presence of some of their leaders in Pakistan notwithstanding.

In this situation what can one hope from the just concluded alliance-making exercise? There has been talk of the fighting in Afghanistan intensifying in the coming weeks as the weather warms up. The Hizbe -Islami leader, Gulbadin Hikmatyar, has been most vocal about it. The threats emanating from the Taliban sources have been no less menacing, with dire warnings of Afghan forces bombing Iranian cities. What is most worrying about the present scenario in Afghanistan is that there seems to be no prospect of the conflict coming to an end.

Irrespective of the Mujahideen's claims of forming a grand opposition alliance, it is plain that no group or combination of groups is in a position to win a total victory over all its challengers. Even the Supreme Council's decision to come to the help of the Taliban if they are attacked by Rabbani forces will not change significantly the power balance in the wartom country. In the absence of a military rout of one side and the supremacy of the other, the civil war will continue. There

will be ups and downs in the intensity of the fighting no doubt and the pattern of alliances might change, but that is hardly a recipe for peace and conciliation.

In such a situation, the only avenue available for peace is a politically negotiated settlement. But then considering the Afghan psyche, this appears to

be a tall order. At the Islamabad parleys the Supreme Coordination Council announced a five-point plan, which, among other things, envisages the renunciation of office by President Rabbani and an interim government taking over the reins of power. But there is no provision for the establishment of a transition machinery. Neither is there anything to ensure that President Rabbani will be a party to the peace process after he steps out of the presidency.

The emphasis appears to be on a military solution, though some political options have been thrown in for good measure.Indeed, if the protagonists of the new alliance were serious about resolving the crisis through a political process, they would have wanted to negotiate with President Rabbani - even if ~direcdr ''::_ to associate him with the decision-making on the interim arrangement. Then there could have been some chances of a breakthrough. Wit~ two major parties excludedfrom the conclave in

'Islamabad, the present peace offer -carries little hope of suecess. While the Taliban have refused to have any truck with Dostum who has not been forgiven for his communist past, Mr Rabbani is being kept at arm's length for having overstayed his stipulated tenure. Such hardline attitudes will not promote political compromise and conciliation.

The internal complexities of the Afghan crisis have been worsened by the blatant interference from outside powers. Nearly all neighbouring states, including Pakistan and Iran, have sought to manipulate events in this southwest Asian country through their proxies,

or by supplies of arms or stationing of advisers as in the case of India and Russia. Inevitably, the narrow vested interests and conflicts of these governments have begun to impinge on the Afghan crisis. Be it the Indo-Pakistan rivalry or the Uebekistan-Tajtkistan conflict, it is casting its shadow on Afghanistan. The .United Nations, whose Security Council has yet again deplored foreign intervention in Afghanistan, has a valid point. And that is the reason why the efforts of the Secretary-General's envoy, Mr Mestiri, need to be strongly supported. His alone would be a genuine neutral role which would not favour anyone group or government.

DAWN

17 FEB 1996

Affftan Istan (~"'s. CHpplna

he killing fields of Afghanistan

18 FFA 1996 FRONTIER post

Recent reports suggest two Serb army officers being questioned by the prosecutors of the International Criminal Tribunal on former Yugoslavia. They have been indicted and transported to The Hague to face the jury for crimes against humanity. Meanwhile, Amnesty cInternational has reported con. tinuous foreign-sponsored gross human rights violation in Afghanistan ignored by .the ~world. Warlords belonging to various factions devour Afghanistan - the arbiters of orality and justice are mum. Other developments at the regional and intemationallevel have kept Afghanistan in focus. ~Mehmoud Misteri, UN's discredited envoy who spearheaded unproductive peace negotiations in 1993, is on the move once again. CWhere will these negotiations lead him and how much will he achieve from his present deliberations is open to question. If the past is any guide, his present efforts are bound to result in another stalemate.

Pakistan too is not sparing any effort in retrieving the diplomatic ground lost since the mujahideen takeover in 1992. All diplomatic efforts have failed as one accord after another backfired in its face. Islamabad, in desperate attempts to mediate between warring factions, has tried to reconcile Hekmatyar 's Hizbe Islami and Jumbishe Milli headed by Gen Abdul Rashid Dostum to forging a grand alliance against the formidable Rabbani-Masoud combine that has so far warded off attacks on Kabul with military expertise and diplomatic manoeuvres. With the Taliban joining in, the Kabul fortress is liable to fall.

Will such a scenario lead to a lasting peace in Afghanistan or will it open the floodgates of intervention by regional countries? Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Russia, Iran and Pakistan, not to mention the eager Indians and Saudis, want a share in the Afghan pie from their distant outposts. The recent meeting in Islamabad may achieve short-term military objectives. But there is reason to believe that it will not deliver political dividends in the shape of pro-

Adil Zareef .

moting a broad-based government representing all sections of the Afghan population, This silent, suffering majority has conveniently been ignored by the political process at regional as well as the international peace .process conducted by the UN. One can rule at gunpoint but one cannot "govern" by force. Broad-based consensus is the only viable answer to factional politics and war-mongering that has ravaged Afghanistan.

As yet there seems no qualitative change in the prevailing setup. On the contrary, the support to the warlords has further complicated matters. Contrary to official proclamations, Islamabad as well

of the 30 provinces are certainly a major power to be reckoned with. With military training, ardent religious fervour and the prevailing sense of desperation among the Afghan population they have scored strategic points against the unpopular Kabul regime, But will these gains translate into a permanent breakthrough? Apparently, these by-products of orthodox religious institutions lack political sophistication and their intransigence has driven Islamabad into introducing "alternative" forces. These "tried" forces can be guided and tamed. But can one tame and guide a warlord? A warlord cannot change ~ just as a leopard

Proxy wars tend to suppress genuine leader-

ship in favour of extremist and reactionary factions. This is the Afghan dilemma as well. To overcome this predicament, independent and neutral personalities who wield respect in their localities have to be given an opportunity for representation. This silent majori-

ty has long been overshadowed by the foreign-sponsored and intransigent warlords.

We need to make a qualitative shift from the Cold War strategy of propping up proxies to genuine nation-building. This can only be achieved by dedicated statesmen of unimpeachable character not tainted by the hor-

rendous war crimes. A personality with a criminal record cannot pave way for a democratic and peaceful nation-building.

as other regional powers are continuously pouring munitions and instigating their favourites for further bloodshed as the innocent

. civilians watch helplessly the destruction of their homeland. Hekmatyar was lSI's favourite duringZia ul Haq's jehad. After failed attempts to capture Kabul and humbled at Charasyab, he has emerged once again - thanks to lSI - as a political power broker. His strident ideological pronouncements please Islamabad and score political points at the GHQ. One can watch him on primetime TV alongwith Naseer Ullah Babar toeing the official line!

Taliban having captured 15 out

cannot change its spots. Islamabad is repeating the folly of making allies of warlords that have no political base and lack popular support. They will fail to deliver again. Pakistan has the most leverage inside Afghanistan but its haphazard policies are squandering this advantage.

The present race for military gains has blinded the regional countries to the serious implications of a continuous warfare in Afghanistan. It can easily end in the Balkanisation of a 200 years old nation. The bordering countries cannot escape the repercussions of this ethnic division. The domino effect of nationalism can ~ contagious. Pakistan, in partie-

ular, has to guard against violen secessionist tendencies in the af termath of the div ision 0 Afghanistan. We need to allow in digenous consensus-building a the grass roots level. To begi with, the entire leadership that ha: emerged during the 14-year jcha is foreign-sponsored and alien to the Afghan nation.

Proxy wars tend to suppres: genuine leadership in favour 01 extremist and reactionary Iac tions. This is the Afghan dilernrru as well. To overcome this predicu-] ment, independent and neutra personalities who wield respect in: their localities have to he given all opportunity for representation," This silent majority has long been overshadowed by the foreignsponsored and intransiucnt warlords. We need to makeca qualita-' tivc shin from the Cold War strat-: egy of propping up proxies to genuine nation-building. This can only be achieved by dedicated statesmen of unimpeachable chur-' ucter not tainted hy the horrcndous war crimes. A personality with a criminal record cannot pave way for a democratic and peaceful nation-building.

The traditional Loya Jirgu or Council representing all shades of. ethnic realities of the present day' is the only answer. Propping up "Pukhtoon Card" in defiance 01. popular aspirations will be a repe-' tition of the past futile exercise. An ideological lslamist will un-i nerve Russia for it has to conten with secular borderline Centra Asian republics, An ardell! Sunn~ movement like the Taliban has al ready ruffled Iran that has a silen Sunni minority and restive Kurd. that can stir things up. India is per-i turbed over any Islamist move ment in Pakistan or Afghanistan a.

it evokes memories of "medieva Islamic conquerors". In reaction let Islamic fervour in Pakistan, Hind extremism has gained consider able ground in Indian politics This is an alarming development) Moreover, the United States ha: conveyed its displeasure to Sarda Aseff Ahmad Ali over Pukistari'a handling of the Afghan affairs. pointed reference to thc rising tid of Talihan. In the post-Cold \Va period "fundamentalism" hasbecome a big irritant for Washington

On the international level, ther

See Next rage

34

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FRONTIER' post 18 FEB 1996

The killing fields of Afghanistan

(Continued from Page 6)

is an apparent lack of resolve on the part of the UN and the Security Council. Mehrnoud Misteri's half-hearted and ineffective negotiations have made Afghans bitter about the UN's intentions. "Mehrnoud Misteri lacks diplomatic skill, expertise and temperament of an able negotiator. His choice is greatly flawed", complains Mr. Hakim Aryubi, a spokesman for the Council of Understanding and National Unity. This sums up the feeling of remorse and dismay that Afghans entertain about the UN peace efforts. Two years of fruitless endeavours have not yielded any positive results. The manner Mehmoud Misteri is going about his mission, there is little hope he will be rewarded with success. He is squandering valuable UN resources and its credibility is on

the line. .

What is holding the. UN from enforcing a workable peace plan? Having failed to produce desirable results at the regional level, convening of an international conference on Afghanistan is the only

option to pull out of the present stalemate. For this. the Security Council and not the General Assembly needs to take "obligatory" and "not recommendatory" measures. Calling on the warlords to cease their quest for plunder and mayhem will not result in any change of heart. Firm and concerted efforts backed by the Security Council mandate for a comprehensive settlement. involving neutral personalities and convening of the traditional Councilor Loya Jirga is the only solution. In order to implement a peace plan the UN needs a security force to replace the warlords and to dernilitarise Kabul. The lack of resources at the UN and lack of resolve on the part of the Security Council members is pushing Afghanistan into a bottomless abyss.

Amnesty International implores in its recent report:

"Governments that supported different factions and backed them with weapons have helped set stage for today's catastrophic human rights situation. For this reason. they must play a role in bringing those viotations to an -end", With the implementation of

the peace accord in Bosnia, the USA should undertake similar action in Afghanistan. Warlords like Dostum and Hekmatyar have wreaked havoc on the innocent civilian population by pounding artillery barrages and killing about 25,000 people in Kabul alone, since April 1992. Gen. Dosturn's forces have committed the most heinous war crimes against civilians inside Afghanistan. This does not absolve other warlords of similar crimes including the present unrepresentative regime in Kabul. These warlords do not deserve to be given a VIP treatment by the Islamabad authorities, whatever the political compulsions.

"Having achieved its political objectives in Afghanistan. the USA has left Afghanistan in a lurch. It is the moral responsibility of the West to restore peace in Afghanistan", concludes Mr. Aryubi. Morality is the byword - missing from the political lingo of the present-day politics.

. Human rights violations in a , Third World nation is of little consequence - or value. Call it realpolitik.

'l'HB NEWS INTERNATIONAL. 26 FEB 1996

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36

Afsnanistan (~,\,s CHppina

Proxy war in Kabul

FRONTIER POS')' Afrasiab Khattak 19 FEB 1996

Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was not wide of the mark when she called for an end to what she described "a proxy war in Kabul" in an interview with a Japanese newspaper prior to her visit to Tokyo. Although she did not name the countries which are involved in the said proxy war, by now it is an open secret that ifferent states in the region, in , n effort to expand their influnee in Afghanistan, are sup- 4Porting differentAfghan militant factions fighting for gaining military and political ascendancy in Kabul, the pious Inoises emanating from different capitals in the region notwithstanding. The intensifi'cation of this proxy war has almost torn Afghanistan apart and if it is not stopped immediately, the process of disintegrauion.of the country, which has already started, will become ir-

eversible, spelling disaster for Ithe whole region. In this conection, it is worthwhile to brietly analyse and understand he role of different regional

ctors.

In spite of their military withrawal from Afghanistan in the ate 1980s, the Russians were able o maintain considerable influence in Kabul by putting their weight behind Ahmad Shah Masood and his allies from northern Afghanistan. who captured Kabul by masterminding a military coup . gainst president Najibullah when the latter had completed all preparations for a peaceful transfer of power under a UN peace formula. Since then, the mainstay of the Kabul administration has been the continuous flow of shiploads of Afghanis printed in Moscow and flown to Kabul along with the supply of arms and ammunition.

• Providing support to Tajik and Uzbek warlords in the backdrop of a political and military debacle in .Afghanistan was not just a tactical move on the part of Russians.

In fact, they were not only able to make some remarkable achieveunents in damage control by reviving and consolidating their influnce uptill Hindukush. but the Russians were also able to reassure Tajikistan. Uzbekistan and

other Central Asian states, which are still very much under their military and political domination, of the Russian capability to defend their interests even beyond their political frontiers. This is crucial for Russian prestige as a big power in Central Asia with considerable military presence in the region in spite of a series of economic and

political crises in Moscow. l

Islamic Republic of Iran has goj its own. reasons for supporting Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani and commander Ahmad Shah Masood against the Taliban and Hizb-i-Islarni of Gulbadin Hikmatyar who are alleged to be supported by Pakistan. Apart from continuing her traditional support to Shiite groups based in central Afghanistan, Iran has also consistently backed the Persian speaking elements in western and northern Afghanistan that have the potential for, developing into a bridge be-

American conspiracy to contain Iranian influence and to isolate her in Afghanistan and Central Asia. It so happened that Robin Raphel, a senior US State Department functionary, for this region, during her visit to Pakistan publicly declared that the US considered Iran to be a terrorist state and it was its policy to isolate Iran. The choice of time and place for making such a statement could not have been more unfortanate, She chose Pakistani soil to make a hostile statement against a brotherly Muslim neighbour of Pakistan just at a time when Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto was about to visit Iran in an effort to explain Pakistan's position in the wake of Taliban's march on Kabul after their victories in western Afghanistan near Iranian borders. This naturally strengthened Iranian suspicions about some foul play and she went out of the way in supporting Kabul

For obvious historical, cultural and political reasons, Pakistan has special relations with Afghanistan and it is also obvious that Pakistan has more stakes in a peaceful and stable Afghanistan than-any other state of the region. But the problem with Pakistan is that she does not have a clear, coherent

and well-thoughtout policy on Afghanistan. As a "front line state against communism," Pakistan had developed an addiction to executing US strategies rather than forrnulating an independent policy representing her

own national interest.

tween Iran and Tajikistan which is the only Persian speaking country in Central Asia. Iranian support for Kabul administration got particularly active after the rise of the political and military movement of pre-dominantly Pushtoon Taliban or religious students in southern and western Afghanistan. The swift and impressive military victories of Taliban in a considerably large part of Afghanistan coincided with an effort on the part of Pakistan to open a trade route with Turkmenistan via Kandahar and Herat. The work on the proposed trade route that runs parallel with

Iranian border . in western

Afghanistan aroused strong

Iranian suspicions about an

administration. This deve~opment has definite contribution not only in prolonging 'and intensifying Afghan conflict, but also negativeIy affecting Pak-lran relations.

Facing the challenge from West, particularly the US's hostile policy, Iran has, in the last few years, developed a strategic understanding with Russia. Teheran has demonstrated a quite high degree of sophistication in coordinating her strategies with Moscow in Central and west Asia. Afghanistan is a case in point. The support of Moscow and Teheran is going to be crucial for the success of a political settlement in Afghanistan.

India, in keeping with her tradi-

tional policy of encouraging anti Pakistan trends in Kabul, jumpe at the opportunity of opening . front against Pakistan from the north west as soon Kabul fell out with Islamabad on the issue 01 Pakistanis support for Taliban. India's technical assistance came in handy to Kabul administration which was practically under siege laid by opposition forces from all sides. On the other hand, fo Indian intelligence agencies the temptation of using Afghanistan's long open border with Pakistan for exporting subversion and terrorism is irresistible. It provides them with an ample opportunity for setting scores with Pakistan over. Kashmir.

For obvious historical, cultural and political reasons. Pakistan has special relations with AfghanistHn'~ and it is also obvious that Pakistan has more stakes in a peaceful and stable Afghanistan than any (lthcr. state of the region. But the problem with Pakistan is that she docs not have a clear. coherent and well-thoughtout policy on Afghanistan. As a "front line state against communism. Pakistan had developed an addiction to executing US strategies rather than formulating an independent policy representing her own national interest. Consequently, as soon as. the US lost interest in Afghanistan after the dismemberment of the erstwhile Soviet Union. Pakistan started groping for a policy and so. far she does not appear to. have succeeded in formulating a comprehensive policy. Another very serious problem with Pakistan 's~ Afghan policy is the lad. of coordination among different power centers. More often than not. these~ power centres arc working at cross-purposes as far as Afghanistan is concerned and in the process. the goodwill accumu-j lated during the last lew years has been squandered, Recently. Gulbadin Hckmatyar, who is supposed to have been supported by Pakistan all along expressed serious doubts about the wisdom of Pakistan's Afghan policy at a pl~SS conference in Peshawar. Similarly, many Afghans believe that Sardar Abdul Wali was invited to visit Pakistan because of western pres-S sure, but the government of Pakistan or, at least, certain state organs were not serious in supporting the Zahir Shuh option. It is~

See Next Page

(Continued trom Page 6)

ust a matter of time that the Taliban may also start the same types of complaints.

. But ~he most serious danger anses from the moves to open Chuman-Kandahar-Herar and Kushka Road without a political solution in Afghanistan. Opening the branches of the National Bank of Pakistan and Pakistani utility stores without the consent of any recognised or credible Afghan authority will he perceived by the Afghans as a clear intervention and violation of their sovereignty. RUSSia. Iran and India will see to it that Afghan resistance to this

FRONTIER POS,) 1 9 FEB 1998

Proxy war in Kabul

move is organised and strengthened. Who can guarantee the security of the route and the Pakistani installations? It will be sheer madness to think that Pakistan can afford to militarily interfere for providing ample security to the route and Pakistani banks and utility stores in Afghanistan because Pakistan can get bogged down in an irretrievable situation. Moreover, the intensification of a proxy war in.Kabul has the potential for developing into open hostilities endangering the peace of the whole region. And last but not the least, the possible disintegration of Afghanistan can set the processes in motion leading to '

chaos and civil strife in the whole region bringing death and destruction in its wake on a scale before which Yugoslavia civil war will appear to be a small-scale affair.

. The most recent round of negtiauons among different Afghan groups has demonstrated the insensibility of Pakistan policy to the regional and international dimensions of the Afghan problem. Keeping important regional actors like Russia and Iran, either because the hangover of thc cold war or at the behest of US state department will not only prolong Afghan problem, but it can also escalate regional tension which is already at a dangerously high Icvel. It can

37

jeopardise efforts for regional economic cooperation

To avert these serious dancers. urgent action is required to evolve a regional consensus on Afghanistan. It is the most irnportant area for the focus of consistent UN efforts. Instead of locking horns in a meaningless contest. it is incumbent on the regional states to adopt a more constructive and positive approach. Only a solutio of the external dimension 0 Afghan problem can pave way for an effective and meaningful intraAfghan dialogue aimed ~t the for marion of a broad-based government acceptable to the mujority 01 Afghans.

Afghanistan after the Cold War

Anthony Lewis

If we imagined a nightmare world, it might be a place governed by illiterate teenage boys. They have never been to school, but they know the Absolute Truth - and enforce it with Kalashnikov rifles.

Afghanistan is that place today.

John F. Burns of The New York Times described it recently in an extended article that was a terrifying picture of puritanism at a brutalising extreme. In the name of Quran they have not read, young men drive all women out of schools and jobs and hold public

hangings. ,.

The Burns piece had a troubling subtext for Americans. For the United States shares responsibility for what has happened to Afghanistan. In the unthinking zeal of the Cold War, we Americans destroyed what was ' there in order to fight the Soviet Union. And then we walked away.

The Soviet Union started the process of destruction when it invaded Afghanistan in 1979. The United States responded with a CIA operation, supposedly covert but so massive that it was a secret

from no one. The CIA poured billions of dollars in weapons into Afghanistan. Our chosen recipients were the mujahideen, Islamic fighters. The weapons came in through Pakistan, and we followed the advice of Pakistan's intelligence agency on which

Afghans to ann. '

"We never looked carefully at who was getting our help," Bamett R. Rubin, a leading specialist on Afghanistan, said. He is director of the Center for Preventive Action at the Council on Foreign Relations. He was in Afghanistan most recently last month.

"Afghanistan was it backward, country," Mr. Rubin said, "but it had institutions: a government, a bureaucracy, schools, a university,

, traditional social structures based . on property and kinship. By pouring weapons into previously marginal groups - and any individual who convinced intelligence agents they were leaders - we undermined those institutions.

"Now there ,is virtually nothing. It is a society where just about every modern institution or technology that had gained even a , small foothold has been totally de-

stroyed. Except that people with little or no education have the most technically sophisticated personal weapons. A Kalashnikov rs their only access to the modern world."

Roughly half of Afghanistan is now controlled by a movement called the Taliban, many of whose soldiers are young boys. The Taliban swept through the western part of the country starting a year ago, imposing everywhere an extreme Islamic fundamentalism.

Mr. Bums wrote from Herat, a city near the Iranian border that used to be an artistic and relatively sophisticated place. The Taliban captured it last September. Since then, it has expelled girls from school, explaining that education is only for boys.

Women in Herat are forbidden to work outside their homes except' in hospitals or clinics that treat only women. A woman Can go out to shop only if accornpanied by a male relative. Women must be cloaked from head to foot when outside their homes.

Americans think of Iran as an example of extreme Islamic fundamentalism, but it is far less so

than Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. Women go to school and university in Iran, and work.

And Iran opposes the Taliban, supporting other Afghan forces that still hold the capital, Kabul. Pakistan, an American ally, and Saudi Arabia are the Taliban's. main suppliers.

The perverse lineup of external forces, with llS allies backing the grotesquely repressive Taliban, is. surely a challenge to American policy. There is no magic way fo the United Slates to rescue Afghanistan from its present tor-] ment. But America could at least try to get Pakistan to back off i Iran would do the same, so the. country could at last stop being a battleground for outsiders.

There is a certain moral responsibility. after all. America spenu upwards of $3 billion arming Afghans. Together with the Soviet Union, we fed the civil war that still goes on, seven years aftert Soviet forces left. "In the ascendancy of the Taliban,' John Bums wrote, "the country has finally reached something close 10 a pri) mal state."

-- The NCI1' York Times

. FRONTIER POS't 27 FEB 1996

38

.AftJhanistan (~·ws Cnppina

Reaping the

tion. The fall of Kabul to Mujahitlten heralded the end of a modern centralised state and paved the way for anarchy since there ex-

Af' ghan harv es' t istcd no legitimate Illlif;I_·(j l\lu-

jahideen leadership, Nor was it d,

10\\'('(1 to emerge by the CIA and lis

W1D'I' NEWS, INTERNArION" A. .. " Pakistani counterpart, Unlike Viet-

.... .LI.,I;lo no namese and the Palestinians,

tive of a broad-based council; a rally US administration s support Afghans, unfortunately, were used

mission otherwise impossible to for its Afghan initiative, seems ~o by the US and its client regime or succeed with, no unified neutral have not evoke~ much I,ntere~t ,10 General Zia for their respective de-

Afghanistan, reduced to rub- force to Implement. Washington during Foreign MIlliS' signs, With a design, Afghanistan

ble first by the super- ter Asf'ff Ahmed Ali's visit, How far has been allowed to degenerate into

power rivalry and now by The SeC\lrity Council has again Saudis are willing to go along is not the personal flefdoms of the war-

the Islamic fund,a~l,ent~l. proposed a broad-based au- very clear, ' , lords who continue to fight each

ists, epitomizes an inquisition In thoritative council, accept- Like famous_Jalalbabd operatlOll outer, a profession they learnt from

modern times with ¥4iaihdeen cut- able to all parties to the war-torn fiasco, the Taliban operation a,lso their masters.

ting each other's throat for the "div- country, It has re-atfirmed its sup- failed to the extent of capturing The Afghan [ehad was, ironically, idends of jehad". The countries of port for the UN's Special Mission Kabul. The "Lion of Panjsher ,IS backed by the most modern Westthe region are reaping, a harvest on Afghanistan and has aske~ the well entren~hed in a v,alley w~,~re ern powers who made an unholy they sowed and will continue to pay concerned parties and countries to he created his base t(~ fight Russl~~ holly alliance with the fundamentalthe price for the Afghan war that cooperate with it. As in,the past, the aggression and inherited most ~1l!1' isls in their war against the "evil was fought in the cold war era. In a latest appeal is also going to fallon tary structures a~d armamen,ts left empire't=-Soviet Union, Courtesy fundamentalists' jungle, there are deaf ears, First of all, the pr~sent behind by the Najeebullah regime III Afghan jehad, the most reac~i(jnar~: no signs of peace coming to a land generation of Mghan leaders IS not 1992, ~efence mllllst~y ,rernalll~~ authoritarian military regune of occupied by the warlords who have expected to agree among them- wit~1 him un~er the first, Islam!c General Ziaul Haq not only got a learnt to live on the wages of war selves and if at all they do they are regime of M4JaddccII unde~ the Pe- long lease of life, but also found it and survive on perpetuating the unlikely to go by the spirit of de- shawar Accord, He connnues t~ a fertile soil to spread fundamental. civil-strife beyond their borders, tente, All of them have violated the hold all that unde,r, the Rabbam ism in 'the }Iuslim world, Pakistani Hosting of recent Islamabad parleys last Islamabad, Accord they had government, LegltlmacY,of a establishment lived Oil the cold war .among the no less inc~rrigible, war- pledged at Khana Kaaba to ~ollow, regime is not im~ortant wh~~h Ra~. wages of fighting the Afghan war, Iords-ln-topposttlon'v lnterestingly, No one is ready to abandonhis fief· bani lacks, It IS the force that Now it nourishes false ambitions of serves the purpose of supposed dom and leave himself at the mercy counts, " keeping Afghanistan in its area of

"clients" against their rivals, rather of a neutral authoritY in the absence However, despite getting some influence, God knows for what.

than bring the peace dividen~s to of state power, temporarr adv~lItag~s through Tal- The spillover of the Afghan

the hapless Afghans or the adjoin- In his successive peace plan,S iban, Pakistan IS unlikely t? benefit Virus-fundamentalism, terrorism, ing regions, , and efforts, Me Mehmud Mestifl, by backing, a I~ore rabid reac- drugs, arms, immigrants, smugRivalries among the regional ac- UN special envoy, failed ~ bring the tionary force. This IS not to say that gJing (Afghan Transit Trade in. tors, such as Pakistan and ,Iran or parties to agree to an accord. ~Ie Rabbani or Mas~d are more moder- eluded) and anarchy-has intilfor that matter Saudi Arabia, pro- was bound to fail since a neutral in- ate as was previously propagated, trated the Pakistani state and vide conducive external conditions terim authority could not be created So is true about others, They are all society beyond comprehension, for the internal forces of strife t? without a credible force backing it, mercenaries who have also lost Other regions, such as Central Asia, prosper, Notwithstanding their offi- The eight-member council he pro- their ideological pret~n~lOns, The have also been seriously affected, It cially proclaimed neutrality, both posed also included Masud and was Mghans have a long hls~~9' of mao has also extended its divisive and Iran and Pakistan continue to back rejected by the opposition and the nipulating the contradtctions be- "ideological" tentacles to the KashMghan rivals' war for expanding Taliban who wanted a monopoly tween rivals. They are not loyal to mir jehad, And has also affected the their respective areas of influence" over state power. , anybody but themselves and they Iranian revolutionaries who have no

If Iran wants a safehaven on its Rabbani's refusal to step down seek foreign help to, settle scores limit to their adventruisrn.

border with Afghanistan and detests after the expiry of his man,date l~t with their domestic rivals. Dreams of trade with Central

Sunru-Talibans's control over Herat, year and his alignment With India Asia or harmony in the region can't

on a crucial passage to Central and Iran forced Pakistan to become T' " he time has come to re-eval~. be realised by adding fuel to the fire

Asia, Pakistan resents Rabbani:s weary of a so-called "strategic- ate the whol~ Afghan expe:I' in Afghanistan, Neither can the sr.

control over the capital 'Yho IS depth" the militarists boa~ted of ,ence, es?eGIally the Afgh~n curity of Iran or Pakistan, nor of

backed by both Iran and India, having created, Most crucial was Islanuc revolution. ~he Mghan pie- Central Asia, be ensured jf Afghan In a sheer stupid-display of pro- the closure of the trade route to capitalist monarchist state, hung imbroglio to continue, Unless the moting one set of warlords against Central Asia. Pakistan pursued a around a loose con~ederaqon of countries of the region reach a conthe others, Pakistan an~ Iran con- two-pronged strategy: launched Tal- tribes which was me,dlated by a feu- sensus among themselves. a de-miltinue to change horses III the hope iban, a military force to be reck- dal monarchy ~hlc~ als~ sym- itirisation of Afghanistan is underof getting their way ~ut of ~h: oned with; and fell back on the lost bollsed the historic Ul1lty, of taken and some sort of responsible Mghan quagmire. Pakistan first symbolic appeal of ,t.he former Mghans. The Saur Revolutlo~ state authority is alJowe? to preferred Rabbani over Hlkmatyar monarch by supporting General brought by the PDP A was ~ p~o emerge, no solution can work III the

and now pursues all o~h~rs to align Abdul Wall to convene a Loya gressive development, so far It ~ne~ long term. ,

against the former. Sunilarly, Iran Jirga-tribal assembly. , to demolis~ monarchy and tfl~al Wtthout aligning with any side, flirted with Hikmatyar to.oppose . With the successful launching of feudal relations and made ef~o~ to all the actors in the civil war must Rabbani and now backs ,the latter, Taliban, Pakistan got its way for establiSh, ~ modern au~hontarlan be persuaded to reach some kind of despite a massacre of Shla.Hazar~ trade with Central Asia cle~ and state, ;\ "lghly centralised state, an interim arrangement to pave the and its proxy Hizbe Wahd,at III also got rid of pro-Rabbani Isma~l though unnopular, was c~eated and way for a permanent solution, A Kabul and in central Mghalllsta~, Khan in Herat. Encouraged h~ ,their challenged by the medieval mul- confederation of the Afghan regions But the more they indulge into this swi"; sur.cesses and acceptability of Iahs ... , ' , ' " , with a loose but effective central mindless rivalr~, the deeper they their "non-partisan" image by the During ,the course of war, hJe~: authority is the only viable solution, find themselves III a hopeless state, common Mghans initially! the Tal· archlcal ~l'Ibal str"!~tUtell,were,~~ A Loya Jlrga call provide sorne sem In the absence of ~ understanding Iban rejected the monarchist option placed With the n_uhtar~ or,galllsa: blance of legitimacy to such an ar among various regional actors .. the and tried to oust Rabbanl ft~m nons le~ ,by ,var,lOus sect,~o~S ~f rangement. If this is not possible UN Special Mission on Afghanl~tan Kabul but failed mi,sera?ly, des?lte clergy MIlitaflsatl~n ~nd cll~u~~h: leave theAJ'ghans alone to exhatu

' ets nowhere nearer to the obiec- the backing of Pakistani establish- satton of ~ghan S(_lClcty w~s rem their energies,

ruent. Lately, Pakistan's efforts to forced by ideological regimenta-

~

20 FF.8 1996

Imtiaz Alam

.Affftanista" (~ws CHpptna

Rabbani regime since last year

Afghanistan's Russian and has found useful allies in

I.: the Taliban and the Hizb now

roul-ette finds its allies drifting apart.

That has probably caused the . Hizb to move to the other side.

THE crisis in Afghanistan their foolish belief that they can I The. second home truth is the seems to be growing worse by shift allegiances and strengthen· fact that outside powers are the day. On the one hand, the t~eir hand~ to win a military making the problem of theatre of the conflict is widen- victory. This approach IS only Afghanistan more and more ing. On the other, the peace- undermining the peace efforts intractable by intertwining it making efforts are getting more for it keeps the pot boiling and with their own rivalries and and more feeble and uncertain. belligerants at. each other's confliCts.

The failure on both fronts throats. Logically speaking, Pakistan leaves very little hope for the Take the lat~st exampl~ of a should have no need to seek to future of this strife-torn coun- turn-ar~und In Afg.hamstan ". influence the developments in try. The Taliban have intensi- The Hizbe Islami leader,· Afghanistan so long as peace fied their onslaught on Kabul in Gulba~ Hikmatyar, i~ said to returns to that country and the a bid to capture the capital and be thinking of JOInIng the transit route to Central Asia topple the Rabbani regime. Rabbani gove~nment: Only a remains open. But India's backThis has resulted in more week ago,~n~ee~ Hikma.tyar ing to the Rabbani government frequent rocket attacks with was neg.~tiatlI~~ WIth PreS1~~nl has thrown Islamabad on the their attendant casualties. In Rabbani s political foe~ a jomt side of those opposing the southwest, the Mujahideen arrangement In which the President Rabbani so much so commander, Ismail Khan, has Taliban's cooperation was beinl!that its long standing friendship launched an offensive to retake sought to forge a common front with Iran has come under Herat which the Taliban seized against the rulers in Kabul. If strain. In such circumstances a from him in October last year. the Hizb has defect~d from ~E policy of non-intervention carMeanwhile, the United Nations Supreme Coor~anon Council, ries the most favourable chance and. the OIC's mediation it is not ~nown what will of success. The sooner this lesattempts have produced no become of Its other partners, son is learnt and a policy formuresults. Neither has regional notably General Dostum who lated accordingly the better diplomacy by Iran and Pakistan rules his fiefdom in the north .. will be the pros~ects of an led to any fruitful outcome This will naturally transform Afghan solution.

which could be expected to ease the pattern of political align-

the crisis. ments, making it more puzzling.

The most serious aspect of Any mediator will have to take the matter is the utter lack of note of this and begin from

political wisdom being dis- square one. .

played by the various factions The other worrying factor is involved in the Afghan war. the changing perceptions of the Outside intervention has com- neighbouring powers vis-a-vis

plicated matters even further. Afghanistan. They have lined

The interests of many of the up on opposite sides, creating a

foreign governments does not new element of conflict. So pro-

always coincide with the broader found have their differences

national interests of become that even behind the

Afghanistan. As a result, the scenes diplomacy has become a

task of the peacemaker, whoso- victim of intrigues. In this see-

ever he might be, has become nario, two hometruths need to

more difficult than before. The be clearly understood by the

shifting alliances and narrow powers that be. One is the fact

concerns of the groups which that the outside. powers who are

are at loggerheads defy all meddling in Afghanistan are

logic, which makes a mediator's building castles on shifting

job infinitely difficult. Small sands. Their allies are constantly

wonder then that Mr Mehmoud . changing their .alle~a.!lces,

Mestiri has been groping making it impossible lor any

around for a solution for over a government which has to

year with no success. observe some rules of diplomacy

The developments in arid the norms of international

Afghanistan are agonisingly law to be sure o(where it stands baffling. Although none of the at a given time and what hapvarious groups is militarily pens next. Thus, Pakistan which powerful enough to defeat the has been confronting the others and make its writ run in

the country, they continue to

squabble and have refused to

seek a political solution based

on compromise. There is also

DAWN

25 FEB 1996

,40

Affftanlstan (~"'s Cflppina

The fighting continues

11 he marathon talks of the Supreme Co-ordination Council of the Islamic Revolution of the Republic of Afghanistan (SCC) held in Islamabad in mid-February and the subsequent Pak-Afghan "proximity" talks in Tehran (since clarified by Islamabad), far from untangling the Afghan situation have made it more complex. It is now even less clear whether peace is at hand or that the people of the long-suffering country should prepare for a spring of· unprecedented violence. Latest reports suggest that the series of meetings has not diluted the enthusiasm of the combatants for Kabul for spilling Afghan blood as the Taliban resume their rocketing of the besieged city.

The expectation, however, is there that somewhere within the clamour of discussions held at various places among different participants, there has been a constructive exchange of ideas that might sow the seeds for a final solution. After all that was said at the six-day meeting of the SCC members, there appeared to have been a consensus favouring some sort a dialogue with Kabul as a last move before the Council went on to 'form a grand alliance for a final show

down. .

Kabul ruler Burhanuddin Rabbani's reaction was

, mixed. While he reportedly expressed his willingness to hold talks with the opposition groups, his government spokesman, however, dismissed the Islamabad meeting as "insignificant". Now, evidently, he has sought to open a dialogue with the SCC with latest reports disclosing the possibility of a meeting between representatives of Gulbaddin Hekmatyar and Rabbani. Hekmatyar's party sources have indicated his willingness which must only be in furtherance of the SCC consensus. The Council groups Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami, Abdul Rashid Dostum's Jumbish-i-Millii-Islami, Sibghatullah Mujaddidi's Jabha Nijat Milli and a faction of the Shia Hezb-i-Wahdat. The Taliban, who now hold over half of the country neither favour talks with Rabbani nor have any truck with the SCC.

Tehran, which recently reiterated its support for Rabbani.Is -still trying ·to .get Islamabad to improve its relations with Kabul and find a resolution 'of the Afghan problem within a configuration that would ensure a role for Rabbani, Pakistan's reaction is tempered by its failure to get Rabbani to step down in conformity with an accord which made it possible for him to become the president, That was the beginning of the long-drawn civil war among the claimants for Kabul, which saw the entry of the Taliban into the fray. Since then the Afghan tangle has become much too convoluted to be settled by Tehran and Islamabad working in isolation or together or in a last orgy of violence by the combatants. A national dialogue is still the only possible answer.

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Afgllanistan In December 1979 and the subsequent resl$tanCe launched by the Afghan Ml\Iahideen groups with the support of PakIstan and other countries to oust Soviets from ihelr country; the withdrawal of Soviet troops In February 1989 and the fallure of the M11JahIdcen groups to dt!Iodge NlIJlbuI· Iah's regime In the post·wlthdrawal perIodj and I1nalIy the exit of NlIJlbuUah crom power and the Installat10n of a fragmented Ml\Iahideen governmeht In Kabul In 1992, ,

The most unfortunate part of the Afghan history doesn't start Crom the April 1978 revQlution or the SovIet military In· tervention In Afghanistan but with the infighting oC Mua· jhIdcen groups for seizing control of Kabul since 1992. Mu· jahldeen have proved themselves as the biggest enemy of the Afghan people, Their conduct during the course of Jihad

Dr ,Moonls Ahmar

The tngedyof contemPOrary Afghanistan l'I the result of the Called ambitiOM or Zlaand hl'I coUeagues, Gen· efJI Khalid MaluruJodArlC, In lII!l book "WorIdng with Zla" quoting GenefJI Mina AslamBeg wtltes that a few days alter Ule dlslllIssaI or Junlllo's government, ZIa, whUe t.a.llc1ng to a group of Senior mWIM)' officers, had said that, "Jun$ had blWldered by rushing to sIgn the Geneva Accord, l'akl.tan could have extracted concessions from the Soviet Union, which was WIder pressure, berore signing the accord. The ~ issue or establishing a broad·baSed government .In Kabul In the immediate post·wlthdrawal period should have been settled In advance", (p.393) Is It right to assume that had the Isslle or settlng·up a broad·baSed gt'Iver.ment In Kabul

been setUed prior to the Soviet mUltary withdrawal thlngs

would ha\-e been dIlI"em\t In Afghanistan today? Burled under Never before iIi the

~,constant Dgbtlng between warring groups and the

IndilTt'rent attitude or the outside world, Afghans can only history of Afghanistan have

blame themselves for their ordeals, .

TWo broad rea.'lOns for de-llnklng the rormation of an In· ' the Afghans been so helpless.

terim transitional gO\-ernment.and the withdrawal or SovIet Th . Bin]"'. 1 f t ted Fa

troops 1I'ere gI\-en, GenefJI AriC quoting the March 1989 issue . ey gen ell lee rus ra • r

orThe Henid says In hl, book that, Mr. Zain Noorani, I'ak. 1 d Kabul with t

L"M's Minister or State r9l'Fbre1gJ1A1lalr!1, had said In Wash· severa ays . was on

IngIon: "I was told that so far the qtreltion of transitional gov- electrlcihr, water and other basic

emment was concerned, the SovIe!8 had also been asking ror "I:

It. In fart, it was only on the lnsIst.ente ofPaldstan that the US . necessities of .m,e. Af:ghans seem to had persuaded the SovIet Union to de,Unk the withdrawal of

troops froln thl'l Q1H!StIon, Mr. Shultz told me that Sahabzada have lost hope in the future. But if Yuqub, who was then fbrelgn Minlster, had persuaded him to

get the SovIet., ~ 10'!hl'I, h wae therefore, dlmcuIt for the millions of Afghans are buried under us ~ go back to theSoVle!8and argueWith them In reverse",

The second reason outilned by General ATlr Is this: "In hunger and disease, there are thou-

March 1988, I rl'CC1ved an Invitation rrom the President to d f ,. ha h U l:vi hly

met't him. GcnefJI Zla while staling reasons for the United san S 0 lUg ns wove as.

States agreeing to the withdrawal of Sovk:t forces wlthoutsl, :..;. .ore.lgn conn:tries and· are

muitancolL'li)' demanding the ronnatlon of a tral1SitIonal goY. UI I' .,_

errunent, salt! that the SovIet UnIon had initially been keen to oblivious to tbepUdht of

rwgotlete on both the bsues together, but the two superpow· ue

.~;~~~~:::::~tM~=ti!= . theirfeUow countrymen.

should de-JInk the two l'Isues and seUIe the question or with·

drawal first. The SovII!t Union agreed. Pald..tan was Informed aiJout thl'I development long after the two superpowers had already reached an agreement on thl'I point", (pp.325-26)

The vIt.a.Ilssue or rormlng. broad· based govetnnlent In Kabul was thus ml'lh.'V1dJed II)' Paldstan and the United States:

If the Scn1ets were ready on that l'Isue why Washington and lslamabad showed reilK1ancet Most Important, the Afghan Mujahldeetl groups 9iCre not taken Into conDdence, The United States was foDowing a single IIenlllgCnda while pursuing Ita AfR!Jan polley: withdrawal of the SovIct forces, Seemingly, It had no grudge against the pro-Bovlet regime In Kabul Scniets blundered In Afghanl'ltan for eight years much 10 the satis· ractlon and pleas\u-e of the Americans. nre lIS had no sym~ ror the Mlllahldecn groups. .On the contrary,lt did every thing to prevent them from coming to power, Pakistan rouldn't realize the US motive and lost the lniUative of estab· Il,hlng a Mujahldeen government In Kabul. Mujahldeen The mostunrortunate role In devastatlngAfgbanlstan has

groups also feU Into the US trap and paid a heavy price, Their been ~ed by the TalIban forces. Last year when they

lack ofproreMlimal sIdlIs Iri dealing with the world, disunity In began their drive against the goverrunent they were~·

their IlII\k3 and their OYCrt IlJitbltions to establl'lh an Islamic earned as saviors, But their Intolerance and ruthlessness vis-

gavmunent In Kabul Without proper planntng thwarted any a'vIs their opponents has cost Afghans a lot. Called as "islamic hope ror their viable role In At'gbanistM, . LIberators" they have played havoc with the Uvea or their own

The last 18 years have been tortuous (or the Afghans, The people by pOUllding Kabul with hundreds or rockets .and . evrnt.s contrlbuUng to the IlmfllII.lrAAedY or MghanIstaJ:) can , IciIlIng thousands pr Innocent people The blClckade or Kabul be detailed thus: the SalirhiVo'ffilrOlt'OYAprU J978 leading to ,. by Tallban and other so-called ~ul\lhldeen coltURanders led the ~nI',,1vU war ~cw.»lP1t9.vfel.~01,~h\II.,. tq,8l!~"',~hprtag~ offood, ruel and medicai items In the city, And 1\:4'6WM~nt~: the IllvA.olon or Soviet troops jn 1,3 mUlion people of Knhlll curse the Tlllibnn and othl'f Mil'

against the Sovlet.s and their behaviour alter the rau or NlIJlb from power Is sulTlClent to prove their greed and hunger for power, Afghans have sutrered so much at the hands or the socalled MlIIahldeen and TaUban commanders that some of them even call the Soviet occupation as II lesser C\'Il, As reo ported In The New York Thnes ofFl!bruaI)' 5,1996, a doctor at !he karte Seh hospit.a.l, Knbul, watching stretcher bearers earrying In the body of a 14·year old boy whose brain had been blown out of his skull by a TalIban bombing said, "All, the Rus· slan Ume-that,.. golden, eompared to thl'I", Some people In Kabul say what Is going on now was unthinkable during the years or Soviet occupation, Fbr them, "the RussIan time was hot so bad after all, at·least In Kabul",

ftIB NEWS INTERNATIONAI> 28 FEB i996

jahldeen groups for being fIIIhkosII and (or taking the lin's or more than 50,000 people by Dring countless rockets In the dty. In the first two weeks of RanUli.llah thl'Y continued their siege or Kabul, The blockade was recenUy Imed only when Ule trucks carrying rood and other l'IISI'ntiai ",ulT for the pro. pIe or Kabul paid $ 450 per truck as a tall to Heknwy&r's Hizb-l·l'llIllll.

The blockade of Kabul was carried out by the Taliban from south and east, by the· forces or warlord GenefJI Rashid Dostlun from the north and by the 1f1zb-1·lsIamI from thf' 1'ast. All these groups penalised the hclplesa citizens of Kabul currently WIder the Control of rorces k.yallO PresIdent Burhariud· din Rabbanl and DefenSe MInl'1ler Ahmt'lj Shah M:t.'!O<ld.

Some of the Afghans comrnUhitatlng on the Internet have bitterlY accused PakIst.an or destroying their country by supporting TaUban, In a news group called "soc. culture. aCglmnlsl.an 0f1e MgIuIn' In a I\e'N8 item dated February 5 !lays: ·We all know all too well about PakIstan's direct Involvement and Itsde!lire to split the Afghan commUnity on ethnic lines. I WIIlt my countrymen to see with their eyes wide open and un<k!m.and that once the Uzbck oII/gas runs out (that Is if I'ak. l'Itan succeeds In Ule coMtruction and control of the devious plan) they will push the Mghans aside, but not untU under their directives all patriotic Mghans have been eliminated. PaIdstan Is scared to death or a strong neighbour In the north and has used all resourres and ald earmarked for MMlwlistan ror Its own military by stealing and murdering our patriotic people systematically".

Desperately appealing to the Atnericans to save Afghanistan he asks them "to try to find ways to let the US senators, Congressmen and the Uncial oU company In southem Californla know thai. their war Is Cl\lI5Ing death· to small children, men and women of Afghanistan Md that we don't stand and walch It happen IlI'lpll'R'Ily". Not only AfglUlll!l but many other concerned people have IllJoded Internet nell'S groups on Southand.Centrai AsIa with me."~ng('!l, news reportS and analyses on clvU wl!f.1n Afghanistan, Horrible detaUs about brutalitIeS committed by waning tactlons are narrated to the world·wide users of Inlemet.

In one or the mCSll88es posted In soc, culture. Afghani,"M on February 4, the send~r cailing himself Mgharuvla holds that, "to say anything posIUve about .TalIban )\'ouJd be a bla· tant Ue, Needless to say, the Ta1lban a1so receI~ support rrom US and Saudi Arabhln governmenta and private corporsuons, Pakl'ltan wanta ga.. from Afgbanl'ltan and wiD rto anything to

our people to get It. No honourable people wouid infUl1 so much cruelty to humanitY. ~ they be Muslim or KaIlr, What the Tllliban 8I'e doing Is totally *II>IInst Islam and hwnanlty', Oile message posted In the same neMgtoup by one Tawab Wlhab on JanlIN}' 31 Is crilklll or the RabbanJ Govenunent and his ally Ahmad Shah Masood. He feels that "slnc~ the takeover or power the so-called RabbanJ & Ahmad Shah Ma· sood lslaml~ Govenunent (Terrorist organisation) has. been responsible (or the death of 1000,000 civWans. Since their takeover of Kabul 150,000 Afghans have been wOWlded, 2.5 mUllan Oed their homes In hotrorand over 95% or the Afghan capital has been burnt to groWld and turned blto ashes",

Never before In the hlstory of Afghanistan the Afghans have been so helplelis.tMy genulnely reel.f'ru.oltraIro. For several days kabul was wlthoutc1ectrlclty, water and other basic . necessities of Ure, Afghans seem to have lost hope In the future, But if mIUIons or AfglW1.. are buried under hUnger III)d dl'Iease, there are tMtlSIUlds or Afghans who lli'e Ia'l!shly In foreign countries and are oblivious to the plight (1r their feUow countmnen,

Hi.'1Iory wiD not rorglve those who exploited Innocent people or Afghanistan fot their vested Interests .

The·wrlter II VIIltin, Researdt AIoIIodlte, I'roIflJh III ArIIIII Control, DllWlIIaIIIeht AIuJ JnterNtlonal Security, Unlvendty otlllinois at Urbana·ChampalllR,

42

Affftanistan (~ws Cfipplns .

05 FEB 1996

Afghan warring factions urged to stop fighting

From Our Correspondent

PESHA WAR-President of Afghanistan Milli Mubarzeen Islami (Ladies Wing) Bibi Roona has appealed to aU the warring factions in Afghanistan to stop fighting and saye their generation from further destruc-

tion. .. \

She was addressing a Press conference at Peshawar Press club here on Sunday.

Flanked by chief of the party Shan Badshah, Bibi Roona said that Afghanistan had a bitter experience of decades long destruction leaving thousands dead and maimed and paralysed all spheres of life in that country.

She added Afghans had suffered a lot during this course of time but it was

Five killed as Afghan rival groups clash

F.P.Report

PESHAWAR - Five Afghans close aides of Pir Syed Ahmad Gillani. chief of National Liberation Front of Afghanistan, were killed and four others injured as two rival Afghan groups exchanged fire at Landikotal on Saturday.

According to eye-Witnesses the incident took place between the rival groups when they came across each other in main Landlkotal bazaar. The firing continued for half an hour. leaving five people dead and 'fpur injured. Four persons of Munje group, died on the spot while a leader of the other group also died. The injured were rushed to Landikotal Hospital.

.Sources said both the groups belonged the NLFA of Pir Gillani and both were at loggershead over party's issues.

When both the groups who were said to be close relatives took possessions in the main bazaar and opened fire while came across each other. Those killed in the firing included Said Amir Jan, Naik Mohammad Durrani, from Munje side. The three from Munje group and one other from Zaze group received bullet injuries.

FRONTIEl~ P9S1 04 FEB 1996

the spirit of jehad which had been consoling for the people of Afghanistan all the times.

Questioning the fruitofJehad against Russians, she said. that no doubt the Russians had left Afghanistan but the miseries of the Afghan nation were yet to be reduced and minimised. She argued that Jehad should have brought stability, honour and dignity for the Afghans but unfortunately, it led to the insult and defamation of entire Afghan nation.

Bibi Roona said that it was the bravery of Afghan nation which compelled the now defunct Soviet Union to withdraw and hoped that the same Jehad would continue unless normalcy was restored to the war-torn Afghanistan.

Afghan leader I ambushed:

4 bodyguards killed',·

PESHAWAR, Feb 3: An Afghan leader was ambushed in a Pakistani border town on Saturday'and four of his bodyguards were killed, the Afghan Islamic Press agency reported.

The Peshawar-based agency said unidentified gunmen attacked Inayat Khan Monji, a member of the Jalalabad Shoora (council) in the border town of Landikotal in the Khyber Pass, killing fbur of his guards and wounding several other people.

Monji, who belongs to . the nomadic Kochi tribe, escaped unharmed. He is affiliated to the National Islamic Front of Afghanistan, a neutral faction led by Syed Ahmad Gailani.·

The motive for the attack was not immediately clear.-Reuter

DAWN

04 FEB 199b

Party calls for non-interference in·Mghanistan

Bureau Report PESHAWAR: Da Afghanistan Milli Mubarezeno Islami Gond has called upon neighboring countries to cease interference in Afghanistan and allow Afghans to decide their own fate.

Bibi Runa, chairperson of the party's newly-formed women wing at a press conference at Peshawar Press Club blamed foreign meddling for.the continuing bloodshed in Afghanistan and said that Afghans were not· happy with key players, Pakistan Iran and Saudi Arabia, who promoted their own interests instead of seeking a. lasting peace in the war-ravaged I country. i

She said the UN apart from hOld-, ing dialogue with mlijahideen parties should also consult what she called the silent ml\lority of Afghanistan for a permanent solution to the problem. The party's chief Shan Badshah was also present on the occasion.

Describing Rabbani's government as illegal, she thought, he was imposed through solutions imposed from outside through accords and agreements made in Pakistan, Iran and elsewhere instead of the will of the Afghan people.

As for the former Afghan king, Zahir Shah, she said, he could no more play the role of a father-figure.

She told another questioner that her party was willing to talk to other women organisations to strengthen their movement in bringing peace to Afghanistan. .

Runa lamented the human and material destruction in Afghanistan and said she could not understand the continuation of bloodshed in Afghanistan particul~rly during the

last three years. '

She called upon all peaceloving people to expedite their ef. forts in restoring normalcy to her country.

1'BE NEWS INTERNATIONAL 05 fl:8 199b

.Afahantstan (~'WS Cnppina

43

Milli Mubarazeen plea to endinfl ting

~~~~~~~--

PESHAWAR - President, Afghanistan Milli Mubarazeenlslamic Party (women wing}, Bib; Rona addressing a press conference here on Sunday. - F.P. photo

F.P. Report years of jehad, Afghans were still ~rty would continue the struggle

PESHAWAR President, victims of a never- ending torture. till the restoration of peace and

Afghanistan Milli Mubarazeen Jehad, Bibi Rona said, alwaysensurmg honour and protection to

Islaplic Party (women wing), Bibi brought revolutionary changes every Afghanm their motherl~,nd.

Rona, has appealed to all the war-. but it was sad that Afghans had . To a question, Rona said : We

ring factions to put an end to the yet to get the fruit of jehad. She have no differences with other

senseless and bloody fighting in- said ; despite the defeat of the Afghan ... women, assoCIatIOns,"

Afghanistan so that millions' of Russians situation in Afghanistan addmg our objective was peace

suffering Afghan may live. a every day.was taking turn for the and protection of human rights.

peaceful and honourable life in worst Which in turn had exposed The party chief, Shah Bacha,

their country, . Afghans not only to untold suffer- who was also present on the oc-

Addressing a press conference ing but also to humiliation. Bibi casion called for an end to the for-

at Peshawar Press Club here on Rona maintained that the oonnn- eign interference including

Sunday Bibi Rona said that during ued infighting had also damaged Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Iran.

the past 17 years Afghanistan had the spirit of jehad, which Afghans About Zahir Shah he said that his been experiencing a bloody crisis. had waged against the Russian party would welcome the former For 14 years the people had justi· forces ... She said no doubt king to Afghanistan as an ordification for the fighting in Afghans, wuh the spirit of jehad nary citizen. He said that his parAfghanistan because they were and bravery, had fought against· tv would not tolerate that another fighting against the Soviet troops, their enemy, but it was really very Afghan like Rabbani should be who had occupied their country. sad that peace could not be at- imposed by foreign powers on She said that during the Soviet tained, chief said. Afghans. Only Afghan people occupation about three million She said pational solidarity was have the right to elect anyone for people were martyred and mained the key to lasting peace in the future leadership of the COlUl· but lamented that despite 14· Afghanistan. Rona vowed that her try, Shah Bacha said.

FHONTIEL~ pOSt 05 FEB 1996

.Affftanlstan (~ws Cnppina

45

Regional solution to Afghan problem urged

From MATIULLAH JAN

ISLAMABAD - The participants of a widely-attended seminar I on Afghanistan have urged upon the countries of the region to sit to-: gether to put an end to the civil' war in Afghanistan.'

The two-day seminar on "Peace Process in Afghanistan", which waS inaugurated here Monday and attended by large number of scholars and diplomats from Pakistan, Iran, Afghanistan, and some of the western countries, various papers were read on different aspects of the Afghan problem. The seminar was jointly 'organised by Friends and The Hanns Seidel Foundation of Germany. Interestingly, a great number of retired senior armed forces officials participated in the seminar to thrashout some solution to which according' to most of them was not handled properly in its earlier period, a period when they themselves service, either as generals or ambassadors.

In a detailed presentation on Solution to Afghan Crisis the Director Area study centre Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan while discussing the external factors suggested that ,Pakistan, Iran, Uzbekistan and Russia should get together and work for the solution jointly, for 'it serves there interest, if Afghanistan is peaceful, united and has an organised government. On domestics front he suggested decentralisation of diplomatic focus from so called war lords to the tribes and tribal leaders, however admitting that any practical solution. should involve Taliban and Dostum which he said were actual powers in Afghanistan. He also stressed the need for calling of Loya Jirga which he said was the traditional Afghan solution. "To convene a Loya Jirga, it's much more easier now than it was five years back," he said, adding "the Jirga should be sponsored by the UN and it must enjoy Pakistan's blessings".

In his presentation, ambassador

Dr. Ali Khuram of Iran said, "In an objective analysis of the role of major powers in Afghanistan, the strategic Interests of all the major countries Should also be taken into account". He also quoted.snother scholar by saying ,"it is a.fact that political and military developments in Afghanistan still have serious impact in neighbouring couatnes". He said that the Afghan crisis had the potential of destabilising neighbouring countries and tIueatening their national security. He quoted Iranian president having said, "we want an Afghanistan on our eastern border that is independent, Islamic, non-aligned and friendly with its neighboUfS. We insist on the territorial integrity of Afghanistan and the right of the people of this land to decide their own deStiny without intervention froin outside, We shall spare no effort towards this goal".

On the subject of Taliban factor in Afghan crisis, the participants were unanimous on the view that they (TaIiban) were extremists and knew little about the Sharia which they were trying to impose on Afghan people. Major General (Retd.) Kamal Matinuddin in his presentation on the subject quoting Qazi Hussain Ahmad of Jamaat-e-Islarni Pakistan . said "they doubted their ability to taterpret the Shariah in keeping With the. objectives of progress and prosperity in a Muslim country .

. "The statements of TaIiban leaders and the actions. they have takeri in the areas under. their control put them into the category of extremists" said the retired General, who has also headed the Institute of Strategic Studies here, for three years. The General warned Pakistan agairis( negative impact of emergence of Taliban as, real power by saying, "Their religious zeal could spill over to Pakistan". He also pointed to the apprehensions of the neighbouring Iran on Pak-Taliban coordination. Suggesting thst Pakistan should

withdraw "its support" to Taliban General Kamal said it should be restricted to humanitarian assistance. Without narningthe ISI, the general felt comfortable enough in projecting Taliban-ISI axis as a old admitted fact of life and went on to suggesting the end, "it was advisable, therefore, for Islamabad, to build bridges with Rabbani and Masood while giving' moral and humanitarian aSSistance to the TaIiban". He however did not clarify as to how to convince Rabbani in this regard, Who has all along been openly accusing Pakistan for interference.

During the discourse on the Taliban factor the head of the Friends and former Chief of Army Staff, General (Retd) Mirza Aslam Beg came out with his knowledge of Taliban origin. He told the participants that in early 80s when Kunar valley was liberated, a chain of Muctrassas was established with Saudi Arabia and American aid for orphans and disabled children. He said in 1984, 85, 86 "it was decided to create a buffer between socialist Afghanistan and the rest". He also told that earlier the teachers for these Mudrassas came from Saudi Arabia. During the same period he added that a chain of these Mudrassas was established on the borders of the Frontier province "whereas they were also trained. He further said that It was 9nly few years back that Pakistan tested its own blood as they confronted the same Talibctn in Malakand demanding their Shariat to be imposed. Beg hinted to the blockade of Pakistani food convoy and then subsequent success of Taliban in breaking that blockade for Pakistan, that these students were used' in future. Beg agree.d with the view that the TaIiban were opposed to the moderates. "There is a divide between different moderate forces and the Talibans" he said.

The seminar will continue its deliberations here today (Tuesday).

FRONTIEH POS,)

27 FE 8 1996

46

Afghans asked to support settlement through loy a jirga

From Our Correspondent

PESHA WAR-A meeting of the Afghan elders representing various provinces and nationalities and elders from Mahsud and Wazir tribes of tribal areas, in a joint meeting, called: upon those Afghans who are busy in parlays at Islamabad to support the former king MohammadZahir Shah's proposal regarding settlement of the dispute through a Loya Jirga and extend • support to the United Nations mediation team in this connection.

The meeting was held at WANA, headquarter of the South Waziristan Agency and attended by Afghans from Paktya, Paktika, Qandahar, Helmand, Logar, Ghazni,Beghlan, Mazar-iSharif and Jirga members from Mahsud and Wazir tribes. The meeting besides others was addressed by Shehzada Mahsud, a leader of the great National

NATION

United Front, Madeer Zariband, Brig. Zabto Khan Mahsud, Abdul Jabbar Khan, Dr Baz Mohammad Khan, Brig Amanullah and others. The speakers ex pressed their views in depth on cur'rent situation of Afghanistan and reaffirmed their stand for an early negotiated settlement to the long-awaited AfgHan conflict.

, ShehzadaMahsud leaderoftheGreat National United Front on telephone from Wana South Waziristan Agency said that it could be a first ever meeting

. attended by Afghans from each and every comer of war-affected area.

The meeting, through a resolution, urged the Afghan leaders who were assembled in Islamabad to revise their policies and honour wishes of the Afghans who are favouring an end to fighting and bloodshed and desirous for resolving' of the matter through political ways.

12 FEB 1996

Seminar on peace process in Afghanistan

Desk Report

ISLAMABAD - The continuing Afghan crisis is 1I0t only resulting in the emergence of problems of different nature for Afghan people but is also harmful for the region, especially for the neighbouring countries. Under the circumstances, it is up to the Afghan people to realise the criticality and delicacy of the issue as the fruit of their historic struggle is still being denied to them.

Keeping in view seriousness of the issue Foundation fur Research on International 'Environment, National Development and Security (FRIENDS) has organised a two-day seminar on "Peace Process in Afghanistan" on February 26-27, 1996 at Holiday Inn Islamabad Hotel. The objective of the seminar is to exchange views on the subject and evolve a consensus on viable options to resolve this protracted conflict.

As Afghanistan imbrogliocanjeopardise regional and global security, FRIENDS considered it imperative to invite scholars from Afghanistan, Iran and the USA to attend the seminar and come out with pragmatic recommendations 10 resolve the issue. Besides scholars from these countries a good number of eminent scholars from Pakistan will also take part. The issue will be covered under topics: "Peace in Afghanistan: Afghan Factions' Point of View" "Afghanistan Issue".

NATIUN 25 FEB 199b

.A[tftanistan (~·ws Cnppina

.41

FRIENDS seminar on Peace Process concludes

Afghan crisis result of Geneva

~ Accord in absence of interim govt

Ol N

By Our Staff Reporter

ISLAMABAD '- General (Retd) Mirza Aslam Beg, Chairman of FRIENDS; said that war among various Afghan factions is a result of the signing of Geneva Accord without formation of interim government in Afghanistan.

He was speaking at the closing session of a two-day seminar on "Peace Process in Afghanistan" organized by FRIENDS in collaboration with Hanns Seidel Foundation, Germany, here on

Tuesday. .

He said the tension between the then President and Prime Minister of Pakistan - Ziaul Haq and Moharnmad Khan Junejo - was the main factor in the dissolution of National Assembly and the Afghan issue was taken away from lSI with the return of democracy in 1988, and the peace plan was put into the cold storage.

He ignored the possibility of geographical disintegration of Afghanistan even if no solution to the present crisis is found. He said the high sense

of patriotism among the Afghans kept the country united. They have been living together for centuries.

He emphasized that it was their collective responsibility to restore peace in Afghanistan. He criticized the US and said it is a big tragedy that the only World Power is not playing any role to restore peace in Afghanistan. ,

The US policy, first, was to press Moscow to pay a high military and political price for its intervention in Kabul, later when Mujahideen succeeded in making the USSR vulnerable, the US aim was to get Soviet Union out as quickly as possible, Ambassador Dennis Kux, a former US diplomat,inhis paper, said. He said Afghanistan had only importance for the USA during the Soviet war and not before and after the Soviet withdrawal.

Dr Tahir Amirl analyzed the existing conditions in Afghanistan and the neighbouring countries. Pakistan's Afghan policy could not keep pace with the changing conditions, he said.

Dr Rasool Bux Rais termed Russia

the chief architect of the Afghan tragedy. He said it took Soviet Union ten years to realize that they were mistaken. Russians are in favour of stabilizing Rabbani and Ahmad Shah Masood for their vested interests in Central Asia, he added. He emphasized the need to form a broad-based government in Afghanistan.

Humayun Shah, an Afghan scholar, said you cannot exclude any group in any future government in Afghanistan. He advised that Pakistan should differentiate between the friendly and the obedient government. He said Afghans want to rebuild their country and need support.

Dr Ejaz Shafi Gilani, who presided over the session, concluded the seminar saying that Pakistan and Iran have exhausted their choices. Colonel Ghulam Sarwar said Afghanistan must get a government that is only broadbased and representative but also the one that gives due weightage to the healing of wounds and that which embarks upon a policy of radical reconstruction.

Afghan elders, olema call for early Afghan solution

From Our Correspondent

PESHAWAR - A meeting of Afghan elders and ulema held at Wana, Headquarter of South Waziristan Agency, and demanded of the five permanent members of United Nation's Security Council to take early steps to find out a negotiated settlement to the Afghan conflict and ensure an end to foreign interference in the affairs of the war-devastated Afghanistan.

The meeting was held under the auspices of the Great National United 'slamic Front of Afghanistan and ad. Iressed besides others by Shehzada vtasud, Mualem Khalil Ahmad, vlohammad Rafique, Khan. Zaman, lrGul Karim, Hasham-ud .. din, Maulvi lhulam Farooq and others.

, The speakers expressed their views n current situation of Afghanistan nd stressed the need for an early 11ution of the Afghan conflict through

peaceful and political ways. In this connection, the elders and ulema from various parts of Afghanistan have supported the United Nations struggle meant for a political and negotiated solution to the conflict.

The meeting through a resolution urged five permanent representatives of the Security Council to take early steps to resolve the conflict. They were also suggested to find out ways and means for ensuring an end to every sort of foreign interference in the affairs of Afghanistan and asked for stopping financial and military assistance to the warring Afghan factions .

Through another resolution, the meeting also criticised the increasing hobnobbing amongst the warring Afghan factions for formation of more alliances and groups. It was of the view that people of war-affected country have witnessed outcome of such type of alliances and groups and de-

NATION

clared that such type of groups and alliances couldn't resolve the Afghan conflict.

Instead of misusing their energies on formation of such type of useless alliances, the Afghan leadership needs to realise their past mistakes and favour the formula of. former King Mohammad Zahir Shah.

The meeting reaffirmed its support in favour of the peace formula of former King Mohammad Zahir Shah and declared that Afghan conflict could be resolved only through a meeting of the Loya Jirga. For this purpose, the meeting demanded of the United Nations Secretary General and his special Ambassador Mehmood Mestiri to resume his efforts for convening an early meeting of the Loya Jlrga.

The proposed LO)'(1 Jirga should be included Afghans from every segment and it could be a representative body.

'48

Affftanistan (~s CHppinS

Kabul offers$15.3m damages

. Fro ... H8san .4khtar

., ,/

Kabul.

Kabul was reported to have sent its apology and offer for compensation to Islamabad earlier this week, which the spokesman confirmed

were being examined. .

Pakistan is believed to have informed Iranian Foreign Minister Velayati, who on hililaat visit to Islamabad a few weeks ago, proposed Iranian assistance in removing the irritant in Kabul·Islamabad

· relations, that Kabul should tender apology and pay compensation for the attack and losses at the

chancery. .

The spokesman ruled out immedi· ate return of Pakistan ambassador and the restoration of chancery affairs back to Kabul, saying that besides careful examination of "this very serious and important" issue, Pakistan had also to assess

ISLAMABAD, Feb 1: Islamabad is still examining the Kabul communication expressing "deep regret" and offering compensation by the Rabbani regime, amounting to $15.3 million, to atone for arson and casualties, including one death, in a mob attack on the Pakistan chancery in the Afghan capital on Sept 6 last year.

A Pakistan foreign ministry spokesman at his weekly news briefing here on Wednesday Z implied that the Kabul "apology" ~ had not as of now been accepted.

po Answering newsmen's question at < the Foreign Office, the spokesman. Q explained that the government was

still examining the Kabul communication to decide whether it met in full measure Pakistan'S demand for apology and payment of compensation by the Rabbani regime in

co UJ L.L..

N o

Amannew Afghan Trade Commissioner

From Our Correspondent

PESHAWAR - The Afghan government ofProfBurhanuddin Rabbani has once again annoucned change of its trade commissioner in Peshawar.

Sources say that the sitting Afghan Trade Commissioner Haji Ahmad . Khan Ahmadzai was replaced by Aman Khan ofMahaz-i-Milli Afghanistan (National Islamic Front). The new Afghan trade commissioner is brother of known Commander Haji Zaman of Nangarhar who become popular after the assassination of late commander Shumali Khan. Haji Ahmad Khan Ahmadzai was affiliated to Harakat Islami of Maulvi Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi.

It may be mentioned here that before setting ablaze of Pakistan's embassy in Kabul, ProfRabbani hasnominated his party man Mr Orner as trade commissioner in place ofHaji Ahmad Khan. However, Mr Orner has reportedly lost his Afghan diplomatic passport in the gutted embassy of Pakistan and he was unable to become Afghan trade commissioner in Peshawar.

Haji Ahmad Khan Ahamdzai was posted as Afghan trade commissioner in place of his party colleague Haji Masto Khan in December 1994 last.

NATION

08 FEB 1996

Radio Kabul denies report

· about offer for compensation

IS~AD (APP) - Kabul Radio has rejected Press reports that Afghanistan is ready to tender apology and pay compensation toPakistan for burning of.its embassy in Kabul, VOA reported.

However, according to VOA, the Afghan Charge d' Affaires in Islamabad General Mehrabuddin Safi

· on Thursday told the VOACO!'fCSpontJ: ent, in Islamabad ~ the .. Afghan , government is ready to pay compen-

• sation to Pakistan fordestructio'n ofits embassy and rebuild the building."

He said .. Afghanistan is ready to provide alternate building to Pakistan for its embassy on eemporu.Y basis. Mehrabuddin Safi said" th~Afghan govern~nt is not pleased over the destrucf!on of Pakistan's embassy,"

PakistanEDreign Ministry on Thursday said that Pakistan has received a letter from Afghan government expressing regret over the. burning of Pakistan embassy andex~ingwillingness to pay tS.s million dollars to Pakistan as compensation, the report added.

The Kabul Radio said Thursday evening that Afghan government has not sent any message to Pakistan expressing regret over the destruction of Pakistan embassy in the Afghan capi-

tal. .

NATION

03 FEB 199b

the security situation in the Afghanistan capital and availability of locating the chancery.

'The embassy building, he said, had been completely razed to the ground in the last year's attack by truckloads of unruly mob which Islamabad had alleged was instigated by the regime of President Burhanuddin Rabbani. Pakistan is operating for the present its diplomatic mission from Jalalabad, situated relatively close to Pakistani border.

Although Pakistan had "voiced its opinion" that Mr Rabbani's regime had run out its legitimacy, the spokesman asserted that Islamabad had not broken off diplomatic relations with Afghanistan. Pakistan had been conducting business with Kabul and maintained its embassy there (till it was attacked and burnt down) in spite of its opinion about Mr Rabbani's claim to legitimacy, the spokesman said.

Radio Kabul alleged that " Pakistan's interference .. in the internal affairs of Afghanistan was the main cause of this incident.

The Radio maintained that the ongoing negotiations with Pakistan do not mean to .. apologise to Pakistan .. but they are aimed at improving relations between the two countries.

It said Afghanistan would play its due role to improve its relations with Pakistan, VOA report said.

._---

Afghan trade

. commissioner assumes charge

From Our Correspon~nt PESHA WAR-Mr Aman assumed the . charge as Peshawar. basedAfghanTradeCoInm~ssioner in place of Haji Ahmad .. Khan

Ahmadzai on Thursday.

: The out-going Afghan Trade -Commissioner Haji Ahmad Khan in a simple but impressive ceremony at Trade Commissionerate handed over the charge to his follower on Thursday morning.

I The ceremony was attended by a :Ja. rge number of Afghans affiliated ;to various groups who are working against important diplomatic and I,government offices.

NATION

09 FEB 1996

AIaftal1istan (~'''s Cfippina

49

Kabul radio denies apology offer to Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Kabul radio has rejected press reports that AfghaniStan was ready to tender apology and pay compensation to Pakistan for the burning of its embassy in Kabul,. VOA reported ..

However, according to VOA, the Afghan charge d' affairs in Islamabad, General Mehrabuddin Sali, on Thursday told the VOAcorrespondent in Islamabad that the "Afghan government is ready to pay compensation to Pakistan for destruction of its embassy and to rebuild the building."

He said," Afghanistan is ready to provide IUl. alternate building to Pakistan for its embassy on a temporary basis. "The Afghan government is not pleased over the destruction of Pakistan's embassy."

Pakistan foreign ministry on Thursday said that Pakistan had received a letter from the government expressing regret over the burning of the Pakistan embassy and expressing willingness to pay 15.5 million dollars tlrPakistan as compensation, the report added.

Kabul radio said Thursday evening that the Afghan government had not sent any message to Pakistan expressing regret over the destruction of the Pakistan embassy in the Afghan capital.

Radio Kabul alleged that"Pakistan's interference" in the internal affairs of Afghanistan was the main cause of this incident. The radio maintained that the on-going negotiations with Pakistan do not mean to "apologise to Pakistan," but they were aimed at improving relations between the two countries. '

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reE NEWS INTEl'.NATIONAL 06 FEB 1996

Kabul reconfinns . apology

Bureau Report PESHAWAR: The chief of Itt.ehakl-i-Islami Afghanistan, Prof Abdul Rab Rasul ~ has clarified a BBC report saying that Kabul has sent two letters to Islamabad concerning the issue of the burning of PakIstan embassy in the Afghan capital.

Ittehad spokesman Abdul Rashid, quoting Smar, told The News on telephone from JaIa1abad that the BBC'report on behalf of the foreign ministry of Afghanistan, suggesting that the Rabbani government has not contacted Islamabad on the burning of its mission, was false and the report was not based on facts.

He said the report has been based on some misunderstanding and the fact was that Kabul wrote two letters to Pakistan and has strongly condemned the burning of the embassy in Kabul. ~ resented the act and said t1W.'1t; 'Wa.'j.a88fnst the traditions and customs of the Afghims to take such a step;

iRabbanl's JI strong political force

in Afghanistan'

From Our Correspondent

. PBSHA WAR - A representative of Afgban' President Prof. Burbanuddin Rabbanl's Jamlat Islami Jamal Shajan Bacha, has claimed that their party is the strong political force in Afghanistan.

In a Press release on Wednesday, Shajan Bacha Sl(id that since a long the Jamiat IsIami is struggling to save Afghanistan and its people. The Jamiat have maximum support in each and every nationality in very nook and comer. of Afghanistan.

Shajan Bacha dispelled the impression that there is no representation of Pukhtoons in Jamiat Islami. He claimed that in High COuncil and executive Council of Jamiat Islami, majority of the members are Pukhtoons. All of them, he added are working under the dynamic leadership of Afghan President Prof. Burhanuddtn Rabbani. .

NATlON

0'8 FEB 1996

Kabul dismisses Islamabad taIks as pointless

,

• KABUL (AFP) -. The Kabul govI ~rnment .Monday slammed the holdj' mg of high-level talks between Afi ghan opposition groups in neighbor-

ing Pakistan, saying they should have taken place in Afghanistan.

'In principle, we appreciate such i meetings going ahead, but only if they ; are held inside Afghanistan and not in ; Pakista~,' a defence ministry spokes-

man said.

. 'Anything coming out of meetings

in Islamabad will not have any result and is likely to be fruitless,' he added.

The dismissal of the talks came as delegates of Afghanistan's major opposition groups met in Islamabad for the sixth day running for talks on brokering a peaceful settlement to the Afghan civil war.

Political leaders, including northern warlord General Abdul Rashid Dostum and former premier Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, are in the capital at the invitation of the Pakistan government.

They are believed to be. discussing possible replacements for beleaguered Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, whose term of office officially expired nearly two years ago, sources said here.

All opposition groups - including the Islamic Taliban militia currently besieging Kabul - have demanded Rabbani resign before peace talks are held with the Kabul administration.

Rabbani's team leaves for Kabul

Bureau ~port

PESHAWAR: A Rabbani government delegation leg by foreign minister Dr Nlijibullah Lafrai left for Iran thurs-

day and an official spokesman said itz ~ would hold talks With Pakistani'offi. -< cials in Tehran.

. The spokesman said the talks g were being held as a result of media- ~ non by the Iranian government. A <:

BBe report from Kabul While con- Z firming departure of the delegation ~

to Iran said Kabul has agreed to pay WJ CoO compensation to Pakistan for re- t; 0'> building its embassy in Kabul. The ~ ~ embassybuildlng was attacked and ~ CD burnt by a mob on September 6 after ~ I..U accusing Islamabad of backing the ~ u...

'Ialiban against Rabbani regime. ;z;

Meanwhile, Hezb-i-Islami leader ~ u:;)

Gulbaddin Hekmatyar left for -

Mghanistan Thursday after a visit to

Pakistan,

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~ Kabul rejectsIslamabad peace parleysas insignificant

KABUL (AFP) - The Kabul government Wednesday dismissed the outcome of key talks between Afghan opposition leaders aimed at ending the bloody civfl war here as insignificant.

"I do not see anything new or significant in these declarations from Islamabad," said defence ministry spokesman Dr Abdullah. one of the most powerful figures in the government.

The comments came a day attar leaders of the Supreme Co-ordination Council.. the main Afghan opposition coalition group, ended a marathon six-day meeting in Islamabad with a series of resolutions.

The leaders, including northern warlord general· Abdul Rashid Dostum and ex-premier Gulbuddin Hekrnatyar, announced the formation of a lO-man council responsible for negotiating a transfer of power with Kabul.

They also vowed to attack the government if it launched an assault on any opposition group. including on the TaUban militia who are besieging the battered Afghan capital.

But on a more conciliatory

note. the factional heads called for a fresh round of talks - to in-

. elude Afghan President

Burhanuddin Rabbani - on the "tranfer of power to a new broadbased adrnifust!ation. here,

. Abdullah and other Kabul ado. , ministration figures however down-played the importance of the opposition proposals.

"We have always said that we are ready to talk to any group - including the'Taliben - in an effort to end the fighting so proposing fresh talks is not il new idea," a senior defence official said.

"But we reject the nonon' .of holding talks in Islamabad as Pakistan has always wanted' to sabotage indigenous peace efforts sponsored by Afghan groups

themselves, ..

"We' have always maintained that any talks about' Afghanistan being held in Pakistan would be fundamentally fnntless," the officia! added. .

Officials added that Kabul was not worried about the threat of a combined oppos~ion Qffensive in. .retaliation for a government attack on tHe Taliba'n, the only group which Kabul is currently

Afghan gOY! ,ready to 'reconstruct embassy

ISLAMABAD,Feb 14:,The Government of Afghanistan has "expressed willingness for reconstruction of Pakistan Embassy in

Kabul and payment of compensation for losses caused to the victims of the attack on the embassy,Radio Teheran reported.

According to a report of Cen'tral News Unit of the radio from Kabul, the spokesman of the President's office Mr. Abdul Aziz Murad, said on Tuesday that the Government of Afghanistan is willing for cordial relations with Pakistan and expansion of bilateral cooperation based on mutual respect for national sov-

UAWN

15 H: B 199b

ereignty, indepehdence andterritorial integrity of neighbouring countries. He said the government considers these relations in the interest of the people of two countries. .

. While referring to the. attack made by a group on the Pakistan Embassy in Kabul, he said the Government of Afghanistan had expressed profound grief over the incident.

It is worth mentioning that with the initiatives of officials of Islamic Republic of Iran efforts have been started for normalisation of bilateral relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.-APP

actively battling.

"We have called a ceasefire and are in defenSive positions and are therefore not going to attack anybody for the time being," one said.

But despite Kabul's frosty reo sponse, some foreign observers here believe the Islamabad talks were an important landmark in the quest to find a peaceful solution to the protracted Afghan conflict.

"The proposal for negotiations which would include Rabbani appears to be an important step towards a reasonable and balanced manner of dealing with inter-factional problems," said an experienced analyst.

"It appears to be the first time Rabbani has been invited to participate in such talks, a move I see as a carrot to be combined with the stick of the threat of military retaliation if Kabul attacks any faction," he added.

"I hope Kabul will take up any chance of peace talks it is offered. as there are few enough opportunities of brokering a solution to this terrible civil war," he concluded.

Katbul never

.' apologised F.P. Bureau Report

ISLAMABAD - Afghan diplomatic sources in the federal capital have confirmed that the much talked about apology letter sent by the Afghan government to Islamabad was the brainchild of an offiCial and said it had "never" been the stand of Kabul government. The sources Said: "a few offiCials of Kabul government sent thiS letter on their own and never consulted the head of Afghan government, that is

, why the Kabul had to clarify its stand."

FRONTIER POS,) 06 FEB 199b

Affftantstan (~"'s CHpping

5]

Kabul calls for improved ties with Pakistan

,\

TEHRAN (AFP) - Afghan Foreign , ghan situation with Paidltani Foreip Minister Najibullah Lafrai called here Minister Najmuddin Sheikh. ' ,

Monday for improved ties with Paki- Meanwbije. Three Clvillans were

stan, Iranian state radio said. ~ned and ~ others iJVured when a

'The government of Afghanistan is rocket sl~ into theirbome in the always interested in friendly and good south of the war-tQm ¥.ghan capital, relations with Pakistan,' said Lafrai, hospital staff said Moliday.

who was in Iran to take part in indirect The rocket was part ofa volley fired trilateral talks with Pakistan through late Sunday by the, Islamic TaJiban Iranian intermediarieS. 'militia who have, been besiesin& Ka-

Relations have been strained be- bul for the last five months, defence

tween the government of Burhanud- officials said. '

din Rabbani and Pakistan in the put The victims were rushed to hospital months over Kabul's charges that Is- after the strike in the suburb of Cbe1- lamabad supports the Taliban Islamic sitoon, which is near the frontline militia. separating the government from the

The militia is beseiging the Afghan Taliban. '

capital and aims to topple Rabbani. 'Nine people were brousht to the

Kabul has accused Islamabad of hospital, but unfortunately three were seeking to establish a Taliban-Ied Is- declared dead on anival,' a doctor It lamic goverru1lent in Afghanistan to Karte Seh hospital told AFP. ,

give it access to central Asia via an Troops loyal to Afghan President

alternative to Iran. , Burhanuddin Rabbani on the city's

Islamabad has steadfastly denied southern frontline, said however that the charges, but has called the belea- there had been no concerted attack by guered Kabul government 'Illegiti- either side ovemisht.

mate' and called on Rabbani to step 'The exchange of artillery and rock-

down. et fire by both sides was routine and

'We are not opposed to links be- .' 09t out of the ordinary,' one BOldier tween Pakistan' and the former Soviet .. said. 'But, as usual it is the iMoccnt republics,' Lafrai said. 'But we Aoo't "<;ivman~ who have no choice other approve of any efforts in thatm.:ection , ,th6n to live near here who have asai~ without the knowledge of the Afghan suffered the worst effects of the Tali-

government.' , ban's firing,' he added.

The Afghan foreign minister' met . The two sides have been facing each

Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi other off south ofhere since the IslamRafsanjani on Monday and delivered ic militia blockaded the city on three

a message from Rabbani.', sides in ~. .

Rafsanjani said Iran was ready to TheTaliban,whoconll'olaboutlWf

help reconstruct Afshanistanas soon of Afghanistan, have vowed to topple as the fighting stopped there. Rabbani and impose, Islamic Shari.

He held separate tal~ on the Af- law in the country. ,

Kabul govt frees 15 , Pakistanis

QUE'ITA (PPI)-The Kabul·government has set free IS Pakistani nationals. According to reports reaching here from across the border, ~e Pakistanis were arrested on yario~s ~ges .. Their release , was'on:le~by President Pro, fessor

B~Rabbani.' ,

After their1elease', these Pakistani nationals were handed over to the Red Cross officials for their repatriation to Pakistan.

NATlON

20 FEB 1996

Kabul frees 15 detained . Pakistanis

QUETTA (PPI) - The Kabul government has set free 15

Pakistani nationals, , '

According to reports reaching here from across the border. these Pakistanis were arrested on van'OUB charges, Their 'release was or-

dered by the Prestdent

Burhanuddin Rabbani, '

After their ,release, these Pakistani nationals were handed over to the Red Cross officials for their repatriation to Pakistan.

FRONTIER POS' 20 FEB 1996

ICRC secures release of 15 held Pakistanis

ISLAMABAD, Feb 19: The

International 'Committee of Red I Cross (ICRC) said on Monday that ; it had secured the release of 15 . Pakistanis who had been held by , the Afghan government,

"We are glad that we have been able to secure their release just before Eid al-Fitr," said Francois Zen Ruffinen, head of the ICRC delegation in Pakistan.

Ruffinen said the ICRC had been negotiating on behalf of the prisoners for the past three weeks.

They were released from a Kabul prison on Sunday and flown to Islamabad on an ~CRC plane.

Afghan sources in Peshawar said most of the Pakistanis had been arrested without documents. Some might have gone to Afghanis-tan

for illegal hunting. ,

Ruffinen said he did not know how many more Pakistanis might be held in Afghanistan.-Reuter

Islamabad accused of 'backing Taliban

PARIS, Feb 23: Commander AJimad Shah Massoud said in an interview to Le Figaro that he believed that Pakistan was supporting the civil war in Afghanistan and "ruining our country."

Massoud told the Paris daily that Pakistan had created and was supporting the Taliban.

The Afghan leader said he believed Pakistan had two aims: to end the Kabul regime and open up routes to central Asia.

"Pakistanis are very much in evidence in Kandahar and Herat, two' towns taken by the Taliban. They have opened banks, shops and telephone lines to Pakistan," he said

He believed the Taliban had , been grouped in Pakistan before being sent to Afghanistan.

Massoud also told Le Figaro he believed Pakistan provided the Taliban with all support.-AFP

DAWN

24 FEB 199b

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52

Affftanistan (~'vs CHppinfJ

Hekmatyar asked to join Kabul govt

PESHAWAR, Feb 25: The Rabbani government has offered to share power with the opposition Hezb-i-Islami faction led by former i prime minister Gulbadin Hekmatyar, government and Hezb-i-Ielam! sources said on Sunday.

The sources said a Hezb-i-Islami delegation led by a senior military commander, Kashmir Khan, had been in Kabul for the past two days discussing various power-sharing options.

Hezb-i-Islami sources here said no decision had been reached on rejoining President Burhanuddin Rabbani's government, which Hekmatyar had sworn to overthrow.

Hezb-i-Islami has said previously that it will make no deal with Rabbani without the agreement of other parties in the Supreme Coordination Council alliance that includes Rashid Dostum.

The council has demanded that Rabbani step down unconditionally as the first step to peace.-Reuter

Kabul denies meeting

with Pak officials

KABUL: The Kabul delegation could not meet Pakistanis in Tehran because of latter's continued .inter- ' ference iri the internal affafrs of

Afghanistan. ,I

This was stated by Mghan Minister of State for 'Foreign Affairs Najibullah Lafrai who at the head of a delegation had gone to Tehran last week. Speaking on his return here, he said the visit of the high-level Mghan delegation to Iran at the invitation of the Iranian Foreign Minister Akbar Velayati was aimed at

. promoting bilateral relations and 'discussing political, changes in Mghanistan and the region.-NNI

co "en cn

THE NEWS INTERNATIONAL 27 FEB 1996

tHE. NEWS INTERNATIONAL 20 fEB 1996

53

Kabul team holds talks

,

with leaders

in Jalalabad

Bureau Report

PESHAWAR, Feb 12: A highpowered 'Kabul government delegation, led by Dr. Abdur Rahman held wide ranging talks with the Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan chief Moulvi Yunas Khalis in Jalalabad, capital of eastern Ningarhar province on Monday.

Prof. Abdur Rab Rasul Sayyaf, another ally of Rabbani government, who is already staying in Jalalabad, also participated in the talks, Afghan sources close to the party revealed to Dawn.

Dr. Abdur Rahman is head of political committee of Shoora-iNazar of Ahmed Shah Masood and he has been visiting various provinces to drum up support for Rabbani government.

The precise aim of the delegation was not made public but it is assumed on the basis of recent moves that the Kabul regime was conveying renewed offer to Yunas Khalis to take over as all. interim president of Afghanistan.

The sources said that Maulvi Khalis has made it cleared that he could not accept the offer unless Taliban militia joined the process of power transfer.

Earlier, it was reported that President Rabbani himself would pay a visit to Jalalabad but it was cancelled at the last moment, the sources said.

DAWN

FIGHTING: Meanwhile a Taliban source in Chaman when contacted by newsmen in Peshawar on Monday, said that the Taliban have repulsed a ground attack on Nimroz province from Afghan-Iran border area on Saturday last. Abdul Qadir, the Taliban representative said that they (Tali ban) feared an all out attack in Hirat and were preparing to defend themselves against such an eventuality. He said that they have pushed back the earlier attack on Nimroz far away and have bom.,ed the border areas with Iran as well.

An Afghan source has claimed that the Taliban have been taken into confidence with regard to the ongoing parleys among the Afghan leaders in Islamabad and they will also be associated at a later stage.

The Taliban representatives in Peshawar however denied knowledge of such contacts or plans. They' also said no Iranian delegation had visited Kandhar in the recent days as claimed by the Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister in Peshawar the other day. A Taliban delegation led by Mullah Rabbani had arrived in Peshawar recently but it had nothing to do with the ongoing talks in Islamabad, he said. Mullah Rabbani has since left Peshawar for Saudi Arabia to performumra, he added.

13 FEB 199b

Rabbani ready to settle differences

ISLAMABAD (APP)-President Burhanuddin Rabbani has announced willingness of his country for sorting out differences with Pakistan, Teheran radio reported.

The Afghan President told Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Allauddin Brojourdi in a meeting in Kabul on Tuesday that Afghanistan is ready to settle differences with Pakistan.

In the meeting, Mr Brojourdi expressed concern of Islamic Republic of'Iran about the prevailing positionof bilateral relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Mr Brojourdi added Teheran is ready to cooperate for the solution of problems between Islamabad and Kabul.

According to another report Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alauddin Brojourdi arrives 'in Peshawar on Thursday (today) as the efforts for peace inAfghanistan gain momentum with UN special envoy Mehmud Mestiri preparing to see Afghan opposition leaderGulbadin Hekmatyar in the war-shattered country.

Brojourdi will fly into Peshawar from Kabul where he met senior Kabul administration officials as part of his efforts to broker reconciliation between the rival Afghan sides, diplomatic sources said on Wednesday.

The Iranian official has l2een shuttling between warring Afghan groups and beleaguered Kabul regime led by President Burhanuddin Rabbani for quite some time in a bid to bring rapprochement between them.

He also plans to discuss Afghan issue with Pakistani officials in Islamabad.

Both Pakistan and Iran keep each other informed about their efforts for bringing peace in the neighboring Afg~anistan as it will augur well for the economic development of the region.

, Meanwhile, Hekmatyar's Hezb-eIslami has denied that it lifted the blockade of a majoreastern route after reaching an understanding with, sagging Kabul regime, "We have opened the route on our own and not as a result of any understanding," the Hezb spokesman said.

But, he did not deny the reports of talks between Rabbani government and his party. "We are not opposed to talks and we want that the differences be sorted out through negotiations," he responded to a question,

NATION

o B fEB 1996

54

Affltanlstan (Ng'ws CnpplttB

Rabbani to accept consensus power trnnsfer mechanism

, apologising for the attack on the can be replaced by some other leader. embassy, was delivered to Pakistani "Dostum cannot be included in any authorities by none other than the set-up on moral grounds," he told TIle Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Nation refusing to agree that as per the

ISLAMABAD -If all Afghan lead- Alauddin Brougjerdi. However, Pa- military realities on the groundDostum ers agree on a mechanism to transfer kistan did not respond immediately could not be ignored.

power to an interim set-up, Ahmad to these letters, saying that conflict- Similarly, Sulaiman Shah uttered a Shah Masood will not act as a hurdle ing statements were emanating from warning that any efforts to form a and would be willing to withdraw his Kabul regarding this apology and parallel government in Afghanistan by troops from Kabul, says the acting promise of a compensation. ~e opposition parties would have farAfghan Consul General in Peshawar. Acting Consul General denied this reaching negative consequences. He

In an interview with The Nation on confusion. also cautioned that if the Supreme

Saturday Syed Sulaiman Shah .said "We have expressed grief at the Coordination Council launches an at-

Masood will accept whatever mech- attack on the Pakistani embassy and tack on Kabul, it would be met with an

anism is agreed upon by all parties. are prepared to fully contribute to "effective response."

"I am speaking on \lehalf of the the rebuilding of the (mission) build- The Acting Consul General also

government of President Burhanud- ing," he said. Sulaiman Shah also welcomed Pakistan's efforts for re-

din Rabbani with full authority," he stated that Kabul was prepared to construction in Afghanistan, mention-

stated at the outset of the interview provideanaltematebuildingtohouse ing the setting up of a National Bank

which covered major issued relating the Pakistani mission till the original branch in Kandahar, but said these

to the present Afghan quagmire. building was re-built. "We will also efforts should be carried out through

The Acting Council General-an assure full protection to the diplomatic international rules i.e between the two articulate diplomat with degrees from staff," he claimed. 'Thegovetnmentof central governments and not through the University of Alabama and the Pakistan has been assured that some 'provincialcommanders.""Inthelong Middle Eastern Technical Universi. elements had manipulated a peaceful run the government of Pakistan will ty (METU) Ankara-reiterated that demonstration which was not meantto have to respect thecentraI government Rabbani had offered to hold negoti- cause damage," he said referring to the in Afghanistan and the central governations to pave way for the transfer of attack on the Pakistani mission. ment will have to respect the govern-

power. "However these negotiations Pakistan diplomats present at the ment of Pakistan,' he said.

, should be held on Afghan soil," he mission at the time of the attack how- Sulaiman Shah also dispelled fears

said inferring that 'the recent round ever wiII refute this claim. Officials in of increasing closeness between Kaof talks held in Islamabad were not Islamabad say they have eyewitness bul and New Delhi. "In spite of ups and looked upon too favourably by the accounts that when the mob invaded downs between Islamabad and Kabul, authorities in Kabul. the embassy, uniformed guards were India can never replace Pakistan," he

His statement about Masood's seen directing the attack and relaying stated, adding that traditional ties beflexible stance follows speculations minute-by-minutereports to wherever, tween Afghanistan and India were only I thattheKabulregimeisundermount- They also say that the mob was well- commercial and if the goods ~ould

ing pressure to reach some sort of an organised and had boarded trucks have a short route through Pakistan, , agreement with its opponents to armed with sticks and guns outside the Afghanistan would have no need to get avoid impending bloodshed. These Presidential palace. "They had come themfromlndia.Hedeniedanyformal "peace feelers" from Kabul are in- with the intenttokill and bum," says an military links between Kabul, New creasing in regularity and have led to official. Delhi and Moscow but said: "in war the offer by Rabbani to step down It was also no coincidence that the you have to procure military equipfrom the Presidency. However attackcameadayafterthefallofHerat ment from wherever you can." Masood's exact position remains un- at the hands of the Taliban and the Sulaiman Shah also flatly denied the clear given his hawkish statements defeat of General Ismail, an ally of presence of.any India military techniagain~tPakistan and the refusal to talk Rabbani and Masood, Ismail had ac- cians at airbases being used by the about a complete troops withdrawal cused Pakistan of aiding the Taliban Kabul regime. "There is not a single from Kabul. Pakistan and Afghan during the attack. The fall of He rat was Indian technician in Afghanistan and opposition leaders have made it clear a big blow to the Kabul regime and a these are unsubstantiated allegations," that the mere stepping down of Rab- very si~nificant victory for its rivals- he stated ..

bani would not be enough and that in the !allban. The Acting Consul General wanted order to set the peace ball in motion; Since then, Islamabad-Kabul rela- to convey a m~ssage ~f peace to the Masood must agree to vacate the cap- tions have gone from bad to worse. It people of Pakistan. We have exital with his troops tobereplacedbya isonly~n.tl>,thatRab~i.~sh~wn pressed prepa~ess ~o ope~ a ne~ neutraIforcecomprisingAfghansfrom some flextblltty. But flex.tbility thinly chapter of Cordial relations With Pakiall parties. veils therigid posi?on that Kabul ~ stan:: he said. "We are re~y to forget

Iran too has been striving hard to been m~ntammg since l~t year. Th!S the bitterness o.f!he past.

takethebiteoutofPakistan'sanimos- was evident from Sulaiman Shah s But perhaps It IS too late?

ity against Kabul which climaxed af- arguments.

ter the ransacking of the Pakistani For starters, he doe.s no.t allow a role

• embassy in Kabul on September 6 , for General Dos~m 10 any fu~ setlast year. Tehran has offered to me- up because of his commurust past. diate between Islamabad and Kabul However he arg~es that the J!COple of and according to reliable sources, n~rnAfghanistanmust~tnvol,:ed

one of the two letters sent by Kabul WIth the rest of the country If Dostum

By Fahd HusalJ1

NATlON

18 FEB 1996

Affftantstan (~'WS Cnppina

FRONTIEU POSl

27 FEB 1996

-----------. --

Rabbani willing to transfer power to Mohammadi

By MOHAMMAD ZAHID PESHAWAR - In a bid to bring warring faction to a negotiating table, Iran's ambassador to Kabul, Ghulam Reza Hadadin on Sunday held talks with Harkat Inqilab Islami chief, Maulvi Muhammad Nabi Muhammadi at Jalozai, ·some 27 kilometres east

of here. '

Harkat Sources informed that the Iranian ambassador, who had flown from Teheran to Peshawar; during his meeting with MaulVi Muhamrnadi stressed the need for accelerating Afghan peace process.

He urged the Harket chief to extend co-operation to the Kabul government to make the ongoing efforts of finding a peaceful solution to the crisis. The ambassador assured Maulvi Muhammadi that President Burhanuddin Rabban! had softened his position and was ready to handover power to

Maulvi Younas Khalis or him (Muhammadi). However, it could not be known that under what conditions Rabbani would transfer power to MauM Khalis or Maulvi Mul)amrnadi.

According to Harkat sources, Maulvi Muhammadi, during the talks, made it clear to the Iranian ambassador that his party would not take any step in this regard unless Taliban were taken into confidence. The sources sSid that a Harkat delegation would soon consult Taliban leadership on the latest issue in Peshawar or Jalalabad. It has also been learnt that Harkat was expecting a final answer over the issue of transfer of power from Taliban within a week.

~ajority of Harkat lesders have reportedly advised Mauilli Muhammadi to accept the offer after discussing the issue with Taliban. Harkat is also favouring

negotiations with Kabul to ascertain whether Rabbani was sincere in his offer to relinquish power.

Hadadin flew to Kabul in an ICRC plane on Monday.

Meanwhile, it was also learnt

. that the aim of Iranian ambassador's visit to Jalozai was to persuade Taliban for talks with Rabbani government.

According to observers Iran iEl aware of Harkat's close relations with Taliban and hence wants Muharnmadi to influence Taliban leadership to share power with the Kabul regime.

Yet another report says that a delegation from Kabul, which included General Faheem anc Younas Oanooni, a few days age was in Laghman for talks witt Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-IslamLWhil£ Dr. Abdul Rahman, a close. side 0 Ahmad Shah Masood. is still en gaged in talks with Hezb leaden in'Sarobi.

AfghanFM in Iran for peace talks

. TEHRAN (AFP) - Afghan 'ssntatives during his two-day stay

Foreign Minister Najibullah Lafrai in Tehran. ,

arrived In Iran on Saturday for talks He stressed the. talks here had,

aimed at ending the civil war in been scheduled with Iranian oinhis country. the offiCial Iranian ciaJsonly. "There is no question of news agency !RN.A reported. i meeting with any representative"

. The agency srud.Lafrai was h~re I of President Burhanuddin to take part in a tnlateral meeting I Rabbani's government in Kabul ..

with Iran and Pakistan. But the i the spokesman said. '

Iranian foreign ministry told AFP The beleaguered Afghan gov. t~at no meeting would .take place ernment has accused ISlarnabad of directly betvyeen Pakistan and supporting the Islamic TaJiban Afghan offictals, and the talks militia, which has beseiged Kabul would be throuqh Iranian inter~e- over the past four months, seeking diaries. Iranian Deputy Foreign to topple Rabbani and establish an Minister, Alaeddin Bo~uierdi, quot- : Islamic government.

ed by !RNA, said Pakistan For61gn Pakistan has in turn called on Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh was Rabban! to step down to pave the also du~ here later Saturday for the way for a negotiated settlement if

discussions. . the bloody Afghan civil war.

I~NA said: Wednesday that Borujerdi visited Kabul ane

Sheikh and his Afghan. count.er- Islamabad last week in an attempt part would hold talks on improving to smooth over differences be their countri~s' strain~ rela~o.ns. tween the two governments ane

But a Pakistan foreign mnustrv discuss peace in Afghanistan. spokesman ruled out on Thursday

the poasibility of Sheikh meeting FRONTIER POS,) with any Kabul government repre-

18 FEB 1996

56

Aftftantstan (~s CfippinB

Govt-Hezb talks may be fruitful, says diplomat

From Ahmad Hassan

PESHAWAR, Feb 27: The Acting the Afghan nation and their success Afghan Consul- General here , Syedwould also he in the best interest of Sulaimim Shah, has said the ongo- the War-ravaged country_

ing parleys berweenrhe Rabbani' Replying to a question, Mr Shah government and major oppositiql1-.,saj,d'the Hezb was an importantfacparty Hesb-i-Islami were part of the tor in the I\fghan conflict and the Kabul regime's efforts to dilute ten:' talks with it were part of an offer sion among various important by the Kabul regime to aD opposi· Afghan organisations which had tion leaders to come to terms with fought-hand-in hand against the it and settle all issues through negocommunist thrust in Afghanistan. tiation. He said he could not Jive

Talking to Dawn late on Monday details of the ongoing talks evening, the Afghan diplomat said between the government and the it would be premature to predict Hezb but was aware of direct and outcome of these talks but, he indirect contacts established earlier added, one could expect positive between the two sides.

results in the next few days. He, Mr Shah said the Kabul regime however, expressed his pleasure forces were prepared to thwart any that at least the ice had been bro- aggression, when asked about ken and both sides had realised reports of TaJiban arms build-up in that national issues could be settled the south of the capital. He said through dialogue instead of gun. that as soon as snow around the city The talks, he maintained, had been would melt an attack by the initiated in the larger interest of, TaJiban could be expected.

DAWN

2 8 FEB 1996

AfghanFM in Iran for peace talks

TEHRAN, Feb 17: Afghan Foreign Minister Najibullah Lafrai arrived in Iran on Saturday for talks ainfed~t en.ding the civil war in his country, the official Irflnian news agency !RNA reported. I

The agency said Lafrai was here to take part in a trilateral meeting with Iran and Pakistan.

But the Iranian foreign ministry told AFP that no meeting would take place directly between Pakistan and Afghan officials.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister, Alauddin Boroujerdi, quoted by !RNA, said Pakistan Foreign Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh was also due here later Saturday for the discussions.

!RNA said on Wednesday that Sheikh and his Afghan counterpart would hold talks on improving their countries' strained relations.

But a Pakistan foreign ministry spokesman ruled out the possibility of talks with during his two-day stay in Tehran.

He stressed the talks here had been scheduled with Iranian offi· cials only.-AFP

DAWN 18FEB1996

Aftftantstan (~s CHppina

02 FEB 1996

12 killed as jet

raids Kabul

KABUL, Feb 1: An unidentified warplane dropped four bombs on military targets in the Afghanistan capital Kabul on Thursday, witnesses said.

Two factions opposed t!J President Burhanuddin Rabbani, the Taliban and General Abdul Rashid Dostum's Junbish-i-Mill! group, have air forces. It was not immediately clear which one had carried out the latest raid on Kabul.

The witnesses said the plane attacked positions' on the strategic Television 'Mountain dominating the Afghan capital and the militaryheld fort of Bala Hisar overlooking the old city.

Initial reports said that at least 12 peopledied in the air raid.

Two bombs fell on Jaide Maiwan, which was one of Kabul's main avenues before it was destroyed during the civil war. Two 'other bombs fell on Tapa Salam in west Kabul, near the university. More than 10 other people were injured.

On Monday, an opposition plane bombed an area near the city city centre housing the presidential palace and defence ministry. Four people .were reported to have been

killed and eight wounded by a bomb that fell' on the Pul-i-

Mahmood area. i

SUPPLY ROUTE: An important' southwestern supply route to the besieged Afghan capital has been reopened for normal traffic, defence officials said on Thursday.

The reopening of the highway linking Kabul with Afghanistan's southern and south-western provinces followed clearance of landmines and unexploded shells last week, Brigadier General QaIam Shah said.

More than 100 buses and trucks loaded with wheat flour, cooking oil, firewood, sugar, rice and char- , coal have entered the city since its reopening.

A first vehicle carrying passengers was sent from Kabul on the reopened route on Wednesday, said' Shah who is commander of the government's 72nd battalion based in Qala-i-Haidar 20 kms west of the capital.

The highway was closed in October last year when the TaIiban seized several roads in their abortive attempt to topple President Rabbani.-Reuter/AFP

Ten, die in Mghan fighting

if'

KABUL: At. least ten cMlians were killed and seven iI\Iured as government troops and 'hJiban ftghtersexchanged heavy artillery fire south of Kabul, witnesses and hospital sources said Wednesday.

Fighting started after -heavy artillery firing" by Taliban late 'fuesday which continued till Wednesday morning, MJUor Sanargul, eommander of a government tank position said.

The dead were ciyilians crossing , the front line on bikes with foodstuff from the town of Charasiab in southern suburbs, which tsjn the hands of Taliban, the commander

said. •

The duel was the first on the front lines during Ramazan, although Kabul was shelled and also attacked by a jet on Monday, killing one person and wounding three.

President Burbanuddm Rabbani's offer of a uni1at.era1 cease-fire during Ramazan was n:lected by the opposition including the Taliban, who have been ~ siege to the Afghan

capital. ,

A defense ministry official said the fronts had been quiet for a long time but the Taliban started the fighting on the eve of UN special envoy Mahmoud Mestiri's visit to Kabul.

Mestiri, who is trying to broker peace among the warring Afghan • factions, visited the capital 'fuesday.

11lE NEWS INTERNATIONAL o 1 FEB 1996

, Several dead as Taliban jets again bomb Kabul

FI'OII Rahlmullall YaIufzaI PESHAWAR: For the second time in four days, Talibanjet-fight.ers bombed Kabul Thursday, triggering escalation of hostilities at a time when UN special envoy Mahmoud Mestiri was busy in shuttle diplomacy for restoration of peace and transfer Clf power.

A,BBC report from Kabul said 7 people were killed and 20 wounded in the bombing raid on civilian areas. Another report put the death toll at 12.

Taking responsibility for the bombing, TaIiban spokesman Maulvi Wakil Ahmad said In Kandahar that their 3 jet-fighters bombed BaIahisar Fort and the Tappa-i-8cud (mountain where Scud missiles are based) and inflicted damages on the enemy.

He said these bombing raids and the one a few days ago were in retaliation against Rabbani admini.stration attacks on Taliban positions In the outskirts of Kabul.

The earlier Taliban bombing, the first by them after a gap of more than two months, reportedly killed one person. The target in that raid was the presidential palace and defence ministry in downtown ·Kabul.

A defence ministry spokesman In Kabul threatened ret.aUation by Rabbani government forces in case the Taliban continued to bomb the city. He also accused the Taliban of bringing reinforcement and planning another assauJt on Kabul.

Meanwhile, reports from Kabul

said a route west of Kabul was re-

opened by the TaJiban near Maidan-

Shahr Thursday, iesulting in arriVal. of

badly needed food supplies in the

capital and reduction in prices.

Maulvi Wakil Alunad ssid the TaIlban ~ had never blocked food supplies but -<

it was the Kabul regime which Z planted mines in the roads and ere- 0 ated hurdles in bringing in supplies ~ into the city. He termed as lies Rab- <r: bani's announcement of a unilateral Z (0 cesseflre in Ramazan and his plans to ~ 0') visit Taliban headquarters in Kanda- r.u ~ har and pointed out that, these I:-

promises were yet to be fulfilled. ;Z CD

He said Mestiri talked about his - ~ transfer of power mechanism and, c.n sought Taliban support for it. ~e ~ C'J Taliban leadership told Mestiri that.~ 0 they wanted establishment of an Is- ;Z;

lamic sYstem of g,overnment for '! which Mghans gave immense sacri-

fices during the ~ehad' once Rabbani stepped doWn," he Informed.

Meanwhile, Prof. Sayyaf and his delegation now in Jalalabad were reportedly !>usy in c9nsu1tation with representatives of various Mgban factions in a bid to reach a consensus on

issues confront~~

57

58

AItftanlstan <Ng,"s Cfippina

1 FEB 1996

10 killed as TaUban, govt troops exchange fire

Humayun in Jalalabad for talks on embassy reopening

KABUL (AFP) - At least 10 civilians were killed and seven injured as government troops andTaliban exchanged a heavy artillery fire south of Kabul. witnesses and hospital sources said Wednesday.

Fighting started after "heavy artillery firing" by Taliban late Tuesday which continued until Wednesday morning, Major Sanargul, commander of a government tank position, said.

'T'h,', ri~~r} were civilians crossing the frontline on bikes with foodstuff from the town of Charasiab in southern suburbs, which is in the hands of Taliban, the commander said.

The duel was the first on the tronumes during Ramazan which started on January 21; although Kabul was shelled and also attacked by a jet on Monday, killing one person and wounding three.

MOHAMMAD ZAHID adds: Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan, Qazi Humayun and other senior Pakistan officials had reached Jalalabad for talks with the Kabul' government representatives on the reopening of Pakistan embassy, besides other issues of bilateral interest, it was reliably learnt here Wednesday,

It may be mentioned that the Rabbani government has recently apologised to Pakistan fot the attack on Pak mission In Kabul and readiness for compensation for the reconstruction of the embassy:

Meanwhile, Ittehad-i-Islami chief Ustad Sayyaf, an ally of President Rabbani has also reached'

Jalalal9ad for mediating betwsen the Kabul government and opposition parties ..

Sayyaf, arrived Monday from Kabul has so far .. held talks only with some members of Nangrahar

sneora. It .was reliably leanlt that invention to

· Pakistan-based Afghan leaders bad been extended

· for talks with Sayyaf accompanied by Danish Yaya and Engineer Ayub. important figures in the Rabbani government.

It is for the second time during this month that Sayyaf has been visiting Jalalabad in search of brokering a deal between Kabul government and opposition leaders. Afghan diplomatic sources said here that Sayyaf had the full mandate of the Kabul government tor holding talks with the opposition parties for finding a settlement to the crisis.

In fact Sayyaf has embarked on two-track nussion, the sources said adding that the one to hold negotiatiOns with all the opposition leaders fOr removing differences between the nvalfactions and to

· improve bilateral relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan by holding talks with Pakistani o.fficials, the other.

Asked whether Sayyaf was expected to visit Pakistan during his current mission. the sources said that he (Sayya!) always considered Pakistan as

· his second home and if needed and he would undertake the visit. However, Sayyaf could discuss the issues with the Jalalabad-based Pakistani consulate officials.

7 civilians kiDedas ThJiban jet bombs centralKabul

KABUL (AP) - A lone rebel jet bombed a market district in the heart of the Afghan capital, killing seven people and wounding dozens more.

Thejetstreakedoverhead, unscatJ*l by the city's anti-aircraft defenses, dropping . four bombs on central Kabul.A government military coinmander said the aircraft belonged to the Taliban militia. which has vowed to crush President Burhanuddin Rabbani's government.

It had to be Taliban, you can'tell by the markings and the direction it was flying," said Gen. Mohammed Tahir.

A Taliban spokesman in Peshawar refused to comment on the air raid.

One of the bombs landed near an outdoor market, sending merchants and shoppers scrambling for cover. The blast left a I O-foot-wide crater in a road.

Glass and debris littered the streets

around the bombing site. . Thursday. Until recently only one

Hospital and Red Cross officials in major road in and out of the city was Kabul confinncd there were seven open.

casualties in the bombing raid. The southwestern route from Kabul

Taliban jets earlier this week at- to Maidan Shahr was cleared forcomtacked Kabul, but caused little mercial traffic, a governmentspokes-

damage.Taliban gunmen are post- . man said. .

tioned around Kabul's southern out- "I came in from MaidanShabrcarskirts. They hope to capture the city rying wheat and flour," said truck and install strict Islamic rule through- driver Abdul Zaman .• , 'I had no prob-

out the Afghanistan. Iem along the way."

The rebel siege, however, has left The Maidan Shabr route spans one

the city short on food supplies, relief of the most active front lines, where workers have said. government and rebel forces often

The International Committee of the exchange heavy rocket fire.

,Red Cross plans to begin an emergen- ., 'We're expecting to get about 15 cy airlift of food aid into the battered trucks in from Maidan Shabr," said capital, officials said. Abdul Shafi,theownerofthe Kabul's

Aid workers have also been asking Aria Transportation Company.

the various warring factions to allow Kabul residents have suffered relief supplies into the city by land through the worst of Afghanistan's routes. three-year civil war, leaving much of

A second road, linldng Kabul to the city in ruins after countless rocket southern Afghanistan, was opened and mortar attacks.

.Afaftan\stan (~v\'s Cnppina

5.9

Masoud set to dig in against Taliban

AfP

JABEL SARAJ: A new battle for the control of Kabul will erupt soon, according to Commander Ahmed Shah Masoud, right-hand man of the government under siege in the Mghan capital.

"The students are preparing a new offensive against Kabul," Masoud said, referring to the Taliban Islamic militia at the gates of the capital. Fighting could start in the next few days or just after the Muslim fasting month of Ramazan in {/j the second half of February, he said. ~ Masoud, a 42-year-old father of ~ five, was also following Ramazan's ;Z; strict guidelines as he gave an In-

~. terview to AFP at his headquarters at Jabel San\i, at the foot of the Hindukush hills, north of the capital. But commenting on the renewed

conflict in his long-suffering country, Masoud said the government of President Burhanuddin Rabbani was breaking out of its isolation that hostile factions had attempted to impose.

"In the past we have been in conflict on four fronts," said Ma-

15 killed by rebel rockets, says Kabul Radio'

ISLAMABAD, Feb 6: Fifteen people were killed and several wounded by rockets fired by anti-government guerillas into Kabul, Kabul radio said on Tuesday.

The broadcast, monitored in Islamabad. blamed the attack late on Monday'on the Taliban, which it said fired 12 rockets into residential areas from positions in the south and southeast of the besieged city.

It said government forces carried out air raids and fired artillery to repel a Taliban offensive, destroying some of their posts and killing 15 fighters.

BLOCKADE LIFTED: The Hezb-iIslami lifted a three-week-old blockade of Kabul's main eastern highway to Pakistan on Tuesday, an Afghan news agency said.

soud, dressed in khaki green shirt and trousers and the traditional pakol hat. "Now we are only faced with the Taliban, the Islamic students, who are dug in south of Kabul. The other factions have fallen by the wayside."

Rashid Dostam, the former communist defence minister who now leads an ethnic Uzbek army from his base at Mazar-i-Sharif in the north, was no longer fighting, said Masoud. The strategic Salang highway, from Kabul· to northern Mghanistan, ls open to travellers.

Masoud also gave the first confirmation that a "written agreement" had been made with the proIranian force, Wahdat, which controls the central region of Hazara<ijat. Envoys have been sent to negotiate the opening of routes and an exchange of prisoners.

Similar progress has been made with another longstanding enemy, Gulbaddin Hekmatyar, head of the fundamentalist Heab-i-Islamt, which has seen its influence undermined in the current fighting. Masoud said negotiations were also underway with them.

FR () NTJE R POS')' DAWN

D5 FEB 199b

The first convovy of 40 Kabulbound trucks crossed the town of Sarobi and a bigger convoy of about 100 trucks was on its way to the besieged Afghan capital, the Pakistan-based Afghan . Islamic Press (AlP) said.

The road had been blocked in the Sarobi area since Jan 17 because of a dispute over a new system for taxing 'road traffic between two factions of the Hezb-i-Islami of former prime minister Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.

The AlP said the first convoy passed through Sarobi at 3 p.m. (3.30 p.m. PST).

The Taliban, which has besieged Kabul since October and controls two roads into Kabul, has allowed food supplies to reach the city since last Wednesday along the Maidan Shahr road to the west.-Reuter

. Rebels rocket presidentlal palace

in Kabul

KABUL, Feb 4: Rebels fired rockets at the besieged Afghan capital Kabul on Saturday night and on Sunday, killing two people and wounding eight, the official Kabul Radio said.

Seven artillery rounds hit a residential area of the city, wounding two people, witnesses said.

Two rounds 'landed inside the compound of the presidential palace that houses the Defence Ministry, destroying a section of the perimeter wall, they said. Five shells hit homes in the diplomatic district of Wazir Akbar Khan, causing limited damage.

The government usually blames such attacks 011 the opposition Taliban militia, which has blockaded the capital since last October.

Last week the government said the Taliban were preparing to launch all offensive on Kabul, but the group says it has only been responding to attacks from the forces of President Burhanuddin Rabbani.

The latest attack came as an airlift by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) remained grounded in Peshawar.

The first ICRC flightcarrying 20 tonnes of emergency food supplies arrived at Kabul's Bagram airbase 011 Saturday.e-Reuter

Rockets injure 8 in Kabul

ISI.AMABAD (AFI') 1<:1\)111 peoplo wore injured when a bmfage of rockets 1111. rosidonual areas ill the Afqllilll capital of Kabul TIIlI"ii!ilY. Rndio Kabul re pOI ted. Covenunent COil I.roll(;ci radio, monitored here. blwlltl(j ttw Tuhban Islamic 1l1llillil for the attack. savin\! 10 ruCI\,d!iWI'II' IlItHi. TIH!lI' Willi 1111 1I1t1t~1'1'lIdlllll {,Oil I I I 11IilIIOII of 11111 ("pori. which siwi ricvmill IiOll!il'S WI!/(! <iillllil(jl!ti III Ih! it! liiCk

FRONTIE[~ POS'l 09 FEB 1996

to en en

'60

.Aftftanistan (~'ws Cnppina

Masood prepares for new battle with Taliban.

JABEL SARAJ (AFP) -- A new battle for control of Kabul will

erupt soon, according to

Commander Ahmed Shah

Masood. right-hand man of the government under siege in the Afghan capital. "The students are preparing a new offensive agamst Kabul." Masood said, refering to the Taliban Islamic militia at the ' gates of the capital.

Fighting could start in the next few days or just after the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan in the . t; second half of February, he said. o Masood, a 42-year-old father of

Q. ' five, was also folloWing Ramadan's strict guidelines as he gave an interview to AFP at his headquarters at Jabel Saraj, at the foot of the Hindu Kush hills, north of the capital. No cigarettes and no tea during the day, and he and his fighters can only pray,

But commenting on the renewed contlict in his long-sllffering country, Masoodsaid the 'government of President Burbanuddin Rabbani was breaking out of its isolation that hostile factions had attempted to impose.

CD L.U LI..

-

"In the past we have been in conflict on four fronts," said Masood, dressed in khaki green shirt and trousers and the traditional pakol hat.

'''Now we are only faced with the Tallban, the Islamic students, who are dug in south of Kabu!.''' The other factions have fallen by the wayside, he said. .

Rashid Dostam, the former communist defence minister who now leads an ethnic Uzbek army. from his base at Mazar-i-Sharif in the north, was no longer fighting, said Masood. The strategic Salang highway, from Kabul to northern Afghanistan, .is open to travellers.

Masood also gave the first confirmation that a "written agreement" had been made with the pro-Iranian force, Wahdat, which controls the central region of Hazaradjat. Envoys have been sent to negotiate the opening of routes and an exchange of prisoners.

Similar progress has been made with another longstanding enemy, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, head of the fundamentalist Hezb-t-Islaml. which has seen its influence un-

derrnined in the current fighting. Masood said negotiations were also underway with them.

The Taliban, who took much of southern Afghanistan within a few months of emerging on the political scene late in 1994, are the main enemy, according to Masood, a past master of fighting off attempts to take Kabul. He in, sists that Pakistan is a key sponsor of the militia led by students taught in Pakistani Koranic schools.

Rejecting frequent Pakistani denials, he insisted that "the Taliban are a creation of (Pakistani Interior Minister Naseerullah) Babar and the Pakistan secret service."

Masood likened the fight against the Taliban to a 'Jihad' holy war. And when asked whether it was a "just war," he replied emphatically:

"I am 100 percent sure. It is exactly like the time of the Soviet occupation. We are confronted by foreign interference. The reliance of the Taliban on Pakistan is worse than that of our former communists on the Soviet communist!'; "

Rocket attack on Kabul kills 15

ISLAMABAD (AFP) - A barrage of rockets hit residential areas in the Afghan capital Kabul Tuesday, killing 15 people, Radio

Kabul said. .' ,

The government-controlled! radiO, monitored here, blamed !~e Afghan Taliban IslamiC militia for the rocketing, but no independent confirmation was available. '

The broadcast said several people were also injured in the-at-

tack. ,

Earlier, a defense ministry spokesman in Kabul said forces loyal to Afghan President Burh'anuddin Rabbani had repulsed an offensive launched by the Taliban on the southern frontline of the Afghan capital.

The Taliban attack, wh.ich

started late Monday in Rishkhor, five kilometers (three miles) south of Kabul continued early Tuesday, the spokesman said, adding that government jets wept into action . dropping bombs on ·Taliban postnons on nearby Khairahad Hills.

The spokesman claimed that 12 Talibanb soldiers were killed in the bombing and that the offen-

sive was repulsed. " c',

Rabbani's main commander Ahmed Shah Masood in an Inter-

view with AFP Monday said that the Taliban were preparing for a new battle for control of Kabul.

The Taliban, who emerged on the scene from Koranic schools in late 1994, have gained control over half of Afghanistan. They laid seige to Kabul more than four

months ago, vowing to topple Rabbani.

Meanwhile, PPI adds that Iranian deputy foreign minister Aiaeddin Broujerdi will soon visit Pakistan for consultations with the government leaders here on thorny Afghan issue. Diplomatic sources told PPI here Tuesday that the dates for Broujerdi's visit to Pakistan were being finalised.

The sources said that

Allaeddin Broulerdi would have intensive exchange of views with Pakistani leaders on ways and means to find out a comprehensive solution to the Afghan crisis.

It may be recalled that this will be a second high-level viSit from

Iran within just. one month. Iranian foreign minister Dr Ali Akber Velayati had paid an unannounced two-day visit to Islamabad in January last and held talks with President Farooq Ahmed Khan Leghari, Prime

Minister Benazir Bhutto and Foreign Minister Sardar Aseft Ahmad Ali on Afghanistan.

The sources said that the visit by Broujerdi would provide 'arl opportunity to the two countnes to coordinate their positions on the Afghan issue adding that both Islamabad and Teheran fully supported efforts of the UN and OIC for solution of the Afg~an prob.lem,

Respohding to a question, the sources said that Broujerdi would also inform the government leaders here about the contacts Iran had made with various Afghan leaders.

They maintained that both the countries wanted formation of a broad-based government in Afghanistan reflecting aspirations of the Afghan people.

Rejecting any military solution to the problem, the sources said "the solution to the crisis must be found within the region".

Broujerdi is also expected to visit Afghanistan for a follow up discussion with the Afghan leaders.

FRONTIER POS') 07 FEB 1996

61

NATION

07 F fB 1996 Rabbani· forces repulse Tallban attack on Kabul

KABUL (AFP) - Forces loyal to Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani Tuesday repulsed an offensive launched by the Taliban militia. on a southern frontline of kabul, a defence ministry spokesman here said.

The Taliban attack which started late Monday in Rishkhor, five kilometres (three miles) south of Kabul continued early Tuesday, the spokesman said.

Government jets went into action soon afterthe attack dropping bombs on Taliban positions on nearby Khairabad Hills, he added.

The official, quoting "initial information," said that 12 Taliban soldiers were killed in the bombing and that the offensive was repulsed.

Observers said the fighting in the area was heavier than usual and that the skirmishes could be a prelude to

a major battle. _

Rabbani's main commander Ahmed Shah Masood in an inrer-' view with AFP Monday said that the Taliban were preparing for new battle for control of Kabul.

Masood believed the fighting could start in the next few days or just after the Muslim fasting month of Ramazan later this month.

·NATION 13 FEB 1996

5 killed in Kabul rocket attack

KABUL (DPAl - Two civilians and three militiamen were killed in Kabul Sunday in' fighting between besieged government troops and the Taliban the Afg'"',n Islamic Press (AlP) said:

The agency said the Taliban, besieging the Afghan capital Since October, fired 15 rockets, killing two persons and wounding nine.

Eight of the . rockets hit the presidential palace grounds, but any damage or casualties caused by them was not known immediately, the agency said.

It said three Taliban were also killed in artillery and gunfire exchanges with the government forces on the western and southern sides of the embattled city.

FRONTIER POS')'

26 FEB 1996

62

Three dead in Kabul rocket attack

KABUL, Feb 19: Three civilians were killed and six others injured when a rocket slammed into their home in the south of the war-torn' Afghan Capital, hospital staff said on Monday.

The rocket was part of a volley fired late Sunday 'by the Taliban militia who have been besieging Kabul for the last five months, defence offidalssaid.

The victims were rushed to hospital after the strike in the suburb of Chelsitoon, which is near the frontline separating the governD}ent from the Taliban.

"Nine people were brought to the hospital, but unfortunately three were declared dead on arrival," a doctor at Karte Seh hospital told AFP. ,

Troops loyal' to Afghan President Burh!U1uddin, Rabban! on the city's southern frontline, said however that. there had been no con:

Five killed in rocketing on Kabul,

ISLAMABAD, Feb 20: Five people were killed and several wounded when the Taliban fired aWeast 18 rockets into Kabui on Tuesday, government-conttolled 'radio

reported. " I

The radio, monitored in Islamabad, said government forces had repelled attacks by the militia on frontlines near the city.

President Burhanuddin

Rabbani, in a message to the nation on the occasion of Bid-ulFitr, reiterated that he was ready for peaceful negotiations with his opponents.

The radio quoted him as repeating an earlier offer to go to opposi- I tion-controlled areas to discuss how to restore peace in' Afghanistan, where factional fighting has raged since 1992. . '

The Taliban have been besieg- I ing the Afghan capital 'since October, vowing to topple Rabbani \ and install a purist Islamic order throughout the country.-Reuter

DAWN

2 1 FEB 199b

certed attack by' either side overnight.

"The exchange of artillery and rocket fire by both sides was routine and not out of the ordinary," one. soldier said.

"But, as usual tdii'the innocent civilians who have no choice ather, than to live near here, who have again suffered the worst effects of the Taliban's firing, " he added, ' .

The two sides have been facing each other off. south of here since the militia blockaded the city· on three side~ in October.

Tile city wasthen subjected to almost daUjI' rocket and shell attacks until ·.early last month, when they decreased suddenly in number as R~begaJL

The Talib.n.whO;control about half of Afghllpistan, haye VOWed to topple Rabbani and impose Islamic Sharia law in the country.-· AFP ' . .,,_}. ,

14 killed in Afghanistan clashes

ISLAMABAD, Feb 25: Afghan government and opposition forces attacked each other's positions in , the Kabul with rockets and bombs i on Sunday, causing casualties on both sides, Kabul state radio said. .

Taliban fired 14 rockets at residential areas in thebeili~&~,d city, killing at least two c;iflli~s and wounding eight, the broadcast mon-

itored here said. . '

Jet fighters lo~ to P~esident Burhanuddin Rabban\ retaliated by bombing Taliban's Charasyab base south of Kabul and other positions, killing at least 12 of ~m.

There was no iDdependent confirmation'of the report.

The Taliban rocket attacks, continuing for the second day running, also damaged houses, the radio said.

Four people were killed and six wounded by Taliban rocket attacks on Kabul on Friday night and Saturday, according to a Kabul radio broadcast on Saturday night.-Reuter

DAWN

26 FEB 1996

Three killed, six injured in Kabul rocket strike

KABUL (AFP) -Three civilians were killed and six injured when rockets fired by the Taliban Islamic militia struck the Afghan capital Saturday, hospital staff and witnesses said.

The three died when two Soviet-built BM 21 rockets hit a road alongside a military tnstallation near the centre of the capital, witnesses told AFP. No Independent confirmation was immediateIy available as to who was rsspon-. sible for the attack. .

The mangled remains of one of the vioums, barely recognisable as a human being, was still lying next to a rocket crater about 15 minutes after the volley struck. "The street was fairly crowded, with Civilians going about their routine business, when the Taliban fired the rockets," witness Hamid Matin said.

"Suddenly there was a terrific bang and a huge cloud of dust covered the whole area.

"When it cleared, I could see the wounded, the dead as well as body parts scattered along the side of the road," he added.

Doctors at the. nearby Wazir Akbar Khan hospital said two of the Victims were dead on arrival, while six others had to undergo emergency operations to save their lives. One of the six victims, all of whom were men, was ill a serious condition, they said.

Taliban ~ocket kills three In Kabul

<.0 0> 0>

.-

KABUL: Three civilians were killed and six others il\jured when a rocket slammed into their home in the south of the war-torn Afghan capital, hospital staff said Monda,v.

The rocket was part of a voHey fired late Sunday by the Islamic TaUban militia who have been besieging Kabul for the last five months, defence officials said.

The victims were rushed to hospital after the strike In the suburb of Chelsltoop, which is near the fronlJine separating the government from the Talfban.AJ<'P

1'HB NEWS INtERNATlONAL

20 FEB 1996

.Affftanistan (~ws Cnpplna

OAWN

26 FEB 1996

""~

Govt jets bomb Tallban positions near Kabul

Rabbani jets bomb Taliban positions

KABUL: Government jets bombed a Taliban stronghold south" of the , Afghan capital Sunday, triggering a : series of retaliatory rocket attacks on the city, the defence ministry said.

, Two . Russian-made SU-22 jets

streaked above Kabul as theY returned from their bombing run over . the town of Charasyab, about 30 kilo-

I' metres (18 miles) south of the capital. "It was a very successful attack • said defence ministry spokesman~rullah. "Our bombs killed 12 Taliban 'fighters .•.

The claim could not be indepen-

dently confirmed, nor was it clear ! how the defence ministry was able to I compile its death toll. All of I Afghanistan's warring factions have I been guilty of exaggerating casualty

I figures and damage reports.

The ThUban student militia hit I back at the government shortly after the midday bombing run, launching

numerous rockets on central Kabul, Amrullah said. Doctors at Kabul's Wazir Akbar Khan Hospital said two people were killed in the rocket attacks and at least eight were seriously wounded.

One of the rockets slammed into an open park near the presidential

. palace in the heart. of central Kabul. ~ Kabul's central district Is one of the it few areas where many buUdings are ~ still standing. More than 70 per cent ;Z; of Afghanistan's capital has been de- ~ stroyed by factional fighting.-AP' I:

26 fEB 1996

KABUL, Feb 25: Government palace in the .heart of central jets bombed a rebel stronghold Kabul. Kabul's central district is south of the Afghan, capitalien one of the few areas where many Sunday, triggering a series of retal- buildings are still standing, More iatory rocket attacks .on the citY,' than 70 percent of Afghanistan's the defence ministry said.) capital has been destroyed by fac-

Two Russian-made SU-22' jets tional fighting. .

streaked above Kabul as they Sever,l rebel factions hope to returned from their bombing run topple" the government of President over the town of Charasyab, about Burhanuddin Rabbani, who took 30 kilometres south of the capital. power shortly after the collapse of

"It was a very successful attack," a Russian-backed communist govsaid Defence Ministry spokesman ernment in 1992.

Amrullah. "Our bombs killed 12. Taliban have accused Rabbani of

Taliban fighters.", he added. being anti-Islamic and hope to

The claim could not be indepen- replace WS government with strict dently confirmed, nor was it clear religio\Jsrule.

how the defence ministry was able On" Saturday, the Taliban

to compile its death toll. launched at least 20 rockets on a

All of Afghanistan's warring fac- residential district in Kabul, killing

tions have been guilty of exaggerat- two civilians. '.

ing casualty figures and damage In September, thee. Taliban

reports. marched to within the Kabul city

Taliban hit back at the govern- limits, where they continue to ment shortly after the midday pound the capital with rocket and

bombing run, launching numerous mortar fire. ,

rockets on central Kabul, Amru1lah • Afghanistan has been shattered sai"a. "by factional fightin, siDce 1992,

Doctors at Kabul's Wazir Akbar when formerly allied guerillas Khan hospital said two people were splintered and turned their guns on killed in the rocket attacks and at each other.

least eight others were seriously The United Nations says at least

wounded. . 25,000 people in Kabul have been

One of the rockets slammed into killed in the country's civilwar.-

an open park near the presidential APP . •

64

Affitanlstan (~'''s CHpptnB

Important supply route to Kabul reopens

KABUL (AFP) - An important <.C) southwestern supply route to the 0> besieged Afghan capital has been 0> reopened for normal traffic, de- co fence officials said Thursday. UJ

The reopening of the highway u.. linking Kabul with Afghanistan's southern and south-western provinces followed clearance of landmines and unexploded shells last week, Brigadier General Qalam Shah said.

Mote than 100 buses and trucks loaded with wheat flour, cooking oil, firewOOd, sugar, rice and charcoal have entered the city since its reopening.

A first vehicle carrying' passengers was rlent from Kabul on the reopened route Wednesday, said Shah who is commander of the government's 72nd battalion based in Qala+Haidar 20 kilometers (12 miles) west of tl:le capital.

The highway was closed in October last year when the Taliban militia of Islamic Students seized several roads in their abortive attempt to topple President Burhanuddin Habbani.

, Quoting traders, the commander said the reopening of the Maidan Shahr route had eased supply in Kabul and prices of some food items dropped by up to 15 percent,

ICRC to organise ~ food airlift to Kabul

e ~,..~,.~;", , "'Ii. ' . • ,. "".', "wh~8t, 6~~ui,oU: rt<;e,:8l!!t~ ~' E-t _' .~.JIi . j,aRdtea) were required montlibUO -< ISLAMAlIAD: International Como. ; 'meet their needs. The J8st road intoZ mtttee olthe Red Cross (ICRC) has Kabul was now closed and the ~ dectdedto organise a food airlift to ICRC's stocks in the city had dwin-

~ Kabul,as soon as. possible to mitt- dIed rapidly over the P.t two gate the sufferings of civilian popu- weeks.

lation due to blockade of food. ,"The city is suffering the harshfIl PNICRC's news release, issued est winter in four years,· said Peter ~ here Thursday, said that the opera- Stocker, ()utgoing head, of delega~ tion was intended to all.ow the tion. "The. bakeries are shutting ;z; emergency programme, already un- 'down one after the other and the

derway, to continue assisting the food crIsiS is being exacerbated by e most vulnerable membem of society rampant inflation and shortage of l:- disabl~d people and their depen- fuel - wood, coal and heating oU. dants, widows and .orphans. Of the Only one single road convoy has estimated 800,000 inhabitants of managed to reach Kabul since midKabul and its suburbs; some January and not QnIy the poor, who 100,000 were currently being aided are affected by the blockade, but by the programme, it added. . the entire population is in danger. It

The ICRC has calculated that is, therefore, vital to restore access 1,000 tonnes of food (largely to the Kabul", he added.

----------"- ......

First ICRC flight arrives in Kabul

KABUL, Feb 3: The first load of emergency food supplies to reach Kabul in two weeks arrived aboar(l an Internatisnal Committee of the Red CrosSi (ICRC) flight o~ Saturday, wil;nesses said.

Twenty tennes of food were airlifted to thei.besieged Afghan eapitalon a Russian-made Antonov transport plane in the first shipment of a·relief operation due to last 17 dan they said.

The mai. overland supply routes to Kabul have been cut .by rival factions to President Burhanuddin Rabbam'sgovemmear,

ICRC head of mission in Afghanis1lln, Michel Ducraux, told reporters the newly opened air bridge wtuld be used to transport a total 1,1»0 tonnes of food to the city.

JeRe to airlift relief to Kabul

ISLAMABAD (APP) - The International Committee for Red Cross (ICRC) has planned to ai rUft rehef supplies to Kabul as the warring factions have closed all roads leading to the Afghan capital, VOA reported, It said that flights to Kabul would starton Saturday and at least three caruo planes would carry reo lief supplies from Peshawar every day, Otticiais of the Red Crescent said that 1000 tonnes of' flour and ghee would be supplied to Kabul during February. These relief goods would be distributed among the needy people of tllE3 Afghan capital who are believed to be facing extreme hardships du£> to prolonged sie'Je of the city,

Planes flyjng'_out of Peshawar tIiree times lIaily would carry flour, cooking ,oil, beans and other foodst4ffs to somellS,OOO families, or 8bOut 100,000 refidents, he said. .

The official added that the mission was aimed 'at assisting those particularly at risk, including elderly residents, widows and children.

"At the very least, SO percent of the people find themselves in great. difficulty," he said.

Aid supply to Kabul has been difficult over the past several weeks with the main roads from Jalalabad in the east and Pakistan severed by warring Mujahideen factions.

The routes werlil cut afte.- local commanders began 'fighting over road taxes levied on vehicles passing through their areas of Influence.-AFP

DAWN 04 FEB1996 FRONTIER Pos,.

FRONTIER POS' 02 FE B 1996

.Aftftanistan (Ng"'s Cnppina

65

About 150 more lorries arrived in Kabul from Maidan Shahr on Saturday .. helping bring down prices, an Afghan news service in Pakistan said.

! The blockade drove down the value of the Afghan currency to a record low of 9,200 to the dollar last

Bureau Report month from about 5,000 a few

. . months ago.

PESHA'Y AR, Feb 4: Pakistani The main road linking the capital customs said on Sunday that .they with Pakistan has been closed since would. allow the International Jan 16 while rebel forces that conCommittee of Red Cross (ICRC) to trol the route decide on a new sysresume an emergency food airlift to . tem of taxing traffic.--Reuter

the Afghan capital Kabul on

Monday after a day's halt. Red Cross flight

A customs official in told Reuters .

here that for now permission would . O. ° K b 1

be granted only for Monday pend- amves In a u ing a decision by the government's Central Board of Revenue.

The ICRC began. on Saturday the emergency airlift to help relieve hunger and cold in the besieged Afghiln capital with a first plane load of 20 tonnes of wheat flour and other supplies.

The IeRC officials said they had to cancel two later flights that day for lack of a food export licence . sought by the Pakistani authorities. The airlift was unable to resume on

Sunday. .

The customs superintendent in Peshawar, Mumtaz Mehdi, said the operation was stopped because the ICRC did not have permission to carry foodstuffs to Afghanistan.

He said a Pakistan government order issued in the 1980s allowed the ICRC to carry emergency supplies to Afghanistan but excluded food.

The Pakistani government's chief commissioner for Afghan refugees sent a message to the customs authorities on Sunday night asking them to allo", the airlift to resume on Monday, he said.

Mr Mehdi said the customs allowed the first relief flight on Saturday because most of the cargo consisted of non-food items.

The ICRC officials said they planned to fly 1,000 tonnes of food to Kabul this month to alleviate the plight of the 1.2 million residents of the city, under siege from Taliban rebels and virtually cut off for nearly three weeks.

Taliban fighters, entrenched in hills to the south and west,have been • besieging Kabul since October, vowing to overthrow President Burhanuddin Rabbani and install a militant Islamic order.

They allowed lorries to reach Kabul via the town of Maidan Shahr held by them to the southwest on Wednesday after government forces cleared mines from their portion of the road.

ICRC to be allowed food airlift to Kabul today

DAWN

05 FEB 1996

KABUIJ (AFP) - The first load of emergency food supplies to reach Kabul in two weeks arrived aboard an International Committee of the Red Cross (JCRC) flight Saturday, witnesses said.

Twerity tonnes offood were airlifted to the besieged Afghan capital on a Russian-made Antonov transport plane in the first shipment ofa relief

! operation due to last 17 days, they

i said. r

. The main overland supply routes to Kabul have been cut by rival factions to President Burhanuddin Rabbani's

government.

ICRC head of mission in Afghanistan, Michel Dueraux.. told reporters the newly opened air bridge would be used to transport a total 1,000 tonnes offood to the city.

Planes flying out of Peshwar in Pakistan three times daily would carry flour. cooking oil. beans and other foodstuffs to Some 18.000

families. or about 100,000 residents, he said.

The offICial added that the mission was aimed atassistingthose particulary at risk. including elderly residents, widows and children.

, Supplying Kabul has been difficult over the past several weeks with the main roads from Jalalabad in the east and, Pakistan severed by warring

, mujahedeen factions. ' -

The routes were cut after local commanders began fighting over road taxes levied on vehicles passing through their areas of influence.

Between 800.000 and one million people live in Kabul where a civil war has claimed some 25,000 lives since the fall of a communist regime in April 1992,

NATION

04 FEB 1996

W~ather delays ICRC operation

B, Tariq Butt

ISLAMABAD: Seven ICRC flights have been operated between Peshawar and Bagram,since the opo erationof airlifting supplies began on February 3, carrying 120 tonnes of food supplies.

A statement issued by the Foreign Office said: the ICRC had planned three flights daily between Peshawar and Bagram, but due to bad weather in Kabul the flight operation has been affected.

The International Committee for Red Cross (ICRC) had planned to airlift 1,000 tonnes of flour, cooking oil and beans from Peshawar to Kabul for 16,000 wInerable families.

The operation was scheduled to be over by February 27. However, now it may last longer due to bad CIl weather in-Kabul. ~

The statement, in keeping with ~ the past practice of doing anything ;Z; possible to help Afghans, said Pale- e !stan has facilitated thelCRC operation and will assist any other oper- _ ation mounted by international relief agencies to provide such suecour to Afghans.

IeRe airlifts relief to Kabul today

FP MoDitoring Report

PESHAWAR - ICRC to airlift emergency food supply to belligerent Afghan capital from today (Saturday).

According to BBC the Kabul residents are facing acute food shortage and lack of fuel due to low temperature as the Celsius has down to -20 degree centigrade, Though the Tallban militia has opened the main highway leading to Kabul and a trucks convoy cartying foM items has reached Kabul on Thursday, But the residents are still facing food shortage, that is why the ICRC has decided to airlift 1000 tonnes of food items and fuel in Kabul today.

FRONTIER pas') 04 fl:B 1996

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66

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67

ICRC .. airlifts essentials for Kabul

. More flights to carry food,medicines today

4"

Q From Rihlmultill YUiilfZiI

~ PESHAWAR: The International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) began its emergency food airlift to

o Afghan capital Kabul on Saturday _ by sending a cargo plane loaded

t:; with 15 tonnes of wheat flour and

-. some medicines.

The Russian-made Antonov·12 aircraft of Sophia Airlines chartered P-l

by ICRC took off from Peshawar ln-

~ ternational airport in the morning

_ and returned after unloading its

C"Il cargo at Bagram airbase north of

~ KabUl. However, the second flight

Jl.l scheduled for Saturday couldn't

;2; take place due to problems of Cus·

toms clearance.

~ Eric Schneider, .head of the ICRC

g sub-delegatlon in Peshawar, told The News that the first flight got delayed and then it was not possible to fly again to Kabul. But he hoped two Oights would be possible today (Sunday) and gradually three flights a day would be scheduled to transport 1,000 tonnes of food and some life·saving drugs to Kabul.

Quoting the pilots, the ICRC of· ficial said the flight was safe and

smooth. He pointed' out that the there has now considerably Implane had the capacity to fly 20 proved.

tonnes of cargo but only 15 tonnes AFP adds: ICRC head of mission were loaded in the first flight to test in Afghanistan, Michel Ducraux, the journey and ascertain safety of told reporters the newly opened air the flight.. bridge would be Used to transport a

He said all the food and total 1,000 tonnes of food to the medicines were made available by city.

IeRC for the needy people of Kabul. Planes flying out of Peshwar in

It may be added that ICRC, the Pakistan three times daily would UN and other agencies are sending carry flour, cooking oil, beans and emergency food supplies to Kabul other foodstuffs to some 18,000 following reports that extreme cold families, or about 100,000 restweather and road blockades had dents, he said.

created food shortages and pushed The official added that the misup prices beyond the reach of mao , sion was aimed at assisting those jority of the population. patticulary at risk, including elderly

A United Nations food convoy residents, widows and children. MAt sent from Pakistan earlier made it the very least, 80 percent of the to Kabul via.Jalalabad·Kabul high. people find themselves in great dif· way which was blocked for more ficulty,· he said.

than two weeks. The bloeksde, . On Chicken Street, the main which led to food shortages in the. market area, beggars are more nuAfghan capital, was ordered by cer- merous than they were in the autain; Hezb-i·Islami (Hekmatyar) tumn.

cOnimanders. Subseq~, the Tal· However, the shops had an iban reopened the Maidan-Shahr ,abundance of fruits and vegetables, road west' of Kabul, ,Qabling though meat was iri short supply. traders to bring in food supplies MIt's not like Somalia. If you have into the city. Latest repoIW from - money, you can find food," ~d Kabul said the food suppjys1tuatton Khaled Ma«Urough, a city resident.

'Food aid arrives ·io'Kab.ul

.. . ... .: :\

KAB{)L(AFP) -Several hun-. leader of the fundamentali$. aJltldred trucks laden with food and Rabbani group Hezb+IslaJnL ' fuel arrived in', Kabul on ' , - Hezb closed down the highway

~~:~:~r :at~~y~ three-week ~~~~:h~!f~~OZ_

The arrival of the food supplies levies that are trac:tition&lly imbrought at least temporary relief poseQ Oil trucks and ~ Convoys

to the Afghan capital, where sup-. In Afghanistan. . ,

plies had virtually' dried up and But nnmamtanen groups wer~

prices of staples had soared. unsure Wednesday whether the

Two hundred trucks, carrying 'route WOuIq be reopened pennahe$~oi1, fi.ur and potatoes, ar- nently droIily to allow through a rived 'eatly'Wedn~sday from the numberor trucks to relieve the eastern highway linking Kabul capitaItemporarily, M,ahy trucks and JaIalahEld with Pakistan, wit- had been held up for more than 10

n£iSsessaid '''':t i.. days at Sambi, east of th,e capital.

Kabul Radle, the official radio A goverll1l\ent spokesman told

of President' Burhanuddin AFP that Hezb had lifted the

. Rabbani's government, reported roadblocks permanently and that that 400 trucks arrived on the government was holding talks

Tuesday and 300 more were ex- with Hekmatyar. " ,. . ' , ','

pected. Tallban 8ftlllery pounded gov-,

In Ertezaki market, where ernment lines in southern and trucks from Pakistan arrive,' southeastemK'aPul for pan of the drivers said that the vital eastern night 'fromhllltopa overloQking route had been reopened on the the south of the city, defence minorders of Gulbuddiri Hekmatyar., lstry soyrces said Wednesday.

08 FFB 1996

FRONTIER post

ICRCfood airlift to Kabul continues

. ISLAMABAD (PR) - Since the ICRC airlift to Kabul began on February 3, some SOO tonnes of food have been flown iQ from Peshawar and distributed to -over 70,000 people. Widows, orphatis, the elderly and other needy people, including\ffiany fami· lies with disabled breadwHmers, have been the first to receive ,this emergency aid.

The distributions, carried out by bolunteers frotn the Afghan Red Crescent, started in 10 of the 16 districts of the Mghan capital and will be extended to coverthe remaining districts as more aid arrives. '.'

Initially intended to meet the needs of I 00,000 particularly vulnerable people, ICRC aid will probably have to be stepped up, as within 15 days alone over 60,000 other people came to be registered on the ICRC's distribution lists. In the meantime, the total blockade to which Kabul had been subjected has now eased somewhat with the intermittent reopening of the southem access road.

NATION 24 FE B 1996

68

.Ajtfta.ntstan(~ws CHppina

Kabul food, fuel crisis still not over says ICRC

z o

~ 4(

z

KABUL (AFP) - Aid workers in the besieged Afghan capital are warning that Kabul's chronic humanitarian crisis may not be over, despite the ".rival of the first food and fuel supplies in three weeks.

"Small amounts of relief supplies arriving on an irregular basis are not going to solve the problem," Red Cross relief coordinator Mick Greenwood said.

"There are still a lot of people out there suffering and the supplies now coming into Kabul just scrape the surface asfar as the people's needs are

concerned," be added. .

The warning came after Kabul's main eastern supply route was reopened Wednesday following a three-week blockade by a warring faction which aid agencieshad said "Could trigger a "humanitarian

catastrophe!' .

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said 80 per cent of thewar-torncity's 1.2 million people werepotentially at risk from cold and malnutrition as they have no access to food or other basic

supplies. .

The resumption of supply convoys from Pakistan into Kabul, coupled with an emergency airlift of basic foods by .the ICRC has eased the crisis, but aid workers say it has not yet beaded off a human disaster.

"Two or three weeks ago we were seriously facing a catastrophe - things were already very bad and getting worse," Greenwood told AFP.

"But, if the roads remain open and the weather does not get colder again, the current situation will not deteriorate, which is not saying very much because things were very bad before!'

The blockade triggered massive price rises, putting basic commodities out of reach - even if they were available - and ~ndangered many lives, aid agencies had said.

A possible human disaster was howeveravoided-e-forthe time being at least- when two supply roads into besieged Kabul were opened again, allowing trucks laden with emergency supplies to enter the city, and after the ICRe:; emergency airlift began earlier this month.

The moves have meant that commodities which had disappeared from bazaar stalls, such as wheat flour andmeat,reappeared.

But four days after the opening of the main supply artery and after more than a week of airlifts, staples are still selling at astronomical prices here, locals say.

"I am very pleased the blockade has ended, but poor people like me are still suffering just as much as before," said Natisa, a 32-year-old widowed-mother of five as she browsed in a city-centre

market.

"Now there's no question of shortages as everything is back in the markets, but the prices are still too high for me to buy enough food for my children," she added.

The prices of wheat flour, vegetable oil, sugar and meat are still around 70 per cent higher than they were when defiant factional commanders blocked the main supply route in mid-January, aid workers and traders said.

"I call only assume that traders are hoard in, stocks in order to keep the prices high, a rather despicable act which, if this is the case, could be costing families their Jives in the name of greed," said an aid worker who declined to be identified.

Other officials said food prices would come down, but not immediately.

"It will take a lot more food corning intoI<;abulregularlyoveralongperiod to bring down prices and then to stabilise them," Peter lseli of the Red Cross said.

He added.that his organisation had now identified 23,000 Kabul families - about 138,000 people, including widows, orphans and the elderly and disabled - as being "most vulnerable," and had targetted them for immediate emergency aid.

The figure is up from 17,OOOfamilies just two weeks ago.

Trucks ladin with edibles leaves for Kabul

Barnll RiPOri PESHAWAR : A caravan of World Food Programme (WFP) trucks car-: rying foodstuff for Kabul's needy population left Peshawar Wednesday morning.

NWFP sources said 18 trucks loaded with vegetable ghee, sugar and flour departed Peshawar in the morning and after an overnight stay in Jalalabad would reach Kabulon Friday. They pointed out it was the first time that the UN fleet carrying food was undertaking the journey to Kabul.

In the recent past, commercial trucks were pressed into service by the UN and WFP to transport food to

Kabul. It was learnt ~ 500 commercJal trflcks with 3500 tonnes of wheat flour were sent to Kabulflom Pakistan in January whlleanother 150 trucks carrying 2000 tonnes of flour had been despatched until now

in February. ,

Earner, there were fears that border militia guards at Torkham may not allow the WFP trucks to cross over into Afghanistan as they were still waiting for permission to let them leave Pakistan. But the problem was sorted out and trucks were allowed to leave PakIstan solI.

I Meanwhile,. Paldstani officials at the border said they allowed 24 UNJWFP trucks to enter Afghanistan at Thrkbarn on Wednesday. They also

said ten ICRC trucks and six from the ' Danish Committee for Afghanistan, all loaded with food items, were also allowed to leave Pakistan via Th.rkham on Wednesday.

It may be added that ICRC had earlier flown food to Kabul from Peshawar in several chartered planes. The emergency food supplies for Kabul were arranged when a block ade of the Jalalabad-Kabul tlighWll) by Hezb-i-Islami (Hekrnatyar) fight ers created food shortages in Kabu and threatened the lives of IIU\iOrit.' of Kabulls. A severe winter and fight ing on the city's outskirts betweei the Taliban and Rabbani regim forces had already compounded tho difficulties of the people.

..4ftftantstan (~'WS Cfippina

69

ICRC·Customs dispute disrupts food supply to Kabul

~ From Ismali khan

~ 0_ PESHAWAR: A dispute between the •• n International Committee of Red en E-t Cross and Customs at Peshawar In; -< ternational Airport disrupted the ~ ~ . airlifting of emergency food aid to -. ~ the besieged Mghan capital Kabul ~ ~~ Sunday. But a late night fax from _ the Chief Commissioner Mghan

Refugees solved the issue but only {Il for today (Monday). . ~ A senior customs official said ~ the airlifting operation was halted ;z; as the ICRC did not possess the

necessary permission to export ~ foodstuff from either the Chief I:: Commissioner Mghan Refugees or the Federal Ministry of Commerce in Islamabad. The ICRC officials, he said, did have a Statutory Rule & Order (SRO) for the export of medical aid and other things but it did not include the airlifting of food aid. The Chief Commissioner for ~ Refugees Saeed Ahmad Khan in a .

fax message late night directed the have any problems with that", the Customs to allow the cargo to be • official said, adding what caused airlifted to Kabul. The ICRC ex- . 'the problem was the ICRC's plan to pected to operate two flights on take seven hundred metric tons of Sunday. wheat to the war-battered Mghan

In what appears-to be .the worst capital. "They may airlift emergency example of bureaucratic red-tapism, aid under the UN Charter but we a Customs official while confirmed have to seek permission from our the fax message, said the Collector high-ups as well", the official said. Customs Zahid Mehmood has asked The ICRC airlifted fifteen tons of them to release the food aid for medicine and wheat flour to Kabul today and that the matter would be Saturday as parts of its plans to taken up with the Central Board of ship 1000 metric tons of emergency Revenue on 'fuesday to seek fresh aid to meet immediate requirements instructions on the matter. Monday there. The second schedule flight of being the official holiday. ·We will a chartered Russian-made Antonovallow the two planes but for the oth- 12 Sophia airline plan could not ers we will wait for orders from the take place the same day due to eusabove", the official said. toms clearance. The ICRC plans to

He said the JCRC was allowed to operate two fights a day by Increasairiift fifteen metric tons of ing the flights to three a day to rush medicine and flour the other day food aid and other emergency stuff after they furnishedlm undertaking to Kabul. Each flight could handle to the customs authorities. "I'he up to 20 tons of weight.

bulk of SatUrday airlift comprised NO ICRC official wasavallabe

medical equipment and we did not for comments.

Afghan factions agree ,to open trade route

l KABuL (AP) ....:... A convoy of 18 United Nations. Islam8Dad.

tnlcks left, Pakistan for the beleag~eled I\fg~ If thl toad remains safe for paasage, it should capital Wednesday, carrying tons of much needed 'help ease the food shortage affectig many Kabul

food supplies, UN officials said. residents; a UN official said.

The trucks were to travel along a key transit . Heavy fighting and poor winter weather had

route between the Eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad closed all roads except the eastern route into

and the capital, Kabul. Kabul.

Pakistan border officials confirmed the convey In January, relief workers warned the city could

passed into Afghanistan,at about noon, " face a severe food crisis if the transit routes were

Government and rebel forces have beeri fighting nqt secured.

for control of a claimed stretch of, road between ., 'I'helnternationai committee of the Red Cross reJalalabad and Kabul, but both on Wednesday cently began an air lift operation to bring essential

claimed the road was open. ,,' food and medicine to Kabul.

A defensMn¥lUltry spokesman said tP~,govern·::> The government also claimed to have secured ment. . and . Hezb-e-Islami factional cOInJjll~nfler$ , agreement with the Hezb-e-Islarni for the restorasigned an agreement that would guarantee safe tion of electricity to Kabul.

passage &)ong the road. ,,' (,,: T~e sPQkesman for the faction sald the rivals

·We signed an official agreement with the HeZb-, were negotiating over the supply of electricity, but e-Islami". said defense ministry spokesman refused to confirm the agreement. "It's a difficult Amrullah, who like many Afgans uSes only one Situation that we're discussing", Hilal said.

name .. ' . The main power plant for Kabul is controlled by

A spokesman for the Hezb-e-Islami denied any. rebels juSt east of the city, leaving the capital withformal agreement, but said the road would remain.' out electrici~y for almost three years.

open. "The road is safe for travel, but no formalac- Warring.Muslim factions have . been battling cord has been reached", Qutbuddin Hilal told the each other since 1992, when they toppled the comAssciciated Press during a telephone interview in mimlst government and took control of Kabul.

'FRONTIER POS.,

15 FEB 1996

70

Aftftantstan (~ws CHpptna

THE NEWS INTERNATIONAL 25 FEB 1996

70,000 Afghans receive food aid from ICRC

. From Our Correspondent

ISLAMABAD. Feb 24: The ICRC Red Crescent, started in 10 of the 16 has airlifted SOO tonnes of food to the districts of the Afghan capitaL It will residents of the war·torn Afghan cap- be extended to cover the remaining ital, Kabul. since it launched an districts as more aid arrives. emergency aid prograuune early this Initially intended to meet the month. _ needs of 100.000 people. the ICRC

An ICRC statement, issued here aid has to be ina-eased because with· on Saturday. said thatihe food had in 15 days, over 60,000 people came been distributed among over 70,000 to be re~ed on the ICRC's distri·

people. bution lists. i . .

The ICRC had started its air~ 'In the meantime, the total block·

programme on February 3, fonowirig ade to which Kabul had been suba food crisis in Kabul which had jeered has 'now eased sOmewhat with emerged after the blockade of roads the intermittent reopening of the

linking to Kabul. . southern road. '

The route was cut off after a dis- "While it is true that the reopen- ,

pute among the local Mujahideen ing of the southern route has made it i commanders over road tax. The possible to build up emergency' blockade ended after an agreement stocks sufficient for.two weeks, " caubetween the local commanders and ' tioned Mick Greenwood, the ICRC the Afghan govenunent, leading to relief co-ordinator in Kabul, "the air· the arrival of 15 food trucks by the lifting will go on, both to make up for

World Food Prograuune. the shQrtfall in January and to meet '

The distribution of food, carried the urgent needs of the people now o~t by volunteers.from the Afghan receiving the ICRC aid." .

UN-flagged convoy reaches Kabul

ISLAMABAD (PR) - A fifteen· truck convoy of the World Food Programme (WFP) reached Kabul on Friday night. This was the first UN-flagged convoy in nearly a year to enter the beleaguered Afghan capital. UN-flagged convoys had been suspended following the resumption of fighting in Kabul in April 1995 and losses in-,

. curred from banditry on the road.

On February 15, 151arge white. trucks left Peshawar earring 125' metric tonnes of cooking oil, 60, tonnes of sugaCiO tonnes of high'. calorie biscuits and other hurnan-' itarian supplies. The goods are: desperately needed by Kabul's inhabitants, who, are suff~ring the combined effects of an extremely

harsh winter,higlfprices, ongoing armed conflict, and recurrent road blockages. Over 350,000 impoverished persons in the Afghan capital depend on a regular supply of food assistance provided or transported by the World Food Programme.

The arrival of the trucks in the Afghan capital came after two days' travel over the war-damaged road from Khyber via Jalalabad and Sorobi. The convoy was a trial to test the security conditions along the road prior to resumption of food-supported projects in many of the war-affected areas along the route.

FRONTIE R POS.,

18F E B 1996

15 UN trucks

•

carrymg

food reach Kabul

Bureau Report

ISLAMABAD, Feb 17: The United Nations World Food Programme has resumed the much needed food supply to residents of the beleaguered Afghan capital of Kabul after a suspension of nearly one year.

In a statement dssued here on Saturday, the WFP said that the residents of Kabul/had greeted a long line of trucks carrying food supplies for them on Friday night. The blue UN flags were flying over each of the trucks.

On Feb 15, the 15 large white trucks left Peshawar carrying 125 tonnes of cooking oil, 60 tonnes of sugar, 10 tonnes of high calorie biscuits and other humanitarian sup· plies. The trucks took two days to reach Kabul.

In 1995 the WFP was forced to suspend approximately 20 rehabili· tation projects in Kabul, Logar, and Laghman provinces because UN staff vehicles. arid foods could not safely transit the area.

Mujahideen commanders controlling the;Jalalabad.Sorobi-Naglu segment of the road have been informed that food aid projects in their areas could resume only when safe conduct for United Nations flagged convoys would be guaranteed. Prior to the flovement of the present convoy, groups controlling the road tQ Kabul had agreed to grant the convoy safe' passage.

In the next a few days, a second official United Nations convoy is expected to arrive in. the capital from Quetta over the southern route via Kandahar and Maidan Shar.

Through its emergency relief and rehabilitation operations, the UN's WFP provides food assistance to an average 1.7 million h~ Afghans per month.

DAWN 18FE819g6

Affftantstan (~"s Cnppina

71

mE NEWS INTERNATIONU 07 FEB 1996

Residents fleeing. Kabul for fear of onslaught

'ro .. 8tliroz Khln endorsed the reports that the stu-

dent mi11tia was preparing to IaI,mch PESHAWAR: Residents are fleeing a three pronged attack in the near war-battered Kabul as·)jfe in the be-' future to, oust Rabbarii from power. leaguered Mghan capital has be- Rabbani has offered unilateral corne miserable due to closureof ce...a.·to the ~.factiO~i.

• mllJor supply routes and threats of during Rarnazan but : the iruijor a fresh TaUban onslaught to dis- groups opposed to his rule haVe re-

lodge president Rabbani. jected the proposal.

Eyewitnesses informed 'The The people, who were able to

News' of massive movement of Tal- reach Peshawar. from Kabul said iban Islamic militia forces and the that short supply of food items coumUitary arsenals in the east and pled with the unprecedented south of the capital during the last . price hike was forcing the pOpula.

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launched any time", said Wazirzada, ment forces.

a Kabul resident who travelled The announcements on Radio through the Taliban-held areas to Kabul that Taliban were preparing get out of the city faced with star- for a big attack on the capital, eyevation and short supply of medicine witnesses said has back fired as during one of the harshest winter. people were leaving due to fear of

"Taliban are directing their further killings and destruction as a forces eastward. The movement of result of the factional fighting. tanks and other military might indi- UN special envoy for cated that they (TaUban) head for Mghanistan, Mahmoud Mestiri who another attack on the capltal", a recently returned from Kabul has source claimed. also hinted at the Taliban attack and

A foreign journalist who reached the counter measures being taken Peshawarfrom Kabul Mondayalso by ~ Shah Masood to defend

UN fears mass exodus from A-fghanistan

GENEVA, Feb 2: The United Nations refugee agency warned on Friday that if fighting in Kabul worsened, it could lead to a mass exodus similar to 1994 when more than 500,000· people fled .. .the

Afghan city. .

Ron Redmond, spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR),said that since mid-October at least 76,300 people had left Kabul to escaperenewed rocket and aerial bombardments. A partial blockade was also making

life miserable. .

Taliban fighters, entrenched in hills to the south and west, have besieged the city since October, vowing to topple President Burhanuddin Rabbani and install an Islamic order.

"UNHCR is very concerned that the increasingly dire situation in

Kabul, could lead to further displacement," Redmond told a news briefing. ,,-

"If the situation continues to worsen, what's left of ~abul and its inhabitants appear to be heading for calamity - which could lead to renewed outflows similar to 1994 when well over half a million people fled the city," he added.

. Large areas have beenreduced to rubble, there has been no electricity or reliable water supply for over two years, and fuel and food shortages are severe, according to the spokesman. Heavy snow and freezing temperatures had made conditions worse.

"UNHCR staff in Kabul report a significant deterioration in the physical appearance of residents who appear at (relief) distribution points," Redmond said.-Reuter

DAWN

10 FEB 1996

the government. Mestiri also said that Masood might launch his offensive prior to the one planned by Taliban as both sides seem in a state . of high preparedness. Mghan sources also said t.Qe\~ Ing deadlock both on the war front as well as in negotiation,could lead the student militia to attack out of sheer frustration as they were stopped just outside Kabul by Masood. Taliban had scored a series of victories in the east and the west of country few months back fQllowing the peaceful surrender of provinces which were mostly

. controlled by Rabbani's loyalists and those supporting Hekrnatyar.

The reported arrival of Gen Rashid Dostllm in Pakistan has given t'urther boost to reports that Islamabad was trying its level best. to- broker a military-cum-political alliance among the various Mghan groups opposing Rabbani. JunbishI-MOO sources in Pakistan did not confirm the arrival of Dostum sayIng the Junbish leader might tour Pakistan In future.

UNDeR warns of exodus from Kabul

LONDON: United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) has feared if situation in Kabul deteriorates further due to war,there is a chance that nearly half a million people may leave the city just as

they did in 1994, reports BBd. .

A UNHCR spokesman said at I least 76,000 residents of Kabul left the city since October last due to rocket attacks and air bombardment.

Reports say that continuous siege of the Afghan capital and extremely cold winter weather have increased problems faced by the residents of the unfortunate city.

These international organisations warned that if supply routes to Kabul were not opened soon and emergency aid was not provided to the people of that city, a great humanitarian tragedy may occur.NNI

03 fEB 1996

72

Afff\anlstan (1'\..ews CHppln8

60'Kle as nge blast rocks. Kabul

KABUL (AFP) - Up to 60 people were killed and The Pres1dential palace, mi.nlstry buildings, banks

,.. scores injured in Kabul late Thursday wheq a'huge and nearby hotels were seriously damaged in the exfIlO· . blast at ammunitions depot ripped thro~h the V(8l-; plosion, witnesses said, but defence official said

tom city, defence and hospital officials said: " .. " Pre$ident Burhanuddin Rabbani was not in his office

c.. The massive explosion ripped through a munitionS when it occurred. '

dump at the Presidential Palace in central Kabul in the Hospital workers said two civil1ans admitted after

~ late afternoon, shattering Windows and scattered de- the initial blast were in a serious conditiOn and were e! bris and shrapnel in a500-meter (1,650-feet) radius dely to survive the night.

f- around the palace, ' The blast was triggered when an accidental fire Z Hospital staff said' two people were killed and 25' near tbe depot raged out of control and triggered a o admitted immediately after the blast, but defeJ)C9 min- "deadly series of explosions in the ammunitions store ~ istry officials said they had seen up to 60 bodies lying itself, defence offiCials said, "We lost a significant (;E., in the presidential compound which is closed to re- amount of ordance in the blasts, but the loss will not

porters, ,have any major effect on our operations," a cadre said,

One official said most of the casualties were mili- ~~·It's unforturlate, but these things happen when a tary personnel, but added that some civilians were country is at war - munitions have to be stored also among the dead following what witnesses de- somewllere anfl fires occurr," he added, '

scribed as the strongest blast to rock Kabul in many Earlier the official said the explosion took place as years, "It was like armageddon in the city eentre," soldiers were l,IIlioading a shipment of ammunition at municipal worker Mohammed Azam told AFP. , . the munitions dump in the western comer of the

"Everything was normal: the streets were ,busy, Pr~ential Palace,

people were shopping in the bazaar and then sudden- He ruled out an air raid or rocket strike form the Iy there was the loudest blast I've ever heard," he said. Tallban militia besieging Kabul as the cause of the

"The world had ch'anged in an instant -, there, blast; but said investigations were yet to be carried were mjl,lIed people around me, glass everywhere apd out. He ,said the dump contained "all types" of ammuthe sound of other small explosions in the ail' around .muon, including mortars, bullets, tank and artillery me, "It was terrifying because nobody kIlf3W'wheth~ " sheils, rockets, tracer rounds and RPGs,

it was a bombing raid, a series of rocket attacks.or'a r ,Kabul's mQflnally pitch black night sky was illumihuge car bomb," the 45-year-Old said, ..' ~n~tec\ late Thursday by tracer bullets and other ord-

Most civilians in the nearby central bazaar fled the naooe which continued eXploding well after the first area, while soldiers and market stall holders cowered blast,

in gutters fearing being hit by she!!s or shrapnel ~ TheBBe radio, monitored here, said sabotage

being being spat out of the blast site, . might be behind the blast which was heard across the

Anti-aircraft shells, motars, , rocket-propelled Kabul city followed by the rattling of anti-aircraft guns, grenades (RPGs) and artillery shells continued to ex" The radio said, however, the goverllIl\ent ruled out plode for more than two hours after the initial blast any sab9tage saying no senior official was killed or incast a huge, black pall of smoke over the city. jured, security guards of the Presidential Palace fired

Mini -buses and cars passing by the pa).ace were in a).r to keep the journalists away from the blast hurled into gutters by the force of the blast, while the .' scene. It said the big blast was followed by several contents of market stalls and anti-aircraft rounds lay small explosions, which the radio apprehended might

scattered around the area, ' had haena pIann~ attempt to blow up the palace,

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Aff1tantstan (~"'S Cfippina

73

Kabulis clean up . after deadly city-centre blast

. KABUL (AFP) - Residents of war-scarred Kabul dreds of smaller ones - was the largest and most' cleaned their' homes and streets Friday folloyffllg a devastating in Kabul for many years.

massive ammunition depot blast which defence offi- Some 'nearby buildings in the area which also cials said killed up to 60 people. ., ho~s the defence and other ministries were very

At least five civilians died and 48 were injured in seriotlSly damaged, with some having had their the explosion Thursday, witnesses and hospital staff roofs rippeq 6ff wijile others had lost their Windows

said. Defence officials warned the death toll - in- antlChunkS of masonry. . . .

eluding military personnel - could r!sa to. Bfl' much . S~opkeepers, hotel owners and residents in the

as 60. ......., .: arell n~ the main bazaar. were sweeping up piles

Scores of soldiers were killed olinjured whentllEt. " of .shaUered glass Friday and 'repairing doors and munitions dump at the presidential palae,eexplod- stone-work damaged in tlle explOSion.

ed, sending live rounds, shrapnel, glassanq,stones "It's going to cost the government and the people

hurtling through the crowded area. .>, .:, ' .' a f88l,fortune to repair this terrible damage to the

Around 2,000 army staff are in the l'8l8ce eom-." CitY,· shopkeeper Jan Mohammed told AFP.

pound at any given time the official !38id, ~qdiIlg ·We. are poor enough as it is and have to spend that the exact number of military vi~ Was not : so lDuolOmoney repairing the damage' caused by available. Journalists are usulJlly denIe~ Ilccess to. ·~tockets. fired on the city without having to afford to

military casualty figures in Afghanis\8n -. : .. , . ',~! ' fiX selious damage like this,' he added. .

"The search for dead and inju~plia;~nPed ~dl0,i··Windows within a one kilometer (0.6 miles) rasoldiers have begun the clean uPO~9n withm '" 'ditlS'ofthe palace, built early this century as a royal the palace compound," the official • ...,,~o requested .. residence for the kings of Afghanistan, were shat-

anonlmity, said. =>: tared in the explosion.

He added that a government COmmission had' The beleaguered government stations troops and been formed to Investigate the cause of the blast, . munitions at the presidential palace in Kabul, Which which officials have said was triggered by a, fire has been under siege from the Islamic Taliban mill-

near the ammunition depot. tia for five months.

Some soldiers and locals however said they were . Officials said a "significant" amount of ammuni-

convinced the explosion was the result of sabo~ge. " non was lost in the blast, but added that it would

The dump was snll smouldering early Friday., n!?t '.bave any major effect on government military while the streets around the palace were strictly operations.

cordoned off to everybody except military person- The dump contained "all types" of ammunition, nel. . " .• s: " " . including mortars, bullets, tank and artillery shells,

Locals $aid the blast~which W~f~ioWed two . rockeVJ, tracer rounds and rocket, propelled hours later by a second major explo~on and hun- grenades, they Said.

Another blast rocks Kabul palace

ISLAMABAJ), Feb 16: Another. set on fire in the second explosion big blast, apparently caused by i and were still blazing 10 hours exploding ammunition, shook later

Ka~u~ early on Fri.day, .setting. a Th~ Islamic Press Agency said building at the presidential palace rockets and other ammunition had building an~ a nearby Rotel on fire, been sprayed over wide areas of WItnesses said, . Kabul. It said at least 180 people

There was no word on casualties had been killed or- wounded since from the explosion, which occurred the explosions began, but gave no

just after midnight. and several breakdown. . ,

hours after a mUD1tio~ . dump A spokesman for Rabbani's exploded at the palace, ~ilbng up government blamed the first blast to 60 people ~nd wounding many on a fire started by a faulty applimore, according to a government ance that spread to ammunition spokesman. being unloaded in the palace com-

Afgh~n Preside!lt ~urhanuddin pound.

. Rabbani does not bve In the palace, But soldiers on the scene said the

which is also used as headquarters blast could have been a deliberate

for the defence ministry.. attempt to blow up the palace.in '

The witnesses said a, building central Kabul=-Reuter .

inside the palace compound and the nearby Kabul Hotel had been

.Affftanistan (~'''s CnppinB

Kabul Museum: a' ruined treasure of art

By AURANGZEB PESHAWAR - UNESCO will send a delegation to Kabul to

study ways of saving, what has remained of Afghan National

Museum. Kabul Museum, located in south Kabul; was looted by armed bands and its valuable ,',items were smuggled to Pakistan for sale.

UNESCO wants to make an in-

lyentory of the unlooted items be- . longing to the Afghan museum Nancy DUpree, wife of late Louis , Dupree, a famous historian, is tryHng to get back the stolen goods from the Kabul Museum.

i Most of the Kabul Museum

'Was looted and damaged during 'the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and during the subsequent civil war after the fall of , ,Najibullahgovernment,in April 1992. The looted relics were , smuggled into Pakistan and were sold at dirt cheap prices in the

jumma bazars in various cities, particularly Peshawar. The incumbent interior minister, Nasirullah

, Khan Babur, bought a rare relic, originally from the Af9han museum, for on amount at Rs.3 million. He, later in a press interview, promised to return the relic to the Afghan museum, once peace returned to that war-torn country. The writer once came across an ornamental artifact belonging

to Kabul Museum, be,ing sold bya foot-path vender, for Rs. 120. The desperate Afghans, who are living a hand to mouth existence in numerous refugee camps and cities 'in Pakistan, have no choice but to ,sell the relics which they somehow have acquired before leaving their country. However, certain , well off Afghan families and those , who are affiliated with Afghan faction or holding important positions in the Rabbani govt, have preserved such antiques, property of Afghan. museum, with the hope to return them some day to their rightfull place. The writer once saw a breath taking royal tea set, with 24 karet gold engraving and King Zahir Shah's signature at the house of an Afghan minister, who intended to return it to the museum as soon as peace was restored there.

The defunct Kabul Museum,

Young man intrans-oxus (Central Asian) costume in the process of drinking. School of Sultan Hussain Mirza. 8111 century A.H. (14th century A.D).

before the loot, stood as one of the greatest testimonies of antiquity that the world had inherited, with collection spanning fifty millennium - prehistoric, classical, Buddhist, Hindu and Islamic .. It was first established in 1919 at Bagh-i-Bala palace over looking Kabul and consisted 01 manuscripts, miniatures, weapon and art objects belonging to the former royal families. A few years later the museum Was moved to the King Palace in the centre of the city and III 1931 it was officially installed in the building which had served as the munici-'

. pality.

The museum contained such rare antiques as the marblelountain bowl originally found near the tomb. of the great Mughal emperor, Zahiruddin Babur (1483- 1530. A.D), in the garden outside Kabul which bear his name. In the late 1915 century, Amir Abdur Rahman transferred the fountain to liis palace and in the 1920.'s King Amanullah presented it to the museum. The museurn.exhibited .Iinds tram the important site ofSurkh . Ketal, excavated from 1952-63 by the Delegation 'Archeoloqique Francaise in Afghanistan (DAFA) led by Professor Daniel Schlumbenjer.

FRONTIER POSl

21FEB199b

StirkhKotal; 145iniles north of Kabul.was the.slte ofa.larqe nonBuddhist dynastfc temple. Culturally' Surkh Kotal offered the first evidence frornanIndiqenous Bartrian art and threw new light on the development of Gandhara art. There were rare finds from the Bartrian temple area, Buddhist templearea, AF Khanoum, the Tepe FUlloh (or Khosh Tepe) Hoard, cXlnsistillgoffive !10il I and 12 silver vessels,dating from the Brorrse age .. The hoard. was. metdentally uncovered .by local Inhab- . Itants, There were ornamental jewellery, sculptures, painting, ethnic dresses, weapons, wooden ' objects, bronzes, ivories, medallions, glassware,pottery, marble from different ages and localities,

The museum also had a prehistoric room throwing liqhton different st3l18sof Afghan prehistory (Palocolthia, Mesotlith]c. Neoqithic, and Bronze age). There were sections based on Buddhist sculpture, Islamic history and culture; Hadda art, Bamiyan art, Hindus Shahi art, and coins.

The perpetual state of war and destruction have landed.a heavy blow to the already sagg.ing Afghan culture and heritage and it will never be the same even if peace ever returns to th is land. The loss is tremendous and it IS ' certamly a Herculean task to reo ' tneve and preserve what has been scattered apart by the Violent Winds of war and chanqe. However, UN deserves praise for undertaking the responsibility 01 saving the Afghan cultural heritage, Afghanistan's National Museum, and what remaursofns precious contents followmg fiyhting and looting in its war-torn

capital Kabul. .

A concerted effortis underway to preserve what is left and recover what has been lost. International donors have been involved in the search and preservation process.

Till 1994. about 13,0.00 objects had been accounted for, but professional help is badly needed to. carry out computerised inventory to main local staff ill conservation methods and to raise international awareness in a bid to retrieve the missing relics.

Aftftantsta" (~ Cnppi"8

75

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~ Number of Mghan refugees returning home doubles

Ffii A .... 1IiiIiId delin1dng it from ration books. Now

help is extended to returnees on their PESHAWAR: Despite a number of arrival in Kandahar, the headquarters constraints to voluntary repatriation, . of Tabilan militia force. At other the number of Afghan refugees re- places group repatriation has started turning to their homeland has dou- to help refugees in remote or difficult bled laSt year as against the figures of' areas like Chitral in northern Pakistan 1994, a UNHCR report claimed. and Wanna in South Waziristan

Around 153,243 Afghan refugees Agency to return home.

were observed going back to their The eilcashment of ration passWar-ravaged country in 1995, half of books to only verified returning farothem aMisted with the UNHCRrepa- Wes in the NWFP by UNHCR has triation grant. The United Nations ended the trade of ration books by High Comtnission for Refugees also group leaders or maliks.

noted that unlike previous years when The increase in returning refugee,s repatriation used to come to a near was also witnessed due to suspension standstill in winter months, December of general food ration distribution 1995 showed over 8,000 Afghans from October 1,1995 andreorientagoing home, desplte the harshest win- lion of the assistance programme tater for many years. wards more self-sufficiency in

Eighty per cent re~on from refugees vi1Iages. Return of peace to Pakistan took place to nearby some areas in the troubled neighprovinces of Kandahar, Nangarhar, bouring country was also a reason for

Paktia, Paktika and Kabul. the rise in refugees movement.

Last year UNHCR modified its From Pa1dstan and Iran combined,

repatriation assistance for returnees a t"~a1 of some 245,000 Afghans from Balochlstan by shifting the grant rep .• irlated last year. Repatriation across the border to Kandahar and from Iran was suspended for two

months due to Taliban takover of Herat in September 1995. Since then repatriation has been on ad hoc basis, further limited by winter conditions.

As for the year 1996, UNHCR is budgeting for up' to 250,000 returnees from Pakistan, depending on events. However, UNHCR officials think a host of new factors are likely tointluence refugees decision to return this year. They include the enhancement in the repatriation grant from Rs 3,300 to 5,000 fince midJanuary taking account of recent devaluation of the'rupee, However, the World F'bc1 Programme (WFP) wheat portion of the repatriation grants would remain the same at 300 kgs per family. The UNHCR also plans to extend the group repatriation facilities to other remote areas of Pakistan like BaJa.ur Agency.

The UN agency is discussing with the Pakistan government transportationof refugees in NLC convoy direct from refugee vi1Iages in the NWFP to some selected centres inside Afghanistan.

60pc of Afghans say Pakistan will retaln Cup

By IQBAL KHATTAK

PESHAWAR - Sixty per cent Afghan refugees say the defending champions Pakistan will win the 1996 Wills World Cup which begins in less than a week's lime in the Subcontinent.

"Pakistan is a Muslim neigh· bouring country of Afghanistan. We know they can turn the tables. on uny team at any moment any where," said these Afghans in a survey.

It . was conducted by BBC Pushto service stringer sarnt Yousafzai in various refugee camps on the outskirts of Peshawar. The survey will be broadcaa tomorrow (Saturday) morning by the BBC Pushto service from London which was obtained by The Frontier Post here on Thursday.

After resistinq criCket mania for long 16 years, Afghans living in camps and towns ci the Frontier province started adopting this game. Recently, an Jllghan Cricket

Association was launched with a purpose to make the game popular amonq the Afghans.

Their (Afghans) opinion is mostly based on religion. In their approach the element of religion was quite visible.

Not a single Afghan out of around 100 favoured India which reflects thflir hatred ·for Indians due to their tilt towards·Kabul government during the days of foreign occupation and post-Dr Najibullah government of Prot Burhanuddin Rabbani.

"If Pakistan fail to win then we pray for Sri Lanka because of religious ground." they said.

Asked to substantiate the claim, these Afghans gave some religious examples (which could not 'be published because of the gravity of the situation).

Twenty per cent these Afghans put their money on Sri Lanka. eight per cent Australia, five per cent South Africa, four per cent

FRONTIER POS1

West Indies and three per cent on England team.

The survey said that 52 per cent rated skipper Wasim Akram as top player of the competition. "No one can dare to stand against the bowling of Wasirn," they were of the opinion. "He is a class bowler".

Another worldbeater, Waqar Younas, won the hearts of 25 per cent Afghi\ns, Allan Donald of South Africa 15 per cent and Shane Warne of Australia eight per cent.

Colossal batsman Inzarnam-ulHaq was the favourite of 44 per cent Afqhans while 30 per cent went for dashing opener Saeed Anwar.

"The moment the ball leaves off ~Inzamam's bat it oertainly crosses the rope. He is mighty king kong," they said of Inzamam's ability.

"Saeed Anwar livens the dul proceedings at the game. He cae kill the bowling of any team in arv circumstances," said 30 per cert Afyhans.

09 FEB 1996

76

About 100,000 refugees slip out of their camps

From Ashraf Mumtaz

LAHORE, Feb 1: About 100,000 refugees.

Afghan refugees have quiedy slipped In 1990. the UNHCR gave a pack. out of their camps in Mianwali district age to motivate the refugees to go in the Punjab and spread out to van. back to their coOOlly. The returning ous parts of the country in search of a families were offered Rs 3,300 plus livelihood. 300 kg wheat. However, the plan

This development follows the ~ ", ~ ~ yield positive resulc. as the of the UN High Commissioner for ~ received the benefits under Refugees and the World F09d the!P8ckage and after crossing into Programme to stop all aid to t~e Afghanistan they again came back refugees and inability of the·Pakist8,n do~ing the border autbllrities. government to shoulder theburden. However, they were not registered on its own. . anywhere. Thus, the number of

Now, only 40,000 to 50,000 refugees refugees in Pakistan swelled and it is are living in the Kot Chandna camp in estimated that in addition to • some Mianwali and that too because they three mi11ion registered refugees, an have no other option, Dawn learnt equal' number of unregistered through knowledgeable sources here refugee$ are also there in Pakistan.

on Thursday. The UNHCR had stopped almost

The "exodus" of .refugees started everything to the refugees in 1994 after' September last year when the except fot:\wheat on the plea lhat the UNHCR stopped all assistance to the refugees were, now self-sufficient in refugees and the Pakistan govem- their needs, an assertion displbd by ment found it difficult to meet their Pakistan authorities. By the end of requirements from its already meagre , September last year, the SOUrces said, resources. even wheat was stopped and a cost-

"The refugees' stay in Pakistan sharing formula was mtrodutedlmak· becomes illegal the moment they ing it obliptory for the refugees tG>pay leave their camps but the government for their water and electricity charg.es is not arresting them because of politi- and the health and education facilides. cal expedjencies", the sources say. ,Since they are not able to pay,.dey

Officials allege that the UNHCR are leaving the camps in search 01 a and the WFP are trying to create such livelihood and thus are seen every· a situation that the Afghan refugees where and in all cities.

become a part of the local population The total UNHCR assistance fer so that the international agencies find the Afghan refugees in the Punjab fer a pretext to argue that there are no the year 1995-96 was Rs 7 million. The more refugees in Pakistan and thus compensation to the retrenched no need for further assistance. employees Commissionerate for

The refugees were provided full Afghan Refugees has also been paid assistance byth.ese agencies during from the same allocation. The allothe Soviet occupation of Pakistan. cation for refugees aU over the counHowever, after the pullout of the try is Rs 151 million,

Soviet troops from the war·ravaged The World Food Programme, the

, Afghanistan and then disintegl;ation sources say, has dragged its feet and it of the USSR, the intemational"agen- is no longer providing any assistance cies started reducing assistance to the to the refugees.

DAWN

02 FEB 1996

Affftantstan (~s Cnpplna

78

; Over 'lm"A.flh.an·'~refugees in Paklstanstlllneed help

PESHAWAR (APP).:..... Over orie areas, i aftet" tM '.colltipSe'of setup in the refugee camps but a million Afghan refugeesliv~g ,in 1 Najitltillahis gOvernment-Afghan number ·ofmiddte and secondary Pakistan still needed heip.aS'Iiei- refugees ·,statt8!:i,' 'oPining· to schools ~re also established for' thee they can be repatriated at Pakistan and !lfterJanuary 1~the Afghan children, When the this time due to deteriorating the number of fresh arriv81s UNHCR phased out the proconditions caused by factional reached two Iakh. OJlt of these' as gramme the number of primary fighting inside Afghanistan, nor m8J1Y· as 80,000 to ,86,000 h~ schools were reduced to 268 from they are self-reliant been registered. He said among about 400, The schools were

They cannot be repatriated at these re~~ there were aWge closed down from April 1995 but the moment because there are no nUmbe;Of people in a very baP the teachers both Afghans and conducive conditions of health, shape .nd· they needed urgent Pakistanis sacrificed a lot and sureducation, banking system, secu- help. specially the' Widows rendered their salaries to run rity measures arid. infrastructure among them had no source for . these schools. Thus 95 par cent needed for the settlement of the their subsistence as they had no schools were kept in operation derefugees in their homeland. Still able bodied men to support them. spite the decision to close them. most of the areas are heavily They had nO,shelf,et andnbthlJig The health facj]ities had to be dismined and there is risk of l~ ,t. ~ eat ~ Vt'8"\f1I!&!SlalntkInI'·, oontinued from April 1996 but the

every step.! . " .,' He!/said it ~~ LA~£atrlet' ~ , decision was deferred. The sys-

These views were expressed h the· pI" tem was changed and a nominal

by additional oomrmssioner lapis.' ,;~ote.t at. ,sup Ie,S of wheat- fee was fiXed for per visit of the

tics, comm~ssione_ of Af~' t~ured~4,edJariIl?leo()il;iW81· 99iqtfi~t'hn. patl~nts in the~ispensaries and refugees Zaibullah Khan in an m- u.11) uary " anu e BaSIC Health Units to raise some terview with APP, The perception UN agencies had come to know of the fmances

of the UNHCR is tl1at now the about ~e miseries ,of the' refugees , .

refugees have become self-reliant as a result D! the $tOp~ of aid It ,IS to be noted that in the ab-

by living for a period of 16 years to them. Similar decISion wassence, of the aid from the UN in Pakistan and if they continue to made in stopp~g the free of cost agencies there were the sources of receive help and assistance they supply ot.drin)tlpg wa~r to them NOOs alone on whom the would not be able to stand on and from 80 to 86 tubewells were refugees coul~ depend but their their feet Uke a living nation when handed over to the refugees. on role was curtailed and now there they are back.to their motherlancl. selt;lu.Jlp'basis to malntein,them were only a few NGOs operat~g

Zaibullah Kmmpoin~d 9U( and payt4e,wa.~r·rates"Thtt,total to Il~lp, the Afghan r~fUQees In that the UNHCR cOnducted a 8U[~ number ,oi.tubewells were, around proViding the~ ,edu.catiQn. hfjalth vey through, their own agencies' 120. Out of 4'1. tubewtlls handed and other facilities,

and came to the conclusion that avet to ,the refugees· tbrouOh a The Pakistan (JOvernment is tlie 'refugeeahO longer requlred Th~~~f~~i=~ ~:e- planlVng to revive some of the aid ~:e':1t::;>:t ~ ::~:, again given to the public health in the case of those facing hardmonerate made' its stand clear·' engineering department of NWFP ~~~ r=k':!~ur lC: v!:h:r~ that they still needed internation- on the p1ee thet the water. should miserable condition. There was a' al asststance. and they lt$d not' both ba supplied to the refugees proposal to distribute wheat-flour been 'able to'beoome self-reliant as ~tQt.b,&~;populattop~ . packets of five kg per individual iii' any manner. But the UN, was , ZaibI.illaIl I<han'~' that the per month and five kg tin of edible J)Ot oonvincad and cut off the help SY~Dl Vf8S aqU,l.Q t9 ~laJl!l!a and oil. Along with this, income genand services being provided to, the tefugees'nadric,.;nieansto erating schemes were also being 'them. maintaiIl it and pay the. water .mtroduoed to impart training of

Zaibullah Kflan pointed out .' rates.", " arts and crafts to the refugees to

that since the factional fighting "Hesaid initially if_Planned make them'selt-rellant in earning

erupted in K$ll and ~rQUnding thaS <P~IJ.h~)' "" ~~l}pels , ~W<! ~ f th,eir livelihood.

FRONTIER P~S" 0 7 FEB 1996

.Affttanlsta" (l'tews CHpptna

79

Hekmatyar joining in peace efforts

ISLAMABAD, Feb 9: The former President Burhanuddin Rabbani's Afghan prime minister and chief of government.

Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan, Gul- 'Meanwhile, Chief of Jumbish·i· badin Hekmatyar; is arriving here Milli Islami Afghanistan, Gen. on Saturday to attend a meeting of Abdul Rasheed Dostum met former

the four· party Afghan opposition Afghan president Prof.

alliance , Supreme Coordination ' Sibghatullah ,Mujaddadi in

Council of Islamic Afghanistan,' Islamabad on Friday. The two leadAfghan sources said on Friday. ers, it was learnt, discussed prevail-

Several Afghan key opposition ing situation in their country with figures were expected to attend the particular reference to various promoot, the sources added. posals for restoration of peace land

Among those expected to attend establishment of a broad-based gov. the meeting are chief of Junbash·i· ernment in Kabul.

milli Afghanistan Gen Abdul KABUL BOMBED: Six people Rashid Dostum; chief of jabha-t- were killed and six wounded by Nijat Milli Afghanistan, Sibghat- rockets fired into Kabul by the ullah Mujaddedi, and a representa- Taliban militia on Friday, governtive of Hezb-i-Wahdat (Khalili meat-controlled radio reported. .

group). Kabul radio, monitored in

The Afghan leaders would discuss Islamabad, said government planes 'a heavy agenda', said a leader of bombed Taliban positions south of the Supreme Coordination Council, the Afghan capital after the rocket requesting not to be named. strike, inflicting an undetermined

The meeting is part of hectic number of casualties .. ? •

activities which are going on in The Peshawar-based Afghan Islamabad to end the hostilities in Islamic Press agency said earlier the war-ravaged Afghanistan. that two rockets hit the area of the

The former Afghan president, defence ministry in central Kabul Sibghatullah Mujaddedi, who ha4 and two landed in the diplomatic earlier parted ways with the four: suburb of Wazir Akbar Khan but

party Afghan opposition alliance, . failed to explode. .

attended a preliminary meeting of The agency also said at least two

the Council held here on Friday. Taliban fighters were killed and

Mujaddedi's decision is seen as a five wounded in frontline clashes big success for the forces battling south of Kabul.-Agencies

Bureau Report PESHAWAR: Hekmatyar's Hezb-lIslami has denied involvement in the Landi Kotal shootout between two Mghan groups which resulted in the death of five people and brought iI\luries to four others.

AsSistant Political Agent Landi Kotal Mujibur Rehman told The News the incident was the result of an old enmity between two groups and had nothing do with politics. One group led by Lewanai, he said, opened fire on Said Amlr Jan's group to avenge the death of his brother Hayat at Torkham a year ago. Four persons died from Said Amir Jan group while one from the rival group. Prominent among those wounded is Haji Munjay, brother of late commanderShomali Khah ...

The two groups belong to Pir Syed Ahmad Gillani's Mghan Na· tional Liberation Front.

Meanwhile, Hezb-l-Islaml

spokesman, Qareebur Rehman Saeed has strongly rebutted report in an Islamabad-based English daily alleging its involvement in the inct-

dent. .

Describing the report as completely baseless and unfounded, the spokesman regretted that the reporter concerned had not bothered to confirm the report from the party. The Heab-i-Islami, he said, eI\ioyed good relations with ANLF and-had nothlng·to do with the incident.

80

.Aftf1CU1istan (1'\._ews CHppina

Afghan talks to strengthen alliance: Hezb

PESHAWAR: A top Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan (IDA) leader Qutbuddin HiIal has said that the ongoing talks between Afghan leaders in Islamabad were primarily aimed at removing differences in the Supzeme Coordination Counell of Islamic Revolution of Afghanistan (SCCIRA) and strengthening the anti-Rabbarii alliance.

Talking to The News from IsIamabad, he said, "until now, we have been holding infonnal talks concerning SCCIRA and the situation in Afghanistan," he infonned.

Beside Hilal, others involved in the Islamabad parleys include Jim_ bush-i-Mini IsIami chief Gen Rasheed ' Dostum, fonner president Sebghatul- ! lab Mojadeddi and Hezb-i-Wabdat leaders Ustad Muhaqqiq and Dr Thlib.

,.:, Hilal said that the three compo-

<z· • nent parties of SCCIRA still consid-

ered Mojadeddi's Afghan National

o Liberation Front (ANLF) a part of - their alliance. He said efforts were on ~ to bring ANLF back into the alliance Z and remove Mqjadeddi's grievances. ~ Mojadeddi had pulled out ANLF Ul from SCCIRAsometime back to f-4 protest contacts by some of the comZ ponent parties with ,President - Burhanuddin Rabbani's government ~ in Kabul without taking him into con- 0;» tidence.

"'I According to Hilal, the summit Z meeting of SCCIRA leaders was long Il.l overdue. He said logistic problems ~ and the uncertain situation in' r' Afghanistan made it difficUlt for them

to sit together and adopt a common strategy. He said the alliance leaders have met inside Afghanistan in the past but Islamabad was chosen as the venue this time because it could be easily approached by all the partici- . pants and posed fewer problems of logistics.

The Hezb-i-Islami deputy chief said SCCIRA leaders would fonnulate their policies in context of the prevaiIing situation in Afghanistan and discuss better coordination between their parties. He said no fonnal talks with 'l81iban leaders were planned for the tlme-being. He also expressed his unawareness about Rabbani's plans to visit Jalalabad in eastern Afghanistan and aboutspecu1ations that he was about to step down.

Meanwhile, it was learnt that a high-ranking Taliban leader Maulvi Mohammad Rabbani, after a brief stay in Islamabad, has left for Saudi ArabIa to perfonn Umra.

.....

Hekmatyarfor conference' of Afghan rivals-in Pakistan .

ISLAMABAD (AFP) _' Former 'Afghanpremier ,Gulbilddin Hekmatyar Sunday urged ~ . to host' a oo$rence' of Afghan leaders, , . includiRg'" President Burnanuddm Rabbani' to resolve the civil war in Afg~; , l

"I think ·the Pakistan; government should invite aU l~ade.ts including Rabbam to 'sit· together and find a soluqon thrQI,Jgh~e Il!9gotiatioos, " , Hekmaty8ti 'told Pakistani tel~visiOA, ill lID inter-

view.· ....

"Pakistan, more thari any other' co~try"can play such a role," h~

said. ..' , '

Accusing. India· and' 9ther \Inspecif1edcountries of S\lpponm~ the Rabbanigovemment, he'said "such interference· compliCates" the Afghan pioblem. . ,. ',.

"Our neighbours should help us in stopping 1nterfer~;" ne~d, adding that "we, wapt the Afghan nation to decide theiJ NtUre them, .

selves.'" .,',;:-:' ' ",'

He said theRBbbimi government was responsible for ,tbe con-. tinuation , . of fightj.Jlg. in Nghanis~ because ~they.~jnk they can remain in ppwer. Wit,h. \l\e backing of foreign supporters;"

"But the Kablll regime ~. very , weak and has no mQxale and it . should realise that Afghan people are fed up with strife and want peace iIl .. ~ teQion,. he 811id.

HekIt1atWr;' '. who· ,heads . his Hezb-Hsla~: taction,'called for ' the formatiOdof· an interim setup to take" control: in Kabul from Rabbani and to hold elections for a: future govsnunent. .

He is Currently particiPat1ngin talks in ~~.amODg Afghan , leaders oppo8edto'Rabbani, including powerfuJ;o Uzbek,:'leader·:

Abdul Rashid DOstam, whl)' cori~ . trois several provinceS in northern ' Afghanistan.

FRONTIER post 12FEB 1996

Hekmatyar for grand alliance against Rabbani

ISLAMABAD (APP) - The Former Afghan Prime Minister Gulbaddin Hekmatyar has called upon his fellow opposition leaders to forge a grand coalition to pressure beleaguered President Burhanuddin Rabbani to step down or else take military action against him.

"If he (Rabbani) remains stick to power then there is no option but to takejoint military action against hi m", a Hizb-e- Islami spokesman quoted Hekmatyar as telling the leaders ot Supreme Coordination Council or SCCIRA and other oppositionstal-

warts. ' .

"Most of the (Opposition) leaders agree to Hekmaryar's proposals" Dr Ghairat Baheer told APP here on Monday.

The top brass of SCCIRA which

comprises Hekmatyars Hizbe Islamai, National Islamic movement of General. Abdul RlIShid Dostum, National Liberation Front of former President SibghatullahMujadeddi and Hizbe Wehdat faction led by Karim Khalili have been meeting for the last four days in a row to· forge grand alliance against Rabbani regime.

The leaders of the two other parties , National Islamic Movement of Pir Syed Ahmad Gilani and Harkat-eInqalab-i-Islami Afghanistan headed by Molvi Nabi Muhammadi also joined the high level meeting of Afghan groups opposing Rabbani regime on Saturday.

A two-man team ofpowetful Taliban militia have also arrived here on Monday as the efforts for formation Qf a grand opposition alliance get intensified, some Afghan sources said on condition of anonymity,

Moulvi Eshanullah and Moulvi Muhammad Ghous of students militia are expected to meet Hekmatyartoday (Tuesday).

"It needs a little homework" , the sources respond,ed when asked about the inclusion ofHizb-e- Islami faction led I:lY Moulvi,Younus Khalis in the proposed grand grouping. .

Meanwhile, Hekmatyar has been asking Pakistan to host the summit meeting of Afghan leaders to settle the lingering crisis in their country.

The Supreme Coordination Council continued their deliberations on Monday night in a bid to devise a 'mutually acceptable solution to the Afghan crisis.

NATION

13 FEB 1996

81

Hekmatyar fears renewed bloodshed in Afghanistan

Opposition.talks continue

Fmm UMER FAROOQ . " Kabul".

ISLAMABAD' - Chief of the Hizb-i -Islami lie sai4 so tar the Kabul regime had not put forward

CY) Afghanistan Gulbuddin Hekmatyar fears a fresh wave any solid ptoposal whicb could lead to the solution of .- of .bloodshed in Kabul and western provinces of his Afghan problem.

cOuntry should President Burhanuddin Rabbani refus- Asked to comment on a statement of Mehmoud

es to step down. Mastiri that a new round of bloodshed may start in

"If the situation remains the same (as at present) Kabul, Hekmatyar said he also feared the same. &; bloodshed may start in Kabul and tnwestem APP adds: Hekmawar called upon his fellow oppoQ provinces of Afghanistan",Hekmatyar told The 'sition leaders to forge a grand coalition and pressure

- Frontier.EWt here Monday. . . .< .: '. , • '. R@l;lapi to ~p down or face military action.

Hekmatyar put forward two proposals fOr the reso- .' ""J! he ~ remains In power, then there is no

~ ~~~~ofsh~~~~~~~~:~;::~mr:=~.: ,~~~~=:nmiq~~~a:~~~ ~~~

f- ment in Kabul which should hold general electiQns, or the leadeis· of Supreme Coordination Council, or SCCIZ else the opponents of Rabbani should form a ~daJ- RA; and Qth8r opposition stalwarts.

0' liance against the Kabul regime. , ' "Most of the (opposition) leaders agree to

~ Hekmatyar has been in Islamabad for the last two Hekmatyar's proposaJs," Dr Ghairat Babeer told APP.

tz. days holding talks with other Afghan leaders to evoiw'Fhe top brass of SCCIRA comprising Hizb-i-Islarni,

a consensus on the Afghan problem. ",' National IslaInic Movement of Rashid Dostam,

. On Sunday he held a two-hour long mE!8ting with National Liberation Front of, former president General AbdurRashid Dostam, and may 98ll on Prime SibghatUlla,h Mujaddadi and Hizb-i-Wabdat faction led .Minister Benazir Bhuttoand Chief of the Army Staff by Karim Plalili, has been meeting for the last four General Jehangir Kararnat. days in a row to forge a grand alliance against

Hekmatyar also met Interior Minister Nastrullah RabbariL The leaders of two other parties - National

Babar. ' IslarnicMovement of Pir Syed Ahmad Gillani and

Hekmatyar said Russia and its. "satellite".l!tates . 'Harkat+Inqal8bi Islami Afghanistan headed by were interfering in Afghanistan., "Unless foreign inOO{ - Maulvi Nabi· Muhammadi - also joined the high level ference is stopped, peace can not be restored to meeting of Afghan groups.

Afghanistan", he said, adding India was also med- A two-man team of powerful Taliban militia also

dUng in his war -tom country.' , , . arrived here on Monday as the efforts for formation of

. He said the Afghan opposition leaders were trying a granqopposition alliance get intensified, some to form a grand coalition against the Rabbani regime. 'Afghan sources said on condition of anonymity.

"If Rabbani refuses to step down all his opponents Maulvi Ehsanullah, and Maulvi Muhammad Ghous

should form a grand coalition", Hekmatyar,sa1d. of the ~ militia are expected to meet Hekmatyar

, Hekmatyar said' parallel goverilinent was a possibil. today (Tuesday). ity, but his parw had certain reservations. "Actl,l8lly, "It needs a little homework", the sources responded we fear that the formation of a parallel government when asked abOut the inclusion of Hizb-i-Islami facmay lead to the division of Afghanistan. We want only, tion led by Maulvi Younus Khalis in the proposed

one governm~nt in Afghanistan .and 1t~hp\1l9,~ ~i' ~2g~·_ _...

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82

Afghanea ersready for talks with Rabbani

Hekmatyar says transfer of power can be discussed with president without his resignation; urges Taliban to joinalliance

By Rala Zulflkar ISLAMABAD:, An Mghan opposition coaJition'fuesday offeredto hold talks with Afghan. President Burhanuddin Rabbani in an all-parties meeting-over the issue of transfer of power Without requiring him to resign first.

But it was not clear if the powerful Talibanlslamic militia, currently besieging Kabul in. a bid to topple Rabbani, would beWilling toaccept such a meeting as they have consistently demandedhis resignation as a.precondition for negotiations .

. Hekmatyat's statement marks a shift from a long-standing condition of

the alliance for talks with the presi- .~

dent. "We no longer put that condi', tion," said Hekmatyar, speaking on be-

half of all members of the coalition, HIA chief Sulb,ddln H,km,tyar ,ddressing., press conference In Isl,m-

the Supreme Coordination Council of ab,don Tu,sil,y.-Photo by TanveerShahzad . '

the Islamic Revolution of Afghanistan '

(SOCIRA). Afghan opposition leaders, meeting here in Is- The five-points, agreed upon by the four-party Afghan

lamabad, also agreed on Thesday on a five-point agenda to opposition, include demand for an immediate. resignation resolve their country's crisis. by the Afghan president, transfer of power to a broad

Gulbaddln Hekmatyar speaking at a meet the Press based government, demilitarisation of Kabul, election for programme in Islamabad expressed willingness of Afghan the new leadership and formation of a system to solve the opposition leaders to enter into dialogue with Rabbani Afghan problems.

within or outside Kabul even if he does not resign, he did

'lotsound hopeful that the president would do so. ,'''' ".,' ... Co~tinued on Page , .

. 'Afgnail .leaders .. "ready for talks.

~ C/)

o

c,

ing us," he added.

Hekmatyaragain appealed to Pakistan to host a meeting of Afghan leaders which also includes Rabbani to hammer out a solution. He said in reply to a question, that foreign COUll: tries were assisting Rabbani to stay in office and warned that ifthis continued, a grand political and military alliance could be formed to dethrone him. He also called upon the foreign countries (India and Russia) to stop their uuiust assistance to Rabbani on the soil of Arghanisran. The Hizb-e-Islami chief also criticised Iran for according legitimacy to Rabbani.

Hekmatyar denied that the Hezb or any other SCCIRA member party had separately struck any secret understanding with the Rabbani government, Meanwhile PPI quoting GuIbaddin Hekmatyar said opposition groups demand President Rabbani to resign and transfer the power adding, "We want to put an end to fighting and are ready for negotiations",

sight. The Afghan leaders may shortly be leaving Islamabad but would come out with a joint statement for what the sources said, would be a saving grace. Hekmatyar also urged theTaliban to join hands with other opposition parties to remove Rabbani. "Without wasting time, they (the Taliban) should join in the grand alliance," the chief of Hizb-e-Islami said .:

He said, he could not confirm whether Taliban took part in the. Islamabad talks, but added ''we (SCGIRA) have had direct and indirect" contacts with them and "we want them to join" the proposed alliance, According to him, the Taliban could not resolve the Afghan crisis by themselves and predicted problems for them if the opposition's grand alliance was not fmally formed. He said Taliban had captured a large area in Afghanistan because of the assistance of some Afghan groups. "They in fact do not have any chance except join-

~~~~~~~~~~~~T~~~-~~~~~~~~:~

Continued from Page 1

The Islamabad talks have also focussed on forging such a united front, he said, adding that he was "hopeful" the aim would be achieved.

':Attack on any one of the opposition party, should be taken as an attack against all," Hekmaytar said, stiessmg that the solution lay in a

• gt:fmd opposition alliance alone.

I Hekmatyar who was due to leave later Tuesday after the departure of Uzbek General Rashid Dostum, howev~r, foresaw fierce battle in Kabul "soon," though he did not point out ho~ it could start.

In an interview with the Pakistan telerision, Rashid Dostum said the Afghan leaders had ironed out their differences and decided to defend any attac~ by the Kabul regime on any of the o~position groups.

Sources told The News that there still exist differences among Afghan leaders with no immediate solution in

'Hekmatyar may join forces with Kabul govt

AFP Saturday. Hekmatyar described the Mojaddedi who became.first pres i- six others had to 1I111i('rgo ('I11('r.'

. 1.' . ". reports as malicious and unfounded. dent after the fall of communist gov- geJlry operations to sai,(· their h I,'S.

K.l,.BLL .. Gulbuddin He~mat~(lr, thl Hekmatyar, one of the main Mu- ernment in 1092 - has been the OIl(> of the six victims, all of who III leader.of one o~ Afghanistan s main jahidecn opposition leaders during major sticking point blocking talks wen' 1I1l'11, was in a serious fundi?~posltlOn fac~lOns, IS expected to 'the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan on a peaceful' solution tli tinn,

JOIl1 forces With t1~e beleaguered in the 1980s, would arrive in Kabul Afghanistan's civil war. All the coun- The attack was the thitd rocket Kabul government In the next few to open his new office on Sunday, try's opposition factions - including barrage in four days on the city. days, an official said here Saturd.ay. other government sources said. the Hezb-i-Islami - have in the past which enjoyed a month of rt'lalivl'

~ekm,atyar, head of the Hezb-I:ls- News of the expected agreement demanded that Rabbani step down calm, during Ramazan, a. period

lami facnon which ~a:' been batth~ comes aftet month s of secret nego-before any talks on power sharing Which ended Tuesday, illt' fresh the. government politically and ~I- tiations between the government of" could take place. wave of attacks comes amid renewed tarily for the past two years, WIll President Burhanuddin Rabbani and Officials here could not immedi- intense fighting on the front lint's come to Ka?u1 ~on to take up ~ top Hezb-i-Islarni's top cadres, the de- ately conflrm whether the president south of Kabul, which has been bepost, he said, We ar~ expecting a fence official said. "We have enjoyed was preparing to step down under Sieged by the Taliban for the last live concrete agreement WIth Hekmatyar an unofficial ceasefirewith the Hezb the deal, but observers here said re- months.

imminently," the defence official told since mid-1995 and the expected cent comments by Hekmatyar indi--

AFP. "~~e participation ofth.e Hezb- deal will just serve to make it legal cated that he may now agree to Rab- Hezb for all-party

i-Isl~ m the gover~ent will ~ ef- and official," he said. bani retaining the presidency.

C~ectJve. whenever their top o~clals, The move would mark a major The new deal- if it goes ahead meeting to end

mcl.udl~g Hekmatyar, arrive In the change in alliances between the - would appear t~ shatter t~e Afghan confl 1.,Ct

capital, he ad~ed.. . ,country's warring factions, and Supreme Coordination Council,

Hekmatyar s.fact.JOn said.Satur- could shift the balance of power which met in Islamabad just two ISLAMABAD (AFPJ

4day ~t was considering the power- against the Taliban militia currently weeks ago to renew its opposition to Afghan premier

sha.nng proposal by the ~abul besieging Kabul, analysts said. But the Rabbani government and to dis- Hekrnatyar's taction on"

regime, butrul~d out any .d~al inde- the official denied the deal repre- cuss ways of toppling it. The Hezb Wednesday called for il Ille,'till~; 01 t pendently of Its . oppo~lt~on . col- sented a military pact aimed at re- joined the grouping in late 1993,just all Afghan parties at JaLILlllilli ill leagues, The Hezb-I-IsI~ disnussed moving the Thliban from their posi- before Hekmatyar and ethnic Uzbek Afghilnistan to lind il :;(lit i I II .: I I I' claims by Kabul officials that an tions around Kabul. "We are not warlord General Abdul Rashid tho country's civil Wilt

agre~ment with th~ government of trying to create a military bloc Dostam, who were both serving in His l iozh i lslnnu 111.1<1" 1111' I'll) .President Rabbam was imminent a )'ainst group, but are happy to the govern~ent, dram~tically ttJr~ed pUI"ll as one of il,; all It),' III d IlJlII

and that Hekmatyar was expected tohg any t d th fiighHnd' he on Rabbaru by Jaunch,mg a massive party Atqhan OPPOSltlOll coauuou

. . K bul s are power 0 en e ~'O, ' I It ti I t

arnve rna . soon.. . said joint offensive on Kabul. Both Hek- quesuonec . ie 1110 ives () I1t~\lO Iii

~he Hezb-I:Islaml spokesI?an In The official would not, however, matyar and Dostum's forces were tions lJpllewd to I)(~ 1IIIdt'I\\',I\' !Tl'

Pakistan, Qanbur Rehman Saeed, confirm what post Hekmatyar, Rah- eventually pushed from the capital, t.WVt!ll tlH~ IIt!zli dlld iii,' l'::'II,!III,',j

u1d b nlyaf I fll dy f K<IiTlll\ll)VUllllIl!!llt

stressed that the factio!, wo no~' bani's former prime minister, would .ut 0 !-Cr ~ont 1S 0 ) 00 ~c- "111 L:ase till' Kal.nl dtln;II)[::tld

sign any agreement. with Rabbani hold under the new arrangement, tlonalflghti~rnandar?~~dtheClty. lion does not come to J.lLll,tlni without its partners 11\ a four-party but said several possibilities had Meanwhile, three clviltans were all other parties should [UtIli d opposition coalition. The coalition, been discussed. "We have proposed killed and six iI\iured when rockets grand political and military fllli:t, called the Supreme Coordination that the sensitive ministries - inte- fired by the Taliban struck the said Hezb i Islarni spokesrian Council ofthe IslamicRevo~ution of rior, foreign affairs, defence and the Afghan capital Satu~day, hospital Ghairat Baheer.

Afghanistan (SCCI~), l!1cludes prime ministry - will be headed by staff and Wltn~es said. . Separat.ely, Iacuor: Il:'ld,; .u« I

' Abdul Rashid Dostam s National Is- commissions which could be headed .The three died w~en two Sovtet- former Afghan 1'Il'!ill:,'1'1

lamic Movement. Other SCClRA by the Hezb " he said without elabo- built BM 21 rockets hit a road along- Sibghatullah Moiadoedi said j.1 d members are former president rating. ' side a military installation near statement the four-party coaliuon Sibghatullah Mojaddedi's National The Hezb leader'reportedly told the centre of the capital, witne~s "has not supported" negotiations Liberation Front and a Shiite Hezbe an Egyptian newspaper earlier this to~d AFP. N~ inde~endent co~fIrm between Hezb and the govern Wahdat faction, week that Kabul had put ferward.two anon was lmmedlat~ly available ment oJ Afghan President

However, Dr Ghairat Baheer, rep- power-sharing proposals, including as to who was responsible for the at- Burhanuddin Rabbani.

resentative of the Hezb-i-Islami one which would see him reinstated tack. . Mojadded's National Liberation

Afghanistan in Islamabad, told PPI as premier after nearly two years- He T~e mangled remains. of one of Front (ANF) is part of the anti

that the Hezb has categorically de- told the paper that under another the Victims, barely recognisable as a Rabbam alliance. called ,the nied the reports to the eff~ that it proposal Rabbani _ whose term as human being, was still lying next to a Supreme Coordination Council of

has reached. an agreement wi~ the presiden't officially ended in June rocket crater about !5 minutes after the, Islamic Revolution of

Rabbani regime for the formation of 1994, at the same time as Hekmat-: the volley . struck: T~e. ~treet ~as Afghamstan (SCCIRA) ,

an interim government in ar's premiership expired _ would' fairly crowded, Wlth Civilians gomg In addition to Hezb, SCCIRA Ill-

Afghanistan. '!te down and hand over power to about their routine business, when clud~ Afghan ~zbek leader Abdul

Dr Ghairat said such rumours are "a p rson acce table to both sides." the Taliban fired the rockets,' wit· Rashtd Dostam s National Islamic

t to eate tension between the' pe alsP h rtedly said ness Hamid Matin said. "Suddenly Movement. and Shiite Hezb I

mean cr . Both J:lropos , e repo , h . " Wahdat faction.

component parties of the SCCIRA. .' - , . . th t ere was a terrific bang and a huge" " ' , "'"

"These baseless reports are also de- wo~d seedH~zbri°mcmlnistriials. h~whilee cloud of dust covered the whole If HeZbt +ltsllatllhll rKe:l~hll':; ~OI.Jt.

ed h dl . th foreign an mte or es, area When it cleared I could see the agreemen WI 1 e anu It{Jlllle

sign to cre~te f es ~ m:h~ Rabbani's Jamiat-l-Islami party wo~ded, the dead ~ well as bollY that would be its OW11 dn,cIslol,l ofdthe ~li?ti~~~~ :g= the Rab_W?~d retain control of the defence. parts scattered along the side of the and not that of SCClRA

an po nurustry. - d. h add d' Moladeddi warned,

bani government." " ", . d te roa, e e. '

He said he talked to the party R.abbam s.co~t!nue nure as Doctors at the nearby Wazlr

chief Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, president - a posI~on he secured in Akbar Khan hospital said two of the Ii R 0 NTIE R POST

, early 1993 replacing Sibghatullah victims were dead on arrival while

, 29 FEB 1996

1'HE NEWS INTERNATIONAl.

25 FEB 1996

Hekmatyar's Hezbconsldering Rabbani's power-sharing plan

ISLAMABAD (AFP) -Former Afghan premier Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's faction said Saturday it was considering a power-sharing proposal by the Kabul regime, but ruled out any deal independently of its opposition colleagues.

The Hezb-i-Islami dismissed claims by Kabul officials that an agreement with the government of Afghan President Burhanuddin was imminent and that Hekrnatyar was expected to arrive in Kabul soon.

The Hezb-i-Islarni spokesman

• in Pakistan, Oaribur Rehman Saeed, stressed that the faction would not Sign any agreement with Rabbani without its partners in a four-party opposition coalition.

The coalition, called the Supreme Coordination Council of the Islamic Revolution of Afghanistan (SCCIRA), includes northern Uzbek leader Abdul Rashid Dostam's National Islamic Movement.

Other SCCIRA members are former president Sibghatullah Mojaddedi's National Liberation Front and a Shiite Hezbe Wahadat faction.

Earlier, Saeed had declined to deny or confirm reports from

Kabul. saying he would offer com ments after contacts with Hezb leadership inside Afghanistan.

"A proposal for setting up an interim administration in Kabul is under our consideration," Saeed said, . speaking by phone from Peshawar in northwest Pakistan, after talking to the party leadership.

He said consultations had been going on for some time among the SCCIRA member parties in order to evole a joint stand on Kabul's' proposal.

"Hezb-i-Islami will take all SCCIRA members in confidence and we will not sign any agreement Without them," the spokesman vowed, accusing Kabul officials of trying to create a rift in the opposition coalition.

Any suggestions in Kabul that Hezb would delink from the coali· tion and enter into a separate deal with the regime "are sheer propaganda." he said.

In Kabul, a government official had said the Rabbanl government expected a "concrete agreement with Hekmatvar imminently" and that the Hezb-i-Islami .leader would come to Kabul soon to take up a top post.

"Hekmatyar has no programme

at present to go to Kabul." the Hezb-Llslami spokesrnan.sald ..

PPladds: However, Dr.Ghairat Baheer, representative of the HIA

in Islamabad categorically disc pelled the Impression that it has reached an agreement with the Rabbani regime for the formation ... of an interim government . in fJ) Afghanistan. 0

"All the rumours that HIA has Q... reached to an understanding with Rabbani are baseless. Hizb is a member of the Supreme Coordination council of . Islamic Revolution in Afghanistan (SCC!· RA) and every decision will be taken only through its platform," he said.

Dr.Ghairat said rumours regarding coalition With Rabbani regime were meant to create worries between the component parties of the SCCIRA. He added that these baseless news were deSigned to create hurdles in the way of the formation of a grand military and political front against the Rabbani government.

Dr Ghairat said he talked to tile party chief, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Sunday who (Hekmatyar) described the news regarding agreement with Rabbani as malicious and unfounded.

co 0> 0)

--

co w u.

85

No accord with Kabul yet: Hezb

From Ahniad Hassan

PESHAWAR, Feb 28 : The Hezb-i-Islami Afghanistan has denied that it has reached an agreement with the Kabul regime. In a statement faxed from Laghman province, the current headquarters of the Hezb, on Wednesday, the official spokesman, Ustad Qaribur Rahman Saeed, said his organisation would support any proposal for convening a grand assembly of all concerned Afghan leaders , excluding those related to the Kabul regime, at Jalalabad, for reaching a negotiated settlement of the Afghan imbroglio, Such an assembly, he said, should form a joint political and military alliance against President Rabbani , if the latter refused to step down.

Refuting Press reports, the Hezb , the spokesman 'said, was part of the four- party alliance (SCCIRA) and it could not reach any agreement without the 'consent of other components of the alliance.

The spokesman reiterated the Hezb stand on transfer of power through an interim government acceptable to all segments of the Afghan society.

He said Kabul and other cities ! should be demilitarised and hand; ed over to a joint security force while an interjm government

, should hold fair elections in the country, for an ultimate transfer of I power to elected representatives of the people.

Meanwhile, the Mghan National Liberation Front (ANLF) of Prof Mujaddedi has also denied that the Hezb and the Rabbani regime have. reached an agreement.

Some sources in Peshawar said on Wednesday that Gulbadin Hekmatyar, chief of the Hezb, had summoned his top aides to Sarobi, the venue of current negotiations between the organisation and the Kabul administration,

It was also speculated that the Hezb chief 'was expecting a highpowered delegation from Kabul, which might be headed by President Rabbani himself.

DAWN 29 FEB 1996 FRONT1EI~ POS')

ABDUL SAM! PARACHA AI>DS:

Hezb-i-Islami , which had been without a permanent headquarters for the last 10 months, has got hold of the Loghman province, 150 miles from Kabul, after subjugating the pro- Rabbani Salft group of Jamaat ud Dawa, Hezb aides were rushing to extend their control to the adjoining Kunarh province where chief of the Jamaat ud Dawa Maulvi Samiullah, who Is also a religious adviser to President Rabbani, holds power, sources in Kunarh told Dawn on Wednesday.

The Hezb forces, in a similar. move sometime back , had also tried to get hold of Loghman and Kunarh provinces and even killed the founding chief of the Jamaat ud Dawa (Salfi group), but could not achieve the goal.

Sources said that the Hezb forces which had attacked Loghman were backed by Jubhat-i-Milli of Maulvi Mohammad Nabi.

Simmons meets Hekmatyar

ISLAMABAD, Feb 14: The US Ambassador to Pakistan Thomas Simmons Junior met Chief of the Hizb-i-Islami and former Afghan Prime Minister Gulbadin Hekmatyar here on Wednesday,

They discussed the situation in war-torn Mghanistan.

The meeting, which lasted for almost an hour, was also attended by the Deputy InCharge of the Afghan Desk in US Embassy.

Meanwhile, Mr. Hekmatyar left for Peshawar in the evening to attend the executive council meeting of his party,

He is scheduled to leave for Afghanistan on Thursday.APP

DAWN

15F E B 1996

Power transfer must to resolve' crisis: IDA

From Our Correspoll(lent

PESHAWAR - Hizbe Islami of Oulbadin HeJanatyar has contradicted reports regarding its agreement with the Kabul regime of Prof. Burhanuddin Rabbani and declared it baseless and

fabiib~):' ~t.,.'U'IIH 11r:t.~JIj.,,: ,Illtllill

1be~Islamiinits communique on WedneSday supported the proposal regarding an assembly of all Afghan leaders at Jalalabad to form a broadbased front excluding the Kabul regime, for initiating ajoint political and military struggle.

Ustad Qareebur Rehman Saeed, official spokesman of Hizbe Islami, through a communique faxed from Laghman province of Afghanistan, has denied the reports pertaining to Hizbe Islami agreement with the Kabul administration, He stated that Hizbe Islatni neither signed written agree. ment nor for a verbal agreement with

NATION

the Kabul administration. "Hizbe Islami is an important organ of the Supreme Coordination Council of Islamic Rev.olution of Afghanistan (SCCIRA) and bound to follow its decisions which declares that each and every agreement shall be held from the p1atfomt of this forum·'~·ltfurther stated that·Hizbe Islami beli~ed that crisis could beresolved withtransferofpower to an interim government by Kabul rulers without any conditions, This interim government should be acceptable to all. For formation of proposed interim government, Hizbe Islami favours negotiations amongst all the forces and warring factions.

He informed that Hizbe Islami also supporting the proposal regarding an assembly of all Afghan forces excluding Kabul regime, to build up aconsensus to initiate ajoint political and military struggle in a bid to find out a negotiated-settlement to the conflict.

29 FEB 1996

86

From Our Correspondent PESHAWAR- The Ittehad-e-Islami

. Chief Prof. Abdul Rab Rasool Sayaf once again arrived-in the border town of J alalabadin a bid to seek support of the scattered Mujahideen groups in favour of Rabbani government.

Prof. Rasool Sayaf who arrived in Jalalabad on Tuesday evening is accompanied by close associates of Prof. Rabbani and Ahmed Shah Masud including Mohammad Siddique Chakri and UstadDanish Yar. Peshawar based acting consul general said, "Second visit to Prof. Sayaf to Jalalabad is the continuation of the shuttle diplomacy between Kabul and rival Afghan groups and also for normalising relations between Pakistan and.Afghani-

stan. . .

The acting .~nsul general in Peshawar Sulaiman Shah who is affiliated to Ittehad-e-Islarni of Prof. Rasool Sayaf, said, "This time I think that Prof. Sayaf wHI meet high level Pakistani diplomats based in Jalalabad with a view to discussing bilateral ties and to normalise the relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. And he will

also discuss intra-Afghan problems From Sbamfm Shabid

with those Afghan leaders who are PESHAWAR -To' force the

present at Jalalabad". NangarharGovemorHajiAbdulQadir

SulaimanShahfurthersaidthatProf. Khan for resumiDg cordial relation So far, Prof. Rasool Sayaf and his

Abdul Rab Rasool Sayaf is enjoying with beleaguered regime of Prof. associates were succeeded in purchas-

full backing of President Prof. Rabbani, the IttehadIslami Chief Prof. ingloyalty of a known tIibalelderHaji

Burhanuddin Rabbani and his right Abdul Rab Rasool Sayaf was strug- Zaman. Haji Zaman, KOehi by tribe,

hand man Engineer Ahmed Shah gling to provoke members of the pro- became a known person whim he and

Masud. vineial shura against him arid create his brothers had allegedly. shot dead

However, the acting Afghan consul split in components of provincial ad~ known Afghan Commander Haji

general got infuriated when diverted ministration. ~ Shamali Khan in 19.94 last. Later

his attention to a recent statement of SourcessaythatProf.AbdulRasoo~ NangarharGovernorHajiAbdulQadir

Engineer Ahmed Shah Masud in which Sayaf, who along with two close asS(};: Khan. has resolved the dispute. be-

he had declared that Prof. ciates ofRabbani and Masud, is visit! tween the two families and now Haji

Sayaf has no right to frame any ing Jalalabad on the name of mew,a.: Zaman is considered one amongst the

formula for reconciliation with the tion, struggling to drum up supportoE str9ngest commanders of the border

opposition groups. He claimed thathe NangarharGovernor Haji Abdul Q~ Nangarhar province and could create

and Rasool Sayafhave already con- KhanandtocreateproblemsforHim: problems for Governor Haji Abdul

tradicted the said reports but was una- Islami.· However"Haji Abdul Qadir Qadeer Khan.

ware about the stand of Ahmed Shah has rejected the said offerS of Prof. The sources said that besides mil-

Masud. It may be mentioned here that Rabbani administration and riow like. lion of Afghanis, Rasool Sayaf has

Prof. Rasool Sayaf since a long has of others demanding early resignation i alsooffetedattractivegovernmentand

been struggling to drum up support of of President Rabbani. . diplomatic posts to HajiZaman inside

independent and those Afghan forces In retaliation, Prof. Rasool Sayaf and outside Afghanistan. One of the

who are opposing Prof. Rabbani' s ad- has initiated a new struggle aimed at post is included Peshawar-based Af-

ministration. mustering support of maximum Shura ghan Trade Commissioner and others.

He for this purpose had held a series members. In the first plan, Rasool Now Haji Zaman is speaking in tone

of meetings with chief of his faction Sayaf had made alert his partymen of Rasool Sayaf and others who are

Hisbe Islami Maul vi Younas KltaIis headed by ustad Saz Noor to prepare not only supporting Prof. Rabbani' s

and Nangarhar Governor Haji Abdul themselves for any change. In this administration but we also opposing

Qadeer Khan. connection. now Ustad Rasool Sayaf what they calls unrealistic approach

Likewise, he held a meeting with and his associates have initiated a new of the opposition. Now he is also

NIFA chief Pir Syed Gillani and trend of horse-trading at Jalalabad and favouring remaining of Prof. Rabbani

Harakat-e-Islami chief Maulvi Nabi is purchasing loyalties of the Shura and his associates.

at Jalalabadon becember23 last. But members. The sources said that for Meanwhile, Peshawar-based acting

all of tbose1eaders har~'rejected rec- changing loyalties, the Shura mem- Afghan Consul General Sulaiman

onciliation efforts of Prof. Rasool bers have been offered heavy Shah, who is also affiliated with Ittehad

S f amount, attractive offices and other Islami, also following policies of his

aya. . hi f

interests. ' party c e.

NATlON 01 FEB 1996 NATION

Efforts initiated to muster support for Rabbani govt

On the other hand daily Shahadas in its reports on Tuesday last informed that main opposition leader Engineer Gulbadin Hikmatyar has rejected the Ittehad-e- Islami circles request for holding a meeting with Rasool Sayaf. Engineer Gulbadin Hikmatyar on the eve of his recent visit in Peshawar had received a request from Ittehad-eIslami circles and its sympathetic diplomats and officers to provide an opportunity to their party chief Rasool Sayaf who is desirous for a reconciliation amongst the formerjehadic leaders.

But Engineer Hikmatyar while regretting said that Prof. Abdul Rab Rasool Sayaf is helpless person and couldn't force Rabbani to accept his commitments and promises he made

Wi'SO:;;:rtzymg to'·

muster support for Prof. Rabbani'

Rabbani ready. for conditional power transfer says 'Prof. Sayyaf

ISLAMABAD (APP)- The Ittehade-IslamiChiet, Prof Sayyaf said thaI the problems of the country could nOI be resolved unless ali the Afghan organiZations and forces had held talks jointly, VOA reported.

Commenting on the meetings of Supreme Coordination Council and other Afghan leaders in Afghanistan, he said, any decision being made in such meetings would not resolve all the problems of the. country.

Sayyaf said that the leaders of the jehad organizations should hold mu-

tual talks in Kabul.and also negotiate Z with the Government. 0 . Aecordingto Sayyaf,atmosphere ~ IS now conducive for holding such c( talks. He went on to say that such a Z meeting in Kabul could yield desired results. Prof Sayyaf added that PresidentRabbanihas time andagainsain

that he was ready to.rransfer political powerif a reasonable way was found

for ending war and restoration ofpeace

in Afghanistan.

Qj I-U u...

87

Afghan diplomat discusses peace. with Sayyaf

F.P. Repon bad also been trying to remove Kabul government to mediate be-

PESHAWAR - Actmg Afgl~J the strains In Pak~Afghan raJa- tween the two countries. oonsul-ceneral in Peshawar, Syed tions. ~ Shah. further said Meanwhile, the deputy Iranian SUjaimall Shah has held talks with tqat, li" a18l) d~cussed ,various foreign minister AlJauddin Ittehad-i-IsI~i's Ustad Sayya,f in '!iteps .for. improving bll8tera) ties Broujourdi' currently visiting JaJaiabad on exploring Venues to~tween Kabul 1Uld· Is{amabad Afghanistan, due to bad weather bemg all Afghan leaders to nEigotl-with Ittehad-e-Islami *. ' postponed his planned visit to

ating' table to restore peace to, The Afghan actlng oonlluI-gen- JalaJabed Of) W~esday.

their war-ravaged country. eral r~oonfjrmed that Ustad Sayyaf Broujourdl, who Is In Kabul, is

Sulaiman Shah, who after had r~cently delivered a Jetter to expected to fly to Jalalabad today overnight stay in Jalalabad re- the Pakistani government on be- (Thursday).

turned to Peshawar 011 half of the Rabbanl government, During hlB.stay in JalaIabad the Wednesday, informed that Ustad regretting demolition of Pakistan Iranian minister would meet Sayyaf's current visit to Jalalabad embassy by a mob In Kabul last Oulbuddtn Hekmatyar, Ustad was part of the Kabul govern- year and Its readiness to provide Sayyaf governor Qadeer and othment's continued efforts to reach compensation ix the damages of er Afghan leaders. 'lbe same day an understanding with the oppo- the mission. He outrightly reject- be will arrille in Peshawar and Is

' sition parties. ,ed the reports that the Kabul gov- ; likely to discuss the A~han issue

He said that Usta,d Sayyat, 'who ernmelltbad not sent any l$tter to -. With Prof. SU)ghatullah

had theftJIl, support ot the Is1ama~, adding that Ustad, MuJaddadl' Plr Syed Ahmed President, Rabbam government, Sayyat had the full backing of GllIanl and'other Afghan leaders.

CD u..J u..

co o

Rabbani ready to transfer

power, says Sayyaf

end to the 'hostility. He exhorted the Taliban to stop bloodshed ..

PESHAWAR, Feb 5 : UN secre- He said President Rabbani had

tary - general's special envoy on several times expressed his desire Afghanistan Mahmood Mestiri, to end the war and negotiate the who is on a hectic mission to nego- recent Mesteri plan with all the date peace, held talks with Abdur parties, but Taliban did not agree. Rab Rasool Sayyaf, chief of "We are against use of force and Ittehad-i-Islami, in Jalalabad on . would try to discuss every issue Monday and discussed matters per- with the opposition peacefully in raining to the implementation of a ' the best national interest", Sayyaf recent plan to solve the Afghan declared.

imbroglio, and response of the' He disclosed that Rabbani wantother warring factions to it, it was ed transfer of power through a learnt.' Islamic mechanism to make it

The meeting, which lasted about acceptable to all the ethnic, sectaritwo hours, was attended by former an and political groups and undo Afghan consul- general in injustice in power sharing, paving Peshawar, Musa Kha~ndf"lilpre- the way for a lasting peace in the sentatives of other political parties. country.

Me Mestiri is trying to make the Sayyaf advised the warring fac-

recent peace proposals acceptable tions to refrain from involving forto all interested groups for an early eign countries in the internal dissettlement. However, sources close pute and instead try to solve their to the Afghan opposition, said the problems themselves through coopongoing talks would not be fruitful eration. He attributed the prevailunless Kabul made sincere propos- ing misunderstandings to the forals, acceptable to all the factions. eign interference and unwilling-

Sayyaf, who is representing ness of the parties to avoid such Kabul in the peace negotiations, uncalled -for situation in future. has, meanwhile, expressed his pes-, He blamed the neighbouring simism about the ongoing talks and countries for fanning ethnic and said no agreement was possible sectarian sentiments a-mong the among the warring factions without Afghans, which had dimmed the mutual respect and bringing an peace prospects.

From Our Correspondent

To a query, he brushed a' side any apprehensions regarding Rabbani's unwillingness to transfer power ,and termed it a propaganda of enemy countries which did not want to ee Afghanistan prosper and stand on its own feet.

Sayyaf said that if Maulvi Younis Khalis, chief of his own faction of Hezb-e-Islami, whose name had been proposed for a caretaker prime ministeship in the UN peace formula, was installed ,nobody would oppose his appointment. Khalis was the consensus candidate for the job, he added.

DAWN

06 FEB 1996

88

Affftanistan (~ws CHpping

1'HB NEWs INTERNATION~ 0 1F EB'1996

.II. Ii nl,i;j·' '. t:.!'IIl'i ~'·;:.i.'':I;··,1'f!ff-.l'OtlO·· '. ro.:;", :1f"tt·-:""NC ......... t,..,·; 1""."':.,." .... .t , .. )..""!.~'.......,.....'l ;.,;.. ',' ,. , _/_

Mghan::gr~ps,QPt for milltarysolutlon

'rem Bellm idiiIi . the will of the Afghan nation.. second time in Kabul· '1Uesday to

Mqjaddadi '!Usa ridiculed Mestirl's meet Rabbani and his . strong man PESHAWAR: Contrary to United Na- statement saying that he would be and former defence minister, Ahmad tions special envoy for Afghanistan., contacting other Afghan groups once Shah Masood ellioying the most powMahmood Mestiri's bid to to disc!ISS a new-peace proposal with erful' position in the present Afghan broker peace among the warring fac- Ahmad Shah Masood in Kabul. "I see set-up.

tions, major Afghan opposition no success for Mestirl in the near fu- Gulbaddin Hekmatyar has already groups on Wednes<iayopted for the ture", said the former president sup- l$cted Mestiri's fresh eft'oltSsaying military solution to transfer of power porting hiserstwhU~ friends in the "I would have resigned from the}lost in Kabul. Supreme ,Coordination Council of Is- had I (Hekmatyar) been Mahmood

"1 don't see Rabbani is sincere in Jamie Revolution inAt~(SC- Mestiri". His partyofticeih Peshawar stepping down. There will be no CIRA) against the illegal Rabbani also endorSed the same view sqing peaceful transfer of power as for as rule. He said that Rabb8.ni would not that Rabbani·Masood duo would not they (Rabbani andMasood). hold the quit unless fotced to do so. relihquish powers until thrown olit of key to this end", said former Afghan "We have already cleared that Me- Kabul by force. Rashid Dostumhas president and chief of Afghan Na-stiri's shuttle diplomacy is helping also supported the forced ouster of tional Liberation Front (ANLF), PirRabbarii government to buy more the Kabul rulers dUring his recent Sibghattillah Mujaddadi. The ANLF "time and claim more legitimacy", said radio interview from London.

chief, who pulled out. his.party from Taliban spokesman in Peshawar. Th}- Ahnost all the groups opposed dothe.four party military cum political iban, he said have realised that UN' sure of roads and banning food sup· alliance with Dostum, M~ and efforts were not directed ~wards the ply to the residents of Kabul arguing Shias in last December, said Rabbani solution of the Afghan problem and' it would not work as the move would would be responsible for the future the delay inresolying the conflict was only hit. the poor citizens of the beblood Shed of his own countrymen if taking its toll on the Afghans for the leaguered Afghan capital instead of he continue to cling to power without .last four years. Mestiri was for the the rulers. '

Mestiri meets

. Taliban leaders'

i_,

co 0) 0)

-

. F.P. Monitoring Report PESHAWAR - The UN spe¢a.l envoy for Afghanistan Mahmud Mestiri Thursday discussed a new peace mechanism with' Taliban leaders in Kandahar under which

• commander Ahmad shah

Masood's forces will quit Kabul once an interim government was installed, BBC radio reported.

A spokesman for Taliban told the radto that Mestiri suggested that elections would be' held by the interim set-up after Masocd's' Shoora-I-Nazar fighters give up security of the embattled Afghan capital.

Maulvi· Wakil Ahmad said Taliban told Mestiri that they supported any mechanism which enshrined an Islamic government

in Afghanistan faced with a civil war since 1992 when president

Naji,bullah quit. .

Wakil said Taliban were ready to work for such a mechanism onlyj( .Preaiaenr' Burhall~ddin Rabbani didn't backtrack on his commitments as earlier he had done. Otherwise, the whole exercise will be a waste of time.

Wakil admitted that three fIghters of ~e' Taliban, rniJitia bombed .IIliU~y, ~~Iatiori§ in Sakat and' ~~ •. are~iof

Kab .. ul on 'W~~ .. Y'.tin.'rEJtal:i. ,a .. - non for Rabbani s ~ttazy of$n-

sive against them a oay earlier,

N <::)

Mestiri returns after\fci~s in Afghanistan

, . \

ISLAMABAD (pPlf-Leaderofthe UN Special Mission to Afghanistan Ambassador Mahmoud Mestiri has ~ here after substantive talks with Afghan President Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani and leaders of the Taliban Shura on establishment of transfer of power mechanism, neutral security force and demilitarisation of Kabul.

"The Ambassador plans to meet . chief of Jumbish-e-Milli Islami, Afghanistan General Abdur Rashid Dostum shortly to discuss all the three issues," Director to the Office of Secretary General in Afghanistan and Pakistan IOSOAP) FranvisOkelo told PPI here Friday.

Okelo termed Mestiri' s discussions with Taliban as fruitful and said during course of consultations with Taliban, the Ambassador underlined the need for establishment of a permanent ceasefire and avoidance from outbreak of fresh hostilities and resolution of differences among all the parties without any foreign interference.

Calling upon all the factions particularly the Taliban and President Rabbani to sit together to discuss ways for peaceful transfer of power, the Ambassador reiterated that the UN was fully prepared to assist in this process.

During his discussions with Rabbani and Taliban, the Ambassadorobserved that the time had come when aU the parties should move decisively to restore peace in Afghanistan, Okelosaid.

Ambassador Mestiri met with Mulla Hassan, and Mohammad Hassan. acting head of Taliban Shura; Okelo added.

NA.T1UN

03 rEB 1996

rVfft'ltttstan (~s Cfippina

~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~

. ~dreadytolauncboffensive: Mestlri

By Ahmed R8!ihid g~anistan and its complexltyhas tlie~TaIfban'!iIaC ., ~ " "

fnghtened off the Big Powers from acumen or bT~ of vI~on. pohncal fighting, If the UN wereuble 10 call ISLAMABAD-The UN Special doing anything. Nobody is prepared amon st dif~ I I i t~ ,roker pea~e and hold a genuine meeting of all Representat!,:e to ~ghanistan Meh-: to give, onecent to allow the Secu~ity 'consi3ered to e~:nne~L t~l~ "I~ro.~f~h~s Afghan ~roups and p~ople, the present moud Mestiri believes that Ahmad Council to set up a peace-keeping Pakistan should be IJ 0; (?, d at leadership of the mam factions would Shah Masud is ready to launch an force for, Afghanistan even ir' a is what ha e ,r,ea y wo,:,~ . about be dumped by the bulk of the Afghan offensi~e in the next few we~ks, while settlement I~ r~ached,:' added ~estiri: actually tak~ ~a~~I~~i1Tal~ban ~~ population, "If the factiotlleaders stop the Taliban are also preparing for an ,M~anwhlle, ,seDlor Pakistani peace, I doubt it "sa id: ,t ~{_e., :' fighting, they run the risk of

advanceonKabul.AstheInternation- of~clals closely involved in Afghan ' I a~enlOr~ icrar. disappearing," said one diplomat.

al Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) policy and Western diplomats believe Ho~ever, other of~clals said that Nevertheless the fear of renewed fly in foodstuffs to Kabul's starving that fig~ting will begin immediately ~akl~tan had no ch?l~e, "Th,? !X>ttom fightin~ ~n the next few weeks will put population, Afghan warlords are pre. af~er Eid. ,Sources said that Masud line I,S ~,at whether It I,S the mllItal:y or an additional strain on Pakistan as paring for another round of heavy WIll, be trying ,to open up two fronts' the clvl~lans !l?body IIkes,the Taliban refu.gees flee Kabul and try to reach fighting despite the supposed cease- a~amst the Taliban, first by launching and their ~htlcs~ but Pakistan r,as ~o Pakistan, food shortage in the country fire during Ramazan. Meanvlhile, the hl~ forces southward out of Kabul to other chOlc,e at t~e m,om:n~, said Increases smuggling of Pakistani Uzbek warlord General Rashid Dos- drive. The'Talibanbeyondrocketrangs another senIor, Pakl~taOl offiCial: good~ acr~ss the border and acts of tum is in Islamabad with several of his of the city. The second attack will Just as P"k!stan IS underta~mg a terrorism Inside Pakistan intensify as I Generals for talks with Pakistani offi- come from the west by forces loyal to two-track policy, an overt policy 10 the Kabul regime becomes more I

cials. Ismael Khan now based around woo Kab~l to the pe~ce table and a frustrated by the stalemate.

4 "Masud said that he could launch an Mashhad in Iran who will attempt to cove~ po!lcy ,of backing the Taliban, Above all thousands of more offensive before the end of Ramazan ~etake H~rat" w~ile trying to stage an Iran IS dOl~g JUS! the same, i~n~~ent, hungry and cold Afghan to stop a Taliban offensive that he l~surrecl1on inside Herat at the same. Tehran IS believed t~ have bee~ civilians can expect to die in the next believes will take place," Mestiri told ~Ime. Over the past few weeks tension m~trumentill 10 persuadl.ng Rabbani roum; of i ightirig. 4The Nation. "Both sides may try. to m Herat have escalated as the Persian- to Issue !he ~pology to Pakistan thereby pre-em t military moves b the other ~peaki.ng population become Iran Yltnnmg back, some ~rust in

. P, .... -,~ - .~ y . , '. increasingly fed up with the Pakhtun- Islamab~d, where f~hngs against Iran N A TION

by attacking first, he added. Mestiri, dominated Taliban who now rule the are running very high, .

'who has just returned from visits to city and have imposed their strict . But atthe Slime time Iran is preparing 0 5 FEB 199 6

Kabul ~d Kandahar where he ,met Islamic regimen which is anathema to to ~ack an Ismael Khan offensive Rab~anl~dMasu~asw~llasTallban the 11_l0re easy going Heratis, Despite against Herat and force the Tali~an Mestl· ri holds , leaders, ~81d !hat ~eIt~er Side appeared considerable pressure from Pakistan, out ~or the I~an-Afgha~l border r~glon,

tobesenousmbnngmgpeace.Masud the UN and the international Iran s growing offensive capability in lk

has also claimed that he has enough community the Taliban stilI refuse to Afghanistan is being driven by a ta s with

wea~ns, ~uniti9n, fuel and food, allow the reopening of girl schools paranoia about th~ Taliban and what it Hekmatyar

' for his estimated 25;000 strong army and allow the tens of thousands of sees are the US hnks to the Tuliban,

to fight for at least one year. Over the girls they sent home to receive a formal who could be used be Washington to ISLAMABAD (PPI) -_ UN peace

i past few ~o.nths ~~ud' s forces ha~e education, destabi~ise Ira~ itself" negotiator on Afghanistan

~nrece1Vlngmdlt:u'Yan~financlal Meanwhile,inanattempttoforgea . Russl.a too IS getnng even more Mahmoud Mestiri Thursday visit- 81d from Iran, RUSSIa, India and the closer alliance between the Taliban deep,ly involved, ed JalaJabad (Afghanistan) and Central Asian Republics: Pakistan and General Rashid Dostum the WIth the present three-sided civil met chief of Hizb-e-Islami Eng meanwhile is backing the Taliban in Uzbek warlord arrived in Islamabad war in Tajikistan and the deep crisis Gulbuddin Hekmatyar. The meet·preparationfortheirauack6nKabuI. last Thursday fora nine-day stay along that th~ Russian backed ~overnment ing was held in a cordial atrnoNone of the warlords h~ve shown with several of his top Generals. ofPresldent~am~ovIIIDushanbe sphere and the two sides dis~uchconcernfo~thestarvmgpoPllla- Although there is an undeclared n?wfaces,wlthamutmyf~omamongst cussed ways and means to bring tion of the country, who faces huge alliance between the Taliban and ~IS own troops, Moscow IS even more the fratricidal war in Afghanistan price rises and the worst winter old in Dostum, the Uzbek chief decline to likely togive .additional support to to an end,

years: .. backTaliban'srecentoffensiveagainst Masud in con~I!lg ~ee~s, as It fears Sources said that Mestirt and

WhIle any new fighting IS not ex- Kabul which began in October. He is greater dc;stablbsa~~n ,m the Centr~1 Hekmatyar were of the opirnon pected to break the present stalemate, expected to be persuaded to bring his ASIlIf} region. R~ssla s interference m that Tallhan and the government victory or defeat by ,~ith~r side will forces southward from Mazar-e-Sharif Af~hall1stan IS believed to be forces were prepanng for another ~~tc;newproblems. Neithercanthe to open a second front against the motivated less by any love for Masud round of war which must be avertTaliban take Kabul nor Masud take Kabul regime when the Taliban begin then the fear of Pakhtun ed to avoid further blood shed III Kandahar. And the problem. for us their push against Masud. At the same fundamentalism breaching the buffer' Afghanistan. The UN envoy has R! ~ now is how will the Taliban evolve if time Dostum is being heavily wooed of northern Afghanistan and entering ready met Afghan President they fail to take Kabul and receive a by Iran and Russia to switch sides and Central Asia. • Burhanuddin RaliJani.his close major setback. Even if they do man- join the Rabbani government. Dostum, Despite all its apparent failures and aide Ahmad Shah Masud and age to take Kabul how will the rest of will be meeting Pakistani officials, the weakness and its lack of leadership. leaders of Taliban Shura. Afghanistan accept the type of Islam- Taliban lind representatives from the the UN remains the only international The sources said that the Hizb ic system they want to introduce," Jalalabad Shura, who at the moment body capable of brokering some kind was looking for a peace! 1I1 and said Mestiri. are dithering between support for the of settlement. However, the UN has durable solution to the cr isis in

Mestiri also criticised continued government and the opposition. been strangled by the big powers and Afghanistan which lies in the es

outside interference in Afghanistan It,is widely believed that although the SecurityCouncilwhoareunwitllng tablishment of an ntenm sst up, and the lack of interest being shown Pakistan has responded positively to tocommJt~hemselvestoth.:quagll1ire acceptable to all Mghan groups by the Big Powers. Mestiri said he had the apology by the Rabbani regime for of Afghanistan. . and parties, They ~egretted that recommended to lite UN Security ~e burning of the P~is,tani Emb~sy A~thesametill1eno~egion~lco~n,try the Afghan, presieent was not Council the holding'of an internation- III Kabul, Islamabad IS still determined - ne,lther Iran nor Pakistan - IS willing conunq up WIth a practical proposaI conference to try and bring all the to back m~1itary pressure ugainst the togive the UN genuine help in bringing al for solution of tneuoblem

regional powers together so that steps Kabul regime by the Taliban as ~e about peace, , .

could be taken to end outside interfer- onlr_means to force Kabul to give Theonly!'nowntruthmAfghanrstan FRONTIER POS')' ence and help resolve the Afghan cri- political concessions and come to an at present.'s that all the faction.s can

sis, The Security Council has avoided agreement. ., ,only sustain themselves by continued 0 9 F t B ·996

considering the proposal. "France, . H?~ev~r, a s~gnrficant se~tlon of '

Germany and even Japan are showing Pakistan s pohc,y-mak~rs IS ,~Iso interest in the Afghan issue but not the deeply fearful and increasingly critical US," Mestiri said, "The mess in Af- of a Taliban victory in Kabul, beca!!,_se

UN Council president deplores interference

From Masood Haider

· UNITED NATIONS, Feb.14: The I president of the-United Nations I Security cpupcil, .Mad.~leine I Albright of the United Stat~s, on I Tuesday deplored '!outside qtterfer-

· ence", inAfghanis~an. /

I In a terse statement ~sued on behalf of the Security Council, Ms Albright expressed the Council's "deep concern" over the escalation

· of fighting around Kabul in recent : days. She also expressed apprehenI sion over the humanitarian tragedy

taking place in Afghanistan.

Earlier, the' IS-member Security Council was given a detailed briefing on the situation in Kabul by Secretary General's Chief political Adviser, Chinmaya Gharekhan.

In view of the reports that an , attack by coalition forces - the . Taliban,Gulbadin Hekmatyar and ! Dostum - was imminent on Kabul,

the Security Council reiterated its support for Mahmud Mestiri's mission to Afghanistan_

A Western diplomat said following the Council meeting that if the situation worsened the Council might meet to consider further action.

However, he hoped that escalation of fighting in Afghanistan would subside and the people of the country would be given a chance to rebuild their country. Secretary General's Political Adviser, Gharekhan, was not available for comments.

Foreign Minister Sardar Assef Ahmed Ali, who is expected to meet U.N. Chief Boutros BoutrosChali on Wednesday afternoon will also discuss the situation in Afghanistan.

DAWN

15 F EB1996

.Aftftanistan (~·ws Cnppin6

9 1

17 FEB 1996

UN council deplores

Afghan fighting

- calls for prevention of anns flow to Kabul

(.0 en en

co UJ

o

The Security Council also expressed deep concern that the continued conflict in Afghanistan was providing fertile ground for terrorism, arms transfers and drug trafficking, which destabilise the whole region and beyond. It called upon the leaders of the Afghan parties to put aside their differences and to halt such activities.

The statement reaffirmed the full support of the Security Council to the efforts of the United Nations Special Mission in Afghanistan to bring about a peaceful solution to the conflict through the establishment of a fully representative, broad-based, authoritative council acceptable to all Afghans. It called upon all Afghans to cooperate fully with the special mission as it worked towards this goal.

The statement' called on all states in a position to do so to take steps to promote peace and stability in Afghanistan, in particular, by urging the parties to the conflict to cooperate fully with the United Nations Special Mission. It also called on all states to refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of Afghanistan and to prevent the flow to the Afghan parties of weapons and other supplies that could fuel the fighting. The statement, on behalf of the Security Council, urged the captors of the members of the crew of. the Russian aircraft in Kandahar to release them immediately and Without any preconditions.

The Security Council reaffirmed its commitment to the full sovereignty, independence, territorial.integrity and national unity of Afghanistan. It reaffirmed its readiness to assist the Afghan people in their efforts to return peace and normalcy to their country, and it encourages all states, as well as the Organisation of Islamic Conference, the Non-Aligned Movement and others, to support the efforts of the United Nations Special Mission to the sr:lle end.

Norway

to give $~.83m for .Afgh~tan

UNITED NATIONS (AFP) - The UN Security Council on Thursday condemned the continuation of hostilities in Afghanistan, and urged states to prevent the flow of weapons to the warring factions that would fuel the fighting.

In a statement, the Council Said it "deeply deplores" the continuing violence. It expressed particular concern about the recent intensification of shelling and air attacks in and around Kabul, and the blockade of the city which was preventing delivery of staple goods.

The statement did not refer by name to the TaJiban militia. who are besieging the battered Afghan capital.

APP adds: The Council expressed deep concerri at the continuation of the armed hostilities in Afghanistan, which have brought death and destruction to the people and property of the country and threaten the peace and security of the region.

The statement, which had earlier been unanimously adopted at a brief meeting, said that Security Council was particularly concerned about the recent intensification of shelling and air attacks in and around Kabul and the blockade of the city, which has prevented the delivery of foodstuffs, fuel and other hu- . manitarian items to its population.

The Security Council called on the parties involved to end the hostilities forthwith and not to obstruct the delivery of humanitarian aid and other needed supplies to the innocent civilians of the city. In 'this re- . gard, the council commended the efforts of the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red ';;ross, and other humanitarian agencies in A.tghanistan, which had been working under the most -fying circumstances, and the airlift of food supplies from Peshawar to Kabul. and urges the international community to continue its support of those life-saving ,ffarts.

Mestiri leaves for Tunisia

ISLAMABAD: Leader of the UN Special Mission to Afghanistan AInbassador Mahmoud Mestiri has left for Thnisia to celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr with his family members.

Director to the Office of the Secretary General in Afghanistan and Pakistan (OSGAP) Francis Okelo N said the ambassador would be back in about ten days to resume his peace mission in Afghanistan.

He said before leaving for Tunisia, the UN Special envoy extended Eid greetings to all the Afghan leaders and the people. "The ambassador is hopeful that the happy occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr will give a new impetus to the ongoing process for bringing a durable peace in war-shattered Afghanistan," Okelo said. - PPI

O~

OSLO: The Norwegianl go~rnment

decided Friday to cont,ribute $2.83 - millions to Norwegian Church Aid tor ~ emergency.humanitarian relief to Z Afghanistan, the foreign ministrY said. ...

. "persisting war actions in the ffi Kabul area and the concentration of f--' refugees and Internal refugees in dlf- Z. Cerent areas of Afghanistan make it - necessary- to continue delivering hu- ~ manitarian efforts to the country," the » ministry said. lJ.l

'The danger of mines in the coon- Z try is still great and will demand sen- ~ ous efforts in the years to come, as

will the restructuring oCthe country's . infrastructure," it said.-AFP

Norway to give $ 2.83m aid to Afghanistan OSLO (AFP) - The Norway government will pro Vide 2.83 million dollars in emergency humanitarian relief to Afghanistan, the foreign ministry said. "Persisting war actions in the Kabul area and the concentration of refugees and internal refugees in different areas of Afghanistan make it necessary to continue delivering humanitarian efforts to the country." the ministry said. "The danger of mines in the country is still great and will demand serious efforts in the years to come, as will the restructuring of the country's i infrastructure," it Said. '

FRONTIER pOS" 2 4 FEB 1996

92

lstan (~'''s CHppina

~.

USaccus,ed of dumping Afghans.

From Our Staff Correspondent

NEW YORK, Feb 19: A respect: small foothold has been totally ed writ~r and columnist of the New destroyed. Except that people with York TImes on Monday accused little or no education have the mOSt the United States of walking away technically sophisticated personal from Afghanistan, after destroying weapons. A Kalashnikov is their whatever was there, to fight the only access to the modern world."

Soviet Union. "Roughly half of Afghanistan is

Columnist Anthony Lewis said in now controlled by a movement a write-up entitled 'And we walked called the Taliban, many of whose away': If we imagined a nightmare soldiers are young boys. The world, it might be a place governed Taliban swept through the western by illi.terat.e teen-age boys.... part of the country starting a year Afgharustan IS that place today. In ago, imposing everywhere an theUl'lthiJ:iki.ng,z~iV at the cold war, extreme Wamic fundamentalism." we destroyed what was there in Last week, NYT correspondent order to fight the Soviet Union. John F. Burns wrote-from Herat, a And then we walked away. city near the Iranian border that

The Soviet Union started the used to be an artistic and relatively process of destruction when it sophisticated place. The Taliban invaded Afghanistan in 1979. The captured it last September. Since United States responded with a then they have expelled girls from CIA operation, supposedly covert school, explaining that education but so massive that it was a secret was only for boys:

from no one. "Wom~n in Herat are forbidden

The CIA poured billions of dollars to workoutside their homes except in weapons into Afghanistan. "Our in hospitals or clinics that treat cho.se~ recipients were t~e only-women, A woman can go out Mujahideen .:. The weapons came m to' shop only if accompanied by a through Pakistan, and we followed male relative. Women must be the advice of Pakistan'S intelligence cloaked from head to foot when

agency on which Afghans to arm. outside their homes. '

"We never looked carefully at who "Americans think of Iran as an

was getting our help," Barnett R. example of extreme Islamic fundaRubin, a leading specialist on mentalism, but it is far less so than Afghanistan, said. He is director of Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. Women the Centre for Preventive Action at go to ,school and university in Iran the Council on Foreign Relations. He and work. And Iran opposes the was in Afghanistan most recently last Taliban, supporting other Afghan month. "~~tan ~"a ba~d forces tha~still hold the capital, ~ou~tI?" Rubm said, but It had, Kabul. Pakistan, an American ally, mstttuOollS: a government, a bureau- and Saudi Arabia are the Taliban's

cracy, schools, a university, tradition- main suppliers. .

al social structures based on property "There is a certain moral respon-

and kinship, By pouringweapons into sibility, after all. We spent upwards ' pre,?-o~y marginal gr~ups -:- an~ of $3 billion arming the Afghans. any individuals who convmced mtelli- Together with the Soviet Union, we gence agents iliey.w~ l~ders - we fed the civil war that still goes on,

undermined those mstrtunons, seven years after Soviet forces left."

"Now there is virtually nothing. Burns concluded: "In the ascen-

It is a society where just about dancy of the Taliban, the country every modern institution or tech- has finally reached something close nology that had gained even a toa primal state."

DAWN

20 fEB 1996

US diplomats visit Kandahar

! ISLAMABAD, Feb 6: The US : diplomats, led by John Holzman, ! deputy chief of mission at the I Islamabad embassy, visited KandaI har to meet Taliban leaders on i Tuesday, a US embassy spokesman I said,

I He had no word on the outcome I of the visit, which followed talks I Holzman held at Bagram air base , north of Kabul on Monday with the I government's top military comrnani der Ahmad Shah Masood.

, The spokesman described the : purpose of the mission as "part of i our ongoing fact-finding and coni tacrswith-Afghan leaders", adding , that US diplomats hoped to meet

northern opposition leader General Abdul Rashid Dostum in Islamabad soon.

The Taliban have been besieging Kabul since October in an effort to depose Rabbani and enforce strict Islamic rule throughout Afghanistan.

Meanwhile the UN World Food ~rogramme (WFP) said on Tuesday It was expanding distribution of food rations to a larger number of needy people in Kabul.-Reuter

DAWN

07 F £8 1996

.A[fltanistan (~ws cnppinS

93

'US doesn't support any Afghan faction'

to 0")

en

-

ISLAMABAD (APP) - A senior American embassy official said here Wednesday the US has no favourites in Afghanistan and it believes that the world body can playa significant role in forming a broad-based government in the strife-torn country.

"The US is absolutely neutral in Afghanistan and does not support the Taliban or another faction as we believe that only a broad-based government, to be arrived at by the Afghans themselves, can bring peace in the country," he told journalists on his return from Afghanistan.

The official said the US believes that UN is the institute which can contribute to the peace process in Afghanistan as it is respected by the Afghans.

"The US supports the UN mission led by Mehmud Mestiri as the best vehicle to reach a broad-based government in Afghanistan. Our view' is that the UN, because of its being neutral as well as having relations with all the factions, has the best chance of succeeding in a negotiated peace process."

The US official said the UN role gains importance in the wake of continued infighting as various Afghan factions have not reconciled .themselves to negotiated settlement and want to achieve their own goals.

He rejected the impression that the UN has reached a dead-end vis-a-vis its peace efforts in Afghanistan saying it was never easy, given the condition in the country.

"There is no magic formula for bringing peace in Afghanistan and there is no time frame but sooner the better." Replying to aquestion, he said there are no fresh ideas being given to the UN.

"One of the conclusions that I have from my visit to Afghanistan is' that the people there fear another round of fighting around Kabul.':

He said the US wants to stop the extension of war-making potential to Afghanistan. "Clearly there is foreign assistance in war - making potential in Afghanistan and the Afghans clearly perceive foreign interference in their country but that will not solve the problem as the solution lies inside the country and not outside it." All the same, he said, the humanitarian assistance to Afghan people through illternational agencies should not be halted.

Answering another question, he said the US policy in the post-cold war era is clearly different from the one it earlier had and its Afghan policy has also altered from the previous policy in early 1980s.

But, the official said, the US is concerned about the infighting in Afghanistan as the factions have failed to develop a government guaranteeing peace; the crisis isa source of instability in the region; Afghanistan has becorrie a training ground for terrorists; and the country has become the second largest producer of opium.

Responding to another question, he said, "it is absolutely natural for Pakistan to be concerned about the- situation in Afghanistan and it is true that ,she also has.an in-depth knowledge of the situation there."

Asked whether the US gives a degree of legitimacy to the Kabul regime he said, "we have our embassy in Kabul with Afghan staff and we have not broken the relations but our relations are limited because of the conditions in Afghanistan". He said the solution of Afghan crisis for the peace and prosperity of Afghans is more important than whether the regime in Kabul is legitimate.

He said the US is concerned about the Russian hostages held by the Taliban and appeals for their release.

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Affftan\Stan(~ews CHppinS

US supports UN peace efforts in Afghanistan

;

Denies backing any warring faction

By Sbakll Shilldi only by Afghans, as it is their prob-

lem and no outside interference or iSLAMABAD: Dispelling the impres- peace formula can be imposed on sion that the United States has any them,· Said the US official. favourites in Afghanistan, a senior US Like some Afghans, the US official official said .on Wednesday that also saw a possibility of "another Washington supports United Nations round of fighting in the near future". efforts as the best vebicle to restore He said, "The US wants to see ceasepeace in Afghanistan. fire in Afghanistan for restoring

The US official said supporting peace there,"

the UN efforts does not mean to ex- To a question about Iran rajsing a clude other efforts like the Ole ef- new band of soldiers to put under the forts for bringing peace in command of ousted governor Ismail Afgluinistan: He said Islamabad says and send them back to Afgllanistan, it is not supportingTaliban, though the official said no such efforts Will they have links as other factions have make any headway. "We are not conoutside Afghanistan. "We just believe vinced that Iran can do ~. We on what Pakistan is saying." . 'want to make UN efforts effective,

Tbis objective, he added, can only, and less and lesS interference from be achieved by establishing a broad- other countries." On the question of based representative government in legitlmacy, of the government in Kabul. The US official was briefing a ~ul, the US official said that "the , group of local journalists after his re- Unjted States deals with anyone who cent visit to AfghanistaIi where he is;in Kabul'and that was going on had talked with almost all the impor- even during the Soviet intervention tant players o( the unending conflict in ¥ghanist8n." He said, "it does not in the war-torn countrg raise the question of recognising, that

"We are deeply concerned over goveritmimt asa legal instrument of the on-going fight:ing_ in Afghanistan,". dealing, as every government in said the US offi$l, who pleaded that Kabul had its Embassy in WashingAfghan leaders have failed to deVelop ton. Similarly, the United States also a representative government for deals with other factions, but all in all putting the country back on the road the ,US relations with KabUl are very

to "peace and security" . . limited.·

T~~ fighting, he ass~sedhwiU' He said the United States has

have disastrous "spill over" iIDpact stoP,l?e~.~.J.>ilateral assistance to on t'lie regioii i~'terms of ~H Af~ Sl)fue 'years back, but it of fighting; With Afghanistan beeom- ' has channelised this assistance ing a training ground for war-men- through UN and other international gering people, and spread of ~he agencles. "We have given a substancurse of drugs as Afghanistan is the tive amount worth $ 50 million last second largest opium producing year through international agencies country. and basic purpose of this aid was that

The US official said, "We want a it should not be used as increasing broad-based representative govern- the war-making potential of any ment, which even the Peshawar, Is- . group/party,· he added.

lamabad and many other accords had He completely ruled out the thefailed to establish and the best way to ory be~ sold out that the United achieve that motive is to supplement States wants to keep present turmoil the UN efforts currently in action in Afghanistan so that no strong Isthrough Mestiri Mission." . . lamic block should emerge on the

"It Is a problem to be resolved scene.

filE NEWS INtERNATIONAL 29 F £8 1996

95

Broujerdi.arrives from Kabul as Mestiri departs for Afghanistan

ISLAMABAD (APP) - Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Alauddin Brojourdi arrives in Peshawar today as the efforts for peace in Afghanistan gain momentum with UN special ~Qc __ voy Mehmud Mestiri preparing to see Afghan Opposition leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar in the war-shattered country.

Brojourdi will fly into Peshawar from Kabul where he met senior Kabul administration officials as part of his efforts to broker reconciliation between the rival Afghan sides.diplomatic sources told APP on Wednesday.

The Iranian official has been shuttling back and forth between warring Afghan groups and beleaguered Kabul regime led by PresidentBurhanuddin Rabbani for quite some time in a bid to bring rapproachment between them.

lie also plans to discuss Afghan

issue with Pakistani officials in Islamabad.

Both Pakistan and Iran keep each other informed about their efforts for bringing peace in the neighboring Afghanistan as it will augur wei. for the economic development of.the region.

Brojourdi last month offered to mediate between Islamabad and Kabul regime whose relations witnessed a bad patch after an unruly mob ransacked Pakistan Embassy in Afghan capital last September resulting in the killing of an employee and wounding of over 20 other staffers including its Ambassador Qazi Humayun.

Pakistan refused to reopen its chancery in war-haunted Afghan capital unless Rabbani administration apologises and atones for the ransacking.

Kabul government has recently sent a letter to Pakistan regretting over the incident and expressing willingness to pay dollar 15.3 million as compen-

Afghanistan problem

Iran holds . separate talks with Kabul, Islamabad

NICOSIA, Feb 18: Iranian officials on Sunday began separate talks with Afghan and Pakistani ministers in Tehran on the war in Afghanistan and regional issues, Tehran Radio said.

It said Pakistan'S Foreign Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh- met Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Velayati and expressed Pakistan'S appreciation for Tehran's efforts towards improving relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Relations between Kabul and Islamabad became hostile last year after Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani's embattled government accused Pakistan of backing the opposition Taliban militia and demonstrators burned the Pakistan embassy in the Afghan capital in September.

Tehran, which has good relations with Islamabad and recognises the Rabbani government as legitimate,

has been trying to mediate an end to the fighting between Afghan factions and mend ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Tehran Radio said Iranian officials held separate talks with Sheikh and Afghan Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Najibullah Lafraie on the situation' in Afghanistan and regional issues on Sunday.

Lafraie arrived in Tehran on Saturday and said Kabul wanted good relations with its neighbours to establish regional peace.

In a meeting with Velayati on Saturday, Lafraie said the Kabul government wanted a political solution to the ~fghan'crisis, the radio said.

IRNA said on Saturday Sheikh and Lafraie would attend a joint meeting of the three countries on the situation in Afghanistan.-

Reuter '. .

19 FEB 1996

sation.

However, Islamabad ruled out reopening of its mission in near future in the wake of fluid security situation in Afghan capital,

Meanwhile, UN peace mediator Mehmud Mestiri plans to visit Gulbuddin Hekmatyar; chief of his own faction of Hizb-e-Islami tomorrow (Thursday),"inside Afghanistan," Afghan sources said.

"Let's see what he has to say," a close aide of Hekmatyar told APP. when contacted.

Mestiri launched his ,latest peace initiative last month and visited the Afghan capital twice to meet Rabbani and his key military commander Ahmed Shah-Masud.The ageing UN envoy last November proposed a 28- man interim council to take over power from beleaguered Rabbani.

However, Afghan opposition and Taliban militia, which have been besieging Kabul for the last few months. rejected the proposed council for its 'Pro-Rabbani' tilt.

The UN envoy, however, hinted that his proposed.council could be mended.Meanwhile, Hekmatyar's Hezb-e- lslami has denied that it lifted the blockade of a major eastern route after reaching an understanding with sagging Kabul regime. "We have opened the route on our own and not as a result of any understanding," the Hezb spokesman said.

But, he did not deny the reports of talks between Rabbani government and his party. "We are not opposed to talks and we want that the differences be sorted out through negotiations," he responded to a question.

Judges case decision likely next month

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3' countries to. discuss Kabul issue

TEHRAN, Feb 14:.' {ran,

Afghanistan and Pakistan are to hold a tripartite meeting h~re next Saturday to exchange views on Afghan related issues. '. ,

An Informed political source told IRNA here on Wednesday that Pakistan's Foreign' Secretary Najmuddin Sheikh and Afg~an Minister for State for Foreign Affairs Dr. Lefrai would preside over the session.

Terming the session as Important, given new developments In Afghanistan, the source said the . meeting would most probably last .for two days.-IRNA

DAWN 15FEB 1996

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AIEftQt1tstQt1 (~ws CHpplt1B 'Power transfer modalities block Rabbani's quittal'

PESHAWAR (PPJ) - Iranian deputy foreign minister Alauddin Brojourdi said here Thursday power dispute in Afghanistan was the most intr icate and corn plex problem which could be .resolved Only through consensus

among all' the warring factions.

Brojourdi told a pressconler ence Iran had a principled stand that .all the warring factions should be brought to a table for negotiated settlement to the Afghan crisis. He said his Visit to Pakistan and Afghanistan was exclusively aimed at seeking an early resolution' to power tussle III Afghanistan.

He said eve.ry Afghan leader wished a prompt settlement to the crisis, adding modalities for transfer of power were the main hurdle in the peace process. President Ra.bbani is willing and has publicly announced to step down, Brojourdi said, adding but how to transfer power and Its complications were the major hurdle in resolution of dispute

He, however, was hopeful of a positive outcome of his talks with Afghan leaders, saying for tunately, both the government and the opposition had ag reed to find a negotiated settlement to the problem.

He said he also met UN spe cial envoy Mahmoud Mestiri ill Islamabad Thursday.

The Iranian deputy minister said there could be no outside resolution of the dispute, adding Iran attached due importance to talks among all the warrillg sides.

"We are doing our utmost to bring a consensus over transfer of power and a new setup 111 Kabul by involving all tile groups," he added.

He however, said prior to transfer of power, it was. vital that a normal and Congenial at rnosphere emerged in Afghanistan with mutual trust amonq all the power contenders.

Brojourdi told a questioner that the Iranian government had sent a delegation to Kandahar to meet TaUban representatives, adding the Taliban factor was a reality which could not be 19·

nored in peace efforts.

He said the Kabul government shared relations with many states and India was one of them. He said in Pakistan there was always a sensitive thinking

about India which was not something new.

Brojourdi said Iran was not opposed to Taliban and added that certain unfounded prop a ganda and disinformation had

been deliberately launched by the vested interests to qive a

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PESHAWAR: Iran's Deputy Fhreign up of a flXpoint for furthe~ talks Minister Allaudin. Broujerdi con- would be one of the points on the ceded differences between Tehran agenda when Pakistan's Foreign and Islamabad over the ThUban but. Secretary Nlijamuddin Sheikh visit said the two countries have agreed Tehran in the near future.

to work closely to bring lasting To a question whether_.Tehran

peace to the war-ravaged would serve as a gUarantor to Rab-

Afghanistan. bani's promise to surrender power,

"We do not h.ave c~mplet~ una: Broujetdi 's8id, ·We are not Rabnimity on the ThUban Wlth~, 'bani's advocates. The whole world

was his answer to a question at a knows it." I

press conference here Thursd~y . He brushed aside allegations of night. Brouierdi refrained fro~.~- Iran's mllitary assistance to the ~_ rectly castigating the students militia ·leaguered Kabul regime and sald but said certain ."negative devel?p- I the Iranian armament. in ments" in the ThUban-held areas ~e !Afghanistan belonged to the days of narcotics movement were dlsturbmg . the Afghan Jehad.

Tehran. "We are strongly again.~ i~." When asked whether the visit of

The Iranian deputy foreign 1lUJUS- a US delegation to Kabul and Kanter also evaded a question.regarding dahar was aimed against Tehran, Pakistan's sensitiVity to the Indian the Iranian deputy foreign minister presencein Kabul. "Pakistan's sensi- said "There is no need to consider tivity to India is not something new. it ~ ourselves."

Kabul does have relations with a _

number of countries and India is one

of them," he remarked.

Avoiding to unveil Tehran's peace proposals, Broujerdi said negotiations and not war among the mujahideen parties was the main step towards a peaceful solution to the Afghan coIlflict."Fortunately, that has been accepted both by Kabul and the opposition parties and talks are underway among them," he said.

Some groups, he said, were considering the "official announcement" of President gabbani to step down and in his view there prevailed conducive atmosphere for working out the rest of modalities. "This is a sign tf.l of hope. which encourages us."

a:: He thought that solution to the ~intricate Afghan problem could only ;Z; be provided by the Afghans and .not

imposed upon them from outsld~.

~• Without naming the ThUban, he said only war mongers and those who in- ., . sisted on a military solution were the main impediment in the durable

Afghan solution.

He however, said Iranians were ~ touch with the ~ban through their

mission in Herat, Kandahar, islamabad and Peshawar.

When asked whether Tehran planned to host an intra-Afghan dialogue, Broujerdi said being a neighbouring cO\lntry, Iran would

support any venue for such a c?n-

ference and informed that settmg

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97

Major development in Pak-Afghan ties: Iran

Lafrai wants good relations with Islamabad; N ajmuddin holds talks with Velayati, Broujerdi on Afghan issue

Agencies

ISLAMABAD: Iranian officials Monday claimed that there had been an "outstanding development" in relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan. .

They claimed that trilateral talks were held between the representatives ofIran, Afghanistan and Pakistan which led to considerable easing of tensions between Kabul and Islamabad. Surprisingly, Pakistani officials denied that any trilateral talks had taken place at all, insisting that all negotiations were 'only bilateral: between Pakistan and Iran. .

Meanwhile, Pakistan's foreign secretary Najmuddin Sheikh has termed his meeting with Iranian foreign minister Ali Akbar Velayati as "fruitful" for the resolution of international and regional issues, Radio Tehran reported.

He returned here Monday after a two-day official visit to Iran.

Trilateral talks: Interestingly, Pakistani official sources denied that any tri-lateral meeting between Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan took place during the foreign secretary's visit to Tehran adding that Najmuddin met only with Iranian officials to discuss bilateral matters and the Afghan problem. However, according to AFP and Iranian deputy foreig,n minister Allaeddin Broujerdi, such talks, though indirect, did indeed take place with Kabul being represented by Najibullah Lafrai, their minister of state

in the foreign office. .

According to independent reports, Tehran, which enjoys good relations with Kabul, has been trying to mediate an end to the fighting between Afghan factions and mend ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Pak-Iran talks: Earlier, Najmuddin Sheikh called on the Iranian foreign minister in Tehran. Najmuddin described

such meetings between the leaders of the two countries as benefleial, He also appreciated Iran's efforts for normalisation . of relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan ..

During the meeting, both the countries discussed mutual.as well as regional issues specially the recent changes In connection with Afghanistan. Velayati stressed for continuous consultations between officials of both the governments and said that holding of talks was the best solution to the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.

Foreign secretary Najmuddin also met Iranian deputy foreign minister Allaeddin Broujerdi and discussed latest developments in Afghanistan and ways aimed at mutual co-operation between the two countries for the solution of the Afghan crisis. Najmuddin, during the meeting,urged the need for thorough consultations between Islamabad and Tehran on various matters, particularly the Afghanistan problem.

Pakistani sources said that Islamabad and Tehran discussed threadbare possibilities for restoration of a lasting peace in Afghanistan. Reiterating their position of having no attachment with any group or a person in Afghanistan, the two countries observed that the solution to the Afghan problem lay in the establishment of a broad based government reflecting aspirations of all Afghan groups and parties. These aspirations were also reflected in a joint communique issued at the end of Najrn's visit.

Najm's visit was the second high-level contact between the two countries ill less than two weeks on the Afghan issue. Earlier, Iranian deputy foreign minister

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1'BB NEWS INTERNATIONAJ:. 20 FEB 1996