House Republicans called for a $1.7 billion cut in President Bush’s emergency supplemental request for the reconstruction funding for Iraq and only a $400 million increase in reconstruction aid for Afghanistan. The additional $400 million makes the $1.2 billion for Afghanistan’s reconstruction aid package only a little more than 1 percent of the $87 billion […]
Three More Girls’ Schools Attacked in Afghanistan
Two schools for girls in northern Afghanistan and one in eastern Afghanistan were burned down by suspected Taliban insurgents. This brings the number of girls’ schools attacked in Afghanistan since last fall to over 19. Two tents that were used as schools in the Charar Bolak district in the Balkh province were set fire late […]
Senator Raises Concerns That US Not Spending Enough In Afghanistan
At yesterday’s Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the $87 billion supplemental for Iraq and Afghanistan, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) raised concerns about the $20 billion for Iraq’s reconstruction compared to the $800 million for Afghanistan’s. He questioned whether the United States should think about spending more money in Afghanistan than Iraq because Iraq and Afghanistan’s […]
Senator Raises Concerns For Women In Afghanistan
At today’s Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the $87 billion supplemental for Iraq and Afghanistan, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) raised concerns about vulnerable populations in Afghanistan and Iraq, including women. She pointed to a Human Rights Watch Report and threats against girls going to school as examples of the deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan. At […]
Afghanistan: Another School Attacked, Girls’ Teachers Threatened
A coed elementary school was set on fire on Tuesday, and leaflets were distributed saying that girls should not be allowed to go to school. According to Reuters, this brings the total number of schools that have been attacked in the past year to more than 20. The leaflets distributed by the attackers also threatened […]
Afghanistan: US Role Expected to Increase, Girls’ School Burned Down
As the Bush administration continues to consider plans to increase aid and peacekeeping troops in Afghanistan, another girls’ school was burned down last week. The incident at a tented school 30 miles south of Kabul follows the arson of another school for girls located in a neighboring district, according to the Associated Press. Letters were […]
Afghanistan: Security and Rule of Law Failing Due to Lack of Funds
Amnesty International issued a report last week on the failure of donor countries in supporting efforts to reestablish the rule of law in Afghanistan. According to the report, “as the international community focuses its attention on post-conflict reconstruction in Iraq, it is crucial that it does not rescind promises made to the Afghan people.” The […]
Over 50 People Killed in Afghanistan; UN Envoy Urges the ISAF Expansion
Afghanistan this week has experienced its most violent 24-hour period in nearly a year. A bomb exploded on a bus in the Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan, killing 15 people including six children. Two Afghan aid workers working for the Afghan Red Crescent were killed and another three injured in southeastern Afghanistan, and more than […]
Afghanistan: Troubles Persist, NATO to Assume Control of ISAF
As the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) readies to take control of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) on Monday, Afghanistan continues to struggle amidst growing attacks on aid workers and law enforcement officers in its provinces. Despite repeated calls by the United Nations (UN), Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and progressive organizations including the Feminist […]
UN: Security in Afghanistan Unstable
In a report released yesterday, United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the security situation in Afghanistan unstable. Annan named the expansion of the International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) beyond the capital city of Kabul as “the best way to fill in the security gap” that threatens the peace in Afghanistan, according to a UN release. […]
Afghanistan: Protesters Urge Reform
Hundreds of protesters yesterday demonstrated in the Afghan capital of Kabul, demanding that the government adhere to the 2001 Bonn agreement, which laid the groundwork for a return to democracy in Afghanistan. Zarmina Akhgar, deputy chairwoman of the Freedom and Democracy Movement (Dari: Nahzat-e Azadi wa Democracy) joined other demonstrators, including members of the National […]
US Majority Supports ISAF Expansion in Afghanistan, Survey Finds
Most Americans (67 percent) support expanding UN peacekeeping operations beyond Kabul in Afghanistan, according to a recent survey by the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA). PIPA director Steven Kull explained that despite concurrent deployment of US troops elsewhere, Americans are supportive of efforts in Afghanistan “[p]resumably… prompted by a combination of a feeling of […]
Afghanistan: Hearing Calls for Expansion of Peacekeeping Troops
At a House hearing held yesterday on Afghanistan’s reconstruction, Representative Tom Lantos (D-CA) called upon NATO, which recently agreed to take over the 4,500 person peacekeeping force in Afghanistan (ISAF), to double the size of ISAF. He also called for NATO to expand its mandate to provide greater security throughout the country and “to prevent […]
NGOs Urge Greater Security in Afghanistan
The Feminist Majority, along with along with 78 other humanitarian, human rights, and conflict prevention organizations, called upon NATO to expand the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. NATO will assume control of ISAF in August, but the groups are urging NATO to order an expansion of ISAF now because it takes time to […]
Afghanistan: Peace Troops Attacked
Underscoring the lack of security in Afghanistan, four German peacekeeping troops were killed on Saturday in an explosion that wounded 31 others. This was the biggest attack on the international security assistance forces (ISAF) yet, according to Reuters. The peacekeeping troops were traveling on a bus in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, when a suicide […]
Activists, Senators Ask, “Where’s the Marshall Plan for Afghanistan?”
Dozens of activists from women’s rights and human rights groups filled a Senate hearing room yesterday wearing bright yellow stickers that read “Afghanistan: Where’s the Marshall Plan?” Andrew Natsios, USAID administrator, testified before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations on the President’s budget for 2004. In his opening remarks, Ranking Committee Member Senator Patrick […]
Afghanistan: Threats Against Citizens for Political Views Rise
A recent rise in threats against Afghan citizens for expressing their views on the country’s draft constitution is a cause for concern, according to the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) and the United Nations. “We have received reports of increasing threats, physical aggression and even arbitrary detentions,” said Nader Naderi, an AIHRC commissioner, according […]
Karzai Calls for an Extra $15 Billion for Afghanistan’s Reconstruction
Hamid Karzai, the interim President of Afghanistan, called for an extra $15 billion from the West for his country’s reconstruction. According to The Observer, Karzai warned that the current $5 billion committed so far is not enough to meet the promises given by the United States and Britain to rebuild Afghanistan. Karzai also stated that […]
Afghanistan: Voter Registration to Begin by September
Afghanistan plans to begin voter registration for the 2004 elections this September. However, Afghan President Hamid Karzai warned the United Nations that with no recent electoral experience and after two decades of warfare, the country could not accomplish this task alone, according to the Associated Press. Registration is expected to cost around $80 million and […]
Germany Calls for ISAF Expansion in Afghanistan
During a visit to Germany by Secretary of State Colin Powell, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder called for the expansion of international peacekeeping forces beyond Kabul. Since Germany currently leads the peacekeeping force of some 4,500 troops, Schroeder’s statement prompted NPR reporter Emilie Harris to speculate on whether his announcement signals a possible shift in U.S. […]
