international

04 Sep

Google locks Afghan govt accounts as Taliban seek access to emails: Source

editor0 Commentsinternational

Google has temporarily locked down an unspecified number of Afghan government email accounts, according to a person familiar with the matter, as fears grow over the digital paper trail left by former officials and their international partners. In the weeks since the Taliban's swift takeover of Afghanistan from a U.S.-backed government, reports have highlighted how biometric and Afghan payroll databases might be exploited by the new rulers to hunt their enemies. In a statement on Friday, Alphabet Inc's Google stopped short of confirming that Afghan government accounts were being locked down, saying that the company was monitoring the situation in…

30 Aug

Want to continue our political, trade ties with India: Taliban leader Stanekzai

editor0 CommentsBusiness, India, international

In what is being seen as a signal to India, a member of the Taliban leadership in Qatar has said that India is “very important for this subcontinent” and that his group wants to continue Afghanistan’s “cultural”, “economic”, “political” and “trade ties” with India “like in the past”. This overture was made by Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, deputy head of Taliban’s office in Doha, in a carefully scripted statement that he read out in Pashto in a 46-minute video message broadcast Saturday on the group’s social media platforms and Afghanistan’s Milli Television. In a nearly 46-minute video posted on the…

27 Aug

Situation in Afghanistan ‘critical’, govt committed to full evacuation of Indians, says S Jaishankar

editor0 CommentsIndia, international

India's top priority at the moment is to evacuate all Indian personnel from Afghanistan, where the situation is "critical", said Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar on Thursday at an all-party meeting.“Our focus is on evacuation and the government is doing everything to evacuate people," Jaishankar said. The government is committed to "full evacuation" of Indians from Afghanistan, where the situation is "critical", External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Thursday after briefing the leaders at an all-party meet on the Afghan situation. During the meeting, which lasted for about three and a half hours, Jaishankar said the government has…

25 Aug

Afghan nationals must enter India only using e-Visa: MHA

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Owing to the present situation in Afghanistan, all Afghan nationals henceforth must travel to India only on e-visa, said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Wednesday. "Keeping in view some reports that certain passports of Afghan nationals have been misplaced, the previously issued visas to all Afghan nationals who are presently not in India stand invalidated with immediate effect,” said an MHA statement. The Ministry said after streamlining of the visa process with the introduction of “e-Emergency X-Misc visa”, it had been decided that from now on all Afghan nationals must travel to India only on e-visa. Earlier, the…

25 Aug

Possible Havana syndrome case delays Kamala Harris trip to Vietnam

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US vice-president Kamala Harris’ trip from Singapore to Vietnam was delayed by several hours on Tuesday by an investigation into two possible cases of the so-called Havana syndrome in Hanoi, administration officials said. The investigation was in its early stages and officials deemed it safe for Harris to make her scheduled stop in Vietnam, which is part of her trip across Asia meant to reassure allies about American foreign policy amid the tumultuous evacuation of US forces from Afghanistan. Havana syndrome is the name for a rash of mysterious health incidents first reported by American diplomats and other government employees…

24 Aug

CIA director held secret meeting in Kabul with Taliban leader Abdul Ghani Baradar: Report

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US Central Intelligence Agency chief William Burns held a secret meeting in Kabul with Taliban co-founder Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Washington Post reported Tuesday.The Monday meeting, which if confirmed will have been the highest-level encounter between the Islamist group and the Biden administration since the militants' return to power, came as efforts to evacuate thousands of people from Taliban-controlled Afghanistan became increasingly urgent. Burns is one of US President Joe Biden's most experienced diplomats; while Baradar, who headed the Taliban's political office in Qatar, is one of the top leaders in the regime that has taken power in Kabul.…

23 Aug

Gunfire at Kabul airport kills 1; Taliban mass near Panjshir

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A firefight broke out between unidentified gunmen, Western security forces and Afghan guards at Kabul airport on Monday, Germany's armed forces said, as thousands of Afghans and foreigners thronged the airport, seeking to flee Taliban rule.One Afghan guard was killed and three were wounded in the battle at the airport's north gate, which involved U.S. and German forces, the German military said on Twitter. While the Taliban have deployed their terrorists outside the airport, where they have tried to help enforce some kind of order, there are Afghan guards helping U.S. forces inside the airport. One Afghan guard was killed…

21 Aug

Suicide Bomb Attack Kills 2 Children, Injures Chinese National In Pakistan

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A suicide bomber detonated his explosives on Friday close to a vehicle carrying Chinese nationals in Pakistan’s restive southwestern Balochistan province, killing at least two children and wounding three persons, including a Chinese, in the second such attack in over a month. The attack took place in the Baloch Ward area in Gwadar, the port city of strategic importance due to the presence of Chinese workers and investment, a senior government official and police said."The Chinese embassy in Pakistan strongly condemns this act of terrorism, extends its sincere sympathies to the injured of both countries, and expresses its deep condolences…

20 Aug

India Looks to Work with US on Market Access Issues: Piyush Goyal

editor0 CommentsBusiness, India, international

India will look at working with the US on market access issues to promote bilateral trade as Washington has indicated that it is not looking for a new trade agreement as of now, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday. He also said that Australia has shown significant interest to do an early harvest pact with India and exporters should share areas of their interest with the ministry. An early harvest with countries like Australia will help India engage with others on similar lines, Goyal said. "The US as of now has kind of indicated that they are…

20 Aug

Taliban ‘Intensifying’ Search For Afghans Who Helped U.S., UN Says

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The Taliban is intensifying a search for people who worked with US and NATO forces, a confidential United Nations document says, despite the militants vowing no revenge against opponents. The report — provided by the UN's threat-assessment consultants and seen by AFP — says the group has "priority lists" of individuals it wants to arrest. Most at risk are people who had central roles in the Afghan military, police and intelligence units, according to the document. The Taliban have been conducting "targeted door-to-door visits" of individuals they want to apprehend and their family members, the report says. The Taliban are…