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Afghan military chief wants Oz war-fighting equipment, not soldiers

An Afghanistan military commander has said that he wants Australia to pull out its troops, but leave behind millions of dollars worth of war-fighting equipment that can be used by his nation's soldiers.

Brigadier General Mohammed Zafar Khan praised Australia's decision to leave behind its special forces in the war-torn nation after 2014, but said the Afghan National Army would be able to provide security in Oruzgan province if it was given equipment for night vision, artillery, the capability to address improvised explosive devices and access to medical evacuation helicopters.

"Three years is too much time for the Australians to stay here," the Courier Mail quoted General Zafar, as saying.

"The only thing we are short of is some of the modern equipment, mine detectors, night vision, and if we had these things, like medical evacuation choppers to go and pick people up from the battlefield, we are ready at this moment to take over the security of Oruzgan," he added.

General Zafar said that Afghanistan does not need Australian soldiers if they are provided these equipments.

"If we receive this equipment, as we request from the Australian government several times, we would say to Australian forces in Oruzgan province: 'we don't need you guys to stay here with us'," he said.

Australian commander Lieutenant Colonel Chris Smith, however, stressed that the Afghans need to be convinced they can take on the Taliban without the sophisticated equipment the Australians use. (ANI)

Pakistan to train Afghan Army - Nov.4.11

The Pakistani Army would train the Afghan National Army as well as the police under an agreement signed by the two countries, a top Pakistani official said Thursday.

Foreign Office spokesperson Tehmina Janjua said two agreements were signed during a meeting between the presidents of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Turkey in Istanbul Nov 1, under which all three countries agreed to cooperate in military exercises, and training Afghan police, Online news agency reported.

Janjua said the military training would enhance the capacity of the forces of the three countries against terrorism.

'We want economic development along with peace and security in Afghanistan,' she said.

She said the trilateral meeting between Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Turkish President Abdullah Gul and Afghan President Hamid Karzai was 'very useful'.

Zardari reassured the Afghan government and people of Pakistan's full support in their endeavour to overcome all challenges and to assure themselves a bright future of stability, peace and prosperity, she said.

Afghanistan MP's tiring of Pakistan - 10/16/11

Legislators in Afghanistan have said diplomatic ties with Pakistan should be broken following incidents in which rockets were fired into Afghanistan.

Al Jazeera has reported 40 rockets were fired into Afghanistan over the past two days.

Afghan officials have said the artillery fire hit villages in the eastern province of Kunar, killing some people and forcing others out of their homes.

MP's have asked President Hamid Karzai to break off all diplomatic ties with the government in Islamabad if the shelling continues.

While Afghan officials have said they have been holding talks with the Pakistani government, no result has been achieved.

Pakistan has said the rocket strikes are in response to attacks into its territory from Afghanistan.

12 pregnant Brit soldiers sent back to home from Afghanistan 10-07-11

Twelve British female soldiers have been flown back to the country from Afghanistan after falling pregnant this year.

The pregnant soldiers left the war zone between January and the middle of August.

It compares with ten pregnant Brit soldiers in Afghanistan in the whole of last year, the Sun reports.

It is not known how many conceived while serving in the war zone or while on leave back in the UK.

Meanwhile the pregnancy figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, have revealed that a total of 64 female troops have been removed from Afghanistan due to pregnancy since 2003.

Ministry of Defence officials have said they do not approve of sexual relations between UK troops in war zones.

"Our personnel are expected to behave in accordance with the Armed Forces' values and standards," a ministry spokesman said. (ANI)

10-03-2011

Progress made on Afghan women's rights 'at risk', warn UK charities 

Gains made on women's issues in the last ten years in Afghanistan are under serious threat, two leading British aid agencies have warned.

A report by Oxfam and Action Aid said there had been real progress in girls' education and with better health care, more women in work and a new constitution that enshrined equal rights for women.

But the charities also warned that these fragile advances were already under threat from worsening security in Afghanistan and a resurgent Taliban, the BBC reports.

An Action Aid survey of 1,000 Afghan women found that 86 percent were worried about a return to a Taliban-style government.

The survey revealed that 72 percent women felt that things had improved for them since the start of the war in Afghanistan in 2001, but 37percent feared the nation would become a worse place following the departure of international troops.

The charity said progress had been made in the past decade, but pointed out that there was still a lot more work to be done to improve women's lives.

"Women are free to be educated and to work. They serve as government ministers and MPs and work as doctors, teachers, professors, entrepreneurs and lawyers," the Action Aid report read.

"These are significant achievements. However, huge challenges remain, with many women still denied basic rights," it said.

"Action Aid believes that including women in the peace, reconciliation and transition processes is the best means of safeguarding and furthering women's hard-won civil freedoms and human rights," it added. (ANI)