Taleban Deny Planned Attack on Kajaki Hydroelectric Dam
Region: Afghanistan
Insurgents said to be building up presence in the area. By Gol Ahmad Ehsan The Taleban have denied massing forces for an attack on the Kajaki hydroelectric scheme in the southern Helmand province, at a time when responsibility for construction work and security is shifting from American to Afghan control. After years of investment in refitting and upgrading power units at the... more
Views: 380Outcry for Reopening of Helmand Schools
Region: AfghanistanWith security improving, tens of thousands of children are still prevented from resuming their education. By Gol Ahmad Ehsan, Nazir Ahmad Woror Residents of Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province say nearly half the schools there remain closed, and they dispute claims by education officials that it would not be safe to reopen them. Schools in Helmand were closed becau... more
Views: 326Women and Change in Afghanistan
Region: AfghanistanWritten by Omid Bidar Noorjahan Akbar, 22, is an Afghan women's rights activist and a prolific blogger. Although she is now studying in the United States, Noorjahan writes about the issues confronting women in Afghanistan for online magazines and blogs. Global Voices Online has recently interviewed Noorjahan. Global Voices: Please tell us a little bit about yourself. Noorjahan Akbar: I was born and raised... more
Views: 456Pollution in Eastern Afghanistan
Region: AfghanistanFactory owners say new industrial parks outside Jalalabad aren’t fit for use. By Hijratullah Ekhtyar From the outside, the building in the residential district of Jalalabad’s Do Saraka area looks like any of the family homes nearby, with children playing in the street outside. What distinguishes it from its neighbours is the constant din of noisy machinery running inside... more
Views: 575Afghanistan: Child Abuse Victims Go to Jail
Region: AfghanistanAfghanistan: Child Abuse Victims Imprisoned Rights activists say children are imprisoned for “moral crimes” while the perpetrators escape prosecution. By Mina Habib The 15-year-old refused to give his name, his eyes cast down as he sat in an empty room in the children‘s correction centre in Kabul. Slowly, he began to open up and tell his story. An orphan, he left his home province of Sar-e Pol a ... more
Views: 611Afghanistan: Teachers Struggle With Newly Introduced Curriculum
Region: AfghanistanIn Nangarhar, some say texts for new school curriculum are too hard, others that they are plain wrong. By Hijratullah Ekhtyar - Afghanistan Teachers as well as pupils at schools in eastern Afghanistan are struggling to get to grips with a newly-introduced curriculum. Some of the textbooks are far too advanced, while others are riddled w... more
Views: 714Afghan-US Deal Raises Controversy
Region: AfghanistanPresident Karzai's opponents say he should not allow US forces to stay on, while others see this as essential to Afghanistan’s future. By Mina Habib - Afghanistan President Hamed Karzai returned from his latest trip to Washington with a series of concessions on the timetable for withdrawing international forces from Afghanistan and ... more
Views: 791Kabul: Face-to-Face Meeting with Taleban
Region: AfghanistanParis conference latest attempt to talk about talking peace. By Mina Habib, It may not have amounted to formal peace talks, but a two-day meeting outside Paris last month at which Taleban representatives joined other Afghan players was a rare opportunity for bitter enemies to present their positions in a neutral setting. The December 20-21 conference was the third such event arranged by t... more
Views: 695Afghan Reporter Reveals Risks of Covering Sensitive Stories
Region: AfghanistanLocal politicians pledge support after journalist investigates alleged misappropriation of land. By Abdul Maqsud Aziz or several months, I had been hearing about how part of the Abchakan desert had been leased out to international forces, and I had stored it away in my mind as a story idea. I was certain that no local or national media outlet in Afghanistan would want to investigate it. An a... more
Views: 725Afghanistan Considered One of the Most Corrupt Countries
Region: AfghanistanBy Omid Bidar Afghanistan is considered the world's most corrupt country, ranking roughly on par with North Korea and Somalia in an annual survey [1] of 176 nations published on December 5 by Transparency International [2] (TI). TI is a Berlin-based global corruption watchdog that compiles annual corruption rankings. In the last year's survey [3], Afghanistan was slightly above North Korea and Somalia, tying with Myan... more
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