ISLAMABAD: In a rare diplomatic foray and the strongest sign yet of the Taliban’s increasing political presence in the region, the head of the militant group’s political office led a delegation to Uzbekistan to meet senior Foreign Ministry officials, Uzbek and Taliban officials said.
Taliban political chief Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai represented the insurgents in the four-day talks that ended Friday and included meetings with Uzbekistan’s Foreign Minister Abdulaziz Kamilov as well as its special representative to Afghanistan Ismatilla Irgashev.
The meetings follow an offer made by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in March to broker peace in Afghanistan.
Suhail Shaheen, spokesman for the Taliban’s political office in Qatar, said in a statement to The Associated Press on Saturday that discussions covered everything from international troop withdrawal to peace prospects to possible Uzbek-funded development projects that could include railway lines and electricity.
Shaheen said Uzbek officials discussed their security concerns surrounding the development projects.
“Taliban also exchanged views with the Uzbek officials about the withdrawal of the foreign troops and reconciliation in Afghanistan,” he said in the statement.
Uzbek’s Foreign Affairs Ministry website offered a terse announcement on the visit saying “the sides exchanged views on prospects of the peace process in Afghanistan. “
Still, the meetings are significant coming as the Taliban ramps up pressure on Afghanistan’s Security Forces with relentless and deadly attacks and Washington holds preliminary talks with the insurgents in an attempt to find a negotiated end to Afghanistan’s protracted war.
The Taliban have gained increasing attention from Russia as well as Uzbekistan, who view the insurgency as a bulwark against the spread of the Daesh group in Afghanistan. The United States has accused Moscow of giving weapons to the Taliban.
Still, Andrew Wilder, vice president of Asia programs at the US Institute of Peace said Washington would welcome a “constructive” Russian role in finding a way toward a peace pact in Afghanistan.
“What wouldn’t be helpful would be if the Uzbek efforts to facilitate lines of communication with the Taliban are not closely coordinated with the Afghan government,” he said.
“High profile talks by foreign governments with the Taliban that exclude the Afghan government risk providing too much legitimacy to the Taliban without getting much in return,” Wilder said.
There was no immediate comment from the Afghan government, but neither the Taliban nor the Uzbek foreign ministry statement mentioned the Afghan government.
For Uzbekistan, the Daesh presence is particularly worrisome as hundreds of its fighters are former members of the radical Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a declared terrorist group considered the architect of some of the more horrific attacks carried out by Daesh in Afghanistan.
Last year, there were reports that the son of Tahir Yuldashev, the powerful Uzbek leader of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, who was killed in a US missile strike in Pakistan in 2009, was leading efforts to help expand Daesh influence in Afghanistan.
Last week, Afghan security forces reportedly rescued scores of Afghan Uzbeks who had declared their allegiance to Daesh when they came under attack by Taliban fighters in northern Afghanistan not far from the border with Uzbekistan. The rescued Uzbek warriors declared they would join the peace process. Most of those rescued were Afghan Uzbeks loyal to Afghanistan’s Vice President Rashid Dostum who had gone over to IS after Dostum fell out with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and fled to Turkey in May last year.
Coincidentally their rescue from the Taliban came just days after Dostum returned to Afghanistan and reconciled with Ghani’s government.
Taliban travel from Afghanistan to Uzbekistan for talks
Taliban travel from Afghanistan to Uzbekistan for talks
- The Taliban have gained increasing attention from Russia as well as Uzbekistan
- The meetings follow an offer made by Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev in March to broker peace in Afghanistan
Indonesian rescuers dig through volcanic ash after eruption kills 9
Rescue workers on Tuesday sifted through smoldering debris and thick mud in search of survivors, a day after a volcano on Indonesia’s island of Flores erupted, killing at least nine people with its searing lava and ash.
Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki spewed thick brownish ash as high as 2,000 meters and searing lava, gravel and ash were thrown up to 7 kilometers from its crater, blanketing nearby villages and towns with tons of volcanic debris and forcing residents to flee.
The National Disaster Management Agency on Tuesday lowered the death toll from an earlier report of 10, saying a victim trapped under tonnes of debris in a collapsed house who was feared dead was rescued in critical condition. The agency said 63 other people were hospitalized, 31 of them with serious injuries.
More than 2,400 villagers streamed into makeshift emergency shelters after Monday’s eruption that burned down seven schools and 23 houses, including a convent of nuns, on the majority-Catholic island, said the agency’s spokesperson, Abdul Muhari.
Smoldering debris, thick mud and a power blackout hampered the evacuation and search efforts, said Kensius Didimus, a local disaster agency official.
“We’ll do everything we can to evacuate villagers by preparing trucks and motorbikes for them to flee at any time,” he said, adding that the debris and lava mixed with rainfall formed thick mud that destroyed the main roads on the island.
Authorities warned the thousands of people who fled the volcano not to return during Tuesday’s lull in activity. But some were desperate to check on livestock and possessions left behind. In several areas, everything — from the thinnest tree branch to couches and chairs inside homes — was caked with ash.
Trump says would concede defeat ‘if it’s a fair election’
- Donald Trump: ‘If I lose an election, if it’s a fair election, I would be the first one to acknowledge it’
- Trump: ‘Of course there’ll be no violence. My supporters are not violent people’
WEST PALM BEACH, United States: US Republican presidential contender Donald Trump said he would be prepared to concede defeat after Tuesday’s vote “if it’s a fair election,” while again raising concerns about the use of electronic voting machines.
“If I lose an election, if it’s a fair election, I would be the first one to acknowledge it... So far I think it’s been fair,” Trump, repeating a caveat that he has used many times on the campaign trail, told reporters after voting in Florida.
Wearing a red “Make America Great Again” cap, he reiterated his previous criticism of electronic voting machines, suggesting they were less secure than paper ballots and would delay the outcome being known.
“They spend all this money on machines... If they would use paper ballots, voter ID, proof of citizenship, and one-day voting, it would all be over by 10 o’clock in the evening. It’s crazy,” he told reporters in West Palm Beach.
He added: “Do you know that paper is more sophisticated now than computers? If it’s watermarked paper you cannot... It’s unbelievable what happens with it. There’s nothing you can do to cheat.”
Asked about fears of unrest after the election and whether he would call on supporters to avoid violence, he criticized the question.
“I don’t have to tell them that, that there’ll be no violence. Of course there’ll be no violence. My supporters are not violent people,” Trump said.
‘Lost faith’: Michigan Muslims shun Harris over Mideast turmoil
- Dearborn, a Detroit suburb famous as the birthplace of Henry Ford and the home of Ford Motor Company's headquarters, has a population of around 110,000, with 55 percent of residents claiming Middle Eastern or North African heritage
DEARBORN, United States: Haunted by the daily violence ravaging the Middle East, Soujoud Hamade, a registered Democrat, felt compelled to back Green Party candidate Jill Stein in the US presidential election.
"It is very emotional," the 32-year-old real estate lawyer told AFP after casting her ballot Tuesday at a school in Dearborn, the nation's largest Arab-majority city, where voters could prove decisive in the key battleground of Michigan.
"Every time I watch the news or get on social media, I see my people being decimated, I see my home country being destroyed," added the Lebanese-American, disillusioned by the Biden-Harris administration's unwavering support for Israel.
Hamade says she's clear-eyed about the two-way nature of the race between Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and Republican former President Donald Trump.
Still, she insists her vote is far more than just a protest.
She's banking on helping Stein crack five percent of the national popular vote, a threshold that would unlock future federal funding for the Green Party and "move the needle forward" toward breaking the two-party hold on US politics.
Dearborn, a Detroit suburb famous as the birthplace of Henry Ford and the home of Ford Motor Company's headquarters, has a population of around 110,000, with 55 percent of residents claiming Middle Eastern or North African heritage.
The city overwhelmingly backed President Joe Biden in 2020, helping him narrowly flip Michigan blue.
But recent polling shows a shift away from the Democratic Party among Muslim and Arab-Americans.
That trend was evident in conversations with voters around the city on Election Day.
Stein, a Jewish physician and the Green Party's perennial left-wing candidate is predicted to do well among Muslims, as well as progressives and youth voters nationwide -- potentially acting as a spoiler for Harris.
"She's the only one who's anti-genocide," said Muhammad Hijazi, a 28-year-old engineer who described himself as a "single-issue voter" who had previously voted Democrat but had now "lost faith."
The Democrats, he argued, don't have a plan to bring peace to the Middle East, and he doesn't trust Trump to do any better.
Yet signs suggest Trump, too, may fare better than in past cycles. Unlike Harris, he visited Dearborn, addressing a modest-sized audience last week.
His outreach to Michigan's Muslim community secured endorsements from the Muslim mayors of Hamtramck and Dearborn Heights, while his newfound connection to the community -- through Lebanese-American son-in-law Michael Boulos, husband of Tiffany Trump -- has further endeared him.
Harris' decision to campaign with former Republican Liz Cheney, a staunch supporter of the Iraq War, was the final straw for Dearborn Heights Mayor Bill Bazzi, he told Trump supporters at the former president's final Michigan rally.
Charles Fawaz, a 29-year-old first-grade teacher of Lebanese descent who voted for Trump, told AFP he was impressed that the former president "showed up."
"When Trump was president, everything was fine with our foreign policy because other leaders respected our country," Fawaz said.
Even if Trump doesn't deliver on Middle Eastern peace, he hopes Republicans will manage the economy better.
Former Democrats here say they know some liberals will blame them if Harris loses, but they reject the accusation.
"To put the onus on Arab Americans to vote for someone who's directly contributing to the genocide of other people is outrageous," Hamade said.
Spain unveils $11 billion aid plan after catastrophic floods
- Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced a series of measures including aid to small and midsize businesses, self-employed workers and households
- Tax relief and a three-month postponement to repaying mortgages and loans were also among the announcements
VALENCIA: Spain on Tuesday announced an aid package worth 10.6 billion euros ($11.5 billion) to rebuild regions devastated by its worst floods in a generation that have killed 219 people.
The exceptional Mediterranean storm that lashed eastern Spain a week ago triggered surging torrents of muddy water that have left a trail of destruction and an unknown number of missing.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced a series of measures including aid to small and midsize businesses, self-employed workers and households that have suffered deaths, incapacity and damage to homes and belongings.
Tax relief and a three-month postponement to repaying mortgages and loans were also among the announcements, which Sanchez likened to the state’s intervention during the Covid-19 pandemic to protect the economy and livelihoods.
The government would take on all emergency spending by local councils linked to clearing mud, debris and ruined property and restoring drinking water, Sanchez told a news conference.
Spain has also requested aid from the EU solidarity fund, he added.
Security forces and emergency services personnel are working around the clock to repair damaged infrastructure, distribute aid and search for bodies in Spain’s largest peacetime deployment of its armed forces.
Sanchez said almost 15,000 troops, police officers and civil guards were in the eastern Valencia region that has suffered most of the deaths and destruction, up from 7,300 on Saturday.
Firefighters combed through piles of damaged vehicles and pumped water from inundated garages and car parks where more victims may be discovered, AFP journalists saw.
Maribel Albalat, mayor of the ground-zero town of Paiporta, told public broadcaster TVE they were doing “better, but not well” with many streets still inaccessible and residents struggling to get a phone signal.
Rescuers in the southeastern town of Letur have found one of the missing bodies they were looking for, announced the central government’s representative in the Castilla-La Mancha region, Pedro Antonio Ruiz.
Two Chinese citizens, two Romanians and an Ecuadorian are among the dead, authorities in those countries have said. The floods also claimed three British victims, UK media have reported.
Many survivors are furious with the authorities for failing to warn the population on time last Tuesday and provide urgent rescue and relief work.
That anger reached a breaking point in Paiporta on Sunday when crowds heckled and hurled mud at King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia and Sanchez.
The outrage was also palpable in Valencia — Spain’s third-largest city that was unharmed despite being a stone’s throw from the hardest-hit zones — when AFP visited on Tuesday.
Local humorist Jose Antonio Lopez-Guitian, 61, had just returned from the town of Massanassa with his boots covered in mud and said residents were left to fend for themselves.
The situation was “a national disgrace” and “a dereliction of duty by all the institutions,” he said.
The floods affected more than 4,100 hectares (10,100 acres), the civil protection service said on X, using a map provided by the European Union’s Copernicus satellite.
Storms coming off the Mediterranean are common during this season. But scientists have warned that human-induced climate change is increasing the ferocity, length and frequency of extreme weather events.
“Climate change kills... we have to adapt to this reality,” Sanchez said at his news conference, lashing out at the “irresponsible discourse of deniers.”
Two UK mpox cases first local transmission in Europe: WHO
- The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed late Monday that the two new cases were household contacts of Britain’s first case identified last week
- The WHO warned that European states should be prepared for “rapid action” to contain the latest mpox variant
LONDON: Two new cases of the mpox variant clade 1b detected in the UK are the first locally transmitted cases in Europe and the first outside Africa, the World Health Organization said Tuesday.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed late Monday that the two new cases were household contacts of Britain’s first case identified last week, bringing the country’s total confirmed cases to three.
The WHO warned that European states should be prepared for “rapid action” to contain the latest mpox variant, which spreads through close physical contact including sexual relations and sharing closed spaces.
The two cases are also the first to be locally transmitted outside Africa since August 2024, when the WHO declared the outbreak of the new variant an international public health emergency — its highest level of alarm.
Those affected are under specialist care and the risk to the UK population “remains low,” UKHSA said.
The original case was detected after the person traveled to several African countries on holiday and returned to the UK on October 21.
The patient developed flu-like symptoms more than 24 hours later and, on October 24, started to develop a rash that worsened in the following days.
Mpox, a viral disease related to smallpox, has two types, clade 1 and clade 2. Symptoms include fever, a skin rash or pus-filled blisters, swollen lymph nodes and body aches.
The WHO first declared an international public health emergency in 2022 over the spread of clade 2. That outbreak mostly affected gay and bisexual men in Europe and the United States.
Vaccination and awareness drives in many countries helped stem the number of worldwide cases and the WHO lifted the emergency in May 2023 after reporting 140 deaths out of around 87,400 cases.
In 2024, a two-pronged epidemic of clade 1 and clade 1b, a new strain that affects children, has spread widely in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The new strain has also been recorded in neighboring Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, with imported cases in Sweden, India, Thailand, Germany and the UK.
