[AfghanDigest] LAST 24 HOURS
- UN RENEWS CALL FOR A NATIONAL DIALOGUE IN AFGHANISTAN – Markus Potzel, the Deputy Special Representative for Afghanistan, made the call in an interview with TOLO News and urged leaders within the Taliban to fulfill pledges made to the international community. He said that the formation of an inclusive government was a paramount precondition for any possibility of international recognition.
- CITIZENS DEMAND THAT TALIBAN SECURITY FORCES PERSONNEL WEAR UNIFORMS WHEN ON DUTY – Residents in Paktia Province called on the Taliban leadership to force its personnel to wear uniforms when they are performing official duties. Similar calls have been made in other Provinces over the course of the last year as citizens have found themselves targeted by men who claim they are Taliban security personnel and who demand bribes under threat of arrest. Sources in Kabul have long been worried that low-level ‘entrepreneurs’ among the ranks had turned to these money-making schemes to exploit the situation. Other criminal groups have been accused of setting up fake ‘roadblocks’ and accosting travelers and truck drivers to take bribes. The Taliban made a lot of noise over the purchase and distribution of uniforms for both military and police units but it is not currently known if the clothing has been disseminated across the entirety of the security establishment.
- EUROPEAN INTELLIGENCE REPORT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT IRAN WAS LOOKING FOR WMD TECHNOLOGY IN 2022 – A combined effort among European intelligence agencies resulted in a report that found evidence of a concerted effort on the part of Iran to procure technical expertise and/or equipment for both chemical and nuclear weapons. Dutch intelligence released a redacted version of their findings and claimed to have blocked both Russian and Iranian attempts to access information about nuclear technology in the Netherlands. Swedish, German, and Norwegian intelligence agencies provided additional cases where they had interdicted Iranian efforts to procure both nuclear and chemical weapons knowledge.
- PAKISTAN’S PURGE OF THE MILITARY CONTINUED – To date, 3 senior military officers have been sacked and administrative action had been taken against 15 other officers (3 major generals and 7 brigadier generals among them) for their perceived roles in the 9 May riots or, for failing to respond to protect soldiers and facilities from the rioters.
NEXT 24 HOURS
EASTERN PROVINCES LIKELY TO RECEIVE MORE RAIN, FLOODING WILL CONTINUE – A new storm system is expected to sweep in from Pakistan along the Eastern border and is expected to bring more rain to the Eastern Provinces. Flooding has killed at least 5 people and injured others in these Provinces from the last system. Pakistan’s Sindh Province is expecting to see significant flooding as well. These storms are precursors to the monsoon season and historically have not posed as significant a threat as they have in 2022 and 2023. At-risk Afghans are advised to avoid travel during the next two to three days.
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