[AfghanDigest] LAST 24 HOURS- COMMUNITIES ACROSS GREAT BRITAIN CONTINUE TO STRUGGLE TO AID AFGHAN REFUGEES – The British Home Office released figures detailing the number of Afghan refugees currently in the United Kingdom. The move has been seen as a riposte to the criticism mounted by charities and migrant rights groups that contend the government was not doing enough to facilitate asylum for the Afghans. The Home Office says that over 20,000 Afghan refugees have been accepted into Great Britain and provided a detailed location-based demographic map of where they have settled. While the report struck a hopeful tone and implied that things were being handled effectively, migrant-centric NGOs point to the disparity in the numbers of Ukrainian refugees who have been resettled in roughly the same time period (120,000). A looming 1 September deadline for the roughly 7,000 Afghans who are living in government-sponsored hotels could create a crisis as houses for the Afghans have been difficult to secure.
- US REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN ANNOUNCED IMPEACHMENT EFFORT AGAINST THE US SECRETARY OF DEFENSE – Republican Congressman from Florida, Cory Mills, made the announcement yesterday and claims that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ‘intentionally abandoned American citizens’ during the chaotic withdrawal. It is unclear how much support the effort has in the Congress.
- NEW MEDIA LAW SENT TO THE SUPREME LEADER FOR APPROVAL – Details of the new law have not been widely publicized but the basic function of the law is focused on controlling foreign media outlets operating in the country. Basically, any journalists representing a foreign media outlet will be subject to the domestic laws of Afghanistan. Surprisingly, the law actually has broad support among journalists in Afghanistan who say that the lack of any law has led to many difficulties while attempting to report the news, and arrests have occurred when reporters inadvertently stepped over a line. International journalism-centric NGOs take a different view and have expressed early criticism of the forthcoming legislation.
NEXT 24 HOURS
- THREATS MADE AGAINST CHRISTIAN ENCLAVE IN RAWALPINDI – Unconfirmed reports arrived on Friday that some religious leaders in Rawalpindi had called on the Muslim community to form a mob and attack the Christian colony of Bark Khana in the city. It was not immediately clear when the proposed attack would take place, if at all.