[AfghanDigest] LAST 24 HOURS- PAKISTAN’S DEPORTATION THREAT - ECHOES OF HYPOCRISY – Lost amid the panic over the recent call to deport over 1 million Afghans from Pakistan is a lesson from a similar situation that shares many similarities with the crisis between Kabul and Islamabad of today. Pakistan’s Minister of the Interior has recently claimed that Afghan nationals have been complicit in terror attacks and are to blame for much of the insecurity in the country. In addition, both the previous regime and the current one have continued to blame the Taliban authorities for sheltering the TTP terror groups in Afghanistan and have suggested they are aiding the terrorists with weapons and equipment. While this may be true, the heavy-handed response called for by the caretaker regime seems excessive and calls to mind the events that transpired after the deadly Mumbai terror attacks that struck India in 2008.
- On November 26th, 2008 a terror group consisting of 10 militant Islamists that was headquartered and trained in Pakistan, Lashkar-e-Taiba, launched a series of 12 coordinated gun and bomb attacks which lasted for a total of four days across Mumbai. The attacks killed 175 people (9 of whom included the terrorists) and wounded another 300. The attacks are commonly referred to as the 26/11 Attacks.
- Similar to the situation facing Pakistan today, India alleged that support for the terrorists had been provided by the Pakistani intelligence services and that Pakistan had provided shelter for the group as it trained for its mission. Pakistan vehemently denied these accusations for several months but was eventually forced to investigate the cases in Pakistan under significant international pressure. Just like Pakistan, India lost nearly twenty police and military personnel putting the terrorists down. However, while there were some calls for the mass deportation of Pakistani nationals living in India, the brunt of the criticism fell on the Indian government and a slew of officials resigned.
- Most will concede that Pakistan has borne the brunt of the violence outside of Afghanistan’s borders after the Taliban seized power in 2021. Few agree with this bizarre and unprecedented deportation action that has seemingly come out of nowhere and could affect over a million people who never had anything to do with terrorism.
- INDIAN OFFICIALS SAY THEY ARE IN TOUCH WITH AFGHAN DIPLOMATS IN THE COUNTRY – Officials in the Ministry of External Affairs said that their government was in discussions with Afghan diplomats who worked in the Embassy in New Delhi and also in both consulates (Mumbai and Hyderabad). The discussions indicated that the Embassy wanted to close but both Consul Generals wanted to keep their missions open to continue serving Afghan citizens.
- 55 AFGHAN FEMALE STUDENTS FINALLY ARRIVE IN DUBAI – Photos of another 55 female students who had been invited to Dubai to study under a wealthy patron’s offer to pay for their scholarships made the rounds on social media. Some staunch supporters of the Taliban regime took to social media and called on the Supreme Leader to reverse his policies with regard to banning education for women.
- IRANIAN MEDIA OUTLETS CONTINUE TO SOUND ALARM OVER AFGHAN REFUGEES – A report from Jahan San’at News in Tehran is sounding the alarm that Southern neighborhoods of Tehran are overrun by Afghan refugees and that government infrastructure is being threatened by the additional workload. Some Iranian media outlets continue to promote xenophobic reporting with regard to the Afghan community there.
CONFLICT TRACKER
Maidan Wardak: An unidentified resistance group claims to have orchestrated the assassination of Qari Obeidah, a commander in the Haqqani Network.
Kunar: ISIS-K elements claim to have launched an attack on the Taliban barracks in the Mazar Dara Valley of Nurgal district yesterday. They claim to have killed one Taliban fighter while the others dispersed.
Kunar: ISIS-K elements claim to have launched an attack on the Taliban barracks in the Mazar Dara Valley of Nurgal district yesterday. They claim to have killed one Taliban fighter while the others dispersed.
NEXT 24 HOURS: No Threats Reported