Jerome Starkey

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates makes surprise visit to Afghanistan

Tue, 09 Mar 2010 01:02:27 +0430

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates makes surprise visit to Afghanistan:

Robert Gates, the US Defence Secretary, made a surprise visit to Afghanistan yesterday and cautioned against over optimism for the new military surge there, as a report emerged detailing low morale…

79 killed in insurgent fighting in Afghanistan

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:32:45 +0430

79 killed in insurgent fighting in Afghanistan:

BLOODY clashes between Afghan insurgents have left up to 79 people dead.

President Karzai pays 'blood money' over children killed in error

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:32:45 +0430

President Karzai pays 'blood money' over children killed in error:

President Karzai has paid “blood money” to the families of nine children killed in a brutal night raid after Nato admitted that they were gunned down by mistake.

79 dead after rival Afghanistan insurgent groups clash

Mon, 08 Mar 2010 20:32:45 +0430

79 dead after rival Afghanistan insurgent groups clash:

Bloody clashes between competing factions of Afghanistan’s insurgency left up to 79 people dead, officials said today, including 19 civilians in a lawless part of the country beyond the reach of…

General limits night raids after Afghan anger over civilian deaths

Sat, 06 Mar 2010 10:36:56 +0430

General limits night raids after Afghan anger over civilian deaths:

THE commander of United States and Nato forces in Afghanistan has issued new rules to limit the use of controversial night raids, which have been blamed for countless civilian deaths and plummeting…

$1bn carrot aims to tempt up to 36,000 insurgents to lay down arms

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 07:04:43 +0430

$1bn carrot aims to tempt up to 36,000 insurgents to lay down arms:

UP TO 36,000 insurgents are fighting in Afghanistan, the general in charge of trying to lure them out of the conflict said yesterday.

Major-General Richard Barrons puts Taleban fighter numbers at 36,000

Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:18:58 +0430

Major-General Richard Barrons puts Taleban fighter numbers at 36,000:

The general in charge of persuading Afghan fighters to put down their weapons has estimated that there are as many as 36,000 insurgents, giving a rare appraisal of the fighting force at the command…

Film-maker Séverin Blanchet among 16 killed in Kabul suicide attack

Sat, 27 Feb 2010 04:49:00 +0430

Film-maker Séverin Blanchet among 16 killed in Kabul suicide attack:

At least six Indians and an Italian diplomat were among 16 people killed yesterday when a Taleban suicide squad stormed central Kabul.

Karzai overturns law that reserves seats for women MPs

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 14:45:03 +0430

Karzai overturns law that reserves seats for women MPs:

The Times
Catherine Philp, Diplomatic Correspondent and Jerome Starkey in Kabul

President Karzai has given his election cronies the authority to find new ways of filling women’s seats in forthcoming parliamentary ballots, in a move that critics fear will erode constitutional safeguards designed to guarantee female MPs.

A unilateral decree issued last week gave the Independent Election Commission, which ran the fraudulent presidential polls in August, the right to reallocate seats reserved for women in cases where there are not enough female candidates on the ballot sheets.

Under the existing law Afghan women are guaranteed two seats per province in the lower house of parliament. The system, designed after the collapse of the Taleban to promote women’s rights, guarantees women a certain number of seats on almost every elected body. (Read more…)

Hunt down the spy behind deaths of our children, say Afghan night raid survivors

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 07:58:16 +0430

Hunt down the spy behind deaths of our children, say Afghan night raid survivors:

The survivors of a night raid in eastern Afghanistan in December that left ten people dead, including eight schoolboys from one family, have still not received compensation and investigators are no…

8 weeks on, Nato admits 'terrorists' it killed were really innocent students

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:28:57 +0430

8 weeks on, Nato admits 'terrorists' it killed were really innocent students:

IT WAS dark when Mohammed Taleb woke to the sound of dogs barking down the valley in eastern Afghanistan. Then he heard boots crunching on gravel and men’s voices outside his bedroom. “Their guns,”…

Assault force killed family by mistake in raid, claims Afghan father

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 11:28:57 +0430

Assault force killed family by mistake in raid, claims Afghan father:

It was dark when Mohammed Taleb Abdul Ajan woke to the sound of dogs barking.

Nato admits that deaths of 8 boys were a mistake

Thu, 25 Feb 2010 05:36:49 +0430

Nato admits that deaths of 8 boys were a mistake:

A night-time raid in eastern Afghanistan in which eight schoolboys from one family were killed was carried out on the basis of faulty intelligence and

Bicycle bomb kills seven near bus station in Lashkar Gah

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 20:24:29 +0430

Bicycle bomb kills seven near bus station in Lashkar Gah:

A bomb concealed on a bicycle killed seven people in the capital of Helmand today and injured 14 others, officials said.

Afghans call for Nato to leave after airstrike kills 27 civilians

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 08:24:00 +0430

Afghans call for Nato to leave after airstrike kills 27 civilians:

The Times
Jerome Starkey in Kabul

Relatives of 27 people killed when Nato aircraft bombed a civilian convoy in southern Afghanistan have demanded that foreign forces leave the country.

Afghan officials said that at least four women and a child were among the dead. Twelve other civilians were wounded when three minibuses were attacked on Sunday in a remote part of Uruzgan province.

“They came here to bring security but they kill our children, they kill our brothers and they kill our people,” said Haji Ghullam Rasoul, whose cousins died in the attack. “We’ve had enough.”

The local governor and the Interior Minister said that all of the victims were civilians. Nato commanders said that their new strategy was focused on protecting the population — but the airstrike capped a week in which more than 60 civilians were killed by Nato weapons. The Afghan Cabinet called the attack “unjustifiable”. (Read more…)

'Leave now' – Afghan families' fury after Nato attack kills 28

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 08:15:25 +0430

'Leave now' – Afghan families' fury after Nato attack kills 28:

RELATIVES of the 27 people killed when Nato aircraft bombed a convoy of minibuses in southern Afghanistan have demanded foreign forces leave the country amid growing fury over the civilian death…

Hamid Karzai seizes control of Afghan Electoral Complaints Commission

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 08:15:00 +0430

Hamid Karzai seizes control of Afghan Electoral Complaints Commission:

The Times
Jerome Starkey in Kabul

President Karzai has seized control of the independent election watchdog that ruled more than a million votes invalid in August’s polls.

Diplomats said that Mr Karzai issued a decree last week giving himself the right to appoint all five commissioners on the Electoral Complaints Commission (ECC).

Under the old law the ECC was the only truly independent body. “One Commissioner is appointed by the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, one Commissioner is appointed by the Supreme Court of Afghanistan and the three internationals are appointed by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the United Nations,” the ECC’s website states. (Read more…)

Video

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 09:21:26 +0430

Tackling opium is key to successful operation in Marjah, analysts say

Mon, 22 Feb 2010 04:42:36 +0430

Tackling opium is key to successful operation in Marjah, analysts say:

The fields of Marjah are bright green with poppy shoots; the drug lords’ “poppy palaces” that stand out a mile.

Afghan police called in to shore up coalition advances

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 09:28:37 +0430

Afghan police called in to shore up coalition advances:

HUNDREDS of Afghan police are being deployed to reinforce troops in Marjah, as “fierce” fighting and the threat of mines continues to hinder the coalition’s advance.