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Islamic World News ( 28 Sept 2016, NewAgeIslam.Com)

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ISIL Forcing People to Send Children to Terrorists' Schools

New Age Islam News Bureau

28 Sept 2016

A new social media campaign is trying to fight discrimination against American Muslims.

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• Taliban Recruiting Children as Soldiers in Their Ranks: Ghor Officials

• Will Use Nuclear Weapons, Destroy India If It Declares War, Says Pakistan

• In A First, Indian to Address Organisation of Islamic Countries' Global Youth Meet

• If ISIS Could Vote In Our Election, It Would Choose Donald Trump

Arab World

• ISIL Forcing People to Send Children to Terrorists' Schools

• Christian and Muslim Syrian Children to Unite In Prayer for an End to Violence

• ISIL Tax Officials Flee Iraq's Kirkuk with Huge Cash

• Iraqi Army Starts Fresh Military Operations to Win Back Key Region

• Iran's Top Security Official Blasts US for Disloyalty to JCPOA

• Another ISIL Drone Shot Down in Iraq

• Syrian Army Continues to Advance against Terrorists in North-eastern Hama

• Syrian Bombers Hit Militants in Khan Touman as Aleppo Battle Enters Sensitive Stage

• Foreign States Supply Militants with New Missiles in Response to Syrian-Russian Operation in Aleppo

• Syrian Commander: Israel Activating Operations Room in Quneitra

• Iran Captures ISIL Terrorists Plotting to Blow Up University of Tehran

• Syrian Fighter Jets Pound Gatherings of ISIL, Fatah Al-Sham across Homs Province

• Yemeni Speaker Asks for Iran's Help, Blasts Arabs' Attempts to Display Parliament as Illegitimate

South Asia

• Taliban Recruiting Children as Soldiers in Their Ranks: Ghor Officials

• IS Releases First Propaganda Video Filmed Inside Bangladesh

• Taliban splinter group welcomes signing of peace deal by Hezb-e-Islami

• Top ISIS leaders among 18 killed in East of Afghanistan

• President Ghani and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar to sign peace deal tomorrow

• US releases $100 million for Afghanistan through new development partnership

• 7 Afghan students disappear from military facilities in US

• Post Uri attack, prevailing situation not conducive for SAARC summit: Bangladesh envoy

Pakistan

• Will Use Nuclear Weapons, Destroy India If It Declares War, Says Pakistan

• Revoking of Indus Water Treaty will be treated as ‘act of war’: Sartaj Aziz

• Sindh CM, Jamiat Ulema-i- Islam-Fazl Leaders Discuss Bill on Seminaries

• Sindh Assembly passes bill seeking tighter rules on arms sales

• No Soft Corner for Extremists: Punjab Law Minister

• Pakistan approaches World Bank to stop Indian projects on Neelum, Chenab

• Imran warns of ‘aggressive protests’ in next phase

• 26/11 attacks case: Pak judicial commission to inspect boat used by terrorists

India

• In A First, Indian to Address Organisation of Islamic Countries' Global Youth Meet

• For Tourism, We Welcome People from Pakistan, Says Minister Mahesh Sharma

• Pakistan warns of 'water war' with India if decades-old Indus Water Treaty violated

• Udaipur: Kashmiri students raise ‘anti-India’ slogans, ABVP stages protest

• Pak allegations are like ‘radio jutistan’: V K Singh

• Muslim groups plan meetings across Mumbai to demand quota

• India launches campaign to “punish” Pakistan

• India, Nigeria discuss intelligence sharing on terrorism

North America

• If ISIS Could Vote In Our Election, It Would Choose Donald Trump

• New York City Is Taking Aim at Islamophobia

• U.S. Drone Air Strike in Afghanistan Kills 18

Africa

• Muslims in Nigeria Beg Boko Haram to Free Kidnapped Girls

• Malian jailed for war crime of cultural destruction

• Libya’s Terrorist Descent: Causes and Solutions

• Somali Journalist gunned down in Mogadishu

Europe

• Mosque Bombed In Dresden, German Police on High Alert

• Five jihadi suspects arrested in Spain, Belgium, Germany

• EU cannot close doors to Muslim refugees

Mideast

• Locals on Alert after Suspected UFO Sighting in Turkey’s South

• AKP to Evaluate MPs’ Photo with Gülen

• US diplomat pays tribute to ‘those stood against the coup attempt’ in Turkey

• Turkish FM says cooperation with YPG against ISIL risks Syria’s future

• Three Turkish soldiers wounded in ISIL drone attack in Syria

• Israeli ex-president and Nobel laureate Peres dies

Southeast Asia

• Jakarta’s Mayor Inspires Citizens to Look Past Race and Religion

• Members of Abu Sayyaf behind sea kidnappings of Indonesians, Malaysians killed

Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau

URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-world-news/isil-forcing-people-send-children/d/108699

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ISIL Forcing People to Send Children to Terrorists' Schools

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Parents in the Southern parts of Damascus province have received serious threats from ISIL to avoid sending their kids to ordinary schools or wait for harsh punishment, local sources said Wednesday.

"ISIL has forced people in al-Yarmouk Palestinian Refugee Camp to send their children to two so-called schools, established by the terrorist group," the sources said, adding, "ISIL's decision has made people in Yarmouk angry, but any disobedience will be confronted harshly by the ISIL security forces."

"ISIL has only two schools in Yarmouk camp. One in al-Aroubeh neighborhood for boys and another one in Hajar al-Aswad neighborhood for girls," the sources said.

"People in Yarmouk have denied registering their kids in ISIL-established schools and the Takfiri group has threatened to whip those people who do not comply with its rules," the sources said.

"ISIL is, meantime, trying to mandate a Wahhabi method of education in Southern Syria in its schools that have only eight students," the sources said.

Al-Yarmouk camp in the Southern Countryside of Damascus is controlled by the terrorists of ISIL and Fatah al-Sham Front (the newly-formed al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group previously known as the al-Nusra Front).

Almost the entire range of extremist and terrorist groups are supported by Saudi Arabia and Turkey, with their key commanders and leaders being Saudi nationals. ISIL, Al-Nusra and other extremist groups pursue the same line of ideology exercised and promoted by Saudi Arabia, Wahhabism. Hundreds of Saudi clerics are among the ranks of ISIL and Al-Nusra to mentor the militants.

Wahhabism is now the only source of the textbooks taught at schools in the self-declared capital of the ISIL terrorist group, Raqqa, in Northeastern Syria resembling the texts and lessons taught to schoolgoers in Saudi Arabia. The Wahhabi ideology, an extremist version of Sunni Islam that is promoted almost only in Saudi Arabia, sees all other faiths - from other interpretations of Sunni Islam to Shiism, Christianity and Judaism - as blasphemy, meaning that their followers should be decapitated as nonbelievers.

The ISIL is trying to promote the Wahhabi and Takfiri ideology among the Syrian children in areas under its control in the school textbooks.

Full report at:en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001034

Taliban recruiting children as soldiers in their ranks: Ghor officials

Wed Sep 28 2016

The Taliban militant group and other irresponsible militant groups are recruiting children as soldiers in their ranks, local officials in Ghor province said.

Zabiulalh Jawad, the provincial Independent Human Rights Chief, has told RFERL that they have credible evidences and documents to prove that Taliban are recruiting children to fight for the group.

Provincial governor’s spokesman, Abdulhai Khatebi confirmed the remarks by the Independent Human Rights Commission, saying the group is actively recruiting childre in the ares under their control.

The recruitment of children as soldiers is not in Afghanistan specifically by militant groups formed to fight the Afghan government.

Earlier reports emerged from the eastern Nangarhar province suggesting that the loyalists of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group are forcing the children and young men in the districts under their control to fight for the group.

The group is also accused of forcing the young women and girls to marriage in a bid to match the atrocities committed by the main group in Syria and Iraq.

Source: khaama.com/taliban-recruiting-children-as-soldiers-in-their-ranks-ghor-officials-01965

Will Use Nuclear Weapons, Destroy India If It Declares War, Says Pakistan

September 28, 2016

Islamabad: In a fresh anti-India tirade, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has threatened to use nuclear weapons in case of war with India, saying his country has not made atomic device to display in a showcase.

“We will destroy India if it dares to impose war on us. Pakistan army is fully prepared to answer any misadventure of India,” the defence minister told private TV channel SAMAA.

He was replying to a question about India’s intention to carry out surgical strike in Pakistan.

“We have not made atomic device to display in a showcase. If a such a situation arises we will use it and eliminate India,” Asif said the channel.

He said Pakistan Air Force is ready to give a befitting response to India if it violates Pakistan’s airspace.

The Pakistani minister claimed that the “entire world knows now that India is not as serious about resolving the Kashmir dispute as Pakistan is”.

He claimed India has not received support from anywhere despite launching a diatribe against Pakistan and added that China had, on the other hand, supported Pakistan’s viewpoint.

Asif also alleged that the assault on an Indian army base in Uri that killed 18 soldiers was a ‘plan devised by India itself’.

Maintaining that no proof implicating Pakistan in the Uri attack had surfaced yet, Asif told DawnNews that “it was evident the attack was a plan devised by India itself.” He claimed that India “orchestrated Uri attack to divert the attention of the world from the Kashmir issue”.

India has said it has evidence showing involvement of Pakistan-based terrorists in the Uri attack and demanded that Islamabad refrain from supporting and sponsoring terrorism directed against this country.

One of the four terrorists involved in the Uri attack has been identified as Hafiz from Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Commenting on a bill moved in the US Congress to label Pakistan as a terrorist state, he said that anti-Pakistan elements are present in each and every country but the impacts of their voices depend on the policies of these countries.

“Five or 10 voices raised against us are not enough evidence to declare Pakistan a terrorist state,” he said.

Meanwhile, military spokesman Lt Gen Asim Saleem Bajwa has said Pakistan’s eastern borders are under close monitoring of the security forces who are ready to respond to any aggression.

He urged people to be vigilant and keep an eye on any suspected movement in the border areas.

Source: deccanchronicle.com/world/neighbours/280916/will-use-nuclear-weapons-destroy-india-if-it-declares-war-says-pakistan.html

In a first, Indian to address Organisation of Islamic Countries' global youth meet

Sep 28, 2016

MUMBAI: In a recognition of the country's Muslim community, the second-largest in the world, an Indian has been invited to attend a prestigious conference of the Organisation of Islamic Countries' Islamic Conference Youth Forum for Dialogue and Cooperation (ICYF-DC).

Haji Syed Salman Chishty of Dargah Ajmer Sharif has been invited to address the ICYF-DC's Third Islamic Conference of Youth and Sports Ministers opening in Istanbul on October 4.

"This is a great honour for India and Indian Muslims. I shall speak on 'Empowering Youth for Peace, Solidarity and Development', which is the main theme of this global conference to be attended by representatives from 52 countries," Haji Chishty, the 27th direct descendent-custodian of the Sufi saint, Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishty, told IANS on the phone from Istanbul.

The recommendations of the conference will be included in "The OIC 2025 Action Plan", encompassing the adoption of the OIC Youth Strategy, he said.

Haji Chishty said that under the leadership of its Secretary General, Iyad Ameen Madani, the OIC has declared youth engagement in the Islamic world as one of its key priorities and the member-states have made investing in youth their main priority.

"This is the first time India -- which is home to the world's second largest Muslim population after Indonesia -- has been invited to the OIC forum. In fact, since nearly a decade, India's application for an OIC membership or getting observer status has been denied due to Pakistan's objections," explained the 33-year old Haji Chishty.

He said Russia, which is not an Islamic nation but has a substantial Muslim population, has been granted observer status at OIC. So why should India not get membership or at least an observer status, he wondered.

By current projections, he said, India is expected to house the largest chunk of the world's Muslim population by 2050 -- from the existing 176 million or 11 percent of the world's Muslims, to over 300 million. India will be followed by its neighbour Pakistan (9.9 per cent), Indonesia (9.3 per cent), Nigeria (8.4 per cent) and Bangladesh (6.6 per cent).

"Under such a changing scenario, it would be unjust for Indian Muslims to be deprived of a voice in a major forum like the OIC to share their aspirations and expectations on the world arena," pointed out Haji Chishty.

He said the latest development came after pursuing with the OIC authorities for over two years since the last ICYF-DC held in Istanbul in 2014, even as the OIC has acknowledged that one-third of the Islamic population by 2050 would comprise youth.

Haji Chishty is also in communication with the Indian government to revive its application for OIC membership and simultaneously lobbying with the OIC leadership to grant India some kind of formal entry.

Haji Chishty describes the upcoming event as "an excellent window of opportunity to showcase Indian Muslim youth, their achievements, the challenges they face in the future and their role as Indian Muslims on the world stage".

Contrary to belief, he said Muslim countries have notched an impressive record in terms of youth education with 24 OIC member-states achieving literacy levels of 97 per cent or more.

However, at the other extreme, there is Niger (23.5 per cent) with the lowest rate of literacy in the OIC, above whom are Guinea (31.4 per cent), Burkina Faso (39.3 per cent), Benin (42.4 per cent) and Afghanistan (47 per cent).

On the employment front, of the 76 million unemployed youth or 13.1 percent as per ILO in 2013, the situation was alarming in the Middle East at (27.2 per cent) and North Africa (29.4 per cent), with Mauritania and Guyana notching 40 per cent plus figures, he said.

Besides, there are other youth-related issues like early marriages, with 27.3 per cent being performed before the age of 18, with prevalence maximum in Bangladesh (29.1 per cent) and Chad (29 per cent). This needs to be regulated in terms of age and consent for a better future for the youth and their children, Haji Chishty said.

Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/in-a-first-indian-to-addressorganisationof-islamic-countries-global-youth-meet/articleshow/54560709.cms

If ISIS Could Vote In Our Election, It Would Choose Donald Trump

September 27, 2016

Countless foreign affairs experts (including plenty of Republicans) and weathered military brass all agree: Donald Trump is grossly unfit to be Commander and Chief. But in reality, it’s not just that Trump lacks presidential qualifications; is that he’s uniquely qualified to make things a lot worse.

It’s already happening. ISIS is using Donald Trump as a recruitment tool, galvanizing support and boosting their momentum.

Think of it this way: if ISIS is a fire that we have to put out, having no access to water or a fire hose would render one unfit to fight it. However, the frightening truth is that Trump and his Republican backers are actively, willingly, and ignorantly throwing gasoline on the flames.

If you don’t trust U.S. politicians, then at least trust U.S. enemies: ISIS is rooting for a Trump presidency because it gives them a leg up. But why?

First, the ISIS worldview is simple: They see the world as believers vs. non-believers, divided between land governed by their version of Islam and the lands of its enemies. ISIS fears religious freedom and secular society, which is why their main goal is to “destroy the gray area of coexistence.” ISIS approves of Western Islamophobia, because it fuels their binary “us vs. them” doctrine; they gain power and support from the irresponsible and hateful brand of divisiveness Trump flings around when he solicits cheers for anti-Muslim rhetoric — like he did when he insulted the family of a fallen Muslim-American soldier.

What’s more, scholars agree that Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S. is outright illegal under U.S. and international law, citing the U.S. Constitution’s equal protection clause and the First Amendment’s doctrine of freedom of religion. It’s not just illegal, it’s also not possible: there’s no ‘religion’ column on passports. So Trump’s nonsensical proposal has the sole effect of playing into ISIS’s narrative–basically doing their dirty work for them.

This isn’t all just theory, either. In a new analysis, Foreign Affairs magazine recently interviewed ISIS supporters, and according to a former ISIS fighter and self-identified jihadist, “We don’t need to convince Muslims in the Middle East that the West is against them … The next step for the Islamic State is to reach Muslims in America and Europe.” Another said, “Congratulations to us on the victory of Trump! Sit back and relax and watch the end of America at his hands.”

From the same Foreign Affairs analysis, another man who left ISIS said that ISIS wants to make the West an “incubator” for locally inspired attacks. ISIS is currently using video footage of Trump’s anti-Muslim sentiments around the attacks in Brussels and Orlando to recruit and galvanize support.

And since ISIS is losing ground on its home turf in the Middle East, they’re increasingly focusing their propaganda less on battles in the region and more on the Trump-type content that will encourage homegrown terrorism and lone-wolf attacks in the U.S. and Europe. Picture a room full of jihadi social media operatives splicing islamophobic Trump-isms into their recruitment videos, woven between footage of beheadings — what more do they need to justify their hateful narrative?

In an increasingly combative election, one of the few things we still all agree on is countering ISIS’s ideology and evil mission. Donald Trump, however, seems intent on designing”‘policies” and advancing an attitude that plays right into their hands, both ideologically and operationally. He claims that he alone can keep the country safe, but he’s actually singularly bad for our national security–and our enemies are taking notice, and using his rhetoric as fuel.

It all boils down to a simple question all American voters must ask themselves: If ISIS would vote for Donald Trump, why would you?

Kevin Samy is a political Partner at the Truman National Security Project and a communications strategy consultant. Views expressed are his own.

Source: nationalmemo.com/if-isis-could-vote-in-our-election-it-would-choose-donald-trump/

Arab World

ISIL Forcing People to Send Children to Terrorists' Schools

September 28, 2016

"ISIL has only two schools in Yarmouk camp. One in al-Aroubeh neighborhood for boys and another one in Hajar al-Aswad neighborhood for girls," the sources said.

"People in Yarmouk have denied registering their kids in ISIL-established schools and the Takfiri group has threatened to whip those people who do not comply with its rules," the sources said.

"ISIL is, meantime, trying to mandate a Wahhabi method of education in Southern Syria in its schools that have only eight students," the sources said.

Full report at:en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001034

Christian and Muslim Syrian Children to Unite In Prayer for an End to Violence

September 28, 2016

Aleppo, Syria, Sep 26, 2016 / 04:17 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Christian and Muslim children of Aleppo, Syria will gather together in prayer on October 6 to plead for an end to the violence and devastation in their city and country.

Archbishop Boutros Marayati, the head of the Armenian Catholic archieparchy in Aleppo, told a mission society news agency that the initiative will involve mostly primary school-aged children, who will add their signatures and fingerprints to an appeal to all world leaders, asking them to help stop the violence.

"But above all, they will pray. They will pray for all of their peers,” the Archbishop told Agenzia Fides, the information service for the Pontifical Mission Societies.

“And we trust in the fact that children's prayer is more powerful than ours," he added.

Last month, the bloodied, dusty face of five-year-old Omran Daqneesh, sitting shell-shocked in the back of an ambulance after his house had been bombed, brought new attention to the plight of Syrian children caught in the crossfires of the ongoing war. Since then, many more photos and videos of children caught or killed in the rubble have emerged, sparking increased humanitarian pleas on their behalf.

The already dire situation in Syria has only worsened in recent days and weeks as an attempted ceasefire collapsed and other diplomacies failed. Since Friday morning, hundreds of airstrikes have battered neighborhoods in rebel-held eastern Aleppo, killing an estimated 100 people and leaving at least 50 more, including children, trapped under the rubble.

The recent use of so-called bunker-busting bombs, which weigh about a ton and can blast through two meters of underground, reinforced concrete have only added to the horror and destruction in the past few days.

A humanitarian truce, called for by the United Nations and brokered this month by the United States and Russia, fell apart less than a week after its institution after U.S. forces struck a Syrian position killing dozens of soldiers, though the move was reportedly unintentional.

The Syrian civil war, which began in March 2011, has claimed the lives of between and estimated 280,000 and 470,000 people, and forced 4.8 million to become refugees, about half of them children. Another 8 million Syrians are believed to have been internally displaced by the violence.

The civil war is being fought between the Syrian government’s regime and a number of rebel groups. The rebels include moderates, such as the Free Syrian Army; Islamists such as the Army of Conquest and the Islamic State; and Kurdish separatists.

Catholic leaders in the city, including Archbishop Jean-Clement Jeanbart of Aleppo, have made continual appeals to the international faith community for prayers and humanitarian aid.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said last week that the continued fighting and horror in Aleppo shows the failure of the international community.

"The Syrian tragedy shames us all," he said. "The collective failure of the international community should haunt every member of this Council.

Source: catholicnewsagency.com/news/syrian-children-to-unite-in-prayer-for-an-end-to-violence-23245/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=email

ISIL Tax Officials Flee Iraq's Kirkuk with Huge Cash

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Over half a dozen ISIL tax-collecting officials fled the Iraqi city of Hawija, taking large amount of money and properties with themselves.

"A sum of eight ISIL tax officials disappeared with 600 million Iraqi dinars (equal to $500,000) in Hawija in the Southwestern part of Iraq," a local source in Kirkuk province said.

The source noted that after the ISIL fled the Hawija city, the terrorist group started wide-scale search, but it has not found anything yet.

In mid-April, the ISIL terrorist commanders have fled the Iraqi city of Mosul to Syria, taking large amount of money and properties with themselves.

Sheikh Osama, ISIL's operations commander near Mosul dam, has escaped to Syria with a large amount of cash.

ISIL's trade office manager known as Abu Hazem who had access to huge amount of cash has also fled Mosul city.

Two other ISIL commanders named Abu Omar and Abu Hajar have also escaped from Mosul.

In a relevant development in early March, a senior lawmaker disclosed that the ISIL terrorists were escaping from the city of Mosul to the Syrian borders after the Iraqi forces' joint operations in Anbar and Salahuddin provinces and as the country's armed forces were preparing to attack Mosul.

"The military operations of Iraq's joint armed forces in Anbar province and Western part of Salahuddin have caused the withdrawal of the ISIL from Mosul in Nineveh province and the terrorists fleeing toward the Syrian borders," Ahmad Al-Jabouri told FNA.

The Iraqi lawmaker reiterated that the ISIL has lost swathes of lands due to the recent military operations of the Iraqi forces in the Western provinces of Iraq.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001017

Iraqi Army Starts Fresh Military Operations to Win Back Key Region

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iraq's joint military forces started fresh military operations near Ramadi to seize back a strategic area in the Western part of Anbar province.

"The Iraqi forces kicked off their military operations to take control of al-Doulab region in Northern Ramadi," the Arabic-language media quoted a senior commander of Anbar Liberation Operations as saying on Wednesday.

The Iraqi security forces, counterterrorism department and the country's federal police have joined hands to seize back al-Doulab region.

Al-Doulab region is located 70 kilometers to the West al-Ramadi and to the Northwest of the city of Heet.

Since mid-2014, al-Doulab region has been under the ISIL occupation and terrorists have used the region for dispatching bomb-laden vehicles to the other parts of Anbar province.

On Friday, Iraq's Joint military forces managed to seize back the strategic region of al-Baghdadi after fresh advances against the ISIL terrorist group.

Al-Baghdadi region on the Northern banks of the Euphrates River came under the Iraqi forces' control.

The Iraqi army has made considerable advances in Ramadi, Heet and Haditha regions in Anbar province.

Last Wednesday, the Iraqi security forces and tribal fighters managed to liberate four villages Northwest of al-Baghdadi region from the ISIL control.

“The Iraqi Army’s Seventh Division as well as the police and tribal forces managed to liberate the villages of Ebla, Abu al-Ela, al-Sawer and al-Judafiya in al-Baghdadi region, 90 kilometers West of Ramadi,” Commander of Anbar Liberation Operation General Ali Ibrahim Dboun said in a statement.

“These forces raised the Iraqi flags over a number of buildings in those villages,” he noted.

“The liberation process of the villages came after the killing of 23 ISIL terrorists and the destruction of two booby-trapped vehicles driven by suicide bombers,” the commander concluded.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000848

Iran's Top Security Official Blasts US for Disloyalty to JCPOA

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Shamkhani slammed Washington for not fulfilling its ukndertakings under the nuclear deal reached betwn Tehran and the six world powers (the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany) last year, saying that the European negotiators have also acknowledged this.

"The US is not fulfilling its undertakings under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the Europeans have also admitted Washington's lack of commitment," Shamkhani said.

He also pointed to the meetings held between the Iranian and G5+1 top officials on the sidelines of the 71st UN General Assembly meeting in New York, and said, "Iran has briefed the G5+1 officials about the US non-compliance.

Shamkhani said the US refusal to sell civilian aircraft to Iran and Washington attempts to hinder banking and financial relations with Iran also stand in the list of Washington's disloyalties and non-compliance with its nuclear deal undertakings.

The top security official, meantime, criticized the European countries for following suit and failing to reassure their banks to enter business with Iran.

In mid-August, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif underlined that a Joint Commission would hold sessions soon to discuss the US disloyalty to the JCPOA.

"We will have another session of the Joint Commission to discuss the US violation of commitments and some other issues in the near future," Zarif told reporters.

The Iranian foreign minister noted that the commission has convened whenever deemed necessary, and said, "Necessary solutions to problems have always been worked out during the meetings."

Earlier in August, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and senior negotiator Seyed Abbas Araqchi warned the US and other world powers against breaching the contents of the nuclear deal signed with Tehran last year.

"There are still some laggings, negligence and disloyalty by the other side and we confront them very strongly and remind the other side of its responsibilities," Araqchi said after meeting the Iranian legislators in Tehran.

Stressing that Iran will pursue and act against any shortcomings and lagging of the world powers in implementing the nuclear deal, he said that if needed, the legal procedures stated in the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (the nuclear deal) will be paved (in case of facing the other sides' violation of the agreement).

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000947

Another ISIL Drone Shot Down in Iraq

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iraqi volunteer forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) shot down another drone of the ISIL terrorist group in al-Qayyara region in Nineveh province.

"The drone was downed in al-Qayyara region located 65 kilometers to the South of Nineveh and was equipped with a camera that the ISIL used for monitoring the movements of Iraq's security and tribal forces," Iraqi MP from Nineveh province Ahmad al-Jabouri said.

In late August, Deputy Governor of al-Rataba Emad al-Dailami announced that the Iraqi security forces had shot down an ISIL drone in the town of al-Rataba.

"The downed drone was equipped with a camera that the ISIL used for monitoring the movements of Iraq's security and tribal forces," he added.

In mid-may, a security source in Iraq's Salahuddin Province announced that the Iraqi security forces had shot down a drone belonging to the ISIL terrorist group in Eastern Tikrit.

“Security forces stationing in oil facilities in Ajil oil field, 40 km East of Tikrit, dropped a drone while hovering over the field,” the source said in a statement, Iraqi News reported.

“It was found out that the drone was a hostile aircraft used by ISIL for espionage," the source added.

“The Iraqi security forces fired at the drone and were able to shot it down near Ajil field in Eastern Tikrit," the source explained.

Also in mid-April, the Iraqi volunteer forces shot down another spy drone in al-Jarayeshi region in Al-Anbar province in Western Iraq.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001075

Syrian Army Continues to Advance against Terrorists in Northeastern Hama

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Syrian Army soldiers pushed the terrorist groups back from more positions in Northeastern Hama and captured a small but key town in the region.

Syrian army men inflicted major losses and casualties on the militants and seized back al-Talisiyeh.

Tough battle is underway between the Syrian military forces and militants in the town of al-Sha'aseh.

Earlier reports said that Syrian Army troops and the country's fighter jets stormed terrorists' positions in Southern Idlib and Northern Hama, destroying at least 13 tanks and armored vehicles.

The army soldiers, backed up by warplanes, targeted the terrorists' defense lines in Ma'an, Taybat al-Imam, Morek, Tal Bazam and Ma'ardes.

Meantime, Syrian government forces and warplanes stormed the terrorist groups' strongholds in Ba'arbou, al-Tamanna, Khan Sheikhoun and Ma'arat al-Nu'aman.

Three tanks, four armored vehicles and six machinegun-equipped vehicles were destroyed and a number of terrorists were killed or wounded in the attacks in Idlib and Hama.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001138

Syrian Bombers Hit Militants in Khan Touman as Aleppo Battle Enters Sensitive Stage

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Syrian fighter jets intensified their airstrikes on militants' positions in Aleppo on Wednesday as the soldiers of President Bashar al-Assad continue to recapture more lands in the province.

The Syrian warplanes carried out combat flights over terrorists' positions in the strategic town of Khan Touman and surronding areas in Aleppo province, inflicting major loss and casualties on the terrorists.

The air raids killed and wounded scores of militants and also demolished several military vehicles which were equipped with heavy machine guns.

The latest reports from Syria indicats that the country's army and popular forces, backed by Syrian and Russian Air Force, continue advances in Aleppo province, forcing the terrorist groups to push back from several strategic territories, military bases and vital supply routes.

The Syrian Army Command Center has called on civilians to leave militant-held districts of Aleppo as soon as possible, vowing to launch a large-scale operation in the Eastern neighborhoods of the city to route out militancy.

The Syrian Army Commander Center in Aleppo said the government forces are getting ready to launch a large-scale operation in the Eastern districts of Aleppo, urging the remaining civilians near terrorist centers to move to safer districts or regions.

Meantime, Syrian army planes, for their parts, have dropped thousand of surrender-now leaflets over the terrorist-held districts in Aleppo.

The General Staff of Syria's Armed Forces said on Sunday that the recent advances of the Syrian army and popular forces in Aleppo caused scores of terrorist groups' commanders and religious leaders to leave the militants alone in the battlefield and move to Turkey with a large amount of stolen funds.

"Religious and military leaders of Jeish al-Fatah coalition are fleeing the battlefields in Aleppo. It is a long time that they have been trapped in Aleppo districts. They are hopeless. They are fleeing to Turkey with the money they received from the backers of the terrorist groups and the money they took by force from civilians in Aleppo," the General Staff the Syrian Armed Forces said.

In the meantime, one of the commanders of the Free Syrian Army (FSA), in an audio file, disclosed that a number of commanders of the terrorist groups have left their forces alone and have Escaped to Turkey.

"You commanders, who stole a large amount of people's money and fled the battlefields, you have been trading the Syrian people's blood," the audio file said, adding, "Where are the religious leaders of the militants fleeing now, those who once claimed they were close to the God."

Syria has been mired in bloody war since March 2011, with government forces loyal to Syrian President fighting numerous terrorist groups.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001121

Foreign States Supply Militants with New Missiles in Response to Syrian-Russian Operation in Aleppo

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Several foreign states have given rebels surface-to-surface Grad rockets of a type not previously supplied to them in response to a major Russian-backed offensive in Aleppo, a militant commander revealed on Wednesday.

The Grad rockets with a range of 22 km and 40 km have been supplied in excellent quantities and will be used on battlefronts in Aleppo, Hama and the coastal region, rebel commander Colonel Fares al-Bayoush told Reuter on Wednesday.

While Grad missiles have previously been supplied to rebels, Bayoush underlined that it was the first time this particular type had been delivered.

Each salvo contains 40 rockets, he said, without giving further details. The rebels had previous stocks of the rocket captured from army stores, he added.

The militant commander claimed that there was as yet no sign of the rebels being supplied with anti-aircraft missiles they have demanded, while other terrorist groups, including Fatah Al-Sham (Nusra) Front and ISIL have already started using such weapons systems.

A video posted on YouTube on Monday showed Free Syrian Army (FSA) militants firing Grad missiles at Syrian government positions near Aleppo. Meanwhile, Bayoush confirmed the weapons being fired in the video were newly supplied.

Militant groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army banner have received military aid from states opposed to President Bashar al-Assad via a US-backed coordination centre in Turkey.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707001165

Syrian Commander: Israel Activating Operations Room in Quneitra

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- A senior commander of the Golan Regiment in the Syrian army disclosed that Israel has activated an operations room in the Southwestern province of Quneitra near its border with Syria to aid the Fatah al-Sham (Nusra) Front terrorists.

"The recent terrorist attacks in Quneitra, codenamed by the terrorists as 'the Southern Qadesiya Operations', clearly showed the Zionist regime's support for the terrorist groups in Southern Syria," Arwa Satter told FNA on Wednesday.

He referred to Israel's activation of an operations room in Syria's Jabat al-Khashab region of Quneitra, and said in their recent offensive, 600 terrorists, who had been called from Dara'a, took order from the Zionists' operations room and sought to take control of al-Rabe'a or Sha'ban bases in Northern Quneitra but they failed given the army and the resistance forces' timely reaction.

"The army and its allies are ready to repel the terrorists' heavy offensives in this region as well as any new Zionist or Zionist-led aggression," Satter said.

Meantime, Israeli media disclosed that Tel Aviv has deployed a number of drones in the Golan Heights to detect the Syrian Army's movements in the region.

Israeli media said these reconnaissance drones will play a crucial role in monitoring military developments in Southern Syria, particularly in the Golan Heights.

"These drones are equipped with advanced cameras able to take images from very far distances. The drones also can identify people in their cars," the media sources claimed.

Terrorist groups fighting against Syrian government and army have been provided with Israeli intelligence and air support frequently.

The Israeli military aircraft have violated Syrian territories to back the terrorist groups' offensives on government forces' positions near the Golan Heights in Quneitra.

In a last case, the Syrian army shot down a drone, a fighter jet and a hellicopter of the Israeli regime earlier this month.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000815

Iran Captures ISIL Terrorists Plotting to Blow Up University of Tehran

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Secretary of Iran's Expediency Council (EC) Mohsen Rezayee disclosed that the country's security forces have captured a number of ISIL terrorists who plotted to carry out suicide attacks at the University of Tehran.

"The ISIL has entered Iran but our security and Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) forces have detained a large number of them," Rezayee said, addressing a gathering in Tehran on Tuesday night.

"Three months ago, this group sought to carry out suicide operations at the University of Tehran during the Friday prayers but they were arrested on their way between Hamedan and Kurdistan provinces (Western Iran). They were due to be equipped with bombs in Tehran to carry out their mission," he added.

His remarks came after reports said on Tuesday that the Iranian security forces identified and captured members of an Iraq-based terrorist group near the Western town of Marivan in Kurdistan province.

Members of the terrorist team that, local security officials said, has been dispatched by a "group whose main base is in Northern Iraq" were captured by the security forces after they were sighted at a garden in Savoji village.

According to officials, they sought to start terrorist operations in Iran with the support of two unnamed Iranians, "but their plots were nipped in the bud".

A number of weapons and military equipment, including three Kalashnikov weapons, 16 magazines, a large number of bullets, night goggles and cell phones were seized from the terrorists.

Also, earlier this month, the Iranian intelligence and security forces dismantled a team of 12 terrorists sent by "Saudi Arabia and certain trans-regional states to foment insecurity in Iran".

The terrorist team which was equipped with light and semi-heavy weapons and intended to carryout sabotage acts inside Iran was disbanded in the Western bordering areas of Sardasht city through cooperation with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) forces.

Reports said in September that ten terrorists of the outlawed Democrat Party were also killed in armed clashes with the Iranian border guards in the Western province of Kurdistan.

The terrorists who were trying to sneak into the country through the Western Iranian borders in the village of Baneh and Khalfi in Sardasht region, sought to foment insecurity in Iran's Kurdistan province.

Based on the latest information, 10 terrorists of the outlawed group were killed during the clashes.

Early July, the IRGC forces had also disbanded an anti-revolutionary cell in Western Iran which plotted to sneak into the country for sabotage acts, killing all its 11 members.

"An 11-member anti-revolutionary group affiliated to the outlawed Democrat Party sought to enter Iran but the intelligence officials of Kurdistan (province)'s IRGC force monitored them since the very first moment," Commander of Kurdistan's IRGC force Brigadier General Mohammad Hossein Rajabi told FNA at the time.

Noting that the IRGC forces blocked the group's move towards their destination and pushed them towards Kouhsalan district of Sarvabad region after 10 days of tracing, he said, "It was there that our forces killed all the 11 members of the team."

Three local IRGC forces were also killed in clashes with the outlawed group.

IRGC Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Mohammad Pakpour announced at the time that Kaveh Javanmard, a commander of the anti-revolutionary group, was killed in the Western parts of Iran.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000987

Syrian Fighter Jets Pound Gatherings of ISIL, Fatah Al-Sham across Homs Province

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Syrian warplanes launched heavy airstrikes on the concentration centers of ISIL and Fatah al-Sham Front (the newly-formed al-Qaeda-affiliated terrorist group previously known as the al-Nusra Front) in Eastern and Northern Homs respectively, inflicting major damage on the terrorists' hardware.

ISIL's centers East of the ancient city of Palmyra (Tadmur) near the village of Um al-Qabibeh were badly targeted in the airstrikes, while other combat jets of the Syrian army hit Fatah al-Sahm's strongholds in al-Rastan.

Both ISIL and Fatah al-Sham suffered heavy casualties and their military equipment sustained major damage in the attacks.

Reports said earlier today that Russian warplanes targeted a long convoy of ISIL vehicles carrying a large number of fresh terrorists heading towards Deir Ezzur province, inflicting major loss and casualties on the column.

Russian fighter jets hit the ISIL convoy near the villages of al-Shoulah and al-Sukhnah along the highway connecting Homs to Deir Ezzur, killing or wounding scores of fresh fighters.

In the meantime, a command center of ISIL terrorists in the desert small town of Arak near the ancient city of Palmyra (Tadmur) was attacked by the Russian fighter jets.

Several vehicles of ISIL were destroyed in the air raids.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000843

Yemeni Speaker Asks for Iran's Help, Blasts Arabs' Attempts to Display Parliament as Illegitimate

September 28, 2016

TEHRAN (FNA)- Yemeni Parliament Speaker Yahya Ali al-Raee in a letter to his Iranian counterpart Ali Larijani called for Tehran's assistance to reconstruction efforts in his country, and lambasted certain Arab states' attempts to question legality of the legislature.

"Coming under aggression by foreigners and facing with the terrorist groups' crimes in many provinces, the Yemeni nation pins hope on those who have always stood beside them," al-Raee wrote in his letter released on Wednesday.

He called for the Iranian nation and government's further assistance to the Yemeni people in the reconstruction of their war-torn country.

Stressing that the Yemeni parliament has taken its legitimacy from the constitution, al-Raee rapped certain Arab states for their attempts to display the country's legislature as illegal.

Saudi Arabia has been striking Yemen since last March to restore power to fugitive president Mansour Hadi, a close ally of Riyadh. The Saudi-led aggression has so far killed at least 10,800 Yemenis, including hundreds of women and children.

Despite Riyadh's claims that it is bombing the positions of the Ansarullah fighters, Saudi bombers are flattening residential areas and civilian infrastructures.

According to several reports, the Saudi-led air campaign against Yemen has drove the impoverished country towards humanitarian disaster.

Source: en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950707000708

South Asia

Taliban recruiting children as soldiers in their ranks: Ghor officials

Wed Sep 28 2016

The Taliban militant group and other irresponsible militant groups are recruiting children as soldiers in their ranks, local officials in Ghor province said.

Zabiulalh Jawad, the provincial Independent Human Rights Chief, has told RFERL that they have credible evidences and documents to prove that Taliban are recruiting children to fight for the group.

Provincial governor’s spokesman, Abdulhai Khatebi confirmed the remarks by the Independent Human Rights Commission, saying the group is actively recruiting childre in the ares under their control.

The recruitment of children as soldiers is not in Afghanistan specifically by militant groups formed to fight the Afghan government.

The group is also accused of forcing the young women and girls to marriage in a bid to match the atrocities committed by the main group in Syria and Iraq.

Source: khaama.com/taliban-recruiting-children-as-soldiers-in-their-ranks-ghor-officials-01965

IS Releases First Propaganda Video Filmed Inside Bangladesh

Tue Sep 27 2016

A propaganda video that features footage of five men who carried out an Islamic State-claimed terrorist attack in Dhaka in July was filmed in Bangladesh, officials there acknowledged, with one expert suggesting that the terror group had expanded its influence in the South Asian nation.

The video was released online on Sept. 24, two days after the five slain militants were buried in Dhaka, according to a statement sent to BenarNews by the Singapore-based International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research.

“This is the first official IS Bengali video released by a media unit identified as Bengal,” the statement said.

Senior Bangladeshi officials, who have long denied an Islamic State (IS) presence in Bangladesh, repeated that claim even while acknowledging that footage in the 15-minute film was recorded on home soil.

“This is an old video. It was made of some small pieces of videos freely available. The video was made in some parts of Bangladesh, and they sent it abroad. What I always say is that these militants are home-grown, not foreign. The IS is from Syria and Iraq. Can anyone show a Syrian or Iraqi fighting in Bangladesh?” Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal told BenarNews.

“Our investigators have been examining the video and we have yet to find out who filmed it,” the home minister said.

“We have not eliminated all the militants; some of them are still active. They released the video to cheer up the militants who are still out of our net,” he said, adding that the government had blocked circulation of the video.

Consolidating

The new video calls for Bangladesh’s democratically elected government to be toppled and replaced with an Islamic caliphate. It includes graphic images of the butchered remains of hostages who were among 20 slain during an overnight siege at the Holey Artisan Bakery café in Dhaka on July 1.

“They urged Muslims to join IS and kill infidels wherever they find them, and threatened Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, and the anti-terrorism unit Rapid Action Battalion,” the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research statement said of the video’s soundtrack.

“With IS facing mounting territorial losses in Syria and Iraq, the establishment of an IS Bengali media unit suggests that IS is consolidating its influence and strength in Bangladesh, asserting that it remains strong and capable of spreading its ideology and terror internationally in the face of setbacks,” it said.

The men who appear in the video are the same ones pictured in images of the alleged attackers released by Islamic State’s propaganda wing shortly after the attack. They have since been identified by police and through DNA testing as Rohan Ibn Imtiaz, Mir Sameh Mobashwer, Nibras Islam, Khairul Islam Payel and Shafiqul Islam Ujjal.

These men were members of Neo-JMB, a faction of home-grown militant group Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh that espouses IS ideology, according to officials.

Second Bengali video

The video is the second Bengali-language IS propaganda video to appear online since the attack.

In the older video, released in July, three men praised the attack, warning of more terrorist acts to come. That video was shot in Raqqah, the group’s Syrian stronghold, according to SITE Intelligence, a U.S.-based group that monitors jihadist material online.

Retired Brig. Gen. Shahedul Anam Khan, a security analyst, said the new video was shot in a rural location inside Bangladesh to show IS leaders in the Middle East that supporters had been active in Bangladesh.

“The recent video was filmed at an isolated place. It was recorded much before the Holey Artisan attack. The militants had the plan to stage a massacre, escape the scene and later claim the responsibility through the video message,” the analyst told BenarNews.

“The newly recruited members of the JMB are very highly educated. The government may deny that IS presence. But it is a harsh truth that they [IS] have attracted … some educated youths from Bangladesh,” Khan said, referring to some of the slain café attackers who came from well-to-do families.

“The Muslims, the Hindus and other faiths have been living in Bangladesh for centuries. But they want to destroy the multicultural heritage of this land. They have brainwashed the youths through wrong interpretation of Islam,” said Khan, referring to IS and JMB.

The new video also threatens some Bangladeshi Muslim clerics who have spoken out against militant groups. These include Maulana Farid Uddin Masud, president of the Bangladesh Jamatul Ulema, who spearheaded a fatwa against extremism in Bangladesh.

“Islam has not come into being to kill people. The militants’ Islam is not Islam,” Masud told BenarNews in commenting on the new propaganda video.

Source: benarnews.org/english/news/bengali/is-propaganda-09272016170432.html

Taliban splinter group welcomes signing of peace deal by Hezb-e-Islami

Tue Sep 27 2016

A splinter group of the Taliban led by Mullah Rasool welcomed the signing of a draft peace agreement between the Afghan government and Hezb-e-Islami led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar.

Sources close to Hezb-e-Islami have said Mullah Rasool has endorsed the party’s stance and signing of the draft peace agreement with the Afghan government.

The sources further added that the endorsement by Mullah Rasool faction of the Taliban is based on the stance of Hezb-e-Islami to work for the withdrawal of the foreign forces from the country.

The Mullah Rasool has also called on other militant groups including the main Taliban group to adopt a similar stance as Hezb-e-Islami and work for the liberty of the country, the sources added.

The endorsement by Mullah Rasool group comes as the Taliban slammed Hekmatyar for signing of the draft peace agreement, calling his move as ‘a major crime’.

“Not only will he face the wrath of Allah for leaving jihad, but he has committed a major crime,” the group said in an article published in its website.

Hezb-e-Islami is the first militant group to sign a draft peace agreement with the Afghan government following a call made by the government to join peace process in a bid to end the ongoing violence through reconciliation process.

The Taliban group however rejected the plea and announced its spring offensive in April this year forcing the Afghan government to give up peace efforts and respond to Taliban’s insurgency with military option.

Source: khaama.com/taliban-splinter-group-welcomes-signing-of-peace-deal-by-hezb-e-islami-01959

Top ISIS leaders among 18 killed in East of Afghanistan

Wed Sep 28 2016

At least 18 loyalists of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terrorist group were killed in an airstrike in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan.

The provincial police commandment said Wednesday that a commander of the terror group and a shadow judge were among those killed.

According to the provincial police commandment, the commander of the terror group has been identified as Qari Hamza while the shadow judge was identified as Mohammad Khan.

The airstrike was carried out in the early hours of Wednesday morning targeting the militants of the terror group in Shedal area of Achin district.

It is yet not clear if the airstrike was carried out by the US forces or the Afghan Air Force.

The loyalists of the terror group have not commented regarding the report so far.

The latest airstrike comes as reports have emerged from the area suggesting that the loyalists of the terror group have started regaining control of the areas lost to the Afghan forces.

The Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) launched a major operation in districts under the control of ISIS loyalists around two months ago.

The operations were launched amid concerns that the loyalists of the terror group are attempting to expand foothold in the country.

Source: khaama.com/top-isis-leaders-among-18-killed-in-east-of-afghanistan-01963

President Ghani and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar to sign peace deal tomorrow

Wed Sep 28 2016

President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani and leader of Hezb-e-Islami will sign the peace agreement during a major ceremony scheduled to be organized in ARG Presidential Palace tomorrow.

Over 500 prominent political figures are expected to participate in the ceremony for the signing of the peace agreement as Hekmatyar will participate in the ceremony through video teleconference, Hekmatyar’s son, Habib-ur-Rehman Hekmatyar told Tolo News during an exclusive interview.

Habib-ur-Rehman further added that the international community has agreed to lift restrictions and sanctions on Hezb-e-Islami and meetings have been organized with the key embassies in Kabul in this regard.

He said the party will focus to compensate to the families of the victims who sustained losses during the jihad times against the Soviet forces and at least 80,000 families are registered with Hezb-e-Islami.

The draft peace agreement between Afghan government and Hezb-e-Islami party was signed during a ceremony organized in a compound of Afghanistan High Peace Council on Thursday.

The Afghan National Security Adviser Mohammad Hanif Atmar signed the agreement on behalf of the Afghan government while Mohammad Amin Karim signed the agreement on behalf of the delegation of Hezb-e-Islami.

The Afghanistan High Peace Council chief Pir Syed Ahmad Gilani and the High Peace Council deputy chief Ata-ur-Rehman were also present during the signing of the agreement.

The agreement was signed today after almost six months of continued negotiations between the Afghan High Peace Council and the delegation of Hezb-e-Islami.

Source: khaama.com/president-ghani-and-gulbuddin-hekmatyar-to-sign-peace-deal-tomorrow-01962

US releases $100 million for Afghanistan through new development partnership

Wed Sep 28 2016

The United States government released $100 milion for Afghanistan through the new development partnership, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said Tuesday.

The funds were released following the signing of an agreement between the US government and Ministry of Finance of Afghanistan.

“As part of the ongoing commitment by the U.S Government to improve the welfare of the Afghan people, the release of these funds is tied to the Afghan government’s achievement of specific development results and implementation of key policy reforms, including improved revenue collection, reducing corruption and reducing poverty by helping the poor and marginalized, especially women,” USAID said in a statement.

The statement further added that USAID concluded verification of the results and associated indicators under Tranche III of the NDP for mid-year 2016. USAID and the Ministry of Finance have agreed that the GNU is eligible to receive $100 million for achievements of result indicators of fundamental development reforms that will improve the welfare of the Afghan people.

“Linking U.S. assistance funding to achievable and important development results enables the Afghan government to implement its reform agenda, while increasing Afghan ownership and transitioning to a more Afghan-led development approach,” said William Hammink, Assistant Administrator, USAID/Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs.

“NDP is an effective mechanism that aligns U.S. assistance with the Afghan government’s reform agenda. As an on-budget funding modality, it has given the Afghan government the required fiscal space to implement its development priorities that will improve the lives of the Afghan people,” said the Minister of Finance, Eklil Hakimi.

The U.S. Agency for International Development will continue to work with the Ministry of Finance to help advance the Afghan government’s achievement of further milestones, each of which would trigger the release of additional funds. The New Development Partnership is anticipated to provide incentive funds of up to $800 million through 2018.

With almost $17 billion spent on development programs in Afghanistan since 2002, USAID provides the largest bilateral civilian assistance program to Afghanistan. USAID partners with the government and people of Afghanistan to ensure economic growth led by the country’s private sector, to establish a democratic and capable state governed by the rule of law, and to provide basic health and education services for all Afghans.

Source: khaama.com/us-releases-100-million-for-afghanistan-through-new-development-partnership-01964

7 Afghan students disappear from military facilities in US

Wed Sep 28 2016

At least 7 Afghan military students sent to US for training have disappeared from the military facilities, it has been reported.

According to the local media reports, citing sources in Pentagon, the military students from Afghanistan disappeared during the ongoing month.

A Pentagon spokesman Patrick L. Evans has confirmed to Fox News that four students were considered absent without leave, or AWOL, from International Military Student programs over the Labor Day weekend, and three more during the September 17-18 weekend.

Two of the four students disappeared during the Labor Day were from Fort Benning in Georgia, one from an Army facility in Little Rocks Arkansas and one from Fort Lee in Virginia.

Another local newspaper, the Washington Free Beacon, reported that the officials have since accounted for at least two of the Afghans — who may have left the US.

This comes as military launched a search after two Afghan airmen disappeared from Moody Air Force Base in Georgia in December last year.

According to the officials, one of the two men was found six weeks later in Virginia, possibly seeking political asylum while the whereabouts of the second man remained unclear.

Source: khaama.com/7-afghan-students-disappear-from-military-facilities-in-us-01961

Post Uri attack, prevailing situation not conducive for SAARC summit: Bangladesh envoy

September 28, 2016

New Delhi [India]: With four of the eight South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations deciding to boycott the November summit in Islamabad, Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Syed Muazzem on Wednesday said the prevailing situation was not conducive for holding a successful meeting, especially after the Uri terror attack.

Muazzem told ANI, “Even before the Uri attack, Bangladesh did not take part at the ministerial level in both home and finance minister’s conference. So, it was almost a fore grown conclusion that our Prime Minister may not attend the SAARC summit in Pakistan. But, we still have kept our options open. But after the Uri attack, the situation as it prevails in the region, we believe is not conducive towards holding a successful SAARC summit. We have to defer the SAARC summit for a better time when peace and tranquillity will be restored in the region.”

Asserting that Bangladesh did not take part in SAARC Home Ministers and Finance Ministers conference, Muazzem said they had merely tried to indicate that Pakistan has been interfering in all internal affairs of its neighbours.

“Pakistan has interfered in terms of our judicial decisions as well as the executive order those relating to the trail of war communists. Pakistani envoy was regularly called to our ministry and we had expressed that they should not meddle, but they have continued. Bangladesh also believes that Pakistan has continued to assist and aide the home-grown terrorists, who from time to tie create problems. Pakistan has been asked time and again to desist from doing such an act, but I believe we still continue to differ from this,” he added.

Holding Pakistan responsible for creating an un-conducive situation for holding the summit at this stage, Muazzem said, “SAARC basically tries to promote regional cooperation and we can promote cooperation when we are at peace with each other. Bangladesh has never harboured terrorists.”

Muazzem said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took a very firm decision on this and she had promised that Bangladeshi territory would never be used for launching any attack against any of the neighbouring countries, adding that she had been very steadfast in the implementation of this.

Asserting that Bangladesh would like to continue with the SAARC process, Muazzem expressed hope that there would be a change in the Pakistani mindset and they would come back to the path of cooperation, instead of confrontation.

“We want the same pledge from other member countries. Pakistan has continued to interfere in the internal affairs. I didn’t see the interference from any other member countries. Basically, I don’t want to jump to a final conclusion at this stage, but as you know, we have tried to side by side promoted sub-regional cooperation…Bangladesh, India, Bhutan and Nepal, so far our sub-region is concerned,” he added.

Dubbing the non-participation of four SAARC members from the summit as a ‘setback’, Muazzem said Bangladesh would like to include Pakistan in order to promote regional harmony and cooperation.

“We would also like them to follow the path of peace and tranquillity. We have communicated this to the SAARC chairman, who will take the final decision. As per the charter of the SAARC, it requests the presence of all heads of states and government to be present at the SAARC summit because all decisions are taken on the basis of unanimity. So, when four-member countries are not going to take part in the SAARC summit, obviously the SAARCS summit cannot take place in Pakistan,” he added.

While pointing out that there had been postponement of the SAARC in the past as well, the Bangladesh High Commissioner to India said on each occasion, SAARC has decided to restore the situation and then it was possible to hold the summit.

“So, we are hopeful that we will be able to restore peace in our region and we will be able to hold the SAARC summit soon,” he said.

Reacting on Pakistan’s interference in the judicial matters of Bangladesh and supporting the home-grown terrorists, Muazzem said, “The war criminals who were tried in the Bangladeshi courts…we had a war crime tribunal and they were given the full opportunity to defend themselves. The tribunals also had the provision for an appeal by the normal Supreme Court review committee. Then it went through the process of clemency and eventually their execution.”

He said the war crimes tribunal process was transparent in accordance with its own Constitution.

“Pakistan has continued to question the trial procedure as well as the impartiality of the tribunal, which we construe as nothing but interference in our internal affairs, because courts are completely free and independent of an executive or any other branch.Basically we have seen during 2013 and 2014 that a lot of home-grown terrorists who were throwing these cocktail bombs, we have reasons to believe they have got supply routes from Pakistan,” he added.

After India said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will not be going to Islamabad to attend the 19th SAARC Summit, scheduled to take place in November, Afghanistan, Bhutan and Bangladesh have also pulled out of the meet.

The SAARC summit cannot take place even if one of the eight members withdraws.

India yesterday announced that it would not attend the summit conveying the current SAARC Chair Nepal that in the prevailing circumstances, the Government of India is unable to participate in the proposed Summit.

Source: siasat.com/news/post-uri-attack-prevailing-situation-not-conducive-saarc-summit-bangladesh-envoy-1029910/