Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Invites Taliban’s FM To Islamabad

During this meeting, the head of the Asian Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed the Taliban delegation that China does not intend to interfere in Afghan affairs, but hopes the Taliban will address some of the reasonable concerns of the global community regarding the formation of an inclusive government.

A joint delegation from the Taliban's ministries of foreign affairs, commerce, mines, refugees, and disaster management engaged in discussions with representatives of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on the WeChat social media platform that this session, with the participation of Liu Jinsong, Director-General of the Department of Asian Affairs of the Foreign Ministry, and Taliban representatives, took place on Tuesday in Beijing.

The ministry expressed China's expectation for the main countries responsible for the current situation in Afghanistan to fulfil their responsibilities earnestly and return Afghanistan’s frozen funds to the Afghan people.

Discussions also encompassed trade relations, economic cooperation, and humanitarian assistance.

According to information provided by Chinese representatives at the meeting, trade between China and the Taliban amounted to $1.33 billion in the past year.

The Taliban's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a press release concerning this meeting, said that discussions encompassed the mechanisms for economic reconstruction in Afghanistan, enhancing trade, capacity building, and fostering cooperation in the mining and trade sectors.

The Taliban reported that China has expressed willingness to offer assistance of 100 million yuan (approximately $13 million) for the resettlement of displaced Afghans.

According to this press release, discussions also touched upon the potential opening of the Hairatan-Delaram corridor and the commencement of mining operations in Logar province.

Although China has not officially recognised the Taliban government as the legitimate authority in Afghanistan, it has accepted the group's ambassador.

The Taliban has claimed that American drones enter Afghanistan from neighbouring countries' airspace.

On Wednesday, Sher Afzal Marwat, a member of the Pakistani National Assembly, stated that Pakistan has handed over two of its airbases in Balochistan, near the borders with Afghanistan and Iran, to the United States.

Patel, on Thursday, in response to a question from Aref Yaqubi, a reporter of Afghanistan International, regarding these reports and security cooperation between Pakistan and the US, stated that he would defer this matter to the Defence Department for an explanation.

In recent weeks, unmanned aircraft have been spotted in the skies of various Afghan cities, including Kandahar. These drones are part of United States’ efforts to monitor terrorist groups in Afghanistan and conduct targeted attacks against them.

While not explicitly naming Pakistan, the Taliban has accused neighbouring countries of Afghanistan of allowing these drones to traverse their airspace.

According to the EurAsian Times, rumours and reports of the US using Pakistani bases escalated after General McKenzie, the former CENTCOM commander, told a US Senate committee regarding the necessity for the Biden administration to engage with Afghanistan's neigh-boring countries to prevent quasi-militants of ISIS and Al-Qaeda from operating outside Afghanistan.

Pakistan, among Afghanistan's neighbours, maintains close military ties with the US and has previously granted permission for the US to utilise its territory against al-Qaeda.

The issue of handing over Pakistani airbases to the US has been contentious in recent years within Pakistan. Following the US attack on Afghanistan, Pakistan allowed its airbases, including the Shamsi Airfield in Balochistan, to be used by the US forces in their fight against the Taliban. However, the US later evacuated the base.

With the withdrawal of US forces from Afghanistan and the conclusion of their military presence in the country, the debate over the United States' use of Pakistani airbases had been raised again. During this time, Imran Khan's government has refrained from granting access to these bases to the US.

According to Hizb-ut-Tahrir, the Taliban detained its members following a meeting.

On Wednesday, in a statement, the party urged the Taliban to release its members and denounced their detention as "illegal”.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir is an Islamist extremist group whose activities are banned in several countries, including Russia and Central Asia.

Amrullah Saleh, former Afghan government Vice-President, had also stated in February 2021 that Hizb-ut-Tahrir is not registered with the Ministry of Justice and does not have the right to organise gatherings or preach.

After the takeover of power, the Taliban prohibited the activities of this party and Jamiat Eslah Afghanistan, an Islamist social institution in Afghanistan.

The Taliban had previously detained members of Hizb-ut-Tahrir in various provinces of the country.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir, active in several countries, seeks to revive the caliphate in Islamic governments. In its statement, the group wrote that the Taliban in Afghanistan "has more potential to become a caliphate than any other system in the world”.

Sources report that Taliban’s intelligence agents arrested Taseer due to an audio message on the messaging app, WhatsApp.

Taseer has been under Taliban detention for nearly two weeks. Hamdullah Nasar, the Taliban's director of information and culture in Ghazni, confirmed the arrest last Thursday.

Nasar accused Taseer of "insulting sacred values and norms" on his social media page, although no further details were provided.

Moreover, the Hindukush site, which is linked to Taliban’s intelligence, released an audio clip showing Taseer in a verbal altercation with a mullah on WhatsApp, where he also insulted a friend.

Despite the accusations, a source informed Afghanistan International's Pashto service that Taseer's detention followed the publication of a report by Radio Free Europe. They suggested that while the journalist's report was the actual cause of the arrest, an audio message discovered on his phone post-detention is now being cited by the Taliban as the reason for his detention.

It is a common practice for Taliban agents to review the messages of civil activists and journalists on social networks and WhatsApp following their arrest.

The Afghanistan Journalists’ Center has called for the unconditional release of Habib-ur-Rahman Taseer.

The Centre also reported that Taliban’s intelligence agents seized all of Taseer's belongings, including his phone, during the arrest.

In the past two and a half years, the Taliban has detained and tortured numerous journalists, with many still remaining in captivity.

The protest has drawn significant attention both in traditional media and on social networks, with many expressing sympathy and support for the retirees, urging the Taliban to acknowledge and respect their rights.

Retirees shared their plight with Afghanistan International, revealing that after years of dedicated service, they now find themselves stripped of all legal entitlements. "With widespread poverty and unemployment in the country, we have no other means to support ourselves," one message read.

One retiree voiced his despair, stating, "I served this land for forty years. Now, as an old and disabled man, how can I provide for my family when there is no work available?" He added that many elderly employees and officials are in distress, uncertain about their future.

The protesters demanded that the Taliban adhere to national and international laws regarding their pensions. The pensions for these retired government employees have been unpaid since the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021.

In a recent move, Hibatullah Akhundzada, the Taliban's leader, issued a directive to all military and civilian government offices to cease deductions for retirement contributions, effectively eliminating the pension system in the country.

It is reported that Afghanistan employs over 400,000 civilians and about 148,000 military retirees. According to media sources, the required budget to pay the annual pensions of these 148,000 retirees exceeds 12.5 billion Afghanis, equivalent to approximately 175 million dollars.