Top news in this Bulletin:

President Hamid Karzai will fly to Qatar within days to discuss peace with the Taliban and the opening of a political office for the group, Karzai's office said Sunday.

{youtube}4EpkiValOIw{/youtube}

Read more...

Dozens of houses and a mosque have been torched as communal violence spread in central Myanmar, officials said Sunday, defying authorities' efforts to quell deadly clashes between Buddhists and Muslims.

Fresh violence on Saturday night left more than 40 houses and the mosque in ruins in Yamethin township near the capital Naypyidaw, a ward official said, while unrest was also reported in three other villages in the area. "Most of the houses belong to Muslims," the Yamethin official said on condition of anonymity, adding no one was believed injured. "This kind of case has never happened here."

The latest flare-up began Wednesday in the town of Meiktila, 130 kilometres (80 miles) north of Naypyidaw, leaving at least 32 people dead and displacing about 9,000 more as neighbourhoods were razed.

The government announced an army-enforced state of emergency. More than 50 people were detained in connection with the violence, according to the information ministry, while people were also detained at the villages closer to the capital.

The clashes were a stark reminder of the challenge which Muslim-Buddhist tensions pose to Myanmar's quasi-civilian regime as it tries to reform the country after decades of iron-fisted military rule. It was the most serious religious conflict since violence between Buddhists and Muslims in the western state of Rakhine last year left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced.

Confirmation of the renewed violence came hours after a United Nations envoy visited the rubble-strewn streets of Meiktila and met some of the displaced from both communities. Vijay Nambiar, the UN special adviser on Myanmar, expressed sadness at the death and destruction but said residents want to rebuild their shattered lives.

Buddhist and Muslim leaders also Sunday spoke out publicly for the first time since the violence began, urging respect for the law and the maintenance of "community harmony with love and kindness".

An uneasy peace prevailed in Meiktila on Sunday, with shops reopening and police and army patrols keeping order after three days of rioting which saw armed mobs - including monks - take control of the streets.

But the fresh clashes elsewhere have borne out the fears of the international community, who had previously warned of the risks of the unrest spreading.

"Things happened so fast," said a woman in Yamethin, requesting anonymity. "Some people were destroying the houses... we have no idea who. We are so sorry. We do not want things to happen like this."

The township is beyond the remit of the state of emergency, signed by President Thein Sein, to enable the army to help restore order after last week's rioting. The decree was a significant move in a country trying to shake off the legacy of junta rule, which ended two years ago.

Myanmar's Muslims - largely of Indian, Chinese and Bangladeshi descent - account for an estimated four percent of the population of roughly 60 million, although the country has not conducted a census in three decades.

Religious violence has occasionally broken out in the past in some areas across the country, with Rakhine state a flashpoint for the tensions. Since violence erupted there last year, thousands of Muslim Rohingya - including a growing number of women and children - have fled the conflict in rickety boats, many heading for Malaysia.

Meanwhile, Buddhist and Muslim religious leaders have called for calm in violence-hit central Myanmar and urged the government to step up security for both communities, state media said Sunday.

The Interfaith Friendship Organisation called on the government "to lay effective security plans and provide security to people of the two communities".

The statement, signed by Buddhist and Muslim leaders and carried in the state-mouthpiece New Light of Myanmar, asked followers of different religions to obey the law and "maintain the community harmony with love and kindness".

The leaders are the first religious figures to speak out publicly since riots hit Meiktila, 130 kilometres (80 miles) north of the capital Naypyidaw, last Wednesday, leaving buildings torched and charred bodies in the streets.

Urging people from all communities to step back from violence, the Interfaith Friendship Organisation, which also includes Christian and Hindu community leaders, said the clashes were posing a threat to Myanmar's progress.

The conventional wisdom about Afghanistan runs something like this: The country is a lost cause. Almost nothing has changed. The people remain backward and thankless, and there is little benefit for the international community to stay engaged in the country's future.

Read more...

At least four people died and another person was injured when their car careened into a river in the east of Kabul province last night, local officials said Monday.

The incident took place in the Surbe district of Kabul yesterday evening when the car lost control and crashed into the river, district governor Shah Aghasi said.

"The bodies of four of the victims are missing, the rescue team is trying to find them. A man who was injured in the incident was taken in a nearby hospital," Aghasi said.

Four others including a woman who are missing are believed to have died, he said.

The passengers were travelling from Kabul to the east parts of Afghanistan, he added, saying he believed the incident happened because of driver neglect.

Pakistan Sunday finally selected a caretaker prime minister, a retired judge, to head up an interim administration to guide the country through its historic election period.

Read more...

A top official in the Pakistani Foreign Ministry has said that Afghan President Hamid Karzai is the "biggest impediment to the peace process" amid efforts for the two countries to work together to negotiate with the Taliban.

In an interview with Reuters, the official referred to Karzai's recent combative statements towards both Pakistan and the US accusing them of working with the Taliban to achieve their own aims.

"Right now, Karzai is the biggest impediment to the peace process. In trying to look like a saviour, he is taking Afghanistan straight to hell," the unnamed official told Reuters.

"I have absolutely no doubt that there will be complete chaos in Afghanistan if a settlement is not reached by 2014," he was quoted by Reuters. "Afghanistan will erupt. And when that happens, Pakistan will have to pay."

The comment comes as Karzai is headed to Qatar within days to discuss peace with the Taliban and the opening of a political office for the group, Karzai's office said Sunday.

Karzai will also use the visit to further Afghanistan-Qatar relations and meet the country's officials, Karzai's spokesman Aimal Faizi told TOLOnews.

The Taliban office has been planned for some time and was formally acknowledged as a step forward for peace negotiations during the UK, Afghanistan and Pakistan trilateral summit three months ago.

At least two civilians have been killed and six others have been injured in a roadside bomb blast in northern Faryab province, local officials said Monday.

The incident took place Monday morning in Faryab's Khaja Sabz district, when a civilian passenger vehicle struck the improvised explosive device in the road, according to the head of 303 Pamir Police Zone in north Afghanistan Media Office, Lal Mohammad Ahmadzai.

"The passengers were travelling from Loqman village to the capital of Khaja Sabz district. All of the victims were men," he said.

The injured have been taken to a nearby hospital, he added.

No group including the Taliban has claimed responsibility for the blast.

Insurgents frequently use improvised explosive devices to target Afghan and Nato troops, but most of the victims are civilians.

The US military handed over full control of the only US-run prison in Afghanistan to the Afghan government Monday, easing tensions over one of the longest-running standoffs between Kabul and Washington.

Read more...

Recently-appointed US Secretary of State John Kerry Monday arrived in Kabul in an unannounced visit to meet the Afghan President Hamid Karzai after weeks of heightened tensions between Kabul and Washington.

"Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Kabul today to reaffirm the US commitment to our strategic partnership with Afghanistan and to underscore our support for Afghanistan's ongoing security, political, and economic transitions," the US Embassy to Afghanistan said in a statement.

"Secretary Kerry will meet with President Karzai, other Afghan officials, and civil society groups to discuss how we can continue to work together to sustain the progress of the last decade and to advance our shared goal of a secure, stable, prosperous, unified, and sovereign Afghanistan," the statement added.

The two countries are in talks about a bilateral security agreement which may allow as many as 10,000 American troops to remain in Afghanistan after 2014 when the US and Nato combat soldiers are slated to withdraw.

President Hamid Karzai has harshly criticised the US in recent public speeches, accusing it of making deals with the Taliban in order to foment instability and so remain in Afghanistan after 2014, and also of hidden intentions to mine the country's natural resources.

Kerry's visit came the same day that the US military handed over full control of the only US-run prison in Afghanistan to the Afghan government.

The transfer of oversight for the prison has been repeatedly delayed over disagreements on how to handle some of the prisoners deemed dangerous by the US.

Most recently, the handover was scheduled to take place during the US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel's first trip to Afghanistan earlier this month, but it was cancelled amid American concerns that the Afghans would release prisoners, who would then rejoin insurgent forces.

A deal was finally struck between Hagel and Karzai by phone on Saturday where Karzai reportedly assured that dangerous prisoners would not be released.

The problems of insurgency and drug smuggling belong to all regional countries who should fight together to remove the harm caused by both, the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Monday.

Talking to senior officials from the 'Heart of Asia' countries who met in Kabul Monday, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Jawid Ludin said these two topics needed to be addressed at the upcoming Heart of Asia conference in April.

"No country can alone solve the problems that a country is faced with. Each country needs to create constructive relations with foreign countries and use those opportunities," Ludin said.

The 14-nation Heart of Asia conference will be held in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan, on April 25.

The conference aims to discuss and find solutions to matters that threaten lasting security and stability in the region.

"This is very important step, taking the into consideration that the Istanbul process combines different countries and strategies. We hope that conference in the coming month will be the next step," the special envoy of Kazakhstan to Afghanistan said.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (Unama) said these conferences are effective in helping there to be more cooperation between the regional countries.

The deputy Unama special envoy to Afghanistan Nicholas Haysom on Monday praised the joint efforts to stabilise the region and integrate more in order to achieve economic prosperity.

The Istanbul Process, launched by Turkey in November 2011, has often focused on the situation in Afghanistan at its meetings over the past 16 months.

Afghanistan's lawmakers on Monday said the priority for parliament in the next weeks will be the dismissal of those ministers whose development budgets were underspent in 2011 and the approval of the election law.

A number of MPs said that any further delay on the election law approval is a serious concern that threatens next year's presidential poll, which should not be delayed.

"Any kind of delay of the date of the presidential election is against Afghanistan's Constitution," MP Assadullah Saadati said in parliament.

Many lawmakers say that a transparent and fair election in 2014 can help improve Afghanistan's situation, and so insist on the need for the election law soon.

"Eighteen million voting cards have been distributed so far, but most of them are fake," MP Ghulam Hussain Nasiri said. "In addition, 11 million people have qualified to vote [since the last election]."

The distribution of new electronic voting cards was insisted on by the lawmakers last year as a necessary step to ensure the fairness of the poll. But President Hamid Karzai dismissed the demand as too costly and time-consuming.

Meanwhile, the 11 ministers who did not spend more than 50 percent of their development budgets in 2011 will be summoned and some will be dismissed.

The four ministers who were not in charge at the time of the poorly-managed spending - higher education, defence, interior, and urban development - will still be summoned for questioning, but may not necessarily be dismissed.

Parliamentary Secretary Eng. Ikram said that they will process the questioning and dismissal of the ministers in three steps.

"The impeachment of the ministers starts next Monday ," Eng Ikram said.

The Afghan national cricket team travelled on Monday to Nepal where it will face Oman in the Asian T20 Championship on Tuesday.

Read more...

Top news in this Bulletin:

The US military handed over full control of the only US-run prison in Afghanistan to the Afghan government Monday, easing tensions over one of the longest-running standoffs between Kabul and Washington.

{youtube}CPqw4axGm3c{/youtube}

Read more...

Top news in this Bulletin:

The US military handed over full control of the only US-run prison in Afghanistan to the Afghan government Monday, easing tensions over one of the longest-running standoffs between Kabul and Washington.

{youtube}CPqw4axGm3c{/youtube}

Read more...

As many as eight suicide bombers have attacked a police headquarters in eastern Nangarhar province Tuesday morning, killing five police officers and injuring four others, local officials said.

Severn civilians have also been injured in the attacks.

The incident took place about 04:30am local time in Jalalabad, the capital of the province, when an insurgent in a bomb-laden car detonated his vehicle in front of the Rapid Reaction Force headquarters to blast through the gate. Another seven attackers wearing bomb vests then stormed the compound, according to provincial spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai.

Three of the attackers blew themselves up inside the compound and the other four were shot by the security forces in a gunfight that lasted more than an hour, Abdulzai said.
He said that the insurgents were wearing uniforms similar to those worn by the US-led Nato coalition.

The Taliban said it is responsible for the attacks, claiming that dozens of Afghan security forces including Nato-led trainers were killed.

Some Nato forces are based in the compound, but according to Afghan officials none of them were hurt.

The attack comes a day after US Secretary of State John Kerry arrived in Kabul.

President Hamid Karzai Tuesday again met with US Secretary of State John Kerry in Kabul, a day after their first meeting aimed at furthering talks between Afghanistan and the US.

Karzai and Kerry had met Monday when the US Secretary arrived in Kabul as the only US-run prison in Afghanistan was handed over to full Afghan control.

Kerry's visit came the same month that Karzai publicly criticised US intentions in Afghanistan, accusing it of secret talks with the Taliban and a hidden agenda to mine Afghanistan's resources. His comments angered both US and Afghan officials who in turn accused Karzai of jeopardizing peace efforts for his own personal aims.

However, after Monday's private meeting, Kerry said at a joint press conference with the president that he had asked about those comments and was satisfied with Karzai's explanation.

"I am confident the president [Karzai] does not believe the US has any interest except to see the Taliban come to the table to make peace and that we are completely co-operative with the government of Afghanistan with respect to the protection of their efforts and their people," Kerry said.

"We're on the same page. I don't think there is any disagreement between us and I am very, very comfortable with the president's explanation," he added.

Karzai said at the press conference that his remarks were misinterpreted by the media and that he had been trying to make the point in his speech that if the Taliban really wanted foreign troops out of Afghanistan they should stop killing people.

He also said that Afghanistan wants to have good relations with US.

"When I say something publicly, it is not meant to offend our allies but to correct the situation," Karzai said. "I am responsible for the protection of the Afghan people. I am the president of this country. It is my job to provide all the protection I can to the people of this country."

Kabul and Washington are expected to sign a security agreement in the upcoming months which will govern the ongoing presence of US military in Afghanistan after the Nato combat mission ends in 2014.

Karzai has said he will decide on this agreement with careful consideration.

"The US is not leaving. They will not leave and we should ask them all our demands," Karzai said last week in a BBC Pashto programme.

There are around 100,330 foreign troops in Afghanistan - 66,000 of which are US - fighting insurgency under the Nato/Isaf banner alongside over 300,000 Afghan security forces.

The US and Nato troops are slated to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014 after a complete transition of security responsibility to the Afghan forces.

Australian Defence Minister Stephen Smith on Tuesday confirmed that most of Australia's 1,096 troops now in Afghanistan will return home this year.

Australia's main military base at Tarin Kowt in southern Uruzgan province will be closed by the end of 2013, Smith said at a press conference.

"It is a necessary and logical and natural consequence of the transition being effective," he said.

"The effect of that closure will be that Australia will no longer have a permanent presence in Uruzgan province, and the majority of Australian defence force personnel will return."

Most of the other 100,330 foreign combat troops under the Nato mission are due to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014 under a planned security transition from foreign forces to Afghans.

Around 39 Australian troops have been killed in the 11-year Afghan war, with 242 wounded.

However, Australia has not yet decided whether special forces troops will remain in Afghanistan next year or after 2014, Smith said. Previously, he has said Australia is waiting to see what the US decides to do about keeping troops in the country before Canberra makes its own decision.

Two people died, including a young child, and two were seriously hurt after an asylum-seeker boat capsized off Australia yesterday, but more than 90 were plucked to safety and taken ashore.

Read more...

In an interview with Reuters, the official referred to Karzai's recent combative statements towards both Pakistan and the US accusing them of working with the Taliban to achieve their own aims.

To watch the programme, click here:

{youtube}ddqka5WpS6Q{/youtube}

Read more...

Afghanistan's political parties fear that President Hamid Karzai may negotiate away some of the gains made against the Taliban in an attempt to secure a peace deal with the insurgent group.

Ahead of Karzai's visit to Qatar this week where he is expected to discuss peace options with the Taliban and the opening of the group's political office, government opposition groups in Afghanistan have called on him to be transparent about any promises made.

"Afghanistan's government gave privileges to the Taliban that mean the government cannot do anything, and now the government is trying in a last bid effort to put pressure on the Taliban to negotiate; but I think it has a weak position against the Taliban," National Coalition party member Eng Asim said.

The politicians said Karzai owes it to the Afghan people to be open about any verbal agreements he makes or is planning to make with the group.

"The president should inform the people what deals will happen there. The peace process is the issue of the Afghan people, so the people should know about it," deputy leader of the Right and Justice Party Moeen Marastyal said.

Although the aim of the talks are widely seen as the way to end the Taliban's use of violence to achieve its goals, some politicians view the talks as giving the insurgents more legitimacy than they deserve.

"The outcome of the trip will be to recognise a terrorist group as a political group. I think it goes against [Afghanistan's] constitution and the values of the last decade and the people's wishes ," National Front spokesman Sardar Rahimi said.

Karzai announced on Sunday that he will head to Qatar this week for the talks with the Taliban, although who he is meeting and for how long he will be there remains unclear.

The Taliban has repeatedly refused to negotiate with the Karzai government, declaring it a puppet regime of the Western powers.