Iftar Timings Mar 29 - Ramazan 18

Lahore
LHR
06:20 PM
Karachi
KHI
06:47 PM
Islamabad
ISB
06:26 PM
Peshawar
PWR
06:31 PM
Quetta
QTA
06:49 PM

News

Ex-Afghan minister says timing of US exit irresponsible

August 31, 2021 11:02 PM


Nargis Nehan, a former member of Afghan president Ashraf Ghani's cabinet who days ago fled Afghanistan for Norway, on Tuesday condemned  the US handling of the withdrawal from Afghanistan.

"The US have been in Afghanistan for 20 years, staying one more year longer wouldn't have made any difference for them, at least financially as well as politically," Nehan told AFP from Oslo where she is staying in quarantine after arriving last week.

Nehan, who previously served as acting Minister of Mines and Petroleum, said the withdrawal was "mismanaged" and "irresponsible" and  with a delayed exit evacuations could have been handled in an organised manner and enabled a real agreement between the government and the Taliban.

"President Joe Biden could have said that by end of September 2022 I want zero troops in Afghanistan. But until that time I want to make sure that we have a political settlement between the government and the Taliban and that we have also evacuated all our employees and local partners," Nehan said.

The former minister, who explained that she resigned in October of 2019 over frustration that she lacked the political support to enact reforms in the sector, said she fled to Norway after her driver was shot by unknown assailants the day the Taliban took over.

As her driver, who survived the attack, was not a high profile individual, Nehan and her family believed she had been the intended target.

"I had worked in the government as well as in the civil society and I have been a very vocal, activist and politician. So when you're very vocal you create enemies," Nehan said.

She also said the way things were left meant that a lot of the money and effort invested over the last two decades had been wasted.

"Basically, the over two trillion of investments that were done by the international community and as well as blood, and mostly blood of Afghans. They just let all of it go and it's very disappointing that we see nobody holds them accountable," Nehan said.

In addition, Nehan worried that the sense of abandonment experienced by many Afghans would foster a sense of grievance against the international community, leading to a breeding ground for extremism.

"That's my fear... we'll see much more extremism coming from Afghanistan," Nehan said, adding that it would be fuelled "out of poverty, and out of that feeling of betrayal and grievances that they have."

 

 



Most Read

  1. Man murders young sister by smothering her with pillow in Toba Tek Singh Man murders young sister by smothering her with pillow in Toba Tek Singh
  2. Aitchison College students, parents stage protest against principal’s resignation Aitchison College students, parents stage protest against principal’s resignation
  3. Five Chinese among six killed in Shangla suicide bombing Five Chinese among six killed in Shangla suicide bombing
  4. Sahiba meets her father for the first time Sahiba meets her father for the first time
  5. Maaz Safder regrets 4-year relationship with wife Saba Maaz Safder regrets 4-year relationship with wife Saba
  6. ‘Khaie's incredible ending receives rave reviews and big applause ‘Khaie's incredible ending receives rave reviews and big applause

Opinion

  1. IMEC to sabotage CPEC
    IMEC to sabotage CPEC

    By Dr Asif Channer

  2. 1947 TO FORM 47
    1947 TO FORM 47

    By Dr Asif Channer

  3. Beijing wants to further highlight industrial sector in its country and take scientific innovation to new heights....
    Beijing wants to further highlight industrial sector in its country and take scientific innovation to new heights....

    By Ali Ramay

  4. Global race: China will reduce its unnecessary expenses
    Global race: China will reduce its unnecessary expenses

    By Ali Ramay

  5. Channer Pir: The Great Saint of Cholistan
    Channer Pir: The Great Saint of Cholistan

    By Dr Asif Channer

  6. Literate the Religious Illiterate
    Literate the Religious Illiterate

    By Dr Asif Channer