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| Afghanistan |
| UN envoy sez Taliban still a threat to Afghanistan |
| 2006-03-15 |
| A revitalised Taliban is the main threat to Afghanistan, the head of the United Nations mission there said, as a wave of violence sweeps the country struggling to become a viable democracy. Lack of security and weakness of Afghanistan's new government institutions, especially in outlying areas, are the major problems facing the country, the top UN envoy in Afghanistan, Tom Koenigs, told the UN Security Council. "The major challenge at this moment is to prevent the Taliban reconfigurate and create an environment of insecurity and threat all over the country," Koenigs later told reporters. "There is always the presence of suicide bombers who create an insecure environment." A wave of suicide bombings and attacks on schools have rocked Afghanistan as insurgents step up their battle to oust foreign forces and overthrow the Western-backed government. Four Afghan policemen and six Taliban insurgents were killed in the latest violence on Tuesday, as authorities searched for four Macedonians the Taliban said it kidnapped and killed. The Taliban, which harboured al-Qaeda and was ousted by US-led forces in 2001 after the September 11 attacks on the United States, is regrouping in some areas, Koenigs said, but details were scarce. "We only know that not all the Taliban leaders have been captured and there are incidents where the Taliban claimed responsibility," said Koenigs. "So they are still there, and people fear - particularly in the southern region - that they hide either on this or the other side of the border. "It will be vital for the Afghan government to extend its reach to under served areas of Afghanistan," Koenigs said in his briefing to the council. Koenigs asked the Security Council to expand the mission he heads, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), so it can support the government better in the field in outlying areas. The Security Council is discussing a 12-month renewal of UNAMA's mandate, which expires March 24. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #3 Tom finally broke from meal long enough to pick up a newspaper. |
| Posted by: Thinemp Whimble2412 2006-03-15 19:24 |
| #2 That's why he gets the Big Bux and the Vulture Elite ID card. |
| Posted by: Glert Thetch2165 2006-03-15 11:32 |
| #1 Thank goodness we have the UN to tell us these things. Otherwise, how would we have known? |
| Posted by: Chinter Flarong9283 2006-03-15 11:26 |