A UN and UK-led pledging conference opens on Thursday designed to alleviate the Afghanistan humanitarian crisis but a former interpreter for the British army has urged the international community to recognise that the Ukraine conflict is overshadowing the plight of his countrymen.
Nazir Ayeen, who risked his life serving with the Royal Marines and Scots Guards on the front line in Helmand for three years, fears that the victims of the war waged in Afghanistan are being overlooked with Russia’s ongoing invasion dominating news headlines.
Mr Ayeen, 32, told The National that it was time for the West to make amends for its disavowal of Afghanistan that amounted to a “conscious violation of human rights standards”, and not look away to the next crisis.
“The conflict in Ukraine is escalating,” he said. “It’s a reality of the current state of global politics but it doesn’t mean that Afghanistan is not a priority for the world.
“Afghanistan is a nation that stood by the West, by the UK and America for 20 years. For the values of human rights and democracy, they shed their blood — and it was not so the world would forget them and allow them to be ruled by the Taliban.”
The virtual conference on Thursday is designed to bolster a badly flagging relief effort — the UN’s largest ever appeal for a single country — that aims to raise $4.4bn for the 24 million Afghans facing acute food insecurity and a breakdown in social fabric.
Decades of conflict, compounded by last year's chaotic withdrawal of western troops and subsequent Taliban takeover, imminent economic collapse and the worst drought in 30 years have created unprecedented levels of need.
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said that the UK, which is co-hosting the UN Afghanistan Conference, has pledged a further $365m of emergency aid.
“The UK is rallying countries in support of the Afghan people and helping lead the way in providing life-sustaining food, shelter and medical supplies,” Ms Truss said. “Together with allies and partners, we can do more and will do more to help Afghanistan.”
Mr Ayeen, however, doubted that the level of support offered would be enough, warning that without the right mechanism any funding raised risked not only falling short of the intended recipients but into the wrong hands.
“There is a problem of administration funds that go from the international community to the Taliban,” he said.
Mr Ayeen fled Afghanistan in 2013 after receiving death threats from the Islamic fundamentalist group because of his work with the British Army, including translating during the high-profile VIP visits of Prince Charles and former foreign secretary William Hague.
He believes that the Taliban has used Ukraine war as cover for implementing an increasingly hard-line domestic agenda.
“They are making their policies very strong in Afghanistan. As we can see now, girls are not allowed to go to school under the Taliban regime, as they promised and did not act on it.
“The political problems are still in place in Afghanistan and the Taliban are opportunistic — they will be using the situation to their own benefit. They have not disconnected the relationship with the other terrorist networks and there are even reports that some other terrorist networks are operating in Afghanistan within the hub of Taliban regime.”
Taliban danger lies in unpredictability
A cohering ideology has never been as central to the Taliban as other extremists such as Al-Qaeda and ISIS but, Mr Ayeen said, that means its actions are more unpredictable.
“It doesn't have a certain political mandate for itself; it's just a barbaric terrorist affiliated group.
“So anything is possible within the Taliban regime, especially when it comes to conflict, violence, terrorism and these things.”
As someone who was granted asylum in the UK several years ago, Mr Ayeen has kept a close eye on the thousands of fellow Afghan refugees rescued from the Taliban last year only to find themselves languishing in hotels.
“There hasn't been enough attention on them from the government,” Mr Ayeen said. “From the 16,000 that the government employed in Afghanistan, only 4,000 have arrived to the UK, and they have not been placed in suitable accommodation.
“It's very obvious that Afghans are living in uncertainty in some places of the UK, and some of them have even begun to suffer from psychological and psychiatric problems.”
Afghan evacuees arrive in Europe — in pictures
Many Afghans fear an unending bureaucratic limbo before they can fully resettle in the UK and build independent lives.
“The Home Office also has cropped the Afghans from its priorities,” he said. “Promises were made to bring another 20,000 people to the UK by the government, but no scheme or package has been announced in relation to that so far.”
Mr Ayeen, who is due to begin a master's course in politics at Birkbeck, University of London, noted that the response to Ukraine refugee crisis has been far bigger in scale than that for the collapse of Afghanistan last summer.
He said the outpouring of western support for the displaced Ukrainians proved three points. “Firstly, it's an image of retaliation against Russia. Secondly, it is support to Nato. And thirdly, it is a display of discrimination against other war-torn countries like Afghanistan in the Middle East.”
His anger at the West over its role in the collapse of Afghanistan is such that he wants a full-scale inquiry to hold global decision-makers to account.
According to a statement released by the foreign office ahead of Thursday’s pledging conference, aid organisations are warning that more than 24 million people — or 60 per cent of the population, including 10 million children — need humanitarian assistance to survive.
It says that needs are 30 per cent higher than last year and acute hunger is a daily reality for half the population. Basic health, education and other services are severely strained, livelihoods have been crushed and households are spending 80 per cent of their meagre income on food.
“As a result of international negligence, the Afghan people are suffering,” Mr Ayeen said. “My plan is to launch an independent inquiry to force institutions and governments to answer for what happened to Afghanistan and why Afghans have to suffer the way they are at the moment.”
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Zayed Sustainability Prize
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The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
Top investing tips for UAE residents in 2021
Build an emergency fund: Make sure you have enough cash to cover six months of expenses as a buffer against unexpected problems before you begin investing, advises Steve Cronin, the founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com.
Think long-term: When you invest, you need to have a long-term mindset, so don’t worry about momentary ups and downs in the stock market.
Invest worldwide: Diversify your investments globally, ideally by way of a global stock index fund.
Is your money tied up: Avoid anything where you cannot get your money back in full within a month at any time without any penalty.
Skip past the promises: “If an investment product is offering more than 10 per cent return per year, it is either extremely risky or a scam,” Mr Cronin says.
Choose plans with low fees: Make sure that any funds you buy do not charge more than 1 per cent in fees, Mr Cronin says. “If you invest by yourself, you can easily stay below this figure.” Managed funds and commissionable investments often come with higher fees.
Be sceptical about recommendations: If someone suggests an investment to you, ask if they stand to gain, advises Mr Cronin. “If they are receiving commission, they are unlikely to recommend an investment that’s best for you.”
Get financially independent: Mr Cronin advises UAE residents to pursue financial independence. Start with a Google search and improve your knowledge via expat investing websites or Facebook groups such as SimplyFI.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
RESULTS
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Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Result
Arsenal 4
Monreal (51'), Ramsey (82'), Lacazette 85', 89')
West Ham United 1
Arnautovic (64')
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
Health Valley
Founded in 2002 and set up as a foundation in 2006, Health Valley has been an innovation in healthcare for more than 10 years in Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
It serves as a place where companies, businesses, universities, healthcare providers and government agencies can collaborate, offering a platform where they can connect and work together on healthcare innovation.
Its partners work on technological innovation, new forms of diagnostics and other methods to make a difference in healthcare.
Its agency consists of eight people, four innovation managers and office managers, two communication advisers and one director. It gives innovation support to businesses and other parties in its network like a broker, connecting people with the right organisation to help them further
Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
T20 WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS
Qualifier A, Muscat
(All matches to be streamed live on icc.tv)
Fixtures
Friday, February 18: 10am Oman v Nepal, Canada v Philippines; 2pm Ireland v UAE, Germany v Bahrain
Saturday, February 19: 10am Oman v Canada, Nepal v Philippines; 2pm UAE v Germany, Ireland v Bahrain
Monday, February 21: 10am Ireland v Germany, UAE v Bahrain; 2pm Nepal v Canada, Oman v Philippines
Tuesday, February 22: 2pm Semi-finals
Thursday, February 24: 2pm Final
UAE squad:Ahmed Raza(captain), Muhammad Waseem, Chirag Suri, Vriitya Aravind, Rohan Mustafa, Kashif Daud, Zahoor Khan, Alishan Sharafu, Raja Akifullah, Karthik Meiyappan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Zafar Farid, Mohammed Boota, Mohammed Usman, Rahul Bhatia
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
