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RAWALPINDI: Pakistani forces on Sunday killed several militants affiliated with Jamaat-ul-Ahrar after bombing their hideouts in Afghanistan near the Pakistan border, media reported on Sunday.

According to the reports, Pakistani troops "successfully" targeted the hideouts of Jamaat-ul-Ahrar across the border and inflicted huge casualties on them near the Rena area.

The Afghan sources said that a high-value target known for recruiting terrorists and training suicide bomber, Rehman Baba, was also gunned down. They added that at least 12 terror sanctuaries, including a hideout and weapon depot camp of Jammat-ul-Ahrar`s commander Wali, were also pounded by the forces, Geo News reported.

Pakistani forces targeted terrorists based across the Pakistan-Afghan border, following a week of deadly terrorist attacks in the country in which over 100 people were killed.

Just hours before the first military operation, the Pakistan Army summoned Afghan diplomats to its headquarters in Rawalpindi and handed over a list of terrorists involved in staging attacks inside Pakistan.

The army demanded that Afghanistan launch a crackdown against militants targeting Pakistan.

It was Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, which is believed to have havens in Afghanistan, that claimed the responsibility for the repeated acts of terrorism across Pakistan in the past few days.

Pakistan has repeatedly warned Afghan authorities to prevent the use of its soil for terror activities in Pakistan.

Pakistan has seen a sudden increase in terror attacks with almost nine attacks in one week. The attacks were being largely seen as a well-planned and orchestrated attempt to destabilise Pakistan as the country.

On Thursday, at least 88 people were killed, when a suicide bomber attacked the crowded Sufi shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar in Sehwan, injuring over 200 others, according to the Director General of Health Services, Sindh.

Link:
Pakistan Army launches second massive assault in Afghanistan - Economic Times

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign and Security Policy and VicePresident of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, and the Minister of Finance of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Eklil Hakimi, today signed a Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development (CAPD), in the presence of the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani.

"The European Union has always stood by the Afghan people and will continue to do so. After the very successful international conference we have jointly chaired in Brussels last year, now our cooperation grows even more. The Cooperation Agreement we have signed today will allow us to build on the areas that we already engage with the Afghan authorities on, such as human development, anti-corruption, state building, and the rule of law, as well as cooperation on migration. This agreement is a partnership agreement by name and by nature. The European Union will keep working with our Afghan partners for the stability and the sustainable development of the country, for the sake of all Afghans," said the High Representative/Vice-President, Federica Mogherini.

Minister Hakimi underlined that: "The Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development (CAPD) is a vital new framework for partnership between Afghanistan and the European Union. This agreement builds on our mutual commitments for stability and development made in Bonn in 2011, in Tokyo in 2012, in London in 2014 and renewed at the Brussels Conference on Afghanistan last year. It also formalises our partnership and provides an opportunity to strengthen friendship and cooperation between Afghanistan and the EU by conducting regular political dialogue on various fronts including on support for peace, security and development in Afghanistan and the region. I thank Ms. Mogherini, on behalf of the EU, for opening up a new chapter in the Afghanistan-EU relationship.

The Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development is the first contractual relationship between the Union and Afghanistan and establishes the legal framework for EU-Afghanistan cooperation. The agreement confirms the EU's commitment to Afghanistan's future development during the "Decade of Transformation" (2015-2024). It will provide a basis for the EU's ongoing support to Afghanistan in the implementation of its comprehensive and detailed reform programme.

The CAPD reflects the principles and conditions for the EU-Afghanistan partnership, with an emphasis on holding regular dialogue on political issues, including human rights, in particular the rights of women and children, which are essential elements of this agreement. The Agreement will provide the basis for developing a mutually beneficial relationship in an increasing range of areas such as the rule of law, health, rural development, education, science and technology, as well as actions to combat corruption, money laundering, the financing of terrorism, organised crime and narcotics. It also foresees cooperation on migration. The Cooperation Agreement will also enable the EU and Afghanistan to jointly address global challenges, such as nuclear security, non-proliferation and climate change.

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European Union and Afghanistan sign Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development - EU News

Joint Press Release: The European Union and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan sign Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development.

The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign and Security Policy and VicePresident of the European Commission, Federica Mogherini, and the Minister of Finance of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Eklil Hakimi, today signed a Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development (CAPD), in the presence of the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ashraf Ghani.

"The European Union has always stood by the Afghan people and will continue to do so. After the very successful international conference we have jointly chaired in Brussels last year, now our cooperation grows even more. The Cooperation Agreement we have signed today will allow us to build on the areas that we already engage with the Afghan authorities on, such as human development, anti-corruption, state building, and the rule of law, as well as cooperation on migration. This agreement is a partnership agreement by name and by nature. The European Union will keep working with our Afghan partners for the stability and the sustainable development of the country, for the sake of all Afghans," said the High Representative/Vice-President, Federica Mogherini.

Minister Hakimi underlined that: "The Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development (CAPD) is a vital new framework for partnership between Afghanistan and the European Union. This agreement builds on our mutual commitments for stability and development made in Bonn in 2011, in Tokyo in 2012, in London in 2014 and renewed at the Brussels Conference on Afghanistan last year. It also formalises our partnership and provides an opportunity to strengthen friendship and cooperation between Afghanistan and the EU by conducting regular political dialogue on various fronts including on support for peace, security and development in Afghanistan and the region. I thank Ms. Mogherini, on behalf of the EU, for opening up a new chapter in the Afghanistan-EU relationship.

The Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development is the first contractual relationship between the Union and Afghanistan and establishes the legal framework for EU-Afghanistan cooperation. The agreement confirms the EU's commitment to Afghanistan's future development during the "Decade of Transformation" (2015-2024). It will provide a basis for the EU's ongoing support to Afghanistan in the implementation of its comprehensive and detailed reform programme.

The CAPD reflects the principles and conditions for the EU-Afghanistan partnership, with an emphasis on holding regular dialogue on political issues, including human rights, in particular the rights of women and children, which are essential elements of this agreement. The Agreement will provide the basis for developing a mutually beneficial relationship in an increasing range of areas such as the rule of law, health, rural development, education, science and technology, as well as actions to combat corruption, money laundering, the financing of terrorism, organised crime and narcotics. It also foresees cooperation on migration. The Cooperation Agreement will also enable the EU and Afghanistan to jointly address global challenges, such as nuclear security, non-proliferation and climate change.

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European Union and Afghanistan sign Cooperation Agreement on Partnership and Development - ReliefWeb

ISLAMABAD

The International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC, called Saturday for the safe and unconditional release of two staff members abducted in northern Afghanistan earlier this month.

The abductees were part of an ICRC convoy transporting food for livestock of poverty-stricken farmers in the northern Jowzjan province on February 8 when they were ambushed, allegedly by Islamic State militants.

The assailants killed six ICRC employees before taking two others to an unknown location, according to Afghan security officials.

Operations suspended

The charity has since suspended its humanitarian operations across the country, where millions of people are in urgent need of aid because of the intensification of a Taliban-led insurgency.

We call on the abductors sense of humanity and request the immediate, safe and unconditional release of our colleagues and to avoid taking any action that could endanger their lives a statement Saturday quoted the ICRCs country chief, Monica Zanarelli, as saying.

We do not want the agony and heartache of this tragedy to deepen, she added.

Zanarelli appealed to authorities and armed groups operating in northern Afghanistan to help secure the safe release of the two ICRC staff members. The deadly attack on its staff is the worst such incident against ICRC in the country.

Charity in country 30 years

The charity has been active in Afghanistan for three decades, impartially assisting victims of the conflict with medical care, food assistance, family contacts and the dignified handling of human remains.

Afghan authorities say they have been making efforts to locate the abductees, while the Taliban has distanced itself from the incident.

The Islamist insurgency has vowed to find and punish those behind the deadly attack, saying it respects ICRCs contributions in helping Afghans and has even called on the charity to resume its activities.

See the article here:
ICRC Appeals for Release of Staff Abducted in Afghanistan - Voice of America

ISIS launched an attack on Afghan security posts killing 17 soldiers, an Afghan official said Friday.

Ahmad Ali Hazrat, chief of the provincial council in the province, said the attack Thursday night took place in the Dih Bala district in eastern Nangarhar province.

Hazrat said ISIS fighters attacked army security posts from three directions and after several hours of heavy fighting, 17 army soldiers were dead.

General Doulat Waziri, spokesman for the Ministry of Defence, said soldiers killed 21 ISIS fighters.

Also on Friday, an Afghan provincial official saidTalibanforces stormed several Afghan security posts in easternKunarprovince, killing five police officers.

Provincial Gov. Waheedullah Kalimzai said the daring attacks lasted nearly two hours and were apparently co-ordinated but police, aided by other security officials, managed to repel the attackers and drove the insurgents from the area.

Kalimzai said another police officer is missing after the attack. He said Taliban fighters used heavy machine-guns and explosive devices in the assault. Kalimzai added that the Afghan police killed several Taliban fighters.

Afghanistan's eastern Kunar province borders Pakistan. Insurgency groups have a strong presence in the area.

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ISIS raid in Afghanistan kills 17 soldiers - CBC.ca