KABUL: The Taliban on Monday warned Turkey against keeping its troops in Afghanistan to run and guard the Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul, adding that any country that opted to retain soldiers in the war-torn country after the US and NATO withdrawal would be treated as an “occupier.”
Turkey has more than 500 troops in Afghanistan as part of a non-combat NATO mission, with some soldiers training Afghan security forces and others serving at the international airport in the capital.
As NATO’s only Muslim member, Turkey’s non-combat troops have rarely been attacked by the Taliban or other insurgent groups in Afghanistan, with Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban, telling Arab News on Monday the group wanted “normal ties” with Ankara.
However, he rejected Ankara’s proposal that its troops stay behind to oversee Kabul airport’s operations.
“Turkey has been in Afghanistan for the past 20 years with NATO, and if it wants to remain now, without any doubt, we regard it as an occupier and will act against it,” Mujahid said. “We have lots of commonalities with Turkey…and they are Muslim, but if they intervene and keep its troops, then it will bear the responsibility.”
On Friday, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Ankara had reached a conditional deal with Washington to take over security of Kabul airport after the withdrawal. But Ankara says it cannot carry out the mission without support and would need additional troops for it.
Since the drawdown of coalition forces began on May 1, the Taliban have made rapid territorial gains against Afghan government forces in several regions, including areas near Kabul.
The Taliban’s advances have stoked fears about security in Kabul and its airport, which has come under rocket strikes by both Taliban and Daesh affiliates in the past, despite the presence of coalition forces at the facility.
The airport’s security is crucial for military and civilian flights and the safe passage of international aid groups and diplomats residing in Afghanistan.
An Afghan defense ministry spokesman said Kabul airport had been fitted with an air defense system to counter incoming rockets over the weekend.
“This system installed at Kabul airport, [which] has been tested in other parts of the world, will be highly effective in foiling rocket attacks on Kabul airport as well,” Fawad Aman said.
Taliban say will consider Turkey an ‘occupier’ if it retains troops at Kabul airport
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Taliban say will consider Turkey an ‘occupier’ if it retains troops at Kabul airport
- Spokesman says Turkey to “bear responsibility” if it decides to intervene and keep its troops to guard airport
- Ankara says has reached conditional deal with Washington to take over security of Kabul airport
Pakistan, Türkiye discuss regional security issues amid deepening defense cooperation
- Inaugural meeting of Pakistan-Türkiye Joint Standing Committee on Security, Defense and Intelligence held in Islamabad, says foreign office
- Islamabad, Ankara have eyed greater defense collaboration after Türkiye’s public support for Pakistan during its recent conflict with India
ISLAMABAD: Officials from Islamabad and Ankara discussed regional and global security issues on Thursday, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said, as both countries eye greater collaboration in defense and other sectors.
A delegation of Turkish officials led by the country’s Director General for South Asia Ambassador Cihad Erginay met a Pakistani delegation headed by Additional Secretary (Afghanistan & West Asia) Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Syed Ali Asad Gillani. The two sides met during the inaugural meeting of the Pakistan-Türkiye Joint Standing Committee (JSC) on Security, Defense and Intelligence.
The joint committee was created after the seventh session of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) between Pakistan and Türkiye on February 12 and 13, Pakistan’s foreign ministry said.
“Both sides discussed emerging geo-political trends including global and regional security issues,” the foreign ministry said in a statement.
It said discussions at the joint committee will contribute to preparations for a meeting of the joint commission between the two nations, which will be co-chaired by Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and Türkiye’s foreign minister.
“Both countries continue to work closely across a broad spectrum of areas, including defense, trade, energy, transport, culture, tourism, education, defense industries, agriculture, health, science and technology,” the statement concluded.
The development takes place amid deepening relations between the two countries and follows Türkiye’s public condemnation of Indian cross-border strikes in Pakistan during a brief conflict between the two South Asian neighbors in May.
Both countries have maintained close military ties in recent years. Under a 2018 agreement, Türkiye is delivering four MILGEM-class corvettes to the Pakistan Navy, with two built in Istanbul and two at Karachi Shipyard under a technology transfer arrangement.
The first vessel, PNS Babur, was delivered in 2023.
Türkiye’s foreign and defense ministers also arrived in Pakistan earlier this month for a series of high-level meetings focusing on counterterrorism, defense cooperation and broader strategic ties.
Pakistan’s Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee (CJCSC) General Sahir Shamshad attended the 17th International Defense Industry Fair in Istanbul on Wednesday.
The top Pakistani general held separate meetings with the defense ministers of Türkiye and Azerbaijan to discuss bilateral security cooperation, the Pakistani military’s media wing said.
Pakistan expresses solidarity as plane crash in Russia’s far east kills 48
- Russian state media says error by plane’s crew while landing in poor visibility could be likely reason for crash
- Accidents, especially involving aging planes in Russia’s far-flung regions, are not uncommon in the country
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday extended his condolences to President Vladimir Putin and the people of Russia after a passenger plane crashed in the country’s far east region killed all 48 on board.
Russia’s Ministry of Civil Defense, Emergencies and Disaster Relief said on Thursday the An-24 plane, operated by Siberia-based Angara Airlines, dropped off radar screens while approaching its destination, Tynda, a town in Russia’s far east Amur region bordering China.
According to Russia’s state-owned TASS news agency, an error by the plane’s crew while landing amid poor visibility could be one of the likely reasons for the crash.
“On behalf of the people of Pakistan and myself, I extend our deepest condolences to President Vladimir Putin and the Russian people on the tragic loss of lives in the passenger plane crash in eastern Russia today,” Sharif wrote on social media platform X.
“We stand in solidarity with the bereaved families in this moment of profound sorrow,” he added.
Russian state media showed images of the reported crash site, showing debris scattered in a dense forest surrounded by thick plumes of smoke.
While Russian aviation safety standards have improved in recent years, accidents, especially involving aging planes in far-flung regions, are not uncommon. In July 2021, all 28 people on board an Antonov An-26 twin-engine turboprop died in a crash in Kamchatka.
In September 2021, an aging Antonov An-26 transport plane crashed in the Russian far east, killing six.
Global real estate giant quits advisory role in Pakistan’s Roosevelt Hotel privatization
- Jones Lang LaSalle steps down over conflict of interest as Pakistan seeks to sell stake in NYC hotel
- Privatization of iconic hotel is part of IMF-backed reform push to offload loss-making state assets
ISLAMABAD: Global real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) has stepped down from its role as financial adviser for the privatization of Pakistan’s Roosevelt Hotel in New York, citing a conflict of interest due to client interest in the property, the government said on Thursday.
Pakistan plans to sell a minority stake in the century-old Manhattan hotel and is seeking a redevelopment partner as part of a broader effort to offload loss-making state-owned assets under a $7 billion agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The Roosevelt Hotel, viewed as one of Pakistan’s most valuable foreign holdings, was closed in 2020 and has since operated intermittently, including as a migrant shelter.
JLL was appointed in January last year to advise the government on the potential sale transaction of the Roosevelt Hotel, the privatization ministry said in a statement.
“The Privatization Commission of Pakistan announces that Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL), a leading global real estate services firm, acting as Financial Adviser for privatization of Roosevelt Hotel, has formally conveyed its decision to resign from the assignment owing to the emergence of a potential conflict of interest,” the ministry said.
It added that JLL had conducted due diligence on the hotel and submitted due diligence and transaction structure reports, in which it analyzed a range of transaction structure options in line with international best practices and market dynamics.
The ministry said JLL has cited “heightened interest” in Roosevelt Hotel from many of its clients, post cancelation of its lease agreement with New York City, as the reason for the decision to withdraw from its role.
“This, JLL says, has put them in a compromising position, therefore they have decided to resign in order to avoid any perceived or actual conflict of interest,” the ministry explained.
The statement said Pakistan’s Privatization Commission is initiating the process to hire a new financial adviser on a fast-track basis to ensure that the process for Roosevelt Hotel’s privatization is carried forward in a “transparent and competitive manner.”
“The Government of Pakistan and the Privatization Commission remain fully committed to conclude the ongoing privatization of Roosevelt Hotel expeditiously, in accordance with all applicable legal requirements,” the statement concluded.
The Roosevelt Hotel has long been one of Pakistan’s most prominent but politically sensitive overseas assets. Acquired by the Pakistan International Airlines Investment Limited (PIAIL) in 1979, the hotel occupies a full city block on Madison Avenue and 45th Street.
Over the past two decades, successive Pakistani governments have floated plans to sell, lease, or redevelop the property, but no proposal has advanced beyond early-stage planning.
Pakistan pushes for UN-OIC cooperation to counter ‘alarming resurgence’ of Islamophobia
- Deputy PM Ishaq Dar chairs meeting of the UN Security Council in New York on UN-OIC cooperation
- Pakistani deputy premier says religious hatred “morally indefensible,” strikes at UN Charter’s foundation
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Thursday pushed for greater cooperation between the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and the United Nations (UN) to counter rising extremism and “alarming resurgence” of Islamophobia worldwide.
As the president of the UN Security Council for July, Pakistan chaired a meeting at the multilateral forum to discuss the cooperation between the OIC and the UN. The briefing was titled: ‘Cooperation between the United Nations and regional and subregional organizations.’
In 2022, the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution sponsored by 60 OIC members states, spearheaded by Pakistan, which designated Mar. 15 as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia.
Speaking at the briefing, Dar noted that the UN-OIC engagement continues to grow, from mediation and political transition to coordinated responses in humanitarian emergency, advocacy on issues of disarmament, development, and protection of religious and cultural heritage.
“Excellencies, nowhere in this cooperation is it more necessary than in encountering the rising tide of extremism, particularly the alarming resurgence of Islamophobia,” Dar said during his address.
He added that religious hatred is not only “morally indefensible,” but also strikes at the very foundation of the UN Charter. The deputy premier noted that the global community’s endorsement of Pakistan’s initiative to designate 15 March as the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, followed by the adoption of a resolution leading to the appointment of a UN Special Envoy on Islamophobia, are “milestones” that reaffirm the OIC and UN’s shared resolve.
“There has long been a strong voice on this issue, and we must further institutionalize its role in global efforts to promote respect, inclusion, and interfaith harmony,” Dar said.
Presidential statements are formal expressions of the Security Council’s consensus but are not legally binding. They require unanimous approval and are often preceded by complex negotiations.
Founded in 1969, the OIC includes 57 member states across four continents and serves as a platform for collaboration on political, economic and social issues affecting Muslim communities worldwide.
Army says major, sepoy killed in counterterror operation in Pakistan’s southwest
- Military says three militants backed by neighboring India gunned down in Mastung district
- Pakistan's restive Balochistan province has long been the site of separatist, insurgent violence
ISLAMABAD: An army major and a sepoy were killed during an intelligence-based operation in Pakistan's southwestern Mastung district, the military's media wing said on Thursday amid Islamabad's battle against surging militancy.
The latest operation took place in Balochistan's Mastung district on July 23 when security forces received reports of the presence of "terrorists" belonging to "Fitna al Hindustan," a term the Pakistani military uses for militants it says are backed by neighbor and archrival India.
The military said three militants were killed during its counterterror operation. However, Major Zeeyyad Salim Awal, 31, and Sepoy Nazam Hussain, 22, were killed during the exchange of fire, the military's media wing said.
"Sanitization operation is being conducted to eliminate any other Indian sponsored terrorist found in the area, as the security forces of Pakistan are determined to wipe out the menace of Indian Sponsored Terrorism from the country," the military said.
"And such sacrifices of our brave men further strengthen our resolve."
Pakistan's restive Balochistan province has long been the site of separatist and insurgent violence, and Islamabad has frequently alleged Indian involvement in destabilizing activities there, a charge New Delhi denies.
India accuses Pakistan of training and funding militant groups in the part of disputed Kashmir that New Delhi administers. Islamabad denies the allegations and says it only extends diplomatic support to the people of Kashmir.
The two countries engaged in the worst fighting between them since 1998 in May this year, pounding each other with drones, fighter jets, missiles and artillery fire before Washington brokered a ceasefire on May 10.
