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Ministry of defense
PAO
Media Analysis section
Media Analysis Executive Summary for
3 may – 2015
Man sprays bullets at in-laws, killing wife in Parwan
Khaama press
A man has sprayed bullets at his in-laws in northern Parwan District in which his wife has been killed.
Officials say that the incident took place in Sayedkhil District of Parwan province yesterday afternoon.
Mohammad Zaman Mamozai, Provincial Police Chief of Parwan says that the killer’s wife, father in-law, mother in-law and two other persons were driving in a vehicle when they came under fire.
Mamozai said that the person who attacked the vehicle was the husband of the women who got killed during the attack.
Mamozai added that the killer’s father in-law, mother in-law and two other persons who were driving in the same vehicle sustained injuries during the attack that were shifted to the hospital.
The killer has escaped from the area following the attack but police say they are trying to arrest him.
Motive behind the attack is unknown but most of the times very small disputes are behind cases like this.
late January this year an entire family was shot dead by unidentified gunmen in Bagram District of Parwan District.
According to reports the family did not have personal enmity with anyone but had recently rejected a marriage proposal from another family.
Madrasa students fall ill after eating meal in Parwan
Khaama press
Dozens of students of a Madrasa, a religious school, have fallen ill after eating meal in northern Parwan Province.
According to the officials some of the students of the Madrasa started vomiting and fall unconscious after they ate dinner last night.
Studentsof Abuzar Ghafari Madrasa in Jablul Siraj Districts said they believe that there was something mixed in the meal.
Officials say that the students fall unconscious after they ate the meal.
The victims have been transported to the hospital where health condition of dozens of students has been announced critical.
Security officials have started an investigation into the incident.This story will be updated as more details come available.
ThreePolicemen Killed in Taliban Attack in Badakhshan
Tolo news
Three policemen and an insurgent were killed in a Taliban attack on a police outpost in northeastern Badakhshan province on Monday night, local officials said.
Three other policemen were injured in the attack.
The attack took place in Warduj district of the province after a number of Taliban insurgents attacked a police outpost and started clashing, in which three policemen and a Taliban insurgent were killed and three other policemen were injured, District Governor of Wardju, Dawlat Mohamad Khawar said.
The Taliban insurgents have escaped with the policemen's, he said.
However, so far the Taliban insurgents have not yet commented about the attack
Inattentionto the 31 Abducted Hazaras Will Create Ethnic Differences: MPs
Tolo news
A number of Members of Parliament have asked that President Ashraf Ghani immediately rescue and release the 31 Hazara passengers who were abducted by armed masked men on Kabul-Kandahar highway three weeks ago.
On Monday, MPs warned that inattention to the matter will create ethnic differences in the country, pointing to the allegation that the hostages may have been transferred from southern Zabul province to Ghazni. So far no officials and security organs have been able to provide details of their exact location. Although according to unknown sources of the MPs the passengers have been transferred from one province to another.
"Sources have told us that the captives have been separated and transferred to Muqur district and other parts of Ghazni," Ghazni MP Ali Akbar Qasemi said.
Since the abduction of the passengers, who were on their way to Kabul from Herat, no new developments have arrived. The rescue operation that began last week to free the 31 passengers has halted since Thursday because of unfavorable weather. The operation has not resumed since.
MPs have emphasized that if the government does not take action soon the protest of the people will increase.
"This sort of inattention on the matter will increase ethnic differences," Balkh MP Abbas Ibrahimzada stressed. "If the government does not take action soon, the people will launch a massive protest. This will create a crisis in the country."
Before the military intervention, tribal elders of Zabul traveled to Khak-e-Afghan district of the province to talk with armed masked men, but failing to bring any sort of negotiation or understanding, the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) launched a military rescue operation, which also did not prevail.
White House Accuses Republican Senators of Undermining Iran Talks
VOA news
The White House accused a group of 47 U.S. Republican senators Monday of undermining nuclear talks with Iran after the lawmakers warned Tehran that any deal it negotiates with President Barack Obama could last only until he leaves office in early 2017.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters that a letter the senators sent to Iran was an attempt to "throw sand in the gears" of sensitive negotiations as the U.S. and five other world powers try to reach a basic agreement with Tehran by March 31.
"I would describe this letter as the continuation of a partisan strategy to undermine the president's ability to conduct foreign policy and advance our national security's interests around the globe," Earnest said.
Freshman Republican Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas organized the letter, which was signed by the party’s entire Senate leadership - but no Democrats.
The letter said the leaders of Iran “may not fully understand” the U.S. Constitutional system, and that anything not approved by Congress is a mere executive agreement. The senators wrote that “the next president could revoke such an executive agreement with the stroke of a pen.”
Obama reacted quickly to the letter, saying he thinks it is somewhat ironic to see some members of Congress wanting to make common cause with hardliners in Iran - calling it an unusual coalition. The president said what his administration is focused on right now is seeing whether it can get a deal as part of the international “P5+1” talks with Tehran in Switzerland.
Obama said if a deal is reached, he will be able to make a case to the American people and is confident he will be able to implement it.
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif also was quick to respond to the letter, saying it has no legal value and is mostly a propaganda ploy. Zarif expressed astonishment that some members of the U.S. Congress find it appropriate to write to the leaders of another country against their own president and his administration.
Responding in a tone similar to the tone used in the senators’ letter, Zarif said “the authors may not fully understand that in international law, governments represent the entirety of their respective states, are responsible for the conduct of foreign affairs, and are required to fulfill the obligations they undertake with other states.”
Several Democratic lawmakers said they were appalled by the Republicans’ letter. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said the letter was sent to embarrass the president, and he accused Republicans of trying to undermine their commander-in-chief as he seeks to conduct foreign policy.
Republican lawmakers say Congress needs to have a say in a final deal over Iran’s nuclear program - with a deadline for a political framework set for the end of March.
Republican Senator Bob Corker and Democratic Senator Robert Menendez have a bill pending that would mandate congressional review of an Iran nuclear deal, but Democrats have insisted that they want to wait and let the international talks play out before the bill is brought to the floor for a vote.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner sparked a firestorm of controversy when he invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of Congress last week on the dangers of an Iran nuclear deal - without consulting the White House.
Democrats were divided over the speech, with House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi saying it was condescending, and that she was near tears during the speech.
After the speech was over, Obama reminded Congress that foreign policy is conducted by the executive branch, and not the legislative branch.
Over the weekend, Obama said the U.S. will "walk away" from the nuclear talks with Tehran if it decides that an internationally verifiable deal cannot be reached to keep Iran from building a nuclear weapon. But he has threatened to veto proposed legislation that would mandate congressional review of any deal that is reached.
Tehran insists that its nuclear program is for civilian purposes and has been negotiating with the U.S., Germany, Britain, France, China and Russia on the scope of nuclear activities it can carry out in exchange for lifting the crippling economic sanctions the U.S. and Europe have imposed on it.
Negotiators are facing a self-imposed deadline to complete the basic structure of a deal by March 31, with final agreement by the end of June.
U.S. ambassador to South Korea leaves hospital after knife attack
Reuters) –
The U.S. ambassador to South Korea left a Seoul hospital on Tuesday, five days after he was slashed by a knife-wielding Korean nationalist with a history of violent protest, causing wounds that required 80 stitches to the envoy's face.
Police are seeking to bring charges including attempted murder against Kim Ki-jong, 55, for the attack at a forum discussing Korean reunification. The ambassador, Mark Lippert, suffered a deep facial gash and a puncture wound on his wrist.
Lippert, 42, had become known for an approachable, informal style since taking up his posting in Seoul in November and the attack raised questions about his security arrangements.
The South Korean government has since ordered increased security for diplomatic missions, including the U.S. embassy.
"We have made it our mission to be open and friendly, and that will not change," Lippert told a crowded media conference amid heavy security at Yonsei University's Severance Hospital.
Lippert declined to comment on potential changes to his security arrangements. He said he expects to return to work as soon as possible and to make a full recovery.
"I feel pretty darn good, all things considered. I mean it was obviously a scary incident. But I'm walking, talking, holding my baby, hugging my wife, so I just feel really good," Lippert said.
Kim was given a suspended jail sentence in 2010 for trying to attack the Japanese ambassador by throwing a piece of concrete. He said after he attacked Lippert he was protesting against annual joint U.S.-South Korean military drills, which began last week.
Lippert was accompanied by his bodyguard, an unarmed South Korean policeman, when the attack took place at a government-owned theater across the street from the heavily guarded U.S. embassy. Other police were present at the event, although not at the request of the U.S. embassy or organizers.
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