provinceorstate:helmand

Private War: #Erik_Prince Has His Eye On Afghanistan’s Rare Metals
▻https://www.buzzfeed.com/aramroston/private-war-erik-prince-has-his-eye-on-afghanistans-rare

Prince briefed top Trump administration officials directly, talked up his plan publicly on the DC circuit, and published op-eds about it. He patterned the strategy he’s pitching on the historical model of the old British East India Company, which had its own army and colonized much of Britain’s empire in India. “An East India Company approach,” he wrote in the Wall Street Journal, “would use cheaper private solutions to fill the gaps that plague the Afghan security forces, including reliable logistics and aviation support.”

But the details have never been made public. Here is the never-before-published slide presentation for his pitch, which a source familiar with the matter said was prepared for the Trump administration.

One surprising element is the commercial promise Prince envisions: that the US will get access to Afghanistan’s rich deposits of minerals such as lithium, used in batteries; uranium; magnesite; and “rare earth elements,” critical metals used in high technology from defense to electronics. One slide estimates the value of mineral deposits in Helmand province alone at $1 trillion.

#états-unis #milice_privée

Tasked With Combating Opium, Afghan Officials Profit From It - The New York Times
▻http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/16/world/asia/afghanistan-opium-heroin-taliban-helmand.html?login=email

The United States spent more than $7 billion in the past 14 years to fight the runaway poppy production that has made Afghan opium the world’s biggest brand. Tens of billions more went to governance programs to stem corruption and train a credible police force. Countless more dollars and thousands of lives were lost on the main thrust of the war: to put the Afghan government in charge of district centers and to instill rule of law.

But here in one of the few corners of Helmand Province that is peaceful and in firm government control, the green stalks and swollen bulbs of opium were growing thick and high within eyeshot of official buildings during the past poppy season — signs of a local narco-state administered directly by government officials.

#Afghanistan

Afghan interpreter who worked with British army refused UK asylum

Aslam Yousaf Zai claims he has been targeted by Taliban, but Home Office says it does not believe he would be in danger if he returns to Afghanistan

▻http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/apr/07/afghan-interpreter-british-army-refused-uk-asylum
#Afghanistan #interprète #asile #réfugiés #UK #Angleterre #migration #droit_d'asile #interprètes

v. aussi :
La Cité | L’Occident laissera-t-il tomber « ses » interprètes en Afghanistan ?

A l’approche de la fin prévue de la mission italienne, les interprètes afghans, « alliés » indispensables des forces armées occidentales, craignent d’être abandonnés sur place, en proie à la vengeance des talibans.

▻http://www.asile.ch/vivre-ensemble/2015/01/09/la-cite-loccident-laissera-t-il-tomber-ses-interpretes-en-afghanistan

Syria, Iraq… and now Afghanistan: Isis advance enters Helmand province for the first time, Afghan officials confirm - Middle East - World - The Independent
▻http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-iraq-and-now-afghanistan-isis-advance-enters-helmand-province-f

ISIS fait son entrée en #Afghanistan, où des combats l’opposent aux talibans,

Isis, the militant group that claims to have established a “caliphate” across Iraq and Syria, has now reportedly extended its territories into Afghanistan for the first time.

According to the Afghan military, the organisation that calls itself “Islamic State” is actively recruiting and operating across the south of the country.

Officials say a man identified as Mullah Abdul Rauf has been claiming to represent Isis in the region, setting up a network of followers who are inviting people to join them across the southern Helmand province.

But they have clashed with the local Taliban, military sources claim, whose leaders have warned people to have nothing to do with Rauf.

General Mahmood Khan, the deputy commander of the army’s 215 Corps, told the Associated Press: “A number of tribal leaders, jihadi commanders and some ulema (religious council members) and other people have contacted me to tell me that Mullah Rauf had contacted them and invited them to join him.”

Amir Mohammad Akundzada, the governor of the Nimroz province adjacent to Helmand, said Rauf was a former Taliban commander – as well as a relative who he had not seen for two decades.

Afghanistan : un enfant de 4 ans « accidentiellement » tué par des soldats américains qui lui ont tiré dessus - AFP/Europe1.fr

▻http://www.europe1.fr/International/Afghanistan-un-enfant-de-4-ans-tue-par-des-marines-1767703

Nouvelle bavure de l’armée américaine en Afghanistan. Des « marines » américains ont en effet accidentellement tué un jeune garçon de quatre ans mercredi dans la province d’Helmand, dans le sud de l’Afghanistan, ont rapporté vendredi les autorités.

Perturbés par une faible visibilité en raison de nuages de poussière, les militaires ont cru voir un ennemi et ouvert le feu, a dit Omar Zwak, porte-parole du gouverneur du Helmand.

#Afghanistan

World Sniper Record - Two consecutive Kill Shots from 2470 meters and then a Gun Shot
►http://nextbigfuture.com/2010/05/world-sniper-record-two-consecutive.html

Gizmag reports that a british Corporal Craig Harrison killed two Taliban with consecutive shots at a distance of 2.47 kilometres (8120 ft) in Helmand Province, Afghanistan last November (2009). He then fired a third shot and hit the Taliban’s PKM machinegun in perhaps the most prodigious feat of marksmanship in military history. He used an Accuracy International L115A3

Oui, ça date un peu, mais je viens de tomber dessus. C’est juste terrifiant.

Afghanistan : une bavure de l’OTAN tue 14 civils, dont des enfants
►http://www.24heures.ch/depeches/monde/afghanistan-bavure-otan-tue-14-civils-enfants

Ce bombardement accidentel s’est produit dans la province du Helmand où des « marines » américains assiégés dans leur base par des insurgés ont réclamé un appui aérien de la Force internationale d’assistance à la sécurité (Isaf), sous commandement de l’OTAN.

« La frappe aérienne de l’Isaf a touché deux habitations civiles. Malheureusement, 14 civils innocents ont été tués et six autres blessés », indique le gouverneur du Helmand dans un communiqué. Il a précisé que sept jeunes garçons, cinq filles et deux femmes ont été tués.

L’OTAN massacre quatorze personnes en Afghanistan : douze enfants et deux femmes. Noter la subtilité du vocabulaire : « bavure » et « bombardement accidentel ».