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KABUL, Afghanistan No U.S. troops have died in combat in Afghanistan for a year as of Monday, but the Taliban have threatened to target them again if Washington opts to keep international forces in the country after a May withdrawal deadline.

Army Sgts. 1st Class Javier Gutierrez and Antonio Rodriguez were the last Americans to die in battle in Afghanistan on Feb. 8, 2020. Two other service members Army Staff Sgt. Ian McLaughlin and Army Pfc. Miguel Villalon were killed in combat there in January last year.

Weeks after their deaths, the U.S. and Taliban signed a deal under which Washington pledged to fully withdraw U.S.-led international forces from the country by May 1 of this year provided the Taliban held up its end of the agreement, including stopping attacks on foreign troops, and barring terrorist groups such as al-Qaida from using Afghanistan as a springboard to attack the U.S. or its allies.

Several military officials and lawmakers have said the Taliban also agreed verbally to reduce violence in the country, although that is not included in the text of the agreement made public last year.

Despite the February deal, which was brokered by the Trump administration, violence surged last year and United Nations officials have said al-Qaida remains heavily embedded with the Taliban.

After President Joe Biden took office last month, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the U.S. was taking a hard look at the extent to which the Taliban are complying with the deal as Washington weighs our force posture and our diplomatic strategy in Afghanistan.

A report released last week by a panel set up by Congress to study the deal called for the withdrawal deadline to be pushed back.

Peace in Afghanistan should not be based on an inflexible timeline but on all parties fulfilling their commitments, including the Taliban making good on its promises to contain terrorist groups and reduce violence against the Afghan people, and making compromises to achieve a political settlement as it continues slow-moving talks with the government, the report said.

If the drawdown, which has seen U.S. troop numbers in Afghanistan slashed from 13,000 a year ago to 2,500 by mid-January, goes ahead as scheduled, terrorist groups would have the opportunity to reconstitute within 18 to 36 months, one of the study panels chairs, Gen. Joseph Dunford Jr., a retired four-star Marine general who once led international forces in Afghanistan, said in a virtual news conference.

As Washington mulls how to move forward, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid warned that the insurgents will definitely return to war if the U.S. rejects this deal. He did not say if the Taliban would be open to pushing back the withdrawal deadline.

The deputy head of the Taliban team that negotiated the February deal, Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai, said last month that if U.S.-led forces remain in Afghanistan after the May deadline, we will also kill them, Voice of America reported.

Keeping troops in Afghanistan beyond May 1 would drag U.S. troops back into a violent counterinsurgency, said Adam Weinstein, a former Marine who served in Afghanistan and is now a research fellow for the Middle East at the Washington D.C.-based Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft. Having no American combat fatalities for a year was not a guarantee of diminished risks in the future, he said.

Some 2,300 American service members have died in Afghanistan since the war began in Oct. 2001.

Zubair Babakarkhail contributed to this report.

wellman.phillip@stripes.comTwitter: @pwwellman

Sgts. 1st Class Javier J. Gutierrez, left, and Antonio R. Rodriguez, who died in Afghanistan a year ago, were the last U.S. service members to be killed in combat in the country as of Feb 8, 2021. U.S. ARMY

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US goes one year without a combat death in Afghanistan as Taliban warn against reneging on peace deal - Stars and Stripes

Arfia Omid works for the UN Childrens Fund (UNICEF) in Afghanistan where one in three girls are married before their 18th birthday and only 19 per cent of females under 15 years old are literate.

She has written this letter to her unborn child.

My lovely baby, I havent met you yet, but I already know how beautiful you are with your dark eyes, smiling face, soft, brown hair and golden heart. I have dreamed of having you my entire life.

I count the days and nights until I will finally hold you in my arms and love you as much as I can. Now you are only seven months and I can feel you when you move. Naughty daughter, I laugh quietly to myself.

Do you know, before you were even in my womb, I went to buy clothes for your brothers, and I saw a baby girls dress in the market? I stopped there for a while and wished to God to give you to me. You know what? I bought that dress. I knew that my next child would be a girl. I cant wait to see you in it; you will be an Afghan princess.

UNICEF/Omid Fazel

In Afghanistan, one in three girls are married before their 18th birthday.

But with all the happiness and excitement that I have, I am also nervous for you and your future in this country. I hear such sad stories about Afghan girls, but I also see how strong they are so do not be afraid. You will also be strong.

Together, we will help more women realise their promise and potential. This is my dream for you.

Afghanistan is a tough place to be a girl. Just two months ago, I cried for a mother who had just given birth to a baby girl. The father killed his wife because she delivered a baby girl. He escaped with the baby. I really cant process the suffering and fear this mother endured. She had the most painful time delivering her baby I know how hard it is for a woman to deliver at home without any healthcare facilities.

Then, after enduring labour and birth, she waited for her husband and relatives to congratulate her. Instead, her partner killed her with his own hands. Nobody knows where the baby is or if shes alive. I worry about how shes surviving without breast milk. Or if her father really cares for her, or if he sold her?

I hear such sad stories about Afghan girls, but I also see how strong they are so do not be afraid. You will also be strong

I thank God that our circumstances are different. Your father loves you, as I love you. And your brothers love you. Together, we will protect you.

When I went for the sonogram with your father, the doctor asked me, What do you want? A boy or a girl?I said, I want a baby girl.

She said, Do you know, youre the first mother I hear that wants a girl? Then she told me that the woman who came before me came from a remote area. She told the doctor that if this time she gives birth to a girl, her husband will leave her and get married to another woman.

My little girl, I know that we are the luckiest baby and mother in Afghanistan. And I want you to know that things will be better for you than they were for me, just as they were better for me than for my mother. When my mother gave birth to me, she did so in a poor family. We didnt even have our own home. When she was in second year of university, your uncle was born. Despite her hard work and dreams, she couldntcontinue her lessons. She sacrificed her life to support and protect her children.

Only a fifth of girls under 15 years old are literate in Afghanistan. UNICEF/Frank Dejo

So, years later, I found a way to thank her.

When I was in second year of university, I searched for a month and found her documents from the Ministry of Higher Education and her university. Then, I sought a permission letter from the Ministry to support her to join a private university. I gave her the registration paper of the new university as a gift for Mothers Day. I remember, she cried and laughed at the same time.

She joined the university and graduated with her diploma just two years later. I cant tell you how proud I felt. That day, she was the happiest woman in the world.

So, my lovely daughter, your grandmother is your reason to hope and to believe in change. Every day, Afghan women like her battle against the odds to bring their dreams to life. They empower each other, hand-in-hand, step-by-step. You will join that tradition, as I did. Together, we will help more women realise their promise and potential. This is my dream for you. And just as I turned my mothers dream into reality, I think you will breathe life into mine.

I think about this at night when you keep me awake with your wriggling. I pray to God for a future where women and men have equal rights; and for blessed peace so I can send you to school without fear. I pray for your health and happiness. Mostly, I pray for you to be bold and courageous.

And you will be because youll be standing on my shoulders, my darling.

With love, Your mother, Arifa.

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Hopes and fears of mother-to-be in Afghanistan - UN News

As countries ramp up their COVID-19 vaccination campaigns and work to contain new variants of the virus, WHO is tirelessly working towards equitable access of the new vaccines and continues to provide support in many other ways to countries all over the world. Here are some recent activities WHO was able to carry out to thanks to the vital backing of its many donors.

India rolls out the worlds largest COVID-19 vaccination drive with support from WHO

India recently rolled out the worlds largest COVID-19 vaccination drive in January to reach around 300 million individuals in priority groups. The vaccines will be administered at over 3 000 sites in all states and union territories. Among the first to be vaccinated are 10 million health-workers who are at high risk of exposure to the disease. WHO is supporting the campaign through information, monitoring, and providing guidelines.

WHO helps maintain essential cholera protection during the COVID-19 pandemic in South Sudan

WHO is supporting an oral cholera vaccination campaign in South Sudan to protect flood-displaced populations in high-risk areas.

The five-day campaign in January was organized and led by the Ministry of Health with support from WHO, UNICEF, IOM, MEDAIR and other partners to reach nearly 100 000 individuals aged one year and above in Pibor town, Verteth, Gumuruk and Lekuangule.

With European Union support, WHO will fight COVID-19 and strengthen health systems in Somalia

The Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Somalia and the WHO Somalia country office recently signed a 5 million multi-year contribution agreement for a project to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 and to strengthen the countrys health systems.

WHO and the EU Delegation to Somalia will continue to collaborate closely in the future, alongside the health authorities, in their joint efforts to reach and support the most vulnerable populations across the country with essential and life-saving health services.

WHO and DHL team up to deliver health-care equipment to the Pacific

WHO recently teamed up with DHL Global Forwarding to coordinate WHOs latest delivery: more than US$ 2 million worth of medical devices such as oxygen concentrator sets, patient monitors and pulse oximeters. The equipment was flown with the help of DHL from Singapore to WHOs Division of Pacific Technical Support in Fiji.

The devices are destined for hospitals and other health-care facilities in eight countries and areas in the Pacific, where they will help local medical professionals to treat COVID-19 patients.

Canada and WHO support COVID-19 prevention programme among indigenous people in Bolivia

Thanks to funding from the government of Canada and technical assistance from the WHO Regional Office for the Americas, Bolivia recently established a culturally adapted communication and training programme to prevent and manage COVID-19 in the tropics of Cochabamba. The programme is aimed to help the Pachinu and Bia Recuate communities of the Yuqui people and benefitted from their active participation.

EU, WHO donate supplies to enhance lab capacity for COVID-19 testing in Belize

The European Union (EU) and WHO Regional Office for the Americas recently donated a stock of crucial supplies to the Central Medical Laboratory, Ministry of Health and Wellness to enhance the laboratorys capacity to continue the screening and testing for COVID-19 nationwide.

WHO, Germany deliver critical medical supplies to Western Balkan countries to strengthen COVID-19 response and save lives

WHO has partnered with the German Government to deliver medical supplies worth 3.65 million to countries in the Western Balkan region. These supplies 334 ventilators and 19 400 pulse oximeters will equip health facilities to monitor and improve the health outcomes of COVID-19 patients, particularly in intensive care units.

The shipments were distributed at the end of 2020 to hospitals across the regions five countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Kosovo. They will serve the immediate needs of countries during the COVID-19 pandemic as well as strengthen the capacities of hospitals for future health emergencies.

EU provides additional 35 million to support the fight against COVID-19 in Afghanistan

The EU-Delegation in Kabul recently announced additional support of 35 million to tackle COVID-19 and mitigate its socioeconomic impacts in Afghanistan. Since the start of the pandemic, the EU has mobilized almost 147 million to address the immediate health crisis and provide humanitarian assistance to people in need.

The additional funds will contribute to strengthening the response capacity of health systems to test and treat patients, to improve infection prevention, to raise awareness and to reduce nutritional risks through three projects implemented by WHO, UNICEF and a consortium led by the Aga Khan Foundation.

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From Afghanistan to South Sudan: how WHO and partners continue to fight COVID-19 around the world - World - ReliefWeb

India and Afghanistan could sign a pact this week for the construction of the Shahtoot dam, which aims to provide safe drinking water to 2 million people in Kabul and supplement irrigation facilities in Afghanistan, two people familiar with the development said.

The foreign ministers of the two countries are likely to sign the agreement for the almost $300-million project at a virtual meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, one of the people mentioned above said. The virtual meeting could happen on Tuesday or Wednesday, the person said.

The dam is expected to be built on the Maidan river tributary of Kabul river. The dam project has been in the works for several years even as Pakistan has expressed concern that it would reduce water flow into the country.

When built, the Shahtoot dam is expected to have a storage capacity of 147 million cubic metres of water. It is designed to meet the drinking water requirements of roughly 2 million of Kabuls approximately 6 million residents and irrigate about 400 hectares of agricultural land in Chahar Asiab and Khairabad districts in Kabul province, according to news reports.

At the 2020 Afghanistan Conference, foreign minister S. Jaishankar had made it clear that India will construct the dam. He had also announced more than 100 projects worth $80 million that India would undertake in Afghanistan.

The projects underscore Indias support to the Afghan government headed by Ghani and its people, besides underlining New Delhis intentions to remain involved in development work despite the possibility of the Taliban returning to Kabul following a power-sharing arrangement.

India has been wary of the Taliban, in view of the groups proximity to Pakistan and its military spy agency the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Ghanis government is engaged in peace talks with the rebel group after the US struck a deal with the group last February to facilitate the withdrawal of US-led foreign troops after almost two decades.

India has completed a large number of infrastructure projects in Afghanistan, including the construction of a 218-km road from Delaram to Zaranj along the Iranian border to provide alternative connectivity for Afghanistan through Iran, the Salma dam and the Afghan parliament building, which was inaugurated in 2015.

Since 2001, after the US-led war on terrorism ousted the Taliban regime from Kabul, India has pledged and implemented development and reconstruction projects worth more than $3 billion, according to the Indian foreign ministry.

So far, India has undertaken 400 plus projects" in all 34 provinces of Afghanistan, according to officials.

To improve trade and connectivity with Afghanistan, India has been trying to develop the Chabahar port in Iran and also launched an air freight corridor between several Indian and Afghan cities.

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India and Afghanistan may sign pact on $300 mn dam this week - Mint

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghanistan received 500,000 doses of AstraZenecas COVID-19 vaccine from India on Sunday, the first to arrive in the country, which is still waiting for emergency approval from the World Health Organisation before it can use them.

A Health official shows a bottle with a dose of the AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine manufactured by the Serum Institute of India, at Infectious Diseases Hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka January 29, 2021. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

Ghulam Dastagir Nazari, head of the immunisation program at the health ministry said the doses would be stored in Kabul until the emergency authorisation was received, which it hoped would happen in a week.

The vaccines were produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII), which is producing the AstraZenecca/Oxford University vaccine for mid- and low-income countries.

The (WHO) certification process is underway and hopefully it will be done in a week and we will start the vaccination process in all 34 provinces, said Nazari.

Health workers, security force members, teachers and government employees would receive the vaccine first, he said.

The Afghan government has already trained 1,000 people to deliver the vaccine out of the 3,000 that will be needed to carry out its vaccination drive, he said.

Nazari said China also planned to send 200,000 doses of the vaccine.

Afghan health officials have also said that the international COVAX programme aimed at improving access to the COVID-19 vaccine for developing countries would provide vaccines to cover 20% of the countrys 38 million population.

Afghanistan has had 55,335 COVID-19 cases and 2,410 deaths from the disease, according to the health ministry.

The WHO listed Pfizer and BioNTechs COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use on Dec. 31 as it sought to accelerate vaccination in the developing world, which is badly lagging western countries.

A regional WHO official told Reuters this week that they were looking at the production sites for the AstraZeneca vaccine and hoped to make the decision on emergency use within weeks.

(Corrects spelling in first paragraph to AstraZeneca, not AztraZeneca)

Reporting by Abdul Qadir Sediqi; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Christian Schmollinger

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First doses of COVID-19 vaccine arrive in Afghanistan from India - Reuters