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Nearly 16 years after the international intervention toppled the Taliban government,warrages inAfghanistan. A gradual but steady deterioration in security including the massive sewage truck bomb that recently killed 150 civilians in Kabul recently has leaders inside and outsideAfghanistanonce again searching fora new strategy.

TheAfghangovernment has announced fresh elections in 2018 and President Ghani has renewed calls for a comprehensive peace process that involves cooperation fromAfghanistans neighbors.

Thats because the signal failing inAfghanistansince 2001 has been the lackof apolitical solution to the factional conflicts that have dividedAfghanistanfor the last forty years, and which continue to drive its conflicts today.Despite nearly sixteen years of massive international military, economic and political assistance, the country remains beset by a debilitating array of conflicts. The Taliban insurgency, with support from Pakistan and others, continues to take territory. Militants affiliated with ISIS are making inroads and have punctuated their presence with a series of high-profile terror attacks. Tens of thousands ofAfghanrefugees are again fleeing, adding to the European migration crisis and causing a brain drain. Overall, levels of violence and civilian casualties continue to rise.

A lasting, inclusive and legitimate political settlement remains elusive because longstanding grievances about the distribution of political power withinAfghanistan have combined with foreign machinations to create a toxic brew of insurgency, extremism and ethnic opportunism.

Elections have culminated in deeply divisive and contested results. The creation of a National Unity Government in 2014 has failed to resolve competition for power among major factions and has clouded the legitimacy and effectiveness of the current government. At a basic level,Afghanistanneeds effective systems for sharing power and better mechanisms to build confidence between power-brokers who fear theyll be cut-out, or cut-up, once they turn their backs.

This is not just a question of reconciliation with the Taliban, although that too will be an essential element of any peace process. Rather, in order to create viable conditions both for a peace process and its sustainable implementation the currentAfghangovernment, political parties and electoral institutions will need to come together to build the trust needed to build the peace.

We propose three ways that, in combination, can shift the political dynamics to enable a political settlement of the conflict.

First, theAfghangovernment must hold credible elections allowing for fair competition for a share of political power. Parliamentary and District Council elections are scheduled next July, and presidential elections are required in 2019. The government and electoral institutions therefore must work quickly to execute election reforms that expand political representation by increasing the role of political parties, reducing the size of electoral constituencies to bring people closer to their representatives and ensuring that different ethnic groups have equal access to the polls. Overall, there must be greater accountability between voters and their representatives.

Second, the question of how power is shared inAfghanistanmust be revisited. The current winner take all system gives the president enormous power in a divided society. The National Unity Government is a reflection of that problem.The president has the power to appoint almost every official in the country, including governors and mayors. Increasing local autonomy and a voice in selecting leaders should increase accountability and citizen engagement. Ultimately,Afghanistanhas to have more local elections, which will also result in more local government accountability.

Third, political reforms should enable peace negotiations with the Taliban, but not be stalled waiting for them to begin. The Taliban will demand a share of political and economic power that will likely come at the expense of current power-holders, especially in Pashtun areas of the country.

It is therefore particularly important that reforms to theAfghanpolitical system are enacted that enable former Taliban members to have a 'piece of the pie within an acceptable constitutional order. Greater provincial input on appointments and decision making and greater Constitutional checks and balances are therefore tools that that can be used to facilitate a lasting peace process.

Ultimately,Afghanistanneeds to reform and restructure its political institutions to get back on the path of peace, stability and prosperity. The United States and international allies cannot dictate terms of newAfghanpolitical arrangements, but they can helpAfghanpolitical actors to take the hard political decisions now, before worse ones emerge. EveryAfghanwatching the horrors unfolding in Mosul and Raqqa can take heart in knowing they still have the power to avoid a similar fate.

Alex Thier is executive director of the Overseas Development Institute in London and a former senior U.S. official working onAfghanistan. Scott Worden is director ofAfghanistanand Central Asia Programs for the U.S. Institute of Peace.

The views expressed by contributors are their own and are not the views of The Hill.

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The key to ending Afghanistan's long war it's politics, stupid - The Hill (blog)

Afghanistan under-15 football team scooped another win in the CAFA championships on Saturday after defeating Uzbekistan 3-2 in the final match.

The under-15 national football team on Saturday defeated Uzbekistan 3-2 in their third win in the Central Asian Football Federation (CAFA) championship - which earned them the trophy.

The first goal was scored by Afghanistans Samir Samandari in the 7th minute.

At halftime the teams were head to head in a draw after Uzbekistan scored their first goal in the 38th minute.

But Afghanistan stayed strong and was more interested in attacking than defending. The repeated attacks yielded another goal for Afghanistan in the 54th minute.

The Afghan squad continued in this vein and scored their third goal in the 80th minute of the competition.

But this was not the end for the spectators as Uzbekistan scored their second goal in the 82nd minute of the match.

But victory went toAfghanistan.

Afghanistan won its first match against Tajikistan last week and went on to shatter Kyrgyzstan in their second match.

The competition was hosted by Tajikistan, and five teams took part - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan and Tajikistan.

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Afghanistan U-15s Win CAFA Championship Title | TOLOnews - TOLOnews

The Department of Defense announced that Pfc. Hansen B. Kirkpatrick, 19, of Wasilla, Alaska died from wounds received during an "indirect fire attack." Two soldiers were also wounded in the attack, though their injuries are not considered life threatening. The incident is under investigation.

Kirkpatrick was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 36th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division based in Fort Bliss, Texas.

"At a time when we remember the patriots who founded our nation in freedom, we are saddened by the loss of one of our comrades who was here protecting our freedom at home," said General John Nicholson, Commander, US Forces-Afghanistan in a statement. "We will keep his family in our thoughts and prayers as we reflect on the sacrifice he and others have made to secure our freedoms and help make Afghanistan a better place."

The Department of Defense initially stated Kirkpatrick was from Arkansas but later corrected the error.

There has been fierce fighting in Helmand where Afghan security forces have been locked in constant clashes with Taliban insurgents, who have managed to reestablish a significant presence in the area. At least 300 Marines have been deployed to the province to train, advise and assist Afghan soldiers and police.

US and coalition casualties in Afghanistan have become rarer in recent years, falling dramatically since the Afghan government assumed responsibility for combat operations in 2014.

However, there's been an uptick in violence in recent months. Three US soldiers were killed and another wounded in June during a joint US-Afghan military operation in Nangarhar Province. In late April, two US service members were killed and another wounded while conducting a joint raid in the Achin District in Nangarhar.

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US soldier killed in Afghanistan - CNNPolitics.com

There have been 118 registered cases of violence against women in Ghor in the past year, and those are only cases that have been reported, said Fawzia Koofi, head of the womens rights commission in the Afghan Parliament, who recently visited Ghor to raise awareness about the lack of justice. And not a single suspect in these 118 cases has been arrested.

There is no value for women there, Ms. Koofi added. It is as if she deserves to die.

With a population of over 700,000 and located in west-central Afghanistan, Ghor is considered one of the most deprived provinces of the country. It has received little government attention over the years, and the rule of law is almost nonexistent in certain parts of the territory. Ghor also shares borders with some of the most violent provinces with strong Taliban presence, making it vulnerable to the insurgency.

Some of the cases in Ghor briefly shock the nation before fading into its long history of abuse.

A teenage girl, Rukhshana, who was forced into an arranged marriage, was later caught fleeing with a lover. She was buried waist deep in dirt and stoned to death in October 2015 by a gang of men the government said were Taliban. The male lover was flogged and set free.

From her waist up, the rocks had ripped her body and some piece of stones had made it inside her ribs, said Hanifa, Rukhshanas mother. The blood would not stop. There were 12 other women in the room helping me wash her in preparation for burial, she said.

Aziz Gul, 19, was shot at night and buried before her parents could even see her body.

Police records said she was also fleeing with a man, reportedly a lover, to avoid a forced marriage, when she was caught by a mob and killed on the spot last June. But her parents said she was abducted from her uncles house, and after she was recovered villagers accused her of adultery and then shot her.

They killed her around night prayer, and I heard the news at dawn prayer, her mother, Belqis, said. By that time they had buried the body already.

In the most recent case, a woman named Suraya was trying to flee what she said was an abusive forced marriage of four years. She left in March with her lover and an elderly aunt, who accompanied them to help them avoid suspicion. All three were chased by heavily armed villagers and killed. Their charred bodies remained in the open for days; villagers threatened anyone who would come to pick them up.

Ms. Koofi, the lawmaker, said the violence had its roots in tribal feuds and the pervasive practice of marrying off girls at a very young age for large dowries. By the time the husband-to-be comes up with the money, often after years of labor in Iran, the girl has grown up and developed feelings for someone else.

Also playing a crucial role in the violence, Ms. Koofi said, is the absence of the rule of law and a complete sense of impunity.

When security officials are pressed on the situation in Ghor, Ms. Koofi said, they say they have to balance justice with security and that if they go after the perpetrators, they will side with the Taliban who are already gaining ground in the province.

This sense that the provinces misogyny and injustice would be tolerated as a compromise for stability was underscored when President Ashraf Ghani decided not to support a female governor he sent to the province after she faced resistance. The governor, Seema Joyenda, was ousted at the end of 2015, within six months of her arrival, and that move may have further cemented a feeling of impunity among fundamentalists.

There are other episodes that raise questions about the governments commitment to trying to stop, or at least punish, the killing of women in the province.

Mullah Saadyar, one of the militant leaders listed on police documents as ordering the stoning of Rukhshana, recently came for treatment for an illness in Ghors provincial capital, Chaghcharan, but the government did not arrest him.

No one has yet been prosecuted for the death of Tabaruk, either.

In the months before she died, Tabaruk, who, like many Afghans used only one name, was focused on protecting her daughter from her own almost certain death.

The daughter, Mah Yamsar, says she was at home last year when a neighbor, Sayed Ahmad, raped her. She hid the episode from everyone, until her body started changing, and she realized she was pregnant. Her mother become her secret-bearer and helper. In rural Afghanistan, it is common for such pregnancies to end in honor killings.

Mr. Ahmad had pills delivered to Mah Yamsar that would help her have an abortion, which occurred in the seventh month of her pregnancy.

Mah Yamsar went to the hospital and stayed there for eight nights, needing two blood transfusions.

When she was discharged and returned to her village in the Dawlat Yar district of Ghor, elders gathered for a council to decide the familys fate. Tabaruk and her husband were in attendance, as was Mr. Ahmad, the accused rapist, but Mah Yamsar was not.

He said, I wont swear on the Quran, but I did not rape her, Mah Yamsar said her mother told her about Mr. Ahmads words at the meeting.

The village council, swayed by Mr. Ahmads powerful relatives, said Mah Yamsars family had brought dishonor on the village. Load up, and leave this place, the family was told.

Mah Yamsar, still recovering from the abortion, was put on a motorcycle. Her mother rode a horse, while her father, her brother and two village elders, both men, followed behind.

Mah Yamsar arrived ahead of her family in Kharsang, also in Ghor, where the family planned to start a new life. Her mother never made it.

At first, her father said Tabaruk would come. Then he said she had fallen off the horse and died.

But her brother said their father was lying. His father and the two village elders took Tabaruk off into the distance, telling him to stay behind. When they returned, his father said Tabaruk had fallen off the horse.

But the child told Mah Yamsar he heard gunshots.

A version of this article appears in print on July 9, 2017, on Page A6 of the New York edition with the headline: In Lawless Afghan Province, No Value and No Justice for Women.

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No Justice, 'No Value' for Women in a Lawless Afghan Province - New York Times

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Afghanistan national cricket team would strive to win its first-ever match against the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) atLords in London on Tuesday.

The MCCteam would be captained by Brendon McCullum, former New Zealand skipper in the 50 over game, said a statement from the Afghan Connection Group.

Other MCC players would be include two other former international captains, Kumar Sangakkara, of Sri Lanka, and Misbah ul-Haq of Pakistan. The Afghan team would include the highly respected all-rounder, Mohammad Nabi, and the 18-year-old prodigy, Rashid Khan.

The rise of the Afghan national cricket team has been phenomenal over recent years. Most notably, as the match at Lords approached, Afghanistan has been confirmed as a full member of the elite group of ICC (International Cricket Council) Test Match nations.

President of MCCMatthew Fleminghas had close connections with Afghan cricket, and was a very keen supporter of the game there. I have visited Afghanistan and seen the enthusiasm and skill of so many players there, both of senior teams, and of boys and girls too, he said.

MCC has supported Afghan cricket since 2009. MCC supports the game there by funding cricket pitches and helping with coaching, not least of children all around the country. We do this through working with Afghan Connection, a charity which had already become successfully involved with supporting Afghan cricket, says Matthew Fleming.

Afghans love cricket so much, says Dr Sarah Fane, Founder and CEO of Afghan Connection.But they hardly haveany equipment.So Afghan Connection made a delivery to the national team and began supporting grassroots cricket around the country for the young.

"Within a year MCCbegan backing Afghan cricket through Afghan Connections projects. Since 2009 this has led to 100 cricket pitches being built, serving well over 100,000 Afghan children, as well as provision of equipment and coaching for them.

Since 2002, the Afghan Connection has funded the construction of nearly 50 schools in remote areas of northern Afghanistan, serving about 75,000 boys and girls in almost equal numbers, along with training programmes for over 900 teachers.

Afghan kids love going to school.And cricket has become such a large part in the lives of so many, said Dr Fane.

nh/mud

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Afghanistan all set for Tuesday's encounter against MCC - Pajhwok Afghan News (subscription) (blog)