Dogs of war: Afghan mutts find new home after missing US evacuation - CNA

KABUL: In a makeshift training centre at Kabul airport, dozens of dogs that were left behind during last month's chaotic evacuations from Afghanistan have found a new home - and new handlers.

While it is unclear who the dogs belonged to, many were found in the section of the airport that was used by American forces, and some were trained to sniff out explosives, their new handlers say.

They are among the remnants of the two-decade American intervention which ended with the hurried airlift of more than 120,000 people from Kabul as the Taliban returned to power.

Handler Hewad Azizi, who works for a company handling security at the airport, said he went out looking for abandoned dogs as soon as the last US soldier left.

"When I saw (the soldiers leaving) I went to save the dogs," he told AFP at the training centre, which faces hangars that were used for US planes and military equipment.

He found 30 - half of them in the area that was controlled by US forces. More were found in zones that belonged to former Afghan police.

The dogs are now being fed, cared for and trained by Azizi and his colleagues at the security company's training centre, housed in two converted shipping containers separated by a weed-strewn strip of earth.

The United States pulled its final troops out of Afghanistan on Aug 30, ending America's longest war just ahead of the anniversary of the Sep 11, 2001 attacks that prompted the US-led invasion.

"BOMB DOGS"

Hours after the last soldier left, animal rights group PETA said in a statement that 60 bomb-sniffing dogs and 60 other "working dogs" were left behind by the US forces.

The group appealed to President Joe Biden "to take immediate action", warning that the dogs were "suffering in the heat without adequate access to food or water".

The Pentagon quickly denied that US military personnel abandoned some of their dogs at the airport.

"To correct erroneous reports, the US military did not leave any dogs in cages at Hamid Karzai International Airport, including the reported military working dogs," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby tweeted.

Azizi and his colleagues are not sure about the identity of the previous owners. All they are focusing on now is how to put them back to work when the airport returns to normal.

"We have done training with them to find out what they are used for exactly," he explained, adding that they have realised "they are bomb dogs".

Azizi's favourite dog, Rex, a dark brown Malinois, is one of the recent discoveries.

Every day, he takes Rex for a walk in a small deserted area a few metres away from three old Afghan Air Force planes.

In a small stretch of land littered with bullet cases and empty bags of US military meal rations, he hides a box that smells like explosives and sends Rex to find it.

Seconds later, Rex returns with the box and is given a ball to play with as a reward.

"We train them to see how we can use them," explained Mohamad Mourid, a supervisor at the centre which operates under the umbrella of GAAC, the UAE-based company handling ground and security operations at the airport since last year.

"We feed them, give them water, and clean them."

Soon the dogs will be put to work as the airport, which shut for repairs after the evacuations, gradually reopens.

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2021-09-13 10:01:00Z
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Malaysian govt and Pakatan Harapan ink deal on historic bipartisan cooperation - The Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia's government and main opposition bloc Pakatan Harapan (PH) on Monday (Sept 13) inked a historic bipartisan deal, paving the way for significant reforms that could potentially have a lasting impact on institutions and the political landscape.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob, accompanied by several members of his administration, inked the deal with PH, led by Parti Keadilan Rakyat president Anwar Ibrahim, at a signing ceremony in Malaysia's Parliament, hours after the Lower House sat for the first time under Datuk Seri Ismail's administration.

Mr Ismail said in a statement that the deal - a memorandum of understanding - covered six main areas. 

Among the key areas of reform is to transform administration, empower Parliament and also to strengthen the independence of the judiciary, Mr Ismail said on Monday. 

The deal also outlines that Parliament will not be dissolved before August next year, meaning Malaysia will not face a general election for at least another year. 

More details regarding the contents of the memorandum are expected to be made public later on Monday. 

"The government is confident that this agreement will not only put aside all political differences, but enables national recovery to be done holistically and with inclusivity," Mr Ismail said.

The government and PH announced that an accord had been reached on Sunday after weeks of negotiations between the two sides. 

Despite Mr Ismail beginning to engage PH leaders days into his premiership and before even forming his Cabinet, the deal was threatened a couple of times as Mr Ismail's administration opted not to pursue a vote of confidence to test his majority in Parliament. 

There were also concerns from the opposition following reports that Najib Razak - the former premier convicted of corruption for the 1MDB financial scandal - will be given an adviser role in Mr Ismail's administration.

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2021-09-13 09:32:59Z
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As West ponders aid for Afghanistan, China and Pakistan quick to provide relief - CNA

ISLAMABAD: As international donors gather in Geneva on Monday (Sep 12) to discuss humanitarian relief for Afghanistan under Taliban rule, neighbours China and Pakistan have already reached out with aid and discussions of future assistance.

The economy in the war-torn country is in crisis and a humanitarian crisis is looming, experts say.

Yet the United States and other Western nations are reluctant to provide the Taliban with funds until the militant movement provides assurances that it will uphold human rights, and in particular the rights of women.

The country's roughly US$10 billion in foreign assets, held overseas, are also frozen.

"The understandable purpose is to deny these funds to the de facto Taliban administration," Deborah Lyons, the UN Secretary General's special representative for Afghanistan, told the UN Security Council this week. 

"The inevitable effect, however, will be a severe economic downturn that could throw many more millions into poverty and hunger, may generate a massive wave of refugees from Afghanistan, and indeed set Afghanistan back for generations."

Another possible effect could be to drive Afghanistan closer to its neighbours and close allies Pakistan and China, who have already sent planeloads of supplies to Afghanistan. They have also signalled they are open to ramped-up engagement.

China announced last week it would send US$31 million worth of food and health supplies to Afghanistan, among the first foreign aid pledges since the Taliban took power last month.

Pakistan last week sent supplies such as cooking oil and medicine to authorities in Kabul, while the country's foreign minister called on the international community to provide assistance without conditions and to unfreeze Afghanistan’s assets.

MINERALS AND MILITANCY

Pakistan has had deep ties with the Taliban and has been accused of supporting the group as it battled the US-backed government in Kabul for 20 years - charges denied by Islamabad.

China, with a strong alliance with Pakistan, has also been engaging with the Taliban. Some analysts said it was enticed by the country's mineral wealth, including large reserves of lithium, a key component for electric vehicles.

China has also expressed concern about militancy that could spill over from Afghanistan across its border, which it wants the Taliban administration to help contain.

Beyond humanitarian aid, some experts and officials in the region say China's huge Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) could provide Afghanistan with long-term economic viability.

One possibility is Afghanistan joining the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a central part of the BRI, under which Beijing has pledged over US$60 billion for infrastructure projects in Pakistan, much of it in the form of loans.

"The Taliban would welcome joining CPEC, China would also be very happy," said Rustam Shah Mohmand, Pakistan's former ambassador to Afghanistan.

China has not made any comment on the BRI but Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said Beijing is ready to actively discuss the resumption of China-Afghanistan freight trains and facilitate Afghanistan's interaction with the outside world, especially its access to humanitarian supplies.

Pakistan's foreign office and a Taliban spokesperson did not immediately respond to request for comment.

TALIBAN, CHINA TALK: REPORT

Taliban leaders in recent weeks have said they want good relations with China.

A senior Taliban source said discussions have taken place with China in Doha about possible investment opportunities. China is interested in mining in particular but any activity in the sector will be open to tender, the source said.

"The Taliban welcomes foreign investment that will benefit the country," he said.

Two sources in Afghanistan and Pakistan familiar with the matter said China had been proactively encouraging Afghanistan to join CPEC for years but had been met with a non-committal response from the previous US-backed government.

The Taliban, with a need for economic stimulus and international recognition, seems more keen.

"The best way forward and the immediately available alternative option for Afghanistan's economic development is CPEC, which includes Pakistan and China," said Mushahid Hussain Sayed, a Pakistani senator and former chairman of the China-Pakistan Institute.

"The new administration in Kabul would also be receptive to this and they are keen on it."

For China, though, which already has mining interests in Afghanistan that have struggled to get off the ground, any further investment would come with risks attached, given the uncertain security situation in the country.

"Absolutely the security and stability of Afghanistan is also of importance to China," said Wang Huiyao, president of the Centre for China and Globalisation, a think-tank.

"But also links to Central Asia and the connectivity through the Belt and Road, it's all related for the regional stability and prosperity ...There's a stake there for China."

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2021-09-12 20:40:58Z
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Malaysian govt and opposition reach deal on confidence-and-supply agreement - The Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR - Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Malaysia's main opposition coalition on Sunday (Sept 12) announced a breakthrough in talks for a confidence-and-supply agreement (CSA), saying that a "memorandum of understanding" will be inked when Parliament reopens for the year on Monday.

An accord has been up in the air since it was first broached at a meeting between Pakatan Harapan (PH) chiefs and Mr Ismail on Aug 25, just days after he was sworn into office with a slim majority in Parliament.

The Prime Minister, who is an Umno vice-president, can count on the support of just 114 members of the 222-seat Parliament, where two seats are currently vacant.

His support base is a mirror of that for the previous Perikatan Nasional government led by Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

Mr Muhyiddin's government fell after some Umno MPs withdrew their support for him. They backed Mr Ismail, who was the previous deputy prime minister, as his successor, giving him the same slim majority Mr Muhyiddin had in Parliament.

"With this understanding, focus and priority will be given by both sides to a new political landscape through transformation initiatives and reforms to governance, especially empowering Parliament," said a joint statement on Sunday between a ministerial committee and PH representatives.

Official sources told The Straits Times that the deal will see PH's 89 MPs "abstain or support supply Bills and motions whose failure will be understood as a loss of confidence" for the government.

"For example, if we are genuinely consulted on next year's budget, then there will be support, otherwise, it will just be abstention," a top PH leader said, on condition of anonymity as details are under wraps until the 5pm signing on Monday.

On Friday, Mr Ismail announced that the government would offer a number of reforms, including enacting anti-party hopping laws, lowering the voting age to 18, limiting the term of a premier to a decade and ensuring Bills will be negotiated and jointly agreed on before being tabled in Parliament.

Since the initial meeting a fortnight ago, PH lawmakers had been reluctant to term the deal with the government an "agreement", with various other terminology being considered to avoid the perception of the opposition giving a prime minister from a long-hated foe, Umno, a free pass.

But political scientist Wong Chin Huat told ST that "as long as it is a deal between the government and opposition that guarantees the government's survival on votes on confidence or the budget et cetera, it is a CSA, even if it's called a love letter".

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2021-09-12 15:37:14Z
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Chinese state media warns US of another 'deadly attack' - Yahoo Singapore News

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Beijing [China], September 12 (ANI): The editor of Chinese state media, Global Times, Hu Xijin on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attack predicted that there will be another "deadly attack" in the US.

"The September 11 attack was suicide attacks by 19 terrorists, but it was not the "suicide attack" of the terrorism. Terrorism will accumulate power to launch the next deadly attack. Time will prove that it is a mistake for the US to regard China as its biggest adversary," tweeted Hu.

It is pertinent to note that relations between China and the United States have deteriorated to the extent that the allies of US have also imposed sanctions on Beijing for the repression of Muslim Uyghurs in the north-western region of Xinjiang.

Nineteen Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial aeroplanes on September 11, 2001. Two of the planes were flown into the World Trade Center towers in New York. Another plane struck the west side of the Pentagon, and yet another one crashed in Pennsylvania before reaching its presumed target. The attacks claimed nearly 3,000 lives.

On September 10, US President Joe Biden designated September 11 as Patriot and National Day of Service and Remembrance and noted that on this day, all government entities should display the US flag at half-staff.

Meanwhile, China used the anniversary to negate the narrative surrounding Beijing's repression of Muslim Uyghurs in the north-western region of Xinjiang.

Zhao Lijian, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, on Friday urged the US to stop defining terrorists based on their ideologies and "political self-interest."

"Terrorists are terrorists. Defining terrorists based on political self-interest is essentially condoning terrorist activities, which seriously undermines the international counter-terrorism cooperation," said Zhao.

Amid the mounting accusation of large-scale human rights violations and persecution of Uyghurs by China, fresh reports have emerged where the Chinese authorities are said to be racially profiling minority groups to build a large DNA database.

China has been rebuked for cracking down on Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Multiple reports suggest that Beijing sends the ethnic minorities to mass detention camps and interferes in their religious activities. Moreover, it subjects them to abuse including forced labour.

Despite mounting evidence, Beijing has vehemently denied that it is engaging in human rights abuses against the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. (ANI)

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2021-09-12 07:40:17Z
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The foreign legion of YouTubers defending China - CNA

BEIJING: With YouTube videos "debunking" allegations of human rights abuses and diatribes on Western "conspiracies" against China, an unlikely set of foreigners are loudly defending Beijing from its international critics.

They are teachers and business owners from Britain, Colombia and Singapore, a collage of YouTubers garnering fame for their video takedowns of what they say are unfair accusations against Beijing.

Videos alternate between praise of China's rapid development and rebuttals of negative foreign reports about the country.

Experts say they are being deployed as a weapon in the information war against China's critics, with hundreds of videos reaching millions of viewers.

"I am trying to reach the people that have been brainwashed," Fernando Munoz Bernal, a Colombian English teacher in southern China's Dongguan and the owner of the FerMuBe channel, told AFP.

Bernal, who came to China in 2000 and has nearly 30,000 YouTube followers and 18,000 subscribers on the Chinese platform Bilibili, was among the vloggers who rebutted allegations of human rights abuses in Xinjiang this year.

In an April video, he accused foreign media of distorted reporting on Xinjiang and defended local businesses' reluctance to speak to correspondents against "whatever lies and rumours journalists concoct".

Western media seek to deflect from problems in their parts of the world by "creating enemies out of thin air" in China, he told AFP.

He is not alone.

"Does this look like oppression? Take a look at this buffet!" says Brit Jason Lightfoot, with 173,000 subscribers, in another video of the same genre as he visits a restaurant in Guizhou province.

The United States and other governments allege genocide is taking place in Xinjiang while rights groups say Chinese authorities have imposed mass detention and forced labour in the region.

Beijing denies the allegations and has gone on the offensive against governments, individuals, media groups as well as companies that have promised probes into their Xinjiang supply chains.

PAID STOOGES? NOT US

The vloggers deny being paid mouthpieces for the Chinese government, instead claiming to be on self-appointed missions to clear up misconceptions about a country they love.

Their backgrounds are often in fields unrelated to current affairs or politics, while their videos blend footage of everyday life with passionate commentaries defending China.

Bernal, who speaks some Chinese, said he was motivated by fear of a conflict between China and the West sparked by what he calls a "disinformation campaign" against Beijing.

"If there is a war, it's my life at risk," he told AFP.

YouTube is inaccessible inside China without special VPN software.

Yet like the other YouTubers, Bernal's subtitled videos get a warm reception on Chinese social media platforms including Bilibili, while state media frequently republishes their content and features the vloggers online.

The same media often rips into unfavourable reporting by accredited foreign journalists.

"Where possible, the propaganda system is bound to integrate them into their own propaganda efforts," Florian Schneider, politics researcher and director of the Leiden Asia Centre, told AFP.

Bernal said he and other YouTubers shared "opportunities to collaborate with state media" but insisted he was not a propagandist for China's Communist Party.

His videos have featured tours sponsored by the government-run China Radio International, where he interviews other YouTubers about criticisms of China and explores rural development projects.

In one video, he slams the 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong as "terrorism" and suggests the United States was attempting to provoke a war with China by supporting the movement, while referencing 9/11 conspiracy theories.

PREACHING TO THE CONVERTED

Lee Barrett of the Barrett channel, which has more than 300,000 YouTube subscribers, recently addressed the question of state media repurposing his content for PR.

"If you're making some content that the government likes, or whatever, what's the problem with them reposting it?" he said in a video.

Barret declined to be interviewed by AFP after initially agreeing to speak.

Many of the vloggers started their channels with apolitical lifestyle videos, but their content has in recent months dovetailed with official narratives.

Lightfoot's early videos were focused on his travels around Asia as he sampled street food and sang at karaoke lounges.

But last year, he began posting frequently on Western "lies" about China, while making spoof videos of an exaggerated, fictional "BSB news" network modelled after the BBC.

Beijing routinely condemns BBC reporting for alleged bias, accusing it of fabricating human rights abuses.

Lightfoot did not respond to AFP's request for an interview.

It is difficult to quantify the influence of the YouTubers outside China, with many of their commenters claiming to be grateful Chinese.

That raises a question about their target audience, says analyst Schneider, as the videos are "hardly going to convince anyone who is not already a believer".

While researchers have said China uses fake accounts and "bots" to manipulate online traffic, AFP did not find proof that the YouTubers were part of this effort.

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2021-09-12 04:36:40Z
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Teen Raducanu wins US Open title for first Slam crown by qualifier - Yahoo Singapore News

Britain's 18-year-old Emma Raducanu became the first qualifier to capture a Grand Slam title by defeating Canada's 19-year-old Leylah Fernandez on Saturday in the US Open women's final.

Raducanu, ranked 150th, was the first British woman in 44 years to win a Slam crown after dispatching 73rd-ranked left-hander Fernandez 6-4, 6-3.

Not since Virginia Wade in 1977 at Wimbledon had a British woman taken a Slam singles title, with Raducanu the first Briton to claim the US Open crown since Wade in 1968.

Wade and British men's tennis legend Tim Henman were among a sellout crowd of 23,700 that created an electric atmosphere at Arthur Ashe Stadium in the first-ever women's Slam final between unseeded players.

The showdown of prodigy talents was the first all-teen Slam final since 17-year-old Serena Williams beat 18-year-old Martina Hingis for the 1999 US Open crown.

Raducanu is the youngest US Open champion since Williams in 1999 and the first US Open women's champion not to drop a set since Williams in 2014.

Raducanu had the fewest Slam starts of any women's Slam winner, reaching the fourth round in July at Wimbledon in her only prior Slam appearance while Fernandez had won only four matches in six prior Slam appearances.

- Intense from the start -

The drama of a much-anticipated teen dream meeting produced tension from the start.

Fernandez saved five break points in her opening service game of the match before finally surrendering the 10-minute game on a netted forehand to give Raducanu a 2-0 edge.

Fernandez broke back in the third game, Raducanu netting a backhand on the fourth break point she faced.

With each game a roller-coaster of powerful groundstrokes and sensational shotmaking, the first set hung on a knife's edge game after game.

Raducanu forced three break points on Fernandez's serve in the 10th game, but sent backhands long, wide and into the net.

On her fourth opportunity, Raducanu blasted a forehand winner to claim the first set after 58 minutes.

In the second set, Fernandez saved three break points and held to 1-1 then broke on a netted backhand by Raducanu to seize a 2-1 edge.

Raducanu broke back to 2-2, blasting a backhand cross-court service return winner to equalize, then later whipped a forehand passing winner by the Canadian to break for a 4-2 advantage.

Raducanu held and forced two match points on Fernandez's serve in the eighth game but sent a backhand wide and netted a forehand with the title at stake and Fernandez held to 5-3.

Fernandez had a break chance at 30-40 in the ninth game when Raducanu skidded on the court on her left knee and opened a bleeding cut, the match halted while a trainer bandaged the wound.

Fernandez, wiping away tears, complained to the umpire about the granting of a medical timeout to no avail.

When play resumed, Fernandez sent a forehand long to squander the break chance and Raducanu ended matters after an hour and 51 minutes on her third ace of the match.

Fernandez, who turned 19 on Monday, had ousted defending champion Naomi Osaka, second-ranked Aryna Sabalenka, fifth seed Elina Svitolina and three-time Slam winner Angelique Kerber in her epic run to the final.

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2021-09-11 22:31:23Z
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