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Five reasons this US military leaflet is ‘highly offensive’
Early Wednesday morning, Resolute Support, the US-led coalition in Afghanistan, issued a public apology for dropping a leaflet containing “an image highly offensive to both Muslims and the religion of Islam” over the northern province of Parwan a night prior. Referring to the leaflet, Major General James Linder, who heads the US and NATO special-operations…
By Ali Latifi Read This ArticleBut Still I Raise the Flag: On Afghan Independence
I originally wrote this in 2013 for the now defunct Aslan Media, I took out the beginning because this year, there really are flags everywhere and a sense of pride and celebration, even in Kabul, but the questions still stand. For the last week, the streets of Kabul have been adorned with symbols of Afghan…
By Ali Latifi Read This ArticleThe President as Comic Relief: Ben Kingsley as Hamid Karzai
In 2012, Wolf Blitzer ended an interview with then Afghan President Hamid Karzai with a downright odd question: “Do you ever think about a movie starring Ben Kingsley as Hamid Karzai?” Karzai, clearly confused, played along, saying he would be “honored” to be portrayed by “the person that played Gandhi.” One must assume that Blitzer thought…
By Ali Latifi Read This ArticleThe ‘misery’ of Istanbul’s Afghan refugees
Istanbul – Six young refugees, all from Afghanistan’s east and south, are gathered in a cramped, makeshift room to shield themselves from the winter’s cold. Only a few metres from the three bunk beds is a wood-burning stove, meant to warm the room from the rain and snow that has seeped through the glassless openings…
By Ali Latifi Read This Article