arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

In Afghanistan dreigt een nooit geziene humanitaire ramp. In het onderstaande artikel uit The Guardian van 29/09 vind je enkele cijfers. De oorlogsdreiging is de onmiddellijke hoofdoorzaak van de ramp. De VN vragen aan de buurlanden van Afghanistan om de grenzen open te stellen.
NY Times meldde op 27/09 dat het precies Bush was die vroeg om de grens met Pakistan te verzegelen uit angst dat adepten van bin Laden zich onder de vluchtelingen zouden mengen.
Hier zit een strategie achter. Bush lijkt aan te sturen op een humanitaire interventie. Hij vraagt om nog even de grenzen te sluiten zodat de media dan beelden van uitgemergelde Afghanen kan verspreiden. Op dat moment kan de anti-terreurcoalitie tussen komen. Nu niet langer alleen om tegen terroristen te vechten maar om die arme Afghanen uit de klauwen van de Taliban te redden en om een corridor te maken voor de voedselhulp. Het tweede artikel dat je hier onder kan vinden, bewijst dat dit walgelijke scenario wel degelijk door Bush en zijn bondgenoten wordt gevolgd.
In dat artikel één bijzonder belangrijk zinnetje: een humanitaire interventie is makkelijker verteerbaar voor de andere moslimlanden.
Ook belangrijk: een verwijzing naar Kosovo.
Men speelt hier dus met het leven van 7,5 miljoen mensen.
Wie gelooft nog dat dit enkel gaat om de jacht op één gestoord brein?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/afghanistan/story/0,1284,559630,00.html
About 60% of the urban population are thought to have fled the cities to rural areas since September 11 in fear of US air strikes, and are moving into areas where food is already scarce because of three years of drought.
Panic about food distribution and an escalation in fighting have led to vast movements in the rural population as well. Last night the United Nations urged Afghanistan's neighbours to open their borders to refugees, and warned that up to 7.5m Afghans were in danger of starving as winter sets in.
While a few thousand refugees have slipped into Pakistan and Iran illegally, across remote mountain passes, all official border crossings around Afghanistan remain closed.
UN officials warn that more than 1.5m refugees are expected to try to escape in the event of an American attack.
Around a million would cross along the long border into Pakistan, another 400,000 into Iran, 50,000 into Tajikistan, and 50,000 into Turkmenistan, according to UN forecasts.
"We have called on all countries to open their borders in accordance with international law," said Peter Kessler, a spokesman for the UNHCR in Islamabad. "But all have said their borders remain closed."

Blair gives aid pledge

War action matched with aid for millions of Afghans

Ewen MacAskill, Anne Perkins and Richard Norton-Taylor
Friday September 28, 2001
The Guardian

Tony Blair moved yesterday to hold the moral high ground in the coming war in Afghanistan by promising a determined international effort to tackle the millions of refugees fleeing from the expected bombing.
In contrast with the warlike rhetoric of the last two weeks, he urged the creation of a "humanitarian coalition".
Fearful of losing public opinion in Britain when the fighting begins, the prime minister has opted for a twin-track approach: military action within Afghanistan combined with massive amounts of aid to help the refugees.
The initiative will help shore up the international coalition against terrorism, especially among the Muslim countries.
Mr Blair told reporters at a briefing in Downing Street before a meeting of the cabinet: "Just as we have built a political and military coalition following the events in America, now we have also to build a humanitarian coalition to deal with humanitarian crisis in that region."
At a rare evening cabinet meeting, he underlined the point, saying as much energy will be put into the humanitarian effort as to the military one.
The international development secretary, Clare Short, immediately tested the new resolve by asking the chancellor, Gordon Brown, for extra cash.
Mr Brown, who yesterday gave an assurance that his hefty public spending plans on health, schools and transport for this parliament will not be disrupted by the cost of the war, agreed without hesitation to Ms Short's request.
In addition to £25m Britain announced last week for displaced Afghans, Ms Short said last night that a further £11m will go to help poor Pakistanis living in the border area to prevent any rise in envy and hostility towards the refugees.
Ms Short appealed to Pakistan and Iran, which have sealed their borders, to let the refugees cross.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that about 1.5m Afghans are on the move in addition to the millions already in camps in Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.
The scale dwarfs the displacement during the Kosovo war, when 700,000 left.
The UNHCR yesterday launched an appeal for £176m.
Mr Blair is to discuss the refugee crisis with the Japanese prime minister, Junichiro Koizumi, and the European external affairs commissioner, Chris Patten.
"I will be stressing throughout the importance of a massive assistance programme going hand in hand with diplomatic and military options," he said.
The announcement of the humanitarian coalition came soon after Mr Blair met representatives of the Muslim community in Britain.
The switch in emphasis to the humanitarian aspect of the crisis came as defence officials said that military action against Afghanistan was now inevitable.
Defence sources also made clear that in the government's view there was no chance of the Taliban delivering up Osama bin Laden.
"At some point it will be necessary to use military force and the UK will be involved", one senior defence source said. "Military operations will take place sooner rather than later," the sources added.
Initial air strikes would target Bin Laden's camps and Taliban bases as a signal to the regime that unless they "recanted" further strikes would follow.
Military operations n what they called a long campaign against terrorism would involve SAS forces.