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America’s Afghan graveyard

It is hard to be anything but pessimistic about the country’s future two bloody decades since US and Allied forces overthrew the Taliban because of their harbouring al-Qaida in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Hundreds of American and British troops have died, as have 250,000 Afghan militiamen and civilians. Three million have been displaced internally and 2.1 million left the country, mainly for Pakistan and Iran.
But there is now a greater threat to Afghanistan’s stability since shortly after the 2001 invasion. In the last few weeks, the Taliban emerged from its southern strongholds to wrest half the country from government forces and threatened major cities from Lashkar Gah to Herat and Kunduz. Stark warnings been issued about a grim outcome. The other day a car bomb targeted the Kabul home of the Afghan minister of defence.
Biden is now the fourth president to have been commander-in-chief of US troops in Afghanistan. “We’re not going to have a ‘mission accomplished’ moment in this regard,” said the White House recently. “It’s a 20-year war that has not been won militarily.” That formulation was widely seen as a critical reference to George W Bush’s notorious “Mission Accomplished” speech in 2003 from the deck of a US aircraft carrier, in which he announced “major combat operations in Iraq have ended”. That false pronouncement has been widely ridiculed in the 18 years since it was delivered.
Biden has said he will end air support to Afghan forces and target terrorist groups from regional bases. But there are still many unanswered questions about the extent of future US involvement. What level of al-Qaida or Isis presence would trigger American retaliation? Would the Taliban be targeted on suspicion of cooperating with terrorist groups? And which bases would the US be able to use?
All these challenging issues were on the agenda over a decade ago when Barack Obama first considered withdrawing from Afghanistan, as was advocated by then Vice-President Biden. But Obama was ultimately persuaded in 2009 to conduct a troop “surge” instead – raising the level of US forces to 100,000 - and so no conclusions were reached. The president’s hope had been that by agreeing to a significant increase in troop numbers, he would be able more quickly to order their withdrawal.
By February 2020, months before Biden’s election victory over Donald Trump, the US and the Taliban had brokered a deal during talks in Qatar to end the conflict and for America to withdraw. Pointedly, that agreement did not include representatives of the US-backed Afghan government.
“Americans are rightly weary of our longest war; I am, too. But we must end the war responsibly, in a manner that ensures we both guard against threats to our homeland and never have to go back,” Biden said last September.
Defending the decision to withdraw US troops, he said this summer: “Let me ask those who wanted us to stay: how many thousands more of America’s daughters and sons are you willing to risk? How long would you have them stay?”
President George W Bush, who pushed for the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, and who now works to help injured military veterans, claimed Afghan women and girls will “suffer unspeakable harm”. In an interview he was asked if Biden’s move was a mistake. “You know, I think it is, yeah, because I think the consequences are going to be unbelievably bad,” he answered.
Bush may well be right. The risk is not confined to domestic issues of gender equality but a regional and perhaps a global one of the country becoming a centre for Islamist extremism and terrorism. India and China share western anxiety.
The US withdrawal has attracted growing attention as the Taliban have seized the opportunity to extend their hold. That has reinforced Afghanistan’s reputation as the “graveyard of empires” – first for the British whose troops tried and failed in the first half of the 19th century to seize it; and then for the Soviet Union, which invaded in 1979, triggering an insurgency led by mujahideen fighters and backed by the CIA. Soviet forces left a decade later, having lost at least 15,000 men and 50,000 injured. And now the Americans are facing a parallel humiliation.
It is not only politicians. Highly experienced soldiers have taken to warning of the potentially catastrophic consequences of Biden’s decision. Major-General Nick Carter, the commander-in-chief of the UK armed forces, cautioned that the Afghan situation risked again becoming a global challenge. And David Petraeus, the former US commander in Afghanistan and director of the CIA, talked of the risk of the US withdrawal leaving this benighted and beautiful country to grapple with a “bloody, brutal civil war.” The world must be hoping that these views are needlessly bleak.
by: IAN BLACK The_Levant_News
The Levant News

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BENEFIT AGM approves 10%...
- March 27, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).
Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.
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