Afghanistan has handed "undeniable" evidence to Pakistan that a recent spate of deadly attacks were planned on Pakistani soil, Afghan officials said on Thursday amid growing public anger over their inability to protect civilians.
The attacks, including one of the deadliest bombings in Kabul since the 2001 US invasion, came after Washington's recent decision to freeze nearly $2 billion (Dh7.2bn) in aid to Pakistan because of its alleged support for militant groups including the Afghan Taliban and the affiliated Haqqani Network.
Kabul is on edge after militants stormed a luxury hotel, bombed a crowded street and raided a military compound in the past two weeks.
Afghan authorities have blamed the January 20 attack on the Intercontinental Hotel and Saturday's ambulance bombing on the Haqqani Network, long thought to be linked to Pakistan's shadowy military establishment.
Both attacks have been claimed by the Taliban. The Haqqani leader, Sirajuddin Haqqani, is deputy chief of the Taliban.
Mohammad Stanekzai, the head of Afghanistan's spy agency, said it was clear that the attacks were "planned from across the border".
"We asked Pakistan to hand over the culprits of the attacks in Afghanistan and we shared undeniable evidence that the attacks were planned there," Mr Stanekzai told a news conference, a day after meeting with Pakistani officials in Islamabad.
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Read more:
[ Taliban and ISIL adapt to ramped-up security, create a perfect storm of carnage ]
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[ Why Afghanistan is a war with no end in sight ]
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Afghan interior minister Wais Barmak said the Afghans submitted a list of questions during Wednesday's "constructive" one-hour meeting, asking among other things what action Pakistan will take against Taliban leaders and training centres on their soil.
The Pakistani embassy in Kabul said the information provided by Mr Stanekzai was "being examined for its authenticity".
Pakistani foreign minister Khawaja Asif described the talks with the Afghan delegation as "productive", a ministry statement said.
Kabul, along with Washington, has long accused Islamabad of providing safe haven to leaders of the Taliban and other militant groups.
Pakistan denies the charges, insisting it has eradicated safe havens in the tribal region along the border with Afghanistan. The area is largely inaccessible to foreign journalists.
But Islamabad is widely believed to retain links to the Taliban as a bulwark against arch-nemesis India, which it rivals for influence in Kabul.
US president Donald Trump increased the pressure on Pakistan this year by suspending aid. Some analysts warn there may be no real way to pressure Islamabad, which believes keeping Kabul out of India's orbit is more important than clamping down on cross-border militancy.
Earlier this week a foreign ministry spokesman tweeted that in November 2017 Pakistan had handed over 27 suspected Afghan Taliban or Haqqani Network militants. It did not offer further details.
Anger is growing in Kabul after the latest attacks, which together killed more than 130 people in the capital. Many people expressed their grief and rage on social media.
A number of small protests were held on Thursday, including outside the Pakistani embassy, but few people turned out as the city remains on high alert for further assaults.
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Developer: Sucker Punch Productions
Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment
Console: PlayStation 2 to 5
Rating: 5/5
SPECS
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Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
ASSASSIN'S CREED MIRAGE
Developer: Ubisoft Bordeaux
Publisher: Ubisoft
Consoles: PlayStation 4&5, PC and Xbox Series S&X
Rating: 3.5/5
About Tenderd
Started: May 2018
Founder: Arjun Mohan
Based: Dubai
Size: 23 employees
Funding: Raised $5.8m in a seed fund round in December 2018. Backers include Y Combinator, Beco Capital, Venturesouq, Paul Graham, Peter Thiel, Paul Buchheit, Justin Mateen, Matt Mickiewicz, SOMA, Dynamo and Global Founders Capital
Her most famous song
Aghadan Alqak (Would I Ever Find You Again)?
Would I ever find you again
You, the heaven of my love, my yearning and madness;
You, the kiss to my soul, my cheer and
sadness?
Would your lights ever break the night of my eyes again?
Would I ever find you again?
This world is volume and you're the notion,
This world is night and you're the lifetime,
This world is eyes and you're the vision,
This world is sky and you're the moon time,
Have mercy on the heart that belongs to you.
Lyrics: Al Hadi Adam; Composer: Mohammed Abdel Wahab
Newcastle United 0 Tottenham Hotspur 2
Tottenham (Alli 61'), Davies (70')
Red card Jonjo Shelvey (Newcastle)
Herc's Adventures
Developer: Big Ape Productions
Publisher: LucasArts
Console: PlayStation 1 & 5, Sega Saturn
Rating: 4/5
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.