霍洛維茨說，疫苗分發是一個社會經濟問題，富裕的人比貧窮的以色列人更有可能接種疫苗；第 3 劑預計將在 30 多歲後獲批

通過TOI人員今天，晚上 10:35

2021 年 8 月 23 日，以色列人在 Kafr Qasim 鎮的紅大衛盾會移動疫苗單位排隊接受 COVID-19 疫苗。（Yossi Aloni/Flash90）

為了幫助超過 100 萬仍未接種疫苗的以色列人，衛生部長 Nitzan Horowitz 週一宣布了一項計劃，將向疫苗接種率特別低的社區派遣流動疫苗接種單位。

霍洛維茨在一份聲明中說，低接種率是社會經濟地位的一個函數，長期被忽視的阿拉伯以色列社區是該國接種疫苗最少的社區之一。

以色列疫苗接種率最低的城鎮是耶路撒冷、阿拉拉、庫塞伊夫、胡拉、貝爾謝巴、拉哈特、拜特謝梅什、阿什杜德、洛德、埃拉德、卡夫卡西姆、蒂拉、布奈布拉克、卡蘭薩韋、哈里什、巴卡阿爾- Gharbiya、Afula、Nazareth、Daliyat al-Karmel、Kafr Manda、Shfaram、Tamra、Tiberias、Safed 和 Jadeidi-Makr。

“有錢人接種的疫苗越來越多。較弱的人口——少得多，”霍洛維茨說。“我不會放棄這些團體——不會在我的監督下放棄。”

霍洛維茨在介紹“疫苗到家”計劃時說：“我們正在增加服務地點的數量，旨在達到最大程度的加強接種和第一劑接種率。”

“以色列有 1,080,000 [符合條件的] 人根本沒有接種過疫苗。我想對這個數字進行重大更改。這可能是這場競選的決定性因素。”

2021 年 8 月 23 日，衛生部長尼贊·霍洛維茨 (Nitzan Horowitz) 看著一名以色列男孩在 Kafr Qasim 鎮的紅大衛盾會移動疫苗單位接種疫苗。 (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

霍洛維茨說：“我們戰勝大流行而不是達到真正嚴重數字的唯一方法……是在未來幾週內為 300 萬人接種第三劑疫苗。”

迄今為止，超過一百萬半的以色列人已經接種了第三劑。

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截至上週，第 3 劑已向 40 歲以上的任何人提供。第 12 頻道周一報導稱，衛生部總幹事納赫曼·阿什（Nachman Ash）最早可以在周二簽署將加強劑的資格擴大至 30 歲以上的人，並且甚至可以完全取消年齡要求。

衛生部周一晚間更新的冠狀病毒數據顯示，前一天記錄了 6,527 例新病例。在周三測試的 104,929 個樣本中，6.3% 的樣本呈陽性。活躍病例數為 68,638。

由於該病毒，有 664 名以色列人病情嚴重——自周四午夜以來減少了 15 人。死亡人數為 6,856 人。

自周一大流行開始以來，以色列也接近了 100 萬例新冠肺炎病例的里程碑。

儘管案件數量不斷增加，但政府基本上沒有採取嚴厲的限制措施。相反，它依靠加強劑量運動來阻止感染和嚴重病例的上升趨勢。

衛生官員表示，初步數據顯示加強劑量已經有助於降低嚴重病例的發生率。週日晚間第 12 頻道新聞播出的衛生部的早期數據似乎表明，接種第三劑疫苗的人對這種疾病有很強的保護作用。根據數據，在註射加強劑至少 7 天后，前 110 萬以色列人中只有 0.2% 被診斷出患有 COVID-19。

Horowitz says vaccine distribution is a socioeconomic issue, with wealthier individuals more likely to get shots than poorer Israelis; 3rd dose expected to be approved for over 30s

By TOI STAFFToday, 10:35 pm

Israelis stand in line to receive the COVID-19 vaccine at a Magen David Adom mobile vaccine unit in the town of Kafr Qasim on August 23, 2021. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

In an effort to reach the over one million Israelis who remain unvaccinated, Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz announced a plan Monday that will dispatch mobile vaccination units to communities with particularly low vaccination rates.

Horowitz in a statement said that the low inoculation numbers are a function of socioeconomic status, with long-neglected Arab Israeli communities among the country’s least vaccinated.

The towns and cities with the lowest vaccination rates in Israel are Jerusalem, Ar’ara, Kuseife, Hura, Beersheba, Rahat, Beit Shemesh, Ashdod, Lod, Elad, Kafr Qasim, Tira, Bnei Brak, Qalansawe, Harish, Baqa al-Gharbiya, Afula, Nazareth, Daliyat al-Karmel, Kafr Manda, Shfaram, Tamra, Tiberias, Safed and Jadeidi-Makr.

“Rich people are getting vaccinated more. Weaker populations — much less,” Horowitz said. “I will not give up on these groups — not on my watch.”

Presenting the “Vaccines to your home,” program, Horowitz said, “We are raising the number of service locations and aim to reach maximal inoculation rates for boosters — and for first doses.”

“Israel has 1,080,000 [eligible] people who have not been vaccinated at all. I want to create a significant change in this number. It can be a deciding factor in this campaign.”

Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz looks on as an Israeli boy is vaccinated at a Magen David Adom mobile vaccine unit in the town of Kafr Qasim on August 23, 2021. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

“The only way for us to defeat the pandemic and not reach really serious numbers… is to vaccinate three million people with the third dose in the coming weeks,” Horowitz said.

Thus far, over a million and a half Israelis have received the third dose.

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As of last week, the third dose was made available to anyone over the age of 40. Channel 12 reported Monday that Health Ministry Director-General Nachman Ash could sign off on extending eligibility for the boosters to those over 30 as soon as Tuesday, and may even remove the age requirement entirely.

Coronavirus figures updated by the Health Ministry Monday evening showed 6,527 new cases were recorded a day earlier. Of the 104,929 samples tested from Wednesday, 6.3% of them came back positive. The number of active cases was 68,638.

There were 664 Israelis in serious condition as a result of the virus — a decrease of 15 since midnight Thursday. The death toll stood at 6,856.

Israel also neared the milestone of one million total COVID cases since the start of the pandemic on Monday.

Despite the rising number of cases, the government has largely held off on drastic restrictions. Instead, it is counting on a booster dose campaign to stem the rising tide of infections and serious cases.

Health officials have indicated that initial data shows the booster doses are already helping to lower the rate of serious cases. Early data from the Health Ministry aired by Channel 12 news on Sunday evening appeared to show that those who have received a third vaccine dose are highly protected against the disease. According to the data, just 0.2% of the first 1.1 million Israelis who got their booster dose have been diagnosed with COVID-19 after at least seven days passed since the shot.

近 150 萬以色列人接種了第三劑疫苗，因為早期數據表明加強運動是有效的

由艾米斯皮羅 今天，中午 12:45

2021 年 8 月 15 日，一名醫護人員在莫迪因的免下車設施檢查 COVID 測試樣本。（Yossi Aloni/Flash90）

週日，以色列有超過 6,400 人的 COVID 檢測呈陽性，陽性率為 6.31%，這是自 2 月以來的最高水平。

在周日對普通人群進行的 102,291 項測試中，有 6,467 項檢測呈陽性。從5月下旬開始，第四波的陽性率一直在穩步攀升，當時的陽性率不到1%。8月初，這一比率還不到3%。

然而，病毒的基本繁殖數 R 數自 8 月初以來一直在下降，週一為 1.14，而 8 月 1 日為 1.36。 R 率為 1 表示每個感染者都會感染另一個人平均而言，高於 1 的比率意味著病毒會傳播得更快。

截至週一上午，以色列有 67,801 例活躍的 COVID 病例，其中 1,142 人住院，670 人病情嚴重，108 人使用呼吸機。週日有 16 名 COVID 患者死亡，過去一周已有近 150 人死亡。

儘管案件數量不斷增加，但政府基本上沒有採取嚴厲的限制措施。相反，它依靠加強劑量運動來阻止感染和嚴重病例的上升趨勢。8 月 1 日，第 3 劑 COVID 疫苗可供 60 歲以上的人使用，此後已向所有 40 歲以上的人以及醫護人員、教師和孕婦推出。截至週一上午，近 150 萬以色列人已接種了第三劑疫苗。

衛生官員表示，初步數據顯示加強劑量已經有助於降低嚴重病例的發生率。週日晚間第 12 頻道新聞播出的衛生部的早期數據似乎表明，接種第三劑疫苗的人對這種疾病有很強的保護作用。根據數據，在註射加強劑至少 7 天后，前 110 萬以色列人中只有 0.2% 被診斷出患有 COVID-19。

按絕對值計算，接受第三劑的病毒攜帶者人數為 2,790。其中，只有 187 人（0.01%）住院，88 人（0.008%）出現嚴重症狀。其中不到15人死亡，報告沒有提供確切數字。該數據未由該部公開發布，也無法進行獨立審查。

2021 年 8 月 14 日，一名婦女在特拉維夫 Dizengoff 廣場的紅大衛盾會移動中心接種了 COVID-19 疫苗。（Miriam Alster/Flash90）

截至週一上午，70-79 歲人群中有 76% 接種了第三劑疫苗，60-69 歲人群中有 60%、50-59 歲人群中有 37% 和 40-49 歲人群中有 12% 有資格接種第三劑疫苗。週五拍攝。

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週五，衛生部公共衛生服務負責人 Sharon Alroy-Preis 博士告訴第 12 頻道，她對加強劑量的效果持謹慎樂觀態度。

“有謹慎的樂觀情緒，我們看到嚴重的發病率正在得到遏制，”Alroy-Preis 說，同時表示希望助推器將很快可供所有人使用。

Close to 1.5 million Israelis have received a third vaccine dose, as early data indicates the booster campaign is effective

By AMY SPIRO Today, 12:45 pm

A healthcare worker examines a COVID test sample at a drive-through facility in Modi'in, on August 15 2021. (Yossi Aloni/Flash90)

More than 6,400 people in Israeli tested positive for COVID on Sunday, with a positivity rate of 6.31 percent — the highest seen since February.

Out of 102,291 tests carried out among the general population on Sunday, 6,467 came back positive. The positivity rate in the fourth wave has been climbing steadily since late May, when the rate was less than 1%. At the beginning of August, the rate was less than 3%.

However, the R number, the basic reproduction number of the virus, has been falling since early August, and on Monday stood at 1.14, compared to 1.36 on August 1. An R rate of 1 indicates that every infected person will infect one other person on average, while a rate above 1 means the virus will spread more rapidly.

As of Monday morning, there were 67,801 active COVID cases in Israel, with 1,142 hospitalized, 670 in serious condition and 108 on ventilators. Sixteen people with COVID died on Sunday, and close to 150 people have died over the past week.

Despite the rising number of cases, the government has largely held off on drastic restrictions. Instead, it is counting on a booster dose campaign to stem the rising tide of infections and serious cases. Third doses of the COVID vaccine became available to those over 60 on August 1, and have since rolled out to all those over 40 as well as healthcare workers, teachers and pregnant women. As of Monday morning, close to 1.5 million Israelis have received a third dose of the vaccine.

Health officials have indicated that initial data shows the booster doses are already helping to lower the rate of serious cases. Early data from the Health Ministry aired by Channel 12 news on Sunday evening appeared to show that those who have received a third vaccine dose are highly protected against the disease. According to the data, just 0.2% of the first 1.1 million Israelis who got their booster dose have been diagnosed with COVID-19 after at least seven days passed since the shot.

In absolute terms, the number of virus carriers who received their third dose is 2,790. Of them, just 187 (0.01%) were hospitalized and 88 (0.008%) developed serious symptoms. Fewer than 15 of them have died, with the report offering no exact number. The data was not publicly released by the ministry, and could not be independently vetted.

A woman receives a COVID-19 vaccine shot at a mobile Magen David Adom center on Dizengoff Square in Tel Aviv, on August 14, 2021. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

As of Monday morning, 76% of people ages 70-79 have received a third dose, as have 60% of those 60-69, 37% of those 50-59 and 12% of those ages 40-49 — who only became eligible for the shot on Friday.

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On Friday, Dr. Sharon Alroy-Preis, the Health Ministry’s head of public health services, told Channel 12 that she is cautiously optimistic about the effects of the booster doses.

“There is cautious optimism, and we see a curbing of serious morbidity,” Alroy-Preis said, while expressing hope that the boosters would soon be available to the entire population.

15 美元的藥物讓 COVID 患者在不到一周的時間內停止氧氣支持——研究

非諾貝特可以顯著縮短重症 COVID 患者的治療時間。

作者：瑪雅·賈夫·霍夫曼

2021 年 8 月 23 日 22:02

希伯來大學教授 Yaakov Nahmias

（照片來源：丹尼爾·哈諾克）

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研究人員發起的藥物 TriCor（非諾貝特）介入性開放標籤臨床研究中，15 名重症 COVID-19 患者中有 14 名在治療後一周內不需要氧氣支持，並已出院。耶路撒冷希伯來大學一項新研究的結果。

非諾貝特是 FDA 批准的口服藥物。結果發表在 Researchsquare.com 上，目前正在接受同行評審。

具體來說，由 HU 的 Yaakov Nahmias 教授領導的團隊在以色列 Barzilai 醫療中心與醫院傳染病科主任 Shlomo Maayan 教授協調，並在雅培實驗室的支持下進行了這項研究。

15 名接受治療的患者均患有肺炎，需要氧氣支持。他們年齡較大，患有多種合併症，從糖尿病和肥胖症到高血壓。

除了標準護理外，患者還接受了 145 毫克/天的非諾貝特治療，持續 10 天。

“結果是戲劇性的，”Nahmias 告訴

《耶路撒冷郵報》。

“進行性炎症標誌物是惡化的 COVID-19 的標誌，在治療後 48 小時內下降。此外，15 名重症患者中有 14 名在治療後一周內不需要氧氣支持。” 第 15 名患者在 10 天內停止吸氧。

感染冠狀病毒的肺細胞（來源：YAAKOV NAHMIAS）

在查看其他類似重症患者的數據時，平均不到 30% 的患者在一周內從氧氣支持中移除。換句話說，非諾貝特可以顯著縮短重症 COVID 患者的治療時間。

“我們知道這類患者病情惡化得非常快，在 5 到 7 天內會出現細胞因子風暴，並且可能需要數週時間來治療他們並讓他們好轉，”Nahmias 說。“我們給這些患者服用了非諾貝特，研究表明炎症下降得非常快。他們似乎根本沒有發生細胞因子風暴。”

細胞因子風暴是對疾病的侵略性炎症反應。

一般來說，不需要氧氣的患者可以在家中接受治療，”他說。“此外，儘管以色列和國外的 COVID 死亡人數很多，但大多數重症患者仍然存活。

“如果你回顧 28 天的時間，我原以為所有人都能在有或沒有藥物的情況下存活，”Nahmias 解釋說。“問題是我們能多快把他們送回家，或者我們能多快讓重症患者病情輕微。”

所有患者在出院後都完成了為期 10 天的家庭治療，據 Maayan 稱，“沒有報告與藥物相關的不良事件”。

非諾貝特早在 1975 年就被 FDA 批准用於長期使用，被認為是安全的。此外，它是一種便宜的藥丸，Nahmias 說。每天的費用不到 1.50 美元，這意味著每位患者的整個治療費用約為 15 美元。

幾乎自大流行開始以來，Nahmias 就一直在研究使用非諾貝特治療 COVID-19。他首先進行了臨床前試驗，然後進行了多中心回顧性研究，兩者都支持該藥物的有效性。

“病毒是寄生蟲，”Nahmias 解釋說。“他們不能自己複製。他們必須進入人體細胞並劫持他們的機器進行複制。”

Nahmias 與美國的合作者合作，證明冠狀病毒會阻止肺細胞中的脂肪燃燒，導致肺細胞內積聚大量脂肪——這是病毒繁殖所需的條件。他希望非諾貝特能夠逆轉這種影響，並消除病毒複製。

“通過了解 SARS-CoV-2 如何控制我們的新陳代謝，我們可以從病毒手中奪回控制權，並剝奪它生存所需的資源，”Nahmias 告訴郵報，並指出這也可能有助於解釋為什麼患有高血糖和膽固醇水平通常是患COVID-19的特別高的風險。

這位教授現在參與了在南美洲、美國和以色列進行的一系列 III 期研究。這些研究是安慰劑對照和雙盲的。

Nahmias 說，在 Delta 變體出現之前，他的團隊一直在努力讓患者參加這項研究，但現在工作進展得更快。他希望結果最早可以在未來兩個月內出爐。

與此同時，這種藥物是可用的，醫生可以根據現有數據決定用它進行治療。

“沒有靈丹妙藥，”他說，“但非諾貝特比迄今為止提出的其他藥物安全得多，其作用機制使其不太可能具有變異特異性。”

與此同時，這種藥物是可用的，醫生可以根據現有數據決定用它進行治療。

“沒有靈丹妙藥，”他說，“但非諾貝特比迄今為止提出的其他藥物安全得多，其作用機制使其不太可能具有變異特異性。”

$15 drug gets COVID patients off oxygen support in under week – study

Fenofibrate could dramatically shorten the treatment time for severe COVID patients.

By MAAYAN JAFFE-HOFFMAN

AUGUST 23, 2021 22:02

Hebrew University Professor Yaakov Nahmias

(photo credit: DANIEL HANOCH)

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Fourteen out of 15 severe COVID-19 patients who were treated in an investigator-initiated interventional open-label clinical study of the drug TriCor (fenofibrate) didn’t require oxygen support within a week of treatment and were released from the hospital, according to the results of a new Hebrew University of Jerusalem study.

Fenofibrate is an FDA-approved oral medication. The results were published on Researchsquare.com and are currently under peer review.

Specifically, the team that was led by HU’s Prof. Yaakov Nahmias carried out the study at Israel’s Barzilai Medical Center in coordination with the hospital’s head of the Infectious Disease Unit, Prof. Shlomo Maayan, and with support from Abbott Laboratories.

The 15 treated patients all had pneumonia and required oxygen support. They were also older with multiple comorbidities, ranging from diabetes and obesity to high blood pressure.

In addition to standard of care, the patients were given 145 mg/day of fenofibrate for 10 days.

“The results were dramatic,” Nahmias told The Jerusalem Post. “Progressive inflammation markers, which are the hallmark of deteriorative COVID-19, dropped within 48 hours of treatment. Moreover, 14 of the 15 severe patients didn’t require oxygen support within a week of treatment.” The 15th patient was off oxygen within 10 days.

Lung cells infected with coronavirus (credit: YAAKOV NAHMIAS)

When looking at the data on other similar severe patients, less than 30% of them on average are removed from oxygen support within a week. In other words, fenofibrate could dramatically shorten the treatment time for severe COVID patients.

“We know these kinds of patients deteriorate really fast, develop a cytokine storm in five to seven days and that it can take weeks to treat them and for them to get better,” Nahmias said. “We gave these patients fenofibrate and the study shows inflammation dropped incredibly fast. They did not seem to develop a cytokine storm at all.”

Cytokine storms are aggressive inflammatory responses to illness.

In general, patients who do not require oxygen can be treated at home,” he said. “Additionally, despite the high number of COVID deaths in Israel and abroad, the majority of severely sick patients survive.

“If you look over a 28-day period, I would have expected all of them to survive with or without the drug,” Nahmias explained. “The question is how fast we can get them home or how quickly we can get a severe patient to a mild condition.”

All of the patients completed a 10-day home treatment after discharge and, according to Maayan, “no drug-related adverse events” were reported.

FENOFIBRATE WAS approved by the FDA back in 1975 for long-term use and is considered safe. Moreover, it is an inexpensive pill, Nahmias said. It costs less than $1.50 a day, meaning the entire treatment per patient was around $15.

Nahmias has been studying the use of fenofibrate for treating COVID-19 almost since the start of the pandemic. He first ran a pre-clinical trial and then a multi-center retrospective study, both of which supported the effectiveness of the drug.

“Viruses are parasites,” Nahmias explained. “They cannot replicate by themselves. They have to get inside a human cell and hijack their machinery to replicate.”

Working with collaborators in the United States, Nahmias demonstrated that the coronavirus prevents the burning of fat in lung cells, resulting in large amounts of fat accumulating inside lung cells – a condition the virus needs to reproduce. Fenofibrate, he hoped, would reverse that effect, and eliminate virus replication.

“By understanding how the SARS-CoV-2 controls our metabolism, we can wrestle back control from the virus and deprive it of the very resources it needs to survive,” Nahmias told the Post, noting that this also may help explain why patients with high blood sugar and cholesterol levels are often at a particularly high risk to develop COVID-19.

The professor is now involved with a series of Phase III studies being carried out in South America, the United States and Israel. Those studies are placebo-controlled and double-blind.

Nahmias said his team had been struggling to get patients enrolled in the study before the onset of the Delta variant, but efforts are now progressing more rapidly. He hopes that results could be available as early as within the next two months.

In the meantime, the drug is available, and physicians can decide to give treatment with it based on available data.

“There are no silver bullets,” he said, “but fenofibrate is far safer than other drugs proposed to date, and its mechanism of action makes it less likely to be variant-specific.”

In the meantime, the drug is available, and physicians can decide to give treatment with it based on available data.

“There are no silver bullets,” he said, “but fenofibrate is far safer than other drugs proposed to date, and its mechanism of action makes it less likely to be variant-specific.”

教師和工作人員需要綠色通行證才能進入學校；在家長同意的情況下，12 歲及以上的學生將在上課時間接種 COVID 疫苗

通過TOI人員今天，凌晨 2:01更新於上午 9:14

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埃弗拉特 Alumot 小學的五年級學生，2021 年 2 月 21 日（Gershon Elinson/Flash90）

儘管由於最近的病毒激增而呼籲推遲，但最高級別的冠狀病毒內閣週一早上決定，學年將於 9 月 1 日如期開始。

作為決定的一部分，部長們同意，符合條件的 12 歲及以上學生將在上課時間在校園內接種疫苗，但須經家長同意。

教育部長伊法特·沙沙-比頓曾反對該計劃，但後來同意了，以避免推遲開學。

一些官員一直在推動將學年的開始時間推遲一個月，因為 Delta 變體引發了嚴重病毒病例的死灰復燃。根據衛生部周日晚間公佈的統計數據，過去一周，以色列有 198 人死於新冠肺炎，僅週末就有 40 多人死亡。

內閣還決定對所有學校教職員工實施綠色通行證政策，這意味著他們要么必須接種疫苗，要么提供最近的 COVID 測試呈陰性才能進入學校。

上個月關於重新開學的討論見證了 Shasha-Biton 和衛生部官員之間的激烈辯論，其特點是媒體對教育部長進行了一系列匿名攻擊，稱她為“冠狀病毒否認者”，而這位高級衛生官員被抨擊為“表現得像個瘋子”。

2021 年 6 月 14 日，教育部長 Yifat Shasha-Biton 抵達耶路撒冷總統官邸，與新宣誓就職的以色列政府合影。 (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

在最近的冠狀病毒內閣會議上，據報導，當教育部長表示“不可能”在 9 月 1 日之前在學校實施綠色通行證系統時，Shasha-Biton 和總理 Naftali Bennett 交換了激烈的言論，聲稱“我們沒有足夠的代課教師” ”來填補不可避免的人員空缺。

根據 Ynet 新聞網站報導的會議洩密，貝內特回應說：“你反對，這很好，但不要說‘不可能’。我也是教育部長。”

廣告

2021 年 8 月 22 日，以色列兒童在沿海城市內坦亞接受 COVID-19 抗體測試。（JACK GUEZ / 法新社）

據報導，Shasha-Biton 回擊道：“我不反對，我們只需要知道如何能夠滿足 [新要求]。”

雖然 Shasha-Biton 最終投票支持學校在 9 月 1 日重新開放，但內政部長 Ayelet Shaked 和公安部長 Omer Bar-Lev 投棄權票，據報導 Shaked 聲稱它“在 9 月開放太危險了——我們需要更多時間來接種疫苗。”

衛生部總幹事納赫曼·阿什 (Nachman Ash) 週一早上告訴 103 FM Radio，政府正在全速前進，以確保學校按時開學。“我認為我們可以以安全的方式開學，”阿什說。

他補充說，他認為拒絕接種疫苗或接受常規 COVID 測試的工作人員不應被允許教書或領取薪水，並補充說這個問題“尚未完全解決”。

週日也是對 3-12 歲兒童進行全國血清學檢測的第一天，以色列國防軍內線司令部正在全國 400 多個地點進行血清學檢測。

根據政府的返校計劃，超過 100 萬學生將接受血清學檢測，以確定他們過去是否在沒有發現的情況下感染了 COVID 並從 COVID 中康復。如果發現學生有抗體，他們將獲得綠色通行證，如果班上有人檢測呈陽性，他們將免於隔離。

廣告

然而，第一天在車站排長隊和延誤，以色列國防軍運行的在線測試註冊系統崩潰，迫使士兵手動記下接受測試的孩子的詳細信息。

以色列國防軍發言人辦公室表示，將“根據需要加強和轉移人力”以滿足需求，並且以色列國防軍“與當局保持聯繫”。

國防部長本尼·甘茨（Benny Gantz）已授權召集 6,000 名預備役人員來管理測試站，這些測試站將至少開放到 9 月 2 日。

2021 年 8 月 19 日，一名醫務人員在耶路撒冷科學博物館外的測試站對一名兒童進行 COVID-19 快速測試。（Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90）

從上週開始，所有 3 至 12 歲的兒童必須在新冠病毒檢測中呈陰性才能進入大多數公共景點，這導致在全國范圍內建立了數十個快速檢測點。許多家長抱怨在站點收到測試結果之前排長隊、過度擁擠和長時間等待。

他們說，週日早些時候，以色列七家醫院的負責人威脅要從周一開始停止接收新的 COVID-19 患者，懇求政府提供資金，人員和資源已達到極限。

根據衛生部的最新數據，截至週日晚上，有 1,125 名感染冠狀病毒的人住院，其中 669 人病情嚴重，111 人需要呼吸機。

該部周日報告了周六確認的 5,383 例新病例，自午夜以來又增加了 3,829 例，使該國的活躍病例數達到 64,975。

它說周六進行的 102,110 次測試中有 5.4% 呈陽性。

自大流行開始以來，該國已確認 990,524 例感染和 6,830 例 COVID 死亡。

廣告

官員們說，絕大多數嚴重感染 COVID 的人都沒有接種疫苗，儘管隨著免疫力似乎減弱，接種疫苗的突破性病例也變得普遍，以色列正尋求通過加強注射運動來解決這個問題。

2021 年 8 月 14 日，一名婦女在特拉維夫 Dizengoff 廣場的紅大衛盾會移動中心接種了 COVID-19 疫苗（Miriam Alster/Flash90）

根據該部的數據，超過 140 萬以色列人已經接受了第三次射擊。該運動於 8 月 1 日開始，針對 60 歲以上的人群，此後擴展到所有 40 歲以上的以色列人，以及醫療工作者、教師和孕婦。

以色列官員希望加強劑量可以阻止新病例和嚴重 COVID 病例的增加，並避免採取嚴厲措施，包括國家封鎖——這將是以色列的第四次封鎖。

阿富汗軍隊如何以及為何如此迅速地落入塔利班手中？

崩潰的模式表明這是個別士兵對自己的情況做出理性決定並決定不戰鬥的集體結果

由托德·萊曼今天，晚上 10:04

2009 年 7 月 19 日，阿富汗國民軍新兵在阿富汗喀布爾軍事訓練中心的訓練課上聽取教官的解釋。 （美聯社照片 / Emilio Morenatti）

通過美聯社的對話——最近幾天阿富汗軍隊的迅速崩潰讓美國的許多人感到意外，其中包括參謀長聯席會議主席。

在美國總統喬拜登於 2021 年 4 月宣布撤軍後的幾個月裡，情報報告警告說，阿富汗軍隊可能不會獨自作戰，這為美軍撤軍後塔利班接管開闢了道路。

然而，很少有人預料到塔利班會如此迅速地取得成功。

8 月 10 日，美國情報評估預測塔利班將在 90 天內接管。只用了五個。

我對博弈理論家和學者所謂的“承諾問題”的研究確定了問題所在，這不是大多數專家談論的問題，例如計劃不周或腐敗。阿富汗軍隊崩潰的模式表明，這是個別士兵對自己的情況做出理性決定並決定不戰鬥的集體結果。

尋找正確的原因

在整個衝突過程中，對美國“退出戰略”的長期強調意味著美國政客總是關注是否是時候離開了。20 年來，美國的努力側重於短期思考和解決問題，隨著時間的推移改變軍事和政治目標，而不是投入時間和精力來製定全面的長期戰爭戰略。一個可以說是不冷不熱的美國承諾不斷地為阿富汗軍隊的崩潰創造了許多潛在的條件。然而，它並沒有完全決定結果。

拜登聲稱阿富汗軍隊缺乏戰鬥意志。其他人則指責可能存在訓練問題、阿富汗士兵無能或腐敗，以及過於依賴私人承包商來支持阿富汗軍隊。

根據我的研究和分析，阿富汗軍隊發生的事情的主要原因不是其中任何一個，也不是人品失敗。相反，士兵們遇到了“承諾問題”，看到迅速變化的情況，他們的想法從願意戰鬥到意識到此時這是一個糟糕且危險的想法。

廣告

2021 年 8 月 19 日，阿富汗武裝人員在潘杰希爾省巴扎拉克的帕拉克地區用武器和悍馬車支持阿富汗安全部隊對抗塔利班。（Ahmad SAHEL ARMAN / 法新社）

一連串的投降

士兵在數量上尋求力量。士兵在戰鬥中戰鬥，只有團結一致才能成功。然而，戰鬥或逃跑的個人決定取決於相互的期望。如果一個士兵期望他的大多數戰友都會戰鬥，那麼士兵的最大利益也是戰鬥。

但是，如果他們期望大多數戰友會投降，士兵們可能會發現投降更有吸引力——這會導致“集體行動問題”。如果士兵們得知其他部隊實際上已經投降，他們預計自己的戰友的決心會很低，戰鬥的可能性也會降低。一些最初的投降或逃跑可能會引發更多，然後越來越多，直到整個軍隊崩潰。

這正是發生在阿富汗軍隊身上的事情。隨著美國於 5 月開始撤軍，塔利班開始佔領領土。隨著他們的推進，塔利班還與駐紮在前哨和城鎮的阿富汗部隊進行談判，並說服一些部隊投降。第一次投降發生並且消息開始傳播後，其他人迅速跟進，促進了塔利班在沒有遇到重大阻力的情況下前進的加速勢頭。最終，阿富汗士兵選擇了集體投降，數量安全。

How and why did the Afghan army fall so quickly to the Taliban?

Patterns of collapse indicate it was the collective result of individual soldiers making rational decisions about their own situations and deciding not to fight

By TODD LEHMANNToday, 10:04 pm

Afghan National Army recruits listen to the explanations of their instructor during a training session at the Kabul Military Training Center in Afghanistan, July 19, 2009. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

THE CONVERSATION via AP — The swift collapse of the Afghan military in recent days caught many in the US by surprise, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In the months after US President Joe Biden’s April 2021 announcement of the troop withdrawal, intelligence reports warned that the Afghan military might not fight on its own, opening the way for a Taliban takeover after US forces withdrew.

Yet few expected that the Taliban would succeed so quickly.

On August 10, a US intelligence assessment predicted a Taliban takeover within 90 days. It took just five.

My research into what game theorists and academics call “commitment problems” identifies the problem, and it is not one that most experts are talking about, like poor planning or corruption. The patterns of the Afghan military’s collapse indicate it was the collective result of individual soldiers making rational decisions about their own situations and deciding not to fight.

Looking for the right cause

Throughout the conflict, the perennial emphasis on a US “exit strategy” meant US politicians always focused on whether it was time to leave yet. For 20 years, US efforts focused on short-term thinking and problem-solving that shifted both military and political goals over time, rather than investing the time and effort to develop a comprehensive long-term strategy for the war. An arguably lukewarm US commitment steadily created many of the underlying conditions for the Afghan military’s collapse. However, it did not entirely determine the outcome.

Biden claimed that the Afghan military lacked the will to fight. Others have blamed possible training problems, incompetent or corrupt Afghan soldiers, and too much reliance on private contractors to prop up Afghan forces.

Based on my research and analysis, the primary cause of what happened in the Afghan military is not any of those, nor was it a failure of character. Instead, soldiers encountered a “commitment problem,” seeing rapidly shifting conditions that changed their minds from being willing to fight to realizing it was a bad – and dangerous – idea at this time.

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Afghan armed men supporting the Afghan security forces against the Taliban stand with their weapons and Humvee vehicles at Parakh area in Bazarak, Panjshir province on August 19, 2021. (Ahmad SAHEL ARMAN / AFP)

A cascade of surrender

Soldiers seek strength in numbers. When soldiers fight in battle, they only succeed if they fight as a unit. However, individual decisions to fight or flee depend on mutual expectations. If a soldier expects that most of his comrades will fight, the soldier’s best interest is also to fight.

But if they expect most of their comrades will surrender, soldiers may find it more attractive to surrender – which leads to a “collective action problem.” If soldiers learn that other units have actually surrendered, they expect their own comrades’ resolve to be low and will become less likely to fight. A few initial surrenders or desertions can spark a few more, and then more and more until an entire army collapses.

This is precisely what happened to the Afghan military. As the US withdrawal began in May, the Taliban started gaining territory. As they advanced, the Taliban also negotiated with groups of Afghan forces stationed at outposts and in towns, and convinced some troops to surrender. Once the first bout of surrendering occurred and the news began to spread, others quickly followed, facilitating accelerating momentum to the Taliban as they advanced without facing major resistance. In the end, Afghan soldiers chose safety in numbers by surrendering together.

在混亂的美國撤軍中，在唯一尚未落入伊斯蘭組織的省份領導部隊的阿曼·馬蘇德誓言，如果權力分享協議被拒絕，將“堅決抵抗”

由TOI 工作人員和機構提供今天，上午 10:04

已故阿富汗指揮官艾哈邁德·沙阿·馬蘇德（中）的兒子艾哈邁德·馬蘇德（Ahmad Massoud）在阿富汗民族和解高級委員會主席阿卜杜拉·阿卜杜拉（左）和巴黎市長安妮·伊達爾戈（Anne Hidalgo）的陪同下向支持者講話2021 年 3 月 27 日，反塔利班指揮官馬蘇德在巴黎香榭麗舍大街的一條小巷裡。（Christophe Archambault/Pool Photo via AP）

由於塔利班在美國混亂地撤出阿富汗的情況下尋求鞏固阿富汗首都喀布爾的權力，僅存的反對派領導人之一表示，如果沒有權力分享協議，內戰將不可避免。

艾哈邁德·馬蘇德是在 9/11 襲擊事件發生前幾天被暗殺的著名北方聯盟指揮官的兒子，他週日告訴阿拉伯新聞網，如果塔利班拒絕與反對派部隊進行談判，內部衝突是“不可避免的”。

“如果塔利班軍閥發動襲擊，他們當然會面臨我們的堅決抵抗，”馬蘇德告訴迪拜新聞頻道，同時也表示願意與塔利班對話。

“我們對抗蘇聯，我們將能夠對抗塔利班，”他說。

在上週《華盛頓郵報》發表的一篇評論文章中，馬蘇德要求提供武器和援助來對抗塔利班。

“我今天在潘杰希爾山谷寫作，準備追隨我父親的腳步，與準備再次對抗塔利班的聖戰者戰士，”他寫道。“塔利班不單單是阿富汗人民的問題。在塔利班的控制下，阿富汗無疑將成為激進伊斯蘭恐怖主義的零基礎；反民主的陰謀將在這裡再次醞釀。”

2021 年 8 月 22 日，在喀布爾喀布爾市的 Karte Mamorin 地區，塔利班戰士乘坐掛有塔利班旗幟的車輛。（攝影：Hoshang Hashimi / 法新社）

但是，儘管西方提供了 20 年的援助、援助和培訓，但在阿富汗國家安全部隊失敗的情況下，幾千名游擊隊員似乎不太可能很快取得成功。

在潘杰希爾省——唯一一個尚未歸塔利班控制的省——由馬蘇德領導的民族抵抗陣線和被罷免政府的官員已承諾保衛它免受塔利班的侵害，塔利班傳播了顯示他們的戰士前往該地區的視頻。

廣告

該省是北方聯盟戰士的據點，他們於 2001 年與美國聯合推翻塔利班。

一些支持塔利班的推特賬戶週日表示，在“當地政府官員拒絕和平移交”之後，新政權正在向潘杰希爾山谷派遣數百名戰士。

在該地區避難的前政府阿富汗副總統阿姆魯拉·薩利赫（Amrullah Saleh）在推特上說，伊斯蘭主義者“在潘杰希爾入口附近集結了軍隊”。

NRF 的發言人 Ali Maisam Nazary在周末接受法新社採訪時告訴法新社， NRF 已準備好應對“長期衝突”，但仍在尋求與塔利班就包容性政府進行談判，聲稱馬蘇德已經積累了一些9000名戰士。

“與塔利班達成和平協議的條件是權力下放，這是一種確保所有人的社會正義、平等、權利和自由的製度，”他說。

雖然塔利班控制了阿富汗的絕大多數地區，但納扎里樂觀地強調了一些地區的當地民兵已經開始抵制他們的強硬統治並與馬蘇德的 NRF 建立聯繫的報導。

2021 年 8 月 21 日，在塔利班驚人地接管阿富汗幾天后，阿富汗當地居民的孩子帶著獵槍和一面旗幟站在潘杰希爾省達拉區班德喬伊地區的一座橋上。（艾哈邁德·薩赫勒·阿曼/法新社）

“馬蘇德沒有下令讓這些事情發生，但它們都與我們有關，”納扎里說。

“塔利班已經不堪重負。他們不可能同時出現在任何地方。他們的資源是有限的。他們沒有得到大多數人的支持，”他說。

在喀布爾以北約 120 公里（75 英里）的附近巴格蘭省，自稱為“人民起義”的戰士聲稱佔領了安達拉布山谷的三個地區，這些地區坐落在高聳的興都庫什山脈中。

前省情報局局長 Khair Mohammad Khairkhwa 和起義的另一位領導人 Abdul Ahmad Dadgar 說，塔利班戰士燒毀了房屋並綁架了兒童。另外兩名不願透露姓名的官員也提出了類似的指控。塔利班沒有立即回應置評請求。

塔利班在 1996 年至 2001 年對阿富汗的最初統治期間以對伊斯蘭教法的超嚴格解釋而臭名昭著，這次一再發誓要採用更溫和的版本。

但驚恐萬分的阿富汗人繼續試圖逃跑，壓倒了美國領導的喀布爾機場軍事行動，並導致至少有 7 人死亡的悲慘場面。

塔利班的勝利結束了長達二十年的戰爭，因為他們利用拜登政府決定從該國撤出幾乎所有美軍。

週一，隨著美國下令其商業航空公司提供幫助，幫助成千上萬人逃離塔利班控制的阿富汗的競賽得到了加強，儘管總統喬拜登表示撤離可能會超過下週的最後期限。

2021 年 8 月 20 日，阿富汗人聚集在喀布爾機場軍事部分附近的路邊，希望在塔利班軍事接管阿富汗後逃離該國。（攝影：Wakil KOHSAR / 法新社）

自從塔利班進軍喀布爾並於 8 月 15 日有效控制阿富汗以來，美國軍方已經監督了大約 30,000 人的疏散，在政府軍以驚人的速度潰敗之後。

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拜登不得不將數千人重新部署回阿富汗以監督撤離行動，他堅稱他希望在 8 月 31 日之前結束美國的軍事存在和空運。

但由於歐盟和英國表示到那時不可能讓所有人都離開，拜登面臨著延長最後期限的壓力。

拜登週日在白宮發表講話時表示，他希望空運不會延長，但表示正在進行談判以探討這種可能性。

“我們和軍方正在討論延期，”拜登說。

他承認在機場發生了灼熱的場景，其中包括嬰兒和兒童通過鐵絲網傳遞給士兵，以及男人緊緊抓住離開的飛機外面。

但他說他們是離境費用的一部分。

“沒有你看到的痛苦、失落和令人心碎的畫面，沒有辦法疏散這麼多人，”他說。

Amid chaotic US withdrawal, Ahman Massoud, who leads force in only province yet to fall to Islamist group, vows ‘staunch resistance’ if power-sharing agreement rejected

By TOI STAFF and AGENCIESToday, 10:04 am

Ahmad Massoud, son of late Afghan commander Ahmad Shah Massoud, center, speaks to supporters as he is flanked by Chairman of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah, left, and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on the sidelines of a commemoration to honor late Afghan anti-Taliban commander Massoud in an alley along the Champs Elysees Avenue in Paris, March 27, 2021. (Christophe Archambault/Pool Photo via AP)

As the Taliban seek to consolidate power in the Afghan capital of Kabul amid the US’s chaotic withdrawal from the country, one of the only remaining opposition leaders offering a flicker of resistance has said that a civil war is inevitable without a power-sharing agreement.

Ahmad Massoud, the son of a famous Northern Alliance commander assassinated days before the 9/11 attacks, told the Al-Arabiya news network Sunday that an internal conflict was “unavoidable” if the Taliban refused to enter into talks with opposition forces.

“If Taliban warlords launch an assault, they will of course face staunch resistance from us,” Massoud told the Dubai-based news channel, while also expressing openness to dialogue with the Taliban.

“We confronted the Soviet Union, and we will be able to confront the Taliban,” he said.

In an opinion piece published by The Washington Post last week, Massoud asked for weapons and aid to fight the Taliban.

“I write from the Panjshir Valley today, ready to follow in my father’s footsteps, with mujahideen fighters who are prepared to once again take on the Taliban,” he wrote. “The Taliban is not a problem for the Afghan people alone. Under Taliban control, Afghanistan will without doubt become ground zero of radical Islamist terrorism; plots against democracies will be hatched here once again.”

Taliban fighters travel on a vehicle mounted with the Taliban flag in the Karte Mamorin area of Kabul city, Kabul on 22 August 2021. (Photo by Hoshang Hashimi / AFP)

But it appears unlikely a few thousand guerrilla fighters will soon succeed where the Afghan national security forces failed despite 20 years of Western aid, assistance and training.

In the Panjshir province — the only one yet to fall under Taliban control — the National Resistance Front, which Massoud leads, and officials from the ousted government have pledged to defend it against the Taliban, who circulated video showing their fighters heading toward the region.

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The province is a stronghold of the Northern Alliance fighters who joined with the US to topple the Taliban in 2001.

Some pro-Taliban Twitter accounts said Sunday the new regime was sending hundreds of fighters to the Panjshir Valley after “local state officials refused to hand it over peacefully.”

The Islamists have “massed forces near the entrance of Panjshir,” tweeted Amrullah Saleh, vice president of Afghanistan in the previous government who has taken refuge in the area.

The NRF is prepared for a “long-term conflict” but is also still seeking to negotiate with the Taliban about an inclusive government, its spokesman Ali Maisam Nazary told AFP in an interview over the weekend, claiming that Massoud has amassed a force of some 9,000 fighters.

“The conditions for a peace deal with the Taliban is decentralization, a system that ensures social justice, equality, rights, and freedom for all,” he said.

While the Taliban control the vast majority of Afghanistan, Nazary optimistically highlighted reports that local militias in some districts have already begun resisting their hardline rule and have formed links with Massoud’s NRF.

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Children of local Afghan residents carrying hunting rifles and a flag stand over a bridge in Bandejoy area of Dara district in Panjshir province on August 21, 2021, days after the Taliban stunning takeover of Afghanistan. (Ahmad SAHEL ARMAN / AFP)

“Massoud did not give the order for these things to happen but they are all associated with us,” Nazary said.

“The Taliban are overstretched. They cannot be everywhere at the same time. Their resources are limited. They do not have support amongst the majority,” he said.

In the nearby Baghlan province, some 120 kilometers (75 miles) north of Kabul, fighters calling themselves the “People’s Uprising” claimed to have seized three districts in the Andarab Valley, nestled in the towering Hindu Kush mountains.

Khair Mohammad Khairkhwa, the former provincial head of intelligence, and Abdul Ahmad Dadgar, another leader in the uprising, said Taliban fighters had burned down homes and kidnapped children. Two other officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, made similar allegations. The Taliban did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Taliban, infamous for an ultra-strict interpretation of Sharia law during their initial 1996-2001 rule of Afghanistan, have repeatedly vowed a softer version this time.

But terrified Afghans continue to try and flee, overwhelming the US-led military operation at Kabul airport and leading to tragic scenes in which at least seven people have died.

The Taliban’s victory ended two decades of war as they took advantage of the Biden administration’s decision to withdraw nearly all US troops from the country.

The race to help tens of thousands of people escape Taliban-run Afghanistan was boosted on Monday with the US ordering its commercial airlines to help, though President Joe Biden flagged the evacuations could go beyond next week’s deadline.

Afghans gather on a roadside near the military part of the airport in Kabul on August 20, 2021, hoping to flee from the country after the Taliban’s military takeover of Afghanistan. (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)

The US military has overseen the evacuations of about 30,000 people since the Taliban marched into Kabul and took effective control of Afghanistan on August 15, following a stunningly swift rout of government forces.

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Biden, who had to redeploy thousands back to Afghanistan to oversee the evacuations, has insisted he wants to end the US military presence and the airlifts by August 31.

But with the European Union and Britain saying it would be impossible to get everyone out by then, Biden is under pressure to extend the deadline.

Speaking at the White House, Biden said Sunday he hoped the airlift would not be extended, but said talks were underway to explore that possibility.

“There’s discussions going among us and the military about extending,” Biden said.

He acknowledged the searing scenes at the airport, which have included babies and children being passed to soldiers over razor-wire fences and men clinging to the outside of departing planes.

But he said they were part of the cost of departure.

“There is no way to evacuate this many people without pain and loss and heartbreaking images you see,” he said.

以色列武器在阿富汗被廣泛使用

從無人機到導彈和裝甲車，以色列製造的武器系統幫助聯軍對抗塔利班戰士

作者：安娜·阿羅海姆

2021 年 8 月 23 日 15:52

蒼鷺無人機上的WASP系統

（圖片來源：IAI）

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隨著西方軍隊離開阿富汗，以色列的武器系統將不再追捕塔利班戰士。

儘管以色列軍隊從未在這個飽受戰爭蹂躪的中亞國家駐紮實地，但在與激進的聖戰恐怖組織作戰的 20 年中，許多聯盟國家都使用了以色列的系統。

儘管許多以色列國防公司對在阿富汗使用他們的產品保持沉默，但根據多份報告，英國、德國、加拿大和澳大利亞等國家多年來一直在使用他們的產品。

許多國家使用遙控飛機 (RPA) 收集情報，以色列製造的 SPIKE 導彈用於戰鬥。部隊還能夠使用以色列製造的 MRAP（防地雷伏擊保護）軍用輕型戰術車輛在高強度地區安全行駛。

外國軍隊在阿富汗使用的主要以色列武器系統之一是無人機。

國外報導稱，以色列被認為是無人機的主要出口國，並已將此類系統出售給許多國家，包括澳大利亞、加拿大、智利、哥倫比亞、法國、德國、印度、墨西哥、新加坡和韓國。

德國空軍於 2010 年在阿富汗開始使用由以色列航空航天工業公司 (IAI) 製造的 Heron TP。他們參與了數千次任務，記錄了數千個飛行小時。

Heron TP 是 IAI 最先進的 RPA，具有 40 小時的續航能力，最大起飛重量為 11,685 磅，有效載荷為 2,204 磅。它們可用於偵察、戰鬥和支援任務，並可攜帶空對地導彈打擊敵方目標。

德國飛行員在以色列接受了有關如何操作 RPA 並了解其監視能力的培訓。

加拿大軍方和澳大利亞人還在阿富汗駕駛 IAI 的 Heron 1 RPA。

配備衛星數據鍊和光電紅外傳感器，蒼鷺一號不僅能夠在戰鬥情況下為地面部隊提供偵察，協助護航和巡邏，創建運動剖面，進行長期監測，但它是還能夠從空中追踪爆炸物。

其中幾架在阿富汗墜毀。

但在阿富汗的天空中飛行的不僅僅是蒼鷺。

自 2005 年以來，駐阿富汗的澳大利亞陸軍也曾駕駛過 Elbit Systems 製造的 Skylark 1 無人機（UAV）。

IDF SOLDIER 在地面部隊聯合演習期間駕駛 Skylark 無人機。（信用：維基共享資源）

Skylark 長七英尺半，被部隊用於戰術監視和近距離反恐任務。它可由一名或兩名士兵發射，並在建築物屋頂或裝甲運兵車後部操作，一旦空降，即可為操作員提供實時視頻。

微型無人機的射程為 10-15 公里，具有異常安靜的電動機和出色的觀察能力，可為部隊提供超視距情報，增強其在各種任務場景中的性能。

澳大利亞還在伊拉克執行任務期間使用了雲雀。

除了 RPA 之外，英國和加拿大人在阿富汗也使用了拉斐爾先進防禦系統公司的 Spike NLOS（非視距）導彈。

事實證明，導彈的精確性在與塔利班的戰鬥中很有用。儘管英國人試圖保持其使用的安靜，但他們在 2014 年公開承認使用了這種名為 Exactor 的導彈。

Spike NLOS 能夠穿透 39 英寸的裝甲，並且可以僅基於目標坐標在直接攻擊或中途導航中操作。這些模式能夠以​​精確定位、損害評估和獲取實時情報來擊敗遠程隱藏目標。

由以色列公司 Rafael Systems 製造的 Spike NLOS 導彈的全尺寸模型（來源：RHK111/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS）

它的射程為25公里。並且可以與多種彈頭一起使用，例如熱彈頭、破片彈頭、PBF（穿透、爆炸和破片）和適用於城市和高強度衝突的 PBF/F。該導彈可以安裝在各種平台上，使砲手能夠在防區外攻擊目標，並在打擊後獲得實時情報和損害評估。

根據一些報導，在阿富汗的不僅僅是以色列的武器系統。

儘管以色列沒有對外國報導發表評論，但伊朗媒體在 2019 年報導稱，軍隊被派往阿富汗收集有關伊朗軍事動向的情報。

據伊朗Tasnim報導，以色列軍隊經營的美空軍基地信丹德在阿富汗西部赫拉特省的75公里了。來自伊朗邊境，並正在收集有關伊朗在波斯灣地區周圍活動的情報。

俄羅斯的人造衛星新聞當時表示，以色列人“在美國和阿拉伯聯合酋長國的旗幟下”開展活動。

人造衛星援引一位以色列問題專家的話說，以色列軍隊是在駐紮在那裡的美國軍隊的框架下開展活動的，而且這項活動是在阿富汗政府知情和批准的情況下進行的。

塔利班戰士穿著制服在阿富汗扎布爾省 Qalat 的街道上游行，這張靜態圖片取自 2021 年 8 月 19 日上傳的社交媒體視頻（圖片來源：REUTERS）

隨著西方軍隊離開阿富汗，塔利班鞏固其對該國的權力，聖戰組織還獲得了美國先進的武器，包括一些無人機。

但由於加拿大人、英國人和德國人在幾年前就結束了他們的戰鬥，塔利班不太可能掌握對他們進行如此長時間追捕的以色列製造的系統。

Israeli weapons were used extensively in Afghanistan

From drones to missiles and armored vehicles, Israeli-made weapons systems helped coalition forces against Taliban fighters

By ANNA AHRONHEIM

AUGUST 23, 2021 15:52

WASP system on Heron UAV

(photo credit: IAI)

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As Western forces leave Afghanistan, Israeli weapons systems will no longer hunt Taliban fighters.

Though Israeli troops have never been on the ground in the war-torn central Asian country, numerous coalition nations used Israeli systems during the 20 years of fighting against the radical jihadist terrorist group.

While many Israeli defense companies have stayed mum on the use of their products in Afghanistan, according to multiple reports, countries like the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada and Australia have used their products for years.

Numerous countries used remotely piloted aircraft (RPAs) to collect intelligence, and Israeli-made SPIKE missiles were used in battle. Troops were also able to drive around safely in high-intensity areas in Israeli-made MRAP (Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected) military light tactical vehicles.

One of the main Israeli weapons systems used by foreign militaries in Afghanistan was drones.

Foreign reports state that Israel is considered a leading exporter of drones and has sold such systems to numerous countries including Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Mexico, Singapore and South Korea.

The German Air Force began operating the Heron TP, manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), in Afghanistan in 2010. They were involved in thousands of missions, logging thousands of flight hours.

The Heron TPs are IAI’s most advanced RPAs with 40-hour endurance, a maximum take-off weight of 11,685 pounds, and a payload of 2,204 pounds. They can be used for reconnaissance, combat and support roles, and can carry air-to-ground missiles to take out hostile targets.

The German pilots were trained in Israel regarding how to operate the RPA and learn about its surveillance capabilities.

The Canadian military and the Australians also flew IAI’s Heron 1 RPA in Afghanistan.

Equipped with satellite data link and electro-optical infrared sensors, the Heron 1 is not only able to provide reconnaissance to ground forces in combat situations, assist in convoying and patrolling, create movement profiles, and carry out long-term monitoring, but it is also able to track down explosives from the air.

Several of them crashed in Afghanistan.

But it wasn’t only the Heron that was flying in Afghanistan’s skies.

Since 2005, the Australian Army in Afghanistan has also flown the Skylark 1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) manufactured by Elbit Systems.

IDF SOLDIER flies a Skylark UAV drone during a ground forces combined exercise. (credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The Skylark, measuring seven and a half feet, is used by troops for tactical surveillance and close-range counter-terror missions. It can be launched by one or two soldiers, and is operated on the roof of buildings or in the back of armored personnel carriers, providing live video to operators once airborne.

With a range of 10-15 km., the mini-UAV has an exceptionally quiet electric motor and outstanding observation capabilities giving troops beyond-line-of-sight intelligence, enhancing their performance in various mission scenarios.

Australia also flew the Skylark during missions in Iraq.

In addition to RPAs, Rafael Advanced Defense Systems’ Spike NLOS (Non Line Of Sight) missile was used by both the British and Canadians in Afghanistan.

The missile’s precision proved useful in battles against the Taliban. Although the Brits tried to keep its use quiet, they publicly admitted to using the missile, known as Exactor, in 2014.

The Spike NLOS is capable of penetrating 39 inches of armor, and can be operated in either direct attack or mid-course navigation based on target coordinates only. These modes enable the defeat of long-range hidden targets with pinpoint precision, damage assessment, and the obtaining of real-time intelligence.

A full scale mock up of a Spike NLOS missile made by the Israeli company, Rafael Systems (credit: RHK111/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)

It has a range of 25 km. and can be used with a number of warheads such as heat, fragmentation, PBF (penetration, blast and fragmentation) and PBF/F suited for urban and high-intensity conflicts. The missile, which can be installed on a variety of platforms, provides the gunner with the ability to attack targets at stand-off range and get real-time intelligence and damage assessment following the strikes.

And according to some reports, it wasn’t only Israeli weapons systems in Afghanistan.

Though Israel does not comment on foreign reports, Iranian media reported in 2019 that troops were sent to Afghanistan to collect intelligence on Iranian military movement.

According to Iran’s Tasnim news agency, Israeli troops operated out of a United States Air Force base in Shindand in the western Afghanistan province of Herat some 75 km. from the Iranian border and were collecting intelligence on Iranian movement around the Persian Gulf region.

Russia’s Sputnik News stated at the time that the Israelis were operating “under the flags of the United States and the United Arab Emirates.”

Sputnik quoted an expert on Israel as saying that the Israeli troops were operating under the framework of American forces stationed there, and that the activity was carried out with the knowledge and approval of the Afghan government.

Taliban fighters march in uniforms on the street in Qalat, Zabul Province, Afghanistan, in this still image taken from social media video uploaded August 19, 2021 (credit: REUTERS)

As Western forces leave Afghanistan and the Taliban solidifies its power over the country, the jihadist group has also obtained advanced American weaponry, including some drones.

But with the Canadians, Brits and Germans having ended their fight several years ago, it’s unlikely that the Taliban got their hands on the Israeli-made systems that hunted them for so long.

塔利班重新奪回被阿富汗民兵佔領的三個北部地區

巴格蘭省的 Bano、Deh Saleh、Pul e-Hesar 被當地民兵組織佔領，這是自 8 月 15 日占領首都喀布爾以來對塔利班進行武裝抵抗的最初跡象之一。

通過路透

2021 年 8 月 23 日 12:43

2021 年 7 月 10 日，阿富汗赫拉特省郊區，前聖戰者組織手持武器支持阿富汗軍隊打擊塔利班。

（圖片來源：JALIL AHMAD/REUTERS）

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一名發言人周一表示，塔利班部隊已收復了上週落入當地民兵組織手中的阿富汗北部的三個地區。

自 8 月 15 日占領首都喀布爾以來，當地民兵組織佔領了巴格蘭省的巴諾、德赫薩利赫、普勒赫薩爾等地區，這是對塔利班武裝抵抗的最初跡象之一。

根據發言人 Zabihullah Mujahid 的推特賬戶，到週一，塔利班部隊已經清除了這些地區，並在 Panjshir 山谷附近的巴達赫尚、塔哈爾和安達拉佈建立了基地。

效忠於反蘇聖戰者指揮官艾哈邁德·沙阿·馬蘇德之子艾哈邁德·馬蘇德的部隊在喀布爾西北部的潘杰希爾山谷建立了自己的基地，該地區在 2001 年之前抵抗了塔利班。

馬蘇德的部隊包括正規軍和特種部隊的殘餘部隊，他呼籲談判為阿富汗組建一個包容性的政府，但承諾如果塔利班部隊試圖進入山谷，他將予以抵制。

週日晚些時候，塔利班的 Alemarah 信息服務部門表示，數百名戰士正前往潘杰希爾，但尚未立即確認有任何戰鬥。

2021 年 8 月 17 日，一名塔利班部隊成員在阿富汗喀布爾的一個檢查站守望。（來源：REUTERS/STRINGER）

Zabihullah Mujahid 說，位於從阿富汗南部到北部的主要公路上的薩朗山口是開放的，敵軍在潘杰希爾山谷被封鎖。但他的聲明表明，目前沒有戰鬥。

“伊斯蘭酋長國正試圖和平解決問題，”扎比胡拉說。

伊朗恢復對鄰國阿富汗的燃料出口

應阿富汗新政府的要求，伊朗幾天前恢復了對阿富汗的燃料出口。

通過路透

2021 年 8 月 23 日 20:56

上週末，阿富汗加茲尼市內的一名塔利班戰士。

（照片來源：路透社/STRINGER）

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一名伊朗官員告訴路透社，幾天前，應阿富汗新政府的要求，伊朗恢復了對阿富汗的燃料出口，阿富汗新政府感到美國撤軍後，有權更公開地購買受制裁國家的石油。

遜尼派穆斯林組織上週在阿富汗奪取政權，美國及其盟國在經歷了 20 年的戰爭後撤軍。

阿富汗的汽油價格達到每噸 900 美元，因為許多阿富汗人害怕報復，害怕回到塔利班 20 年前掌權時強加的嚴厲伊斯蘭法律，驅趕出城市。

為了應對價格飆升，新的塔利班要求什葉派伊朗保持邊境對貿易商開放。

“塔利班向伊朗發送信息說‘你可以繼續出口石油產品’，”伊朗石油、天然氣和石化產品出口商聯盟在德黑蘭的董事會成員兼發言人哈米德·侯賽尼告訴路透社。

在塔利班發送消息給伊朗貿易商和商業的伊朗室，裡面有密切聯繫的政府。

因此，作為政府一部分的伊朗伊斯蘭共和國海關總署（IRICA）取消了自 8 月 6 日以來一直實施的對阿富汗的燃料出口禁令，因為伊朗擔心貿易安全。在國內。

侯賽尼說，塔利班的態度緩解了這些擔憂。

他還引用了塔利班決定降低對從伊朗和其他鄰國進口燃料的關稅的決定，並與路透社分享了一份由阿富汗伊斯蘭酋長國發布的官方文件——塔利班用這個名字來稱呼自己。

該文件規定，從鄰國向阿富汗進口汽油、柴油和液化石油氣的關稅優惠70%。

伊朗-塔利班合作

伊朗擁有世界第四大石油儲備，但美國前總統唐納德·特朗普於 2018 年實施的最新一輪美國製裁大大減少了伊朗的石油出口。

侯賽尼說，儘管如此，伊朗還是管理了一些貿易，特別是通過向阿富汗等鄰國運送燃料，而美國撤軍使伊朗和阿富汗領導人對更公開的交易不那麼緊張。

伊朗對阿富汗的主要出口產品是汽油和瓦斯油。根據伊朗石油和天然氣研究和諮詢平台 PetroView 發布的一份報告，伊朗從 2020 年 5 月至 2021 年 5 月向其鄰國出口了約 40 萬噸燃料。

根據貿易商和路透社看到的阿富汗政府報告，伊朗的燃料流動在過去幾年對阿富汗至關重要。

根據阿富汗財政部、商會和私營企業數據編制的報告，2020 年 3 月至 2021 年 3 月期間，伊朗的進口額為 3.67 億美元，其中大部分是燃料。

接下來兩個最重要的石油供應國是土庫曼斯坦和烏茲別克斯坦，貿易主要是石油，價值分別為 2.57 億美元和 2.36 億美元。

一位不願透露姓名的直接了解此事的消息人士稱，伊朗每年有超過 100 萬噸或 2 萬桶以上的燃料運往阿富汗。

伊朗新總統易卜拉欣·賴西於 2021 年 8 月 3 日在伊朗德黑蘭收到伊朗最高領袖阿亞圖拉·阿里·哈梅內伊 (Ayatollah Ali Khamenei) 的總統批准令。

擴大合作？

侯賽尼說，伊朗燃料的主要目的地是靠近伊朗邊境的東部省份，以及坎大哈和尼姆魯茲等南部地區，甚至在最近幾週的推動之前，塔利班就在這些地區產生了強大的影響。

“我認為伊朗新政府將大幅擴大與塔利班政府的合作。伊朗可以輕鬆地將與阿富汗的貿易翻番。自從伊朗受到美國製裁以來，加尼政府一直試圖限制與伊朗的合作，”侯賽尼說.

阿富汗沒有發展自己的石油工業。該國有 6 家小型煉油廠，每個煉油廠每天只能生產幾千桶的成品油。

他們使用來自土庫曼斯坦的輕油，土庫曼斯坦的兩個煉油廠也直接供應柴油和噴氣燃料。

烏茲別克斯坦的兩個主要煉油廠也通過鐵路和卡車供應精煉產品。

知情人士稱，土庫曼斯坦凝析油（輕質原油）的供應在一個月前因安全局勢而停止，但預計將在大約兩週後恢復。

“問題是銀行三天前停止工作，所以我們可能會回到現金袋中，”消息人士說。

Iran resumes fuel exports to neighboring Afghanistan

Iran resumed fuel exports to Afghanistan a few days ago following a request from the new Afghan government.

By REUTERS

AUGUST 23, 2021 20:56

A TALIBAN fighter inside the city of Ghazni, Afghanistan, last weekend.

(photo credit: REUTERS/STRINGER)

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Iran resumed fuel exports to Afghanistan a few days ago following a request from the new Afghan government, which feels empowered by the US withdrawal to buy the sanctioned nation's oil more openly, an Iranian official told Reuters.

The Sunni Muslim group seized power in Afghanistan last week as the United States and its allies withdrew troops after a 20-year war.

The price of gasoline in Afghanistan reached $900 per tone as many Afghans drove out of cities, fearing reprisals and a return to a harsh version of Islamic law the Taliban imposed when in power two decades ago.

To counter the price spike, the new Taliban asked Shi'ite Iran to keep the borders open for traders.

"The Taliban sent messages to Iran saying 'you can continue the exports of petroleum products'," Hamid Hosseini, board member and spokesperson of Iran's Oil, Gas and Petrochemical Products Exporters' Union, in Tehran, told Reuters.

The Taliban sent messages to Iranian traders and to an Iranian chamber of commerce, which has close links to the government.

As a result, the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA), which is a part of the government, lifted a ban on fuel exports to Afghanistan, which had been in place since Aug. 6 because of Iran's concerns about the safety of trading in the country.

Those concerns have been eased by the Taliban's attitude, Hosseini said.

He also cited the Taliban's decision to cut tariffs on imports of fuel from Iran and other neighboring countries and shared with Reuters an official document issued by Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan - the name by which the Taliban refers to itself.

The document specified a 70% discount on tariffs on imports of gasoline, diesel and LPG from the neighboring countries to Afghanistan.

IRAN-TALIBAN COOPERATION

Iran sits on the world’s fourth-largest oil reserves, but the latest round of US sanctions imposed by former US President Donald Trump in 2018, has significantly reduced Iranian oil exports.

Iran has nevertheless managed some trade, notably by trucking fuel to neighbors such as Afghanistan, and the US troop withdrawal has made leaders of both Iran and Afghanistan less nervous about dealing more openly, Hosseini said.

The main Iranian exports to Afghanistan are gasoline and gasoil. Iran exported about 400,000 tons of fuel to its neighbour from May 2020 to May 2021, according to a report published by PetroView, an Iranian oil and gas research and consultancy platform.

Iranian fuel flows have been vital to Afghanistan in the last few years, according to traders and an Afghan government report, seen by Reuters.

Between March 2020 and March 2021, Iran accounted for $367 million of imports, mostly of fuel, according to the report compiled by the Afghan ministry of finance, chambers of commerce and data from private enterprises.

The next two most important oil suppliers are Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan with trade, mostly oil, valued at $257 million and $236 million respectively.

A source with direct knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be named, said more than 1 million tons per year, or over 20,000 barrels per day, of Iranian fuel goes to Afghanistan.

Iran's new President Ebrahim Raisi receives the endorsement decree for his presidency from Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, Iran August 3, 2021. (credit: OFFICIAL KHAMENEI WEBSITE/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)

EXPANDING COOPERATION?

The main destinations of Iran's fuel have been eastern provinces near the Iranian border, and southern regions like Kandahar and Nimrooz where the Taliban had a strong influence even before the push of recent weeks, Hosseini said.

"I think the new Iranian government will significantly expand cooperation with the Taliban government. Iran can easily double its trade with Afghanistan. The government of (Ashraf) Ghani was always trying to limit cooperation with Iran since Iran was under US sanctions," Hosseini said.

Afghanistan has not developed an oil industry of its own. The country has six mini-refineries that only produce several thousand barrels per day of refined products each.

They run on light oil from Turkmenistan whose two refineries also directly supply diesel and jet fuel.

Uzbekistan's two main refineries also supply refined products by rail and truck.

The source with direct knowledge said supplies of Turkmen condensate (light crude oil) has ceased a month ago because of the security situation, but predicted it would resume in about two weeks' time.

"The problem is the banks stopped working three days ago so we might be back to bags of cash," the source said.

沙特的決定有可能使數百萬也門人陷入貧困

利雅得決定削減該國的外國工人數量。

作者：Mohammed Al-Hassani/The Media Line

2021 年 8 月 23 日 05:30

一名沙特士兵在沙特阿拉伯和也門邊境

（圖片來源：路透社）

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37 歲的 Ibrahim al-Nahari 在沙特阿拉伯西南部阿西爾省的一家手機店工作，並在那里合法居住了 12 年。

今天，由於沙特的一項新法規對也門、印度、孟加拉國和埃塞俄比亞工人的百分比進行了限制，納哈里面臨著失去工作並被驅逐回他在也門雷馬省的家鄉的威脅。與也門接壤——為了降低沙特公民 11.7% 的失業率，並出於安全考慮。

Nahari 說他收到了雇主的通知，通知他新規定，他可以隨時被解僱和驅逐出境。

“我不知道問題出在哪裡，”他告訴媒體熱線關於政府的意外決定。“我在這里工作了 12 年；每個人都認識我，他們在這裡成了我的朋友。”

“我擔心我找不到另一份工作。我擔心如果我回到也門，我的家人就會陷入貧困，”納哈里說。

Fouad al-Baadani 博士（化名）是一名也門學者，過去三年與其他一百多名也門學者和工作人員一起在沙特阿拉伯的 Najran 大學工作。

“我不介意王國採取任何措施來保證其安全，但我們在合法的基礎上居住在這裡，我們是從也門大學招募來這裡任教的，我們最終得到了這樣的待遇，”他告訴媒體線。

巴達尼說，利雅得應該研究此事，並意識到成千上萬的也門家庭將因該決定而遭受的問題。

根據活動人士與胡塞控制的北部事實上的當局（DFA）的僑民事務部編制的初步統計數據，如果該決定得到全面實施，近 70 萬也門人中，納哈里和巴阿達尼將被驅逐出境。也門。

由於目前缺乏準確和最新的沙特阿拉伯也門工人名單，上述數字很容易上升。

也門國際公認政府人權部外交關係官員 Mohammed al-Nuwaira 告訴媒體專線，“該法令尚未正式生效，但雇主通知了南部四個省份的也門工人 [Asir、Najran、Al- Bahah, Jizan] 有命令取消與他們的工作合同，並在不超過四個月的期限內將他們驅逐出境。”

努瓦伊拉說，這一決定可能會傷害超過 500 萬完全依賴沙特阿拉伯也門勞工匯款的也門人。

國際公認的亞丁政府僑民事務部官員 Waheeb al-Qadi 認為，沙特的決定是由於事實上的當局（DFA）或胡塞武裝在也門 - 沙特邊境的軍事行動，並且該王國正在尋求通過該法規保護其邊界免受也門工人可能犯下的任何破壞行為。

卡迪補充說，該決定將損害也門人的生活水平，“特別是因為根據[外籍事務]部的初步統計，該決定可能適用於這些省份的 800,000 多名也門工人，因此損害將影響到他們在也門的家庭成員至少有 300 萬。”

卡迪還表示，這些家庭中的大多數完全依賴在沙特阿拉伯工作的親戚。

在朝覲/麥加朝聖期間，一名沙特女警官在朝聖者站崗。（信用：路透社/AHMED YOSRI）

總部位於日內瓦的 SAM 權利與自由組織主席 Tawfiq al-Humaidi 對此表示贊同。

Humaidi 告訴媒體專線，監管變化具有歧視性，因為有信息表明也門工人正在被其他國籍的工人取代。

SAM組織發表聲明稱，“當前決定的後果意味著，在也門經濟和社會指標急劇下滑之際，更多人失去了生計來源”，並警告“可能發生新的危機”在這些工人被驅逐出境之後，尤其是因為他們的大多數家庭依靠他們來獲得大部分基本需求。”

SABA 的記者 Eman Abdullah 告訴媒體專線，沙特的決定的影響不亞於 1990-1991 年的危機，當時沙特阿拉伯驅逐了 800,000 名也門勞工和其他阿拉伯勞工。海灣國家也紛紛效仿，以報復該國在海灣戰爭期間支持薩達姆·侯賽因。

阿卜杜拉說：“由國際公認政府代表的 [也門] 國必須與沙特政府溝通以解決此事，”他補充說：“這一決定是也門 - 沙特戰爭的結果，並聲稱也門人在這些國家工作城市向胡塞武裝提供了敏感信息，使他們能夠瞄準這些城市的重要設施。”

阿卜杜拉說，沙特政府有能力採取措施，讓也門工人留在原地，同時維護國家安全。

國際公認的政府或 IRG 尚未發表任何正式聲明譴責沙特對也門工人的決定。

巴達尼說，在也門停止支付工資並且無法養家糊口後，他申請到沙特阿拉伯工作，並有幸在奈季蘭大學找到了一份工作。

他說：“我在王國的工作中發現了一個機會，可以擺脫因也門戰爭而敲響我家門的貧困。”

巴達尼補充說，在聽說終止也門專業人士和勞工的合同並將他們驅逐到也門的決定後，他非常痛苦。

Saudi decision threatens to plunge millions more Yemenis into poverty

Riyadh decides to cut the number of foreign workers in the kingdom.

By Mohammed Al-Hassani/The Media Line

AUGUST 23, 2021 05:30

A Saudi soldier at the border between Saudi Arabia and Yemen

(photo credit: REUTERS)

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Ibrahim al-Nahari, 37, works in a mobile phone shop in Saudi Arabia’s southwestern Asir Province and has resided there legally for 12 years.

Today, Nahari is under threat of losing his job and being deported to his hometown in the Raymah Governorate of Yemen due to a new Saudi regulation placing limits on the percentage of Yemeni, Indian, Bangladeshi, and Ethiopian workers at establishments in four provinces near the border with Yemen - in an effort to reduce the unemployment rate of 11.7% among Saudi citizens, and out of security considerations.

Nahari said he received a notice from his employer informing him of the new rules and that he could be laid off and deported at any time.

“I do not know what the problem is,” he told The Media Line about the surprise government decision. “I have been working here for 12 years; everyone knows me and they became my friends here.”

“I am afraid that I will not get another job. I fear that poverty will strike my family if I return to Yemen,” Nahari said.

Dr. Fouad al-Baadani (not his real name) is a Yemeni academic who has been working at Saudi Arabia’s Najran University for the past three years along with more than a hundred other Yemeni academics and staff.

“I don’t mind the kingdom taking any measure that guarantees its security, but we reside here on a legal basis and we were recruited from Yemeni universities to teach here, and we wind up getting treated in this way,” he told The Media Line.

Riyadh should study the matter and be aware of the problems that many thousands of Yemeni families will suffer because of the decision, Baadani said.

Nahari and Baadani are two out of nearly 700,000 Yemenis who could be deported if the decision is fully implemented, according to preliminary statistics compiled by activists along with the Ministry of Expatriate Affairs in the Houthi-controlled de facto authority (DFA) in the north of Yemen.

The above figure could easily rise due to the current lack of accurate and updated lists of the Yemeni workers in Saudi Arabia.

Mohammed al-Nuwaira, foreign relations officer in the Ministry of Human Rights in Yemen’s internationally recognized government, told The Media Line, “The decree is not official yet, but employers notified the Yemeni workers in four southern provinces [Asir, Najran, Al-Bahah, Jizan] that there are orders to cancel the work contracts with them and deport them within a period not exceeding four months.”

The decision could harm more than five million Yemenis who are entirely dependent on the remittances sent by Yemeni laborers in Saudi Arabia, Nuwaira said.

Waheeb al-Qadi, an official in the internationally recognized government’s Ministry of Expatriate Affairs in Aden, believes that the Saudi decision came due to the military operations of the De Facto Authorities (DFA), or Houthi, forces on the Yemen-Saudi border, and that the kingdom is seeking, through this regulation, to secure its borders from any breach that might be committed by Yemeni workers.

Qadi added that the decision would harm Yemenis’ standard of living, “especially since this decision may apply to, according to preliminary statistics from the Ministry [of Expatriate Affairs], more than 800,000 Yemeni workers in these provinces and therefore the damage will affect at least three million members of their families in Yemen.”

Qadi also said that most of these families depend entirely on their relatives who work in Saudi Arabia.

A female Saudi police officer stands guard as pilgrims perform Tawaf during Hajj/Mecca, Saudi Arabia. (credit: REUTERS/AHMED YOSRI)

Tawfiq al-Humaidi, president of the Geneva-based SAM Organization for Rights and Liberties, agrees.

The regulatory change has a discriminatory dimension, because there is information indicating that Yemeni laborers are being replaced by workers of other nationalities, Humaidi told The Media Line.

The SAM organization released a statement saying that “the consequences of the current decision mean more people lose their source of livelihood at a time when Yemen is witnessing a sharp decline in economic and social indicators,” and warning of “the possibility of a new crisis after the deportation of these workers, especially since most of their families depend on them to obtain most of their basic requirements.”

Eman Abdullah, a journalist for SABA, the Yemen state news agency for the DFA, or Houthis, told The Media Line the Saudi decision would have no less impact than the crisis of 1990-1991, when Saudi Arabia expelled 800,000 Yemeni laborers and other Arab Gulf states followed suit in retribution for the country’s support of Saddam Hussein during the Gulf War.

“The State [of Yemen] represented by the internationally recognized government must communicate with the Saudi government to resolve this matter,” said Abdullah, adding: “This decision came as a consequence of the Yemeni-Saudi war and claims that Yemenis working in these cities provided sensitive information to the Houthis that allowed them to target vital facilities in these cities.”

Abdullah said the Saudi government is capable of implementing measures that allow Yemeni workers to remain where they are while maintaining the security of their country.

The internationally recognized government or IRG has not yet issued any official statements condemning the Saudi decision against Yemeni workers.

Baadani said that after salaries stopped being paid in Yemen and he became unable to support his family, he applied for work in Saudi Arabia and was lucky enough to get a job at Najran University.

“I found, in my work in the kingdom, an opportunity to escape the poverty that was knocking on my door because of the war in Yemen,” he said.

Baadani added that he was extremely distressed after hearing about the decision to terminate the contracts of Yemeni professionals and laborers and deport them to Yemen.

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