Laurel Miller's responsibilities will now fall under the state department’s South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau, which has a much bigger footprint that includes India. Paul J Richards / AFP
Laurel Miller's responsibilities will now fall under the state department’s South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau, which has a much bigger footprint that includes India. Paul J Richards / AFP

US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan quits post



WASHINGTON // Washington’s special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan has stepped down just as the United States is preparing to send thousands more troops to the region.

Acting special representative Laurel Miller left the post without a replacement being named, and secretary of state Rex Tillerson has not yet decided what to do with post, the state department said.

The office was created when US officials decided that the conflicts in Afghanistan and Pakistan were inextricably linked and ought to be dealt with together.

State department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Mr Miller was returning to a position at the Rand Corporation.

President Donald Trump came to office planning to slash diplomatic spending and Mr Tillerson plans to cut several special envoy roles.

Mr Miller’s responsibilities will now fall under the state department’s South and Central Asian Affairs Bureau, which has a much bigger footprint that includes India. But this bureau is itself leaderless, with no assistant secretary appointed to lead it and no one nominated by the new administration for senate approval.

When news site Politico said the envoy post had gone, it cited diplomats complaining of a rushed process and a dangerous leadership vacuum.

But a senior official said the decision was part of a broader policy review.

Mr Tillerson thinks the issue is best handled at a regional level, the official said, arguing that it made sense to consider India part of the equation.

Trump has given the Pentagon and US commanders wide latitude to decide on the future of Washington’s longest ever war — the 16-year slog in Afghanistan.

The US defence secretary Jim Mattis is reportedly planning to deploy up to 5,000 extra troops to bolster efforts to train Afghan forces to repel a resurgent Taliban insurgency.

* Agence France-Presse

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Director: Raed Zeno

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Common OCD symptoms and how they manifest

Checking: the obsession or thoughts focus on some harm coming from things not being as they should, which usually centre around the theme of safety. For example, the obsession is “the building will burn down”, therefore the compulsion is checking that the oven is switched off.

Contamination: the obsession is focused on the presence of germs, dirt or harmful bacteria and how this will impact the person and/or their loved ones. For example, the obsession is “the floor is dirty; me and my family will get sick and die”, the compulsion is repetitive cleaning.

Orderliness: the obsession is a fear of sitting with uncomfortable feelings, or to prevent harm coming to oneself or others. Objectively there appears to be no logical link between the obsession and compulsion. For example,” I won’t feel right if the jars aren’t lined up” or “harm will come to my family if I don’t line up all the jars”, so the compulsion is therefore lining up the jars.

Intrusive thoughts: the intrusive thought is usually highly distressing and repetitive. Common examples may include thoughts of perpetrating violence towards others, harming others, or questions over one’s character or deeds, usually in conflict with the person’s true values. An example would be: “I think I might hurt my family”, which in turn leads to the compulsion of avoiding social gatherings.

Hoarding: the intrusive thought is the overvaluing of objects or possessions, while the compulsion is stashing or hoarding these items and refusing to let them go. For example, “this newspaper may come in useful one day”, therefore, the compulsion is hoarding newspapers instead of discarding them the next day.

Source: Dr Robert Chandler, clinical psychologist at Lighthouse Arabia

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg

Tottenham 0-1 Ajax, Tuesday

Second leg

Ajax v Tottenham, Wednesday, May 8, 11pm

Game is on BeIN Sports

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Results

UAE beat Nigeria by five wickets

Hong Kong beat Canada by 32 runs

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