The Guardian (UK): For the millions of Afghans living in Pakistan – many of them journalists, activists or former government officials who fled Taliban rule – the rising tension is translating into fear at their doorsteps. Richard Bennett, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, says returning to their country will put them atRead More...

Amu: The Taliban’s Defense Ministry claimed Saturday that 110 Pakistani soldiers had been killed and 68 wounded in what it described as retaliatory operations over the past two days. It also claimed that key military centers and facilities inside Pakistan had been targeted by Taliban drones, resulting in dozens more Pakistani casualties. The claims couldRead More...



Khaama: Afghan authorities claim a Pakistani fighter jet was downed in Nangarhar, though the incident has not been independently verified. Sayed Tayyeb Hammad, spokesman for the Nangarhar Police Command, claimed that Afghan forces shot down a Pakistani fighter jet in the province. He said the pilot survived and was taken into custody. Click here toRead More...

By RFE/RL’s Radio Mashaal and RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi February 26, 2026 Several explosions have rocked Kabul just hours after Afghanistan and Pakistan traded strikes on each other in their volatile mountain border region as days of escalating tensions boiled over with both sides claiming to have killed dozens of militants and security forces. Local sources told RFE/RL’sRead More...

Ariana: Residents of Afghanistan’s capital report that life in Kabul remains calm and stable following last night’s airstrikes by the Pakistani military. People began Friday morning normally, without fear or anxiety, according to local accounts. Marketplaces, commercial centers, and main roads across the city have seen regular activity, with families attending to daily routines. CitizensRead More...



Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty February 22, 2026 Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers said they are preparing “an appropriate and calculated response” to Pakistani air strikes that killed at least 18 people in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. Afghan officials said “dozens of people” were injured in the overnight attacks on February 22, “including women and children.” Pakistan saidRead More...

8am: The majority of Persian speakers and speakers of other commonly used languages in the country have expressed concern over what they describe as unfair and exclusionary language policies of past ruling authorities, as well as the language policies of the Taliban. Click here to read more (external link).

Tolo News: José Antonio Nogueira was officially introduced as the new head coach of the Afghanistan national football team. Officials of the Afghanistan Football Federation signed a one-year contract with the Brazilian coach and formally unveiled him during a press conference held this morning (Saturday). Click here to read more (external link).

Amu: Pakistan carried out airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday night, targeting what it described as militant camps near the border, as local sources reported strikes in several districts of Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. In a statement dated Feb. 21, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the strikes were a “retributive response” to a string of recentRead More...

Ariana: Afghan futsal player Reza Hosseinpoor has officially signed with Shabab Al Ahli Club, one of the leading sports clubs in the United Arab Emirates. Founded in 1958 and based in Dubai, Shabab Al Ahli is well known for its football, futsal, and handball teams, regularly competing at the top levels of UAE and regionalRead More...

Khaama: Kyrgyzstan’s state security committee says recruitment of young people into extremist and terrorist groups has increased in recent months. Local media, citing the State Committee for National Security, reported that radical ideas and recruitment efforts are spreading through social media platforms. Regional governments have repeatedly warned about security threats linked to instability in AfghanistanRead More...

Bradt Guides: To the first-time visitor, Afghanistan feels at once familiar and utterly alien. It is a place many people think they know, thanks to the nightly news, social media or the headlines of the last four decades. Names like Kabul, the Hindu Kush, the Khyber Pass, Kandahar, Bagram, the Taliban, the mujahideen – theseRead More...



Afghanistan International: The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) said its forces attacked a Taliban checkpoint in Bala Hesar Square in Kunduz on Monday evening, claiming two Taliban members were killed and two others wounded. Local sources in Kunduz told Afghanistan International that an explosion was reported in Bala Hesar Square around the same time. Click hereRead More...

Gulf News: Saudi Arabia announced the sighting of the crescent moon. Thus, tomorrow [Wednesday, February 18, 2026] will be the first day of Ramadan. Click here to read more (external link). More Saudi Arabia, Taliban announce Wednesday as first day of Ramadan

Ariana: According to UNHCR’s representative in Afghanistan, Arafat Jamal, 5.4 million Afghans have returned since October 2023, the vast majority from Pakistan and Iran. Speaking to reporters in Geneva via video link from Kabul, he said the pace of returns is overwhelming. “This is massive, and the speed and scale of these returns has pushedRead More...

8am: For Kabul residents, noise pollution is more than a nuisance; it is a serious threat to human health. Constant exposure to loud sounds can harm both physical and mental well-being. Click here to read more (external link).

Afghanistan International: The Afghanistan Freedom Front says its forces carried out an attack on a Taliban watchtower in Baharak district of Badakhshan province on Friday evening, killing two Taliban members. Local sources earlier confirmed to Afghanistan International that an explosion had occurred in the area. According to the sources, Taliban forces blocked roads leading toRead More...

Afghanistan International: Andrey Serdyukov, chief of the CSTO Joint Staff, said at a press conference on Thursday that the presence and activities of such groups in Afghanistan threaten regional security and could lead to the spread of terrorism to neighbouring countries. He described the situation as a serious concern for Central Asian states. Click hereRead More...

Amu: Taliban prevented women from entering a major industry exhibition in Kabul, sources told Amu TV on Friday, sharing video footage of the incident. The third “International Exhibition of Industry of Afghanistan” opened on Thursday, Feb. 12, and is scheduled to run for five days, featuring about 400 booths. One participant told Amu that womenRead More...

8am: Local sources say that on Tuesday, residents of the “Dahan Piyazqol” area in Doshi district of Baghlan province clashed with “Gujar and Kuchi settlers” over privately owned land, leaving two residents injured. This comes as similar reports have previously emerged from various provinces across the country of armed individuals seizing land by force, oftenRead More...

Ariana: The U.S. State Department has begun paying Afghans to repatriate as it attempts to close a camp in Qatar where they have been stranded for years, Reuters quoted the top State Department official for South and Central Asia told lawmakers on Wednesday. Advocates say the group includes civilian refugees, women who served as specialRead More...

Amu: Speaking during a session of Pakistan’s National Assembly on Monday, Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif said Pakistan’s participation in wars linked to Afghanistan, beginning during the Cold War and continuing after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, was a strategic choice made to secure international support, particularly from the United States.  “We did not enterRead More...

Afghanistan International: Afghanistan remains among the world’s most corrupt countries, according to Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI), which shows the country’s ranking worsening slightly in 2025 under Taliban rule. The report shows Afghanistan scored 16 out of 100, ranking 169th out of 182 countries. In 2024, the country scored 17 points, placing 165thRead More...

Afghanistan International: In the video, the girl says she was compelled to work in order to protect and support her sisters. The phenomenon of girls dressing as boys was also common during the Taliban’s first period of rule in Afghanistan. Afghan filmmaker Siddiq Barmak later portrayed this reality in the film Osama, which tells theRead More...



AFP: Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan said Saturday he dreams of playing an international match at home in Kabul, which for him would be “bigger than the World Cup”. Khan will captain the surprise 2024 T20 World Cup semi-finalists against New Zealand in their opening match of the 2026 edition in Chennai on Sunday. Click here toRead More...

Amu: Members of the UN Security Council warned on Tuesday that Islamic State’s Khorasan affiliate (IS-K) in Afghanistan continues to pose a serious threat to regional and international security, despite a reported decline in attacks. The council met under the agenda item “Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts” to review theRead More...