Ariana: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Monday that the United States government will not rest until all Americans detained in Afghanistan are brought home. “The United States is pleased to welcome home Faye Hall. President of the United States’ commitment to the American people is clear — we will not rest untilRead More...
Khaama: Pakistan has started deporting Afghan migrants after the March 31 deadline, with no extension granted for voluntary departure. The Pakistani government has begun deporting Afghans living in the country without legal documents, starting today, Tuesday, April 1st, after the deadline for voluntary departure expired. Pakistani media reports that after the expiration of this deadline,Read More...
Afghanistan International: According to recent reports, Taliban forces in some districts—including Malistan in Ghazni province—attempted to compel Shia residents to break their fast on Sunday. Over the past four years, there have been several cases of the Taliban pressuring Shia communities to conform to its Supreme Court’s Eid announcements. In some instances, Taliban members reportedlyRead More...
Amu: Afghan martial artist Yasin Mirzai claimed the championship title and golden belt at the Dragon martial arts tournament held in Cambodia, after a dominant performance in the traditional Southeast Asian combat sport of Kun Khmer. Mirzai, who competed under the Afghan flag, defeated opponents from Spain and Cambodia to advance to the final round,Read More...
Afghanistan International: The Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) has called for greater unity, coordination, and strategic alignment among all anti-Taliban groups in its Eid al-Fitr message, issued on Sunday. The group pledged to resume operations against the Taliban following the holiday period and advised the public to avoid Taliban gathering points. Click here to read moreRead More...
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Farangis Najibullah and Rashid Khattak March 30, 2025 More than 800,000 Afghans who fled Afghanistan after the Taliban’s takeover in 2021 live without papers in neighboring Pakistan. These undocumented Afghan refugees and migrants face a rapidly approaching deportation order issued by Islamabad requiring them to leave the country by March 31.Read More...
Khaama: Zabihullah Mujahid, the spokesperson for the Taliban, stated that during a meeting with an American delegation, the group requested the handover of Afghanistan’s embassy in Washington, D.C. Mujahid, in an interview with Al Arabiya on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, also mentioned that the Taliban had asked the U.S. delegation to reopen its embassy inRead More...
Ariana: Russia’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Albert P. Khorev, has said Afghanistan’s efforts to combat militancy have been inadequate but attributed this to economic challenges and prevailing security conditions in the country. He said ISIS (Daesh) was the greatest threat to Russia’s national and regional security, and that Moscow is closely monitoring the situation. Click hereRead More...
Deccan Herald: In an interview with DH’s Anirban Bhaumik from an undisclosed location, Saleh says that Pakistan overestimated its relevance and value in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. He also says India can balance principle and pragmatism in its engagement with Taliban-ruled Afghanistan. Click here to read more (external link).
Amu: Tuesday marked the fifth anniversary of a deadly assault on a Sikh temple in Kabul that killed 26 people and injured eight others. Daesh claimed responsibility for the 2020 attack, one of the deadliest in recent memory against Afghanistan’s Sikh minority. Five years on, rights activists and analysts say that religious extremism has onlyRead More...
Fazelminallah Qazizai via News Line Mag: The caption identified him as Afghan national Mohammad Sharifullah (also known as Jafar), arrested in Pakistan and handed over to the U.S. as a “top terrorist” mastermind behind the August 2021 Kabul airport bombing that killed more than 170 Afghans and 13 U.S. troops. But here, in the alleysRead More...
Afghanistan International: Michael Kugelman, South Asia Director at the Wilson Center, says the United States is signalling a shift in its approach to the Taliban. He believes the US is now looking to work more closely with Taliban leaders based in Kabul, sidelining the group’s leadership in Kandahar. According to Kugelman, the US has limitedRead More...
AFP: Tired of burkas that cover the face, urban women under the Taliban’s ‘gender apartheid’ have adopted the abaya robe favoured in Gulf nations. Click here to read more (external link).
By Abubakar Siddique Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty March 23, 2025 For over three years, Syed Abdul Samad Muzoon, a middle-aged former Afghan security official, has lived with his wife and their teenage daughter in Pakistan to pursue immigration to the United States. During Washington’s nearly two-decade-long war in Afghanistan, he worked for the Afghan security forcesRead More...
8am: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) warned on World Water Day that climate change threatens Afghanistan’s glaciers. Reports from United Nations agencies indicate that Afghanistan is facing severe climate change challenges. Click here to read more (external link).
Khaama: Sirajuddin Haqqani, the acting Interior Minister under the Taliban-led administration in Afghanistan, continues to draw international attention as signs of evolving U.S. policy emerge. Sources close to the Haqqani network have told Afghan outlet Tolo News that the reward designations on key figures of the group have been lifted by the U.S. government. AccordingRead More...
Amu: Afghanistan’s national football team suffered a 2-0 defeat against Thailand in an international friendly on Friday evening, as part of its preparations for the upcoming qualifiers for the 2027 AFC Asian Cup. The friendly was seen as a key warm-up fixture ahead of Afghanistan’s first official qualifier match, scheduled for March 25 (5 HamalRead More...
Afghanistan International: Several Afghan opposition leaders used Nowruz to urge unity and resistance against the Taliban. They called for an end to “tyranny and oppression” and pledged to work towards a democratic and inclusive government. Abdul Rashid Dostum, former vice president and leader of the National Islamic Movement of Afghanistan, said in his Nowruz messageRead More...
Afghanistan International: Rawadari, a human rights organisation, has exposed widespread violations against ethnic and religious minorities in Afghanistan under Taliban rule. In its latest report, the group accuses the Taliban of deliberately denying minorities access to government services, infrastructure projects, and humanitarian aid. In Badakhshan, no infrastructure projects have been carried out in Ismaili-majority areas,Read More...
Ariana: Afghanistan has ranked last out of 147 countries in the 2025 edition of the World Happiness Report released Thursday. Finland has been named the happiest country in the world for the eighth consecutive year. Denmark, Iceland and Sweden followed Finland in the ranking. According to the new World Happiness Report, Afghanistan lost approximately 2.7Read More...
By Abubakar Siddique and RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi March 21, 2025 Millions of Afghans in Iran face an uncertain future as Tehran prepares to implement sweeping restrictions that will cut off access to health care, education, housing, and other essential services for undocumented immigrants. The new policy, set to take effect on March 21, has leftRead More...
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi March 19, 2025 Under the Taliban, Afghan women can’t study at universities or work in most jobs. But 22-year-old Zahra Ali has created a small business that brings in an income and provides a much-needed resource to her neighbors. At her home workshop in Kabul, she builds rechargeable battery packs that helpRead More...
8am: The Taliban, despite their claims of combating administrative corruption and ethnic discrimination, have engaged in widespread corruption within government institutions and have significantly fueled ethnic bias. Findings from a report by the Hasht-e Subh Daily regarding the Education Directorate of Baghlan Province reveal that the principal of a school in Central Baghlan has labeledRead More...
Khaama: The way Nowruz is celebrated varies across Afghanistan. In Mazar-e-Sharif, the “Jahenda Bala” ceremony and the Gul Surkh festival are popular, while in Herat, people often visit nature reserves and gardens. In Kabul, making ‘Samanak’ and preparing ‘Haft Mewa’ are notable traditions. Despite these regional differences, visiting friends, exchanging new year greetings, and wishingRead More...
8am: The United Nations has reported in a recent assessment that the price of one kilogram of opium in Afghanistan has increased tenfold compared to previous years. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) stated in its report that following the Taliban’s ban on opium cultivation, the price of this substance has sharply risen,Read More...
Afghanistan International: Former Taliban detainee Nadia Sadat told Afghanistan International that she was stripped naked and subjected to abuse in prison. She claimed that Taliban officials took photos and videos of her during interrogations. Sadat was detained for protesting in Mazar-i-Sharif and for speaking to the media about the closure of schools and universities forRead More...