1TV: The chief minister of an Indian state on Saturday called for evacuation of stranded Sikh families from Afghanistan, following a deadly attack on a temple in Kabul. “Dear @DrSJaishankar, there are a large number of Sikh families who want to be flown out of Afghanistan. Request you to get them airlifted at the earliest.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty March 26, 2020 A small explosion has disrupted the funeral services for 25 members of Afghanistan’s Sikh community who were killed earlier this week in an attack by an Islamic State gunman on their religious compound. No one was hurt when the explosive device detonated near the crematorium where the ceremonies
Ayaz Gul VOA News March 25, 2020 ISLAMABAD – Officials in Afghanistan say heavily armed suicide bombers Wednesday stormed a minority Sikh worship place in Kabul, killing at least 25 worshippers and injuring at least eight others. The local television station TOLO TV said at least 11 members of the minority community were also injured.
Tolo News: Known also as Buddha Day, the festival is celebrated by music and dance in Nangarhar, Kabul and other provinces where the Hindu and Sikh residents are living. The Hindu and Sikh residents said threats continue against them and that this has affected their festivals and rituals. Those who participated in the festival called on
PTI: Every couple of months Surveer Singh, who fled religious persecution in Afghanistan, is torn between identity and livelihood. Surveer Singh’s family had been living in Afghanistan’s restive Nangarhar province before his parents decided to move to India in 1992, when a wave of Hindus and Sikhs left Afghanistan after the withdrawal of the USSR
Tolo News: Canada’s Minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Ahmed Hussen, quoted by Indian media, said on Thursday that the Canadian government is working on a plan to approve private sponsorship of Hindu and Sikh citizens of Afghanistan by a foundation and approved individuals will be welcomed to Canada in the coming year. Click here to
Tolo News: The Afghan Hindus and Sikhs say they will not celebrate this year’s Diwali festival due to deadly incidents took place in the country recent months. The festival was not held last year either due to a deadly incident in Kabul. Hindus and Sikhs living in Kabul said that the death of 14 Hindus and Sikhs in Nangarhar bombing July, assassination of former
Al Jazeera: The war in Afghanistan is forcing people from religious minorities to leave the country. But not everyone can afford to escape persecution and seek a new life abroad. The Afghan government has said that protecting minorities and religious freedoms are part of its duties defined by the Constitution of Afghanistan. However, with the government occupied fighting
Tolo News: Members of the minority Sikh community in Afghanistan said their numbers have dropped sharply in the country over the years and that in Helmand alone, there are now only four Sikhs left, from the original 85 families. Click here to read more (external link).
Foreign Policy: As in Iraq and Syria, the long war in Afghanistan has been particularly harsh on religious minorities. Afghanistan once had thriving Sikh and Hindu communities, but today, the numbers have been reduced to only the most determined and persistent. Click here to read more (external link).