Afghanistan International: The UN Secretary-General reported that anti-Taliban fronts, including the National Resistance Front (NRF) and the Afghanistan Freedom Front, have carried out 73 attacks against the Taliban. The report states that from May 14 to July 31, 2,127 security incidents were recorded in Afghanistan, an increase of 53 percent compared to the same period
8am: The Taliban have intensified restrictions against Shia Muslims by banning the import of Shia religious books and prayer texts into Afghanistan. Pilgrims returning from Karbala have voiced concerns over the Taliban’s harsh treatment and the prohibition on transferring these religious materials at border crossings. They report that during book collections, the Taliban insult Shia
RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi September 17, 2024 Afghanistan’s Taliban-run Health Ministry on September 17 rejected reports saying the hard-line group has suspended or delayed a major polio vaccination drive. Ministry spokesman Sharafat Zaman called such reports false and said there was no official directive to postpone or stop the anti-polio plans. Instead, he said, Taliban health officials are
Tolo News: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced that diplomats representing the Islamic Emirate began their work at the Afghan Embassy in Oman this past Sunday. Hafiz Zia Ahmad Takal, the Deputy Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated that the reopening of the Islamic Emirate’s embassy in Oman is expected to play
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi September 16, 2024 Veteran Afghan warlord and former politician Abdul Rashid Dostum has urged groups that oppose the fundamentalist Taliban to unite to form a government-in-exile for Afghanistan to challenge that extremist group’s unrecognized leadership. Dostum, an ethnic Uzbek and longtime kingmaker who along with his private army has been accused of past rights
8am: One analysis suggests that given the developments in the Russia-Ukraine war, Western powers, especially the U.S., may be seeking to exploit al-Qaeda and other Central Asian militant groups to undermine Russian interests. After the September 11 attacks, the U.S. significantly weakened al-Qaeda and eliminated many of its senior leaders, but it either did not
Afghanistan International: The New York Times has reported that Trump assassination suspect Ryan Wesley Routh said last year that he was looking to recruit former Afghan troops to fight in Ukraine. “We can probably purchase some passports through Pakistan, since it’s such a corrupt country,” Routh had said. On Sunday, media outlets reported a shooting
8am: The massacre of Shia pilgrims at the border between the provinces of Ghor and Daykundi, for which ISIS has claimed responsibility, has once again highlighted the issue of Anti-Shiism among extremist Islamic groups. This event occurred in Afghanistan under Taliban rule, a group that has repeatedly demonstrated that it is no less anti-Shia than