RFE/RL’s Tajik Service March 2, 2021 A high-ranking Afghan politician has found himself at the center of a scandal in Tajikistan involving $15 million in cash and some 90 kilos of gold bars seized from smugglers at the Dushanbe airport in November. Mohammad Mirza Katawazai, the deputy chairman of the Afghan parliament, angrily rejects the
A barber in the Afghan capital, Kabul, has installed a small library in a corner of his shop. Assadullah says he dropped out of school early, but is encouraging other people to read as much as possible in a country where literacy levels remain low. The library has over 300 books and he’s offering a
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty February 13, 2021 HERAT, Afghanistan — A fuel tanker exploded on the Afghan-Iranian border on February 13, causing a massive fire and a chain reaction that destroyed more than 500 trucks carrying natural gas and fuel. Afghan officials and Iranian state media said the blast occurred on the Afghan side of
1TV: French authorities have decided to plaque in Paris in honour of Afghanistan’s national hero Ahmad Shah Massoud. The Paris Council voted unanimously to place a plaque in Paris 8 in tribute to Commander Massoud, Deputy Mayor of Paris, Arnaud Ngatcha, said on Twitter. Click here to read more (external link).
Ariana: President Ashraf Ghani on Thursday renamed the Herat Airport after Khwaja Abdullah Ansari, a Sufi who lived in the 11th century in Herat province. Ansari was also known as Pir-i Herat “Sage of Herat” and he is famous for his poetry and his book Munajat Namah (the prayers letter). Click here to read more
1TV: Afghan traffic authorities will not issue car number plates containing “39”, First Vice President Amrullah Saleh said on Thursday. 39 is regarded as a mark of great shame by some Afghans. It is said that number is associated with a pimp in Herat. Some blame mafia for fanning the trend. Click here to read
Ariana: The National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) said that it will distribute more than five million electronic identity cards (ID card) before the end of the current solar year in April. According to NSIA the holders of paper identity cards will not need to verify their identity cards once they have been issued. With
Ariana: Japan has the world’s most powerful passport as its citizens can travel to 191 countries around the world visa-free or visa on arrival. The Henley Passport Index, which measures the world’s most travel-friendly passports from time to time based on data received from the International Air Transport Authority (IATA), has released its report for
1TV: Afghanistan on Thursday temporarily blocked popular online game Player Unknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) after receiving complaints that it had negative impact on people who play it. Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) said that the decision to block the game was taken following complaints from several entities including the parliament. Click here to read more (external
Khatir Pardes Abubakar Siddique Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty KABUL — Mohammad Younas is nostalgic about his time fighting with Azerbaijani forces in the war against Armenians for the Nagorno-Karabakh territory in the early 1990s. “If possible, I would again join the Muslims of Azerbaijan to defend them against non-Muslims,” he said, alluding to the predominantly