By Daud Khattak Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty September 15, 2026 It was with a mixture of surprise and fear that Khan, a former Afghan soldier now living in Pakistan, received an offer to work with Pakistani security agencies on counter-militancy operations in Balochistan, the country’s southwestern province bordering Afghanistan and Iran. “The offer came from
Afghanistan International: Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on Sunday denied the presence of al-Qaeda in Afghanistan, rejecting a Washington Post report that cited Western security officials and a UN body as saying the group is active again in the country. Mujahid described the report as propaganda against the Taliban and said there was no evidence proving
8am: Several recovered drug addicts and their families claim that at some drug treatment centers in Kandahar, instead of preventing drug use, the environment has been made accessible for patients to obtain and sell narcotics. They say that in some cases, treatment center staff supply drugs to patients or facilitate the buying and selling of
By Abdul Hamid Hakimi Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty September 12, 2026 The US State Department has urged American companies to exercise extreme caution when considering business transactions with Taliban-ruled Afghanistan after a former US official attended the signing of a deal between a Saudi energy group and the hard-line authorities. A US State Department spokesperson, who
8am: Leaked documents from the Taliban’s General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) show that the group has allocated a budget of more than 70 million Afghanis to advance a broad propaganda and media campaign, using media outlets and fake accounts to portray opposition fronts as weak, sow discord among former political leaders and their supporters, instill
Afghanistan International: Residents said the arrests have mainly targeted former Afghan government security personnel and that the number detained may exceed 40. Sources said at least 15 people had been arrested over the past two weeks on accusations of cooperating with the “Afghanistan’s Guardians of the Homeland Front”. Taliban-affiliated media have also released a video
8am: Over the past five years, the Taliban have repeatedly been accused of taking revenge against the country’s citizens. The group arrests, imprisons, and tortures individuals who criticize Taliban rule. The Taliban have also officially declared that criticizing their rule is considered a crime, and they have blocked any form of civic and political activity
8am: The Taliban claim to have acquired anti-drone systems and plan to begin installing and operating the systems in Kandahar province. The sources added that the systems are intended to prevent Pakistani drones from operating in border areas. The Taliban also claimed that the deployment would be expanded to other border areas of Afghanistan after
By Ray Furlong and Daud Khattak Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty September 8, 2026 Twenty-five years after serving as the global launchpad for the 9/11 attacks, Afghanistan has come “full circle” — with the Taliban retaking power after a 20-year US-led military presence and Al-Qaeda operatives again finding safe haven in the country. So far, this
8am: Several residents from the southern provinces are expressing serious concern over the rise in thefts and criminal offenses in these provinces. They say that despite the Taliban’s claims of ensuring security, they have failed to protect the lives and property of the people. According to them, widespread poverty and severe unemployment have contributed to