Child getting polio drops (file photo)
Amu: Afghanistan on Saturday launched a 10-day nationwide child immunization campaign that will administer six vaccines against preventable diseases, as the country continues to record new cases of wild poliovirus despite years of eradication efforts. According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) data, 15 cases of wild poliovirus had been confirmed in Afghanistan by the end of July 2026. The cases were reported in the provinces of Nangarhar, Kunar, Helmand, Herat, Kabul, Zabul and Paktia, underscoring the continued geographic spread of the disease. Click here to read more (external link).
Afghanistan International: Local sources in Badakhshan say the home of Fasihuddin Fitrat, the Taliban’s army chief of staff, was attacked on Thursday evening in Wurduj district. It is unclear whether he was there at the time. According to the sources, unidentified gunmen opened fire on Fitrat’s home in the village of Istrap from a nearby mountain overlooking the property. They said the attackers used light and heavy weapons, including PK machine guns. 
Afghanistan International: Informed sources told Afghanistan International that Taliban intelligence has seized the Kabul home of former Member of Parliament Zalmai Khan Mujaddidi and expelled his relatives from the property. According to the sources, Taliban intelligence removed Mujaddidi’s relatives from the house in Kabul’s Wazir Akbar Khan neighbourhood and stationed four-armed men inside. Zalmai Khan Mujaddidi represented Badakhshan in Afghanistan’s former republic order. 
8am: Several local workers in Andarab district, Baghlan province, are complaining about the Taliban’s ban on gold panning activities. They say the management of gold extraction has been handed over to individuals affiliated with the Taliban from Kandahar province, and when they protested this decision, they faced a violent response from Taliban forces. These workers told the Hasht-e Subh Daily that the Taliban halted gold panning even though many families had taken out loans to start the work and relied on it to cover their living expenses. According to them, the halt in this activity has left a number of families facing serious livelihood problems and heavy debt. Meanwhile, some economic experts warn that the ban on gold panning in Andarab district will have wide-ranging consequences for people’s livelihoods and the local economy. They believe that the loss of this source of income will heighten the risk of poverty, unemployment, and economic stagnation in the region. 
Khaama: A US federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration unlawfully applied its Afghan travel restrictions to the spouses and children of seven Afghan nationals who were granted asylum in the United States, a decision that could allow the affected families to move forward with reunification. 
Amu: A British parliamentary committee has accused successive governments of leaving Afghan allies in danger through years of administrative failures, secrecy and flawed decision-making, saying hundreds of Afghans who worked alongside UK forces were wrongly denied relocation and forced to spend years in hiding under Taliban rule. In a report published Thursday, the House of Commons Defence Committee said 884 previously rejected resettlement applications from former members of Afghan specialist units known as the Triples were later overturned, describing the review as a “major corrective exercise” that came only after many applicants had exhausted their savings and viable routes to safety.