Sima Samar
The Guardian (UK): The peace of the graveyard has descended upon Afghanistan. “Afghanistan might seem safe now, there are not a lot of explosions, but it is a graveyard kind of security. The most peaceful place is the grave: there nobody protests,” says Dr Sima Samar. Samar has spent a lifetime working for the ideals of a country that no longer exists. Click here to read more (external link).
Amu: Afghanistan’s embassy in Japan, which is run by diplomats from the former government, said it will suspend all operations from Jan. 31, 2026. Japan’s embassy in Kabul has also been operating under a chargé d’affaires since the Taliban takeover. Click here to read more (external link).
Saree
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi
December 25, 2025
Ikramuddin Saree, a former police commander in Afghanistan’s Takhar and Baghlan provinces under the pre-Taliban republic, was shot dead on the evening of December 24 outside his office in Tehran.
Sources close to him and the anti-Taliban National Resistance Front of Afghanistan confirmed the killing, saying Saree and a companion died while another was wounded.
Ali Maisam Nazary, a spokesman for the opposition group, accused the Taliban of orchestrating the assassination. The Taliban has not commented. Former republic officials and anti-Taliban groups have condemned the attack, urging Iran to investigate the incident and identify the perpetrators.
Tehran has not commented on the killing.
Saree is the second anti-Taliban figure killed in Iran in recent months.
In September, Maruf Gholami, a commander close to Ismail Khan and living in Mashhad, was gunned down by armed men. Khan, a former warlord and governor of Herat Province who fled to Iran after the Taliban takeover, demanded justice from Tehran.
Saree served as Baghlan police chief from 2017 to 2019 and then Takhar chief under then-Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. He fled to Iran after the 2021 Taliban takeover, advocating that former Afghan military personnel seeking residency should avoid deportation.
Thousands of ex-Afghan soldiers and police have sought refuge in Iran since 2021, amid fears of Taliban reprisals despite the group’s amnesty claims. The Taliban denies any cross-border operations.
Iran has not formally recognized the Taliban government since it returned to power. However, Tehran maintains diplomatic, security, and economic relations.
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Khaama: Afghan refugees made up the largest group, with over 42,000 detentions, placing them at the top of the list of migrants arrested by Turkish authorities. A joint investigation published last year by Politico, Der Spiegel, and other media outlets documented beatings, abuse, and prolonged confinement of Afghan and Syrian refugees, including being held for up to 12 hours in cold rooms, raising serious concerns about their treatment. Click here to read more (external link).
Amu: Afghanistan’s trade with Pakistan has fallen by as much as 45% after key border crossings between the two neighbours remained closed for nearly three months, the country’s Chamber of Commerce and Investment said on Thursday. Border crossings between Afghanistan and Pakistan have been shut for 79 days, effectively halting all formal commercial traffic between the two countries, according to the chamber. Click here to read more (external link).
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Amu: Taliban have suspended the payment of salaries to all public employees until further notice, three sources said, including one official from the Taliban-run Ministry of Finance. The sources said the order applies to all ministries and government departments. Taliban officials have not publicly explained the reason for the decision and did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Click here to read more (external link).
Afghanistan International: Two Tajik border guards were killed in an armed clash with militants who crossed from Afghanistan into Tajikistan, the country’s State Committee for National Security said. Click here to read more (external link).
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Taliban militants (file photo)
8am: According to Rawadari, the collected evidence shows that the Taliban, after seizing control of Afghanistan, imposed restrictions and organized discrimination on the daily lives of this religious minority. During this period, the Taliban committed widespread human rights violations and carried out systematic religious persecution against them. Over the past four years, the report finds that Ismailis in Afghanistan have been entirely excluded from political, administrative, and social participation. At the same time, the Taliban have deliberately taken steps to weaken and suppress their religious and cultural identity, directly undermining their security, human dignity, and basic rights. Click here to read more (external link).