Taliban rejects Gallup survey suggesting Afghanistan is least positive country

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Ariana: In the 2022 survey by Gallup – conducted one year after the IEA’s [Taliban] return to power and amid an ongoing humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan – 98% of Afghans described their life as poor enough to be considered suffering. This number is even higher than it was in the immediate aftermath of the IEA’s resurgence in 2021, when 94% of respondents described their life this poorly. Click here to read more (external link).

India Says It Will Maintain Embassy in Kabul But Without Ambassador

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Tolo News: The Minister of External Affairs of India, S Jaishankar, said that they have decided not to send an ambassador to its embassy in Afghanistan, but will keep the embassy open. Speaking at the India International Centre, Jaishankar added that it is still too early to judge the recent events in Afghanistan, but India will monitor the situation in Afghanistan. Click here to read more (external link).

Tajikistan’s Concerns Regarding the Presence of the Taliban in Afghanistan

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8am: Tajikistan shares a border of over 1,300 kilometers with Afghanistan, specifically with the provinces of Badakhshan, Takhar, and Kunduz. The shared border with Afghanistan has raised concerns for Tajikistan, which have been further amplified by the resurgence of the Taliban in Afghanistan, particularly their plans to relocate the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) to the northeast of Afghanistan. Click here to read more (external link).

Taliban’s Brutality Unveiled: Farmer Slain in Kabul for Refusing to Pay Tithe

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8am: Local sources in Kabul have reported that the Taliban have slain a farmer in the Char Asyab district due to his failure to pay the tithe, and they injured his brother in the process. According to sources on Tuesday, June 27th, the farmer was identified as Ajmal. The incident occurred last night, and in response, local residents of the Kabul-Logar highway blocked the road for two hours in protest. Tithing refers to a form of religious tax collected by the Taliban without undergoing any formal scrutiny. Considering themselves as the founders of an Islamic government, the Taliban perceive one-tenth of individuals’ income as their rightful share. Click here to read more (external link).

Life under Taliban Rule

The Taliban’s Unsustainable War on Drugs

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The Diplomat: The humongous trade is run by regional and multinational cartels with complex and elaborate illicit networks across the region. Politicians, security force personnel, and even the Taliban have been part of this symbiotic nexus, profiteering enormous amounts of money. Amid the anti-poppy measures of the Taliban, a record amount of Afghan drugs moved by Pakistani and Iranian cartels, almost 2,500 kilograms of methamphetamine, were recovered in India in May 2023. Drugs sourced from Afghanistan continue to reach the African continent, Sri Lanka, Australia, and European countries. It will be simply unimaginable that all the stakeholders will bring shutters down on this trade without a fight.  The Taliban, once a willing participant in the entire drug trade, lack the wherewithal to dismantle such a mammoth network. Click here to read more (external link).

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