Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada
Afghanistan International: Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has ordered the collection of mentally ill patients across all 34 provinces of Afghanistan, the group announced. The announcement has raised concerns, given the Taliban’s previous treatment of vulnerable people. Last October, Taliban members shot dead a 22-year-old mentally ill man who had blocked them from entering his home. Click here to read more (external link).
Amu: Afghanistan fast bowler Naveen-ul-Haq has been ruled out of the ACC Men’s T20 Asia Cup 2025 due to a shoulder injury, the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) announced Monday. Naveen, regarded as one of the team’s most experienced pacers, has not been cleared by the ACB medical team to play in the remaining matches. He will continue undergoing treatment and rehabilitation until he regains full fitness, the board said in a statement. Afghanistan are competing in the Asia Cup 2025 alongside cricket powerhouses India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. Click here to read more (external link).
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Muttaqi
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi
September 14, 2025
Afghanistan’s de-facto Taliban rulers said they have reached an agreement with visiting US officials on an exchange of prisoners, although no details were given and Washington has not yet confirmed that a deal has been struck.
Following the September 13 meeting, the Taliban released photos of the meeting in Kabul involving US President Donald Trump’s special envoy for hostage affairs, Adam Boehler, and Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.
“Adam Boehler, referring to the issue of detained citizens between Afghanistan and the United States, said both countries will exchange prisoners,” Taliban Deputy Prime Minister Abdul Ghani Baradar’s office said after the meeting.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not confirm that an exchange was imminent, saying only that Boehler had gone to Kabul to “explore what’s possible.”
“Our special envoy for people unlawfully detained has been having conversations for a while,” Rubio told reporters as he departed Washington for a trip to the Middle East.
“Obviously, it will be the president’s decision in terms of any trades or any exchanges, but we most certainly want any Americans or anyone who’s being unlawfully detained to be released. And so he went there to explore what that would look like,” Rubio said.
Taliban government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat wrote on X that “both sides emphasized that they will continue to discuss various existing and future issues in bilateral relations, especially those citizens who are imprisoned in both countries.”
The Taliban Foreign Ministry said in a statement that discussions centered on bilateral relations with the United States and the need to continue talks, particularly related to the issue of prisoner exchanges.
The statement did not lay out how many people are being held in each country, their identities, or the reasons for their detention.
US citizen Mahmood Habibi, 37, who led the Afghan Aviation Authority under the previous US-allied Afghan government, is one of the most prominent Americans believed to be detained in Afghanistan.
His status is uncertain since his arrest in August 2022, with the Taliban denying he is being held. Habibi’s family says the Taliban handed him over to the Al-Qaeda terror group, while the United States has offered a $5 million reward for his return.
Another American, airline mechanic George Glezmann, 66, was freed in March during a visit to Kabul by Boehler after more than two years in detention. He was the third American freed by the Taliban since Trump returned to the presidency in January.
Zalmay Khalilzad, the previous US special envoy to Afghanistan, accompanied Boehler to the Kabul meeting. He did not immediately comment.
Since the Taliban overthrew the US-backed government in August 2021, dozens of foreign nationals have been arrested by the de-facto authorities.
The Taliban rulers, beset by unrest, natural disasters, and rampant poverty, are seeking to improve relations with the global community, especially the United States, to solidify their rule.
Russia is the only country to officially recognize the Taliban government, which has widely been accused of human rights violations, particularly against women.
Afghanistan was hit by a major earthquake that struck the remote mountainous province of Kunar on August 31, killing more than 2,200 people. More than 3,600 were also injured in the tremor, which wiped out entire villages in the region.
With reporting by AP and AFP
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8am: Women and girls in the country say that foreign women tourists, by portraying a distorted and unrealistic picture of Afghanistan, ignore the gender apartheid and, in effect, help reinforce the Taliban’s crimes. These women said that the Taliban allow images, voices, and even public dances of foreign women tourists to be freely broadcast, while in Afghanistan, they label women’s voices as “awrah” (shameful) and cut off female journalists’ voices during press conferences. According to them, the Taliban are exploiting the presence of foreign tourists to whitewash their misogynistic image, while inside the country, particularly in provinces like Kandahar and Panjshir, women are not even permitted to travel without a chadari or burqa. Click here to read more (external link).
Khaama: Thousands of international students, including Afghans admitted to US universities, have been unable to begin their studies after new travel restrictions disrupted visa processing and entry into the country. The policy, introduced under President Donald Trump’s new security framework, has significantly tightened student visa procedures. Many Afghan students accepted by prestigious universities now face long delays or complete suspension of their visa applications. Click here to read more (external link).
8am: Rahimullah Karimi, a human rights activist, says that forcibly evicting Hazaras from their residential areas is a clear violation of human rights and an affront to their dignity. He adds: “These actions are carried out without legal procedures, without residents’ consent, and with ethnic and religious motives. They are not only contrary to human rights principles but also foster social instability and deepen ethnic divisions in the country.”… In addition to Hazaras, other ethnic groups have also been forcibly relocated by the Taliban. Last year, more than 600 families were displaced from their main areas in the Dawlatyar district of Ghor province. Click here to read more (external link).
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres
Afghanistan International: Guterres stated that five armed groups claimed responsibility for 47 anti-Taliban attacks in the past quarter. These included the Afghanistan Freedom Front, the National Resistance Front, the Afghanistan Liberation Movement, the People’s Sovereignty Front and the National Mobilisation Front. Of these, the UN was able to independently verify 19 incidents. Click here to read more (external link).
Ariana: Uzbekistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has rejected recent media reports suggesting that the country intends to return military helicopters transferred from Afghanistan to the Islamic Emirate. In recent days, some media outlets had reported that Uzbekistan might be prepared to hand over 57 military helicopters that were flown out of Afghanistan in 2021. Click here to read more (external link).