Page 2 - Taliban

Datanomics: How India-Afghanistan ties have shifted under Taliban 2.0

India cautiously renews economic engagement with Afghanistan, balancing humanitarian aid and trade ties without extending formal recognition to the Taliban regime

Pakistani forces clash with Afghan Taliban on border in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Intense fighting broke out once again on Tuesday night between Pakistani security forces and the Afghan Taliban along the border between the two countries in Kurram district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, state media reported. According to the state broadcaster PTV News, Afghan Taliban and Fitna al-Khawarij opened unprovoked fire in Kurram. Pakistani Army responded with full force and intensity. The term Fitna al-Khawarij is used by Pakistani authorities to refer to militants of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). PTV News reported that Afghan Taliban posts sustained heavy damage, with at least one tank destroyed after being hit. The Taliban fighters reportedly fled their positions following the exchange of fire. Later updates from the broadcaster said that another post and tank position of the Afghan Taliban were destroyed in the Kurram sector, followed by reports of a fourth tank position at Shamsadar post being hit. It also quoted sources as saying that a key commander of Fit

Muttaqi to meet industry bodies, talk opportunities in Afghanistan

Amir Khan Muttaqi meets Indian business leaders to boost economic cooperation as Taliban-Pakistan border clashes escalate during his India visit

Afghanistan foreign minister says hopeful of stronger ties with India

Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Saturday voiced confidence that the India-Afghanistan ties will grow stronger in future as he thanked the people for the welcome he received during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of the most influential Islamic seminaries in South Asia. "We will be sending new diplomats, and I hope you people will visit Kabul as well. I have hopes for stronger ties in the future from the way I was received in Delhi. These visits may be frequent in the near future," Muttaqi said here. The Afghan leader, who reached Deoband from Delhi by road with his delegation, was welcomed by Mohtamim (vice-chancellor) of Darul Uloom Deoband Abul Qasim Nomani, president of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind Maulana Arshad Madani and officials of Darul Uloom, amid a floral shower. Hundreds of students of the Islamic seminary and a large number of locals who had gathered at the Deoband campus jostled to shake hands with the visiting foreign dignitary, but were stoppe

'No involvement': MEA clarifies after women barred from Afghan FM presser

Afghan FM Amir Muttaqi held a press meet at the Afghanistan embassy in Delhi after talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, but only male journalists attended and no joint briefing was held

New Delhi upgrades status of technical mission in Kabul to embassy

New Delhi and Kabul renew ties after four years, with plans to boost trade, mining investment, and restore the air freight corridor via Chabahar port

Afghan FM Muttaqi meets Jaishankar; says 'India has always stood by us'

Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Muttaqi met S Jaishankar in New Delhi, praising India as a 'close friend' and highlighting cooperation in humanitarian aid and regional peace

India to reopen embassy in Kabul, deepen engagement with Afghanistan

Jaishankar announces upgrade of India's Kabul mission as Taliban foreign minister visits New Delhi, signalling cautious but deeper diplomatic engagement

Afghan foreign minister Amir Muttaqi lands in Delhi: What's on agenda?

Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi has landed in New Delhi, marking a rare high-level engagement with India since the Taliban assumed power in 2021

Afghan FM arrives in Delhi on first high-level visit since Taliban takeover

Afghan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi landed in the national capital on Thursday, in the first high-level trip from Kabul after the Taliban seized power following the collapse of the Ashraf Ghani government over four years back. Muttaqi will hold extensive talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval during his six-day trip to India, people familiar with the matter said. "Warm welcome to Afghan Foreign Minister, Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi on his arrival in New Delhi," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on social media. "We look forward to engaging discussions with him on bilateral relations and regional issues," he said. Muttaqi's engagements include a visit to the Darul Uloom Deoband seminary and the Taj Mahal, the people cited above said. The Afghan foreign minister was scheduled to visit New Delhi last month but it was called off in view of a travel ban that he faced under UN Security Council ...

UN grants travel ban exemption for Afghan FM to visit India from Oct 9-16

Under Security Council resolution 1988 (2011), certain individuals linked to the Taliban are subject to travel bans

Afghan foreign minister Muttaqi to visit India after UN travel ban waiver

Afghan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is expected to visit India next week, in the first high-level trip from Kabul after Taliban captured power overthrowing the Ashraf Ghani government around four years ago. The Afghan foreign minister is expected to visit India from October 10, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. However, there is no official word on the visit yet. Muttaqi was scheduled to visit New Delhi last month but it was called off in view of a travel ban that he faced under United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions. On September 30, a UNSC committee approved a temporary exemption to the travel ban, allowing Muttaqi to visit New Delhi from October 9 to 16, according to a UN statement. Afghan media reported that Muttaqi will travel to Moscow on October 6 to attend the seventh round of Moscow Format talks. The UNSC has slapped sanctions against all leading Taliban leaders and they have to secure a waiver for foreign travels. Muttaqi's visit is expec

UN mission urges Taliban to restore internet access across Afghanistan

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan urged the Taliban on Tuesday to restore internet and telecommunications access across the country, saying the blackout imposed by the government in Kabul has left the nation almost entirely cut off from the outside world. The outage, reported the previous day, was the first nationwide shutdown since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021 and was part of their professed crackdown on immorality. Earlier this month, several provinces lost their fibre-optic connections after Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada issued a decree banning the service to prevent immorality. The disruption threatened economic stability and deepened one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, said the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan. It warned that the blackout is crippling banking and financial systems, isolating women and girls, limiting access to medical care and remittances, and disrupting aviation. The UN said such restrictions further undermine free

Afghanistan faces internet blackout as Taliban enforce morality crackdown

An internet blackout hit Afghanistan on Monday, with local media reporting a potential nationwide cut of fibre-optic services as part of a Taliban crackdown on immorality. It's the first time Afghanistan has experienced a shutdown of this kind since the former insurgents seized power in August 2021. Earlier this month, several provinces lost fibre-optic connections after Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada issued a decree banning the service to prevent immorality. On Monday, internet-access advocacy group Netblocks said that live metrics showed connectivity in Afghanistan had collapsed to 14 per cent of ordinary levels, with a near-total nationwide telecoms disruption in effect. The incident is likely to severely limit the public's ability to contact the outside world, the group added. The Associated Press was unable to contact its Kabul bureau, as well as journalists in the provinces of Nangarhar and Helmand. There was no confirmation of the blackout from the Taliban government,

Why Trump wants Bagram Air Base to be returned to the US by Afghanistan

Donald Trump says the US is 'trying to get back' Bagram Air Base to counter China and terrorism. The Taliban reject the idea as analysts warn of costs, risks and fallout

Taliban rejects Trump's demand to return Bagram air base to US control

Trump has long criticised his predecessor Joe Biden over the tumultuous US withdrawal from Afghanistan

Taliban internet ban spreads across Afghanistan as more provinces shut down

A Taliban crackdown to prevent immorality is spreading across Afghanistan, with more provinces losing access to fibre-optic internet after the country's leader imposed a complete ban on the technology. It's the first time a ban of this kind has been imposed since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, and leaves government offices, the private sector, public institutions, and homes without Wi-Fi internet. Mobile internet remains functional, however. Officials say alternatives are being found for necessities. The northern Balkh province confirmed a Wi-Fi shutdown on Tuesday, with reports of severe disruption in other parts of the country. On Thursday, officials in the east and north said internet access was cut off in the provinces of Baghlan, Badakhshan, Kunduz, Nangarhar, and Takhar. Siddiqullah Quraishi, from the Nangarhar Culture Directorate, confirmed the shutdown to The Associated Press. The governor's office in Kunduz shared a message in an official WhatsApp group. The ...

India urges global community to block LeT, JeM operations from Afghanistan

India has called on the international community to ensure UN-designated terror entities, including Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, as well as their facilitators, no longer exploit Afghan territory for terrorist activities. India is closely monitoring the security situation in Afghanistan, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said on Wednesday. The international community must coordinate efforts towards ensuring that entities and individuals designated by the UN Security Council, ISIL and Al Qaeda and their affiliates, including Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, along with those who facilitate their operations, no longer exploit the Afghan territory for terrorist activities, he said, in an apparent reference to Pakistan. Harish, delivering a statement at the UN Security Council meeting on Afghanistan, said that India and Afghanistan share a civilisational relationship and Delhi has a paramount interest in ensuring peac

WHO urges Taliban to let female aid workers help quake-hit Afghan women

After a deadly earthquake killed 2,200 in eastern Afghanistan, the WHO said women need female doctors, but Taliban rules stop female aid workers from travelling freely

Rescuers race to find Afghan quake survivors as death toll crosses 1,400

The United Nations warned of an exponential rise in casualties from a major earthquake in eastern Afghanistan, as the Taliban said the death toll passed 1,400 on Tuesday, with more than 3,000 people injured. The figures provided by Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid were just for the province of Kunar. Sunday night's powerful 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck several provinces, causing extensive damage. It flattened villages and trapped people under the rubble of homes constructed mostly of mud bricks and wood that were unable to withstand the shock. Rough terrain is hampering rescue and relief efforts, forcing Taliban authorities to air-drop dozens of commandos to evacuate the injured from places where helicopters cannot land. Aid agency Save the Children said one of its teams walked for over 12 miles (19 kilometers) to reach villages cut off by rock falls, carrying medical equipment on their backs with the help of community members. An aftershock of 5.2 magnitude clos