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Posts tagged as “Taliban”

Taliban prepare suicide bombers in water dispute with Iran

Bloomberg report, Aug 7, 2023 at 11.02 AM ISTIn mid-May, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi issued a warning to the Taliban: Honor Afghanistan’s water-supply agreement or face the consequences. A well-known Taliban figure offered a mocking gift of a 20-liter water container in response and told him to stop making terrifying ultimatums. About a week later, a skirmish erupted on the border, leaving two Iranian guards and one Taliban member dead. The Taliban sent thousands of…

Kabul again denies it lets terrorists use Afghan territory

Report in Dawn, August 4th, 2023KARACHI: Kabul has refuted what it terms allegations levelled by Pakistan, saying that the Afghan Taliban do not allow anyone to use Afghan territory against another country. In a couple of tweets on Thursday, Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said: “If there is any concern, it should be shared with the officials of the Islamic Emirate face to face, rather than making unnecessary claims in the media and confusing people’s…

US, Afghan Taliban officials hold rare talks in Doha

by Anwar Iqbal in Dawn, August 1st, 2023WASHINGTON: US officials held their first wide-ranging talks, since the 2021 pullout from Kabul, with representatives of the Afghan Taliban in Doha, Qatar, to discuss economic issues, security, and women’s rights, both sides confirmed on Monday. The talks also focused on returning assets of the Afghan central bank that were frozen in the United States after the Taliban takeover of Kabul in Aug 2021. “On July 30 and…

Taliban create bonfire of music equipment

AFP report July 31st, 2023HERAT: Authorities from Afghanistan’s vice ministry created a bonfire of confiscated musical instruments and equipment in Herat province at the weekend, deeming music immoral. “Promoting music causes moral corruption and playing it will cause the youth to go astray,” said Azizal-Rahman al- Muhajir, head of the Herat department of the Ministry for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice. Since seizing power in August 2021, Taliban authorities have steadily imposed…

Taliban Rejects Iran’s Claim About Moving Daesh Leaders to Afghanistan

By Fidel Rahmati in Khaama Press, July 22, 2023The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan has rejected Iran’s claim that Daesh leaders have moved to the country from Iraq, Syria and Libya. Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian told ISNA News Agency, “It is not a secret to anyone that the leaders of Daesh and the trained forces of Daesh have moved from Iraq, Syria, and parts of Libya to Afghanistan in recent months.…

Rich lode of EV metals could boost Taliban and its new Chinese partners

By Gerry Shih and Lorenzo Tugnoli in The Washington Post, July 20 at 9:00 a.m.CHAPA DARA, Afghanistan — Sayed Wali Sajid spent years fighting American soldiers in the barren hills and fertile fields of the Pech River Valley, one of the deadliest theaters of the 20-year insurgency. But nothing confounded the Taliban commander, he said, like the new wave of foreigners who began showing up, one after another, in late 2021. Once, Sajid spotted a…

EU Sanctions Three Taliban Leaders Under Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime

report in Khaama Press online, July 20, 2023Following the EU Global Human Rights Sanctions Regime, the European Council on Thursday imposed restrictive measures against 18 people and five entities because of their involvement in grave human rights abuses and violations in several countries, including Afghanistan. Six people were listed “over various forms of sexual and gender-based violence,” according to a statement from the council, three of whom are senior Taliban leaders in positions of authority.…

Two Men Flogged in Public in Afghanistan’s Laghman

By Fidel Rahmati in Khaama Press online, July 19, 2023Taliban’s Supreme Court said on Tuesday that two individuals were flogged publicly in the eastern province of Laghman, Afghanistan. The two men received 30 lashes each after being accused of “having affairs” and being detained. In addition, the individuals received a one-year prison sentence, which increased the severity of their penalty. Earlier, six people allegedly accused of abducting women and raping, publicly flogged in a football…

Twitter better for ‘freedom of speech’, says senior Afghan Taliban official

AFP report, July 12, 2023Twitter owner Elon Musk’s freewheeling approach to the platform’s handling of censorship has won support from an unlikely quarter — Afghanistan’s Taliban. Anas Haqqani, a senior Taliban leader without an official portfolio, said late on Monday that Twitter had “two important advantages” over other social media platforms following the launch of Meta-owned rival Threads. “The first privilege is the freedom of speech. The second privilege is the public nature and credibility…

Afghan Interior Minister Warns of ISIS Attacks on Taliban Officials

By Nizamuddin Rezahi in Khaama Press, July 12, 2023Taliban’s Interior Minister in a letter stated that Islamic State (ISIS) militants are planning to launch attacks targeting senior Taliban leaders, provincial governors, officials and more. Abdul Mateen Qaneh, Taliban’s spokesperson for the interior ministry on Tuesday, July 11, confirmed the content of the letter but avoided providing further details about the potential threats. The letter was delivered on July 9 to the Taliban’s police command throughout…

Afghan Officials Flog 4 People in Kabul for Alleged Crimes

By Nizamuddin Rezahi in The Khaama Press, July 12, 2023Taliban’s Supreme Court has announced that four people including a woman were publicly flogged for allegedly accused of committing “immorality” in the Paghman district of Kabul city. According to a news release, these people were arrested from the Kargha area of Kabul, adding the Taliban officials sentenced the convicts to three months imprisonment. Taliban’s Supreme Court on Wednesday, July 12, in a press release stated that…