An expert on the Taliban’s sweep and what it means for Afghanistan. The Taliban is rapidly overrunning large parts of Afghanistan. Over the past few days, Taliban fighters have reportedly taken over nine provincial capitals. The siege comes after a relentless, monthslong offensive in the country that has stretched Afghan government forces. Since the US began withdrawing its troops from […]

The U.S. will deploy additional troops to Kabul airport in support of embassy staff drawdown as the security situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate. On Friday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Commander Hossein Salami said that all Iran’s border lines are secure, including the eastern borders with Afghanistan. His statement came after the reports that Taliban took control of […]

The Taliban claimed control over two of Afghanistan’s biggest cities on Thursday, according to media reports, as the United States and Britain said they would send thousands of troops to help evacuate their embassy staff, Reuters reported. According to Reuters the capture of Kandahar and Herat – the country’s second and third largest cities – would represent the Taliban’s two […]

Faced with unexpectedly rapid military gains by the Taliban, the United States decided on Thursday to dramatically scale down its embassy in Kabul and send about 3,000 troops temporarily to aid the evacuation of staff, Reuters reported. News of the drawdown, which was first reported by Reuters, underscored Washington’s rapidly deteriorating hopes that diplomacy will halt the Taliban’s advance and […]

A Ghazni provincial council member has confirmed that Ghazni city fell to the Taliban on Thursday morning following a “secret deal” between the Taliban and Daud Laghmani, the provincial governor. Amanullah Kamrani, a member of the provincial council, told Ariana News that with the help of the Taliban, Laghmani fled the province and tried to reach Kabul. Taliban fighters launched […]

Britain’s defence minister Friday expressed raised concerns over situation in Afghanistan, stating that Afghanistan was spiralling towards a “failed state.” In an interview with Sky news agency, UK Defense Minister Ben Wallace stated that Afghanistan could become a breeding ground for militants such as al Qaeda which would probably come back. “I’m absolutely worried that failed states are breeding grounds […]

Taliban insurgents have seized most of Herat, Afghanistan‘s third-largest city, and also captured Ismail Khan, the veteran local commander leading militia resistance there, local officials said on Friday. The fall of Herat, the latest in a series of major provincial cities to be taken by the Taliban in the past few days, has dealt a shocking blow to the government […]

Thirty-nine-year old Gulpari was forced to make some hard decisions when the Taliban was closing in on her village in the north of Afghanistan six weeks ago. Recalling the terrifying nights her family spent fearing for their lives, she said the Taliban was shooting on the ground, while “from the sky, the government was bombarding our village”. Living in makeshift […]

On the eve of Eid Al Adha, as Afghanistan was preparing to celebrate the feast of sacrifice, Fida Mohammad’s Afghan’s life was instead turned upside down and struck by tragedy. His sons, Sher Mohammad, 34, and Mahmoud Khan, 37, were dragged out of their home in Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province, and killed by the Taliban. “We never got […]

On August 2, 2021, one Police constable, identified as Dilawar Khan, was killed when unidentified gunmen opened fire on a Police team guarding polio workers administering vaccinations near the Atal Sharif area of Kalachi Tehsil (revenue unit) in the Dera Ismail Khan District of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The gunmen managed to escape. On August 1, 2021, unidentified assailants on a […]