What do the new appointments signify? On 22 September, the Taliban published several new appointments, including at ministerial levels. The announcement came a day after the Chinese, Russian and Pakistani envoys met with the head of the Taliban government, Mullah Hassan Akhund, calling for more inclusive governance. The list of new appointees very slightly broadens the new government’s makeup, as […]

Miami imam Dr. Fadi Yousef Kablawi said that the West is concerned with Afghan women, and asked whether what they want for them are popular competitions like Afghanistan’s Got Talent, Miss Afghanistan, or something like Hollywood. He spoke at a Friday sermon that was delivered at Masjid As Sunnah An Nabawiyya North Miami, and was posted on its Facebook page […]

Former Afghan diplomat Fazlollah Momtaz said that all the international community cares about is preventing terrorism in Afghanistan, while the Afghan people are facing a “humanitarian catastrophe” if they does not receive aid. He made his remarks in an interview that aired on Sky News Arabia (UAE) on September 18, 2021. Momtaz said that if other countries, such as the […]

On August 15, 2021, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban jihadi organization) seized power in Afghanistan. On September 7, it announced an interim government, declaring a list of 32 acting ministers and the prime minister.[1] Two weeks later, on September 21, the jihadi group released a second list of 16 acting ministers.[2] As of September 24, the Taliban ministers […]

Pakistan has discussed Afghanistan joining the multibillion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) infrastructure project, the Pakistani ambassador to the country said on Monday. “Regional connectivity is an important element of our discussion with Afghan leadership and our way forward for our economic interaction with Afghanistan,” said Mansoor Ahmad Khan, Pakistan’s envoy to Kabul, in an interview with Reuters. “This important project […]

President Joe Biden’s top military leaders are expected to face some of the most contentious hearings in memory this week over the chaotic end to the war in Afghanistan, which cost the lives of U.S. troops and civilians and left the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) back in power. The Senate and House committees overseeing the U.S. military will hold […]

Afghanistan did not have a representative addressing the annual high-level United Nations General Assembly in New York, after Ghulam Isaczai, the UN envoy under the former government, withdrew on Sunday. According to UN officials, Isaczai was due to speak on Monday. Isaczai had been scheduled to address the final day of the general assembly. Afghanistan’s UN mission in New York […]

Tajikistan is interfering in the internal affairs of Afghanistan, Abdul Ghani Baradar, the acting deputy head of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) said on Sunday. “Tajikistan interferes in our affairs, for every action there is a reaction,” Baradar said in an interview with al Jazeera TV channel. A day earlier, IEA spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter that the […]

US special envoy for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad said this weekend that former president Ashraf Ghani’s decision to leave Afghanistan without warning took everyone, including Washington, by surprise. In an exclusive interview with Ariana News, Khalilzad said that the night before his departure, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had spoken to Ghani on the phone. He said Ghani had […]

On 18 July, Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada said the group seeks strong diplomatic, economic and political relations with all countries including the United States. The Taliban soon revealed it had opened several channels of communication with foreign countries. China is among the first in the region to embrace — albeit cautiously — the new political reality shaping Afghanistan. For Beijing, […]