Turkey boosted security measures on its border with Iran to stop illegal crossings, mainly from Afghans fleeing the Taliban that has taken over key cities and provinces. Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar on Saturday (August 14) visited the 295-kilometer long border with Iran where a modular concrete wall is being built. Turkish officials said a 64-kilometer-long section of the wall […]

American troops have flown into the Afghan capital to help evacuate embassy personnel and other civilians in Kabul, a US official said on Saturday as quoted by Reuters. The Pentagon has said two battalions of Marines and one infantry battalion will arrive in Kabul by Sunday evening, involving about 3,000 troops, according to Reuters report. “They have arrived, their arrival […]

Taliban fighters entered the outskirts of the Afghan capital on Sunday and said they were awaiting a “peaceful transfer” of the city after promising not to take it by force, but panicked residents raced to the leave, with workers fleeing government offices and helicopters landing at the U.S. Embassy. In a nationwide offensive that has taken just over a week, […]

President Joe Biden on Saturday authorized an additional 1,000 U.S. troops for deployment to Afghanistan, raising to roughly 5,000 the number of U.S. troops to ensure what Biden called an “orderly and safe drawdown” of American and allied personnel. U.S. troops will also help in the evacuation of Afghans who worked with the military during the nearly two-decade war. The […]

Fierce battles were reported between Afghan forces and the Taliban near Mazar-e-Sharif city in northern Balkh province. Balkh governor Farhad Azimi said that the Taliban on Saturday morning launched attacks on the city from various directions, but the security forces “bravely resisted” the group. He said that initially the Taliban made some advances but the security forces repelled their attacks […]

The centers of Logar, Paktika, Kunar and Paktia provinces and 10 districts fell to the Taliban in the last 24 hours, according to sources as the group’s advances continue. Sources said the Taliban has released all prisoners in these provinces while local officials have relocated to the army bases in the four provincial capitals. Reports say that there had been […]

President Ashraf Ghani in a pre-recorded message to the nation on Friday said that remobilization of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) is his top priority and that required measures are underway to reach this end, but he vowed to prevent further bloodshed in the country. Ghani thanked the Afghan forces for their bravery in defending the country […]

Afghanistan’s leaders face a challenging task: uniting a fractured and crippled country in the midst of a raging pandemic with economic devastation and societal discord fueling conflict and terrorism. The loss of life in Afghanistan is staggering: 6,000 killed since mid-April due to the unrest. While there does not appear to be a coherent strategy for turning the tide, it […]

Concerned about the implications of a Taliban victory for regional security, Moscow is searching for a diplomatic solution to Afghanistan’s conflict. As the security situation inside Afghanistan deteriorates by the day, Moscow fears that a Taliban victory could see Afghanistan exporting terrorism, strife, drugs and insecurity to Russia’s historical Central Asian backyard. Moscow’s new strategic worries contrast with its earlier […]

The TTP has experienced a reversal of fortunes, in part thanks to the changing circumstances within Afghanistan. Since its inception in 2007, the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) has been the largest and most active armed opposition group in Pakistan. It was formed by several small groups operating in the tribal areas of Pakistan and to a lesser extent in the North-West […]