Category: Afghanistan

Russia’s Lavrov says IEA recognition ‘not on the table’

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Saturday that international recognition of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) was not currently under consideration. Lavrov was speaking on the sidelines of the annual gathering of world leaders in New York for the U.N. General Assembly. His comments come after the IEA nominated a U.N. envoy, setting up a showdown over Afghanistan’s […]

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IEA calls for foreign airlines to resume flights into Kabul

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) said on Sunday all technical issues at the Kabul Airport have been resolved and foreign airlines can now resume commercial flights into the city. In a statement issued by the spokesman for the ministry of foreign affairs, Abdul Qahar Balkhi, the IEA stated: “The recent political changes in Afghanistan caused a series of technical […]

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UN agency warns of ‘imminent’ famine in Afghanistan

Afghanistan is at risk of “imminent hunger” with winter approaching and services disrupted by the return to power of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), a UN official warned in an interview with AFP. Natalia Kanem, director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), said via video that the situation in the country was dire. “It would not be an […]

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Afghanistan-Pakistan: Snakes In The Backyard – Analysis

On September 15, 2021, seven Army soldiers and five terrorists were killed during an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in the Asman Manza area of South Waziristan District in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), in a statement, disclosed that the operation was launched on intelligence about the presence of terrorists in the area.

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China and the U.S. Exit from Afghanistan: Not a Zero-Sum Outcome

Beijing’s primary focus for now is to ensure stability on its western border and sustain its relationship with the new Taliban government in Kabul. It has become fashionable to characterize recent events in Afghanistan as a loss for the United States and a win for China. This zero-sum interpretation framed in the narrow context of U.S.-China relations is too simplistic […]

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What Does IS-K’s Resurgence Mean for Afghanistan and Beyond?

How the Islamic State affiliate’s recent attacks complicate an already precarious counterterrorism situation in Afghanistan. Last month’s bombing outside the Kabul airport was a devastating sign of the Islamic State of Khorasan Province’s (IS-K) recent resurgence. The group had already launched 77 attacks in the first four months of 2021 — an increase from 21 in the same period last […]

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Tehrik-E-Taliban Pakistan And Its Relations With Afghan Taliban – Analysis

To understand the interesting relationship between the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), also known as Pakistani Taliban, and the Afghan Taliban, one must peep into history to see how the linkages developed and why the Afghan Taliban are not responding in equal measure to Pakistan’s repeated appeals to take conclusive action against the TTP. Pakistan regards the TTP as a retrograde armed […]

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Taliban hints resumption of extreme punishments

The Taliban’s notorious former head of religious police has said extreme punishments such as executions and amputations will resume in Afghanistan. Mullah Nooruddin Turabi, now in charge of prisons, told AP News amputations were “necessary for security”. He said these punishments may not be meted out in public, as they were under previous Taliban rule in the 1990s. But he […]

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Pakistan PM urges world to incentivize Taliban

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has urged the world to rally behind Afghanistan’s nascent Taliban government for preserving the progress made by the war-ravaged country over the past two decades and preventing it from turning into a safe haven for terrorists. Speaking at the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly via video link, Mr Khan said: “There is […]

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The AP Interview: Don’t isolate the Taliban, Pakistan urges

Be realistic. Show patience. Engage. And above all, don’t isolate. Those are the pillars of an approach emerging in Pakistan to deal with the fledgling government that is suddenly running the country next door once again — Afghanistan’s resurgent, often-volatile Taliban. Pakistan’s government is proposing that the international community develop a road map that leads to diplomatic recognition of the […]

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