The spokesperson expressed hope that “good-faith dialogue” between Kabul and Islamabad would help defuse the crisis. Esmaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, said Tehran is deeply concerned about the rising tension between Kabul and Islamabad, warning that any further escalation could have consequences beyond the two neighboring states. Speaking at a press conference, Baghaei said Iran stands ready to […]

A worsening militancy in Southwest Asia is again ramping up the risk of a major conflict between nuclear-armed adversaries India and Pakistan.. Pakistan has twice bombed territory deep inside Afghanistan, the latest raid coming overnight Saturday after a series of deadly attacks which Pakistan blamed on India-backed militants hiding in the country. The Taliban government has threatened to reply at […]

On February 22, 2026, Pakistan carried out a series of predawn airstrikes across eastern and south-eastern Afghanistan, resulting in the deaths of at least 18 civilians, including women and children, and leaving several others injured. Pakistani accounts, however, claimed the strikes hit seven militant facilities, including the Banusi Madrasa in Bermal district and suspected hideouts in Khogyani, killing more than […]

Pakistan carried out airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday night, targeting what it described as militant camps near the border, as local sources reported strikes in several districts of Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. In a statement dated Feb. 21, Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the strikes were a “retributive response” to a string of recent suicide bombings inside Pakistan, including attacks […]

Pakistan’s commerce minister has said that national security would remain the country’s top priority in its trade ties with Afghanistan and diplomatic engagement with the Taliban. Jam Kamal Khan warned that Islamabad would not compromise on what he described as militant threats emanating from Afghanistan’s territory. Khan said that “terrorism originating from Afghanistan” is unacceptable and that peace, trade and […]

Mohammad Fazel Mazloom, a former Taliban deputy defence minister who is under U.N. sanctions, has been appointed minister of transport and civil aviation in a cabinet reshuffle ordered by the Taliban’s supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada. Under the same order, the Taliban transport minister, Hamidullah Akhundzada, has been appointed as the Taliban’s first deputy minister of defense, a similar pattern of […]

The Taliban’s defense minister on Sunday urged members to “forget the past” and avoid settling old scores, warning that revenge and factional rivalries could once again plunge the country into internal conflict. Speaking at a gathering in Kabul marking the 37th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s withdrawal from Afghanistan, Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid called on Taliban members to set aside political […]

The Taliban have begun enforcing their newly approved penal code, sentencing a man in western Afghanistan to one year in prison and 39 lashes for allegedly insulting their supreme leader, according to three local and informed sources. The sentence, issued by a Taliban primary court in Badghis Province, appears to be the first known application of the new code since […]

The Taliban-run higher education ministry has begun issuing bachelor’s degrees to 325 madrassa graduates, including alumni of religious schools in Pakistan, according to a ministry statement and an official list. The ministry said the process started on Thursday, Feb. 12. Among those set to receive degrees are 10 graduates of what it described as “jihadi” madrassas. According to the list […]

Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Minister of Interior Affairs, says the officials of the Islamic Emirate have repeatedly emphasized that the security of Afghanistan is the security of the region and the world. Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the sixth professional police course, Haqqani stated that insecurity in the region is insecurity for the entire world. Addressing the police officers, Haqqani […]