UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Friday appointed a former president of Kyrgyzstan as his new special envoy for Afghanistan. Roza Otunbayeva replaces Deborah Lyons, who stepped down in mid-June, the United Nations said in a statement. Otunbayeva served as Kyrgyz president during 2010-2011 and on three occasions as foreign minister. She was a member of parliament during 2007-2010 and served […]

Friday’s deadly bombing at a mosque in Afghanistan’s western Herat province has been condemned widely by individuals, governments and organizations. At least 18 people including a prominent cleric, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman Ansari, were killed in the explosion at Gazargah mosque in Herat city, where people gathered to offer congregational Friday prayers. 23 others were wounded, according to officials. The United Nations mission […]

Thousands of people attended the funeral Saturday of a popular Herat Imam, Mawlavi Mujeeb-ur-Rahman Ansari, who was killed in a suicide bombing at a mosque on Friday. Mawlavi Ansari was killed along with 19 others at the Guzargah Mosque, officials said. Mawlavi Fazil Rahman Ansari, the deceased’s brother, has replaced Mawlavi Mujeeb-ur-Rahman Ansari as the mosque’s imam. “Abdullah, who is […]

The Taliban celebrated the first anniversary of the withdrawal of US and allied troops from Afghanistan, including declaring Wednesday a national holiday. An official ceremony was held on Wednesday at Bagram Air Base, formerly the largest US military base in Afghanistan. The plane carrying the last US troops took off from Kabul airport at one minute before midnight on August […]

How the International Community Turned Its Back Life under the Taliban is the worst women’s rights crisis on the planet. When the Taliban returned to power last August, they imposed immediate and brutal restrictions, the harshest of which were reserved for women. They quickly imposed a ban on girls’ secondary education, which remains in place despite domestic and international demands […]

One year after the transition of power in Afghanistan, the country faces a cascading humanitarian crisis. Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has expanded its medical programs in Afghanistan to meet the growing needs.

At first light Sunday morning, shivering soldiers at a Northern Alliance checkpoint outside the Taliban- controlled village of Jalreez say it is too dangerous to go any farther. This is the last pocket of Taliban forces near the capital city of Kabul and for days now it has been the scene of fierce on-again, off-again fighting. Now, say the soldiers […]

In Afghanistan, ISIS has been targeting minority groups in a wave of attacks in recent months. It’s undermining the Taliban’s promise of greater security. Many Afghans say their cities and villages feel safer under the Taliban. Now in power, the assaults that the Taliban once waged are no more. But a wave of targeted attacks by ISIS is undermining that […]

The special representative of Iran in Afghanistan has said that the new rulers of Afghanistan do not have enough forces at border posts and Iran should unilaterally establish border security. But the Ministry of National Defense says that they have deployed forces to 450 security posts that have advanced military equipment along the borders of Afghanistan with neighboring countries. Iran […]

Vowing to continue to strengthen its humanitarian and development assistance in Afghanistan, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said the political changes in the country have no impact on its activities. A statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, met for talks with IOM Deputy Director General Ugochi Daniels on Sunday. Daniels said […]