AT News KABUL: In a harrowing report last week, the United Nations in a report listed Afghanistan among the nine hotspots of highest concern, revealing that at least 15.3 million people (35% of population) are estimated to face high acute food insecurity. UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World …
Read More »Aid agency resumes work with female staff after Taliban nod
AT News KABUL: Norwegian Refugee Council aid agency has resumed operations in southern Kandahar after the Taliban allowed its Afghan female staff to return to work. This is as Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) Secretary General Jan Egeland said last month that key Taliban leaders in Kandahar had signaled a willingness to …
Read More »Bomb kills former Taliban chief during memorial ceremony
AT News KABUL: A car bombing killed a former Taliban police official Thursday in Badakhshan province during a memorial ceremony for a deputy governor who was killed in bombing two days earlier, officials said. Some local sources have said the bomb happened inside Nabawi mosque where Taliban officials and local …
Read More »Biden allowed Afghanistan to collapse: says US congressman
AT News KABUL: U.S. Republican Senator Darrell Issa is slamming the Afghanistan dissent cable to which Secretary of State Antony Blinken allowed congressional access saying Biden administration knowingly allowed Afghanistan to collapse. Calling the cable “embarrassing”, Senator Issa said it debunks Biden administration’s narrative that it was caught off guard by the …
Read More »World Bank, U.N. reaffirm economic aid to Afghanistan
AT News KABUL: Representatives of World Bank and UNAMA have met with Taliban officials and discussed economic challenges in Afghanistan and the need for continued economic and humanitarian aid. Scott Smith, a top UNAMA official and representatives of the World Bank for Afghanistan stressed on a durable solution to the …
Read More »Talks begin to revive crucial pipeline project
AT News KABUL: Pakistan and Turkmenistan have begun talks to revive the crucial Turkmenistan–Afghanistan–Pakistan–India (TAPI) gas pipeline project which has been stalled over the past years. Reports suggest that a bilateral meeting will be convened in Islamabad in late June 2023 to discuss the technicalities. For its part, Ashgabat is …
Read More »Calls intensify for Franco-Afghan journalist’s release
AT News KABUL: Reporters Without Borders (RSF) has called for immediate and unconditional release of French-Afghan journalist Mortaza Behboudi who was arrested in Kabul and held since January. “Five months of arbitrary detention and failure to respect criminal justice procedures… The Taliban authorities have produced absolutely no evidence to explain …
Read More »Russia favors dialogue with Taliban, recognition not in offing
AT News KABUL: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday said that development of a dialogue with the Taliban as the dominant internal political force of Afghanistan would serve the interests of the region. As part of his official visit to Tajikistan and in a meeting at the Russian-Tajik University, …
Read More »Trail run of Iran-Afghan railroad kicks off
AT News KABUL: A trial run of cargo from Iran to Afghanistan via Khaf-Herat railroad was launched and completed in May. The shipment included 17 wagons that transferred 655 tons of rail equipment that will be used in the further construction of the rail line, which will link up with …
Read More »Car bombing kills Taliban deputy governor
AT News KABUL: Taliban’s deputy governor for Badakhshan province was killed in a car bomb attack near court headquarters in Faizabad city on Tuesday, local officials said. Deputy governor Nesar Ahmad Ahmadi and his driver were killed and six civilians were injured in the blast early in the morning. Provincial …
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