Several Afghan women held a demonstration in Takhar province and protested against the Taliban’s policies on Thursday. Videos obtained by Afghanistan International show that the women protesters criticised the Taliban's ban on the right to work and education of Afghan women.
These protesters chanted the slogan "Women can’t be removed”.
It is the first time, since a long time, that the women have held a demonstration in the northern Takhar province.
No further details have been provided regarding the demonstration.
Abbas Stanikzai, the Taliban’s deputy foreign minister, said that the group will not allow Iranian officials to visit Kajaki dam in Afghanistan. Stanikzai said that dams and military installations are sensitive areas and the Taliban doesn’t allow “foreign agents” to visit them.
In an exclusive interview with Afghanistan International, the Taliban’s deputy foreign minister, however, said, "Taliban will provide Iran's water rights according to 1973 water treaty."
On Thursday, Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi warned the Taliban officials to allocate the share of water for Sistan and Baluchistan from the Helmand River. He said that the Taliban should take his warning seriously and "not complain later that we weren't told”.
The Taliban reacted to Raisi’s statement and said that there is not enough water in the Helmand River.
However, the Islamic Republic does not accept the Taliban’s claim of lack of water in the Helmand River and said that the Taliban should allow Iranian experts to visit the dams and confirm the Taliban’s claims.
Taliban publicly flogged six people on various charges at a stadium in Kandahar city on Wednesday. Taliban’s Supreme Court announced that these people have been punished on the charges of theft and “running away with women” in the presence of conman public and group officials.
The Taliban Supreme Court has not provided details of the punishment for these Afghan citizens, but has stressed that these people have confessed to their “crimes”.
After taking control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban has publicly punished hundreds of citizens on various charges.
Earlier, Abdul Malik Haqqani, the deputy chief justice in the Taliban’s Supreme Court, announced that since taking power in Afghanistan, the group had sentenced hundreds of people to “Qisas [retribution] and stoning”.
Haqqani said that the Taliban has ordered the execution of 175 people and the stoning of 37 people throughout Afghanistan since taking power in the country.
He emphasised that the courts of this group have ordered four people to be buried alive and Sharia laws have been implemented on 103 other people.
Human rights groups have repeatedly called on the Taliban to stop the public punishment of Afghan citizens and have stressed that those accused by the Taliban don’t have access to due procedures and justice.
The Taliban’s Ministry of Aviation announced on Wednesday that Ariana Airlines has resumed direct flights to Urumqi, China. Jailani Wafa, the deputy minister of aviation of the Taliban, said that the direct flights will lead to growth in trade between the two countries.
According to the Taliban, Ariana Airlines will have one weekly flight from Kabul to Urumqi.
Last year, the foreign ministers of the Taliban and China discussed the resumption of direct flights between the two countries.
Among the countries in the region, China has shown more willingness to invest in Afghanistan's mines, and the Taliban, which is isolated globally, has shown more interest in China's role in Afghanistan's economic development.
Ahmad Vahidi, the Minister of Interior of Iran, rejected the statements of high-ranking Taliban officials about the lack of water in Afghan dams. Vahidi referred to Iranian experts and said that there is water in Helmand River.
He asked the Taliban to react responsibly to the "friendship messages of Iran”.
Earlier, Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban’s foreign minister, asked the Islamic Republic not to politicise the water rights issue from the Helmand River and stressed that there is no water in the Kamal Khan dam.
Vahidi's statements about the water rights issue indicate that the high-ranking officials of the Islamic Republic do not believe in the Taliban officials’ statements. On Tuesday, Iran's Interior Minister said, "If the other side claims that Hirmand [Helmand River] does not have water, our experts should be sent to the place and investigate. If there is no water, we will not have any dispute."
The Iranian officials’ demand to dispatch an expert team to assess the Taliban’s claims of lack of water in the Kamal Khan dam has not been accepted by the Taliban. The Taliban officials have said that they are ready to address the water rights issue through face-to-face talks between Iran and Taliban officials.
Family of detained Afghan poet and writer Zabih Ayar said that the Taliban has not provided them any information about his whereabouts even a month after his detention by the group. Taliban arrested Ayar on April 21 from district six of Ghazni city.
According to Ayar’s family, the Taliban have transferred him to an unknown location.
Mohammad Nasim, the poet's uncle, said that their efforts to contact the Taliban’s security and intelligence agencies haven’t produced any results in finding the whereabouts and the fate of Ayar.
He emphasised that Zabih Ayar is not a criminal and the Taliban are obliged to provide information about his arrest.
Meanwhile, Ahmad, the poet's brother, said that soon after the arrest of Ayar, the Taliban intelligence agency admitted that the poet had been arrested by the group, but they have denied detaining him now.
Ayar's family added that after his detention, the Taliban arrested some of his friends too.
The Taliban has not officially said anything about the arrest of this poet.
In the past twenty months, the Taliban has arrested several Afghan university professors, activists and writers.