AFF To Halt Military Operation During Ramadan

Zabihullah Mujahid wrote on X social media platform, that the World Bank is financially supporting the project.

The National Electricity Company of Afghanistan (DABS) also wrote on X social media platform that a meeting regarding the CASA-1000 project was held in Istanbul, Turkey, with representatives from the World Bank, Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Pakistan in attendance.

This state-owned company, under the control of the Taliban, said that the CASA-1000 project will continue from the Sher Khan Port in Kunduz province to the Torkham border crossing in Nangarhar province, spanning a length of 580 kilometres.

The CASA-1000 project aims to transfer electricity from Central Asia to South Asia. The project was inaugurated in Tajikistan in 2016, with the participation of regional leaders, and was scheduled to be completed by March 2022.

However, following the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, the project's progress came to a halt. Reuters reported in August 2022 that practical work on the CASA-1000 project had been stalled due to the unstable situation in Afghanistan.

In a statement, the front said that one Taliban member was killed, and three others were wounded in this attack.

NRF, led by Ahmad Massoud, stated on X social media platform on Saturday, that in this area, a Taliban’s defence ministry battalion is stationed.

Taliban has not commented on the matter yet.

On Friday, NRF also had announced that in the attacks by its forces in Parwan and Herat, four Taliban fighters, including the chief of staff of the Taliban division in Bagram, were killed.

The NRF is a military and political faction opposed to the Taliban, engaging in various attacks against the group over the past two and a half years.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the Taliban's Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed objection to the "characterisation of Afghanistan as a potential threat to other nations”.

It labeled Otunbayeva's speech as containing "baseless allegations”. Additionally, the ministry urged the United Nations to prioritise accuracy and impartiality in its reporting and actions, avoiding bias.

As per the Taliban’s statement, the group is committed to constructive and purposeful engagement to achieve common interests and responds to shared concerns at any time and place within the framework of the Islamic sharia, Afghanistan's independence and interests, alongside all countries worldwide and the United Nations.

Otunbayeva stated in her speech to the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday, that Afghanistan is a challenge for the international community and a source of instability. She added that terrorism has been exported from the country to other parts of the world.

She also said that in the region and beyond, there are concerns about the presence of terrorist groups in Afghanistan.

She emphasised that the concerns extend beyond the presence of ISIS in Afghanistan. According to Otunbayeva, the presence of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in Afghanistan is a significant worry for Pakistan, as the country has experienced terrorist acts in recent months.

On Friday, Iodice wrote on her X social media platform, "I congratulate my Afghan sisters for their resilience, strength, and achievements all along."

“If women are working together - united, informed, and educated – they can bring real change and prosperity,” she said.

Following the takeover of power in August 2021, the Taliban imposed extensive restrictions on women. Over the past two and a half years, human rights advocates inside and outside Afghanistan have called for the repeal of these restrictions.

Despite the ongoing suppression of protests by the Taliban, advocacy and demonstrations continue. In the most recent incident on Friday, a group of young women in Takhar marched through the streets, voicing slogans against the Taliban.

Videos received by Afghanistan International show women in the march stating that on International Women's Day, Afghan women are imprisoned. They chanted, "Anti-women government be overthrown”.

In a statement released on Friday, the front stated that three other Taliban fighters had also been wounded in the attacks.

As per the statement, in an assault by the NRF forces on a Taliban vehicle in Herat city, three Taliban members were killed, and two others were injured.

On the other hand, in a separate attack on a vehicle transporting the chief of staff of the Taliban division in Bagram, the target was killed and the driver sustained injuries.

The front added that its forces did not suffer any casualties in these attacks.

In the past two days, this has been the third attack against Taliban forces reported by the National Resistance Front.

On Thursday, in an attack by the forces of the National Resistance Front in Takhar, three Taliban members were killed.