Kabul-Kandahar Highway Closed for Maintenance Work

The Taliban's Ministry of Public Works has announced that the Kabul-Kandahar highway will be closed to all types of vehicles from Monday, 8 July to Wednesday, 10 July.

The Taliban's Ministry of Public Works has announced that the Kabul-Kandahar highway will be closed to all types of vehicles from Monday, 8 July to Wednesday, 10 July.
The ministry stated that during these two days, a section of the Kabul-Kandahar highway will undergo asphalting. In a press release issued on Sunday, the Ministry of Public Works mentioned that the Sheikhabad bridge area in Saydabad district of Maidan Wardak province will be under maintenance.
The press release urged cargo and passenger vehicle drivers to use the Kabul-Logar route until the Kabul-Kandahar highway is reopened.
The Kabul-Kandahar highway was constructed with international assistance during the presidency of Hamid Karzai in early 2000s. However, a significant portion of this route has been destroyed due to the war in recent years.
The Taliban have been accused of destroying this road and its bridges during the insurgency against the previous republic order and the international forces.

Local sources from Nangarhar confirmed to Afghanistan International on Sunday that Taliban forces clashed with ISIS in the Momand Dara district of Nangarhar.
According to witnesses, at least five Taliban members were injured in the incident. The Taliban stated they have killed one ISIS member.
Locals reported that the confrontation began when Taliban forces, dispatched to the area for inspection, clashed with ISIS members in a house in Momand Dara.
According to the sources, ISIS members first threw a grenade at the Taliban, resulting in injuries to at least five Taliban members. The Taliban transported the injured to a clinic in the Shinwar district.
Residents said the Taliban then intensified their attacks on the house, and the clashes continued for about an hour, eventually leading to the house being completely destroyed. Based on information from locals, the Taliban have currently surrounded the area, and sporadic gunfire can be heard in the vicinity.
Meanwhile, Al Mirsad, a website affiliated with Taliban intelligence, reported that in an operation by the group in Momand Dara district, an ISIS member named Zakirullah, known as Abu Shir, was killed. According to Al Mirsad, Abu Shir was the ISIS military commander in the Achin district of Nangarhar.

The Taliban leader has appointed Noor Ahmad Agha, a military commander of the group, as the governor of Afghanistan's central bank.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Noor Ahmad Agha was known as the "financier of bomb-making" and was responsible for distributing funds to Taliban military commanders during the insurgency against Afghan state and international forces.
The United States has designated Noor Ahmad Agha as an "international terrorist." Previously, he served as the deputy governor of the Taliban-controlled central bank of Afghanistan.
On Saturday, a Taliban spokesperson announced that the group's leader has appointed Hidayatullah Badri, the current governor of the central bank, as the acting Minister of Mines and Petroleum.
Both military commanders, Agha and Badri, are under sanctions by the United States, the European Union, and the United Nations.
In 2005, Hidayatullah Badri was responsible for providing military supplies and equipment to the Taliban in the southwestern region. According to the US Department of the Treasury, in 2006, Badri was in charge of collecting "donations" for suicide bombers and funding their families in Balochistan, Pakistan. Before his role in the central bank, Badri served as the Taliban's Minister of Finance.
Badri's appointment to the Ministry of Mines comes as the ministry has gained significance due to numerous mining contracts signed with foreign companies. Shahabuddin Delawar, the former Minister of Mines accused of financial and administrative corruption, has been appointed as the head of the Afghan Red Crescent Society.
Following the Taliban's rise to power, the United States froze Afghanistan's central bank assets. Additionally, Afghanistan's banking system has been sanctioned, and official financial transactions with Afghanistan have ceased.
Adam Smith, a specialist in economic sanctions compliance, previously told the Wall Street Journal that the presence of Noor Ahmad Agha in the central bank would make international engagement with the bank much more difficult. He noted that this appointment increases risks and complicates the situation further.
Last year, the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction reported to Congress that the Taliban-controlled central bank lacks "adequate measures" against money laundering and "terrorism financing."
These appointments occur as the Taliban, during the third Doha meeting, called for the lifting of sanctions on their financial and economic systems. However, the United Nations and the United States have stressed that the lifting of sanctions is directly linked to adherence to human rights and the protection of women's rights.
Taliban officials have expressed concerns that sanctions on the financial and banking system have affected the provision of humanitarian aid. However, the United States has rejected this claim, stating that private banks and international institutions have complete freedom to provide humanitarian aid.

According to the Taliban's Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation, 19,120 migrants have been deported from Pakistan and Iran to Afghanistan in the past week.
The ministry reported that 4,710 people were deported from Pakistan, while 14,410 migrants were deported from Iran.
The Taliban's Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation said that among those deported from Iran and Pakistan, women and children were also included.
The ministry added that Afghan migrants returned to Afghanistan through Torkham, Spin Boldak, Islam Qala, and Pul-e-Abrisham border crossings.
In recent months, the governments of Iran and Pakistan have significantly increased the deportation of Afghan migrants, expelling hundreds of undocumented migrants from these countries daily.
Additionally, some migrants deported from Pakistan and Iran in recent months have claimed that despite having legal documents, they were first detained by the police and then repatriated to Afghanistan.
These Afghan migrants have sent videos to Afghanistan International, complaining about mistreatment by Iranian police in the refugee camps.

The Shia Ulema Council of Afghanistan, in a statement, urged the Taliban to take necessary measures to ensure security during the month of Muharram and to prevent any disruption and insecurity.
According to the statement, despite various challenges, this year's Muharram mourning ceremonies will be held.
Last year, the Taliban asked Afghan Shias to refrain from erecting scaffolding and large religious flags in the city. The Taliban also banned refreshment stands and the distribution of drinks during Muharram.
In the statement issued by Shia Ulema Council of Afghanistan on Saturday, religious committees in mosques and Hussainiyas, who are primarily responsible for the ceremonies, were asked to pay attention to security issues.
The council also urged the leaders of religious committees to be vigilant about suspicious matters.
Shia leaders in Afghanistan have repeatedly asked the Taliban to officially recognise the Jafari jurisprudence, but the group has not made any official statement on this matter.
The Taliban have based their policies and governance on their particular interpretation of Sunni Hanafi Islam.
The Council also requested religious scholars to avoid discussing contentious issues during the month of Muharram.

Kyrgyzstan media reported that the sale of carbonated pomegranate drinks produced in Afghanistan has been banned in all stores across the country.
According to these reports, the Kyrgyz government is withdrawing this beverage from the market due to its harmful substances for children.
Kyrgyzstan's Department of Disease Prevention and State Sanitary and Epidemiological Surveillance, under the Ministry of Health, has deemed the carbonated pomegranate drink, marketed as "Golden Life" from Afghanistan, to be harmful.
Reports state that the confiscation of this non-alcoholic carbonated pomegranate drink began on July 3.
Kyrgyzstan said that this Afghan beverage contains a colourant that could negatively impact children's health.
Also, Uzbekistan has announced that it is currently sampling and re-testing pomegranate-flavoured products produced in Afghanistan.
