Over 2,000 Afghan Migrants Return From Iran & Pakistan

On Tuesday, at a BRICS counter-terrorism working group meeting in Moscow, he stated that terrorism in Afghanistan and the Middle East is a global concern.

In his speech, published on Tuesday on the Russian Foreign Ministry's website, Vershinin emphasised on the need to suppress terrorist groups.

The Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia highlighted that terrorism in Afghanistan, the Middle East, and northern Syria requires close monitoring to effectively address emerging challenges.

He referred to a report by the UN Security Council's Sanctions Monitoring Team about "ISIS, Al-Qaeda, and the Taliban" to justify his remarks.

The Monitoring Team reported in July that terrorist groups still consider Afghanistan a safe haven and that the Taliban's leniency towards these groups creates conditions for terrorism to spread to neighbouring countries.

The report stated that the Taliban's inability to act decisively has revitalised Al-Qaeda and ISIS. According to the report, Al-Qaeda has quietly reestablished its bases and offices in five provinces, including Kabul and Nangarhar.

The report indicated that Al-Qaeda has utilised Afghanistan to reorganise, recruit, and set up a network of training camps and safe houses in at least five provinces. It also noted that this expansion has resulted in a growing influx of Al-Qaeda fighters from abroad into Afghanistan.

At the BRICS counter-terrorism working group meeting in Moscow, Vershinin warned that terrorist groups are not only seeking to strengthen their influence in conflict areas, but are also aiming to establish a solid base for controlling other regions.

Haqqani said, "We should not dismiss others and replace them with ourselves." He added that removing former employees indicates the Taliban's weakness.

Over the past three years, the Taliban have dismissed a significant number of professional employees from the previous government and appointed their own group members in state organisations.

On Wednesday, July 24, at the National Labour Conference, Haqqani said that the purpose of holding this conference is to reassure the people and create job opportunities.

He added, "We must hire deserving and experienced individuals, not dismiss them and replace them with ourselves."

Reports indicate that the Taliban have dismissed specialists from government offices and appointed their own people, who lack academic education and administrative experience, in public institutions.

Haqqani said that dismissing individuals may lead to their unemployment and migration and emphasised that the Taliban should not allow them to go abroad. Without referring to the Taliban's quest for power, Haqqani said that the group has "fought for the sake of God”.

The Taliban's Interior Minister said that if there are problems and shortcomings, they should be addressed with advice and guidance, not by dismissing people from their jobs.

He added that if the Taliban dismiss former government employees from their positions, they will be deprived of their salaries.

Addressing the Taliban ministers, this senior Taliban official said that since the group has saved them from war and bloodshed, they should also be patient with their work.

In the past three years, the Taliban have dismissed thousands of former Afghan government employees, and many former government cadres have sought refuge in other countries.

Women have been completely removed from government institutions and confined to their homes. Thousands of former soldiers and officers have also migrated to Iran and Pakistan due to fear of Taliban retaliation.

Zia Ahmad Takal, the Deputy Spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote that Muttaqi welcomed the agreement of Palestinian groups in Beijing and stated that the Taliban supports the Palestinian resistance.

According to Zia Ahmad Takal, Muttaqi, in this telephone call on Wednesday, appreciated the “efforts and sacrifices of the Jihadi Hamas movement,” and emphasised on “unity and steadfastness in Jihadi struggles”.

Senior representatives of Palestinian political factions reached an agreement in China on Wednesday.

Mousa Abu Marzook, a member of Hamas's Political Bureau, announced on Tuesday that after a meeting in China, Hamas had signed an agreement with other Palestinian factions, including its rival, Fatah.

The Deputy Spokesperson for the Taliban’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Ismail Haniyeh, in his call with Amir Khan Muttaqi, discussed Palestine and recent developments in Gaza. Details of this conversation were not disclosed.

The Taliban have consistently expressed support for Hamas in recent months.

Husam Badran, a member of Hamas’s Political Bureau, in March 2024, appreciated the “strong” stance of the Taliban leader regarding the Gaza conflict and mentioned that Hamas is working to strengthen its “good relations” with the Taliban.

In June this year, Israeli army radio, quoting the Al-Akhbar newspaper, reported that the Taliban assured Iran that in the event of an intense war between Israel and Hezbollah, they would send thousands of fighters to Lebanon.

Earlier, Hassan Kazemi Qomi, Iran's Special Representative for Afghanistan stated that Afghanistan is the “axis of resistance” and that if needed, “martyrdom” forces from Afghanistan would go to Gaza.

The Taliban and the Islamic Republic of Iran have close relations, and officials from Iran and the Taliban have frequently visited Kabul and Tehran over the past three years.

According to the survey, 45 percent of respondents said that to improve the situation for women in the country, the international community should facilitate direct dialogue between them and the Taliban.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) conducted the survey by interviewing 888 women in 33 provinces and 64 men in 14 provinces. This report was republished on Wednesday, July 24, on UNAMA's X account.

Based on this survey, 80 percent of women said that they had no interaction with Taliban officials in the past three months, while 16 percent said they had.

At least 53 percent of men, however, reported meeting with local Taliban officials at least once during the three-month period.

Only two percent of women reported having "good" or "full" influence over decision-making processes in the community, compared to 18 percent of men. Women emphasised that they are excluded from public meetings and are unable to directly discuss their issues with local Taliban officials.

The UNAMA survey also indicated that only three to seven percent of women have access to formal and informal dispute resolution mechanisms, whereas 50 percent of men benefit from these mechanisms.

Sixty-four percent of women surveyed said that they "never" feel safe when left alone at home. For men, this figure is two percent. Men stated that they feel less secure when they leave home with a female family member.

In the UNAMA survey, both women and men called on the international community to establish formal mechanisms to ensure women's participation in international meetings related to Afghanistan's future.

Respondents believe that this can be achieved by allocating 50 percent of quota of Afghan delegations to women, ensuring women's presence at any discussion tables related to Afghanistan, or forming an advisory body of women for the international community.

According to him, this action was taken following public demand and under the orders of judicial authorities.

The IRIB news agency reported on Wednesday that the owners of these houses and those involved in renting residential units to "illegal" Afghans have been referred to judicial authorities after cases were filed against them.

Amir-Ahmadi explained, "According to the law, any transfer and contract arrangement, including renting, selling, and dealing with unauthorised foreign nationals, is prohibited and illegal in Taybad County."

On the other hand, Afghan migrants are reporting attacks on them in recent days.

Following the news of an Iranian citizen's death after a conflict with three Afghan migrants, some migrants in Tehran have reported widespread mistreatment by locals in the eastern part of the capital.

An Afghan migrant from eastern Tehran said that his family does not dare to leave their home for work or shopping.

Recently, videos have been sent to Afghanistan International showing what the senders claim are attacks on Afghan migrants in eastern Tehran.

Disturbing images have reached us, showing migrants severely injured in these attacks, according to the senders.

According to the General Directorate of Foreign Nationals and Immigrants of Razavi Khorasan province, after Tehran, which has the highest number of foreign migrants, Mashhad has nearly 400,000 identified foreign citizens with identification documents and nearly 300,000 unidentified foreign citizens. No international organisation has confirmed these figures yet.

Previously, the Director General of Foreign Nationals and Immigrants Affairs in Kermanshah province announced the prohibition of residence, and employment of Afghan migrants in 16 provinces.

The provinces where Afghans are prohibited from residing and working include East Azerbaijan, West Azerbaijan, Ardabil, Zanjan, Kurdistan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Lorestan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Gilan, Mazandaran, Sistan and Baluchistan, Hormozgan, and Hamedan.

In October this year, more than 540 Iranian artists, lawyers, doctors, journalists, and civil and social activists called for an end to the harassment of Afghan migrants in Iran.

They stated that Iran's legal system has, in recent years, created significant obstacles and challenges to integrating migrants into the host society.