Trade Between Afghanistan & Pakistan Drops 66 Percent Amid Border Closures

The ceremony, held in Khujand, Tajikistan’s Sughd province, marked the activation of the 500-kilovolt Datka–Sughd transmission line, connecting the two Central Asian nations.

The launch was attended by energy ministers from both countries, with Tajikistan’s Presidential Office announcing that official documents for the project were signed prior to the inauguration.

The CASA-1000 project, first launched in Tajikistan in 2016, aims to export surplus electricity from Central Asia to South Asia, particularly to Pakistan, via Afghanistan. The project’s route includes seven Afghan provinces and, once complete, will enable the transmission of hydropower from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to energy-scarce regions in South Asia.

Funded by major international institutions—including the World Bank, the Islamic Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development—the initiative carries an estimated cost of $1.2 billion. Originally slated for completion by March 2022, the project has faced delays, particularly due to instability in Afghanistan.

Following the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, work on the Afghan section of CASA-1000 was suspended. However, in August 2024, Farhad Mahmoudi, Head of Programmes at the Taliban’s Ministry of Energy and Water, confirmed that talks with the World Bank had resumed and that practical work on the Afghan portion would begin soon. He projected that the Taliban-led administration could earn up to $65 million annually in transit revenue once the project becomes operational.

Tajikistan’s Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Daler Juma, stated in January 2025 that the full CASA-1000 project is expected to be operational by 2027, pending the completion of the Afghan segment. He noted that the primary obstacle remains the halted funding for infrastructure development in Afghanistan.

According to Juma, work on Pakistan’s portion of the transmission line is expected to be finalised by mid-2025.

In February 2024, the World Bank confirmed that, at the request of participating countries—Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Pakistan—it would resume construction in Afghanistan. However, the Bank stipulated that all financial transactions for the Afghan segment would be managed externally and kept separate from the Taliban’s administrative systems to ensure transparency and accountability.

In his Eid al-Fitr sermon on Sunday, delivered in Kandahar’s Eidgah mosque, Akhundzada declared that obedience to the leader is a religious obligation for all Muslims to ensure unity and maintain order.

“Now that there is a leader, everyone must obey him,” he said. “Otherwise, the country will head toward war.” He cited Afghanistan’s civil wars during the 1990s as a cautionary example, arguing that conflict occurred at that time because there was no single leader.

Rejects Laws of Former Government, Dismisses Democracy

In his 50-minute sermon, delivered in Pashto and shared via audio by Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid on the social media platform X, Akhundzada firmly rejected the laws of the previous Afghan government. He stated that Afghanistan does not need Western-style laws or democracy, and that Islamic Sharia law is sufficient.

“We do not need laws rooted in the West,” he declared. “We will establish our own laws.” Akhundzada revealed that the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice and Supreme Court had submitted revised versions of previous legal codes for his approval, but he rejected them outright, calling them unacceptable.

He also announced that none of the articles from the former Afghan constitution would be recognised, and that the Taliban would draft a new legal framework aligned with their interpretation of Islamic principles.

Poverty Is God’s Will, Says Akhundzada

Akhundzada also addressed Afghanistan’s worsening economic crisis, attributing poverty to divine destiny. “God has written poverty in your fate—do not complain,” he said, arguing that those who are poor were created that way because God knew they would be patient.

“God created the poor knowing they would endure. A patient person says, ‘God has decided that I be poor, and I am content with His decision.’” He went on to say that no individual can change another’s economic condition, adding: “Don’t say poverty came from this person or that person. No one can do anything for you.”

Rising Poverty Amid Economic Collapse

These remarks come amid a deepening economic crisis in Afghanistan, where unemployment has soared and millions face severe hardship. While Akhundzada delivered his sermon, groups of women were seen sitting outside the mosque gates, begging for help—many of them affected by Taliban policies that have banned women from most forms of employment.

Critics argue that the Taliban leadership is using religious rhetoric to deflect responsibility for the country’s economic collapse. Since the group’s return to power in August 2021, job opportunities—especially for women—have drastically declined, and international aid has been significantly reduced due to the Taliban’s repressive policies.

The World Food Programme (WFP) recently reported that one in three Afghans goes to bed hungry. Observers say the Taliban’s leadership has failed to offer viable solutions to the economic crisis, instead attributing widespread poverty to fate.

The decision was made during the second meeting of Pakistan’s counterterrorism committee, held on Saturday in Islamabad and attended by senior security and government officials. The meeting underscored the need for coordinated action in response to the growing threat, which Pakistani authorities claim is increasingly emanating from Afghanistan.

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, who chaired the session, said both Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief General Asim Munir support the move. Naqvi also confirmed the nationwide activation of counterterrorism units, with a particular focus on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan—two provinces that have borne the brunt of recent attacks.

The rise in violence has been attributed to groups such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Baloch separatist factions. Islamabad has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban of providing shelter and support to these militant groups. Officials allege that many of the attacks are planned and coordinated from across the border in Afghanistan.

While the Taliban deny harbouring such militants, various international reports have documented links between Afghan territory and the operations of extremist groups targeting Pakistan. These allegations have further strained already tense relations between the two neighbours.

The group pledged to resume operations against the Taliban following the holiday period and advised the public to avoid Taliban gathering points.

Reaffirming its commitment to armed resistance, the AFF described fighting the “Taliban’s illegitimate rule” as the foremost responsibility of the current generation. It also praised the political and civil activism of Afghan women, referring to them as the “intellectual backbone of freedom fighters.”

The group argued that the fight against what it called the Taliban’s “dark and oppressive rule” must go beyond the struggle for women’s access to work and education, highlighting broader goals of national liberation and dignity.

In a strong rebuke of the Taliban’s Eid message, the AFF criticised remarks by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada, calling them a reflection of the group’s “regressive, selective, backward, and deceptive interpretation of religious teachings.” The statement also condemned the Taliban’s dismissive stance on cultural traditions, particularly the rejection of Nowruz, Afghanistan’s pre-Islamic New Year celebration.

“For us, war and armed struggle are neither a passionate choice nor a means to gain power,” the AFF said. “Our fight is for the freedom of Afghanistan and the restoration of our people’s pride and dignity.”

The Afghanistan Freedom Front was established abroad by former military and political officials of the previous Afghan government following the Taliban’s return to power in 2021. It is a political-military organisation that supports armed resistance and guerrilla warfare as part of its opposition to Taliban rule.

Marking the first day of Eid al-Fitr on Sunday, 30 March, WFP called for sustained humanitarian support to Afghan families, many of whom are unable to afford even the most basic necessities during the holiday period.

In a statement posted on social media platform X, the UN agency wrote: “In these days of happiness and gratitude, you can share a meal with an Afghan family,” drawing attention to the country’s dire humanitarian crisis.

WFP described Afghanistan as facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian emergencies, with over a third of the population in urgent need of food assistance.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recently reported that more than 23 million Afghans depend on humanitarian aid to survive. According to official figures, 48 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and more than 12 percent are experiencing food insecurity.