144000 Migrants Return To Afghanistan In One Month, Says Taliban

The Directorate of Information and Culture in Panjshir announced that the provincial governor, Mohammad Agha Hakim, has instructed all media and cultural institutions to fully enforce the Taliban’s “Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice” regulations.

According to an official statement, Hakim made the directive during a session focused on interpreting the group’s virtue law and the decrees of its supreme leader. During the event, the formation of virtue enforcement committees in each district of Panjshir was also announced.

The Afghanistan Journalists Center (AFJC) has previously reported that similar bans on the broadcast of images of living beings have already been enforced in more than 15 provinces, including Kandahar, Takhar, Badghis, Helmand, Nangarhar, Nuristan, Farah, Nimruz, Badakhshan, Baghlan, Jowzjan, Zabul, Parwan, Kunduz, Bamiyan, and Daikundi.

Media watchdog groups have raised alarms over the impact of such restrictions, warning that these measures severely curtail journalistic freedom and the public’s right to access visual information.

The Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice confirmed last year that its so-called virtue law had been formally ratified. Article 17 of the law specifically prohibits both the photographing and broadcast of images of living creatures. It grants enforcement officials the authority to monitor and prevent the dissemination of such images in the media.

The legislation has drawn widespread criticism both domestically and internationally for its impact on freedom of expression and access to information.

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have imposed sweeping restrictions on the Afghan media, significantly limiting press freedom and instituting broad censorship policies throughout the country.

He attributes the increase to a notable decline in foreign interference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs.

Speaking to local media, Siadat stated that prior to the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021, foreign powers had hampered bilateral trade. However, with the group now in full control, he said many of those obstacles have dissipated.

“If the Taliban gain formal recognition from the international community, trade between the two countries could potentially reach $10 billion annually,” Siadat predicted.

He also cast doubt on recent claims by the Taliban’s Ministry of Commerce that bilateral trade has already reached $3 billion. Siadat called the figure inaccurate and inconsistent with data from Iranian customs authorities, which put the current trade volume at approximately $2.3 billion.

“There may be regulations in Afghanistan that affect the accuracy of the reported figures,” he said.

Siadat highlighted the role of the estimated three million Afghan migrants residing in Iran, noting that their presence has driven up domestic consumption of Iranian products. “Afghan migrants in Iran have developed a taste for Iranian goods, driving up demand,” he explained.

While he acknowledged that trade has generally improved under Taliban rule, Siadat also warned that Afghanistan’s move toward economic self-reliance, driven by the Taliban's focus on supporting domestic production, may eventually reduce the country’s reliance on Iranian imports.

Nevertheless, he acknowledged the severe economic challenges Afghanistan faces, particularly following the suspension of international aid after the Taliban takeover. He noted that many Afghan investors have fled the country due to social restrictions and the ban on girls’ education.

“Their departure has had a ripple effect on Iranian trade,” he said. “Many of these investors have transferred their capital to Iran and are now playing a key role in facilitating Iranian exports, not only to Afghanistan but also to markets in Australia, Africa, and Europe.”

The first confirmed case this year occurred in Bala Murghab district of Badghis province, affecting a five-year-old child.

In addition to the confirmed cases, the WHO has reported 18 positive environmental samples of the poliovirus detected across Afghanistan in 2025. These include eight samples in Kandahar, six in Helmand, and one each in Kabul, Nangarhar, Laghman, and Zabul provinces.

Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan remain the only two countries in the world where polio remains endemic. Eradication efforts in both nations face persistent challenges, including ongoing security concerns and widespread misinformation surrounding vaccination programmes.

In 2024, Afghanistan recorded 25 confirmed cases of polio and 113 positive environmental samples. The majority of those cases occurred in the country’s southern regions, with 14 reported in Kandahar, seven in Helmand, two in Uruzgan, and one each in Kunar and Nuristan provinces.

Health experts have raised concerns that restrictions imposed by the Taliban on female health workers have negatively impacted the country’s polio vaccination campaign, hindering access to vulnerable populations, particularly in rural areas.

The office of the Taliban’s Deputy Minister of Interior for Counter-Narcotics announced on Sunday that the visit took place at the official invitation of the Qatari government.

The statement noted that the agenda includes “joint efforts to control narcotics and expand cooperation” with the Qatari Ministry of Interior. However, it did not provide further details regarding the specific objectives or outcomes of the visit.

Qatar has long been considered one of the Taliban’s key international partners. The Gulf nation hosted the group’s political office in Doha prior to the collapse of the former Afghan government and played a pivotal role in facilitating 18 months of negotiations between the Taliban and the United States, which culminated in the signing of the Doha Agreement in 2020.

In a previous meeting, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met with Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi, and called for strengthened diplomatic ties between Kabul and Doha. Muttaqi described the current relationship with Qatar as positive and expressed optimism about enhancing bilateral relations in the near future.

The appeal was made during a recent meeting with Abdul Salam Hanafi, Deputy Prime Minister of the Taliban's caretaker government.

Prominent figures in attendance included Sayed Hussain Alemi Balkhi, former Minister of Refugees, and Mohammad Akbari, a former member of parliament. Both highlighted key issues facing the Shia population and called for tangible responses from the authorities.

In a statement released on Sunday by the Taliban's Prime Minister office, Shia scholars and elders reportedly raised a number of social concerns, urging Taliban officials to give them due attention. While the statement did not elaborate on the specific issues discussed, the Taliban have repeatedly faced accusations of consolidating power and sidelining ethnic and religious minorities, including the Shia community.

There have also been reports of increasing restrictions on Shia religious practices. In some provinces, members of the Shia Ismaili sect have been pressured to abandon their faith. The group has further been criticised for abolishing the Shia Personal Status Law and removing sect-specific religious literature from public access.

Despite these concerns, Hanafi stated that the Taliban view all citizens of Afghanistan as equal, and that discrimination or prejudice of any kind is unacceptable. He added that the government is committed to fair and balanced development across the country, asserting: “Afghanistan is a shared home for all its residents, and everyone can contribute to its reconstruction and progress.”

In previous statements, Waezzada Behsudi, a prominent Shia cleric, called on the Taliban to respect the customs, traditions, and religious beliefs of the people. He also emphasised the need for the current interim administration to transition into a truly national government. “If we have a national administration, the world cannot ignore, humiliate, or exclude us,” he said.

The Taliban, however, have consistently rejected international pressure to form a more inclusive government, labelling such calls as interference in Afghanistan’s internal affairs. They maintain that their administration already represents all groups.

Nonetheless, members of the Shia community have voiced growing frustration over the lack of religious freedom, particularly restrictions on sacred observances such as Ashura, which they say were not permitted under the current regime.

This is not the first time Shia leaders have engaged with Taliban officials. Over the past four years, several similar meetings have taken place, yet community representatives say their demands remain largely unaddressed.