World Must Resist Efforts To Normalise Taliban, UN Experts Warn

At the opening ceremony in Karukh district on Thursday, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said that after ensuring security and enforcing Islamic Sharia, the group’s priority is the economy.

Several senior Taliban officials attended the event, including Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdul Ghani Baradar and Minister of Energy and Water Abdul Latif Mansoor. Mansoor said the dam was built with “domestic funding and without reliance on foreign aid.”

Baradar described the Pashdan Dam as vital for Herat, saying its operation would help reduce the effects of drought and address farmers’ challenges.

“We want to manage our water resources safely while also giving others their fixed rights,” he said. “Our goal in water management is to strengthen the country’s economy, and we consider water management a key measure to reduce poverty, unemployment, and migration.”

Baradar added that over the past four years, the Taliban had “achieved many accomplishments in implementing Islamic Sharia and in political and economic fields.”

The Pashdan Dam, located about 25 kilometres from Herat city, was first launched in 2011 and was expected to be completed within three years. Construction was repeatedly delayed by insurgency, but the Taliban resumed work on the project in 2024.

The project has drawn concern from Iran, whose officials have called the dam a threat. An Iranian water industry spokesperson described Afghanistan’s “unilateral” use of the Harirud River as a violation of Iran’s customary water rights.

Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, cited sources as saying Pakistan carried out a drone strike in Nuristan.

On Thursday, Karzai said he was “deeply concerned” about the reports. He called on the Pakistani government to “respect Afghanistan’s national sovereignty and, by refraining from violating international principles and rules, engage with Afghanistan through the establishment of civilised relations and good neighbourliness.

Pakistani authorities have not yet commented on the reported strike.

Tasnim reported there was no information available on the target or possible damage from the attack, but speculated that Pakistan may have targeted positions of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the province.

He said the Taliban is building an army of “150,000 to 200,000 personnel” and will not comply with Washington’s conditions.

Speaking to a Taliban-affiliated outlet on the fourth anniversary of the group’s return to power, Fitrat claimed the United States had created problems for them because they refused to meet US demands, though he did not specify what those demands were.

The senior Taliban official also responded to Trump’s comments about Bagram Airbase, insisting the group will not negotiate with foreign countries over its control. Fitrat said that because Taliban forces are stationed at Bagram and hold military parades there, Trump is “begrudging,” claiming the US had “many plans” for the base.

While the US and the Taliban maintain intelligence cooperation against Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K), Washington has pressed the group to change its policies on women and governance in Afghanistan. The US does not recognise the Taliban government, and it remains unclear what other demands Washington has made.

Marking the anniversary of the Taliban takeover, Fitrat said the Ministry of Defence now employs “between 150,000 and 200,000 military and civilian personnel.”

He added that new uniforms had been procured for Taliban forces and would be distributed soon.

Since seizing power, the Taliban have overhauled Afghanistan’s security institutions, removing many trained professional officers from the former Afghan government and replacing them with their own fighters.

In its latest report, SIGAR said the Taliban, in coordination with UN personnel, extort humanitarian projects. According to the watchdog, “UN officials demand bribes from companies and NGOs seeking contracts from their agencies. The bribes are calculated as a percentage of the contract at stake, with estimates varying between 5 and 50 percent.”

The report alleges that the Taliban block and redirect aid to ensure it reaches Pashtun communities rather than Tajik and Hazara populations. It says only 30 to 40 percent of all aid sent to Afghanistan has reached those truly in need. The United States has provided nearly $4 billion in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan over the past four years.

“Taliban use every means at their disposal, including force, to ensure that aid goes where they want it to go, as opposed to where donors intend,” the report states. It adds that the group approaches humanitarian aid distribution with an ethnic bias, favouring Pashtun-majority areas at the expense of other regions and ethnic minorities.

According to SIGAR, an Afghan aid worker was killed for revealing that a Taliban military camp had stolen food aid.

The Taliban have rejected the findings. A spokesperson told Reuters that foreign aid is used independently and that the Taliban government works with aid organisations to ensure transparency and prevent misuse.

The findings are based on information from nearly 90 current and former US officials, UN officials and other sources, including Afghan contacts inside the country.

Established in 2008 to monitor US assistance to Afghanistan, SIGAR presented its final report to Congress on Wednesday.

A senior State Department official told the news site Semafor: “We knew that US funding was, in specific and direct ways, benefiting the Taliban. What shocked me was the extent to which so many NGOs — especially the UN — were involved in this diversion and corruption.”

The report says the Taliban have restricted NGO operations, interfering in their hiring processes to appoint preferred individuals. SIGAR acting inspector general Gene Aloise noted a “culture of denial” among international aid agencies about Taliban exploitation.

One NGO worker told SIGAR that “at least 20 percent of the employees of international NGOs were affiliated with the Taliban.” In some cases, the group reportedly ordered NGOs to add specific people to payrolls so they could receive salaries without working.

Previous SIGAR reports have documented instances where US aid indirectly benefited the Taliban, but the new report focuses specifically on allegations of aid diversion.

A US State Department official said a “turning point” in the Trump administration’s decision to cut aid came when it became clear the Taliban were openly welcoming US assistance and diverting it, whether in cash delivered through UN shipments or in goods and services, for their own gain.

The report comes as more than 23 million Afghans remain in need of international humanitarian aid.

The rallies will take place in 10 countries, including Germany, Norway, the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France and others, with participants opposing the Taliban and its policies.

Marking the fourth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power, organisers have called on people in various countries to gather at designated locations.

Protests are planned in Vienna, Darmstadt, Berlin, Munich, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, Oslo, Washington, Geneva, Amsterdam, Madrid, Toronto, São Paulo and Paris.

The four-day demonstrations, running from 14 to 18 August, will denounce the Taliban’s continued rule and its restrictions on women.