Taliban Unveils Five-Year National Development Strategy

Speaking at a press conference in Kabul on Monday, Mujahid declined to elaborate on whether the new development strategy included provisions for girls’ education beyond primary school and at universities. He said the document addressed education only in general terms.

The briefing came a day after the UN Security Council’s sanctions committee confirmed to Afghanistan International that India had withdrawn its request for a travel exemption for Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, whose visit to New Delhi had been scheduled for 27–29 August.

When pressed on the issue, Mujahid again called the matter “minor.”

During the same briefing, the microphone of a female journalist was cut off as she attempted to ask a question. Under the Taliban’s interpretation of its “Promotion of Virtue” law, women’s voices are considered “awrah,” or intimate, and are restricted in public.

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban have barred girls from secondary school and university education, drawing widespread criticism from Afghans, rights groups and the international community.

According to the ministry, the drive will cover the districts of Surkhrod, Behsud, Khogyani and Bati Kot in Nangarhar province, as well as the cities of Jalalabad, Mehtarlam and Asadabad.

Children will receive both oral and injectable vaccines to boost immunity and help prevent the spread of the virus, officials said.

Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only two countries where polio remains endemic. The World Health Organization says reported cases have declined in recent years but the virus continues to circulate in some areas of Afghanistan.

The sources told Afghanistan International on Monday, 25 August, that the alleged plan involves using Taliban fighters and tribal Pashtuns to frame the Haqqanis. They claimed the operation is being facilitated with the help of the intelligence services of a “third country,” though they did not identify which one.

India has long accused the Haqqani Network of having ties to Pakistan. The group, largely made up of Pashtuns, has historically been linked to Islamabad through family and political connections dating back to the 1980s. Founder Jalaluddin Haqqani organised his activities from Pakistan under the umbrella of Mohammad Yunus Khalis’s Hizb-e-Islami during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

According to the Pakistani sources, some Indian media outlets have already begun publishing narratives in support of what they described as pre-planned operations.

Diplomatic observers warned that such actions could sharply raise tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbours.

Pakistan has frequently accused New Delhi of staging false-flag attacks to deflect from internal issues and shape international opinion against Islamabad. One security source said that while false-flag operations are not new, the scale of the current preparations suggested “something much more serious.”

In a written order issued Monday, Chief Justice Sarfraz Dogar instructed the Interior Ministry, the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), the Directorate General of Immigration, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the police to respond before the next hearing.

The ruling came after the Afghans petitioned the court, arguing that their Proof of Registration (PoR) cards had been revoked earlier this month. Their lawyers said the government cancelled the cards on 4 August and ordered deportations. They added the group belongs to the family of a man named Fazlur Rahman, who applied for Pakistani citizenship in 2008 after meeting all legal requirements, but whose case has never been resolved.

The court barred authorities from taking any forced action against the petitioners and said they must not be expelled until further notice. The case was adjourned until 18 September.

The decision comes as Pakistan intensifies efforts to expel undocumented Afghans. The government first launched deportations in 2023, leading to more than one million Afghans leaving the country. In recent weeks, authorities began a second phase of removals, returning thousands of Afghans to their homeland.

At the same time, Islamabad has suspended visa extensions for Afghan migrants, leaving even those with legal documents unable to renew their stay.

Several Afghans in Islamabad told Afghanistan International that after months of waiting, their applications were denied despite submitting all required documents. They said most of the rejected cases involved medical and tourist visas.

Obaidullah, an Afghan who has lived in Pakistan for three years, said he recently received an email notifying him that his visa extension had been refused without reason. He added that since early 2025, when Pakistan reduced visas for Afghans to one month, he had repeatedly applied before expiry, but his latest request was left pending for three months before being denied.

Another migrant, Tabasum Ahmadi, said her medical visa was also rejected. She noted that Afghans in Pakistan face mounting difficulties but many cannot return to Afghanistan due to safety concerns.

The Afghan Council in Islamabad confirmed reports of widespread denials. Its head, Maiwand Alami Afghan, said about 80 percent of medical visa requests and 10 percent of tourist visa requests had recently been turned down. A travel agent also reported that very few Afghan visas were being approved.

Pakistani officials have not commented on this so far.

In recent months, Pakistan has tightened its immigration policy toward Afghans. The government suspended the extension of Afghan visas two months ago and has vowed to expel all undocumented migrants. Authorities have also announced plans to begin deporting 1.4 million Afghans holding “Proof of Registration” cards from 1 September.