More Than 28,000 Afghans Return From Iran As Crisis Deepens

Richard Lindsay said on Tuesday on X, referring to the recent UN Human Rights Council report on Afghanistan, that every Afghan deserves to live free from harassment in a safe and open environment.

The United Nations said in the report that the human rights situation in Afghanistan has significantly deteriorated, warning that life for citizens, especially women and girls, has become markedly more difficult under Taliban rule.

The report, covering August 2025 to January 2026, was presented at a recent Human Rights Council session and contains troubling assessments of the humanitarian crisis, widespread violations of women’s rights, restrictions on freedom of expression and the suppression of civil activities in the country.

The UK representative added: “We urge the Taliban to respect all Afghans’ rights.”

In separate statements on Tuesday, March 31, the Taliban Supreme Court said the punishments were carried out in public in the presence of local officials, clerics, government representatives, security forces and members of the public.

Over the past two days, the Taliban have also flogged at least 20 people in public in Faryab, Daikundi, Herat and Jawzjan.

The Rawadari human rights organisation said in a report on Thursday that the Taliban had imposed cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments over the past year, including issuing sentences for the execution of six people under the law of retaliation, the stoning of one woman and the flogging of 857 individuals.

Despite opposition from international organisations to torture and corporal punishment, the Taliban have continued to flog people in public. The group describes the flogging of those convicted by its courts as the implementation of Islamic Sharia.

From February 27 to March 15, the Taliban claimed responsibility for 15 drone attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and elsewhere in Pakistan, including what it described as a strike on Hamza Camp in Faizabad. In statements, the Taliban’s Ministry of Defense said the attacks targeted Pakistani military sites in Rawalpindi, Faizabad, Abbottabad, Kohat, Nowshera, Swabi, Jamrud, Mohmand district, Miranshah, Spinwam in North Waziristan, and Quetta in Balochistan.

The reported escalation followed remarks by Taliban Defense Minister Mullah Yaqoub on March 8 warning that “if Kabul becomes unsafe, Islamabad will become unsafe, and if Kabul is attacked, Islamabad will be attacked.”

Pakistan acknowledged some UAV incidents and said it had shot down several drones. Pakistani fighter jets then carried out repeated strikes on Taliban military sites in Kabul, Kandahar, Paktia and Khost, according to media reports. It said the deadliest strike hit the Omid rehabilitation center in Kabul.

Are Drones a New Weapon for the Taliban?

Afghanistan International’s reporting indicates the Taliban have used drone aircraft since 2020.

Before then, the Taliban’s Al-Emara Studio mainly used drones to film operations and produce propaganda videos. But after militants in Mosul of Iraq and elsewhere demonstrated how commercial drones could be fitted with explosives, the Taliban began using them in combat, according to the report.

The group initially used commercial drones, including the DJI Matrice 210, in attacks on Afghan security forces in Paktia, Kunduz, Balkh, Faryab, Takhar and Logar provinces, later expanding their use to targeted killings.

On November 7, 2020, a Taliban drone dropped a hand grenade on an Afghan security post in Logar province, wounding two police officer. Another drone attack a week earlier targeted a police post in Charkh district. On November 24, 2020, then-National Directorate of Security chief Zia Saraj told Afghanistan’s parliament that the Taliban were attacking government forces with small drones bought on the open market.

By January 15, 2021, two Taliban drones had attacked the airfield of the Afghan army’s 217th Pamir Corps in Kunduz, damaging a helicopter. The Taliban had earlier targeted the provincial governor, wounding eight bodyguards.

On March 8, 2021, a white commercial drone carrying two mortar rounds fell in Kunduz’s Kot-e-Gard area. In May, the Taliban used a drone to kill Piram Qul, a former lawmaker and local resistance commander, in Takhar. In July, a drone strike targeted the home of former Balkh governor Atta Mohammad Noor, wounding four people.

The early attacks appeared designed not only to inflict casualties but also to intimidate commanders opposing the Taliban, marking an important stage in the group’s adoption of drones as weapons.

How the Taliban Appear to be Using Drones Against Pakistan

The Taliban’s 313th Battalion, associated with the Haqqani network, became known during the insurgency for suicide attacks against Afghan and NATO forces. The group now appears to be shifting toward one-way attack drones, sometimes described as “kamikaze” drones.

After the Taliban takeover in 2021, the group gained access to some US-made ScanEagle drones. The aircraft is about 5.1 feet (1.6 meters) long with a 10.2-foot (3.1-meter) wingspan, depending on variant, and is designed primarily for surveillance.

By July 2025, a Taliban source told Afghanistan International that the group still had several surveillance drones about 1 meter long with a single rotor on the tail. It was not clear whether those aircraft were used only for reconnaissance or could also carry explosives.

Former Afghan General Sami Sadat said some Taliban drones are of Chinese origin and were originally supplied to Afghanistan’s former security forces before being modified to carry explosives.

With limited access to missiles and fixed-wing aircraft, and an air arm still centered largely on helicopters, the Taliban have invested heavily in drone technology. Most drones used against Pakistani urban targets appear to be one-way attack UAVs with wingspans of about 2 meters, differing from more conventional military drone designs. The report said there is no indication ScanEagle drones were used for bomb delivery in these attacks.

Operations and Technical Characteristics

According to sources, Taliban drones are launched near the Durand Line from Kandahar, Nangarhar, Paktia and Paktika, reducing the distance to targets in Quetta, Peshawar, Islamabad and Waziristan.

David Hambling, a London-based drone analyst and author of Swarm Troopers: How Small Drones Will Rule the World, told Afghanistan International that the Taliban’s drones appear to be locally assembled, likely using Chinese-made or other imported parts. He said they resemble Iran’s Shahed-101, though on a smaller scale.

The Shahed-101 has been reported to have a much longer range and greater destructive power than the Taliban’s current drones. Hambling said the Taliban’s aircraft use composite wings, likely carbon fiber, and piston engines typical of small UAVs. Those materials help keep the aircraft light while maintaining structural strength and flight stability.

It is estimated that the drones’ payload are roughly 5 kilograms (11 pounds), with warheads capable of affecting an area of about 40 meters and damaging vehicles or buildings. It is said that the aircraft weigh about 10 to 15 kilograms (22 to 33 pounds), with wingspans of about 2.5 to 3 meters and lengths of 1.5 to 2 meters, giving them a potential range of 300 kilometers (186 miles) or more, depending on design, fuel, weather and payload.

Production capacity

Afghanistan International sources said a 13-member Taliban team, including engineering students from Kabul Polytechnic University and Kabul University, has been modifying drone designs since 2021. Former Afghan security personnel are also believed to be helping assemble the aircraft.

The drones are said to rely mainly on commercially available parts, including flight-control boards, gyroscopes, accelerometers, GPS modules and related electronics.

Sadat said that although the Taliban had sent delegations to China and sought drones from Russia, the program remained in an early stage, relying on imported parts and local technical knowledge. Analysts believe that Afghan engineers most likely handle assembly and basic design work.

Hambling said the Taliban could eventually develop longer-range drones with heavier payloads, following a trajectory similar to the Houthi movement’s drone program.

TTP Drone Ambitions

By July 2025, sources told Afghanistan International that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, and the Hafiz Gul Bahadur group were seeking commercial drones that could be modified to drop explosives and potentially hit targets up to 10 kilometers away.

The report said TTP drones currently lack advanced systems and are limited largely to daytime use, but militants are exploring thermal cameras and engine modifications to improve night surveillance and attack capability.

Pakistan’s effort to counter the drone threat has increased pressure on the Taliban, contributing to airstrikes and attempts to identify drone manufacturing site. Strikes on larger facilities could slow production, but small workshops and garages would make complete disruption difficult.

Neither the Pakistani government nor the Taliban administration has so far commented officially on the meeting.

Organisers had earlier said the purpose of the jirga was to create a pathway towards peace and stability between the two sides and to promote a culture of dialogue and mutual understanding.

Tensions between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban have persisted for months and have recently escalated following Pakistani airstrikes inside Afghanistan, including in Kabul, which have killed hundreds of people, including civilians. Pakistan accuses the Taliban of harbouring militant groups, including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), an allegation the Taliban have consistently denied.

Islamabad has said any end to the strikes is conditional on guarantees from the Taliban that Afghan territory will not be used to support such groups. The Taliban, however, insist the issue is not their responsibility and that the presence of militants is an internal matter for Pakistan.

Abdul Salam Jawad said on Tuesday that of the total, only $4 million accounts for Afghan exports, while $534 million represents imports into Afghanistan.

He said Afghanistan exports both food and non-food items to Russia, but the bulk of imports consists of fuel, mainly oil and gas.

In September 2022, the Taliban signed a preliminary agreement with Russia to import petrol, diesel, gas and wheat.

Trade between the two sides reached $366 million in the first eight months of the year by December 2025.

The trade balance heavily favours Russian exports.

Taliban officials have said in various reports that Afghanistan’s exports to Russia remain limited, including raisins, apricots, minerals, cotton and some other goods.

Imports from Russia largely include wheat, flour, gas, petroleum products, diesel, timber and sunflower oil.

Russia remains the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban government to date.