A spokesperson for the Taliban's police in Kabul has confirmed that General Shaoor Gul Pashtun, a former deputy minister of defence of Afghanistan, has been detained on charges of murdering two women.
The general of the former government had pledged allegiance to the Taliban in 2023.
Khalid Zadran, spokesperson for the Taliban's police command, announced on Wednesday that Pashtun had been detained last Thursday, May 15, from the 17th district of Kabul, and that his case would be handed over to the judicial authorities following investigation. He said the accused "has confessed to his crime".
The Taliban have given no explanation regarding the murder of the two women or the timing of the incident.
General Shaoor Gul Pashtun was, under the previous government, a deputy minister of defence and commander of the 203rd Thunder Army Corps.
In 2023, along with a number of other former military officials, he pledged allegiance to the Taliban and presented a sword to Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, the then deputy prime minister of the Taliban.
Over these years, this former general has held meetings with senior Taliban officials, including the group's defence minister.
Naseer Ahmad Faiq, Representative of Afghanistan to UN, says that representation at the UN is the legitimate right of those governments that have come to power through lawful means and based on the people's will.
Responding to remarks by Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban's Foreign Minister, Faiq said: “Representation at the United Nations is the legitimate right of governments that derive power and authority through legitimate means and the will of the people, uphold the rights of all citizens without gender, ethnic, or religious discrimination within the framework of law, and remain committed to their national and international obligations.”
Criticising the Taliban's record over five years, Faiq added: “After five years, the Taliban regime has failed to respond positively either to the legitimate aspirations of the people of Afghanistan or to the clear demands of the international community.”
He said that poverty, forced marriages, suicide among young people due to unemployment, targeted killings of former military personnel, the suppression of freedom of expression, the proliferation of jihadist madrasas, and the promotion of terrorism and extremism have risen to an unprecedented level in Afghanistan.
Faiq went on to ask: “On the basis of what positive actions and under what standard of legitimacy are the Taliban demanding Afghanistan’s seat at the United Nations?”
Referring to the country's current situation, he said that girls remain barred from education in schools and universities, women are denied the right to work and to participate in society, there is no legitimate and inclusive national system, widespread corruption and repression continue, and the security of Afghanistan and the region has deteriorated due to the hosting and support of international terrorist groups.
This stance comes as Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban's Foreign Minister, has called on the United Nations to hand over Afghanistan's seat to the group's administration.
Sources have told Afghanistan International that Safiullah Rasouli, a 25-year-old man, has died under torture in a Taliban prison after 21 days in detention in Herat.
His family say that, after he was accused of smuggling drugs into the prison, the Taliban tortured him to extract a confession.
The man's family, speaking to Afghanistan International on Wednesday May 20, confirmed that they had received Rasouli's body. Family members say that marks of torture, including bruising and reddening, can be seen on his neck and parts of his body.
According to sources, the young man had been detained around 21 days ago in connection with a case relating to ownership of a motorcycle. His family say that Safiullah had bought a motorcycle from his friends without official documentation, but that another person later claimed ownership of it by producing documents.
Safiullah Rasouli's family claim that, after the young man's death, Taliban officials contacted them and said that he had died of a heart attack. According to the family, one of the prisoners then contacted them and gave a different account of how he died.
The family say this prisoner stated that Safiullah had died during interrogation and torture, and that Taliban officers had then threatened the prisoners not to speak to anyone about the incident.
According to sources, the incident took place on the night of Monday May 18, and Safiullah was tortured for around three hours. Sources say he lost his life during interrogation, while his head was placed inside a plastic bag.
Safiullah's family reject the claim that the young man smuggled drugs into the prison.
The man's family, he had married around three months ago, are calling for justice and for the case to be investigated. The Taliban have not yet officially commented on the incident.
India's National Investigation Agency has announced that its special court in Bengaluru has sentenced a man to seven years' rigorous imprisonment in a case involving radicalisation and recruitment for the Taliban and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.
The court also fined him 63,000 rupees.
India's National Investigation Agency said that the trial began in March 2026 and that the man confessed to his crime during the judicial proceedings.
According to the investigating agency, the individual, named Hamraz Al-Rashid Sheikh, became drawn to the ideology of the Taliban and Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan through Pakistani and Afghan contacts while residing in Saudi Arabia between 2019 and 2022.
India's National Investigation Agency said that, after returning to India, the individual, along with another person, was attempting to identify and recruit vulnerable young people by promoting the ideology of these groups.
According to India's National Investigation Agency, both defendants had intended to travel to Afghanistan in order to join Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The Collective Security Treaty Organisation has announced that a joint meeting with the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the Commonwealth of Independent States will be held on Central Asian security and the situation in Afghanistan.
CSTO Secretary-General Taalatbek Masadykov said the joint meeting would take place in the second half of this year.
Russia's TASS news agency reported on Tuesday May 19, citing Masadykov, that the three organisations regularly hold high-level meetings, and that the main focus of the upcoming meeting will be examining regional security developments and the situation in Afghanistan.
The meeting will be held with the participation of senior officials from the three regional structures, with the aim of greater coordination in addressing shared security challenges. The CSTO Secretary-General added that such contacts would continue on an annual basis.
He said the organisation intends to establish engagement with bodies such as ASEAN and the African Union as well. These steps are being taken within the framework of strengthening international cooperation to counter trans-regional threats.
Masadykov made these remarks on the sidelines of a CSTO meeting titled "Together for Strengthening International Peace and Stability". The event was held at the premises of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe in Vienna.
The CSTO says that, at the Vienna meeting, the importance of continuous monitoring of the situation in Afghanistan was emphasised.
The CSTO Secretary-General had previously met, on April 25, with Sergei Shoigu, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, to discuss upcoming plans.
The Secretary of the Russian Security Council had previously stated that between 18,000 and 23,000 militants are currently operating in Afghanistan. He stressed that paying attention to the situation in Afghanistan is of particular importance to the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
The Collective Security Treaty Organisation (comprising Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Armenia), the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (with the participation of China, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India, Pakistan, and Iran), and the Commonwealth of Independent States (comprising Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Azerbaijan, and Armenia) are considered key pillars of the region's security and political structures.
In recent years, these three organisations have repeatedly stressed the need for a joint response to threats emanating from Afghan soil, including terrorism, drug trafficking, and border instability.
Abdul Matin Rahimzai, Badakhshan's new director of mines, has warned that no one is any longer permitted to extract minerals from the province without authorisation. He also threatened local armed groups with severe punishment if they intervene in mining.
Rahimzai acknowledged that irresponsible armed individuals in various districts of Badakhshan have "seized" the mines, and that such actions will no longer be tolerated. He stressed that those involved in illegal mining will face serious consequences.
Speaking on Tuesday in a mosque in Shiki district of Badakhshan, in the presence of local residents, this Taliban official said that, under the division of responsibilities among government institutions, nobody has the right to interfere in mining affairs.
Following heightened tensions between local residents and Taliban forces over mining in Badakhshan, the Taliban administration dismissed the province's former head of mines and appointed Abdul Matin Rahimzai to the post from Kabul.
In his remarks, Rahimzai said: "If anyone abuses their duty, position, or responsibility, they will face severe punishment."
He added: "Those who suck the blood of the people do not have even a minute to spare and will face the consequences of their actions. From now on, no one will be allowed to squander public funds."
Local sources say that the former head of Badakhshan's mining department had previously been dismissed and Rahimzai was appointed in his place.
Reports indicate that Shafiqullah Hafizi, the dismissed head of mines in Badakhshan, was a close associate of Qari Fasihuddin Fitrat, the Taliban's army chief of staff and a resident of Yaftal district in the province.
Local sources also say that Rahimzai is from Logar province and is one of the ethnic Pashtun figures within the Taliban's structure.
Since the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan, mining in Badakhshan has increased to an unprecedented scale. Thousands of people are engaged in unauthorised mining and, according to local sources, a considerable portion of this activity is carried out under the control of individuals affiliated with the Taliban.
In some cases, reports have also emerged of clashes between different Taliban factions over control of the mines.