Two Tamadon TV Journalists Released From Taliban Prison
Mohammad Rahmati, managing director of private broadcaster Tamadon TV, and network employee Mohammad Reza Ehsani have been released from Taliban custody, sources say.
Mohammad Rahmati, managing director of private broadcaster Tamadon TV, and network employee Mohammad Reza Ehsani have been released from Taliban custody, sources say.
The two journalists were arrested on 23 June on the orders of Abdul Hakim Sharaee, the Taliban’s justice minister.
Sources said Sirajuddin Haqqani, the Taliban’s interior minister, instructed the group’s governor in Kabul to release them.
On 23 June, Taliban forces raided Tamadon TV’s headquarters in Kabul on the Taliban justice minister’s orders and halted the broadcaster’s operations. Mohammad Rahmati and Mohammad Reza Ehsani were detained following the raid.
The two journalists were held at the Kabul governor’s detention facility. The Taliban has not explained the reason for their arrests.
According to the sources, Rahmati and Ehsani were released on 5 July.
Informed sources previously told Afghanistan International that Rahmati suffered from heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. They said his health had deteriorated in Taliban custody and that he lacked access to medicine and medical care.
In June 2024, the Taliban’s Justice Ministry announced that Tamadon TV’s operations would be suspended because of its alleged affiliation with the Islamic Movement of Afghanistan and its use of what the ministry described as state land that had been“seized illegally.
The ministry said media organisations belonging to Afghanistan’s political parties were not permitted to operate.
The Afghanistan Freedom Front says it ambushed foreign militants supporting the Taliban on the road to Zebak district in Badakhshan, killing at least two and wounding three others.
In a statement, the front said the organised attack took place on Friday evening, 31 July, along the route to Zebak district.
The statement said the men were unfamiliar with the local language and were reportedly due to join the fighting against the Freedom Front forces in Zebak.
The front also claimed that the presence of foreign terrorist groups alongside the Taliban showed that Afghanistan under the group’s rule had become a safe haven and breeding ground for the revival and expansion of international terrorism.
The Afghanistan Freedom Front described those targeted as foreign terrorists supporting the Taliban but did not identify their nationalities.
The Taliban has not officially commented on the incident.
Local sources in Badakhshan had previously confirmed clashes between the Taliban and opposition forces in Zebak district. A video obtained by Afghanistan International showed a helicopter flying over the area.
Sources said opposition fighters ambushed a Taliban convoy on Friday night in Sanglich village, Zebak district, as it was travelling towards the front line, causing casualties.
Pakistan’s military has rejected the UNAMA report that hundreds of Afghan civilians were killed or injured in its cross-border attacks, saying the report is baseless. A Pakistan army spokesperson said that it targeted only Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan sites.
Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, the Pakistani army spokesperson, said in a news conference on Friday that the country’s forces had operated only against hideouts, training centres and infrastructure used by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan between October 2025 and the end of June 2026.
He claimed that those killed in the attacks were members of armed groups and that the operations were carried out in self-defence to protect Pakistani citizens.
Chaudhry also questioned reports by UNAMA and Amnesty International, saying they were largely based on accounts from sources inside Afghanistan who, according to him, operate under restrictions on freedom of expression imposed by the Taliban administration.
He added that the reports had ignored deadly attacks by armed groups against Pakistan, as well as air strikes carried out by foreign forces during the war in Afghanistan.
The remarks came after UNAMA said in a new report that at least 499 civilians were killed and 1,216 others injured inside Afghanistan between October 2025 and the end of June 2026 as a result of air strikes, artillery attacks and border clashes between Pakistan and the Taliban.
The UN mission said many of the victims were women and children. In some cases, people who went to rescue the wounded were targeted in a second strike.
According to UNAMA, one of the deadliest incidents occurred in Paktia province on 28 June, when two consecutive attacks on a residential building killed at least 22 people, including five children, and injured 185 others.
UNAMA stressed that under international humanitarian law, all parties to the conflict are required to protect civilians and humanitarian workers and avoid attacks that could result in civilian casualties.
Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Afghan Taliban of providing safe haven to members of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, an allegation the Taliban has denied.
Islamabad, meanwhile, says its cross-border operations in Afghanistan will continue.
The National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF) says it killed at least two Taliban members in an attack on the group’s patrol vehicle in Herat. Taliban officials have not commented.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the front said the attack took place near Pashdan Dam at about 10:30 pm on Thursday.
It said those killed were officers from the First Brigade of the Taliban’s Al-Farooq Army Corps.
According to the statement, no NRF fighters were harmed in the attack.
Local sources in Herat had earlier told Afghanistan International that they heard sporadic gunfire in the Pashdan Dam area on Thursday night.
Armed groups opposing the Taliban have recently increased their attacks in several parts of Afghanistan.
On 27 July, the National Resistance Front also reported an attack on a Taliban checkpoint in Badakhshan’s Kuran wa Munjan district.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesman, has called the UN Security Council sanctions committee’s update of identity details for five senior Taliban officials a continuation of failed past policies.
He said such sanctions had proved ineffective in the past and would bring no benefit to either side now.
Speaking to Taliban-controlled National Television on Friday, 31 July, Mujahid said the UN Security Council should abandon what he described as wartime policies.
He added that no individual’s rights should be violated because of sanctions.
Mujahid called for cooperation and constructive engagement instead of what he described as failed and fruitless policies, saying this would help protect individuals’ rights.
The updated UN list includes the Taliban’s interior minister, minister of hajj and religious affairs, minister of mines and petroleum, director-general of intelligence and mayor of Herat.
The UN Security Council sanctions committee said the changes were purely administrative and technical and did not alter the sanctions status or restrictions imposed on the five Taliban officials.
The World Bank says Afghanistan's trade has shifted sharply towards Central Asia and Iran after disruption along the Pakistan route. Central Asian corridors now handle 48 per cent of imports and Iran 46 per cent, while Pakistan's share has fallen to almost zero.
At the same time, India has become Afghanistan's largest export market, taking 33.6 per cent of its exports, while Iran has become its biggest source of imports, supplying 31.4 per cent.
In its July report, the World Bank said Afghanistan's economy continues to face structural challenges despite relatively stable domestic demand, higher domestic revenues and easing food inflation. It said rapid population growth, regional trade disruptions and heavy reliance on domestic revenues continue to weigh on the economy.
The bank said current economic growth has failed to keep pace with Afghanistan's rising population, particularly following the large-scale return of migrants. According to the report, real per capita income is around 5.6 per cent lower than before the Taliban returned to power, placing additional pressure on household living standards.
General Inflation Eases but Living Costs Remain Under Pressure
The World Bank said Afghanistan's annual inflation rate fell to 7.6 per cent in June 2026, down from 8 per cent in May.
It attributed the decline mainly to lower food prices during the agricultural harvest season and continued imports. Prices of vegetables, fresh and dried fruit, sugar and dried bread all fell. Food inflation declined by 1.6 per cent compared with the previous month and by 7.2 per cent compared with the same period last year.
However, core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, increased to 8.3 per cent. The bank said rising housing, healthcare and transport costs continue to fuel inflationary pressures.
Afghani Weakens Against the US Dollar
According to the report, the Afghan afghani depreciated by 1.6 per cent against the US dollar in June compared with May, with the average exchange rate reaching AFN64.4 per dollar.
Despite the monthly decline, the afghani remained 8.3 per cent stronger than a year earlier.
The World Bank also reported a 4 per cent decline in the Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER), saying the weaker rate had slightly improved the competitiveness of Afghan exports in regional markets.
Trade Deficit Widens as Pakistan Border Closures Hit Exports
Afghanistan's trade deficit widened to 984.3 million US dollars in June, up 11 per cent from the previous month and 19 per cent higher than a year earlier.
Exports totalled 77.7 million US dollars during the month, down 2 per cent from May but up 19 per cent year-on-year.
The World Bank said prolonged border closures with Pakistan were a key reason behind weaker food exports and the complete halt of coal exports.
According to the report, Afghanistan's coal exports fell to almost zero, directly linked to the closure of trade routes through Pakistan.
By contrast, textile exports increased significantly, reaching 21.5 million US dollars in June. This represented a 67 per cent rise compared with the previous month and a 304 per cent increase from a year earlier. Most of these exports were shipped to China via Central Asia.
India remained Afghanistan's largest export destination with a 33.6 per cent share, followed by Iran, Uzbekistan and China.
Central Asia and Iran Become Afghanistan's Main Trade Corridors
Afghanistan's imports rose by 10 per cent in June compared with the previous month, reaching 1.062 billion US dollars.
Central Asian routes became the country's main import corridor, accounting for 48 per cent of imports in June, up from 41 per cent in May.
Iranian routes accounted for 46 per cent of imports, while trade through Pakistan remained at a very low level.
Iran supplied 31.4 per cent of Afghanistan's imports, followed by China, the United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
The World Bank warned that Afghanistan's heavy dependence on a small number of trading partners and transit routes leaves its economy vulnerable to political and economic developments across the region.
Monthly Government Revenue Falls but Annual Collections Increase
According to the World Bank, the Taliban administration collected 17.3 billion afghanis in domestic revenue in June, a 37 per cent decline from the previous month.
The decrease was mainly attributed to unusually high revenue collected in May.
Nevertheless, total domestic revenue since the start of the 2026 fiscal year reached 64.5 billion afghanis, an increase of 8.7 per cent compared with the same period last year.
Tax revenue totalled 6.7 billion afghanis, customs revenue 2.8 billion afghanis and non-tax revenue 7.4 billion afghanis.
The World Bank warned that customs revenues remain vulnerable because of regional trade disruptions and ongoing border restrictions.
Security Remains the Taliban Administration's Largest Budget Item
Public spending by the Taliban administration totalled 17.5 billion afghanis in June, down 33.8 per cent from the previous month.
The security sector received 26.8 billion afghanis, accounting for 46.4 per cent of total government expenditure, making it the largest budget allocation.
Education received 10.2 billion afghanis, representing 17.6 per cent of total spending, followed by governance, economic affairs and private sector development, which received 5.9 billion afghanis, or 10.2 per cent.
In its conclusion, the World Bank said the shift of part of Afghanistan's trade towards Central Asian routes has strengthened the country's supply chain resilience. However, dependence on a limited number of transit routes, declining customs revenues and continuing regional tensions continue to leave the economy vulnerable.
The bank added that although some macroeconomic indicators, including lower inflation and higher domestic revenues, show signs of improvement, economic growth remains insufficient to offset population growth and improve living standards.