Hurriyat Radio, a media outlet affiliated with Taliban intelligence, reported on Saturday, 5 September, that an Australian tourist had died in Badakhshan. The outlet said he died of a heart attack.
Independent sources have not yet provided information about the cause of the Australian citizen’s death.
Citing the state-run Afghan Tour company in Badakhshan, Hurriyat reported that the tourist had travelled to the province to visit Wakhan and the Pamirs. The Taliban outlet said he suffered a heart attack in Wakhan two days earlier and died.
Afghanistan International has obtained a copy of the Australian citizen’s visa, which identifies him as Charles Philip Hain.
Meanwhile, local media outlets and journalists in Badakhshan have published a photograph said to be linked to the incident, showing a group of people carrying a body through a mountainous area.
The Taliban has provided no further details about the tourist or where his body is currently being kept.
A local source in Badakhshan confirmed that the tourist had died in Wakhan but said the actual cause of death remained unclear.
Informed sources in Badakhshan say the Taliban has built a “drone operations centre” near the provincial airport following rising tensions, opposition attacks and armed clashes in Faizabad and several districts.
According to information obtained by Afghanistan International, the drone operations centre was established about two weeks ago at a military base beside Faizabad airport and is operating around the clock to gather intelligence and conduct reconnaissance missions across the province.
Residents of Faizabad, the capital of Badakhshan, say drones have been seen patrolling the skies above the city over the past two weeks.
One Faizabad resident, who asked not to be named for security reasons, said: “The drones fly at very low altitude over Faizabad at night.” He added: “It appears they are also monitoring people’s homes.”
Videos obtained by Afghanistan International show drones flying over Faizabad as well as the construction of a new tower near Badakhshan airport. The tower is reportedly intended to support the take-off and landing of the drones. The Taliban has not officially commented on the matter.
Local sources say drones previously used during operations against Juma Khan Fateh, a dissident Taliban commander in Nusay district, took off from the same centre.
The Afghanistan Freedom Front previously said it had shot down two Taliban drones during clashes in Zebak district. The group also released images of what it said were the downed drones.
Badakhshan has experienced a wave of insecurity and increased attacks against the Taliban in recent months. In response, the Taliban has deployed thousands of additional forces to the province and is now making broader use of drone technology for surveillance and security control.
Taliban Access to Drone Technology
In April, a source at the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan National Development Corporation told Afghanistan International, on condition of anonymity, that a 13-member drone specialist team made up of students from the engineering faculties of Kabul University and Kabul Polytechnic University had been working on modifying and designing drones since 2021.
According to the source, the team is now capable of assembling different types of suicide drones inside Afghanistan using imported components.
The Taliban first used its own drones during clashes with Pakistan and, in response to extensive Pakistani attacks on major Afghan cities, targeted areas inside Pakistan on several occasions. The group also claimed that it had targeted Pakistani forces in Islamabad.
Following the clashes with Pakistan and the Taliban’s use of drones against the country, the reported establishment of a drone centre in Badakhshan is the latest indication of the group’s expanding drone activities.
The creation of a dedicated drone centre in the province suggests that the Taliban is taking threats posed by opposition groups operating in Badakhshan seriously and is increasingly turning to modern technologies, including drones, to counter them.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s spokesperson, has rejected reports that the group uses or directs international humanitarian aid, saying “not a single rupee” of such assistance has reached the Taliban administration.
Speaking on Saturday, 5 September, at the sixth “Government in the Mirror of the Press” meeting, Mujahid said international aid was spent directly by humanitarian organisations and that the Taliban did not interfere in the process.
“Not a single rupee of this aid has reached the administration,” he said, stressing that international organisations themselves manage and spend the assistance.
His comments come as some humanitarian organisations and aid groups have accused the Taliban of interfering in the distribution of humanitarian assistance and directing aid.
The United States also suspended most of its assistance to Afghanistan in 2025. US officials said Washington was concerned that funding for Afghanistan could reach the Taliban and other terrorist groups, either directly or indirectly. As a result, nearly all pledged US assistance to Afghanistan, including a large share of humanitarian aid, was halted.
Cuts in assistance from the United States and other international donors have come as Afghanistan faces a severe humanitarian crisis, with millions of people dependent on foreign aid. Humanitarian organisations have also warned that funding shortages are limiting their ability to provide services to those in need.
Interference and Diversion of Aid
The United Nations has also confirmed in multiple reports that the Taliban interferes in humanitarian operations. In August, the UN said Taliban interference in humanitarian activities and violence against UN staff had severely affected the delivery of lifesaving assistance.
The US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction, or SIGAR, also accused the Taliban in August last year of using coercion to seize international aid and divert it for its own benefit.
According to the report, the Taliban extorted money from aid projects in collusion with UN officials. SIGAR said that UN officials take bribes from organisations that receive contracts and share them with the Taliban.
SIGAR also said the Taliban had blocked and diverted aid to ensure that assistance reached Pashtun communities rather than Tajik and Hazara people.
At Saturday’s meeting, the Taliban spokesman said international funding for humanitarian organisations operating in Afghanistan had declined and that those organisations were facing budget shortages.
Mujahid called on the international community to increase funding for organisations working in Afghanistan, saying the country’s population still needed humanitarian assistance.
He also described the level of assistance provided by aid organisations to internally displaced people and migrants as insignificant and called for it to be increased.
At the same time, the Taliban spokesman said the group had not created obstacles for the work of international organisations. He said aid should reach people in need and should be spent transparently in areas where it was required.
Mujahid warned that organisations failing to follow those principles would face punishment and that the Taliban would prevent what he described as unnecessary spending. He insisted that this approach should not be regarded as interference in the work of humanitarian organisations.
Mujahid’s comments on humanitarian aid come as the funding crisis for relief operations in Afghanistan continues to deepen. The United Nations has also reported severe funding shortages for meeting Afghanistan’s humanitarian needs in 2026.
The National Resistance Front and Afghanistan Freedom Front have called for a common platform among political, civil and armed groups opposing the Taliban, as Cambridge talks seek to bridge key differences.
The fifth round of the “Cambridge Afghanistan Series” was held on Friday, 4 September, in Cambridge, Britain, bringing together dozens of political figures, academics, civil society activists and representatives of women’s movements from inside and outside Afghanistan.
The meeting focused on identifying areas of agreement and disagreement among different groups opposed to the Taliban and exploring grounds for cooperation over Afghanistan’s political future.
Zalmai Nishat, head of the Mosaic organisation and organiser of the meeting, told Afghanistan International that the previous four rounds of the Cambridge meetings had examined roadmaps and proposals put forward by various groups for Afghanistan’s future, with a total of 21 roadmaps discussed.
According to Nishat, the review showed that despite political and ideological differences, there was considerable overlap among the views of different groups, with only about 10 per cent of the issues remaining areas of serious disagreement.
He said the fifth Cambridge meeting focused mainly on those disagreements, with participants in five separate panels examining differing views on fundamental questions concerning Afghanistan’s future.
Five Main Areas of Disagreement
Nishat said one of the first issues discussed was structural problems and structural justice in Afghanistan, referring to the historical roots of inequality, the distribution of power and how a fairer political system could be created in the future.
The path towards political change was another area of disagreement. Some groups believe that, under current conditions, political change is impossible without armed resistance against the Taliban.
Others, however, continue to advocate dialogue, political pressure and non-violent approaches as the path towards change.
The role of the international community in Afghanistan’s future was another major topic of debate.
According to Nishat, some participants believe the international community should play a role similar to that of 2001 in shaping developments in Afghanistan.
Others argue that Afghanistan and the world have changed since then and that Afghans themselves should play the leading role in determining their destiny and shaping the country’s political future.
The structure of Afghanistan’s future political system was also an area of disagreement. Some participants supported a federal system, others called for a decentralised structure, while another group favoured retaining a centralised form of government.
Issues related to currency, identity and national symbols were also identified as areas of disagreement among political and civil groups.
Nishat stressed that the aim of the Cambridge meeting was not to reach an immediate agreement on all these issues, but to create a space where differences could be identified, discussed and narrowed, while finding areas in which different groups could cooperate.
NRF: Differences Do Not Mean a Lack of Unity
Ali Maisam Nazary, head of foreign relations for the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, told the meeting that an alliance of Taliban opponents should include a broad range of political and social forces.
He said such an alliance could include armed resistance groups such as the National Resistance Front and Afghanistan Freedom Front, women involved in civil resistance, political movements, civil society organisations and democratic forces.
Nazary stressed that the formation of a broad alliance should not depend on all groups reaching complete agreement over the details of a future constitution or system of government.
He said Taliban opponents had significant common ground on many fundamental issues and could cooperate on basic principles, a transitional mechanism and the creation of a democratic Afghanistan in which all citizens enjoy equal rights.
The NRF foreign relations chief said differences of opinion reflected Afghanistan’s ethnic, religious, political and social diversity and should not be seen as a sign of failure or disunity.
He added that in a democratic society, unity did not necessarily mean identical views but should instead be based on unity in diversity.
Freedom Front: The Final Decision Must Rest With the People
Daoud Naji, head of the political office of the Afghanistan Freedom Front, said armed resistance against the Taliban had expanded since the previous Cambridge meeting in September, with anti-Taliban groups, including the Afghanistan Freedom Front, increasing their operations in different parts of Afghanistan.
He said the Afghanistan Freedom Front was ready to cooperate with political parties, civil society organisations and groups that believed in the principles of human rights, freedom and democracy.
Naji stressed that political groups had the right to propose different models and views on Afghanistan’s future system of government but must ultimately accept the decision and will of the Afghan people.
He said the Cambridge meeting could provide a foundation for the creation of a broader and more effective alliance among Taliban opponents, adding that the Freedom Front was ready to cooperate in strengthening what he called a civil consensus framework.
The Afghanistan Freedom Front political chief also said international discussions on a political settlement to the Afghanistan crisis and the Doha process had largely fallen off the international community’s list of priorities.
He stressed that the Taliban should not be recognised as the legitimate government of Afghanistan and called on the international community to reconsider its approach towards the group.
Fawzia Koofi: Women Must Have a Role in Future Political Leadership
Fawzia Koofi, a prominent women’s rights activist and former member of Afghanistan’s parliament, said unity among Taliban opponents did not necessarily mean merging all groups into a single political structure or platform.
She said cooperation among different forces could be built around shared priorities and objectives without requiring them to abandon their individual identities or political views.
Koofi said the “Women for Afghanistan” initiative had created a platform for cooperation among more than 35 organisations and prominent figures to discuss priorities for Afghanistan’s future and place women’s role in the country’s political leadership at the centre of those efforts.
She rejected the view that the Taliban was the only available option for Afghanistan, saying the real alternative to the Taliban was the Afghan people, who should be represented through a constitution, the rule of law and democratic mechanisms.
Koofi stressed that democracy should not be reduced merely to holding elections, saying people should have a genuine role at every stage of determining their future and shaping the country’s political system.
She said democracy had not failed in Afghanistan, but rather that Afghanistan’s political community and the international community failed to support democracy.
Koofi also stressed the need for political and civil forces outside Afghanistan to work alongside those inside the country who can participate safely.
She said planning for Afghanistan’s transition and political change should involve a broad range of social and political forces.
The fifth Cambridge Afghanistan Series meeting took place as efforts to build greater coordination among diverse groups opposed to the Taliban continue to face disagreements over the method of political change, the structure of a future political system and the role of domestic and international actors.
However, organisers and several participants said openly identifying disagreements while focusing on shared priorities could help pave the way for broader cooperation and consensus over Afghanistan’s future.
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of Hezb-e Islami, has urged members and supporters of his party to cut ties with those who support the Taliban. He said anyone who has joined the Taliban administration or other groups should sever links with Hezb-e Islami.
In a message addressed to all sincere and committed members of Hezb-e Islami, Hekmatyar called on party members to end organisational ties with anyone who supports or praises the policies of the monarchy, Mohammad Daoud Khan’s government, the communists, Jamiat-e Islami, Shura-e Nazar, the Taliban or other political movements.
Hekmatyar also called on members who have joined those groups to distance themselves from Hezb-e Islami.
Addressing them directly, he said stand sincerely with those groups and stop using the name of Hezb-e Islami.
However, a Hezb-e Islami member who asked not to be named told Afghanistan International that Hekmatyar’s message was aimed specifically at the Taliban.
The party member said some Hezb-e Islami members had, for various reasons, supported Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada and the group’s policies.
He added that Hekmatyar’s message meant those people had to choose between membership in Hezb-e Islami and support for the Taliban: “Either be Taliban or be Hezb-e Islami.”
The party member said Hezb-e Islami members had not supported Shura-e Nazar or communist movements and that, in his view, Hekmatyar’s references to those groups were mainly intended to set out the party’s broader position towards past and present political movements.
He stressed that this message is directed at those who support the Taliban.
Hezb-e Islami and the Taliban were both military and political opponents of Afghanistan’s former government and of the presence of US forces in the country. Hekmatyar, however, signed a peace agreement with the former Afghan government after years of opposition and armed activity.
Some Hezb-e Islami members joined the Taliban after the group returned to power. Several prominent Taliban figures also have a background in Hezb-e Islami.
In recent years, Hekmatyar has repeatedly criticised Taliban policies. He has particularly criticised the concentration of power, restrictions imposed on citizens and the Taliban’s governance of Afghanistan and has called for elections to determine the country’s future government.
After the Taliban intensified restrictions on him, Hekmatyar left Afghanistan and has been living in Malaysia in recent months.
The Taliban has revoked the licences of political parties and barred citizens and political leaders from political activity.
Dozens of experts and political activists at a conference in Peshawar called for the immediate reopening of Afghanistan-Pakistan border crossings, saying trade should be separated from political and security tensions.
The one-day conference, titled “Beyond Pakistan-Afghanistan Conflict: Advancing Regional Peace and Mutual Understanding”, was held on Thursday by the University of Peshawar’s Centre for Area Studies in cooperation with Aspire KP.
Former senator and Pakistani politician Mushahid Hussain, Afrasiab Khattak and Arbab Shuja were among the prominent participants.
The conference discussed security, border and trade issues, as well as ways to reduce tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Arbab Shuja, head of Aspire KP, told Afghanistan International that although there were problems between Afghanistan and Pakistan, solutions had to be found to end the current situation. He said that despite the extensive ties between the peoples of the two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan still did not understand each other well and needed more dialogue to resolve misunderstandings.
Shuja said security, border and trade issues should be addressed through dialogue and that both sides should work towards greater mutual understanding and lasting solutions.
“We cannot change our neighbour,” he said, adding that Afghanistan and Pakistan should focus on finding ways to cooperate and coexist peacefully rather than trying to change each other.
The head of Aspire KP also stressed China’s role in reducing tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, saying Beijing could play an important role in bringing the two sides closer and mediating their disputes because of its relations with both countries.
His remarks come as China’s special envoy for Afghanistan is in Pakistan for talks with Pakistani officials on Afghanistan and regional issues.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says Chinese mediation is important for improving relations with the Taliban, but such efforts will not succeed unless the Taliban changes its approach towards Pakistani militants.
The ministry has called on the Taliban to take practical and visible action to prevent attacks by Pakistani militants.
Trade Should Not Be a Victim of Security Disputes
Shuja said the prolonged closure of trade crossings and continuing tensions had seriously harmed people on both sides of the Durand Line, with ordinary people and traders suffering the greatest losses.
He stressed that trade should be separated from security issues and that security disputes should not be resolved at the expense of people’s livelihoods. He said trade routes should be reopened as soon as possible.
Relations between Pakistan and the Taliban administration have become severely strained in recent months. Border clashes have closed major trade crossings, including Torkham and Spin Boldak, effectively bringing trade between the two countries to a halt.
In response to the tensions, the Taliban administration has banned imports of some Pakistani goods, including medicines, and has turned to India to meet part of its needs.