Local sources told Afghanistan International that a former intelligence officer was killed in Daikundi and a tribal elder was murdered in Ghazni’s Qarabagh district in separate incidents.
Students at the Taliban-run Police Academy in Kabul say classes have not resumed nearly four months after the winter break, with no explanation given for the delay.
As reactions continue to the newly formed Sepahiyan-e Mihan Front’s attack in Badakhshan, the group’s logo has become a subject of debate on social media.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Islamic State Khorasan is the main threat to Central Asia, saying it seeks to use Afghanistan as a base for expansion and the creation of a caliphate.
Alexandre Zouev, acting head of the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, says al-Qaeda remains present in Afghanistan and maintains ties with Taliban officials.
Following an unprecedented attack in Badakhshan, the Taliban sent army chief Fasihuddin Fitrat to Yaftal to lead operations against the newly formed opposition group.
The Taliban police command in Badakhshan has confirmed the fall of Yaftal district, saying district officials were on leave when irresponsible individuals attacked the headquarters overnight.
The newly formed armed group Sepahiyan-e Mihan briefly seized Yaftali Sufla district in Badakhshan, disarmed Taliban forces and used the attack to announce its existence publicly.
The United Nations Development Programme says Turhan Saleh began work as its new representative in Afghanistan on 15 July. He previously served as a senior adviser at UNDP’s Regional Bureau for Arab States.
For the first time since the Taliban returned to power nearly five years ago, armed opponents briefly seized Yaftali Sufla district in Badakhshan on Friday, local sources said.
Anti-Taliban forces attacked a Taliban district headquarters in Badakhshan’s Yaftali Sufla overnight and disarmed the fighters stationed there, local sources told Afghanistan International.
Pakistan says it will not resume normalising relations with the Taliban until militant attacks originating from Afghan territory stop, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Thursday.
UNAMA’s Security Council-mandated priorities will continue under its new chief, including aid coordination, political engagement, mediation, human rights monitoring and reporting on women’s rights.
Taliban Vice and Virtue Minister Khalid Hanafi say the group will not retreat from enforcing Sharia because of negative publicity and claims human rights in Afghanistan are protected under “Islamic principles”.
Taliban Justice Minister Abdul Hakim Sharaei has said some cabinet ministers would quickly start wearing ties if Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada were no longer in power, informed sources said.
Taliban, Iranian and Tajik representatives have signed an agreement in Mashhad to activate a joint road transit route, with the first trial cargo shipment expected within a month.
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has appointed senior Bangladeshi diplomat Rabab Fatima as his new special representative for Afghanistan and head of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan.
Russia says Afghanistan’s humanitarian situation remains dire, with high infant mortality and the spread of polio among Moscow’s main concerns, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Three days after the death of Qatar’s former emir, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi travelled to Doha with a delegation to offer condolences.
The World Health Organization has confirmed four new polio cases in three Afghan provinces over the past week, bringing the country’s total since the start of 2026 to 11.
Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Vahid Jalalzadeh met Taliban governor Mohammad Naeem Akhund in Nangarhar province to discuss expanding bilateral cooperation in trade, agriculture and education.
Sources told Afghanistan International that Taliban intelligence has detained 13 young men in Ghor province over the past two days. The group accused them of links to Afghanistan Green Trend, the political movement led by former Afghan vice-president Amrullah Saleh.