The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that by last month, only $269 million, or 16% of the $1.71 billion required for humanitarian aid in Afghanistan this year, had been secured.
Syed Atif Raza, Pakistan’s diplomat at the UN, warned at a United Nations meeting that stockpiles of advanced weapons and ammunition in Afghanistan pose a security threat.
Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said support by the Afghan Taliban administration for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants remains unchanged, warning that contradictory messages from Taliban officials cannot be trusted.
On 21 May 2016, Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, the leader of the Taliban, was killed alongside his driver on the outskirts of Ahmad Wal, a town in Pakistan’s Balochistan province.
Pakistan has dismissed a warning reportedly issued by the Taliban leader to Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as insufficient, saying the main problem remains the lack of verifiable action by the Taliban against militant groups.
Russia’s special envoy for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, said the military agreement between Russia and the Taliban focuses on repairing Russian-made equipment and could pave the way for future defence contracts between the two sides.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said in Islamabad that conflict between Pakistan and the Taliban has had serious humanitarian consequences and increased the risk of further instability and extremism in the region.
Following the signing of a military-technical cooperation agreement between Russia and the Taliban, the head of Russia’s trade centre in Afghanistan said companies from Tatarstan could repair and refurbish military equipment used by the Taliban.
The Taliban’s Justice Ministry announced that a new law on the assessment of movable and immovable assets of absent persons has been published following approval by Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
Former Taliban prisoner Zarifa Yaqobi said she and her colleagues experienced various forms of torture and forced confessions in Taliban intelligence prisons, adding that she is still struggling with the psychological impact of her detention.
Sources told Afghanistan International that Mirza Katawazai, a former deputy speaker of Afghanistan’s parliament, has been detained at Washington Dulles International Airport after travelling to Afghanistan while holding a US green card.
After returning from Moscow, Taliban Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoob said Pakistan would soon no longer dare attack Afghan territory, adding that implementation of a military cooperation agreement between the Taliban and Russia would begin shortly.
Documents obtained by Afghanistan International show the Taliban has launched new websites for embassies and consulates under its control, replacing the name “Islamic Republic of Afghanistan” and the national flag with group’s symbols.
Mostafa Taati-Moghaddam, head of Iran’s Anzali Free Zone Organisation, said the first 5,000-tonne fuel shipment from Russia has arrived at Iran’s Caspian Port and will be transported to Afghanistan by rail.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry says Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar raised Islamabad’s concerns with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio over terrorist groups using Afghan soil against Pakistan during a meeting in Washington on Friday.
Patients, pharmacists and health workers in Kandahar say medicine prices have risen sharply after border closures and the Taliban’s ban on pharmaceutical imports from Pakistan, leaving some essential medicines scarce or entirely unavailable.
Taliban Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid said at an international security conference in Moscow that the Taliban administration needs a professional defence system to ensure Afghanistan’s security and contribute positively to regional stability.
The US State Department said it is time for the Taliban to play a constructive role in supporting the health and wellbeing of Afghans, amid growing UN concerns over Afghanistan’s worsening food crisis.
Vasily Osmakov, Russia's deputy minister of defence, met Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid, the Taliban's defence minister, in Moscow on Thursday to discuss regional security and prospects for bilateral military cooperation.
United Nations Security Council says Taliban officials and fighters committed sexual violence against women, with United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan documenting 21 cases involving 15 women and six girls in 2025.
Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, the Taliban's defence minister, says Afghanistan’s Hindu and Sikh minorities have the right to return home and should feel a sense of ownership and belonging in the country.