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Local sources in Herat say Taliban morality police detained at least three women in the Bakrabad area of Herat on Tuesday evening.

Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the UN secretary-general, said there was currently no movement among member states towards recognising the Taliban.

A Taliban official has warned that members of the group are again prepared to carry out suicide operations amid increased activity by armed opposition groups.

Abdul Hai Qanit, head of the Taliban Foreign Ministry’s Centre for Strategic Studies, has urged vigilance over regional developments following the recent conflict between Iran and the United States.

A Fatemiyoun Division commander told Afghanistan International on Tuesday that he and hundreds of fighters under his command were ready to fight the Taliban.

Vasile Tofan, Moldova’s prime minister, called the arrival of a Taliban Agriculture Ministry delegation shameful and unacceptable, blaming an assessment error and institutional failure.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said no assessment of Afghanistan would be complete or fair without an official representative of the group at the United Nations.

Residents of Helmand say Taliban morality police have intensified pressure on women over dress-code rules, detaining more than 10 women in the past week for allegedly failing to observe the required hijab.

Moldova’s Foreign Ministry confirmed on Monday that it had issued visas to a Taliban Agriculture Ministry delegation but stressed that this did not amount to recognising the Taliban government.

The United Front of Afghanistan says it killed a Taliban intelligence member in Qaisar district of Faryab during its latest operation.

Christina Markus Lassen, Denmark’s UN ambassador and Security Council president for August, called the fifth anniversary of the Taliban’s return to power a “rather grim anniversary”.

Credible sources in the Taliban’s Justice Ministry say the commission for recovering seized land plans to review Hazara and Shia townships and properties across several Afghan provinces.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has welcomed recent remarks by Iran’s deputy ambassador in Kabul about armed opponents of the group, saying they reflect the wishes of the Afghan people.

Sources told Afghanistan International that Abdul Karim Abbasi, the former head of Panjshir’s provincial council, has been released after spending two years and five months in Taliban custody.

Amid increased military activity by opposition groups, the Taliban said on Sunday, 2 August, that it had recruited 547 new personnel across seven Afghan provinces.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid says the group has suspended operations at some mines in Badakhshan while it reviews extraction guidelines, citing illegal mining, disorder and the seizure of mining sites.

As the fifth anniversary of the Taliban’s return approaches, Human Rights Watch says Afghanistan faces one of the world’s gravest human rights and humanitarian crises.

Residents of Badakhshan say Taliban forces opened fire on protesters in Yaftal-e Payeen district on Saturday, causing casualties. The exact number of dead and wounded remains unknown.

Mohammad Rahmati, managing director of private broadcaster Tamadon TV, and network employee Mohammad Reza Ehsani have been released from Taliban custody, sources say.

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.

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.