Taliban’s foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi left Kabul for Samarkand to participate in the meeting of foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighbouring countries on Thursday morning.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban spokesperson, said that “two rebels” have been killed in an operation by the group’s special forces in District 8 of Kabul on Wednesday. Mujahid, however, didn’t provide more details about the identity of those killed.
The National Resistance Council for Salvation of Afghanistan has urged participants of Samarkand meeting to pressurise the Taliban. In an open letter, the Council has called the Taliban a global threat and urged regional countries to support Afghans to overthrow the group.
Sources told Afghanistan International that Sakhidad Sangin, a university professor, has been released from Taliban detention in Badakhshan. Sangin, a university professor in Badakhshan province, had been arrested on March 26 for the second time.
The Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said that the ban on Afghan women’s work is a domestic issue in Afghanistan and urged all stakeholders to respect it. Mujahid also blamed “those behind banking restrictions responsible for the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan”.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) announced that funding for the Afghanistan is drying up and is putting millions of lives at risk. On Wednesday, OCHA stressed that the food basket has had to be cut in half in Afghanistan.
Thomas West, United States Special Representative for Afghanistan, began a visit to the region on Wednesday and will meet with Afghans in Turkey, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. In Turkey, West will meet with Afghan political figures and civil society members.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Tuesday that Beijing seeks to strengthen the consensus of neighbouring countries on the situation in Afghanistan at the fourth meeting of foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighbours in Uzbekistan.
Taliban arrested Sakhidad Sangin, a university professor in Badakhshan province, on March 26 for the second time and have kept him in custody since the last 15 days. According to sources close to Sangin’s family, charges regarding his detentions have not been revealed yet.
United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) in a statement on Tuesday said that it has initiated an operational review period in Afghanistan till May 5 following Taliban’s ban on women working at UN offices.
Abdul Hamid Khorasani, the district chief of Ahmadabad in Paktia province, claimed that Akmal Amiri, a leading anti-Taliban commander, and eight members of the resistance forces have been killed in Shotul district of Panjshir province.
The Jamiat-e-Islami party called for a review of the performance of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA). The party called UNAMA an organisation which covers up the flaws of the Taliban and stressed that the UN must restore its neutrality in Afghanistan.
At least 130 members of the US Congress have urged the European Union to designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation. The members of the US Congress said that IRGC has carried out plots to target EU citizens.
The family of the detained author and university professor Zakaria Usoli confirmed to Afghanistan International that he had been released from the Taliban’s detention on Monday. Usoli had been arrested by the Taliban in February from the Khairkhana area of Kabul city.
The Taliban government reacted to the Israeli military attack on Palestinian worshipers at the Al-Aqsa Mosque and called it a "crime against humanity". The Taliban condemned the attack and called on Muslims to support the "Palestinian cause".
Former Afghan female judge Marzia Babakarkhail has launched a petition to submit to the UK Parliament demanding support to evacuate and resettle female judges from Afghanistan. Babakarkhail said that she is concerned for the safety of her colleagues in Afghanistan.
Sources told Afghanistan International that during the recent meeting of the UN Security Council, the representatives of China, Russia, and Pakistan urged for engagement with the Taliban and said that pressurising the group is futile.
Former Afghan vice-president, Amrullah Saleh, said that there is no mention of Taliban’s atrocities in the report of the US government about withdrawal from Afghanistan. Saleh said that in the report, there has been no expression of regret for the destruction of Afghan society.
Taliban-controlled Bakhtar news agency reported that the Taliban have destroyed an Islamic State – Khorasan (IS-K) hideout in Parwan province. According to Bakhtar, one person has been killed and three women and eight children have been arrested by Taliban during the operation.
Taliban-controlled Bakhtar News Agency reported that Cihad Erginay, Turkish ambassador in Kabul, announced that his country will build schools across Afghanistan. The issue has been discussed during a meeting of Taliban’s minister of education and Turkish ambassador in Kabul.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s spokesperson, announced new appointments for several government positions. The new appointments include governors for Wardak and Ghazni provinces and police chiefs of Balkh and Kunduz provinces.