Page 2 - Afghanistan

Taliban reaches out to India, embassy to train Afghan diplomats in Kabul

India plans to hold a four-day training programme for Afghan Foreign Ministry officials in Kabul beginning Tuesday

4.3 magnitude earthquake hits Afghanistan: National Center for Seismology

An earthquake of magnitude 4.3 hit Afghanistan on Sunday, according to the National Center for Seismology (NCS)."Earthquake of Magnitude: 4.3, Occurred on 12-03-2023, 05:11:37 IST, Lat: 36.02 & Long: 70.58, Depth: 201 Km," NCS tweeted on Sunday.The quake struck at a depth of 201 kilometres, at a latitude of 36.02 and a longitude of 70.58.Further details awaited.

US envoy to UN raises concern over ban on female education in Afghanistan

"We worked hard and learned a lot; we have goals and ambitions, and it is vital that our schools be opened in order to accomplish our educational dreams," said Husna, a student in the eleventh grade

Bomb kills 3, including provincial governor, in Afghanistan: Taliban

A bomb killed a Taliban-appointed provincial governor and two others in Afghanistan's Mazar-e- Sharif on Thursday, a Taliban police spokesman said. The explosion killed Daud Muzmal and two others inside the governor's office in Mazar-e Sharif, the capital of Balkh province, according to Mohammad Asif Waziri, the Taliban appointed spokesman for local police chief. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but the regional affiliate of the Islamic State group known as the Islamic State in Khorasan Province is a key rival of the Taliban. The militant group has increased its attacks in Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover of the country in August 2021. Targets have included Taliban patrols and members of Afghanistan's Shiite minority.

Two-thirds of Afghan people will need humanitarian aid, says UN envoy

Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Afghanistan, said that 28 mn people, accounting for two-thirds of the population, will need life-saving humanitarian assistance

Afghanistan's territory should not be used for sheltering terrorist: India

In a veiled attack on Pakistan, India, said that Afghanistan's territory should not be used for sheltering, training, planning or financing terrorist acts

India to send 20,000 MT of wheat to Afghanistan via Iran's Chabahar port

India and five central Asian countries on Tuesday asserted that Afghanistan's soil must not be used for any terrorist activities and called for formation of a "truly inclusive" political structure in Kabul that respects rights of all Afghans including women and minorities. At the first meeting of the India-Central Asia joint working group on Afghanistan, New Delhi also announced a fresh tranche of assistance of 20,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan and the consignments will be sent through the Chabahar Port in Iran. The situation in the war-ravaged country came up for extensive deliberations at the first meeting of the India-Central Asia joint working group on Afghanistan that took place in Delhi. A joint statement said the meeting emphasized the importance of formation of a "truly inclusive and representative political structure" that respects the rights of all Afghans and ensures equal rights of women, girls and members of minority groups, including access to education. In

Taliban govt annuls divorces, forces women to return to abusive husbands

The Taliban government adheres to an austere interpretation of Islam and has imposed severe restrictions on women's lives that the United Nations (UN) called "gender-based apartheid"

LIVE: Country, citizens are priority for BJP, says PM Modi

Catch all the latest updates from across the globe here

Earthquake of 4.1-magnitude, 245 km depth hits Afghanistan's Fayzabad: NCS

An earthquake of magnitude 4.1 occurred 267 kms east northeast of Fayzabad, Afghanistan on Thursday at 02"Earthquake of Magnitude:4.1, Occurred on 02-03-2023, 02:35:57 IST, Lat: 37.73 & Long: 73.47, Depth: 245 Km ,Location: 267km ENE of Fayzabad, Afghanistan," NCS tweeted on Thursday.The quake struck at a depth of 245 kilometres at a latitude of 37.73 and a longitude of 73.47.Further details awaited.

LIVE updates: Jasprit Bumrah to miss IPL 2023, may require back surgery

Catch all the latest developments from across the world. Stay tuned

Earthquake of 4.1 magnitude hits Afghanistan, strikes at depth of 10 km

An earthquake of magnitude 4.1 occurred in Afghanistan at on Tuesday, according to the National Center for Seismology (NCS)."Earthquake of Magnitude: 4.1, Occurred on 28-02-2023, 04:05:22 IST, Lat: 36.38 & Long: 70.94, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Afghanistan," NCS tweeted on Sunday.The quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometres, at a latitude of 36.38 and a longitude of 70.94.Further details awiated.

Pakistan-Afghan border crossing shut after brief reopening: Officials

Pakistan shut down a key border crossing with Afghanistan just hours after it was reopened on Thursday, officials said, the latest twist in the controversial closure of the Torkham junction that started earlier this week. The issue of the crossing, a key trade route for both Afghanistan and Pakistan, has added to increasing tensions between the two countries, which share a troubled and volatile boundary. Afghanistan's Taliban rulers on Sunday closed the crossing, claiming Islamabad was not abiding by an agreement with Kabul to allow Afghan patients and their caretakers to cross into Pakistan without travel documents for medical care. On Monday, Afghan Taliban forces and Pakistani border guards exchanged fire, which wounded a Pakistani soldier. On Wednesday, Pakistan's defence minister, Khawaja Mohammad Asif, and secret service chief, Lt. Gen. Anjum Nadeem, travelled to Kabul and met senior Taliban officials to discuss the border issue. On Thursday morning, Torkham was reopened by .

Afghanistan's Taliban reopen key trade route with Pakistan: Report

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers reopened a key border crossing with Pakistan on Thursday, allowing thousands of trucks carrying desperately needed food and other items to creep forward for the first time in days, officials said. The jam at the Torkham crossing between the two nations began to ease after Islamabad sent a high-level delegation to Kabul to discuss a range of issues, including the Taliban's closure of the border on Sunday. Taliban-appointed officials in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province confirmed the reopening of the Torkham border. The Afghan embassy in Pakistan also posted news of the reopening on Twitter. Thousands of vehicles, some carrying fresh produce like vegetables and fruit, began moving along the Khyber Pass in northwest Pakistan on Thursday, said Ziaul Haq Sarhadi, a director at the Pakistan-Afghanistan joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The latest development comes a day after Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif made an unannounced visit to .

Afghan Taliban promises to help Pak address threat posed by TTP: Report

The Afghan Taliban leaders have promised to cooperate with Pakistan on its concerns about the presence of the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) militants and sanctuaries on their soil after Islamabad delivered a stark warning to them to rein in the outlawed outfit amid a rise in terror attacks across the country. The promise came during a day-long trip by a high-level Pakistani delegation led by Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif to Kabul on Wednesday, amidst the worsening of ties between the two neighbours over the issue, according to a media report. Pakistan's Foreign Office said the growing TTP and IS-K threat was discussed and the two sides agreed to collaborate to effectively address the threat of terrorism. The delegation included ISI Chief Lt Gen Nadeem Anjum, Foreign Secretary Asad Majid, Special Envoy on Afghanistan Muhammad Sadiq and Pakistan's charg d'affaires in Afghanistan Obaid Nizamani. The visit took place days after the TTP gunmen raided the police headquarters

Ahmad Shah Massoud, guerilla extraordinaire

Mr Gall paints a vivid picture of Massoud as a guerilla leader - someone who is precise and methodical in his approach and whose decision making is clinical and rarely driven by impulse or sentiment

Taliban asks int'l community to recognise 'Islamic Emirate' of Afghanistan

Taliban has called on the international community to recognise the "Islamic Emirate" of Afghanistan, claiming that if recognised, concerns and complaints of the world will be addressed in a better way

Afghanistan's Taliban govt shuts down main border point with Pakistan

The Afghan Taliban commissioner for Torkham said the border point had been closed down for travel and transit trade

China to become Afghan's second-largest trade partner in 2023 after Pak

China's trade with Afghanistan has been growing fast and it may become the second-largest trading nation with Afghanistan in 2023 after Pakistan, a situation that bodes well for the continuation of the CPEC part of the Belt & Road Initiative into Afghanistan, as per Silk Road Briefing (SRB).Silk Road Briefing provides global and regional intelligence to assist and monitor infrastructure, geopolitical, and structural developments, along with foreign investment opportunities along China's Belt and Road Initiative.According to China customs data, in December 2022, China imported goods worth USD 9.09 million from Afghanistan and exported goods worth USD 59 million, resulting in a positive trade balance for China of USD 49.9 million, the SRB reported.If these figures are projected as the 2023 average, then this would result in a bilateral trade figure of USD 816 million. Pakistan, currently the largest Afghani trade partner, achieved bilateral trade of USD 1.513 billion in 2022, ...

Avalanches, flash flood destroy 20 houses in northern Afghanistan

Calling for providing assistances to the affected families, the official warned that overlooking the miseries of the disaster-affected families would lead to a tragedy in the ill-fated village