Badakhshan Emerges as Flashpoint of Anti-Taliban Resistance Ahead of Fifth Anniversary of Taliban Rule
FAIZABAD — As the Taliban approaches the fifth anniversary of its return to power on…
Badakhshan Emerges as Flashpoint of Anti-Taliban Resistance Ahead of Fifth Anniversary of Taliban Rule
FAIZABAD — As the Taliban approaches the fifth anniversary of its return to power on August 15, the mountainous northeastern province of Badakhshan has become the country’s most active center of armed resistance, with a rapid succession of attacks, a brief district seizure, internal Taliban defections, and a growing weapons-smuggling dispute with Pakistan. A New…
Devastating Flash Floods Strike Nuristan: Over 23 Dead and 100 Missing as Climate Crisis Intensifies
PARUN — Torrential monsoon-driven flash floods swept through eastern Afghanistan’s Nuristan province on Monday, July 20, 2026, leaving at least 23 people dead, more than 80 injured, and around 100 individuals unaccounted for. The sudden deluge wiped out entire neighborhoods, markets, and municipal infrastructure across the mountainous province. The worst-hit area was Parun, the provincial…
Pentagon Identifies Two US Soldiers Killed Following Iranian Attacks in Jordan
WASHINGTON — The United States Department of Defense has officially released the identities and photographs of two American service members killed following a series of Iranian drone and ballistic missile strikes on a military installation in Jordan. The Pentagon confirmed on Monday that the fallen active-duty soldiers are Private Isabella Gonzales, 19, of Carrollton, Texas,…
Taliban Morality Police Detain Five Women in Growing Dress-Code Campaign
HERAT — The Taliban’s Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice has intensified its domestic campaign against civilian independence in western Afghanistan, detaining at least five women in the city of Herat over a 48-hour period. According to verified reports from local eye-witnesses and independent regional monitors, the arbitrary detentions occurred…
The Normalization Blueprint: How the Brussels Talks Mirror the Flawed Legacy of the Doha Agreement
BRUSSELS — History is repeating itself in the corridors of Western diplomacy, this time under a European banner. The European Union’s decision to invite five-member Taliban delegation to Brussels marks a profound diplomatic shift that mirrors the controversial architecture of the 2020 US-Taliban Doha talks. While separated by six years and different primary agendas, both…
Unconfirmed Explosion Reported in Kabul
KABUL — Residents in the capital city reported hearing the sound of a large explosion on Monday afternoon, June 29, 2026. Initial visual reports, including video footage surfaced by Afghanistan International, show a thick column of dark smoke and fire rising from an undisclosed urban section of the city. The exact location, the nature of…
Inside the EU’s Controversial, First-Ever Taliban Summit in Brussels
BRUSSELS — The European Union has crossed a major diplomatic threshold by quietly hosting a five-member delegation of Taliban officials at its headquarters in Brussels. This marks the first time since the August 2021 takeover that representatives of the unrecognized fundamentalist regime have been received directly on EU soil. The secret talks have sparked intense…
EU Hosts Taliban Officials for First Time in Brussels for Controversial Deportation Talks
BRUSSELS — The European Union hosted a five-member Taliban delegation in Brussels on Tuesday, marking the first time the de facto Afghan authorities have been received for official talks at the EU headquarters since seizing power in 2021. The high-stakes meeting has ignited a fierce backlash from human rights groups and international activists who warn…
Berlin Reportedly Agrees to Accept Six Additional Taliban Diplomats Following Secret Istanbul Talks
BERLIN — The German government has reportedly agreed to allow six additional Taliban diplomats into the country following a multi-day confidential meeting with representatives of the de facto Afghan authorities in Istanbul. The development was first uncovered by the German public broadcaster NDR, indicating a significant practical shift in Berlin’s engagement with Kabul. According to…
UNICEF Reaffirms Vital Role of Polio Vaccination Campaigns Across Afghanistan
KABUL, The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has issued a renewed call emphasizing that widespread vaccination remains the single most effective mechanism to safeguard children against poliomyelitis in Afghanistan. In a public statement released on its official X platform on Monday, June 22, the international children’s agency underscored that while polio has no cure, it…
