Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says NATO first used the Afghanistan war as a reason to keep the alliance alive, and that the end of its presence there was a disaster, with its forces ultimately fleeing the country.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs in Afghanistan says the Netherlands has contributed $18.29 million to support people in need, saying sustained donor support helps ensure access to lifesaving services.
The Canadian government has issued a strong warning urging its citizens not to travel to Afghanistan, saying the security situation remains highly volatile and dangerous.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says it recorded at least 30 incidents of Taliban interference with humanitarian activities in the past month, including the detention of two aid workers in Herat.
The United Nations says Afghanistan’s child hunger crisis is worsening, with 3.7 million children suffering from acute wasting caused by malnutrition. Around one million of them face a severe and life-threatening form of malnutrition.
Pakistani sources say security forces killed 15 Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan members on Wednesday in the Ghulam Khan border area of North Waziristan as they allegedly attempted to enter Pakistan from Afghanistan.
The Taliban’s Security and Clearance Affairs Commission says it held a meeting chaired by Defence Minister Mullah Yaqoob Mujahid to assess Afghanistan’s security situation, which the group described as reassuring.
Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman says Islamabad welcomes China’s role in Afghanistan and its efforts to ease tensions but says Beijing’s mediation will not succeed unless the Taliban changes its relationship with Pakistani insurgent groups.
The US State Department has rejected the Taliban’s call for American investment in Afghanistan, telling Voice of America that Washington has no plans to engage with the group on critical mineral development.
The European Union has allocated €10 million for a programme in Afghanistan aimed at supporting livelihoods, creating economic opportunities and strengthening communities’ resilience to crises. The 36-month programme will operate in 10 provinces.
Ukraine’s Foreign Intelligence Service has criticised Belarus for hosting a Taliban delegation and seeking closer economic ties, saying Minsk has reduced diplomacy to the level of “terrorists”.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said the group’s Defence Ministry carried out 602 independent and joint operations with the Interior Ministry and intelligence agency this year, claiming they disrupted complex enemy plots and dismantled opposition networks.
Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid says demonstrations belong to democratic systems and have no place in Islamic law. A recently approved Taliban police law bans all demonstrations across Afghanistan.
Russian President Vladimir Putin told Tajik President Emomali Rahmon on Tuesday that Moscow is aware of Dushanbe’s concerns over Afghanistan and remains in close contact with Tajikistan on security issues related to the country.
Afghanistan holds some of the region’s largest mineral reserves, including copper, iron, gold, lapis lazuli, emeralds, chromite and other precious stones.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif told the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek on Tuesday that lasting regional peace would remain impossible while terrorist groups use Afghan territory to attack Pakistan and other neighbours.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has called for the group’s participation in Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meetings, saying Afghanistan is important to the region economically, politically, socially and in terms of security.
The Taliban’s ambassador in Islamabad says the group understands Pakistan’s concerns about potential threats from Afghan soil and does not want Afghanistan used against Pakistan but said such concerns should not justify military action inside Afghanistan.
A shortage of medical staff, particularly female specialists, has become a serious problem in southern Afghanistan. Afghanistan International found no female specialists in Helmand, Zabul or Uruzgan, and only three in Kandahar.
Leaders of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation member states have called for an inclusive government in Afghanistan involving all ethnic and political groups, saying it is the only path to lasting peace in the country.
The Afghanistan United Front says it carried out at least 43 operations against the Taliban in 14 provinces over the past month, claiming 74 Taliban members were killed and 35 others wounded.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit that peace and stability in Eurasia are closely linked to Afghanistan, adding that India will continue providing development assistance to Afghans.