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Afghanistan after the US withdrawal

US Marines at Hamid Karzai International Airport during the 2021 Afghanistan withdrawal. File photo: US Marine Corps via Reuters

Republicans accuse Biden team of lying about 2021 Afghanistan pull-out

House Republican report cites US Vice-President Kamala Harris as she seeks the presidency against Donald Trump.

House Republican report cites US Vice-President Kamala Harris as she seeks the presidency against Donald Trump

9 Sep 2024 - 12:03PM

Harris says Trump ‘disrespected sacred ground’ at US military cemetery

1 Sep 2024 - 9:38AM

Germany deports 28 Afghan nationals, the first since 2021 Taliban takeover

30 Aug 2024 - 7:51PM

Taliban reject UN concerns over laws banning women’s voices and faces in public

The Taliban urge ‘thorough understanding’ of Islamic sharia law after UN criticism about the rights of women and girls.

27 Aug 2024 - 3:57PM

Burka-clad Afghan women walk on a road in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Photo: EPA-EFE

Taliban codify morality laws requiring Afghan women to cover faces

The Taliban suspended Afghanistan’s previous constitution when they took over in 2021 as foreign forces withdrew, and said they would rule the country according to sharia law.

24 Aug 2024 - 11:00AM

Philippines to host Afghans awaiting resettlement in US

Manila’s Department of Foreign Affairs did not provide details of how many Afghans would be allowed to stay in the Philippines.

20 Aug 2024 - 12:52PM

Former Afghan president Karzai calls for girls and women to be educated

Karzai emphasised importance of women’s education. Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban has banned girls from studying beyond primary school.

19 Aug 2024 - 3:04AM

Hamid Karzai, former Afghan president. Photo: EPA-EFE

Afghan copper mine holds promise for Taliban, tempered expectations for China

As work begins on a long-delayed, multibillion-dollar project, Chinese officials remain cautious, while economic hopes rise in war-torn country.

25 Jul 2024 - 11:55PM

Pakistan vows ‘no cake and pastries’ for TTP militants, heeding China’s warning

China’s warning that further investment hinges on an improved security situation likely acted as a catalyst, analysts say.

7 Jul 2024 - 6:00PMvideocam

Taliban told to ‘include women’ in public life during UN talks in Qatar

The Taliban has imposed a strict interpretation of Islam in Afghanistan, with women subjected to laws characterised by the UN as ‘gender apartheid’.

2 Jul 2024 - 5:26AMvideocam

The Taliban’s government spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. Mujahid is attending UN-convened talks in Doha, Qatar. Photo: EPA-EFE

Afghanistan to take gender-balanced team for first summer Games since Taliban

Taliban government has imposed curbs on women and girls condemned by the United Nations as ‘gender apartheid’ and has not been recognised by any country since its 2021 takeover.

19 Jun 2024 - 1:27AM

Afghanistan will take an equal number of male and female athletes to compete at the Paris Olympics. Photo: DPA

Afghan Taliban government says to attend next round of UN talks in Doha

A delegation will attend as the talks’ agenda appears ‘beneficial to Afghanistan’, but civil society groups criticise lack of focus on women’s rights.

16 Jun 2024 - 11:00PMvideocam

Opinion | China and South Asia must solve regional tensions to fight terrorism

The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s efforts against terrorism will not work unless diverging security interests among member states are addressed. India and Afghanistan’s alleged support of attacks in Pakistan and border clashes are holding back economic integration and security cooperation.

30 May 2024 - 5:53AMvideocam

Russia invites Taliban to economic forum, as ties with West worsen over Ukraine

The St Petersburg forum, which once hosted Western CEOs and investment bankers, has changed significantly amid the Ukraine war, which has triggered a crisis in Russia’s relations with the West.

27 May 2024 - 6:52PMvideocam

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends the plenary session of The St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June 2023. Photo: EPA-EFE/Handout/RIA

Male poets praise Afghan leaders as female poets silenced, women sidelined

A poetry reading in Afghanistan featured a male-only line-up, reading pro-Taliban verses; the government-organised event excluded female poets and banned women from attending.

27 May 2024 - 10:40PM

Samiullah Hamas recites poetry at the Purple Flower Poetry Festival, in Charikar district, Parwan Province, Afghanistan. The event featured a male-only line-up reading pro-Taliban verses to a male-only audience. Women poets, like other women, have been silenced. Photo: AFP

Opinion | Why China should step up aid to Afghanistan

The Taliban has been accused of being slow to act on deadly flash floods that have killed more than 300 and left 40,000 children homeless. Also vulnerable to climate change, China can share its experience in mitigating floods with Afghanistan and increase aid to help the country rebuild

20 May 2024 - 4:35PMvideocam

Islamic State claims deadly Afghanistan attack on tourists

Friday’s attack was among the most serious targeting foreign citizens since foreign forces left and the Taliban took over in 2021.

20 May 2024 - 11:43AMvideocam

‘I lost everything’: over 300 dead in Afghanistan flash floods, says UN

Authorities and non-governmental groups have deployed rescuers and aid, warning that some areas have been cut off.

12 May 2024 - 9:48PMvideocam

An Afghan boy shovels mud from the courtyard of a house in the Baghlan-e-Markazi district of Baghlan province. Hundreds of people are thought to have died in the nation after flash floods on Friday. Photo: AFP

Holiday in Afghanistan? The Taliban are working to woo tourists

In 2021, there were 691 foreign tourists. In 2022, that figure rose to 2,300. Last year, there were 7,000. The numbers aren’t huge – but there’s a buzz around Afghan tourism.

30 Apr 2024 - 1:14PM

‘Empowered generation’: to bypass Taliban work bans, Afghan women turn to YouTube

YouTube channels not only provide income, but also serve as a means for women to communicate their messages, experiences and aspirations, one analyst said.

17 Apr 2024 - 8:02PMvideocam

Asia’s terrorism surge: Isis-K awakens sleeper cells in deadly strategy shift

Using Afghanistan as a homebase, Isis cells have hit targets in Russia, Pakistan, Iran and Turkey this year. Baloch separatists have also stepped up their attacks on Chinese interests in South Asia.

1 Apr 2024 - 12:40PMvideocam

A Russian soldier secures the area as a massive blaze burns in the Crocus City Hall concert venue on March 22 following a deadly attack claimed by Isis. Photo: AP

Top former US generals blame Biden administration for chaotic Kabul exit

The top two US generals who oversaw the evacuation of Afghanistan as it fell in 2021 told lawmakers that the Biden administration inadequately planned for the evacuation and did not order it in time.

20 Mar 2024 - 5:00PM

The last American soldier to leave Afghanistan in 2021 was General Chris Donahue. File photo: TNS

‘Grave threat’: Pakistan justifies air strikes on Taliban rebels in Afghanistan

Monday’s operation targeted the Hafiz Gul Bahadur militant faction, which claimed responsibility for the attack on a military outpost that left seven soldiers dead.

18 Mar 2024 - 11:17PM

UN ‘appalled’ by public executions in Afghanistan

Afghanistan’s Taliban government publicly executed three convicted murderers in the past week at sports stadiums as thousands watched.

29 Feb 2024 - 12:05PM

Taliban release 84-year-old Austrian who liked to visit ‘dangerous’ places

Herbert Fritz travelled to Afghanistan last year and published an article titled ‘Vacations with the Taliban’. He was arrested shortly afterwards on suspicion of espionage.

26 Feb 2024 - 11:45AM

Austrian far-right activist Herbert Fitz after arriving in Doha, Qatar. Photo: AFP

Opinion | Taliban has a choice: renounce al-Qaeda or remain in isolation

The world is willing to negotiate with the Taliban and help solve Afghanistan’s problems but, first, the de facto rulers must cut ties with al-Qaeda and address rising terrorism.

25 Feb 2024 - 9:17AMvideocam

Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hasan Akhund (left) welcomes China’s new ambassador to Afghanistan Zhao Sheng during the recognition ceremony at the Presidential Palace, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on September 13, 2023. China has told the Taliban it needs to “take stronger measures to counter various terrorist forces within Afghanistan”. Photo: Handout

Opinion | Gaza, Ukraine, TikTok: US double standards are eroding its global power

From US support for Israel in Gaza to Biden’s turnaround on using TikTok for his re-election campaign, America’s breathtakingly transparent double standards are killing its credibility.

22 Feb 2024 - 6:00AMvideocam

Why China is wary of opening up Afghanistan’s new road to Xinjiang

Observers said the Taliban’s hopes that the completed project will become a link to China’s vast network are unlikely to be shared by Beijing.

27 Jan 2024 - 11:44AMvideocam

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Afghanistan after the US withdrawal

US President Joe Biden committed to withdrawing US troops from Afghanistan by August 31, 2021. The deadline was set after the Taliban took control of the country, seizing the capital city of Kabul as the Afghan government under President Ashraf Ghani dissolved on August 15. The Biden administration had initially announced a full withdrawal of troops by 11 September 2021 – 20 years after the 9/11 terror attacks.

last updated:

9 September, 2024