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☆ Pakistani embassy in Kabul attacked, one injured
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A spokesperson for Kabul police said the embassy compound was targeted by gunfire from a nearby building. Pakistan's Foreign Office said the attack had been aimed at the head of mission, Ubaid-ur-Rehman Nizamani. It said Nizamani was safe, but a Pakistani security guard, Sepoy Israr Mohammad, was critically wounded in the attack while protecting the ambassador. A spokesperson for Pakistan's foreign office said they had no plans to evacuate the embassy after the incident. "(The) Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan strongly condemns the attempted shooting and failed attack on the Pakistani embassy in Kabul," spokesperson Abdul Qahar Balkhi said on Twitter, adding that Taliban security agencies would investigate.

☆ Taliban court lashes 14 in latest shift to corporal punishments
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

It was the second confirmation of lashings by the Taliban this month, signalling a possible return to practices common in its hardline rule in the 1990s. The Taliban's supreme spiritual leader met judges this month and said they should carry out punishments consistent with sharia law, according to a court statement. Public lashings and executions by stoning took place under the previous 1996-2001 rule of the Taliban. Such punishments later became rare and were condemned by the foreign-backed Afghan governments that followed, though the death penalty remained legal in Afghanistan. Reporting by Mohammad Yunus Yawar; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Alexandra HudsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Swiss-based trust fund for frozen Afghan assets meets in Geneva
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

GENEVA, Nov 21 (Reuters) - The board of a Swiss-based trust fund managing some $3.5 billion in frozen assets seized after the Taliban took power last year is meeting in Geneva for the first time on Monday, a Swiss government spokesperson confirmed. The frozen central bank reserves were recently transferred from Washington into the 'Fund for the Afghan People' where U.S. officials say it will be shielded from the Taliban. The fund's statutes says its purpose is to "receive, protect, preserve and disburse assets for the benefit of the Afghan people". The $3.5 billion forms part of an original $7 billion being held in the United States following the Taliban takeover in August 2021. Ambassador to Switzerland Scott Miller, Anwar Ahady, a former Afghan central bank chief and former finance minister, and Shah Mehrabi, a U.S. academic who remains on the DAB Supreme Council.

☆ Taliban ban women from parks, morality ministry says
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KABUL, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Afghan women will no longer be allowed in parks, a spokesperson for the Taliban's morality ministry said, in part because they had not been meeting its interpretation of Islamic attire during their visits. "Unfortunately, the owners of parks didn't co-operate with us very well, and also the women didn't observe hijab as was suggested. However, the Taliban have said women should wear long flowing clothes that cover their bodies and also cover their faces, such as the all-enveloping burqa. Some women in Kabul and other urban centres do not cover their faces in public and others wear a surgical face mask. The Taliban say they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law.

☆ Women stopped from entering amusement parks in Afghan capital
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KABUL, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Afghan women were stopped from entering amusement parks in Kabul on Wednesday after the Taliban's morality ministry said there would be restrictions on women being able to access public parks. Bilal Karimi, a deputy spokesperson for the hardline Islamist Taliban administration, did not respond to a request for comment. At a Kabul amusement park containing rides such as bumper cars and a Ferris wheel, Reuters witnesses observed several women being turned away by park officials, with Taliban agents present observing the situation. Two park operators, who asked to remain anonymous to speak on a sensitive matter, said they had been told by Taliban officials not to allow women to enter their parks. The Taliban say they respect women's rights in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic law.

☆ Imran Khan welcomes probe into shooting
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( Mubasher Bukhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LAHORE, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Sunday he welcomed the government's offer to launch a judicial commission to investigate the attack in which he was shot in the leg on Thursday. Former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi will lead the rally in coming weeks in the eastern province of Punjab, Khan said. Khan has accused three people of devising a plan to assassinate him, naming Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah and intelligence official Major-General Faisal Nasser. Sharif on Saturday said that Khan was making "baseless allegations" but that the government had requested the country's chief justice to form a judicial commission to investigate the claims. Reporting by Gibran Peshimam and Mubasher Bukhari; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Hugh LawsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Thursday's activities began at around 8 a.m. when supporters of Khan's PTI party gathered in the streets, with crowds swelling into the thousands throughout the day. "Imran Khan arrived and we welcomed him, we never thought about any attack; people were chanting, workers were dancing,” said PTI supporter and witness Qadir Khan. "I heard a burst of shots after which I saw Imran Khan and his aides fall down on the truck," witness Qazzafi Butt said. In the chaos and confusion touched off by the gunfire, supporters clamoured to know what had happened to Khan. "People chanted that they would lay down their lives for Imran Khan," he added.

☆ United States pledges further $30 million in aid to flood-hit Pakistan
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

ISLAMABAD, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The United States will give Pakistan a further $30 million in aid to help millions of people whose lives were disrupted by severe flooding in recent months, the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad said on Thursday. The funding would take the total in disaster-related assistance from the U.S. to Pakistan this year to $97 million. Pakistani officials have estimated damage from torrential monsoon rains that killed over 1,000 people and displaced tens of millions at more than $40 billion. This month, the United Nations revised up its humanitarian aid appeal for Pakistan five-fold to $816 million from $160 million, as a surge of water-borne diseases and fear of growing hunger posed new dangers after weeks of unprecedented flooding. Reporting by Charlotte Greenfield Editing by Bernadette BaumOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Pakistan ex-PM Khan announces march on capital to call for early elections
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Mubasher Bukhari | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LAHORE, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan announced on Tuesday that he would begin a protest march with his supporters from the eastern city of Lahore to Pakistan's capital Islamabad on Friday to call for early elections. "I am marching to press the government to announce elections immediately," he said, adding his supporters and party members should avoid violence. Last week's ruling has added to the political and economic uncertainty plaguing Pakistan this year. The political instability has also fuelled economic uncertainty, with international ratings agencies questioning if the current government can maintain difficult economic policies in the face of political pressure and looming elections. ($1 = 220.5000 Pakistani rupees)Reporting by Mubasher Bukhari; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; editing by Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Taliban kill six Islamic State members in raid in Afghan capital - spokesman
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KABUL, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Taliban security forces killed six Islamic State members in an overnight operation in the Afghan capital, Kabul, a spokesman for the ruling group's administration said on Saturday. "They were the attackers of the Wazir Akbar Khan mosque and also ... of Kaaj Institute," said Ahmadi, who said one Taliban security force member was killed in the operation. read moreSince the Taliban took over in 2021, they say they have focused on securing the country after decades of war. The Afghan affiliate of Islamic State, known as Islamic State Khorasan, after an old name of the region, are enemies of the Taliban. Fighters loyal to Islamic State first appeared in eastern Afghanistan in 2014, and later made inroads in other areas.

REUTERS/Ali KharaKABUL, Sept 27 (Reuters) - The Taliban have signed a provisional deal with Russia to supply gasoline, diesel, gas and wheat to Afghanistan, Acting Afghan Commerce and Industry Minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters. Azizi said the deal would involve Russia supplying around one million tonnes of gasoline, one million tonnes of diesel, 500,000 tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and two million tonnes of wheat annually. The office of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak, who is in charge of oil and gas, also did not immediately respond. He said Afghanistan also received some gas and oil from Iran and Turkmenistan and had strong trade ties with Pakistan, but also wanted to diversify. The European Union will ban Russian crude imports by Dec. 5 and Russian oil products by Feb. 5.

☆ New Zealand finance minister sees inflation easing but no quick drop
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Lucy Craymer | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

New Zealand's finance minister, Grant Robertson, speaks about the "wellbeing" budget in Wellington, New Zealand, May 30, 2019. REUTERS/Charlotte Greenfield/File PhotoWELLINGTON, Sept 27 (Reuters) - New Zealand's finance minister Grant Robertson said on Tuesday that inflation is likely to moderate but it won't be a quick drop back to the levels that people are used to seeing. "This is a difficult period, but we are looking to see inflation start to trend down from this quarter onwards." He added while things have been tough, there's every reason to be optimistic about the New Zealand economy because it has done pretty well up to this point. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Kim CoghillOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Pakistan's finance minister says he will formally resign from role
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Asif Shahzad | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterMiftah Ismail, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, speaks during an interview with Reuters in Islamabad, Pakistan, September 18, 2022. REUTERS/SalahuddinISLAMABAD, Sept 25 (Reuters) - Pakistan's finance minister Miftah Ismail said on Sunday he planned to formally resign from the role, a change that comes as the country grapples with an economic crisis exacerbated by destructive flooding. "I have verbally resigned as Finance Minister," Ismail said in a Tweet, adding that he had signalled his plans to the country's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during a meeting. Ismail and Sharif are currently in London and due to return to Pakistan early next week. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Asif Shahzad; writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Blast near Kabul mosque after Friday prayers causes casualties
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

KABUL, Sept 23 (Reuters) - A blast near a mosquerocked the Afghan capital on Friday as people were streaming out of afternoon prayers, authorities said, but the number of casualties was not yet known, and there was no immediate claim of responsibility. The explosion was the latest of a deadly series at mosques during Friday prayers in recent months, some of them claimed by the militant group Islamic State. "After prayers, when people wanted to come out from the mosque, a blast happened," said Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran. "All casualties are civilians, the exact number is not clear yet." Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Charlotte Greenfield and Mohammad Yunus Yawar; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky and Clarence FernandezOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Taliban replaces Afghan acting education minister in reshuffle
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Ali KharaKABUL, Sept 20 (Reuters) - The Taliban's supreme leader issued an order on Tuesday announcing a reshuffle of several national and provincial positions, including replacing the acting education minister. Acting education minister Noorullah Munir would be replaced in the role by the head of Kandahar's provincial council, Maulvi Habibullah Agha. Afghanistan's education system has been in the spotlight since the Taliban took over the country just over a year ago. The group had largely banned education of girls when last in power two decades ago but had said its policies had changed. Taliban and diplomatic sources told Reuters that last week several ministers had gathered in Kandahar for a cabinet meeting led by the supreme leader.

☆ Taliban release American engineer Frerichs in prisoner swap
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Mohammad Yunus Yawar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Noorzai was detained by the United States on suspicion of smuggling more than $50 million worth of heroin into the United States and Europe. Frerichs is an engineer and U.S. Navy veteran from Lombard, Illinois, who worked in Afghanistan for a decade on development projects. The United States has no official representation in Afghanistan and U.S. government officials elsewhere were not immediately available for comment. The United States has been pushing for the release of Frerichs, including after the Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021, as U.S.-led foreign forces were withdrawing. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Mohammad Yunus Yawar; Writing by Charlotte Greenfield; Editing by Toby ChopraOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Taliban test repaired helicopters, planes in flyover of capital
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-17 | by ( Mohammad Yunus Yawar | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

KABUL, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Taliban military aircraft roared over the Afghan capital on Wednesday as the group's defence ministry tested out recently repaired hardware, much of it left behind by foreign militaries and acquired since the Taliban seized power a year ago. Aircraft, including helicopters and at least one plane, flew low over Kabul skies near the airport, including what appeared to be at least one Russian-made MI-24 attack helicopter and two other American-made aircraft. A defence ministry spokesperson, Enayatullah Khowarazmi, told Reuters the Taliban had recently repaired some helicopters and were conducting the flyovers as a test. The defence ministry also said in a statement that its engineering team had recently repaired 35 tanks, 15 Humvee armoured vehicles and 20 U.S.-produced Navistar 7000 military vehicles. Some of the aircraft were flown into neighbouring Central Asian countries by fleeing Afghan forces a year ago, but the Taliban inherited left-over aircraft.

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