Afghanistan’s tumultuous landscape has been further shaped by the return to power of the Taliban in August 2021. The return marked a pivotal moment in the country’s history. Since their resurgence, the Taliban have imposed stringent policies that have significantly impacted the sociopolitical fabric of Afghanistan. The evolving dynamics of the narcotics trade and the … Read more
The two-day meeting of regional and national special envoys for Afghanistan convened by the U.N. Secretary General António Guterres in Doha ended on February 19 with consensus among the participants over “what needs to happen.” But there was almost no unanimity about how the international community should engage with the Taliban. The Taliban continue to … Read more
On January 29, in an unprecedented move, the Taliban regime in Afghanistan organized its first international conference since its capture of Kabul in 2021. Dubbed the Regional Cooperation Initiative, the multilateral meeting aimed at “establishing a region-centric narrative aimed at developing regional cooperation for a positive and constructive engagement between Afghanistan and regional countries.” Areas … Read more
The status of women’s rights has steadily and predictably eroded under Taliban rule, in this second experiment by the terrorist group to remold Afghanistan to their puritanical vision of a society where women have no rights or freedoms. Girls have been banned from attending school past grade six since the group regained power in 2021, … Read more
Undeniably, all communities in Afghanistan have suffered tremendously, but the Hazara minority has suffered disproportionately because of its distinct ethnic and religious identity. As an ethnoreligious minority, the Hazaras of Afghanistan have endured a long history of discrimination and systematic persecution. The Hazara community has suffered from enslavement, mass killings, and forced displacement throughout the … Read more
For decades, the Pushtun Ahmadzai Wazir tribe living on both sides of the Durand Line could wave their national identity documents to the guards to cross the Torkham border, the main point of transit for travelers and goods between Pakistan and landlocked Afghanistan. That is no longer possible, with Islamabad on January 13 reimposing the … Read more
The United States cannot afford to neglect the intense suffering and exploitation of the population of Afghanistan since the Taliban seized the state over two years ago. The Taliban’s extremism, misogyny, and brutality are actively undermining Afghanistan’s prospects for peace and stability. Fundamental to this vicious pursuit of power is the strategic use of corruption … Read more
In the complex tapestry of Afghanistan’s unfolding existence, a poignant new chapter emerged on January 11, as the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) expressed deep concern over the arbitrary arrests and detentions of women and girls for alleged non-compliance with the Islamic dress code. In its statement, UNAMA said that since the beginning … Read more
A recent response from a U.S. government watchdog to a Congressional request for a report on the Afghan Fund underscores considerable barriers surrounding the future of the fund’s $3.5 billion, half of the $7 billion in Afghan central bank assets seized by the United States in the wake of the Afghan Republic’s collapse in August … Read more
Since the Taliban’s return to power in mid-August 2021, millions of girls have been barred from attending school and university. The self-proclaimed regime currently ruling Afghanistan has deeply misogynistic tendencies, and has excluded women from most areas of public life. Afghanistan is the only country in the world where girls and women are systematically denied … Read more