https://www.scmp.com/rss/510565/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Samira Muhammadi hopes an international investigation can “extinguish” her pain after a Pakistani bombing killed her son and hundreds of other Afghans in the capital Kabul last month. The March 16 attack hit a drug treatment centre and killed 411 people, according to Afghan officials. A United Nations source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they had verified at least 250 killed, with more still missing. “There should be investigations on this … Like me, many mothers lost their sons,... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3349110/pakistani-strike-killed-her-son-rehab-now-afghan-mother-demands-answers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3349110/pakistani-strike-killed-her-son-rehab-now-afghan-mother-demands-answers?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 06 Apr 2026 01:14:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Afghanistan’s Taliban government announced the release of a US national on Tuesday who had been detained for more than a year, after a letter from his family requesting his freedom. The foreign ministry said the family of linguist and researcher Dennis Coyle had written to the supreme leader of Afghanistan, asking that he be released and pardoned for the Muslim holiday Eid. “The Supreme Court of the Islamic Emirate deemed his period of detention sufficient and decided on his release,” a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347754/afghanistan-releases-detained-us-citizen-after-more-year?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3347754/afghanistan-releases-detained-us-citizen-after-more-year?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 13:57:39 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pakistan announced on Wednesday a pause in strikes against Afghanistan, saying the decision was made ahead of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr at the request of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey. In a statement, Pakistan’s information minister Attaullah Tarar said the pause in strikes on “terrorists and their support infrastructure in Afghanistan” would take effect at midnight on Wednesday and remain in place until midnight on Monday. “Pakistan offers this gesture in good faith and in keeping with... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3347078/pakistan-pause-afghan-strikes-eid-request-saudi-arabia-qatar-turkey?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3347078/pakistan-pause-afghan-strikes-eid-request-saudi-arabia-qatar-turkey?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Mar 2026 15:39:38 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Afghanistan accused Pakistan of killing at least 400 people in an air strike on a drug rehabilitation hospital in the Afghan capital late on Monday. It marked a dramatic escalation of a conflict that began late last month and has seen repeated cross-border clashes as well as air strikes inside Afghanistan. International calls for a ceasefire have gone unheeded. Pakistan dismissed the accusation that it had hit a hospital, saying its strikes, which were also conducted in eastern Afghanistan, did... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3346806/afghanistan-accuses-pakistan-killing-civilians-fresh-kabul-strikes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3346806/afghanistan-accuses-pakistan-killing-civilians-fresh-kabul-strikes?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Mar 2026 20:27:26 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pakistan’s president on Saturday warned neighbouring Afghanistan’s Taliban government that it had “crossed a red line” by launching drone attacks on civilian areas in Pakistan and said the administration in Kabul had brought “grave consequences upon itself”. The statement by Asif Ali Zardari was the latest in what has become the deadliest fighting yet between the two neighbours. The cross-border clashes, which erupted late last month, have shown no signs of abating despite efforts by China and... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3346619/afghan-talibans-drone-attacks-civilians-crossed-red-line-pakistan-warns?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3346619/afghan-talibans-drone-attacks-civilians-crossed-red-line-pakistan-warns?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 13:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Explosions were heard in the Afghan capital Kabul Sunday, Agence France-Presse journalists said, with the Taliban government saying they were responding to aerial Pakistan attacks. A spokesman for Afghanistan’s defence ministry said “air defence strikes were carried out against Pakistani aircraft in Kabul”. Months of cross-border clashes have flared since Thursday when Afghanistan launched an offensive along the frontier, with Pakistani forces hitting back on the border and from the skies. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3345024/pakistani-afghan-clashes-widen-arab-states-struggle-halt-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3345024/pakistani-afghan-clashes-widen-arab-states-struggle-halt-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 09:49:14 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities are locked in a widening tit-for-tat confrontation that neither side seems willing to defuse, analysts said, warning the exchanges risked settling into a prolonged conflict along one of Asia’s most volatile borders. Islamabad has vowed to keep striking military targets inside Afghanistan until the Taliban takes action against the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and other militant groups Pakistan says operate from Afghan soil. Pakistani warplanes... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344965/pakistan-taliban-showdown-risks-becoming-protracted-war-attrition?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3344965/pakistan-taliban-showdown-risks-becoming-protracted-war-attrition?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Feb 2026 08:00:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Pakistan bombed major cities in Afghanistan including the capital Kabul on Friday, with Islamabad’s defence minister declaring the neighbours at “open war” following months of tit-for-tat clashes. Journalists in Kabul and Kandahar heard blasts and jets overhead until dawn, as Pakistan launched air strikes on the Afghan capital and the southern power base of the Taliban authorities. Pakistan’s latest operation came after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops on Thursday night over... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3344796/pakistan-declares-open-war-afghan-taliban-after-morning-strikes-kabul-kandahar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3344796/pakistan-declares-open-war-afghan-taliban-after-morning-strikes-kabul-kandahar?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 01:01:15 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A suicide bomber backed by a group of gunmen rammed an explosive-laden vehicle into the wall of a security post after troops signalled for it to stop in a former Pakistani Taliban stronghold in northwestern Pakistan, causing part of the compound to collapse and killing 11 soldiers and a child, the military and police said on Tuesday. The military said in a statement that the attackers had sought to breach the checkpoint overnight but were thwarted by security forces. It said troops later pursued... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3343839/11-soldiers-1-child-killed-pakistan-after-explosive-laden-vehicle-rams-security-post?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3343839/11-soldiers-1-child-killed-pakistan-after-explosive-laden-vehicle-rams-security-post?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Feb 2026 12:44:11 +0000 dpa dpa Heavy snowfall and rain in Afghanistan have killed at least 61 people and injured 110 others, the country’s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said on Saturday. Spokesman Mohammad Yousuf Hammad said 458 houses had been completely or partially destroyed over the past three days of severe weather, affecting at least 360 families. Losses of livestock were also reported. Hammad said the figures were preliminary, adding that assessment teams were continuing surveys in affected regions and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3341118/61-die-afghanistan-110-injured-amid-heavy-snow-rain?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3341118/61-die-afghanistan-110-injured-amid-heavy-snow-rain?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Jan 2026 13:38:08 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou Monday’s fatal blast at a Chinese restaurant in Kabul has underscored the grave security threat China is facing, not just in Afghanistan but also in wider Central Asia. One potential area of vulnerability is Tajikistan, Central Asia’s poorest country, which has a weak military and a long border with Afghanistan. On the same day as the Kabul bombing, the Chinese embassy in Tajikistan issued a travel warning, telling its citizens and companies to boost security and evacuate from the border region... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3341049/why-are-tensions-along-afghan-tajikistan-border-such-headache-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3341049/why-are-tensions-along-afghan-tajikistan-border-such-headache-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 24 Jan 2026 02:00:23 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou China has condemned Monday’s suicide attack on a Chinese restaurant in Kabul, urging the Taliban to take further measures to protect the safety of its citizens in Afghanistan. Foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said Beijing had made “urgent representations” following the attack in a heavily guarded part of the capital that killed at least seven people – one Chinese national and six Afghans – and injured several others. Guo added that China had asked the authorities to “further adopt effective... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340584/china-urges-taliban-tighten-security-after-suicide-attack-restaurant-kabul?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3340584/china-urges-taliban-tighten-security-after-suicide-attack-restaurant-kabul?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 14:00:09 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Nearly three months since border clashes prompted the closure of land crossings between Pakistan and Afghanistan, university students, merchants and families are left hanging with no way of getting back. “We miss our parents and relatives,” said Shah Faisal, 25, who studies medicine at an Afghan university and was hoping to visit his family back in Pakistan during winter break. But the border has been shut since October 12, leaving many like him with no viable option of making it home. Flights... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3338652/afghanistan-pakistan-border-closure-leaves-thousands-stranded-we-miss-our-parents?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3338652/afghanistan-pakistan-border-closure-leaves-thousands-stranded-we-miss-our-parents?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Jan 2026 03:58:50 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse An overnight exchange of gunfire and shelling at a major Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossing killed four civilians and one soldier, Afghan officials said on Saturday, the latest flare-up of fighting between the two countries despite a ceasefire since deadly clashes in October. Five other civilians were wounded, an Afghan government spokesman, Hamdullah Fitrat, said in a video statement. The local hospital at the Pakistani border town of Chaman said three people suffered minor injuries during... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3335462/5-killed-latest-clash-afghan-pakistan-border-crossing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3335462/5-killed-latest-clash-afghan-pakistan-border-crossing?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Dec 2025 11:51:14 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press A 13-year-old boy executed a man found guilty of killing his family in front of a cheering crowd in Afghanistan, in a chilling detail revealed after the event. The public execution, echoing the worst days of Taliban rule, was of a man who the Supreme Court ruled had killed 13 members of the same family, including nine children and their mother. About 80,000 people, including relatives of the victims, attended the execution in the sports stadium in the eastern city of Khost on Tuesday. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3335012/afghan-boy-13-executes-familys-murderer-echoes-worst-days-taliban-rule?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3335012/afghan-boy-13-executes-familys-murderer-echoes-worst-days-taliban-rule?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 05:51:20 +0000 Reuters Reuters The suspect accused of shooting two National Guard members in an ambush in downtown Washington last week was charged on Tuesday with murder and other offences as he made his first court appearance, appearing remotely from a hospital bed. A judge ordered Rahmanullah Lakanwal, 29, held in custody without bond, citing the “sheer terror” of the shooting blocks from the White House that killed one member of the National Guard and critically injured a second. Lakanwal pleaded not guilty to all... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334970/national-guard-shooting-suspect-pleads-not-guilty-murder-hospital-bed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334970/national-guard-shooting-suspect-pleads-not-guilty-murder-hospital-bed?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 02 Dec 2025 22:37:32 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Pakistan dismissed on Sunday a warning by the UN rights chief of potential “far-reaching consequences” for the rule of law in granting the head of the all-powerful military legal immunity. The foreign ministry said Pakistan was “fully committed to protecting … basic freedoms and the rule of law as enshrined in the constitution,” responding to criticism from UN rights chief Volker Turk. A constitutional amendment approved by parliament earlier this month, shielding Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3334682/pakistan-rejects-un-warning-over-legal-immunity-military-chief?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3334682/pakistan-rejects-un-warning-over-legal-immunity-military-chief?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 30 Nov 2025 12:51:39 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it would review the immigration status of every permanent resident or “green card” holder from Afghanistan and 18 other countries following the attack on National Guard troops in Washington. The announcement came as US President Donald Trump said that one of the National Guard members, 20-year-old Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, had died of her wounds, while the other, Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, was ‘fighting for his life’. US officials have... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334434/trump-admin-reviewing-every-green-card-19-countries-after-washington-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334434/trump-admin-reviewing-every-green-card-19-countries-after-washington-shooting?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Nov 2025 23:19:30 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump said that one of the two West Virginia National Guard members shot by an Afghan national near the White House had died, calling the shooter who had worked with the CIA in his native country a “savage monster”. As part of his Thanksgiving call to US troops, Trump said that he had just learned that Specialist Sarah Beckstrom, 20, had died, while Staff Sergeant Andrew Wolfe, 24, was “fighting for his life”. “She’s just passed away,” Trump said. “She’s no longer with us.... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334426/national-guard-shooting-afghan-suspect-drove-across-us-carry-out-attack-officials-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3334426/national-guard-shooting-afghan-suspect-drove-across-us-carry-out-attack-officials-say?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Nov 2025 16:53:00 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Three Chinese workers in Tajikistan were killed in an attack launched from Afghanistan near the border, Tajik authorities said on Thursday. Tajikistan has strained relations with the Taliban in Afghanistan, and several border clashes have broken out in recent months. The foreign ministry said a drone and firearm attack hit workers of a Chinese company in the country’s south. “The attack, carried out with firearms and a drone loaded with grenades, claimed the lives of three employees of Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3334409/3-chinese-citizens-killed-tajik-afghan-border-clash?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3334409/3-chinese-citizens-killed-tajik-afghan-border-clash?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Nov 2025 13:44:51 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain A ceasefire between Afghanistan’s Taliban regime and Pakistan, agreed after intense clashes last month, is hanging by a diplomatic thread, following a wave of suicide bombings in Pakistan and disputed claims that it retaliated with cross-border drone strikes on Tuesday. With both countries vowing vengeance, analysts say regional states acting as mediators – Qatar and Turkey, and Iran and Russia – have only a narrow window of opportunity to prevent another round of hostilities. Otherwise,... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334306/can-mediators-stop-afghan-pakistani-war-cat-and-mouse-game-enters-retaliatory-phase?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334306/can-mediators-stop-afghan-pakistani-war-cat-and-mouse-game-enters-retaliatory-phase?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Nov 2025 05:30:09 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji India and Afghanistan will launch direct air cargo flights in a move that deepens their economic ties and signals a strategic shift in South Asia’s power dynamics, as both countries grow increasingly estranged from their mutual neighbour Pakistan. Analysts say the initiative reflects Kabul’s push to diversify trade routes and reduce dependence on Islamabad following deadly border clashes, while also underscoring New Delhi’s effort to reassert influence in a country where it once played a key... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334225/india-afghanistan-close-ranks-against-pakistan-marking-south-asia-power-shift?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3334225/india-afghanistan-close-ranks-against-pakistan-marking-south-asia-power-shift?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2025 09:11:00 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Two suicide bombers attacked the headquarters of a security force in northwestern Pakistan on Monday morning, killing three officers and wounding 11 others, police and rescue officials said. The attack took place in Peshawar, the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province bordering Afghanistan, when security forces were preparing for the morning parade at the sprawling facility located in the heart of the city, Peshawar Police Chief Saeed Ahmad said. He said one attacker detonated his explosives at... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3333898/3-pakistani-officers-killed-suicide-bombers-attack-headquarters-near-afghan-border?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3333898/3-pakistani-officers-killed-suicide-bombers-attack-headquarters-near-afghan-border?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Nov 2025 05:23:30 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Afghanistan’s Taliban government said on Saturday its ceasefire with Pakistan would remain even though their latest talks failed, blaming Islamabad’s “irresponsible and uncooperative” approach. The two sides met on Thursday in Turkey to finalise a truce agreed on October 19 in Qatar, following deadly clashes between the South Asian neighbours. Both have remained tight-lipped on the content of the discussions, which are known only to have addressed long-standing security issues. “During the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3332043/afghanistan-blames-pakistan-security-talks-collapse-ceasefire-will-hold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3332043/afghanistan-blames-pakistan-security-talks-collapse-ceasefire-will-hold?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Nov 2025 09:22:56 +0000 dpa dpa Several countries as well as the European Union have offered their condolences after a powerful earthquake struck northern Afghanistan, killing 20 people and injuring hundreds, according to official reports. The country’s national disaster management authority said 20 people have died and 643 were wounded, revising down earlier figures reported by the state-run news agency Bakhtar, which had put the death toll of the overnight quake at 27, with more than 700 injured. Pakistan, India, Iran,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3331402/international-condolences-pour-after-afghanistan-earthquake-kills-20?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3331402/international-condolences-pour-after-afghanistan-earthquake-kills-20?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 23:20:15 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Afghan and Pakistani negotiators are to meet in Istanbul on Saturday to address security issues and establish a lasting ceasefire along their shared border after an outbreak of unexpectedly intense bloody clashes. The confrontation – which resulted in dozens of deaths, among them civilians – began two weeks ago following explosions in central Kabul, which the Taliban government blamed on its Pakistani neighbour, launching a retaliatory offensive at the border. Vowing a strong response, Islamabad... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3330316/afghan-pakistani-negotiators-strengthen-truce-istanbul-after-doha-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3330316/afghan-pakistani-negotiators-strengthen-truce-istanbul-after-doha-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 25 Oct 2025 10:24:06 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Afghanistan and Pakistan, embroiled in fighting that has killed dozens of people and injured hundreds, pledged on Sunday to respect a ceasefire. The truce, mediated by Qatar and Turkey, came into effect immediately and is intended to pause hostilities. Violence has escalated between the neighbours since earlier this month, with each country saying they were responding to aggression from the other. Afghanistan denies harbouring militants who carry out attacks in border areas. Pakistan is... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329583/afghanistan-and-pakistan-agree-ceasefire-after-deadly-fighting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329583/afghanistan-and-pakistan-agree-ceasefire-after-deadly-fighting?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Oct 2025 11:51:28 +0000 Reuters Reuters Afghanistan and Pakistan agreed to an immediate ceasefire during talks in Doha, both sides said on Sunday, after a week of fierce border clashes, the worst violence between the South Asian neighbours since the Taliban seized power in Kabul in 2021. The ceasefire “has been finalised”, Pakistan’s Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif posted on social media on Sunday, saying both sides would meet again on October 25 in Istanbul to discuss “detailed matters”. Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329545/pakistan-and-afghanistan-agree-immediate-ceasefire-after-doha-peace-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329545/pakistan-and-afghanistan-agree-immediate-ceasefire-after-doha-peace-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Oct 2025 23:42:03 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Pakistan and Afghan officials were holding peace talks in Qatar on Saturday, a day after Islamabad launched air strikes that killed at least 10 people in Afghanistan and broke a ceasefire that had brought two days of calm to the border. The strikes targeted what Pakistan security sources said was a militant group linked to the Pakistani Taliban in the Afghan border areas, following an attack that killed Pakistani paramilitary troops in North Waziristan, a district in Pakistan’s northwest. Kabul... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329536/pakistan-afghanistan-hold-peace-talks-qatar-after-latest-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329536/pakistan-afghanistan-hold-peace-talks-qatar-after-latest-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Oct 2025 14:10:26 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Pakistan said on Wednesday it agreed to a 48-hour ceasefire with Afghanistan following days of violence that have killed dozens of people on both sides of the border. Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry said the ceasefire was at Afghanistan’s request. Moments later, the Taliban government’s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said the truce was at “the insistence” of the Pakistani side. His social media post did not mention a 48-hour time frame. All Afghan forces have been instructed to observe the... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329155/pakistan-and-afghanistan-agree-48-hour-ceasefire-after-deadly-border-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3329155/pakistan-and-afghanistan-agree-48-hour-ceasefire-after-deadly-border-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Oct 2025 14:00:14 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Pakistan has vowed to respond to future terrorist attacks launched from Afghanistan with overwhelming military force after deadly cross-border clashes over the weekend, with the conflict setting the stage for prolonged hostilities between Islamabad and the Taliban regime. Analysts say the fighting, sparked by retaliatory Pakistani air strikes against insurgents in Kabul and the eastern Afghan province of Paktika on Thursday, is unlikely to break into an all-out war, but a diplomatic solution... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3328926/pakistan-vows-no-compromise-against-taliban-patience-wears-thin-after-deadly-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3328926/pakistan-vows-no-compromise-against-taliban-patience-wears-thin-after-deadly-clashes?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Oct 2025 08:30:17 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Afghanistan said on Sunday it had killed 58 Pakistani soldiers in overnight border operations, in response to what it called repeated violations of its territory and airspace. Pakistan’s army gave far lower casualty figures, saying 23 troops were killed. Earlier in the week, Afghan authorities accused Pakistan of bombing the capital, Kabul, and a market in the country’s east. Pakistan did not claim responsibility for the assault. The two countries share a 2,611-km (1,622-mile) border known as... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3328669/firefights-erupt-between-pakistani-and-afghan-forces-along-border?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/south-asia/article/3328669/firefights-erupt-between-pakistani-and-afghan-forces-along-border?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 11 Oct 2025 21:36:19 +0000 Reuters Reuters Mobile phone and internet services were restored in Afghanistan on Wednesday, local residents said, some 48 hours after diplomatic and industry sources said connectivity was abruptly cut on the orders of the Taliban administration. The mobile phone services of Roshan and Etisalat companies, the foreign-owned biggest providers, came back to life in the late afternoon, residents in Kabul and other cities said. Internet access was restored, according to companies providing the service. A Taliban... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3327514/taliban-deny-afghanistan-internet-ban-amid-outage-reports?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3327514/taliban-deny-afghanistan-internet-ban-amid-outage-reports?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 Oct 2025 09:20:31 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Afghanistan’s Taliban government released an American citizen from detention on Sunday, a week after freeing an elderly British couple. In a statement the country’s foreign ministry identified the detainee as Amir Amiri and said he had been handed over to Adam Boehler, Washington’s special envoy on hostages. Boehler made a rare visit to Kabul earlier this month to discuss the possibility of a prisoner exchange with the Taliban government. “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan released an American... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3327169/us-citizen-released-afghanistans-taliban-after-visit-envoy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3327169/us-citizen-released-afghanistans-taliban-after-visit-envoy?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Sep 2025 18:56:26 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse An Afghan government defence official said Sunday that a deal over Bagram airbase was “not possible”, after US President Donald Trump said he wanted the former US base back. Bagram, the largest airbase in Afghanistan, located north of the capital Kabul, was the centre of US operations in their 20-year year-war against the Taliban. Trump threatened unspecified punishment against Afghanistan if it was not returned – four years after it was abandoned by US troops. “If Afghanistan doesn’t give... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3326305/trump-demands-bagram-airbase-not-possible-taliban-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3326305/trump-demands-bagram-airbase-not-possible-taliban-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Sep 2025 11:37:18 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse US President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened Afghanistan with unspecified punishment if the Taleban-controlled country did not “give Bagram Airbase back”. “If Afghanistan doesn’t give Bagram Airbase back to those that built it, the United States of America, BAD THINGS ARE GOING TO HAPPEN!!!” the 79-year-old leader wrote on his Truth Social platform. The vague threat comes just days after he raised the idea of the United States retaking control of the base while on a state visit to the United... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3326276/trump-says-bad-things-will-happen-if-afghanistan-does-not-return-bagram-airbase?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3326276/trump-says-bad-things-will-happen-if-afghanistan-does-not-return-bagram-airbase?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 20 Sep 2025 22:46:34 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Taliban released on Friday a British couple held in Afghanistan for more than seven months on undisclosed charges, an official said, as part of a wider effort to get their government recognised internationally years after taking power. The case of Peter and Barbie Reynolds, aged 80 and 75, underlined the concerns of the West over the actions of the Taliban since they overthrew the country’s US-backed government in a 2021 lightning offensive. The Reynolds had lived in Afghanistan for 18 years... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3326185/taliban-free-uk-couple-held-months-afghanistan-undisclosed-charges?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3326185/taliban-free-uk-couple-held-months-afghanistan-undisclosed-charges?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Sep 2025 10:47:05 +0000 Reuters Reuters The World Health Organization has asked Taliban authorities to lift restrictions on Afghan female aid workers, allowing them to travel without male guardians and help women struggling to access care after a powerful earthquake killed 2,200 people in eastern Afghanistan. “A very big issue now is the increasing paucity of female staff in these places,” Dr Mukta Sharma, the deputy representative of WHO’s Afghanistan office, told Reuters. She estimated around 90 per cent of medical staff in the area... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3324713/who-urges-taliban-lift-restrictions-women-aid-workers-after-afghanistan-earthquakes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3324713/who-urges-taliban-lift-restrictions-women-aid-workers-after-afghanistan-earthquakes?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Sep 2025 05:56:45 +0000 Reuters Reuters Afghanistan’s Taliban administration made an appeal for help on Monday after one of the country’s worst earthquakes killed more than 800 people and injured at least 2,800. The appeal came as rescuers struggled to reach remote areas due to rough mountainous terrain and inclement weather. The disaster will further stretch the resources of the war-torn nation’s Taliban government, already grappling with crises ranging from a sharp drop in foreign aid to deportations of hundreds of thousands of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3323976/taliban-asks-world-help-rescuers-search-rubble-wake-afghanistan-earthquake?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3323976/taliban-asks-world-help-rescuers-search-rubble-wake-afghanistan-earthquake?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Sep 2025 22:49:02 +0000 Fan Chen Fan Chen China has called for greater counterterrorism cooperation with Afghanistan, including joint patrols along the narrow strip of land that forms their only shared border. “China supports the prompt resumption of bilateral patrols in the Wakhan Corridor to maintain peace and stability in the border region,” Foreign Minister Wang Yi said during a meeting with the Afghan acting minister of interior affairs, Sirajuddin Haqqani. The Wakhan Corridor is a narrow strip of mountainous Afghan territory that... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322667/china-calls-joint-patrols-afghan-border-and-urges-taliban-help-fight-terrorism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322667/china-calls-joint-patrols-afghan-border-and-urges-taliban-help-fight-terrorism?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Aug 2025 12:00:08 +0000 Associated Press,Reuters Associated Press,Reuters An overcrowded bus carrying Afghans expelled from Iran crashed in western Afghanistan, and at least 79 people were killed, authorities said on Wednesday. The crash on the Herat-Kabul highway involved a motorcycle, a truck and a bus late on Tuesday, said Ahmdullah Muttaqi, head of the information department for Herat’s provincial government. The bus was carrying Afghan refugees expelled from Iran, part of an exodus of hundreds of thousands of people, who were on their way from the border to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3322548/79-killed-bus-carrying-afghans-iran-crashes-and-catches-fire-near-herat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3322548/79-killed-bus-carrying-afghans-iran-crashes-and-catches-fire-near-herat?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Aug 2025 11:48:20 +0000 Zhao Ziwen Zhao Ziwen Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in Kabul to meet his counterparts from Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is Wang’s first trip to the country since a surprise visit in March 2022. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed he arrived in Afghanistan on Wednesday. The ministry had earlier said he would travel to Pakistan later in the day for a three-day visit that will include talks with Ishaq Dar, Pakistan’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister. According to Geo News, a Pakistani... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322511/chinese-foreign-minister-wang-yi-kabul-3-way-talks-afghan-pakistan-tensions-ease?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322511/chinese-foreign-minister-wang-yi-kabul-3-way-talks-afghan-pakistan-tensions-ease?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Aug 2025 09:07:45 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Taliban are investigating explicit death threats against dozens of Afghan women working for the United Nations, according to a report published on Sunday. In its latest update on the human rights situation in Afghanistan, the UN mission to the country said that dozens of female national staff were subjected to explicit death threats in May. The threats came from unidentified individuals related to their work with the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, other agencies, funds, and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3321387/taliban-investigates-death-threats-against-un-afghan-women-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3321387/taliban-investigates-death-threats-against-un-afghan-women-report?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 Aug 2025 15:07:24 +0000 Fan Chen Fan Chen A China-backed copper mine in Afghanistan is poised to start construction after nearly two decades of delay, but political instability and security issues remain a major concern, an Afghan studies expert has cautioned. State-owned China Metallurgical Group Corporation (MCC) recently announced that it was making significant progress toward starting copper extraction this year in the Mes Aynak Mine in central Afghanistan’s Logar province, home to one of the world’s largest untouched copper... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3320858/work-china-backed-afghan-copper-mine-gains-pace-after-17-years-old-fears-linger?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3320858/work-china-backed-afghan-copper-mine-gains-pace-after-17-years-old-fears-linger?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 Aug 2025 01:00:10 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press They wandered through the museum, listening attentively as their guide explained the antiquities in display cabinets. It could have been any tour group, anywhere in the world. But there was something unusual about this one. The group of foreigners visiting the National Museum of Afghanistan was made up only of women. Its guide was a woman, too – one of the first Afghan female tour guides in a country whose Taliban rulers impose the severest restrictions on girls and women anywhere in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3320119/afghanistans-female-guides-are-challenging-stereotypes-one-tour-time?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3320119/afghanistans-female-guides-are-challenging-stereotypes-one-tour-time?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Jul 2025 07:34:10 +0000 Hani Shehada Hani Shehada Most global actors still treat education as an afterthought during crises, something to address only once food, water and shelter are secured. But in places like Palestine, Syria and Afghanistan, this hierarchy collapses. Education isn’t a post-crisis luxury; it’s the anchor in the chaos. Over the past decade, I’ve learned that education must be treated as a frontline intervention, restoring not only learning, but also safety, identity and hope. It’s not just about classrooms. It’s about systems... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3318487/war-ravaged-youth-education-anchor-amid-chaos-not-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3318487/war-ravaged-youth-education-anchor-amid-chaos-not-luxury?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 26 Jul 2025 12:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Tens of thousands of Afghans streamed over the border from Iran in the days before a return deadline set for Sunday, the United Nations said, sparking an “emergency” situation at border points. In late May, Iran said undocumented Afghans must leave the country by July 6, potentially impacting four million people, out of the six million Afghans Tehran says live in the country. Numbers of people crossing the border have surged since mid-June, with a peak of more than 43,000 people crossing at... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3317148/afghanistan-border-emergency-thousands-deported-iran-un?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3317148/afghanistan-border-emergency-thousands-deported-iran-un?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 06 Jul 2025 11:36:53 +0000 Reuters Reuters Russia said on Thursday it had accepted the credentials of a new ambassador of Afghanistan, making it the first nation to recognise the Taliban government of the country. In a statement, the Russian foreign ministry said Moscow saw good prospects to develop ties and would continue to support Kabul in security, counterterrorism and combating drug crime. It also saw significant trade and economic opportunities, especially in energy, transport, agriculture and infrastructure. “We believe that the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316877/russia-becomes-first-country-recognise-taliban-government-afghanistan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316877/russia-becomes-first-country-recognise-taliban-government-afghanistan?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 03 Jul 2025 19:50:39 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press By plane, motorbike, camper van and even on bicycles, tourists are beginning to discover Afghanistan, with solo travellers and tour groups gradually venturing into a country that, until recently, was wracked by war. And the country’s Taliban government, which seized power more than three years ago but has yet to be formally recognised by any other nation, is more than happy to welcome them. “The Afghan people are warm and welcoming and wish to host tourists from other countries and engage with... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316285/taliban-afghanistan-welcome-tourism-despite-restrictions-women?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316285/taliban-afghanistan-welcome-tourism-despite-restrictions-women?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Jun 2025 11:36:14 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press At least 1.2 million Afghans have been forced to return from Iran and Pakistan this year, the UN refugee agency said on Saturday, warning that repatriations on a massive scale have the potential to destabilise the fragile situation in Afghanistan. Iran and Pakistan in 2023 launched separate campaigns to expel foreigners they said were living in the country illegally. They set deadlines and threatened them with deportation if they did not leave. The two governments deny targeting Afghans, who... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316240/least-12-million-afghans-deported-year-despite-risks-un?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/russia-central-asia/article/3316240/least-12-million-afghans-deported-year-despite-risks-un?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jun 2025 15:29:40 +0000