Afghanistan

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Data Leak Exposes IDs of UK Spies, Special Forces

Cover is also blown for thousands of Afghan allies as UK government scrambles to respond

(Newser) - A major data breach has blown the cover off more than 100 British officials—including MI6 agents and Special Air Service members—while also exposing thousands of Afghan allies to potential Taliban reprisals. The breach, which occurred in February 2022 but was only discovered more than a year later,...

Rubio Vowed Food Would Be Sent. Now, 500 Tons to Be Destroyed

Emergency aid meant for Afghan, Pakistani children will be disposed of instead of distributed

(Newser) - About 500 tons of emergency food rations are set to be destroyed after months of bureaucratic gridlock under the Trump administration, according to multiple current and former government sources. The high-energy biscuits, bought by USAID near the end of President Biden's term for roughly $800,000, were stored...

Thousands of Afghans Were Secretly Resettled in UK

Government launched program after data leak

(Newser) - Thousands of Afghans, including many who worked with British forces, have been secretly resettled in the UK after a leak of data on their identities raised fears that the Taliban could target them, the British government revealed Tuesday. The government said it is closing the program, which a rare court...

ICC Issues Arrest Warrants for Taliban Leaders

Warrants cite gender-based persecution and crackdown on basic freedoms

(Newser) - The International Criminal Court has new targets in its sights. The Hague-based court has issued arrest warrants for two top Taliban leaders, accusing them of crimes against humanity tied to their treatment of Afghan women . Supreme Leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and chief justice Abdul Hakim Haqqani are suspected of orchestrating...

US Votes Against Resolution on Taliban's Treatment of Women

Administration official says US has done enough for Afghanistan

(Newser) - The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution Monday over US objections calling on Afghanistan's Taliban rulers to reverse their worsening oppression of women and girls and eliminate all terrorist organizations. The 11-page resolution also emphasizes "the importance of creating opportunities for economic recovery, development and prosperity in Afghanistan,...

Russia Becomes First to Recognize Taliban Rule

Government has been isolated, largely over its restrictions on women and girls

(Newser) - Russia on Thursday became the first country to formally recognize the Taliban's government in Afghanistan since it seized power in 2021, after Moscow removed the group from its list of outlawed organizations . The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it had received credentials from Afghanistan's newly appointed Ambassador Gul...

Taliban Urges Afghans Who Fled to Return

'Live in an atmosphere of peace,' official urges in offering amnesty

(Newser) - A top Taliban official said Saturday that all Afghans who fled the country after the collapse of the former Western-backed government are free to return home, promising they will not be harmed if they come back. Taliban Prime Minister Mohammad Hassan Akhund made the amnesty offer in his message for...

White House: Afghan Refugees Can Safely Go Home Now

Critics decry the end of Temporary Protected Status

(Newser) - The Trump administration on Monday did away with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for thousands of Afghans now in the US, citing improvements in the country's security and economy. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said a review with "interagency partners" determined that Afghanistan no longer meets the standard...

Taliban Bans Chess
Taliban Bans Chess
May 12, 2025 6:55 PM CDT

Taliban Bans Chess

It's 'considered a means of gambling,' officials say

(Newser) - Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have found something new to ban. Officials announced Sunday that chess has been suspended indefinitely, the BBC reports. The game is "considered a means of gambling" and will be banned while authorities try to determine whether it is compatible with Islamic law, officials said. Authorities...

After Taliban Killed Man Exposed in Documentary, His Widow Sues

Suit says Taliban killed Afghan mine-clearer Omar Khan after he was featured in film

(Newser) - An Emmy-winning National Geographic documentary about Afghanistan's final days under US occupation is now at the center of a wrongful death lawsuit, after a featured Afghan was identified by the Taliban and killed. The widow of the man who appeared in Retrograde has filed her complaint against the...

Taliban Releases American Woman
Taliban Releases
American Woman
Mar 31, 2025 10:04 AM CDT

Taliban Releases American Woman

Faye Dail Hall was detained for weeks in Afghanistan

(Newser) - An American woman detained for weeks in Afghanistan by the Taliban has been released from custody, according to a person familiar with the matter and a social media post from a longtime US diplomat. Faye Dail Hall, who was detained in February on charges of using a drone without authorization,...

This Is the Happiest Nation on Earth
This Is the Happiest
Nation on Earth
Mar 20, 2025 12:50 PM CDT

This Is the Happiest Nation on Earth

Finland tops World Happiness Report for 8th straight year; US comes in at No. 24

(Newser) - Feeling down in the dumps? Maybe it's your country. Unless you're in Finland, which just took the top spot on this year's World Happiness Report for the eighth year straight, reports CNN . The annual ranking used Gallup World Poll data from more than 140 countries around the...

Taliban Releases American Held for 2 Years

Airline mechanic George Glezmann is the third American detainee released this year

(Newser) - An American man who was abducted more than two years ago while traveling through Afghanistan as a tourist has been released by the Taliban in a deal brokered by US and Qatari negotiators, the State Department said Thursday. George Glezmann, an airline mechanic from Atlanta, is the third American detainee...

Taliban Frees 2 Americans in Prisoner Swap

They were exchanged for a Taliban fighter in the final hours of the Biden administration

(Newser) - Two Americans held in Afghanistan were released in the final hours of President Biden's tenure in exchange for a Taliban member serving two life sentences in the US. Family members confirmed Ryan Corbett, 42, who was detained in August 2022, was "back home after what has been the...

Biden Considers Deal to Free Americans Held by Taliban

It's not clear whether his administration can complete it before Trump takes office

(Newser) - President Biden spoke Sunday with relatives of three Americans the US government is looking to bring home from Afghanistan, but it was unclear from the call if a deal to bring them back that is now on the table could be completed before the he leaves office next week, the...

The Taliban Are Knee-Deep in Emeralds

Militant group hopes revenue from natural resource will make up for lost international aid

(Newser) - The Taliban is seeing green lately, and not from jealousy. The Islamic extremists have been exhibiting and auctioning off emeralds weekly—sales that underscore the Taliban's "increasing reliance on Afghanistan's natural resources as a source of revenue" after losing much of their international aid, per AMU TV...

Taliban: NGOs With Women Workers Will Be Closed

Afghanistan rulers also say windows shouldn't look out on places where women may appear

(Newser) - The Taliban say they'll close all national and foreign nongovernmental groups in Afghanistan employing women. It comes two years after they told NGOs to suspend the employment of Afghan women, allegedly because they didn't wear the Islamic headscarf correctly. In a letter published on X on Sunday, the...

Taliban Bans Women From Nursing, Midwifery Courses

Training institutions in Afghanistan say they were abruptly ordered to close

(Newser) - The only door still open to women seeking further education in Afghanistan has been abruptly slammed shut. The BBC reports that institutions offering nursing and midwifery courses have been ordered to close until further notice under an edict from the country's Taliban rulers. "There is no official letter...

Malala 'Shocked' at How Quickly Afghan Women Lost Rights

Activist reflects on the state of Afghanistan in advance of documentary release

(Newser) - Malala Yousafzai, the crusading activist who has been fighting for the rights of women and girls since childhood, says she's been shocked at how quickly those rights have been eroded in Afghanistan since the Taliban retook control in 2021. "I never imagined that the rights of women would...

When the Taliban Returned, Female Cyclists Were Doomed
Return of the Taliban
Doomed Female Cyclists
longform
Nov 10, 2024 3:15 PM CST

Return of the Taliban Doomed Female Cyclists

Bicycling reports on how members of the Afghan National Team had to flee the country

(Newser) - A story by Kim Cross in Bicycling begins with the simple anecdote of a teenager going for bike ride. But this particular teenager—18-year-old Reihana Mohammadi—was riding in Afghanistan in August 2021. "You are crazy!" Reihana recalls people calling out. "The Taliban are very close!"...

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