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Afghanistan says it launches attacks against Pakistan

February 26, 2026
By Al Jazeera Staff, Reuters and The Associated Press
26 Feb 2026
Afghan military source tells Al Jazeera 13 border outposts were captured as Pakistan denies that any posts were seized.

Afghanistan has launched attacks against Pakistan’s military positions along their border in response to Pakistani air strikes last week, Taliban authorities say, as Pakistan says its forces have responded.

The media office of Afghanistan’s military corps in the east said in a statement that “heavy clashes” began late on Thursday “in response to the recent air strikes carried out by Pakistani forces in Nangarhar and Paktia” provinces.

“In response ‌to repeated provocations and violations by Pakistani military circles, large-scale offensive operations have been launched ⁠against Pakistani military ⁠positions and installations along the Durand Line,” Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah ⁠Mujahid wrote in a post on X.

The countries’ 2,611km-long (1,622-mile-long) border is known as the Durand Line, which Afghanistan has not formally recognised.

An Afghan military source told Al Jazeera that 10 Pakistani soldiers were killed and that 13 outposts were captured.

Pakistan’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said on X that Pakistani ⁠troops had delivered ⁠an “immediate and ⁠effective response” to Taliban fire across ⁠several sectors ⁠in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

“Taliban regime forces are being delivered punishment in Chitral, Khyber, Mohmand, Kurram and Bajaur sectors. Early reports confirm heavy casualties on Afghan side with multiple posts and equipment destroyed,” the ministry said.

There was no immediate comment from Pakistan on the Afghan claim that 10 soldiers were killed.

Pakistan’s government spokesman wrote on X that no posts were captured or damaged.

Pakistani security sources told Al Jazeera that Pakistani forces have “inflicted heavy losses” across across the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in response to “unprovoked Taliban aggression.”

Separately, a Pakistani security source told Al Jazeera that a number of Afghan soldiers fled from three locations targeted by Pakistani fire in retaliation for Afghan fire originating from those locations.

On Sunday, Pakistan’s military carried out strikes along the border with Afghanistan, saying it had killed at least 70 fighters. Afghanistan rejected the claim, saying civilians had been killed, including women and children.

Relations between the neighbours have plunged in recent months with land border crossings largely shut since deadly fighting in October killed more than 70 people on both sides.

Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to act against armed groups that carry out attacks in Pakistan, which the Taliban government denies.

Afghanistan says it launches attacks against Pakistan
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A Hero the Taliban Didn’t Expect

February 26, 2026
By Elian Peltier and Yaqoob Akbary

A triumph in indoor soccer has turned Alireza Ahmadi, 17, and other players from the Hazara minority, long marginalized in Afghanistan, into national heroes.

After a lukewarm shower in the freezing winter of Kabul, Alireza Ahmadi combed his hair, tucked his white shirt into his black pants and stepped back onto the court.

Alireza, 17, is a phenomenon in Afghanistan, playing futsal, a faster indoor variant of soccer played with five on each side. Word had spread that he was participating in a local tournament on a recent afternoon, and fans, their smartphones raised, rushed to snap a selfie with him as he exited the locker room.

The teenager became a national hero last fall after scoring the winning goal against Afghanistan’s archrival, Iran, giving the country its first title at the Asian Youth Games, held in Bahrain. The victory spurred an outburst of collective joy that has become rare under Taliban rule and, for many Afghans, has upended how they perceive their own country.

“We’re trying from our end to show a different image of Afghanistan,” Alireza said. “There was war here. Now we want to host more games with foreign teams.”

The victory also brought a complex reality into focus. Alireza and nearly all the other faces of Afghanistan’s success are Hazaras, a religious and ethnic minority long marginalized by the Taliban. Since they swept back to power in 2021, the Taliban have evicted some Hazara communities from their ancestral lands, excluded them from branches of the judiciary and higher levels of government, and diverted humanitarian aid bound for Hazara-majority provinces, according to human rights groups.

Wherever the team has traveled since its victory, Afghans have celebrated en masse — playing music, taking videos, defying the rules. “We brought people pride, and they responded with warmth,” Alireza said.

With his neatly trimmed hair and shy smile, the teenager has become a celebrity beyond the pitch. He has appeared in an advertisement for an Afghan soft drink. His match videos and messages dedicated to Afghanistan have drawn tens of thousands of views, even as the Taliban have banned the depiction of human beings on television and social media.
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In November, thousands welcomed the team in Herat, one of Afghanistan’s largest cities and home to a large Hazara population. Fathers hoisted sons on their shoulders for a glimpse of the players. Fans threw firecrackers and played music, swamping officers from Afghanistan’s feared Ministry for the Prevention of Vice and Promotion of Virtue.

When ministry officers tried to stop photography, hundreds of smartphones lit up the stands in defiance. As security forces lined up for the evening prayer, crowds rushed to the pitch and surrounded the players for selfies.

“I request officials from the ministry for promotion of virtue not to harass the youth today,” Shah Rasol Ehrari, Herat’s soccer federation head, told the crowds. “Today is a day of joy.”

Surprised by the youth team’s popularity, the Taliban have rewarded Alireza and his teammates with cars and motorcycles.

Though cricket remains Afghanistan’s most popular sport, the victory in Bahrain has accelerated the rise of futsal.

“Futsal is more popular than soccer in the cities because there are more indoor futsal courts than proper soccer pitches,” said Hamza Qasimi, one of the winners at the Asian Youth Games.

On a recent morning, a crew of workers applied adhesive rubber strips on a new court in Chaprasak, a remote town in the central province of Daikundi.

“The national team is really good; it’s garnering a lot of interest,” said Khudadad Azizi, one of the court’s owners, as the scent of glue wafted over the surface.

In the rugged stretches of Daikundi or the outskirts of Kabul, the courts are often the most imposing structures around — steel frames and floodlights rising from empty lots. At night, the illuminated buildings look like spaceships.

In the most bitter winter months, the covered arenas become gathering places, with dozens of fans watching from stands overlooking the pristine courts. In Dasht-e-Barchi, a Hazara neighborhood of Kabul where Alireza grew up, the sport has become inescapable. “You can’t find a family without a kid playing futsal,” said Ghazanfar Arian, a tournament organizer in Kabul.

Alireza said he had dreamed of joining Afghanistan’s senior squad or professional clubs in Europe, but plans instead to honor his parents’ wishes and study medicine.

For now, his focus remains on the pitch. He is training for the Youth Olympic Games in Senegal this year, where the Afghan team is scheduled to compete..

Elian Peltier is The Times’s bureau chief for Pakistan and Afghanistan, based in Islamabad.

A Hero the Taliban Didn’t Expect
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Afghanistan’s new penal code sets 15 days in prison for wife-beating, 5 months for animal fights

February 26, 2026

Associated Press

The Washington Post

February 26, 2026

ATHENS, Greece — A new penal code issued by decree in Afghanistan sets harsher punishments for the mistreatment of animals than for domestic violence against women and solidifies into law inequality based on gender and social status.

The decree, which was signed by Afghanistan’s Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada in January, “defines several crimes and punishments that contravene Afghanistan’s international legal obligations,” U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said Thursday in remarks to the Human Rights Council in Geneva.

He urged Afghan authorities to rescind the decree.

Comprised of 119 articles, the 60-page Decree No. 12 lays out penalties for women who visit their relatives without their husband’s permission, and allows husbands and the heads of households to determine and mete out punishment in their own homes.

“It provides for the use of corporal punishment for numerous offenses, including in the home, legitimizing violence against women and children,” Turk said. “And it criminalizes criticism of the de facto leadership and their policies, in violation of freedom of expression and assembly.”

The decree states that a man who beats his wife severely enough to cause a visible cut, wound or bruise faces 15 days in prison – if his wife can prove her case to a judge. But a woman who goes to her father’s house and stays there without her husband’s permission is punished by a three months in prison, as are her relatives if they do not return her to her husband.

The decree “formally removes equality between men and women before the law,” U.N. Women Special Representative in Afghanistan Susan Ferguson said in a statement released Wednesday. “It places husbands in a position of authority over their wives and limits women’s ability to seek protection or justice.”

Penalties are harsher for mistreating animals than women. Five months in prison is the punishment for anyone having animals or birds fight. Animal and bird fighting , particularly cockfights and fights between partridges, is a popular pastime in Afghanistan but was banned after the Taliban seized power in 2021.

Afghan authorities have often issued laws laying out various prohibitions, including bans on education for girls beyond primary school, on women working in most jobs, and mandates on how women should dress and behave . But the decree is the first full penal code issued by the government.

The new penal code also lays out different treatment for the same crime depending on social class, ranging from simple warnings for clerics to corporal punishment for those deemed to be at the lowest social rungs.

Scholars and “high-ranking people” face a warning from a judge; tribal leaders and businessmen receive a warning and a court summons; “average people of society” face imprisonment; and “the lower classes” are subject to physical beatings. If an offender is sentenced to a maximum 39 lashes, they must be to “different parts of the body,” the decree states.

However, the differing treatment does not apply in murder cases, where anyone found guilty faces the death penalty . The other capital offense is insulting the Prophet Muhammad, although in that case the death penalty can be converted to six years imprisonment if the offender repents.

Speaking in Geneva, Turk called on Afghan authorities to “reverse their course on excluding half the population. Women and girls are the present and the future, and the country cannot thrive without them.”

Afghanistan’s new penal code sets 15 days in prison for wife-beating, 5 months for animal fights
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Iran’s Envoy in Islamabad: Kabul-Islamabad Tensions Benefit No One

February 25, 2026
TOLOnews
TV Network\
25 Feb 2026

The Iranian ambassador in Islamabad also described regional cooperation and continued engagement with the Islamic Emirate as important.

Iran’s ambassador in Islamabad expressed concern over the recent round of tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan and said that Tehran is working to de-escalate tensions between the two countries.

Reza Amiri-Moqaddam, speaking at a conference organized by the Islamabad Institute of Strategic Studies, emphasized restraint by the involved parties and insisted that any military movements or war would not benefit either side. He expressed hope that the issue would be resolved peacefully and through mutual cooperation.

“Despite domestic and regional efforts, particularly the good offices of the Islamic Republic of Iran to reduce tensions between Kabul and Islamabad, this situation has once again intensified between them.” Said Muqaddam.

The Iranian ambassador in Islamabad also described regional cooperation and continued engagement with the Islamic Emirate as important.

Stating that the Islamic Emirate is the present reality of Afghanistan, the Iranian diplomat reported close coordination between Tehran and Islamabad on Afghanistan, although neither country has so far recognized the Taliban government.

He said: “The Taliban are the present reality of Afghanistan and the product of 20 years of U.S. occupation of the country. Tehran and Islamabad have close coordination regarding Afghanistan, although neither of the two countries has so far recognized the Taliban government.”

At the same time, the special representatives of Pakistan and Iran for Afghanistan have also held virtual consultations regarding Afghanistan.

Moeen Gul Samkanai, a political analyst, said: “Iran is well aware that behind Pakistan’s actions stands the United States, and that Pakistan is essentially pursuing U.S. interests. For this reason, Iran does not want Afghanistan to be dragged into instability.”

Consultations between Iran and Pakistan on Afghanistan are taking place as tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan have escalated again in recent days, and the future of relations between Kabul and Islamabad remains uncertain.

Iran’s Envoy in Islamabad: Kabul-Islamabad Tensions Benefit No One
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Pakistan Exports to Afghanistan Fall 59% to $228 Million Amid Trade Suspension

February 25, 2026
Khaama Press

Pakistan’s exports to Afghanistan plunged sharply in the first seven months of the current fiscal year, reflecting deepening trade disruptions and political tensions.

Official data from the State Bank of Pakistan show exports to Afghanistan fell by more than half compared with the same period last year. The value dropped from over five hundred fifty million dollars to nearly two hundred thirty million dollars during the July to January period.

Trade between the two countries has remained suspended since early October, a factor cited as a key reason behind the steep fall in Pakistan’s regional exports. The disruption has significantly limited formal cross-border commercial activity.

At the same time, Pakistan’s imports from Afghanistan also declined markedly during the same period. Import values fell to just over six million dollars, compared with more than fifteen million dollars a year earlier, highlighting a parallel contraction in bilateral trade flows.

The reduction in exchanges comes despite Afghanistan previously being considered one of Pakistan’s important regional export markets. Analysts say prolonged uncertainty has weakened commercial confidence among traders on both sides.

Economic experts attribute the downturn to the suspension of official trade channels and escalating political and security tensions that have directly affected cross-border transport and transit routes. Businesses have faced logistical hurdles and increased risks.

In recent months, relations between Islamabad and Kabul authorities have been strained by border incidents and mutual accusations over security concerns, further complicating efforts to restore stable economic engagement.

The decline in trade with Afghanistan has occurred within a broader slowdown in Pakistan’s regional export performance, even as imports from several neighboring countries have increased, widening the regional trade deficit.

Afghan officials have urged traders and pharmaceutical importers to seek alternative trade routes and diversify supply sources to prevent shortages in local markets. Authorities emphasized the need to reduce dependence on a single transit corridor and encouraged businesses to explore regional partnerships to maintain stable supplies of essential goods.

Pakistan Exports to Afghanistan Fall 59% to $228 Million Amid Trade Suspension
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UN Expert Warns of Deepening Women’s Health Crisis in Afghanistan

February 25, 2026
Khaama Press

UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett says current restrictions have drastically limited Afghan women’s access to healthcare, further weakening an already fragile system.

Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan, has warned that women and girls face severe restrictions in accessing healthcare since the Taliban’s return to power. The report highlights how bans on education, employment and freedom of movement have intensified the health crisis.

The findings are based on group discussions and individual interviews with 137 people across 29 provinces, 17 written submissions and survey data from over 8,000 women in 33 provinces. The report presents one of the most comprehensive recent assessments of women’s right to health in Afghanistan.

According to the report, the Taliban’s return has significantly curtailed women’s independent decision-making over their own bodies and medical needs. Without urgent international engagement, Afghanistan faces a deeply concerning trajectory in women’s public health.

It further notes that women’s healthcare is largely confined to maternal and reproductive issues, while chronic illnesses, mental health and preventive care remain neglected. Patriarchal norms and economic dependency often delay treatment until illnesses become critical.

Since regaining control in August 2021, the Taliban have imposed sweeping restrictions on women’s education, employment and mobility, drawing widespread international condemnation. Afghanistan remains one of the few countries where girls are barred from secondary and higher education.

Healthcare access is particularly limited in rural and remote areas, where long distances to clinics, lack of transport, high treatment costs and shortages of female medical staff pose serious barriers. Examination by male health workers is often considered inappropriate, further discouraging women from seeking care.

The report underscores that poverty, discrimination, disability, ethnicity, religion and lack of identification documents compound these challenges. The UN expert calls for immediate global action to safeguard Afghan women’s fundamental right to health and prevent further deterioration.

UN Expert Warns of Deepening Women’s Health Crisis in Afghanistan
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Fresh Clashes Erupt Between Pakistan Forces and Afghan Fighters in Khyber

February 25, 2026
Khaama Press

Heavy fighting broke out Wednesday evening between Taliban forces and Pakistani border troops in Khyber, with both sides using heavy weapons.

Security sources said clashes resumed on Wednesday night in the Khyber border region, with exchanges of heavy gunfire continuing at multiple points. The fighting reportedly spread to the Zakhakhel market area.

Pakistani security officials confirmed simultaneous firing in several locations of Khyber district, bordering Nangarhar’s Momand Dara, Achin and Lalpur districts. Both sides are said to have deployed heavy weapons, escalating tensions along the volatile frontier.

Neither Pakistani authorities nor the Taliban have issued formal statements on the latest clashes. However, cross-border tensions have been mounting in recent days.

The renewed violence follows Pakistani airstrikes in eastern Afghanistan earlier this week, targeting what Islamabad described as militant hideouts. The Taliban condemned the strikes and warned of retaliation “at an appropriate time.”

On Tuesday, similar confrontations were reported in Nangarhar’s border areas. Pakistan accused Afghan Taliban forces of unprovoked firing along the frontier and said its troops responded effectively to what it termed “aggression.”

Islamabad has repeatedly alleged that militant groups operate from Afghanistan territory, a claim the Taliban deny. The deteriorating security situation has heightened fears of broader instability along the disputed Durand Line.

The latest escalation underscores fragile relations between Kabul and Islamabad, with both sides trading accusations amid rising military activity and deepening mistrust.

Fresh Clashes Erupt Between Pakistan Forces and Afghan Fighters in Khyber
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What’s behind the latest tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan?

February 25, 2026 ,

By Reuters

ISLAMABAD, Feb 24 (Reuters) – Tensions have heated up again between Islamabad and Kabul this week after Pakistan launched airstrikes on militant targets in Afghanistan.
Pakistani security sources said the strike killed at least 70 terrorists, while the United Nations said at least 13 civilians were killed.
The attack threatens a fragile ceasefire following border clashes in October that killed dozens of soldiers, the worst fighting between the two countries since the Taliban took over Kabul in 2021.
WHY ARE THE NEIGHBOURS AT ODDS?
Pakistan welcomed the return to power of the Taliban in 2021, with then-Prime Minister Imran Khan saying that Afghans had “broken the shackles of slavery”.
But Islamabad soon found that the Taliban were not as cooperative as it had hoped.
Islamabad says that the leadership of militant group Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and many of its fighters are based in Afghanistan, and that secular armed insurgents seeking independence for the southwestern province of Balochistan also use Afghanistan as a safe haven.
Militancy has increased every year since 2022 with attacks from the TTP and Baloch insurgents growing, according to Armed Conflict Location & Event Data, a global monitoring organization.
Kabul for its part has repeatedly denied allowing militants to use Afghan territory to launch attacks in Pakistan.
Even as the fragile ceasefire has held there have been repeated clashes and border closures that have disrupted trade and movement along the rugged frontier.

WHAT SPARKED SATURDAY’S OFFENSIVE?

The day before the strikes, Pakistani security sources said they had “irrefutable evidence” that militants were using Afghan soil to attack Pakistan.
The sources listed seven planned or successful attacks by militants since late 2024 that they said were connected to Afghanistan.
One attack last week that killed 11 security personnel and two civilians in Bajaur district was undertaken by an Afghan national, according to Pakistani security sources. This attack was claimed by the TTP.

WHO ARE THE PAKISTANI TALIBAN?

The TTP was formed in 2007 by several jihadist outfits active in northwest Pakistan. It is commonly known as the Pakistani Taliban.
The TTP has attacked markets, mosques, airports, military bases, police stations and also gained territory – mostly along the border with Afghanistan, but also deep inside Pakistan, including the Swat Valley, where they later shot schoolgirl Malala Yousafzai.
They also fought alongside the Afghan Taliban in Afghanistan and hosted Afghan fighters in Pakistan. Pakistan has launched military operations against the TTP on its own soil with limited success, although an offensive that ended in 2016 drastically reduced attacks till a few years ago.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

After the attack, the Taliban warned “an appropriate and measured response will be taken at a suitable time.”
Analysts say this is likely to come in the way of cross-border action. Two attacks targeted security forces in northwest Pakistan in the days after Pakistan’s airstrikes.
On paper, there is a wide mismatch between the two sides. At 172,000, the Taliban have less than a third of Pakistan’s personnel.
Though the Taliban do possess at least six aircraft and 23 helicopters, their condition is unknown and they have no fighter jets or effective air force.
Pakistan’s armed forces include more than 600,000 active personnel, have more than 6,000 armoured fighting vehicles and more than 400 combat aircraft, according to 2025 data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies. The country is also nuclear armed.

Reporting by Lucy Craymer in Islamabad and Saad Sayeed in Bangkok; Editing by Aidan Lewis

What’s behind the latest tension between Afghanistan and Pakistan?
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Nearly 2.9 Million Afghans Returned in 2025, UNHCR Reports

February 25, 2026
Hadia Ziaei
Tolo News
24 Feb 2026

According to the organization’s statistics, nearly 2.9 million Afghans returned to the country during that year.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), in its latest report, stated that 2025 was marked by the large-scale return of Afghans from neighboring countries.

According to the organization’s statistics, nearly 2.9 million Afghans returned to the country during that year. Close to half of these returns were forced. Among them, 1.9 million individuals were deported from Iran, 1 million from Pakistan, and 1,953 from Tajikistan.

The report further states that these returns were often accompanied by detention and violations of human rights. Many returnees entered Afghanistan under pressure, following sudden displacement from their places of residence and after enduring difficult journeys.

Return figures from neighboring countries in 2025, as cited in the report:

Iran: 1.9 million people

  • 54% undocumented
  • 46% holders of census registration slips
  • 49% women and girls
  • 57% children

Pakistan: 1 million people

  • 44% holders of Proof of Registration (PoR) cards
  • 2% asylum seekers
  • 54% undocumented
  • 45% women and children
  • 21% unaccompanied children

Faramarz Barzin, spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, said: “The return process was often marked by sudden deportations, which did not even give individuals the opportunity to gather their belongings. Many were forced to leave behind their assets and were even separated from family members. These issues increased protection and legal risks during return and placed additional pressure on reception and reintegration capacities in areas of return.”

At the same time, families recently returned from Pakistan, particularly women who are heads of households have expressed their concerns and demands.

Zainab, deported from Pakistan, said: “We neither have the ability to return to our home province nor can we afford transportation costs. We want land to be allocated to us so that we can live.”

Another deportee from Pakistan stated: “We borrowed money to pay for the vehicle fare to come here. They should find jobs for our children and provide us with housing.”

The United Nations Assistance Mission has also reported that over the past two years, nearly 5 million people approximately 10 percent of the country’s total population have returned to Afghanistan as a result of forced deportations and strict migration restrictions imposed by neighboring countries.

Although the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has assured that it is prepared to address the needs of returnees, it has repeatedly called on host countries, particularly Pakistan and Iran to prevent the forced deportation of Afghan migrants.

Nearly 2.9 Million Afghans Returned in 2025, UNHCR Reports
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Millions in Afghanistan Face Hunger as Ramadan Begins, WFP Says

February 25, 2026
Khaama Press

The World Food Programme (WFP) says millions of people in Afghanistan are beginning the holy month of Ramadan facing severe hunger and deep economic hardship.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Febraury 24, the agency stressed that it is working with partners to help provide essential food supplies to struggling families across the country.

WFP said that in a country where 17 million people are experiencing acute food insecurity, Ramadan traditionally a time of reflection and generosity brings additional pressure for vulnerable households.

The agency noted that many Afghans are entering the holy month without reliable income after years of economic crisis, drought, and limited access to basic services.

The organization added that children, as well as pregnant and breastfeeding women, considered the most vulnerable groups are receiving specialized and nutritious food assistance.

However, WFP warned that these critical programs are now at risk due to funding shortfalls, threatening millions of Afghans who depend heavily on life-saving aid.

Various UN agencies have cautioned that at least 17 million people in Afghanistan require urgent humanitarian assistance to survive worsening economic and social conditions.

Ramadan arrives as food prices continue to rise across the country, compounding existing hardships and increasing the urgency for sustained international support.

Millions in Afghanistan Face Hunger as Ramadan Begins, WFP Says
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