India’s Modi Says Afghanistan Stability Is Vital to Regional Security

September 1, 2026
Khaama Press

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit that lasting stability in Asia would be difficult to achieve without addressing the situation in Afghanistan, stressing that New Delhi would continue its engagement with the people of Afghanistan.

Speaking at the 26th SCO summit in Bishkek, Modi described Afghanistan as an important factor in maintaining regional security and stability, noting that developments in the country could have consequences for neighbouring states.

Modi said India had stood by the Afghanistan people in recent years through humanitarian assistance and development support.

He added that New Delhi intends to maintain this approach and continue providing humanitarian and development assistance to the people of Afghanistan.

India has focused much of its engagement with Afghanistan in recent years on humanitarian assistance, including supplies of food and medicine, while stressing the importance of stability in the country for regional security.

This comes amid sharply deteriorating relations between Pakistan and the Taliban regime, with disputes over border security, militant activity and the presence of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) becoming major sources of tension. Pakistan has repeatedly accused the Taliban regime of allowing militants operating against Pakistan to use Afghanistan territory, allegations the Taliban denies. The tensions have led to border clashes, diplomatic disputes and disruptions to trade and cross-border movement.

This comes as Pakistan has increased pressure on the Taliban regime through measures affecting Afghan nationals and bilateral trade, while urging Kabul to take action against militant groups. The Taliban has rejected Pakistan’s accusations and called for dialogue to resolve the disputes.

India’s Modi Says Afghanistan Stability Is Vital to Regional Security
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UN Report Says Afghanistan’s War Killed Over 40,000 Civilians Between 2009 and 2021

September 1, 2026
Khaama Press

More than 40,000 people were killed and over 77,000 injured during Afghanistan’s armed conflict between 2009 and 2021, according to a new report by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), which documents the long-term human cost of two decades of war.

The report, released on Tuesday, September 1, examines violence and conflict in Afghanistan from 2001 until the Taliban’s return to power in 2021. It is based on interviews with 195 victims and family members, 23 humanitarian organizations, and 23 government officials, making it one of the UN’s most comprehensive assessments of the conflict’s impact.

UNAMA said the findings show that the consequences of the war continue to affect survivors years after the fighting subsided. Nearly all interviewees reported suffering psychological trauma, including depression, anxiety and recurring traumatic memories, while more than half said they continue to live with physical injuries and chronic pain caused by the conflict.

The report warns that the legacy of the war extends beyond casualties, leaving many families with lasting emotional, social and economic hardships that continue to shape daily life in Afghanistan.

UNAMA said addressing the needs of victims, including medical care, mental health support and long-term rehabilitation remains essential for Afghanistan’s recovery after decades of conflict.

The period between 2009 and 2021 was the deadliest phase of Afghanistan’s conflict, marked by intensified fighting between the former Afghanistan government, Taliban insurgents, Islamic State affiliates and international military forces. The conflict ended with the collapse of the previous government and the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021.

Although nationwide fighting has declined since 2021, UNAMA has repeatedly warned that the humanitarian and psychological consequences of the conflict continue to affect millions of Afghans, particularly survivors, displaced families and communities that experienced prolonged violence.

UN Report Says Afghanistan’s War Killed Over 40,000 Civilians Between 2009 and 2021
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UNAMA: Afghan War Victims Still Face Lasting Harm, Lack Access to Justice

September 1, 2026
Hadia Ziaei
Tolo News
1 September 2026

The report is based on interviews with 195 victims and their family members, 23 non-governmental organizations, and 23 Islamic Emirate officials.

UNAMA said in a new report that victims of armed conflict in Afghanistan from 2001 to August 15, 2021, continue to face severe physical, psychological, and economic consequences, while many lack access to justice and support.

According to the report, from January 2009 to August 15, 2021, more than 40,000 civilians were killed and 77,000 others were wounded. Efforts to uphold victims’ rights and hold perpetrators accountable have faced numerous obstacles.

The report is based on interviews with 195 victims and their family members, 23 non-governmental organizations, and 23 Islamic Emirate officials.

According to the findings, 95% of those interviewed reported psychological or emotional harm, while 58% reported physical injuries, chronic pain, or disabilities. Meanwhile, 55% had taken no action to seek justice or compensation, and 64% of those who had sought assistance complained of administrative barriers and a lack of response.

Victims identified compensation, access to justice, and preventing the recurrence of violations as among their main demands.

UNAMA’s findings on victims of the conflict from 2001 to August 15, 2021, show:

95% reported psychological or emotional harm
58% reported physical injury or disability
55% took no action to seek justice or compensation
81% called for compensation
48% called for justice
47% called for preventing the recurrence of violations

Samiullah Ahmadzai, a political analyst, said: “They bombed civilians in schools, madrasas, and mosques, and the effects are still being felt by Afghans and will continue for a long time. The negative impact on people’s mental and psychological well-being remains, and Western countries and the United States now have a responsibility to address the suffering.”

In the report, UNAMA called on all parties to the conflict to take responsibility for their actions and urged the Islamic Emirate to establish comprehensive programs to uphold the rights of victims and provide them with support.

The organization also called on UN member states to provide more assistance to Afghanistan, focusing on the needs and priorities of victims of armed conflict.

Idris Mohammadi Zazai, a political analyst, said: “In addition to reporting, another responsibility of UNAMA is to facilitate the process of obtaining compensation for individuals and families who have suffered harm.”

Asadullah Nadim, a military analyst, said: “Now that the Islamic Emirate is in power, it is responsible for managing these issues and should establish government-level programs to address the needs of war victims.”

The Islamic Emirate has not yet commented on the matter.

Families of victims of foreign military operations in Afghanistan have previously called for judicial investigations, accountability for those responsible, and compensation.

In recent years, cases concerning the conduct of Australian and British special forces in Afghanistan have also been raised, with some still undergoing judicial proceedings and legal reviews.

UNAMA: Afghan War Victims Still Face Lasting Harm, Lack Access to Justice
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Shakib: Pakistan’s Security Concerns No Excuse for Military Action

September 1, 2026
Tolo News
1 September 2026
Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have faced growing tensions since October last year.
Sardar Ahmad Shakib, the Islamic Emirate’s ambassador in Islamabad, described Afghanistan and Pakistan as interconnected countries during remarks at Pakistan’s National Defence University, emphasizing the deep ties between the peoples of the two countries.

He said Afghanistan does not want its territory to be used against Pakistan, but Pakistan’s security concerns should not become a justification for military action on Afghan soil.

Shakib added that security allegations should be specific, precise, and based on clear information and concrete cases.

Shakib said: “Afghanistan does not want its territory to be used against Pakistan. At the same time, Afghanistan cannot accept Pakistan’s security concerns being used as a justification for military action on Afghan soil. If Afghanistan is expected to cooperate on specific concerns, Afghanistan also wants to directly discuss its own security concerns with Pakistan.”

In another part of his remarks, Shakib stressed that Afghanistan’s relations with one country should not be interpreted as a position against another. He said maintaining relations with other countries is the right of every independent state.

“Pakistan has its national interests, and Afghanistan has its national interests. Being neighbors does not mean that one country must approve all the strategic choices of the other. Rather, it means that both countries should be able to make independent decisions while also taking into account each other’s legitimate security and national concerns,” Shakib said.

Meanwhile, Maulana Fazlur Rehman, leader of Pakistan’s Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, criticized the government’s policies, saying Pakistan’s relations with India, Afghanistan, China, Iran, and Bangladesh should not be determined solely by the government’s perspective.

He added that disagreement with government policies should not be considered an act of betrayal and that the consequences of Pakistan’s security and foreign policies should also be discussed and assessed.

Fazlur Rehman said: “It is not the case that whatever you say and whatever path you determine, we simply say, ‘We hear and obey.’ No, that is not the case. What should our relations in the region look like? What should our relations with India, Afghanistan, China, Iran, and Bangladesh be? On all these issues, a political party has its own position. But if its position differs from yours, do you label it a traitor? Have some shame; this is not right.”

Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have faced growing tensions since October last year.

During this period, several Pakistani political figures and religious scholars have criticized Islamabad’s policies toward Afghanistan and emphasized resolving differences through dialogue and diplomacy.

Shakib: Pakistan’s Security Concerns No Excuse for Military Action
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SCO Leaders Stress Inclusive Government, Peace, Stability in Afghanistan

September 1, 2026
 TOLOnews
 TV Network
1 September 2026

The President of Uzbekistan called for the resumption of regular dialogue between the SCO and Afghanistan.

Member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), in the final declaration of the Bishkek summit, said that forming an inclusive government with broad participation of Afghanistan’s ethnic and political groups is the only way to achieve lasting peace in the country.

TASS news agency, citing the declaration, reported that SCO member states emphasized their support for the establishment of an independent, neutral, peaceful Afghanistan free from terrorism, war and drugs.

TASS wrote: “The member states reiterate that the formation of an inclusive government with broad participation of representatives of all ethnic and political groups in Afghan society is the only way to achieve lasting peace.”

At the summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that peace and stability in Afghanistan are linked to the shared goal of regional countries to have a peaceful and secure Eurasia.

The President of Uzbekistan called for the resumption of regular dialogue between the SCO and Afghanistan.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister also said that Islamabad wants a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif added: “Pakistan wants a peaceful, stable and prosperous Afghanistan. But there should be no ambiguity: as long as terrorists use Afghan soil to shed the blood of innocent Pakistani citizens and citizens of other countries, lasting peace will remain beyond our reach.”

Meanwhile, as the SCO summit was underway, the Islamic Emirate’s spokesman told TOLOnews that Afghanistan’s participation in regional meetings is essential for safeguarding the interests of regional countries.

Zabihullah Mujahid emphasized that Afghanistan should participate in such meetings as a responsible party and assume its responsibilities regarding the decisions made.

Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, said: “Regional meetings are held for the interests of the region, which include regional security, economic development and social solidarity. Afghanistan is part of all three. If Afghanistan is absent from these meetings, we can say that the meetings cannot take an appropriate position on Afghanistan, secure commitments regarding Afghanistan, or preserve Afghanistan’s position. Afghanistan needs to participate in these meetings and, as a responsible party, fulfill its responsibilities regarding the decisions made.”

TASS also reported that following the SCO summit in Bishkek, an “SCO Plus” meeting is expected to be held with the participation of Afghanistan and several other countries.

SCO Leaders Stress Inclusive Government, Peace, Stability in Afghanistan
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‘I’ve never been to Afghanistan’: Six million deportees forced to start over under the Taliban

September 1, 2026
Lyse Doucet
Chief international correspondent
Torkham crossing and Kabul\
BBC News
1 September 2026
Watch: BBC’s Lyse Doucet reports on the biggest cross-border movement of people

The elderly grimace, hobbling on crutches, and wide-eyed children stare, cradling chickens carried from homes they were forced to leave behind.

“It feels good to be in my own country,” 35-year-old Nazia says, just minutes after she crosses from Pakistan, where she was born, into Afghanistan.

The Torkham crossing, known as “Zero Point”, is where one hard life ends and another begins.

“But I’ve never been to Afghanistan before and many people here don’t even have enough bread to eat,” Nazia sighs as she heads, two of her children in tow, toward registration counters festooned with white and black Taliban flags.

Nearly her entire family, eight sisters and their offspring, were deported to Afghanistan this year from Pakistan or Iran.

They are part of the biggest cross-border movement of people anywhere in the world.

Millions of Afghans have fled across the borders to Pakistan and Iran for decades – seeking refuge or employment – and the number escaping Afghanistan has continued to rise since the Taliban takeover in August 2021.

Most are now being forced to return as these two neighbours crack down on undocumented migrants. Nazia and her family were undocumented but the UN and human rights groups say the security sweep is reaching far beyond that group to include registered Afghans too. Even Pakistan now publicly says that Afghans with Proof of Registration cards are not exempt.

The expulsions show no sign of stopping.

The number forced to return this year from Pakistan and Iran has already reached another million, according to the UN’s Refugee Agency, the UNHCR.

“In a little under three years, we’ve seen six million people, a population that is itself the size of a small country, come back to Afghanistan,” observes Charlie Goodlake, spokesperson for the UNHCR in Afghanistan.

“We’ve never seen in recent history a return movement on this scale,” he underlines, standing in the baking heat in the tented village close to the border.

It’s a desolate landscape of tarpaulin and plastic shelters, many now tattered and torn, erected by the UN and other aid agencies to provide refuge for a few nights for a people arriving with nowhere to go.

Many returnees have not set foot in Afghanistan for decades; many like Nazia have never been here at all.

“I left 45 years ago during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan and most of my brothers were born in Pakistan,” explains Sarwar, who arrived a few days earlier with seven brothers and their families in a convoy of 40 people and the jumble of their worldly goods packed into a lumbering Pakistani lorry.

“We spent a long time there, so of course I felt heartbroken when they forced us out of our home,” he says.

“But, despite all that pain, I am also happy because I am finally free of harassment by Pakistan’s police.”

Every family we met told us they had experienced prejudice and harassment by authorities in Pakistan.

The Pakistan government has not responded to the BBC’s questions, but a foreign ministry spokesman told a briefing in Islamabad on Sunday that “the Government of Pakistan undertakes the necessary measures to prevent any instance of harassment or maltreatment of Afghan nationals in Pakistan. If such incidents have taken place, they are sporadic and are dealt with fully in accordance with the law”.

Both Pakistan and Iran say it’s past time for Afghans to go home, accusing some of posing a security risk, and others of being a financial burden.

The expulsions from Pakistan and alleged abuse intensified after a major escalation in fighting between Pakistan and Afghanistan last October. In February, Human Rights Watch highlighted “door-to-door raids, late-night home searches and arrests without warrants”.

In Iran, which claimed last year to host more than four million undocumented Afghans, the mass deportations were accelerated after its 12-day war with Israel and the US in June 2025.

The New York based Centre for Human Rights in Iran accused the authorities of using the post-war climate to “cast suspicion on Afghan migrants – accusing them of espionage and branding them as potential spies for Israel”.

The UN’s refugee agency continues to underscore the humanitarian principle that any return should be “voluntary, safe and dignified”.

But in Torkham, Sarwar’s sister-in-law Zarina laments the precarious future they face: “We have no resources to start a business or earn a living, and we don’t even own a tent to live in”.

Zarina, an Afghan returnee, inside a tent with several others is using her veil to partially cover her face as she faces the camera.
Zarina, 40, is among the million Afghan who have returned this year alone

Inside the barren transit tent, which provides little escape from scorching 41C heat, Zarina sits alongside an anxious huddle of women and their children.

Are they worried about the future for women and girls in a country where the Taliban has barred women from much of public life, including secondary school and university?

Forty-year-old Zarina turns to make a sweeping gesture with her arm: “Look at them, they’re all girls. Of course I’m worried.”

Some returnees are not just worried; they’re terrified.

“I don’t leave this house,” a former Afghan security guard, first deported from Iran and then Pakistan, nervously tells us when we meet him far from the border in what he hopes is a safe house.

“We are all living in fear including my wife and children who are also afraid to go outside.”

He dismisses the Taliban government’s amnesty, announced days after their return to power which declared that former government officials, security personnel and civil servants would not face retaliation and were encouraged to return to work.

“I have no trust in their amnesty because many of my colleagues have been killed.” He says his case had been registered with the UN but was deported before he could be transferred to a safer country.

Financial hardship magnifies the pain. The steep cuts in foreign aid worldwide are especially sharp in Afghanistan where the Taliban are still stuck in sanctions linked to terrorism and human rights.

Pakistan confirmed on Sunday that 16,000 vulnerable Afghans have now been granted, on humanitarian grounds, a temporary exemption from being deported – a decision welcomed by the UN.

But sources estimate that the number of Afghans in Pakistan at risk of serious harm, including women and girls who would be denied education, could be as high as 250,000.

A girl with in a yellow outfit stares into the camera.
Zarina says she is worried about the future of the girls who cannot attend secondary school and university in Taliban-run Afghanistan

At the graceful foreign ministry compound in Kabul, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi tries to put on a brave face.

“There’s no doubt that we need some help,” he admits. “There is pressure due to their return but in the long run, it will benefit them as well as Afghanistan.”

In the first years after the Taliban swept to power in 2021, some of their ministers made light of humanitarian issues, saying God would provide.

The UN now estimates that 21.9 million people, nearly half the country, need assistance this year to survive. The UN’s children agency, UNICEF, said last week that one million children faced “life-threatening” malnutrition.

“No country in the world could handle this kind of crisis on its own,” UNHCR spokesperson Goodlake assesses, while acknowledging Taliban government efforts to help returnees as they arrive.

But, he adds, “We also know that many of the restrictions and edicts they put in place, particularly on women and girls, don’t help us elicit international support”.

Muttaqi reiterates his government’s line that matters like girl’s education are “internal issues” for Afghans to resolve.

The severe restrictions on the lives of girls and women is one of the major issues in the Taliban’s international relationships and that has cost them. Five years on, only one country, Russia, has formally recognised their rule.

But when asked about this, Muttaqi points to the deepening diplomatic and economic ties with neighbours such as China and India, as well as Central Asian states.

As for Kabul’s relative isolation from western nations, he asks, “those who didn’t have relationships with us over the past five years, what have they achieved?”

He answers his own question: “Nothing.”

We heard that word – “nothing” – from every family we met at Zero Point, but in a much different sense.

All were embarking on the hardest of homecomings, beginning all over again – with almost nothing.

‘I’ve never been to Afghanistan’: Six million deportees forced to start over under the Taliban
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Delawar: US Committed 3,000 Violations After Doha Agreement

September 1, 2026
Hadia Ziaei
Tolo News
31 August 2026

He also stressed that Washington’s demands from the Islamic Emirate indicate that the United States has recognized the Islamic Emirate.

Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar, head of the Afghan Red Crescent Society and a former senior member of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s political office in Doha, said in a debate with TOLOnews that the United States committed 3,000 violations even after the Doha Agreement.

He also stressed that Washington’s demands from the Islamic Emirate indicate that the United States has recognized the Islamic Emirate.

Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar, head of the Afghan Red Crescent Society, said: “Even now, if you look at it, they have recognized us. When they sat with us, made commitments and told us how to observe a ceasefire and how to act, all of this means that this is a government.”

Delawar said one of the reasons for the failure of the intra-Afghan talks was that members of the former government were not serious about the negotiations. He added that the withdrawal of foreign forces demonstrates that Afghans will not surrender to any country and that no country can impose itself on Afghanistan by force.

Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar said: “The need for negotiations ended when the occupation ended. Afghanistan wants diplomatic, trade and humanitarian negotiations with the entire world.”

He added that there are parties that do not want Afghanistan to prosper or have a unified government, and that this is why they have not recognized the Islamic Emirate.

Speaking about the recent clashes between Pakistan and Afghanistan, Delawar also stressed that Islamabad is making a mistake by taking such actions.

The head of the Afghan Red Crescent Society said: “There are many countries that want Afghanistan to remain under their political, military and economic influence.”

In another part of his remarks, Sheikh Shahabuddin Delawar said that the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is committed to ensuring women’s rights and that women and girls have been granted their rights in various areas.

Delawar: US Committed 3,000 Violations After Doha Agreement
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Families Seek Compensation for Losses in US Military Operations

September 1, 2026
TOLOnews
TV Network
31 August 2026
They are also demanding the prosecution of US soldiers allegedly involved in the killing of Afghan civilians in Afghanistan.
People affected by US military operations in Afghanistan’s southern provinces are calling for compensation.

They are also demanding the prosecution of US soldiers allegedly involved in the killing of Afghan civilians in Afghanistan.

Haji Din Mohammad, 75, says US forces killed 14 members of his family, including his wife, daughters, sons, brother and sister-in-law, in Lakani village of Panjwayi district in Kandahar 18 years ago.

Haji Din Mohammad told TOLOnews: “They killed 14 members of my family in the bombing. Three of them were my daughters, as well as my wife, two sons, my brother and sister-in-law. My nephews and nieces were also among them.”

Villagers from Haji Din Mohammad’s area also say foreign forces killed civilians in Kandahar’s western districts and targeted gatherings during celebrations and mourning ceremonies.

In addition to calling for the prosecution of foreign forces allegedly involved in the killing of Afghans, they are demanding compensation for affected families.

Mohammad Zarif, a resident of Panjwayi district in Kandahar, said: “We call on the international community to ensure that these individuals are prosecuted and that affected families are compensated.”

Foreign forces also caused significant human and financial losses in Uruzgan and Helmand, in addition to Kandahar, bombing markets and villages and damaging major roads.

Gul Mohammad, a resident of Sangin district in Helmand, said: “Nothing has been left intact. Neither the roads nor the houses remain intact.”

Gulalai, a resident of Uruzgan, said: “Water tanks, guesthouses and mosques have been destroyed.”

Officials say several areas, including Panjwayi and Maiwand districts in Kandahar, Sangin district in Helmand, and areas around Tirin Kot, the capital of Uruzgan, were among those most severely affected by foreign military operations, which caused significant casualties among residents.

Families Seek Compensation for Losses in US Military Operations
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Five Years On: How the Doha Agreement Led to the U.S. Withdrawal

September 1, 2026
By Hadia Ziaei,
Tolo News
31 Aug 2026

In Doha, four major issues were on the table: the withdrawal of foreign forces, counterterrorism guarantees, the start of intra-Afghan talks, and a ceasefire.

Five years ago, the last U.S. soldier left Afghanistan, bringing Washington’s nearly two-decade military presence in the country to an end. But the withdrawal did not begin solely on the battlefield.

The path to withdrawal went through the negotiating table in Doha, where, after months of talks, the United States and the Islamic Emirate signed an agreement that set a timetable for the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan.

Direct talks between the United States and the Islamic Emirate in Doha became public in 2018, but Abbas Stanikzai said contacts between the two sides had been underway even before then.

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, a senior member of the Islamic Emirate’s negotiating team at the Doha talks, told TOLOnews on August 23, 2023: “We began negotiations with the Americans in 2007, and from 2007 until 2021, when the final withdrawal of U.S. forces from Afghanistan took place, I was responsible for all negotiations between the United States and the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.”

In Doha, four major issues were on the table: the withdrawal of foreign forces, counterterrorism guarantees, the start of intra-Afghan talks, and a ceasefire.

The process was suspended several times, but eventually, after 18 months of talks, Zalmay Khalilzad, representing the United States, and Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, representing the Islamic Emirate, signed the “Doha Agreement” on February 29, 2020.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs and former head of the Islamic Emirate’s political office in Doha, said: “It is a positive step for the world and the mujahid people, and I congratulate everyone. The Islamic Emirate is committed to implementing this agreement with the United States.”

Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said: “The steps that the Taliban must take are to fulfill the commitments they made under this agreement so that the ground can be paved for lasting peace in Afghanistan.”

Under the agreement, the United States agreed to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan over a 14-month period. The number of U.S. troops was also expected to be reduced to 8,600 within the first 135 days.

Alongside the withdrawal of forces, the Islamic Emirate also made commitments to the United States, including preventing Afghan soil from being used to threaten the United States and its allies. For Washington, the agreement made one thing clear: the end of the U.S. military presence in Afghanistan was approaching.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on February 29, 2020: “Now, after all these years, it’s time to go and bring our people back home. We want to bring our people back home. And again, especially in Afghanistan, it’s been a long journey. It’s been a very long journey. It’s been a difficult journey for everybody.”

Following the agreement, intra-Afghan talks were expected to begin, aimed at reaching a political settlement and a permanent ceasefire.

However, as foreign forces continued to withdraw from Afghanistan, the war also continued. Islamic Emirate forces captured more territory, provinces fell one after another, and eventually the Islamic Emirate took control of the country.

Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, said on August 16, 2021: “We reached a situation in which no one expected Afghanistan to come under our control in this way.”

Even then, thousands of U.S. troops remained at Kabul airport to evacuate American citizens and eligible Afghans. Finally, on the night of August 30, 2021, the last U.S. soldier left Afghanistan, bringing America’s two-decade military presence in the country to an end.

Gen. Kenneth Frank McKenzie, then commander of U.S. Central Command, said on August 30, 2021: “I’m here to announce the completion of our withdrawal from Afghanistan and the end of the military mission to evacuate American citizens, third-country nationals, and vulnerable Afghans.”

Five years after that withdrawal, the Doha Agreement remains one of the most significant links in the chain of events that took Afghanistan from the U.S. military presence into a new chapter under the rule of the Islamic Emirate—an agreement that promised peace, but whose most significant practical outcome was the withdrawal of foreign forces from Afghanistan.

Five Years On: How the Doha Agreement Led to the U.S. Withdrawal
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Relative of Afghans Who Helped U.S. Military Is Deported to Africa

August 31, 2026
By Miriam Jordan and Hamed Aleaziz

The New York Times

The Trump administration has deported thousands of immigrants to countries where they have no ties. Dozens were on the latest flight, to the Central African Republic.

A deportation plane carrying about 70 foreign nationals, one of an increasing number of flights that have sent thousands of immigrants to countries where they have no ties, left for the Central African Republic on Friday, according to advocacy organizations.

On board was a 24-year-old Afghan whose father, brother and sister worked alongside U.S. forces, said AfghanEvac, a U.S.-based group that assists Afghan allies, the American Civil Liberties Union and a person familiar with the operation who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Deporting relatives of Afghans who aided the U.S. military during its 20-year campaign in Afghanistan breaks a longstanding American commitment to protect wartime allies. Thousands of Afghans fled with their families after the Taliban overthrew the U.S.-backed government in Kabul five years ago.

Under the Biden administration, many received special visas or asylum. Immigration judges granted others “withholding of removal,” which allows noncitizens not granted asylum to remain in the United States because they would face grave danger if returned to their country.

About 19,000 people have been sent to Mexico even though they have no ties to the country. Overall, 23,000 have been sent to countries they are not originally from, according to Human Rights First and Refugees International, groups that track third-country deportation flights.

Friday’s flight was the third since June to the Central African Republic, a country enduring its own civil war, according to Human Rights First, which tracks deportation flights.

“Sending people who won protection in immigration court to a conflict zone is a callous and deliberate strategy by this administration to force people to abandon their claims and rights,” said Sarah Mehta, deputy director of immigration policy and government affairs at the American Civil Liberties Union.

Khalil, the 24-year-old deported on Friday, was granted withholding of removal last year by an immigration judge who found his fear of persecution credible, according to his lawyer, Alma David.

After Kabul fell in August 2021, the family fled to Pakistan, and the Taliban raided their house in search of them, according to interviews with two brothers who now live in the United States.

Khalil, identified by his first name at the request of his lawyer out of concern for his safety, traveled to the United States in the hopes of joining his brothers in 2024. He was detained after crossing the border and applied for asylum.

Marine Col. Zachary Schmidt, who supervised Khalil’s brother Najib during the U.S. military campaign, testified at Khalil’s asylum hearing. He told the judge that he had seen texts and handwritten letters from the Taliban to Khalil’s brother, threatening the family because of work he performed in support of the U.S. mission.

“I firmly believe that if this young man is forced to return to Afghanistan he will be killed,” he said of Khalil in an interview. “The United States made a commitment to protect the people who helped us, and that includes their families.”

Najib, the brother, said in an interview that he had left Afghanistan in 2014 and applied for a special status granted to Afghans who assisted the United States as well as petitioned for asylum. (He has since obtained a green card.)

“We paid the price of serving the U.S. government; my brother was killed,” he said. “Now the situation with Khalil is very, very unfair. He could get killed immediately” if forced to return to Afghanistan.

The Department of Homeland Security did not respond to questions about the deportation of relatives of Afghan allies.

In a statement, the department said, “For operational security and the safety of our personnel, we would never disclose information about our deportation flights. We are applying the law as written. If a judge finds an illegal alien has no right to be in this country, we are going to remove them.”

Among those deported Friday were about 20 Afghan nationals, according to advocacy organizations and a person familiar with the operation. Another 10 were Iranians. Others were from Nepal, Nicaragua and other countries.

“Iranians who can’t go back to a war zone and Afghans who fear deportation to the Taliban are going to be essentially under house arrest, in an unstable country,” said Ms. Mehta of the A.C.L.U. “This is not immigration policy; it’s cruelty.”

The first third-country flight departed for South Sudan in July 2025.

“We’ve seen a dramatic escalation in third country deportations to countries in Africa,” said Savi Arvey, director of policy, refugee and immigrant rights at Human Rights First.

Friday’s flight took off from the Dallas area, according to Human Rights First. It was scheduled to make stops in Senegal and Sierra Leone before landing in the Central African capital of Bangui.

The Trump administration has increasingly relied on third-country agreements with impoverished, troubled countries to deport nationals whose countries refuse to accept them, or whom a judge has found would be in peril if repatriated.

Many of the countries, such as the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of The Congo, appear on State Department advisories warning against travel there.

Until then, the deportees are often confined in ramshackle housing, according to advocates, and they receive no legal status, work authorization or legal support.

Relative of Afghans Who Helped U.S. Military Is Deported to Africa
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