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ICRC Warns Afghanistan ‘Being Overlooked Despite Severe Humanitarian Needs’

September 2, 2026 Current News Articles

Hadia Ziaei

Tolo News

2 September 2026

ICRC director of operations stressed that Afghans need both national and international support.

The director of operations at the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has expressed concern that Afghanistan, despite its severe humanitarian needs, has fallen off the international community’s radar.

Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, speaking to AFP in Kabul, pointed to the difficult humanitarian situation and the collapse of the healthcare system and urged the international community not to abandon the people of Afghanistan. She stressed that Afghans need both national and international support.

The report also said she expressed concern about restrictions imposed on women, particularly in education and employment, and the potential lack of female healthcare workers to replace the current workforce in the future.

Yasmine Praz Dessimoz, ICRC director of operations, said: “We can keep our female staff in healthcare support roles, but the main concern is what happens next. Because if the new generation is not educated, there will be no one to replace them.”

Najm-ul-Sama Shafajo, a doctor, said: “There are few female doctors, but efforts should be made to strengthen their capacity. The existing female doctors should be retained, their benefits should be increased, their workload reduced, and more female doctors should be introduced into society.”

Recently, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Global Communications said that 100 health centers treating children with malnutrition had closed in the country. The World Health Organization also reported that nearly 150 health facilities in Afghanistan had closed in 2026 due to funding shortages, while Save the Children reported that nearly 600 health facilities had either closed or suspended operations following cuts in humanitarian aid.

Madad Khan Danishwar, a doctor, said: “The Red Cross and other organizations should persuade and encourage donor countries not to abandon Afghanistan.”

Venus Shirzad, a healthcare worker, said: “The international community should continue its assistance in the area of maternal and child health. It should also provide educational opportunities for women in the health sector so that the lives of mothers and children are not put at risk.”

International organizations have repeatedly criticized cuts in humanitarian assistance, particularly in Afghanistan’s health sector, warning that reduced aid and the closure of health facilities could leave 3.7 million children in Afghanistan facing acute malnutrition. Shahabuddin Delawar, head of the Afghan Red Crescent Society, has also criticized the politicization of humanitarian aid.

U.S. May Seek Return to Afghanistan After Regional Tensions, Iranian Politician Says

September 2, 2026 Current News Articles

By Fidel Rahmati

Khaama Press

September 2, 2026

An Iranian politician has claimed that the United States could seek to return militarily to Afghanistan following recent developments in the Middle East, arguing that Washington may consider shifting part of its forces from Gulf bases to Afghanistan as part of a broader regional strategy.

Hossein Kanani Moghaddam, secretary-general of Iran’s Green Party, made the remarks in an interview with Iranian media outlet IRAF on Tuesday, saying one possible scenario under discussion in Washington could be the re-establishment of a U.S. military presence in Afghanistan.

According to Kanani Moghaddam, Afghanistan remains strategically important for the United States because of its geographic position between Central Asia, China and Iran. He argued that a renewed U.S. presence could be aimed at limiting the expansion of China’s Belt and Road Initiative toward western Asia and creating pressure on growing cooperation between Beijing and Tehran.

He also claimed that U.S. policymakers may view Afghanistan as a platform for pursuing broader strategic objectives in the region and regaining influence lost after the withdrawal of American troops in 2021.

The United States ended its 20-year military mission in Afghanistan in August 2021, when the Taliban returned to power following the collapse of the former Afghanistan government. Since then, Washington has maintained no military presence inside Afghanistan.

Kanani Moghaddam did not provide evidence to support his claim, and U.S. officials have not announced any plans to redeploy troops to Afghanistan. Washington has repeatedly said it relies on “over-the-horizon” counterterrorism capabilities rather than a permanent military presence in the country.

Gold Mining Halted in Panjshir Province, Afghanistan: Miners Report Financial Losses Under Taliban Restrictions

September 2, 2026 Current News Articles

Farhad Farhaad

Ilya

2 Sept 2026

A gold panning device sits along a riverbank in Panjshir province as a miner works nearby amid a Taliban-imposed mining suspension. (Photo credit: Exclusive)

Exclusive

Several gold miners in Panjshir province’s Paryan district are complaining that the Taliban have set exorbitant prices for mining licenses. They say that beyond the high license fees, mining activity in the district has been suspended for six months. During this period, the miners add, Taliban forces confiscated their extraction machinery and equipment and told them to keep working with basic tools such as shovels and pickaxes instead. They say these tools have not only reduced how much gold they can extract but have also made the work slower and less efficient.

The miners stress that relying on basic tools puts workers at greater risk and makes it harder to extract gold of standard quality. Speaking to the Hasht-e Subh Daily, they say that before the suspension, they had borrowed money or brought in equipment owners as partners to cover the cost of machinery. The six-month halt has since left their operations saddled with debt and financial losses. They say it has also cut off income for dozens of workers and their families, deepening their economic hardship.

The miners are calling for a clearer licensing process and for mining to resume so they can keep extracting gold with proper equipment and within the law.

Adel (pseudonym) is one of the gold miners in Panjshir. He says the high cost of licenses and restrictions on machinery use have created serious problems for miners. Several residents, he adds, had given up farming and other work to pursue gold mining as a source of income. Now they can neither extract gold properly nor fall back on the farming they left behind. He says the confiscation of equipment by Taliban forces, combined with the lack of a clear response to miners’ appeals, has made their situation even harder.

“This isn’t just about the high cost of the license,” Adel says. “It has become an ordeal for the people of Panjshir. People want to earn a living through mining, but no matter how hard they try to sort out their problems, they get no clear answers. On one hand, the license comes at a high price. On the other, they won’t issue it, and they won’t let us use machinery either; they tell us to use shovels and pickaxes instead, even though gold is extremely difficult to extract that way and yields very little.”

He adds: “Many people gave up farming to make a living from gold mining. Now they have nothing from farming and no income from mining either. Some borrowed money to buy or rent equipment, but Taliban forces sometimes confiscate it without any clear reason. People are struggling, and they want officials to allow legal work, issue licenses, and let them use the equipment they need.”

Shakib (pseudonym) is another gold miner in Paryan district. He says the Taliban have left miners in limbo by setting high license fees while withholding the licenses themselves. He has gone repeatedly to the Taliban’s Ministry of Mines and Petroleum (MoMP) to request a license, he says, but has yet to receive a clear answer. According to Shakib, most miners borrowed money to get started in the sector, and now, with work halted and no licenses issued, they are without income and facing debt.

“For six months, I’ve gone to the Ministry of Mines in Kabul twice a week to try to get a license,” Shakib says. “But I get no real answer, and no one pays attention to our request. Gold mining had given people in Paryan hope of finding work and improving their situation, but the suspension has crushed that hope. Right now, we don’t know when we’ll be allowed to start working again and get a legal license.”

He is calling on the Taliban’s MoMP to lower license fees and streamline the approval process, arguing that doing so would let miners resume operations and bring dozens of workers back to work.

“Many of us who started this work didn’t have the money for equipment, so we had to borrow or bring in equipment owners as partners,” Shakib says. “Now, six months on, we have no extraction and no income from gold sales. When the work first began, it created jobs and income for dozens of people, and we hoped it would improve things economically. Now everyone is out of work and struggling with poverty. People have lost hope that the government will listen, and all we want is for the licenses to be issued so we can legally start working again.”

The complaints from Panjshir’s gold miners come even though the Taliban’s provincial Directorate of Mines and Petroleum has previously said it has issued licenses for the extraction of 66 types of minerals. According to Taliban figures, about 15,000 people, most of them young men, work in the province’s mining sector, and roughly 40 percent of them earn between 6,000 and 10,000 Afghanis a month.

At the same time, the Taliban have said they are seeking to attract foreign investment in Afghanistan’s mining sector. The Financial Times reported that the group has offered the United States investment opportunities and access to the country’s mineral resources. Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi told the outlet that the group welcomes American investment in mining, infrastructure, agriculture, and trade.

Miners in Panjshir, however, say they still face high license fees, a halt in extraction, and an unclear approval process as they try to keep working.

Taliban defend complete ban on protests in Afghanistan

September 2, 2026 Current News Articles

DPA

Wed, September 2, 2026

Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid delivers a news conference in Kabul. Further ministers and deputies were named as part of the Taliban interim government, none of them are women. (is associated with: «Taliban defend complete ban on protests in Afghanistan») Oliver Weiken/dpa

Taliban government defends complete ban on public protests in Afghanistan, citing Islamic law and national security concerns

The Taliban government on Wednesday defended a complete ban on public protests in Afghanistan, asserting that demonstrations have no place under the Taliban’s interpretation of Islamic law and that the measure is necessary to preserve national security and stability.

Speaking at a press conference in Kabul, government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid responded to international criticism regarding the newly ratified Police Law. One of the articles banned all forms of demonstrations within Afghan territory.

Mujahid stated that the legal document has been drafted to reflect the realities of Afghan society and contains clauses that are vital for the security and stability of the country. He added that demonstrations are associated with societies where different legal frameworks, such as a democracy or a republic, are dominant.

Since returning to power in 2021, the Taliban government has banned all forms of demonstrations and forcefully suppressed dissent. The codified protest ban has drawn sharp criticism from international human rights groups, who state that the measure further severs remaining civic spaces and fundamental freedoms in Afghanistan.

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

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

By Fidel Rahmati

Khaama Press

September 1, 2026

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.

UN Report Says Afghanistan’s War Killed Over 40,000 Civilians Between 2009 and 2021

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

By Fidel Rahmati

Khaama Press

September 1, 2026

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.

UNAMA: Afghan War Victims Still Face Lasting Harm, Lack Access to Justice

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

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.

Shakib: Pakistan’s Security Concerns No Excuse for Military Action

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

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.

SCO Leaders Stress Inclusive Government, Peace, Stability in Afghanistan

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

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.

‘I’ve never been to Afghanistan’: Six million deportees forced to start over under the Taliban

September 1, 2026 Current News Articles

Lyse Doucet

Chief international correspondent

Torkham crossing and Kabul\

BBC News

1 September 2026

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.

Farhad Farhaad

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