UN Warns Clashes Near Torkham Border Put Civilians and Aid Workers at Risk

October 31, 2026
Khaama Press

Renewed clashes near Afghanistan’s Torkham border crossing with Pakistan have endangered civilians and humanitarian operations, with a child killed and an aid worker injured, the United Nations said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the casualties occurred during fighting on Wednesday, October 28, near the eastern border crossing in Nangarhar province.

The injured humanitarian worker had been assisting Afghan families returning from Pakistan, while the child was from the local community, OCHA said in a statement on Friday, October 30.

The agency warned that repeated clashes in the area were threatening the safety of nearby communities and could further disrupt humanitarian assistance. It called on all parties to protect civilians, civilian infrastructure and humanitarian personnel, and to ensure aid can be delivered without obstruction.

Despite the tensions, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners remain at the border, providing assistance at Torkham and nearby reception and transit centres, according to OCHA.

Torkham handles most returns from Pakistan

Torkham is a major crossing point for Afghans returning from Pakistan. OCHA said more than 600,000 people had crossed into Afghanistan through the route between January and the beginning of October 2026, accounting for nearly 85 per cent of recorded returns from Pakistan.

The latest violence comes as large numbers of Afghans continue to return from Pakistan, including people affected by Islamabad’s campaign to expel undocumented Afghan nationals.

The UN agency warned that previous escalations in the border area had forced the crossing to close temporarily and humanitarian partners to relocate some services. Further fighting could again interrupt assistance and expose returning families to additional risks.

An AFP report published on October 29 also cited Afghan police as saying that two children were killed by Pakistani gunfire near Torkham on Wednesday and two other civilians were wounded. The police account differs from OCHA’s statement, which reported one child killed and one humanitarian worker injured. The figures should therefore be treated as separately attributed accounts rather than combined casualty totals.

The renewed clashes come amid continued tensions between Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities and Pakistan. In a separate report on October 28, Reuters cited a Pakistani regional official as saying that firing from Afghan Taliban forces had killed one person and injured five others in Pakistan’s Waziristan region. The report did not provide further details about the circumstances or a response from authorities.

OCHA stressed that civilians and humanitarian workers must be protected, while aid organisations need safe and unhindered access to people requiring assistance.

UN Warns Clashes Near Torkham Border Put Civilians and Aid Workers at Risk
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Turkic Leaders Emphasize Stability in Afghanistan

October 31, 2026
TOLOnews
TV Network
31 Oct 2026

the statement described a stable Afghanistan as vital to the security and prosperity of Turkic countries and the wider region.

Turkic countries have emphasized their commitment to continued efforts toward peace and stability in Afghanistan in a joint statement issued in Ankara.

According to Turkish media reports, the statement described a stable Afghanistan as vital to the security and prosperity of Turkic countries and the wider region.

Turkic leaders also pledged to continue coordinated efforts through the Organization of Turkic States’ Working Group on Afghanistan to promote peace, stability, and sustainable development in the country.

Although the full text of the joint statement has not yet been made public, Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev stressed during the meeting: “The ongoing armed conflicts and disputes in the regions surrounding Turkic countries negatively affect not only security but also trade and economic relations, transport connectivity, and development prospects. We consider regular political consultations within the organization on current international and regional issues important for coordinating our approaches and efforts.”

According to Turkish media, the joint statement also noted that Turkic countries are closely monitoring Afghanistan’s security situation, political developments, and humanitarian conditions.

The statement further highlighted the strategic importance of the Afghan-Trans railway project in connecting Central Asia with South Asia and strengthening regional trade.

Faridullah Zazai, a political analyst, said: “The emphasis by Turkic countries on coordinated efforts to support stability in Afghanistan and expand economic cooperation presents an important opportunity for Afghanistan. Turkic countries have now recognized that stability in Afghanistan will contribute to greater economic cooperation.”

At the 12th Summit of the Organization of Turkic States, held on October 7, 2025, in Gabala, Azerbaijan, leaders also emphasized the vital role of stability in Afghanistan for the security and prosperity of member states.

Turkic Leaders Emphasize Stability in Afghanistan
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UN Expert Warns of Security Risks From Rising Extremism Among Afghan Youth

October 30, 2026
Khaama Press
Richard Bennett Says Afghan Children Are Growing Up in Fear and Hopelessness
UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett speaking at the United Nations.

UN Special Rapporteur Richard Bennett has warned that Afghanistan’s younger generation faces growing risks of extremism, raising concerns about the country’s long-term stability and regional security.

Bennett issued the warning on Thursday, October 29, while presenting his report to the United Nations General Assembly’s Third Committee in New York. He also said the Taliban had shown no willingness to reform or change policies he described as repressive and discriminatory.

The warning comes amid growing international concern over changes to Afghanistan’s education system, particularly the expansion of religious schools and the promotion of Taliban ideology among young people.

A February 2026 report by the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) said the Taliban had expanded religious education while removing or reducing some secular subjects from school and university curricula. It noted that universities had been instructed to stop teaching 18 subjects considered inconsistent with the Taliban’s interpretation of Sharia, including topics related to gender, democracy and human rights.

The EUAA report also said the number of formally registered madrassas in Afghanistan had risen to nearly 23,000 by August 2025, according to figures provided by the Taliban authorities. Before the Taliban returned to power in 2021, around 5,000 madrassas were formally registered, although many others operated without registration.

The agency cited concerns among some commentators that madrassas could contribute to ideological indoctrination and extremism. However, it also noted that researchers had found no evidence that the public madrassas they examined were conducting militarised training or education, while warning that their possible role in recruitment into Taliban institutions could not be ruled out.

A separate policy brief published by ODI Global on September 21, 2026, warned that the Taliban’s expanding madrassa system could have implications for regional and international security. Based on interviews with students, parents and teachers in Kabul, the report said the system was reinforcing the Taliban’s ideology and restrictive gender norms, with potential long-term consequences for social stability.

The ODI brief also highlighted the ban on formal education for girls beyond Grade 6 as part of a broader shift in the country’s education system. The Taliban have barred girls from secondary education and women from universities, sharply limiting educational opportunities for millions.

The concerns outlined by Bennett and international research organisations point to wider questions about the future of Afghanistan’s young population, including access to diverse education, employment opportunities and the ability to engage with different ideas.

Experts have warned that the long-term effects of educational restrictions and ideological instruction warrant continued international monitoring. However, assessments of security risks linked to religious education vary, and the available evidence does not establish that madrassa attendance alone leads to extremism.

UN Expert Warns of Security Risks From Rising Extremism Among Afghan Youth
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Islamic Emirate Rejects UNODC Report on Poppy Cultivation in Afghanistan

October 30, 2026
Mohammad Nazif Safi
Tolo News
29 Oct 2026

Islamic Emirate called on the United Nations to clarify its calculation methods and sources of information.

According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the area under poppy cultivation in Afghanistan increased nearly fivefold in 2026, reaching approximately 43,300 hectares.

The figure stood at around 10,200 hectares last year, while opium production rose from nearly 300 tons to approximately 1,500 tons, marking a 400% increase.

The report indicates a 330% increase in poppy cultivation compared with the previous year.

Georgette Gagnon, Deputy Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Afghanistan, said the 2026 Afghanistan Opium Survey was not merely a research publication but also an opportunity to strengthen collective efforts to address drug-related challenges through evidence, dialogue and joint action.

UNODC warned that poverty and the lack of sustainable livelihood opportunities could push farmers back into poppy cultivation. The agency therefore emphasized the importance of providing alternative sources of income and supporting farmers.

Meanwhile, UNODC Representative in Afghanistan Polleak Ok Serei expressed hope that the report’s findings would encourage constructive discussions and reinforce commitments to evidence-based solutions aimed at supporting sustainable livelihoods for Afghan farmers and reducing their dependence on the illicit drug economy.

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate’s Ministry of Interior rejected the UN figures, saying that more than 26,000 hectares of land had been cleared of illicit drug cultivation this year.

The ministry called on the United Nations to clarify its calculation methods and sources of information.

Abdul Matin Qani, spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior, told TOLOnews: “This year, more than 26,000 hectares of land have been cleared of illicit drug cultivation. The figures presented in the UN report contradict the official information and field evidence collected by the ministry’s Counter-Narcotics Deputy Ministry. The United Nations must clarify its calculation methodology and how eradication operations were taken into account, and review the report.”

In April 2022, the leader of the Islamic Emirate announced a ban on the cultivation, production and trade of narcotics. Islamic Emirate officials say drug-related activities have declined since the decree was implemented and thousands of drug addicts have received treatment.

Islamic Emirate Rejects UNODC Report on Poppy Cultivation in Afghanistan
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Richard Bennett: Pakistani Killed Over 512 Afghan Civilians Last Year

October 30, 2026
Hadia Ziaei
Tolo News
29 Oct 2026

He also reported that, according to UNAMA, more than 512 Afghan civilians have been killed and 1,200 others injured in clashes with Pakistan.

Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, said at a meeting of the Third Committee of the UN General Assembly that his report examines human rights developments in Afghanistan over the current year and the past five years, with a particular focus on the situation of children.

He also reported that, according to UNAMA, more than 512 Afghan civilians have been killed and 1,200 others injured in clashes with Pakistan over the past year, with women and children among the victims.

Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, said: “Civilians are suffering as a result of cross-border clashes with Pakistan. According to UNAMA, more than 512 civilians have been killed and 1,200 injured over the past year. Many of the victims were women and children who were inside their homes.”

Regarding the rights of women, girls, and children, France and Canada emphasized the need to lift the restrictions imposed by the Islamic Emirate on education, employment, and the participation of women and girls in public life. Germany’s representative also stressed the importance of Afghanistan fulfilling its obligations under the relevant convention and using international legal mechanisms to improve the situation of women and girls.

Nicola Gilhoff, Germany’s representative at the UN Human Rights Council, said: “Germany calls on the de facto authorities in Afghanistan to comply with the country’s international obligations to ensure the necessary accountability for human rights violations.”

Kristina Woinarowicz, Canada’s representative at the UN Human Rights Council meeting, said: “The continued exclusion of women and girls from secondary and higher education, including medical education, combined with restrictions on women’s participation in public life, is reducing the number of female healthcare professionals.”

Regarding the humanitarian crisis, Italy, South Korea, and Malta warned about the consequences of the large-scale return of migrants, declining humanitarian funding, and difficulties in accessing basic services.

Randolph De Battista, Malta’s representative to the United Nations, said: “We call on the international community to make the necessary investments to provide the humanitarian assistance needed in Afghanistan and to support the rights of women and girls who have been marginalized.”

Geng Shuang, China’s representative to the United Nations, said: “China believes that the international community should assess the situation in Afghanistan comprehensively and objectively and provide more constructive guidance. We call on all parties, particularly traditional donor countries, to take immediate action to address the humanitarian funding shortfall.”

Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has previously described such meetings, held without a representative from Afghanistan, as ineffective for the Afghan people.

Richard Bennett: Pakistani Killed Over 512 Afghan Civilians Last Year
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Over the past five years, more than 32,000 foreign tourists have visited the country’s tourist destinations.

October 30, 2026

Tolo News

30 Oct 2026

From Band-e Amir and the ancient monuments of Bamyan to the historic minarets of Herat and the mountains of Badakhshan, Afghanistan’s attractions continue to draw domestic and international tourists.

Over the past five years, more than 32,000 foreign tourists have visited the country’s tourist destinations.

Khabib Ghufran, spokesperson for the Ministry of Information and Culture, said: “Over the past five years, more than 32,000 foreign tourists and more than eight million domestic tourists have visited Afghanistan’s tourist attractions.”

Historic monuments, ancient architecture, and natural landscapes are among Afghanistan’s most important tourist attractions.

Cultural experts believe that preserving historical sites and promoting the country’s attractions internationally could help attract more tourists.

Faqir Mohammad Maiwand, former senior adviser to the Ministry of Information and Culture, said: “Tourism is a culture and an art. Afghanistan needs to develop a comprehensive tourism policy and benefit from the experiences of other countries and professionals who have worked in this sector.”

In addition to promoting Afghanistan’s historical and cultural heritage, tourism can contribute to economic growth and create employment opportunities.

Sayed Masoud, an economic analyst, said: “If tourism is properly managed, it could become one of Afghanistan’s largest sources of revenue.”

However, a shortage of accommodation, recreational facilities, and tourism services in some areas remains an obstacle to the industry’s development.

Abdul Zahoor Modaber, an economic analyst, said: “Fortunately, Afghanistan has great potential for tourism, with numerous natural attractions and scenic landscapes. By modernizing this sector, we can generate more revenue through improved facilities and better security.”

With its historical and natural attractions, Afghanistan has considerable potential to expand its tourism industry. However, realizing its economic benefits requires infrastructure development, improved services, and better facilities for tourists.

Over the past five years, more than 32,000 foreign tourists have visited the country’s tourist destinations.
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In Afghanistan, musicians defy music ban to keep traditions alive

October 30, 2026

By ELENA BECATOROS

The Associated Press

October 30, 2026
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — There was a time when music would fill many of Kabul’s streets, wafting out of cafes and restaurants, seeping out of homes in the warren of alleys that make up the Afghan capital’s music district.

Those days are long gone.

Since 2022, playing or listening to music has been officially banned throughout Afghanistan. The Taliban who seized power in 2021 have prohibited anything but religious music — unaccompanied vocal chanting — with the ban enforced by the feared morality police of the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.

“Music is forbidden in Islam,” said ministry spokesperson Saif ul Islam Khyber, adding that it “serves as a means of joy to Satan,” and that it “often leads to various other vices.” No one, he said, “is permitted to listen to music or to record songs and musical compositions.”

Many musicians and performers fled the country after the takeover. Those who remained sent their instruments abroad or hid them to save them from being smashed by authorities.

The music shops in Kucha-e-Kharabat, the neighborhood in Kabul’s old city where many musicians lived, now sell other wares, from food and groceries to clothes and household goods. Anything except musical instruments.

Across Afghanistan, musicians lost their livelihoods overnight.

Yet for many, music is in their blood. It has flowed through their families for generations, and the thought of never playing again is unbearable. Every so often, some pull out their instruments and play in secret. A knock at the door could mean danger. Still, they play.

Musicians vow to keep traditions alive

In a small home tucked down a narrow street, a musician pulls out three hand-carved wooden rubabs, a traditional plucked lute-like instrument that is an integral part of Afghan musical culture. Picking one up, he cradles it in his lap for a moment before beginning to play.

The resonant, warm sound of the rubab fills the tiny room.

“As long as I am alive, I will continue to play,” he says. “Perhaps I will do so in secret, but I will not allow (the rubab) to be silent. This is our culture, the traditions of Afghanistan which must not be silent; they must be revived and I will fight for that.”

In another part of Kabul, a singer echoes the rubab player’s determination.

“For now, music may not be performed openly, but no one can ever erase it from our hearts,” the singer said. “Whether in secret or in our dreams, we will continue to sing and play our music.”

Both spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of arrest.

Before the takeover, the singer had performed at concerts and celebrations. He, too, has hidden his instruments: a rubab, a harmonium, a flute, a tabla — traditional Afghan hand drums — and a keyboard.

“The day I brought my musical instruments home and covered them with a tarp felt as if I had been buried alive beneath that very covering, as if I were dead,” he said. “Music gave me life; it brought me fame and recognition. Without music, an artist is like a soulless corpse.”

Sometimes, he stands before his hidden instruments and weeps. “I beg my instruments for forgiveness, explaining that I can no longer play them.”” alt=”” />

Musicians descend into poverty

The rubab player taught music at a school and also owned a traditional musical instrument shop. The son and grandson of musicians, the shop and music were his family business.

But after the takeover, he packed up as many of the instruments as he could and sent them abroad. Others, he hid. The music shop shut down.

Losing the business was a heavy blow. Not just financially, but also emotionally, especially for his father. A short while later, his father died of a heart attack. The musician believes the loss of the shop was something he never recovered from.

Between teaching and the shop, the musician made a very comfortable living, earning about 10,000 afghanis ($150) a day, he said. Now, he barely makes 100 afghanis ($1.50) as a manual laborer. With a wife and children to feed, he’s now desperately poor.

For his part, the singer spent two years unemployed before friends helped him start a small business.” alt=”” />

Underground performances have become too dangerous

When the music ban was first imposed, a few underground performances continued. Both the singer and the rubab player performed at some.

But now, it’s just too dangerous.

“The situation was becoming increasingly difficult day by day, and government agents were actively searching for individuals like me to arrest them,” the singer said. He hasn’t performed at a secret gathering for four years now. “The risk is simply too high, and I do not want to end up in prison. I have young children.”

The rubab player said a gathering he had performed at was raided by the vice and virtue police after one of those attending took photos and sent them to the authorities. Many participants were arrested, but he managed to slip away. He hasn’t performed at a secret gathering since.” alt=”” />

Afghanistan’s musical tradition is in danger of dying out

The rubab player learned how to play from his father — an art form handed down through the generations.

Despite the dangers, he says he will start teaching his eldest son.

“It’s a legacy from my father, and I want this heritage to continue,” he said. “From my grandfather to my father, from my father to me, and from me to my son, and so on. This tradition must continue.”

For the singer, music is so enmeshed in Afghan culture and identity that he believes it can never truly be silenced.

“No one can ever truly separate music from Afghan society,” he said. “They are as inseparable as the fingernail from the flesh.”

Becatoros oversees coverage of southeast Europe for The Associated Press, with frequent assignments to the Middle East and Afghanistan. Based in Athens, Greece, she has worked around the world, including covering war in the Balkans, Iraq, Afghanistan and Ukraine.

 

In Afghanistan, musicians defy music ban to keep traditions alive
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U.S. to Send Dozens Back to Afghanistan, Despite Risk of Persecution

October 30, 2026
By Pranav BaskarHamed Aleaziz and Elian Peltier

The New York Times

The Trump administration plans to fly the Afghan immigrants from Louisiana to Pakistan, where they are expected to be expelled over the border to Afghanistan.

The Trump administration has detained dozens of Afghan immigrants in Louisiana and plans to deport them to Afghanistan, according to three U.S. officials. The group includes people who could face discrimination or persecution under the Taliban, including relatives of people who helped the U.S. military and at least one gay man.

More than 150 Afghan immigrants are expected to be deported, one official said, making this one of the largest single expulsions of Afghans.

By sending them to Pakistan — which would then send them to Afghanistan — the Trump administration has found a way around the hurdles that have so far prevented vulnerable Afghans from being sent back to face repression or retaliation by the Taliban.

Lacking diplomatic relations with the Taliban, the United States cannot arrange deportations to Afghanistan. And some Afghans living in America have been granted legal protections from U.S. judges, which prevent them from being sent back to Afghanistan because of the persecution they would likely face under the Taliban government.

The officials say the deportation is, in effect, to Afghanistan, and that is what the detainees have been told by ICE. But Pakistan will oversee their expulsion over the border to Afghanistan.

The first flight is expected to leave as soon as Nov. 2.

One of the Afghans marked for deportation is Mohammad, 47, who said he was detained last year by federal agents while charging his electric car and had been held in Oklahoma. Last week, he was moved to a prison in Louisiana to be deported, he said in a phone interview from the prison. He said his family left Afghanistan as refugees in 1981, when he was 2 years old, after the Soviet Union invaded.

Over four decades, Mohammad navigated life in America. After serving time in his early 20s for two felonies, he lost his permanent residency. Mohammad said he came to accept being gay and married an American man in 2020.

“That right there is automatic grounds for imprisonment and execution there,” Mohammad said. In Afghanistan, homosexuality is punishable by death. He spoke on the condition that he be identified only by his middle name, explaining, “I am afraid for my life.”

In court filings for another case, an Afghan man said that he was arrested and tortured by the Taliban in 2023 because of his wife’s affiliation with the previous government. She had helped the U.S. military as a soldier with the Afghan army and as a member of the women’s police force, a group that the Taliban singled out for retribution when they returned to power.

He entered the U.S. illegally in 2024, was arrested by border patrol and has been in ICE detention since then. His asylum application had been denied by a U.S. judge. His lawyer shared the documents describing his case on condition that the man not be named.

U.S. law prohibits the government from deporting people to countries where courts have ruled they would most likely face persecution. It is not known if any of the Afghans being sent back in November have such court protections.

The United States has not announced the deportation plan, elements of which were first reported by Bloomberg. The New York Times pieced it together through interviews with lawyers for some of the people detained and with the three U.S. officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a confidential policy. The Times also obtained documents to verify Mohammad’s criminal history, marriage and the plan to deport him.

Court filings for one of the Afghans indicate that he has been put on a manifest for a special chartered flight that leaves Alexandria, La., during the first week of November. Lawyers representing the two other Afghan immigrants shared emails from federal officials informing them that their clients would be deported to Afghanistan in early November.

A spokesman for the Department of Homeland Security said that ICE “does not comment on prospective removal operations, including flight schedules, passenger manifests, destinations, or individual case details.”

In recent days, the Afghan immigrants have been moved from detention centers all over the country by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to immigration detention facilities in Louisiana. Detainees and lawyers said they were given little information, other than that they are being sent to Afghanistan.

Melissa Medrano Henry, Mohammad’s lawyer, said the federal government had informed her that it had obtained travel documents for her client from Afghan authorities — meaning, the Taliban — but had yet to produce them or explain how the documents were obtained. She has filed emergency motions to block his deportation, but a judge has not yet made a decision.Next week’s planned deportation flight is the most expansive effort so far to include Afghans in the wider dragnet to carry out mass deportations. The group includes a mix of people who came to the United States legally and illegally, and some with criminal records. Lawyers for some of the detainees are challenging their deportations.

Over the past two years, the Trump administration has restricted immigration for Afghans who helped the American war effort, deported others to countries in Africa, and pushed some, who are stranded in a former U.S. military camp in Qatar, to return voluntarily.

Spokesmen for Pakistan’s ministries of interior and foreign affairs did not respond to requests for comment.

Pakistan is in the midst of its own campaign of mass deportation of Afghan refugees, as well as campaigns of public harassment and intimidation to push them out. Since 2023, Pakistan’s government has expelled or forced to return more than 2.7 million Afghan citizens to Afghanistan, calling their presence a national security threat.

Taliban government officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Pakistan’s mass expulsions of Afghans is one of several tools it has used to try to pressure the Taliban government, which it accuses of harboring terrorist groups that stage relentless attacks on Pakistani soil. It has vowed to expel all Afghans — about 1.5 million still live in Pakistan — no matter their immigration status.

Zainullah Niazmand, an Afghan cardiac surgeon practicing in the Pakistani city of Lahore, said he believed the Pakistani government, having first expelled Afghan refugees, traders and day laborers, was now intensifying pressure on the Taliban government by sending back doctors. His visa was revoked last year and he, his wife and their 3-year-old daughter are at risk of expulsion.

Mohammad, the Afghan immigrant detained in Louisiana, said he feels like he is paying for a mistake he made when he was young. After two felony convictions in 2003, for robbery and for making threats to a school, according to the government documents for his case, he said he spent about three years in prison, lost his green card and spent two decades rebuilding his life while checking in regularly with ICE.

“I was so scared to get married. I was so scared to get into a serious relationship, to try to have and maintain a regular life out of fear that one day, something like this could happen,” he said. “The one thing that I did hold dear and close to me in my life in this country was having the freedom to choose how I want to live my life. That’s being stripped away from me.”

In detention, as he awaits a flight to a country he has never known, Mohammad says he is growing his beard and trying to relearn Islamic prayers, fearful of what life will be like under the Taliban.

Yaqoob Akbary contributed reporting from Kabul, Afghanistan.

Pranav Baskar is an international reporter at The Times, based in New York.

Hamed Aleaziz covers the Department of Homeland Security and immigration policy for The Times.

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

U.S. to Send Dozens Back to Afghanistan, Despite Risk of Persecution
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Why Are Afghan Immigrants Still Waiting for US Visas Despite Court Ruling?

October 26, 2026
Khaama Press
Afghan families, including women and children, wait in Pakistan amid continued uncertainty over US visa processing, as applicants remain in limbo despite a court ruling against the visa suspension.

Afghan immigrants are among thousands of applicants still waiting for US visas despite a federal court ruling against the Trump administration’s suspension of immigrant visa processing for citizens of 75 countries. Why do the delays persist despite the ruling?

Afghan families are among thousands of immigrants from 75 countries still facing uncertainty over US immigrant visas, despite a federal judge striking down the Trump administration’s blanket visa-processing suspension, according to US media reports.

National Public Radio (NPR) reported on October 26 that thousands of applicants remain stuck abroad because visa processing has not returned to normal following the court ruling. The suspension, introduced in January 2026, affected more than 280,000 people who had applied for immigrant visas, including spouses, children and employment-based applicants.

In August, US District Judge Jeannette Vargas ruled that the policy was unlawful because it barred applicants based on nationality rather than individual eligibility. The judge also found that the policy exceeded the authority of Secretary of State Marco Rubio and undermined the role of consular officers in making case-by-case visa decisions. Afghanistan was among the 75 countries covered by the suspension.

Court Ruling Has Not Ended Delays

Despite the ruling, applicants continue to face delays as the US State Department applies additional screening procedures. NPR reported that the department had introduced an extensive training programme for embassy and consular staff on assessing whether immigrants could become a “public charge”, a person deemed likely to rely on public assistance in the United States.

The additional review can affect applicants whose cases were already underway, including some whose visas had been approved but had not yet been physically issued.

Immigration lawyers told NPR that continued delays and unfinished interviews mean the court decision has not yet translated into practical relief for many families. The State Department declined to comment on the cases, saying they were subject to ongoing litigation, while its website acknowledged that the 75-country ban was no longer in effect.

What the Ruling Means for Afghan Families

For Afghan families seeking to immigrate to the United States through family-based or employment-based visa programmes, the ruling removed the specific blanket suspension based on nationality. However, it does not guarantee that every application will be approved or processed immediately. Applicants may still face individual eligibility checks, requests for further documentation and delays in obtaining interviews or final visa issuance.

The suspension was part of the Trump administration’s broader effort to tighten immigration screening, particularly for applicants officials considered at risk of relying on public assistance. The court’s decision said the government could not impose a blanket prohibition based solely on nationality where the law required individual assessments.

The continuing delays raise questions about how quickly the State Department will implement the ruling in practice. For Afghan families and other applicants waiting outside the United States, the difference between a policy being struck down and a visa actually being issued remains significant.

Why Are Afghan Immigrants Still Waiting for US Visas Despite Court Ruling?
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5.2-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan

October 26, 2026

Qatar News Agency

Oct 26, 2026

Kabul, October 26 (QNA) – A 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck the Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) reported that the earthquake occurred at a depth of 110 kilometers. It was felt by residents in the capital, Kabul, as well as in the northwestern regions of neighboring Pakistan.

There have been no immediate reports of casualties or significant material damage resulting from the earthquake.

Afghanistan is located in a seismically active zone due to the convergence of tectonic plates. The country lies near the collision zone between the Indian and Eurasian plates, which frequently leads to seismic tremors—particularly in the mountainous regions of the northeast, including the Hindu Kush mountain range. (QNA)

5.2-Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan
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