Afghanistan

Chaos and death at Kabul airport

Five people were killed in chaos at Kabul airport on Monday, witnesses said, as people tried to flee a day after Taliban insurgents seized the Afghan capital and declared the…

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UPDATED: EU to hold meeting on Tuesday to discuss Afghanistan

European Union foreign ministers will hold a crisis meeting on Tuesday to discuss the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban, the bloc said on Monday, as countries race to evacuate…

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Reports of an Afghan military jet crash in Uzbekistan

An Afghan military jet has crashed in Uzbekistan, an Uzbek news website reported on Monday, citing sources and images shared via messaging apps. The Afghan government collapsed on Sunday and…

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Airlines reroute flights to avoid Afghanistan airspace

Major airlines are rerouting flights to avoid Afghanistan airspace after insurgents took control of the presidential palace in Kabul as U.S.-led forces departed and Western nations scrambled on Monday to…

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Taliban declares ‘war is over’ as president and diplomats flee Kabul

The Taliban declared the war in Afghanistan was over after insurgents took control of the presidential palace in Kabul as U.S.-led forces departed and Western nations scrambled on Monday to…

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Afghan President Ashraf Ghani confirms having left Kabul to avoid bloodshed

Update - Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has confirmed he left the country as the Taliban entered Kabul, saying he wanted to avoid bloodshed. Earlier Ashraf Ghani was reported as having…

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Pope urges dialogue in Afghanistan so people can live in peace, security

Pope Francis called on Sunday for dialogue to end the conflict in Afghanistan so that its people can live in peace, security and reciprocal respect. Francis made the appeal in…

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Taliban insurgents enter Afghan capital Kabul

KABUL, Aug 15 (Reuters) - Taliban insurgents entered the Afghanistan capital Kabul on Sunday, an interior ministry official said, as the United States evacuated diplomats from its embassy by helicopter.…

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Blood and billions of dollars: NATO’s long war in Afghanistan

Here are some facts about NATO's military involvement in support of the United States in Afghanistan: * On Sept. 12, 2001, NATO allies invoked their mutual defence clause for the…

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EU Commission presses for overhaul of asylum rules as Taliban enter Kabul

Aug 15 (Reuters) - The crisis in Afghanistan and the actions of Belarus demonstrate the need for a fast overhaul of the European Union's migration and asylum rules, EU Commissioner…

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Qatar urges Taliban to cease fire at meeting in Doha

DUBAI (Reuters) - Qatar said it had urged the Taliban to cease fire and pull back their offensive in Afghanistan during a meeting between the Qatari foreign minister and a…

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British ambassador to be flown out of Afghanistan on Sunday -newspaper

LONDON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Britain's ambassador to Afghanistan will be flown out of the country by Sunday evening, the Sunday Telegraph reported, after UK troops moved to evacuate most…

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Factbox: What to watch for as the Taliban inch closer to Kabul

Aug 14 (Reuters) - The insurgent Taliban have captured Afghanistan's second- and third-largest cities, and a town just south of Kabul, and now have their sights set on the capital.…

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Biden adds forces for Afghan evacuation, defends withdrawal decision

WASHINGTON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden said on Saturday that he had approved additional military forces to go to Kabul to help safely draw down the American…

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Canada to accept 20,000 vulnerable Afghans such as women leaders, human rights workers

Canada plans to resettle more than 20,000 vulnerable Afghans including women leaders, human rights workers and reporters to protect them from Taliban reprisals, Immigration Minister Marco Mendicino revealed. The effort…

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Austria and Czech Republic keep hard line on deporting Afghans

Austria stuck on Saturday to its hard line on sending home Afghans whose requests for asylum fail even as Taliban insurgent advances prompted other European Union countries to reconsider similar…

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UPDATED: Afghan president in urgent talks as Taliban take key town near Kabul

Afghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani held urgent talks with local leaders and international partners on Saturday as Taliban rebels pushed closer to Kabul, capturing a town south of the capital that…

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Afghanistan spiralling into failed state where al Qaeda will thrive – UK says

Afghanistan is spiralling into a failed state and a civil war in which militant groups such as al Qaeda will thrive and likely pose a threat again to the West,…

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Afghanistan on brink of ‘humanitarian catastrophe’, UN agencies say

U.N. agencies on Friday warned of a humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan as Taliban advances drive tens of thousands of people from their homes amid spreading hunger. Insurgents have taken control…

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UPDATED: Taliban captures two major cities, tightening grip on Afghanistan

Taliban insurgents tightened their grip on Afghanistan on Friday, wresting control of its second and third biggest cities while Western embassies prepared to send in troops to help evacuate staff…

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Photo Story: Taliban take Ghazni city on road to Afghan capital

Taliban militants patrol after taking control of the Governor's house and Ghazni city, in Afghanistan, 12 August 2021. Taliban fighters on 12 August captured the strategic Ghazni province that connects…

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Taliban could take Afghan capital within 90 days after rapid gains -U.S. intelligence

Taliban fighters could isolate Afghanistan's capital in 30 days and possibly take it over within 90, a U.S. defence official cited U.S. intelligence as saying, as the resurgent militants made…

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Taliban could take Afghan capital in 90 days- U.S. intelligence

Taliban fighters could isolate Afghanistan's capital in 30 days and possibly take it over in 90, a U.S. defence official told Reuters on Wednesday citing U.S. intelligence, as militants took control…

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Taliban control 65% of Afghanistan, EU official says, after series of sudden gains

Taliban insurgents tightened their grip on captured Afghan territory on Tuesday as civilians hid in their homes, and a European Union official said the militants now control 65% of the country…

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Six EU countries warn against open door for Afghan asylum seekers

Six EU member states have sent a letter to the bloc's executive warning against halting deportations of rejected Afghan asylum seekers despite major advances of Taliban militants in their country.…

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Taliban tighten control of Afghan north as UN fears erasure of human rights

President Ashraf Ghani called on regional strongmen to support his government after a stunning string of Taliban gains as U.S.-led foreign forces pull out, while a U.N. official said the gains made…

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At least 27 children killed in Afghanistan, UNICEF says

At least 27 children have been killed and 136 injured across three provinces of Afghanistan over the past three days amid escalating violence, the U.N. children's agency said on Monday.…

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Taliban capture city of Kunduz

Taliban fighters have seized key government buildings in the northeastern Afghan city of Kunduz, leaving government forces hanging onto control of the airport and their own base, a provincial assembly…

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Taliban close in on two provincial Afghan capitals as U.S. forces exit country

Taliban fighters on Friday intensified clashes with Afghan forces and targeted militias allied with the government, officials said, stretching their dominance of border towns and closing in on two provincial…

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Russia to deploy long-range bombers in drills near Afghan border – report

Russia will deploy four Tu-22M3 supersonic strategic bombers in drills near the Afghan border in Uzbekistan, Interfax news agency cited the Russian defence ministry as saying on Thursday. The bombers…

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U.S. offers refuge to more Afghans who aided Americans in new program

Thousands more Afghans who may be targets of Taliban violence due to their U.S. affiliations will have the opportunity to resettle as refugees in the United States under a program announced by the…

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Taliban rockets hit Kandahar airport in Afghanistan, flights suspended

KABUL (Reuters) - Taliban fighters struck Kandahar airport in southern Afghanistan with at least three rockets overnight, the insurgent group's spokesman said on Sunday, adding that the aim was to…

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Russia beefs up Tajik base, warns of ISIS fighters in Afghanistan

Russia said it was beefing up the combat capabilities of its military base in Tajikistan and training local soldiers, as Moscow warned that Islamic State militants were moving into neighbouring…

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Foreign missions in Afghanistan call for Taliban ceasefire

KABUL, July 19 (Reuters) - Fifteen diplomatic missions and the NATO representative in Afghanistan urged the Taliban on Monday to halt their military offensives, just hours after the insurgents and…

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Foreign missions in Kabul issue joint call for Taliban ceasefire

Fifteen diplomatic missions and the NATO representative in Kabul joined hands on Monday to urge the Taliban to halt military offensives across Afghanistan, just hours after a peace meeting in…

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Reuters journalist killed covering clash between Afghan forces, Taliban

Reuters journalist Danish Siddiqui was killed on Friday while covering a clash between Afghan security forces and Taliban fighters near a border crossing with Pakistan, an Afghan commander said. Afghan…

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Afghan neighbours wary of new refugee crisis as violence surges

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani meets regional leaders for talks in Uzbekistan on Thursday as deteriorating security in his country raises fears of a new Afghan refugee crisis with neighbouring Pakistan…

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Afghan Taliban seize border crossing with Pakistan in major advance

Taliban fighters in Afghanistan said on Wednesday they had taken control of one of the main border crossings with Pakistan, perhaps the most strategic objective they have captured so far in…

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UNHCR warns of imminent humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is warning of a looming humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan as the escalating conflict brings increased human suffering and civilian displacement. An estimated 270,000 Afghans have…

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India pulls officials from Afghanistan’s Kandahar as Taliban widens control

India said on Sunday it had temporarily brought back officials from its consulate in Kandahar, a major city in southern Afghanistan, as Taliban fighters continue to gain control amid the…

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Taliban seize more territory, say they control much of Afghanistan

Taliban officials said on Friday the Sunni Muslim insurgent group had taken control of 85% of territory in Afghanistan, and its fighters were tightening their grip on strategic areas. Government…

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Britain has withdrawn nearly all its troops from Afghanistan – PM Johnson

Most British troops have been pulled out of Afghanistan, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday, ending its official role in a two-decades long conflict amid fears the departure…

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Russia says Afghan situation can swiftly worsen, pledges help if needed

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that the situation in Afghanistan had a tendency to swiftly deteriorate and said Moscow was ready to defend its regional allies if…

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Taliban aim to present written peace plan at talks as soon as next month

The Taliban plan to present a written peace proposal to the Afghan government side as soon as next month, a spokesman for the Islamist insurgents said even as they make major territorial…

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EU mobilises €25 million in humanitarian aid to fight hunger

The Commission is allocating €25 million in humanitarian funding from its Solidarity Emergency Aid Reserve to fight hunger in Afghanistan. Urgent actions to save lives and livelihoods are required due…

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Terror threat to Britain will grow if West neglects Afghanistan, previous boss of MI6 warns

The threat to the UK from terrorist groups like al Qaeda will grow if allies turn their back on Afghanistan after troops withdraw, Sir Alex Younger, the previous head of…

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Western forces pack up to end their war in Afgnaistan, U.S. hands Bagram Airfield to Afghans

Afghan scrap dealers are picking over the detritus of the two-decade U.S. military intervention in Afghanistan, collecting whatever they can of value from heaps of broken military hardware, scrapped machines…

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Biden to meet with Afghan President Ghani as violence surges

U.S. President Joe Biden will meet at the White House with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and chairman of Afghanistan's High Council for National Reconciliation Abdullah Abdullah on Friday to discuss…

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Massacre at Kabul mosque during Friday prayers

At least 12 people were killed in an explosion inside a mosque in the Afghan capital Kabul during Friday prayers as worshippers gathered for the second day of the Eid…

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Afghan Taliban declares three-day ceasefire for Eid celebration this week

Taliban insurgents said on Monday they would observe a three-day ceasefire in Afghanistan for the Muslim religious holiday of Eid, starting this week, after weeks of increasing violence that gripped…

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Afghan school blast toll rises to 58, families bury victims

The death toll from an explosion outside a school in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul has risen to 58, Afghan officials said on Sunday, with doctors struggling to provide medical care to…

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Hundreds die in surge of violence in Afghanistan

More than 100 Afghan security force personnel have been killed over the last two weeks amid a surge of Taliban attacks following Washington’s announcement it would pull all U.S. troops…

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Australia to withdraw 80 remaining troops from Afghanistan, US final withdrawal to start on May 1

Australia will withdraw its remaining 80 military personnel in Afghanistan, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Thursday, after the United States announced it would pull out from the country to…

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Photo Story: Another deadly blast in Kabul

A boy looks out of a shattered window in the aftermath of a bomb explosion in Kabul, Afghanistan, 18 March 2021. At least four people were killed and eleven others…

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Afghan peace talks should rotate among countries, envoy says amid stall

Afghan peace talks, now stalled in Qatar, should be rotated to other venues, Afghanistan's ambassador to the United Arab Emirates said, indicating the Qatari hosts had not pushed hard enough for the…

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U.S. proposes interim government could run Afghanistan until new polls

A U.S.-drafted peace plan for Afghanistan, reviewed by Reuters on Monday, calls for the current government to be replaced with an interim administration until a new constitution is agreed and…

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Afghan president says ready to discuss elections to advance talks with Taliban

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said on Saturday, in a bid to push forward peace talks with the Taliban, that his government was ready to discuss holding fresh…

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