LAST 24 HOURS
PAKISTAN/AFGHANISTAN SKIRMISH AT SPIN BOLDAK GATE – Conflicting reports about a confirmed skirmish at the Spin Boldak crossing have been surfacing since late yesterday evening. Taliban and Pakistani security forces exchanged fire for up to an hour and 1 Afghan woman was reportedly killed with a further 8 non-combatants wounded. The gate was closed for a time but is now allowing only commercial traffic to cross. The situation remains tense.
ANOTHER CLASH OVER LAND REFORM IN GHAZNI – Confirmed reports that another clash between local residents and people attempting to occupy land occurred in Ghazni. The clash has claimed the lives of 3 unidentified Afghans and another 5 were reportedly wounded. It is not clear who initiated the violence. A local source said the Taliban at a nearby garrison were reluctant to intervene in the dispute.
PHONE ROUNDUP IN PANJSHIR – Local sources say the Taliban in select areas of Panjshir are now inspecting people’s phones at checkpoints and while they conduct foot patrols. If the phone has a camera, it is seized from its owner. Early reports indicate the phones are taken when visiting a bank, at checkpoints, or by patrolling security personnel. It is not clear how widespread the practice is but most observers think it is in response to the recent visit by the UN Special Rapporteur.
REGIONAL SECURITY GROUP WARNS OF TERRORISTS STAGING NEAR TAJIK/AFGHAN BORDER – Ruslan Mirzayev, Director of the Executive Committee of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization’s Regional Anti-Terrorism Structure (RATS) reportedly told select journalists the organization believed that approximately 13,500 members of terror groups are bivouacked along the Tajik border. The remarks came on Tuesday at a regional terrorism conference held in Dushanbe.
KYRGYZ COUNTERNARCOTICS OFFICE SAYS DRUGS SHIPMENTS FROM AFGHANISTAN ON THE RISE – The Kyrgyz Chief of the Department of the State Service on Drug Control (Ministry of Internal Affairs), Aidar Shigaev told a regional group meeting in Uzbekistan that drug trafficking through his country had increased. He went on to say his agents have noticed the narcotics are both old stocks and freshly refined. He concluded by saying that in addition to hashish and heroin, synthetically produced drugs were being seized in ever-increasing numbers.
NEXT 24 HOURS
PHONE ROUNDUP CONFIRMED – Immediately before our publication deadline, we received several Taliban text messages and a voice message from a known Taliban leader ordering the security forces in Panjshir to confiscate people’s cell phones. In the voice message, the unnamed Taliban official orders troops to punish those found with phones. While we have yet to receive reports of personal violence, our analysis suggests the information to be valid. At-risk Afghans in Panjshir are urged not to carry their cell phones on their persons for the immediate future.
SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW
The National Resistance Front of Afghanistan: an interview with Hamid Saifi
By Giuliano Bifolchi - Special Eurasia
Since the U.S. troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan, the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF), under the leadership of Ahmed Massoud, has fought against the Taliban and asked international support to contrast a government labelled as an “oppressor” and “no-democratic”.
AFGHAN NEWS
Living in a Collapsed Economy (4): The desperation and guilt of giving a young daughter in marriage
By Ali Mohammad Sabawoon - AAN
The collapse of the economy has led families across Afghanistan to make desperate decisions, including, for some, giving young daughters in…
World Bank Report: ‘Afghanistan is a Much Smaller Economy Now’
By Saqalain Eqbal - Khaama Press
According to a World Bank report, Afghanistan’s economy has been facing significant challenges as it adjusts to…
Suicide Bombing, Homicide, and Genocide – Tajiks Targeted Now in Afghanistan
By Jason Criss Howk - Clearance Jobs
“On the anniversary of Shaheed Gen Raziq’s death, the Taliban-Haqqani regime with Pakistani ISI support started a…
REGIONAL NEWS
Pakistan opens fire on Afghan border crossing in Kandahar
By Ariana News
Pakistani forces opened fire at an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) check post in Kandahar province on Wednesday night and…
Pakistan witnesses 51pc increase in terrorist attacks in a year
By Imran Mukhtar - The Nation
The perils of Taliban-led regime in Kabul have become unmistakably clear for Pakistan as the country has witnessed an unbelievable 51…
INTERNATIONAL NEWS RELATING TO AFGHANISTAN
Abu Dhabi authority confirms death of Afghan judge in Humanitarian City
By The National
A respected supreme court judge, 66-year-old Sayed Yousuf Halim was pronounced dead on Monday, said the…
UNICEF Creates 9000 Classrooms for Children in Afghanistan
By Hasht-e Subh
UNICEF said in a tweet on Thursday, October 20, that 283,000 children will benefit from the project 55% of these…
THE DAILY WTF
By PBS
The baby had been rescued two years earlier from the rubble of a U.S. Special Forces raid that killed her parents and five…
Afghani to the Dollar: $1 – 85.32 AFN (as of 21 OCT 2022)