Tag: Taliban

  • Finland distributes an international equality award to a shelter for Afghan women

    Finland distributes an international equality award to a shelter for Afghan women

    The NGO runs a solitary shelter for women left in the country after the Taliban returned to power in 2021.

  • Female Afghan students denied US visas

    Female Afghan students denied US visas

    Nineteen-year-old Dewa – not her real name – had an acceptance letter to a university program in the United States and a scholarship that covered all her expenses. But the US Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan, rejected her student visa application, saying they believed she intended to immigrate. After the initial rejection in August, Dewa made…

  • Calls on France to recognize all Afghan women and girls as refugees

    Calls on France to recognize all Afghan women and girls as refugees

    Activists in France have called on the government to systematically grant asylum to women and girls fleeing the Taliban in Afghanistan, after the first all-female group of evacuees arrived in Paris. France flew five women over this week to apply for refugee status, but many thousands more are still seeking asylum. The five women, along…

  • The Azadi Briefing: The Taliban’s War on Music

    The Azadi Briefing: The Taliban’s War on Music

    Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that addresses the most important issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here. I’m Frud Bezhan, Regional Dissertation Editor for Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Here’s what I’ve tracked and what I’m keeping an eye on in the coming days. The key question The Taliban this week burned scores…

  • Unpacking the NATO-Turkey-Sweden agreement

    Unpacking the NATO-Turkey-Sweden agreement

    VILNIUS — On July 10, on the eve of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signaled that Ankara was ready to ratify Sweden’s NATO accession protocol, potentially ending a saga that has dragged on for over a year . Previously non-aligned militarily, Finland and Sweden applied for membership in the alliance…

  • Unpacking the NATO-Sweden agreement

    Unpacking the NATO-Sweden agreement

    VILNIUS — On July 10, on the eve of the NATO summit in Vilnius, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan signaled that Ankara was ready to ratify Sweden’s NATO accession protocol, potentially ending a saga that has dragged on for over a year . Previously non-aligned militarily, Finland and Sweden applied for membership in the alliance…

  • The Taliban stop Swedish activities in Afghanistan because of the Koran

    The Taliban stop Swedish activities in Afghanistan because of the Koran

    Islamabad, Pakistan – The Taliban on Tuesday ordered the suspension of all Swedish activities in Afghanistan due to the public burning of the Koran, Islam’s holy book, at a protest in Sweden last month. The authorized protest on June 28 saw an Iraqi citizen living in Stockholm tear down and burn a copy of the…

  • India Strengthens Soft Power in Afghanistan, Sidelines Pakistan: Report

    India Strengthens Soft Power in Afghanistan, Sidelines Pakistan: Report

    Kabul [Afghanistan]May 31 (ANI): India is strengthening its soft power in Afghanistan by providing critical aid through Iran, sidelining a once-important Pakistan, Nikkei Asia reported. A spokesman for the United Nations World Food Program recently informed that an Indian donation of 20,000 metric tons of wheat is scheduled to arrive in Afghanistan in the coming…

  • New nightmare life – from inside Taliban Afghanistan

    New nightmare life – from inside Taliban Afghanistan

    South Asia Correspondent Naila Saleem talks about his recent trip to Afghanistan. Hear what the Taliban want to show and how women’s lives have changed. The news podcast Today’s Eco gives you a story every weekday morning with presenters Robin Olin and Lena Nordlund and with Sveriges Radio’s sharpest journalists. Host: Robin Olin Guest: Naila…

  • The Swedish Afghanistan Committee calls on the Taliban to end the ban on female education

    The Swedish Afghanistan Committee calls on the Taliban to end the ban on female education

    Kabul [Afghanistan]March 28 (ANI): As the Taliban continue to place restrictions on women’s basic rights in the country, the Swedish Afghanistan Committee (SCA) demanded that the de facto authorities in Afghanistan “prioritize investment in education as a crucial component of Afghanistan’s development,” TOLOnews reported. They also called on the Taliban to end the ban on…

  • Denmark joins major nations in calling on the Taliban regime to end restrictions on women

    Denmark joins major nations in calling on the Taliban regime to end restrictions on women

    Denmark and many countries around the world come together to condemn the Taliban regime’s treatment of women. A number of restrictions have recently been put in place by the Taliban to limit the opportunities for women living there – for example, barring them from working in NGOs. That is why Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen…

  • VMA in Gällivare and Malmberget, Norrbotten •

    VMA in Gällivare and Malmberget, Norrbotten •

    When Qatar was named host country for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in 2010, many were surprised because the country was an almost unknown soccer nation. But behind the decision was a well-executed campaign from the kingdom where stone-rich Qatar made huge and strategic investments in France, among others. Virtually all the people within the…

  • WC Round-Up: Denmark issues well-timed threat to pull out of FIFA ahead of European Parliament’s strong condemnation of world body

    WC Round-Up: Denmark issues well-timed threat to pull out of FIFA ahead of European Parliament’s strong condemnation of world body

    The DBU football association shocked a lot of people around the world on Wednesday with a statement announcing that it is considering withdrawing from FIFA. “It is not a decision that has been made now. We have been aware of this for a long time. We have been discussing it in the Nordics since August,”…

  • New Swedish government tightens migration policy

    New Swedish government tightens migration policy

    Sweden has historically been seen as Europe’s most welcoming country to refugees, but observers say that changed in 2015 when the government decided to close its borders. The election in September of a new government led by the far-right Sweden Democrats has further tightened migration policy. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson’s Moderate Party, the Liberals and…

  • UN Weekly Roundup: 24–30 September 2022

    UN Weekly Roundup: 24–30 September 2022

    United Nations – Editor’s note: Here’s a quick snapshot of what the international community has been up to this past week, as seen from the UN’s perch. Ukraine’s Zelenskyy briefs the Security Council Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that Russia must be completely isolated internationally for its sham referendums…

  • India restores historic ties with Central Asian countries under PM Modi

    India restores historic ties with Central Asian countries under PM Modi

    By Heena JoshiNew Delhi [India]Sep 3 (ANI): Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has returned focus to Central Asia after 30 years of neglect of this landlocked and resource-rich region that shares cultural and historical ties with India, the former envoy said. to Kazakhstan, Ashok Sajjanhar. Speaking to ANI, the former envoy to Kazakhstan, Sweden…

  • Whale pork, Russian collective debt and who is the world’s best stage performer?

    Whale pork, Russian collective debt and who is the world’s best stage performer?

    Wallet choice – then it works The election is approaching, it’s only weeks away now. And alongside the government issue and crime, there is also a lot of talk about the economy. The politicians seem to compete in outbidding each other in proposals to improve the voters’ private finances. And both politicians and experts have…

  • Overview: A year of Taliban rule in Afghanistan

    Overview: A year of Taliban rule in Afghanistan

    WASHINGTON – A year after the Taliban’s return to power, the Islamist group’s efforts to manage an economy already battered by drought, the Covid-19 pandemic and waning confidence in the government it toppled have largely proved fruitless. In Afghanistan’s last fiscal year before the collapse of Ashraf Ghani’s Western-backed coalition government – 2020-21 – 75%…

  • One year after the Taliban took power – this is how the situation looks today

    One year after the Taliban took power – this is how the situation looks today

    It has been a year since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan and proclaimed an Islamic emirate, following the US withdrawal. But despite broken promises and widespread poverty, the population has a better knowledge of their rights today. “We have felt a certain measure of freedom that will have a greater impact than we think,”…

  • VMA in Helsingborg and Höganäs, SkÃ¥ne •

    VMA in Helsingborg and Höganäs, Skåne •

    Al Qaeda leader killed in Kabul Last week, Al Qaeda’s top leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed by the US military in a targeted attack. Zawahiri was in a luxury villa in Kabul, apparently a guest of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. How does this affect the relationship between the US and Afghanistan? And how has…

  • Iran ranks near the bottom of the Gender-Gap Index

    Iran ranks near the bottom of the Gender-Gap Index

    Iran ranks among the bottom five in the global gender gap index for 2022, dragged down by the lack of opportunities for women in the conservative, male-dominated society. The World Economic Forum (WEF) released one Report on 13 July, which measures women’s economic participation, level of education, health and political survival. Taliban-led Afghanistan is the…

  • MIGRI publishes new assessment of security situation in Kabul

    MIGRI publishes new assessment of security situation in Kabul

    The suspension was due to significant changes in the security situation in Afghanistan. As of 9 July 2021, the Finnish Immigration Service has granted international protection to 433 Afghan citizens. However, some asylum seekers have had to wait for a decision because not all the necessary information has been available. These applications can now be…

  • China In Eurasia Briefing: Why The Ukraine War Matters For Asia

    China In Eurasia Briefing: Why The Ukraine War Matters For Asia

    Welcome back to the China In Eurasia briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter tracking China’s resurgent influence from Eastern Europe to Central Asia. I’m RFE/RL correspondent Reid Standish and here’s what I’m following right now. Why The Ukraine War Matters For Asia The ripple effects of the Ukraine war are spreading across the world and already hitting…

  • Naila Saleem on Taliban demands for burqa for women

    Naila Saleem on Taliban demands for burqa for women

    Ekot’s South Asian correspondent Naila Saleem is in place in Afghanistan, where the Taliban have imposed strict demands on the burqa again.

  • US special envoy discusses recent attacks on civilians in Afghanistan with Swedish officials

    US special envoy discusses recent attacks on civilians in Afghanistan with Swedish officials

    Kabul [Afghanistan]April 27 (ANI): US Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West met with Swedish officials Niclas Kvarnstron and discussed the latest attacks on civilians in the troubled country. “Meet Niclas Kvarnström, Andreas von Uexkull their colleagues yesterday to discuss the humanitarian response, the rights of all Afghans, recent attacks on civilians, the economic situation in…

  • Germany tightens conditions for migrants

    Germany tightens conditions for migrants

    The expelled person no longer needs to be able to meet the subsistence level in the home German courts are no longer obliged to ensure that a deported person who is sent home can support himself in a sustainable way there, the federal administrative court ruled on Thursday. The verdict, handed down in Leipzig, changed…

  • Supo: Russia’s cyber attacks and espionage threaten a growing threat to Finland’s national security

    Supo: Russia’s cyber attacks and espionage threaten a growing threat to Finland’s national security

    According to the security and intelligence service Supo, the hybrid attacks and illegal intelligence operations carried out by Russia are the biggest threat to Finland’s national security. The agency said on Tuesday that Russia may try to influence the public and political debate on Finland’s possible NATO membership. "Finnish society as a whole must prepare…

  • Africans and Middle Eastern asylum seekers are criticizing "unfair" Finnish system: "No one has welcomed me"

    Africans and Middle Eastern asylum seekers are criticizing "unfair" Finnish system: "No one has welcomed me"

    Last seven years an economics student Yasin Omer has sought asylum in Finland many times since fleeing the Somali war – but to no avail. Although she sympathizes with the Ukrainians currently fleeing her homeland as a result of Russia’s attack, she told Yle that the situation was at odds with her treatment. "It feels…

  • UN Weekly Roundup: March 5-11, 2022

    UN Weekly Roundup: March 5-11, 2022

    Editor’s note: Here is a quick picture of what the international community has done in the past week, seen from the UN’s perch. UN appeals for safe corridors in Ukraine for civilian, humanitarian On Monday, the UN humanitarian chief appealed for safe passage for civilians fleeing Ukraine and for humanitarian supplies delivering emergency aid to…

  • The insecurity of the Taliban is leading to bids for Afghan rights agencies in exile

    The insecurity of the Taliban is leading to bids for Afghan rights agencies in exile

    From his office in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada has appointed ministers to Afghanistan’s de facto government, governors of the 34 provinces and even a chief justice by “decree” that does not require the approval of a legislator. body. However, there is a national institution whose fate Akhundzada has…

  • Left Allies: No more deportations unless there is peace

    Left Allies: No more deportations unless there is peace

    Refugees who have been granted residence pursuant to section 7, subsection 3, may be deported if improvements occur in their home country. Denmark has recently taken advantage of this and sent refugees back to their home country, even when it is not entirely certain – as was the case with many Syrians last year, although…

  • Afghanistan could reach 97 percent of poverty by mid-2022

    Afghanistan could reach 97 percent of poverty by mid-2022

    February 8, 2022, UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) Afghanistan sent out a gloomy set of tweets. One of the tweeters, which included a photograph of a child lying in a hospital bed with his mother sitting next to him, sa: “After recently recovering from acute watery diarrhea, two-year-old Soria is back in the hospital, this…

  • China’s illegal trade in fentanyl drugs is a major concern for the United States

    China’s illegal trade in fentanyl drugs is a major concern for the United States

    Peking [China]February 9 (ANI): The illegal trade in synthetic drugs Fentanyl from China has dramatically increased the number of overdoses in the United States, which has eventually led to deaths due to overdose, the think tank Policy Research Group (POREG) reported. Fentanyl is a legally used synthetic opioid in the United States as a powerful…