Alcis, 31 October 2022 A look at the Taleban leadership’s “hasty decision” to ban of all drugs in the middle of the opium harvest, how it had to be mitigated, and the more seriously implemented crack-down of the often underrated ephedra plant harvest and processing. On poppy, author David Mansfield says, there are signs that […]
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BBC, 15 October 2022 The Taleban have imposed “sweeping restrictions” on which courses women can enrol in at public universities, but university professors “who supervised the entrance examination there confirmed to the BBC that boys would be allowed to choose any subject they want.” The choice for female students can vary from university to university. […]
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AP, 23 September 2022 Heartbreaking photos about child labour in Afghan brick kilns by Ebrahim Noroozi. There is only the suspicion that, despite deepened humanitarian crisis, the same kind of photos could have been shot under the previous government. Nevertheless, a must-see.
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HRW, 4 August 2022 A useful overview over the current humanitarian situation in Afghanistan plus questions and answers on th US sanctions and banking restrictions on the Taleban which in reality hit the Afghan people indiscriminately. HRW sums up: “Economic Crisis Underlies Mass Hunger”. The following questions are answered: How serious is the humanitarian situation […]
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Etilaat-e Ruz, 9 July 2022 During a speech in Kandahar’s in the Eidgah Mosque, Mullah Hebatullah Akhundzadeh, the leader of the Taleban, said a completely Islamic system will be established in the country and all “non-Sharia” laws passed and enforced during the administration of Hamid Karzai and Ashraf Ghani will be abolished.
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The Diplomat, 26 July 2022 A new attempt is made to construct a railway line connecting Uzbekistan and Pakistan through Afghanistan, this time with the Taleban on board. The project is facing a set of problems, however: funding, security issues and the problem of the tracks’ gauge. Uzbekistan is using the Russian gauge (which is […]
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Pajhwok, 25 July 2022
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NPR, 17 July 2022
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RFI, 2 July 2022 A reportage from Eastern Turkey.
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Centre for Artificial Intelligence, Data, and Conflict at Princeton University, June 2022 A new report based on the study of “the activity of 63 accounts claimed by the Taliban leadership, spokespersons, and avowed members from April 1 to September 16, 2021” with more than two million followers in September 2021, and of “the broader Taliban […]
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SIGA, 14 June 2022 A very insightful report from Nuristan by Swiss Franz Marty for the Swiss Institute for Global Affairs, reflecting the still existing diversity even in Taleban-dominated Afghanistan. It shows that even some pre-Islamic institutions of self rule seem to have survived in parts of the province, of course now in ‘Islamic’ disguise.
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The Economist, 20 May 2022 One reason for their success is that they have plenty of experience collecting taxes. During their two decades as a rebel army, they collected traditional tithes, such as oshr, a share of farmers’ harvests, and zakat, religious alms, in areas under their control. (…) Second, the Taliban have kept official revenues flowing. A […]
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