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Ten Afghan couples marry in mass wedding in Kabul
Ten couples from various provinces married in a mass wedding ceremony in Kabul on Sunday in a stand against the traditional expensive and extravagant wedding parties.
Khodadad Rasooli, the organizer of the event, said a number of the couples who married had waited years to tie the knot as they had not been able to afford the usual lavish affair.
“Couples from Parwan, Bamiyan, Ghazni and Maidan Wardak provinces got married at this event,” said Rasooli.
“Some of these couples had been engaged for seven, eight, or 10 years and had not been able to get married due to financial hardship; this is what made us organize this party.”
Weddings in Afghanistan are traditionally very expensive as dowries need to be paid, gold has to be purchased, bridal wear bought and hundreds, sometimes thousands of guests attend the parties at massive wedding halls.
Young couples often start married life in debt as they take out loans to pay for the event.
Sherin Sultani, one of the brides who got married on Sunday, said her new husband had to seek work outside of the country in order to earn money to get married.
He had “to go to foreign countries for work so that he could afford the expense”, she said.
“The cost of a wedding is very high; I could not afford one, as I would have had to spend between 600,000 AFN ($6,560) and 700,000 AFN ($7,654),” Hamid, one of the groom’s said.
Terrorist activities continue to be observed along Afghanistan borders and along the India–Pakistan–Afghanistan corridor, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Monday.
Speaking to Russia-based media outlet TV BRICS, Lavrov pointed to ongoing concerns in the Middle East, including its Asian regions.
He highlighted the importance of collaboration with India at the United Nations to advance a global counter-terrorism convention.
Lavrov stated that while the draft convention has already been prepared, consensus on its adoption has not yet been reached.
Russia has repeatedly expressed concern about militant threats from Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate, however, has dismissed the concerns saying that it will not allow Afghanistan’s soil to be used against any country.
Noorullah Noori, Afghanistan’s Minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs, held a phone conversation with Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, to discuss bilateral border cooperation.
According to the Iranian news agency IRNA, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening border collaboration, with a particular focus on the ongoing renovation and updating of border markers. They also agreed to accelerate joint technical and legal meetings to enhance coordination.
As part of the agreement, the next meeting of senior border officials from Afghanistan and Iran is scheduled to take place in Iran in 1405 (2026–2027).
The Director General of the OIC Mission in Kabul, Mohammed Saeed Alayyash, met on Sunday with Rolf Dieter Reinhard, Head of the German Liaison Office for Afghanistan in Doha and Acting Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy in Afghanistan.
During the discussion, both sides exchanged views on the latest developments in Afghanistan. They focused on the security situation, as well as the humanitarian and economic conditions faced by the Afghan people.
The two officials also reviewed recent political developments and broader challenges in the country, highlighting the need for continued international engagement and support.
The meeting emphasized the importance of ongoing cooperation and coordination between the OIC Mission and the German side in addressing Afghanistan’s challenges and in supporting efforts to promote stability and improve the humanitarian situation.
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