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Anas Haqqani says Ghani’s exit forced rapid takeover of Kabul
As Afghanistan approaches the fourth anniversary of the Islamic Emirate’s return to power, senior member Anas Haqqani has said the movement initially intended to enter Kabul through a negotiated settlement aimed at maintaining normal diplomatic relations with the international community.
However, he claimed, the sudden departure of former President Ashraf Ghani upended that plan and triggered a swift military entry into the capital.
In a recent interview, Haqqani said the leadership had been pursuing “serious efforts” for a peaceful transfer of power, underpinned by “extensive diplomacy” to reassure foreign governments. But the announcement of Ghani’s escape on August 15, 2021, created an immediate security vacuum.
“His departure created a power vacuum, looters began raiding, and chaos unfolded. The situation demanded our entry into Kabul,” Haqqani said, adding that the decision was made to prevent instability from spiraling.
Haqqani also revisited the 2020 Doha Agreement signed between the Islamic Emirate and the United States, describing it as “a symbol of U.S. defeat.”
While the IEA’s leadership believed the U.S. would eventually withdraw, he said there were lingering fears of a last-minute reversal, particularly with the impending U.S. presidential transition from Donald Trump to Joe Biden.
We wanted to secure their signature in front of the world, Haqqani said adding that that signature represented the U.S and NATO’s defeat and exit, even though they labeled it a peace agreement.
According to Haqqani, the Kabul-appointed negotiating team at intra-Afghan talks appeared to deliberately stall in hopes that a change in U.S. leadership would lead to the agreement’s cancellation.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan regained control of Kabul on August 15, 2021, as IEA members reached the outskirts of Kabul. Ghani, who fled the country in a military helicopter, said later he left to avoid bloodshed.
Since then, the Islamic Emirate has faced sanctions, frozen assets, and a lack of formal recognition, with its policies—particularly restrictions on women’s rights—remaining a key sticking point in international engagement. The only country that has officially recognized the IEA government is Russia.
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UNESCO: 2.4 million Afghan girls denied education since 2021
UNESCO estimates that the ban could force around 600,000 Afghan women out of the workforce by 2066 and cause $9.6 billion in lost income. It could also increase the risk of early marriage.
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) said on Tuesday around 2.4 million Afghan girls have been denied secondary education since the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) returned to power in 2021.
In a statement on Tuesday, UNESCO said Afghanistan is the only country in the world where girls and women are officially barred from secondary and higher education.
The organization warned that the restrictions could increase poverty, reduce employment opportunities and cause long-term damage to Afghanistan’s future.
UNESCO estimates that the ban could force around 600,000 Afghan women out of the workforce by 2066 and cause $9.6 billion in lost income. It could also increase the risk of early marriage.
Girls’ secondary schools were closed in March 2022, followed by a ban on women attending universities in December of the same year. The IEA initially described the restrictions as temporary, but they remain in place.
UNESCO also warned that the restrictions could worsen Afghanistan’s shortage of female teachers. It estimates the country could face a shortage of more than 11,000 qualified female teachers by 2030.
The organization said more than 90% of 10-year-old children in Afghanistan cannot read a simple text, while the national literacy rate is around 37%.
Nearly half of the country’s schools also lack adequate access to water, sanitation or heating, UNESCO said.
According to the report, around three million people returned to Afghanistan in 2025, putting further pressure on the education system. Since 2021, earthquakes, floods and other natural disasters have also forced around 1,000 schools to close.
Russia’s Power Machines Company is interested in investing in the rehabilitation and modernization of Afghanistan’s power plants, Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS) said on Tuesday.
DABS Chief Executive Officer Abdul Haq Hamkar discussed the potential investment with technical officials from Power Machines, with talks focusing on rehabilitating existing power plants, modernizing equipment and expanding power-generation capacity.
According to DABS, Hamkar said the company would cooperate in facilitating preliminary technical assessments of Afghanistan’s power plants and in exploring investment opportunities in the sector.
Denis Rudakov, head of Power Machines’ commercial department, said the Russian company plans to conduct preliminary technical assessments of existing power plants in Afghanistan.
Based on the findings, Power Machines will prepare proposals for rehabilitating facilities, modernizing equipment and increasing electricity-generation capacity, DABS said.
Afghanistan currently has several operational power plants, while efforts are underway to increase their generation capacity and upgrade their equipment, according to DABS.
Zabihullah Mujahid, spokesman for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), on Tuesday denied that IEA authorities detained Mahmood Shah Habibi, an Afghan-American businessman the US claims disappeared in Kabul four years ago.
“We have no information about Mahmood Shah Habibi. He is not with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. If he were, this issue would have been resolved long ago,” Mujahid said.
His remarks came a day after the FBI marked the fourth anniversary of Habibi’s disappearance and renewed its appeal for information about his whereabouts.
According to the FBI, Habibi disappeared near his home in Kabul on August 10, 2022. At the time, he was working as a consultant for Asia Consultancy Group, a Kabul-based telecommunications company. He had previously served as Afghanistan’s director of civil aviation.
The FBI has alleged that Habibi was detained by the IEA’s General Directorate of Intelligence.
The FBI has continued its investigation and in 2025 released a missing-persons poster for Habibi. The U.S. State Department has also offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to his location, recovery and return.
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