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Canadian senator sent ‘inauthentic’ documents to fleeing Afghan family

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Marilou McPhedran, a Canadian senator, and one of her staff members sent inauthentic travel documents to a family attempting to flee Afghanistan last year, a Canadian newspaper reported on Wednesday.

The letters say each of the Afghans named on them has been “granted a VISA to enter Canada” and ask that the group be given “safe travel to the Hamid Karzai International Airport so that they can board their organized flight.”

The family is still in Afghanistan.

According to the Canadian government, the facilitation letters they received from the senator and her office were not authentic, and the people named on them had not been approved to come to Canada.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC), the federal immigration department, conducted an internal investigation and referred the matter to police.

Senator McPhedran said she was trying to help, and that she acted in good faith. She acknowledged using a template version of a government facilitation letter, but she denied that the documents were fake, or that she had used them in an unauthorized way.

“There is nothing fraudulent or illicit about any actions I took with regard to the Afghanistan rescue efforts last August,” she said in an email.

IRCC spokesperson Rémi Larivière said: “The use of inauthentic facilitation letters is a serious matter.” Following the department’s internal investigation, he added, it “made a referral to the appropriate law enforcement partners.”

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IOM records more than 95,000 border movements into Afghanistan in two weeks

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The International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded 95,489 movements into Afghanistan between October 25 and November 7, 2026, according to its latest Flow Monitoring Update.

The report shows that 64,732 of the recorded movements were from Iran, accounting for 68 percent of the total, while 30,757 were from Pakistan, representing 32 percent.

During the same period, IOM recorded 44,899 movements out of Afghanistan, including 34,206 towards Iran and 10,693 towards Pakistan.

Islam Qala was the busiest monitored crossing point for arrivals, accounting for 40.5 percent of recorded inflows, followed by Pul-e-Abrisham (Milak) at 25.7 percent and Spin Boldak at 17.6 percent.

The report also shows that 84 percent of those recorded entering Afghanistan were over the age of five, while two percent were under five.

IOM noted that its figures represent movements recorded at monitored border crossings, not necessarily unique individuals. The data may include returnees, deportees and people making repeated or temporary cross-border trips.

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Afghan, Iranian ministers discuss agricultural exports and trade facilitation

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Afghanistan’s Finance Minister Mohammad Nasir Akhund has met with Iran’s Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh to discuss expanding bilateral economic and trade cooperation.

The meeting took place during Akhund’s official visit to Iran.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Finance, the discussions focused on preparations for the next meeting of the joint economic commission, exports of Afghan agricultural products to Iran, and ensuring 24-hour operations at customs facilities.

The two sides also discussed addressing challenges faced by Afghan traders, preventing the smuggling of illegal goods, and other trade and economic issues.

Iran’s agriculture minister expressed readiness to cooperate with Afghanistan in the fields of agriculture, livestock and irrigation. He also assured the Afghan delegation that Iran would make the necessary preparations for the upcoming meeting of the joint economic commission and continue efforts to strengthen cooperation in these areas.

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Bayat Power’s 40-megawatt gas-fired turbine resumes operations in Jawzjan

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Last Updated on: November 15, 2026

Bayat Power’s 40-megawatt gas-fired electricity turbine has resumed operations in Jawzjan province following an inauguration ceremony attended by Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar Akhund, Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, on Saturday.

The resumption marks an important step in Afghanistan’s efforts to strengthen domestic electricity production, reduce reliance on imported power and improve energy security.

During the ceremony, Mullah Baradar praised Bayat Power’s investment in gas-fired electricity generation and encouraged other investors to support the country’s energy sector and wider economy.

He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan had taken significant steps towards economic growth and industrialization, creating favorable opportunities for investment. He also urged investors and industrialists to contribute to reconstruction, economic development and job creation.

Bayat Power’s return to operation comes amid a series of long-term agreements aimed at securing the future of domestic electricity generation. In May, the company extended its power production agreement with the Ministry of Energy and Water for another 10 years, guaranteeing the continued generation of 40 megawatts from domestic natural gas resources in Jawzjan.

The agreement was signed by Bayat Power CEO Ali Kasemi and Minister of Energy and Water Mawlavi Mohammad Younus Akhundzada. It followed a separate 10-year extension of the company’s natural gas supply agreement with Afghan Gas in April and an earlier power production and distribution agreement with Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS).

Bayat Power operates Bayat Power-1, Afghanistan’s first modern gas-to-electricity plant, which uses Siemens Energy’s SGT-A45 mobile gas turbine technology. The facility has the capacity to generate more than 300 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, supplying hundreds of thousands of consumers.

The company is Afghanistan’s largest private electricity producer, and its operations form part of broader efforts to expand domestic energy infrastructure and reduce dependence on electricity imports.

The resumption of the turbine is expected to reinforce the country’s local power supply while highlighting the role of private investment in Afghanistan’s energy development.

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