Latest News
Khalilzad says Stanikzai’s call for policy change is a ‘promising development’
On Monday, Khalilzad welcomed his stance and said Stanikzai is an important IEA official, who played a key role in the Doha negotiations.

Zalmay Khalilzad, the former US special envoy for Afghanistan, said Monday that the deputy foreign minister Shir Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai’s remarks on the violation of women’s rights was a “promising development”.
On Saturday, Stanikzai criticized the ban on education of women and girls and appealed to the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) leader to scrap the ban on education for women.
“We call on the leadership again to open the doors of education,” he said.
He called the exclusion of girls from education an “injustice” on the part of the Islamic Emirate against 20 million of the 40 million people in Afghanistan.
Speaking at a graduation ceremony at a religious school in Khost, Stanikzai said that the Islamic Emirate’s stance was not in accordance with Sharia.
He said: “Today we are doing injustice to 20 million of the 40 million people. Will we not rise on the Day of Judgment paralyzed and having denied all rights? The right of inheritance is not given to girls. The right to choose a husband is not given.
“We get girls married in Baad practice. We don’t allow education. We don’t allow them to go to the mosque. The doors of the universities and schools are closed. We don’t even let them go to madrassa. Are we acting in accordance with the Sharia?”
“Another issue is that the whole world has a problem with us on this issue. They criticize us about it. But the path we have taken is a matter of our own liking, not the Sharia,” he said.
It is not the first time he has said that women and girls deserve to have an education. He made similar remarks in September 2022, a year after schools closed for girls and months and before the introduction of a university ban.
But the latest comments marked his first call for a change in policy and a direct appeal to the Islamic Emirate’s supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
Stanikzai is a senior member of the IEA and headed up peace talks in Doha, Qatar, prior to the collapse of the former government.
As special envoy for Afghanistan, Khalilzad was lead negotiator during these talks.
On Monday, Khalilzad welcomed his stance and said Stanikzai is an important IEA official, who played a key role in the Doha negotiations.
He asked other Afghan religious scholars and leaders of the Islamic Emirate who privately oppose the ban on girls’ education to make their opposition public.
He also emphasized that schools and universities should be reopened by the beginning of the new solar year, in late March.
Khalilzad also welcomed the positions of Muslim scholars at the recent Islamabad International Conference which focused on girls education in Muslim societies.
It was at this conference that scholars said a ban on women’s education was against the teaching of Islam.
Latest News
Senior Iranian diplomat in Kabul for talks with Muttaqi

Acting Foreign Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) Amir Khan Muttaqi on Thursday met with senior Iranian Foreign Ministry official Mohammad Reza Bahrami Taqanaki for talks on bilateral relations, water issues, Afghan refugees and recent developments.
According to a statement issued by Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry, Muttaqi told the Iranian official that bilateral relations were expanding and emphasized that both countries should make the most of the existing opportunities.
Bahrami Taqanaki, who is Iran’s new Assistant Minister and Director General for South Asian Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, said in turn that after the Iranian foreign minister’s visit to Kabul, a new chapter in bilateral relations has opened up.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi appointed Bahrami Taqanaki, a seasoned diplomat with extensive experience in regional affairs, to the post in February.
Bahrami Taqanaki has served two terms as Iran’s ambassador to Afghanistan. He also held key consular positions, serving as Iran’s Consul General in Jalalabad during the Islamic Emirate’s previous rule and in Kandahar in 2002.
Latest News
IEA clarifies annual payout for victims of Afghanistan’s 20-year war
Mujahid said that last year, 12.5 billion afghanis was budgeted and distributed to support these people.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid has clarified reports of an annual payout for families of war victims saying the money is for the families of mostly all victims who died during the war with the United States.
Mujahid said the annual payout of 12.5 billion afghanis (AFN) was not only for the families of deceased IEA fighters but also for the families of deceased security force members from the former government, as well as orphans and widows of civilians killed, and disabled people.
Mujahid said that last year, 12.5 billion afghanis was budgeted and distributed to support these people.
This comes after a number of media outlets published reports over the past two days of an interview with Zabihullah Mujahid. The reports stated that 12 billion afghanis has been allocated annually to the families of the Islamic Emirate’s fallen soldiers, who died during the 20-year war.
International Sports
IPL 2025: Sunday’s KKR vs LSG match pushed out to Tuesday
Sunday will now be a single-header match day, opposed to the usual double-header schedule.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BBCI) announced Wednesday that Match 19 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) has been rescheduled and will be played on Tuesday, April 8 at 2:30 pm Kabul time.
The match was originally scheduled to take place this Sunday, April 6.
Sunday will now be a single-header match day, opposed to the usual double-header schedule. Sunrisers Hyderabad will play Gujarat Titans at 6 pm Kabul time as originally scheduled.
However, two matches will be played on Tuesday, April 8. First up will be KKR vs LSG, followed by the Punjab Kings vs Chennai Super Kings.
Wednesday’s match
Wednesday, April 2, saw Punjab Kings cruise to an 8-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants after a dominant all-round performance.
A disciplined bowling effort restricted LSG to 171/7 at home before PBKS chased it down in style.
Player-of-the-Match Prabhsimran Singh (69 off 34), skipper Shreyas Iyer (52* off 30), and Nehal Wadhera (43* off 25) powered the visitors to a flawless finish, keeping them unbeaten in the league.
This convincing win propelled PBKS to second place in the points table, boosting their confidence for the games ahead.
Thursday’s match
Today, Thursday April 3, will see Kolkata Knight Riders take on Sunrisers Hyderabad at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The match will start at 6 pm Kabul time. Once again, Ariana Television will broadcast this thrilling event live across Afghanistan.
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