Latest News
Norwegian Refugee Council NGO to suspend aid work in over 20 countries due to Trump policy
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the administration would reach out to USAID to identify and designate programs that would be exempted from the stop-work orders.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said on Monday it would suspend humanitarian work in nearly 20 countries worldwide after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a freeze on U.S. foreign aid worldwide when he took office on January 20, Reuters reported.
The non-governmental organisation received just under 20% of its funding from the United States in 2024, or around $150 million, it said, with that funding helping some 1.6 million people worldwide.
“We have, in our 79-year history, never experienced such an abrupt discontinuation of aid funding from any of our many donor nations, inter-governmental organisations, or private donor agencies,” the NRC said in a statement.
The agency said the consequences of suspending aid would become increasingly serious for people facing crises around the world.
Already in Ukraine, NRC said, it had to halt the scheduled February distribution of emergency support to 57,000 people in communities along the front lines and had to lay off staff worldwide.
The Trump administration said last Monday it would put on leave all directly hired employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) globally and recall thousands of personnel working overseas, read the report.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Wednesday that the administration would reach out to USAID to identify and designate programs that would be exempted from the stop-work orders.
However, the NRC said it was unable to take advantage of the temporary waiver unless the U.S. government resumed payments to its partners for work completed before the foreign assistance pause.
“We currently have millions of dollars in outstanding payment requests to the U.S. government. Without an immediate solution we may, at the end of February, be forced to halt U.S.-funded lifesaving humanitarian programmes,” it said.
That included supplying clean water to 300,000 people trapped in the blockaded city of Djibo in Burkina Faso, and cutting funding to nearly 500 bakeries in Darfur, Sudan, which provide food hundreds of thousands of people, the NRC said.
Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi met with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday in Tehran during an official visit.
According to Iranian media reports, the two diplomats discussed bilateral relations, recent regional developments, and issues of mutual interest.
Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), has inspected the construction work of the second lane of the Kabul–Jalalabad highway, Arg said on Thursday.
According to Arg’s statement , the Prime Minister visited the project site earlier in the day and expressed appreciation for the efforts of the Ministry of Public Works, project officials, and private contracting companies involved in the construction process. He also issued directives for the timely and high-quality completion of the project.
Akhund said the completion of the highway would significantly improve transportation facilities, transit operations, passenger movement, and contribute to economic growth in the surrounding regions.
Officials report that construction work on the second section of the project, covering 32 kilometers from the Kabul side, is currently about 20 percent complete.
Meanwhile, work on the first 22-kilometer section from the Nangarhar side is also ongoing. Surveying and design work for the third section is being carried out by a private company, with construction expected to begin after completion of the preparatory phase.
The Kabul–Jalalabad second-lane highway is regarded as one of Afghanistan’s key transport and economic infrastructure projects and is being developed in three phases.
Senior officials from the foreign ministries of Afghanistan and Russia held consultations in Kabul, focusing on expanding bilateral cooperation and strengthening regional engagement involving Afghanistan.
According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the meeting was held between A.V. Pavlovsky, Director of the Second Asia Department of Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Abdul Hai Qanit, Director of the Third Political Department at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The two sides discussed cooperation in the political, economic, cultural, and humanitarian fields, as well as ways to strengthen regional interaction with Afghanistan’s participation.
The consultations underscore ongoing diplomatic engagement between Moscow and Kabul as the two countries continue to explore closer cooperation on regional and bilateral issues.
Tahawol: Ukraine conflict amid global developments discussed
IEA FM Muttaqi meets Iranian counterpart Araghchi in Tehran
IEA PM reviews progress of Kabul–Jalalabad second highway project
Saar: Calls for not forgetting Kabul on global stage discussed
Afghan, Russian officials discuss expanding bilateral cooperation in Kabul
Norway’s Viking-inspired World Cup team photo goes viral
TAPI project advances in Afghanistan as 84kms of pipeline laid
Afghanistan’s trade with Central Asia records sharp growth
Gaikwad set to replace injured Kohli for Afghanistan ODI Series
Iran banks hit by major cyber attack
Tahawol: Ukraine conflict amid global developments discussed
Saar: Calls for not forgetting Kabul on global stage discussed
Tahawol: Afghanistan’s retaliatory attacks against Pakistan discussed
Saar: Uzbekistan-Qatar support for Afghanistan’s development disucssed
Tahawol: Reactions to Pakistan’s attacks on Afghanistan discussed
-
Business5 days agoAfghanistan eyes direct Basmati rice imports from India amid tensions with Pakistan
-
Latest News5 days agoAfghan minister says ‘outsiders’ should not claim to support Afghanistan’s independence
-
Sport5 days agoAfghanistan, Uzbekistan set for friendly cricket clash in Khost
-
Sport3 days agoAfghanistan U-15 team qualifies for FIFA U-15 World Cup
-
International Sports5 days agoFIFA World Cup group stage wraps up; moves into high-stakes knock out round
-
International Sports4 days agoCanada makes World Cup history with late goal to eliminate South Africa
-
Latest News4 days agoKhalilzad condemns Pakistani airstrikes, questions Islamabad’s intentions
-
Regional5 days agoIran, US continue escalating attacks, recriminations over peace deal