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Small Australian firm wrongly named as IEA cannabis partner
A small Australian medical consulting firm got caught up in an unexpected publicity storm on Thursday after being wrongly named as agreeing with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to bankroll a $450 million hashish processing plant.
Reuters reported that representatives of Australia-based Cpharm had met with counter-narcotic officials at the Ministry of Interior to discuss producing medicines and creams at the factory, offering a legal use of cannabis.
The report, originally published by an Afghan media outlet, was picked up by a host of global outlets including the Times of London, which ran its own story naming the Australian company, Reuters reported.
Verified Twitter accounts linked to the BBC and Middle Eastern news outlet Al Arabybia repeated the claim about the Australians.
But Cpharm Australia, a family business with 17 staff from the regional centre of Maitland, has never spoken to the IEA and has no dealings overseas or involving cannabis, it told Reuters.
“We’re just trying to work out what we’re going to do to stop it,” Cpharm Australia’s chief financial officer, Tony Gabites, said by phone from the company’s headquarters, located 166 km from Sydney.
“We’ve had probably 40 or 50 calls today. It’s just out of control and it’s just all lies, media guys … not doing any due diligence on what they want to publish,” he said.
Gabites suspected the reports stemmed from a tweet from a IEA-linked account which named a company called Cpharm, referring to another organisation elsewhere in the world with a similar name.
Cpharm Australia provides medical advice about pharmaceutical products and is not a manufacturer so would not take on a manufacturing contract in any case. It also would not be able to raise $450 million, Gabites added.
The company may take legal recourse if it lost business due to wrongly reported IEA dealings – a potential violation of sanctions – but did not expect to be impacted long-term.
“Most of the companies we deal with would look at that article and laugh,” Gabites said.
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Over 2.13 million Afghan refugees repatriated from Pakistan
Officials say over 150,000 individuals were returned from Punjab alone, where enforcement efforts are being led by the Punjab Home Department’s Foreign National Security Cell.
More than 2.13 million Afghan nationals have been repatriated from Pakistan to Afghanistan as part of an ongoing campaign targeting undocumented foreign residents, according to Pakistani authorities cited by local media.
Officials say over 150,000 individuals were returned from Punjab alone, where enforcement efforts are being led by the Punjab Home Department’s Foreign National Security Cell. The campaign includes inspections of thousands of residential areas and hundreds of markets, resulting in numerous detentions and legal cases against Afghan nationals found without valid documentation.
The repatriation process comes amid heightened tensions along key border crossings between the two countries. Hundreds of migrants have recently been sent back via the Chaman crossing, particularly during disruptions at other transit points.
The Torkham crossing—a major gateway for cross-border movement—has faced repeated closures. Although it briefly reopened, local officials in Nangarhar Province report that it was shut again after only a few hours. Authorities in Pakistan have not provided a clear explanation for the latest closure.
According to Sediqullah Quraishi, head of Nangarhar’s Information Department, the crossing was opened temporarily on Thursday before being closed again without official clarification.
Meanwhile, hundreds of Afghan migrants remain in temporary holding centers across Punjab, where they are undergoing registration and processing ahead of their return to Afghanistan. The large-scale repatriation effort continues to raise humanitarian and logistical concerns, particularly as border access remains unpredictable.
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Human Rights Watch calls Pakistani airstrike on Kabul rehab center ‘unlawful’
Patricia Gossman, senior associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said available evidence suggests the strike hit a well-known civilian medical facility.
Human Rights Watch has condemned a recent Pakistani airstrike on a rehabilitation facility in Kabul, calling it “unlawful” and warning it could amount to a war crime.
The strike, which reportedly took place on March 16, targeted the Omid Drug Rehabilitation Center, located within the former Camp Phoenix complex in eastern Kabul. According to international agencies, at least 143 people were killed and more than 250 others injured, most of them patients undergoing treatment.
Patricia Gossman, senior associate Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said available evidence suggests the strike hit a well-known civilian medical facility.
“The available evidence indicates that the Pakistani airstrike against a well-known Kabul medical facility killing dozens of patients was unlawful,” she said, adding that authorities must determine why the site was targeted and who should be held accountable.
An employee of the center told the organization that three buildings were struck, including a dining hall, a residential building housing hundreds of patients, and a guard post. At the time of the attack, more than 1,000 patients were reportedly at the facility, many gathered to break their fast during Ramadan.
Human Rights Watch said satellite imagery and visual evidence show extensive destruction across the compound, with multiple structures either destroyed or severely damaged. The organization added that it found no indication the facility was being used for military purposes.
Under international humanitarian law, medical facilities are afforded special protection. The group stressed that attacks failing to distinguish between civilian and military targets, or those causing disproportionate civilian harm, may constitute serious violations of the laws of war.
Human Rights Watch has called on Pakistan to carry out a prompt, impartial investigation and ensure accountability if violations are confirmed.
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Torkham crossing closes again hours after brief reopening
Officials say the reason for the sudden closure has not been clearly communicated by authorities in Pakistan.
The key border crossing at Torkham crossing has once again been shut down, just hours after it was temporarily reopened, according to local officials in Nangarhar province.
Sediqullah Quraishi, head of information at the provincial Department of Information and Culture, said that on Thursday the Pakistani side allowed the crossing to open briefly to Afghan migrants. However, the crossing was closed again shortly afterward, leaving many travelers stranded.
Officials say the reason for the sudden closure has not been clearly communicated by authorities in Pakistan.
The Torkham crossing serves as one of the most important transit points between Afghanistan and Pakistan. Its repeated closures have caused significant disruption, particularly for migrants, traders, and families who rely on cross-border movement.
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