Sheikh Hibatullah Akhundzada, supreme leader of the Islamic Emirate, has said that the Islamic Emirate would not compromise on Islam or Islamic law with any country or group, but remains ready to engage with the international community within the framework of Sharia.

In his Eid al-Adha sermon at the Eidgah in Kandahar, Akhundzada said Afghans are prepared to endure economic hardships and external pressure, but “will not bow to infidels” or abandon their religious values. “The world should not expect us to compromise on the religion of Allah or give up our faith,” he said.

The Supreme Leader also stressed the importance of unity and preventing discord, saying solidarity among the people is essential for maintaining peace and preventing conflict in the country.

“I do not protect myself with the lives of the people; I protect the people with my own life,” he said. “I stood for unity, harmony and peace among the people so that war and discord would not return, and I remain committed to that.”

Sheikh Hibatullah Akhundzada also referred to the amnesty announced for former government officials and urged them to return to Afghanistan and live without fear. He said the country belongs to all Afghans and that everyone has the right to live in their homeland.

Bayat Power has extended its agreement with Afghanistan’s Ministry of Energy and Water to continue producing 40 megawatts of gas-fired electricity in Jawzjan province for another ten years, reinforcing one of the country’s most significant domestic energy partnerships.

The agreement was signed between Bayat Power CEO Ali Kasemi and Afghanistan’s Minister of Energy and Water Mawlavi Mohammad Younus Akhundzada, further securing long-term electricity generation from domestic natural gas resources.

Kasemi welcomed the extension and said the company remains committed to supporting Afghanistan’s development through reliable local energy production.

“We welcome the signing of this agreement and reaffirm Bayat Power’s commitment to helping develop Afghanistan through sustainable and dependable electricity generation,” Kasemi said.

The renewed deal ensures that electricity generated from natural gas in northern Afghanistan will continue to be distributed through Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), supplying homes, businesses and key public services across the country.

The latest agreement follows a series of energy partnerships signed by Bayat Power in recent months aimed at strengthening Afghanistan’s domestic electricity production and reducing reliance on imported power.

In April, Bayat Power renewed its natural gas supply agreement with Afghan Gas for another ten years, securing continued fuel supplies for the company’s operations in Jawzjan province.

Earlier in January, Bayat Power and DABS also signed a separate 10-year extension agreement for electricity production and distribution. The deal included a technical memorandum of understanding focused on expanding operational cooperation and exploring opportunities to increase future production capacity.

Bayat Power is currently Afghanistan’s largest private electricity producer and operates Bayat Power-1, the country’s first modern gas-to-electricity plant.

Located in Jawzjan province, the facility uses Siemens Energy’s advanced SGT-A45 mobile gas turbine technology and remains a central part of Afghanistan’s efforts to strengthen domestic energy production and improve long-term energy security.

The power plant currently generates more than 300 million kilowatt-hours of electricity annually and supplies power to hundreds of thousands of end users.

The project was developed as a public-private partnership involving Bayat Power, Siemens Energy, Afghan government institutions including the Ministries of Mines and Petroleum and Energy and Water, Afghan Gas, and DABS.

Officials say the continued extension of these agreements reflects growing efforts to support Afghanistan’s economic development through local investment, infrastructure expansion and increased energy self-reliance.

Russia’s security chief has warned that a growing synthetic drug production network is emerging across parts of Asia, with potential trafficking routes extending toward Russia and Western countries.

Alexander Bortnikov, Director of the Federal Security Service, said a “drug production belt” is taking shape across Southeast Asia, Afghanistan, and Iran, as criminal groups increasingly shift toward synthetic narcotics manufacturing.

Speaking at a meeting of the Council of Heads of Security Agencies of the Commonwealth of Independent States, Bortnikov argued that cooperation with the Islamic Emirate on counter-narcotics efforts could be “reasonable,” citing changes in the regional drug trade.

He said Afghan traffickers are moving away from traditional narcotics toward synthetic drug production, contributing to what he described as an expanding transnational supply chain linking Southeast Asia, Afghanistan, and Iran.

According to him, this network is increasingly extending into Central Asian states, where more illicit laboratories are reportedly being established to produce new synthetic substances.

Bortnikov also claimed that organized crime groups linked to Ukraine have recently become involved in both production and transit operations, allegedly remotely managing drug laboratories in CIS countries. He added that proceeds from these activities are being used, in part, to fund recruitment for attacks in Russia and to acquire weapons.

The FSB chief said Russian security services, working with partner agencies, had dismantled nearly 170 drug laboratories across the CIS in 2025 and seized around nine tons of synthetic drugs.