Afghanistan: Latest News

Colombo (News 1st) – NEWSLINE: Nadima, an Afghan humanitarian, talks to Faraz Shauketaly about 'Reconciliation and Resilience'. Watch on YouTube. 

HOUSTON - Memorial Day and Veterans Day are two important holidays that honor those who have served in the United States military. However, there is a difference between the two holidays.Houston events & things to do this Memorial Day weekend: Comicpalooza, Forever Motown, food festivalsMemorial Day is a federal holiday in the United States for remembering and honoring those who have died while serving in the U.S.

FORT DIX - For the first time in five years, Joint Base McGuier-Dix-Lakehurst held a free airshow that organizers hope will inspire the next generation of military aviation fanatics. The event, called Power in the Pines, was placed on hold for half a decade due to finical backing, the coronavirus pandemic, and the base being used to house Afghan refugees. "It's been a long time since we've been able to open the base to the public due to several conditions and reasons, but now we have a literal line of school buses half a mile long to let the kids in on day one of the airshow," Col. Bert Wesley Adams told FOX 29. Onlookers watched in amazement as several aircrafts - including the crowd-favorite F-15 - streaked across the skies at breakneck speeds and pulled off impressive maneuvers.

A Taliban security personnel stands guard as Muslim devotees arrive to offer Eid al-Fitr prayers, which marks the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, at Omar mosque in Kandahar on April 21, 2023. (SANAULLAH SEIAM/AFP via Getty Images) The United Nations slammed the Taliban on Monday for continuing its use of public executions, lashings and stonings since taking control of Afghanistan nearly two years ago.According to a report by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, 274 men, 58 women and two boys have been publicly flogged in Afghanistan over the past six months.

WASHINGTON (AP) - A U.S. review led by the National Security Council of the chaotic 2021 withdrawal of U.S.

TOPSHOT - Iranian high school students sit for their university entrance examination in Tehran on June 25, 2009. Iran has jailed more than 140 political activists, journalists and university lecturers since the disputed election which returned Presid DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) - Over the past three months, hundreds of young girls attending different schools in Iran have become overpowered by what are believed to be noxious fumes wafting into their classrooms, with some ending up weakened on hospital beds.Officials in Iran's theocracy initially dismissed these incidents, but now describe them as intentional attacks involving some 30 schools identified in local media reports, with some speculating they could be aimed at trying to close schools for girls in this country of over 80 million people.The reported attacks come at a sensitive time for Iran, which already has faced months of protests after the September death of Mahsa Amini following her arrest by the country's morality police.RELATED: Feds say Iranian-backed gang behind Brooklyn assassination attemptThe authorities have not named suspects, but the attacks have raised fears that other girls could be poisoned apparently just for seeking an education — something that's never been challenged before in the over 40 years since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

COLOMBO (News 1st); U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is urging other leading economies to move faster in resolving debt crises that threaten a growing number of countries.Yellen made the comments in a meeting Thursday with India’s finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, on the sidelines of a meeting of financial leaders of the Group of 20 major economies, the Treasury Department said in a statement.U.S.

OAKLAND, Calif. - Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) officially announced on Tuesday that she’s running to replace U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein in 2024. "The Senate needs a perspective that I bring with my life experiences, as a progressive Black woman who not only fights for what is right, but also gets the job done," Lee told KTVU in her first TV interview of the campaign.

COLOMBO (News 1st): Notorious underworld gangster Mohamed Najim Mohamed Imran alias ‘Kanjipani’ Imran sneaked into Rameswaram days after his release on bail by a court in Sri Lanka according to police sources, reported The Hindu.The Tamil Nadu intelligence has sounded an alert to senior police officers across the State to mount vigil along the coastal districts and look for him and his associate who landed along the Ramanathapuram district coast on December 25, 2022.Imran, wanted by the Sri Lankan authorities for various offences, including murders and criminal intimidation, was arrested in Dubai in 2019 and deported to the Island Nation. He was in judicial custody till a local court granted him bail on payment of two sureties, each 5 million local currencies.The State intelligence had a specific input from central intelligence agencies and reliable sources that Imran was planning to enter India after his release on bail.

A West Lothian man is fronting a new campaign from a national mental health programme to help more veterans open up about their mental health.

Colombo (News 1st) – Sri Lanka’s human rights campaigner Sandya Ekneligoda is among just 25 women activists worldwide who have been named to the prestigious ‘BBC 100 Women 2022’.Mrs. Ekneligoda has relentlessly campaigned for human rights in Sri Lanka since her husband, journalist Pradeep Ekneligoda who was himself an activist, disappeared in 2010.

Colombo (News 1st) – Sri Lanka roared back to square the ODI series with Afghanistan in Pallekelle on Wednesday (30th) by chasing down an imposing target of 313. The hosts won by 4 wickets with 2 balls to spare after a record breaking knock of 162 by Afghan opener Ibrahim Zadran.Sri Lanka started the run chase briskly with Kusal Mendis (67) and Pathum Nissanka (35) putting on a 101-run opening stand.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – The 2022 Commitment to Reducing Inequality (CRI) Index, a report released by OXFAM highlights that the pandemic alone has increased Sri Lanka's poverty by 27%.The report, which is the first detailed analysis looking at Governments' policies and actions to fight inequality during the first two years of the pandemic, presents an analysis of spending, tax and labour policies and actions of 161 governments during 2020–2022.In comparison with neighbouring countries, Sri Lanka has placed 111th in the report, while other countries include Nepal (112th), Bhutan (116th), India (123rd), Pakistan (126th), and Afghanistan (138th) out of the total 161.Two years ago, Sri Lanka ranked in 94th position among 158 countries in the 2020 Commitment to Reducing Inequality (CRI) Index, and in comparison with this year, has gone down 17 places.The report highlights that Sri Lanka is the sixth lowest public services spender out of 161 countries and has been cutting the already low health and education budget shares by one-fifth each since 2019, due to a growing debt crisis which is absorbing 60% of the country's budget.The other countries that have ranked as low as Sri Lanka in public spending includes South Sudan, Timor Leste, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Uganda, Nepal and Yemen.

After finishing a tour in Afghanistan in 2013, Dionne Williamson felt emotionally numb. More warning signs appeared during several years of subsequent overseas postings. "It’s like I lost me somewhere," said Williamson, a Navy lieutenant commander who experienced disorientation, depression, memory loss and chronic exhaustion.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – An Iranian fishing vessel with around 200 kg of heroin worth over ₹ 1,200 crore has been seized in a joint operation by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the Indian Navy, the NCB said on Friday (7).Sanjay Kumar Singh, Deputy Director General (operations) of the NCB, who met reporters, said the agency has arrested six Iran nationals and the boat, along with the heroin, was brought to Mattancherry wharf."The NCB has now seized the vessel and 200 kg of heroin. The six Iranian crew members have also been arrested under relevant sections of the NDPS Act, 1985," Singh said, adding that interrogation was on.He said the drug was found in 200 packets each of which has markings and packing specialties unique to Afghanistan- and Pakistan-based drug cartels."While some of the drug packets had 'Scorpion' seal markings, the others had 'dragon' seal markings.

COLOMBO (News 1st) – An Iranian fishing vessel with around 200 kg of heroin worth over ₹ 1,200 crore has been seized in a joint operation by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and the Indian Navy, the NCB said on Friday (7).Sanjay Kumar Singh, Deputy Director General (operations) of the NCB, who met reporters, said the agency has arrested six Iran nationals and the boat, along with the heroin, was brought to Mattancherry wharf."The NCB has now seized the vessel and 200 kg of heroin. The six Iranian crew members have also been arrested under relevant sections of the NDPS Act, 1985," Singh said, adding that interrogation was on.He said the drug was found in 200 packets each of which has markings and packing specialties unique to Afghanistan- and Pakistan-based drug cartels."While some of the drug packets had 'Scorpion' seal markings, the others had 'dragon' seal markings.

Members of the Project DYNAMO rescue organization talk with a resident in a storm damaged home in the wake of Hurricane Ian on October 1, 2022 on Sanibel Island, Florida. (Photo by Sean Rayford/Getty Images) SANIBEL ISLAND, Fla. - There was no time to waste.

Ukraine is formally applying for a fast-track membership to the NATO military alliance, but experts say it will likely take years for the country to actually become a member.

A Taliban fighter keeps vigil near the Intercontinental Hotel during a press event organised by the members of the Taliban, in Kabul on September 19, 2022. An American navy veteran detained in Afghanistan for more than two years was released by the T WASHINGTON (AP) - An American contractor held hostage in Afghanistan for more than two years by the Taliban has been released in exchange for a convicted Taliban drug lord jailed in the United States, according to the man's family and U.S.

Queen Elizabeth II‘s death, calls are now being made for the monarchy to release several diamonds currently featured in the British crown jewels.The Kohinoor diamond, also known as Koh-i-noor or Koh-i-Nûr, the Great Star of Africa and the Second Star of Africa diamonds are often seen as symbols of imperialist history. Chinese delegation barred from Queen Elizabeth’s lying in state: report The 105-carat Kohinoor diamond is one of the largest cut diamonds in the world, and was originally mined in India thousands of years ago.The monetary value of the diamond is unclear, though it is startling in both size and sparkle.Despite the diamond’s complicated and mysterious history — and many owners who lay claim to it across India, Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan — it now adorns a crown created for Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother to wear during her coronation as queen consort in 1937.The diamond had previously been worn as a brooch by Queen Victoria and was also included in the crowns of Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary.The Kohinoor diamond is on display, still set in Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother’s crown, at the Tower of London.There are reports that Camilla, the Queen Consort, will wear the crown at King Charles’ coronation, but that is yet to be seen.In 2016, the Indian Culture Ministry called for “all possible efforts” to return the Kohinoor diamond to India.

The large pool of unvaccinated children in Afghanistan, while decreasing, still represents a major risk for transmission of wild poliovirus. Above: A polio vaccinator marks a home to show that the children living there have been vaccinated. ©UNICEF

FILE IMAGE - The crown of the late Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, made of platinum and containing the famous Koh-i-noor Diamond, along with other gems. (Photo by Tim Graham Photo Library via Getty Images) LONDON - Hours after Queen Elizabeth II’s death, social media users in India began calling for the return of the famous Koh-i-Noor, a nearly 106-carat diamond discovered in India and obtained long ago by the British Empire.Britain’s longest-reigning monarch died on Sept.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Sri Lankan delegation in Geneva met with the Core group on Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council.Further, productive discussions took place on a constructive agreement and working together to archive effective and sustainable progress, said the delegation.The Human Rights Council will hold its fifty-first regular session from 12 September to 7 October at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.Nada Al-Nashif, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, currently serving as acting High Commissioner, will present the High Commissioner’s oral update at 9 a.m. on Monday, 12 September.At an organizational meeting held on 30 August in preparation for the session, the President of the Council, Federico Villegas, bid farewell to High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet, whose term of office ended on 31 August.

COLOMBO (News 1st); The Human Rights Council will hold its fifty-first regular session from 12 September to 7 October at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.Nada Al-Nashif, Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights, currently serving as acting High Commissioner, will present the High Commissioner’s oral update on Monday, 12th September.Under agenda item two on the annual report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General, the Council will hold separate interactive dialogues on the report of the Office of the High Commissioner on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka.In addition, the following reports will also be taken up:The report of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar on the situation of human rights of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar.The report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan.The High Commissioner’s report on the promotion and protection of human rights in Nicaragua.At an organizational meeting held on 30 August in preparation for the session, the President of the Council, Federico Villegas, bid farewell to High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet, whose term of office ended on 31st August.  States will have a chance to respond to the High Commissioner’s update and to other reports presented under agenda item two in the general debate on 13th and 14th September.The Council will take action on draft decisions and resolutions on 6th and 7th October, and will also appoint a number of Special Procedure mandate holders before closing the session.

A Taliban fighter stands guard in front of the Russian embassy after a suicide attack in Kabul on September 5, 2022. (WAKIL KOHSAR/AFP via Getty Images) KABUL, Afghanistan - A suicide bombing outside the Russian Embassy in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Monday killed two members of the embassy staff and at least one Afghan civilian in what Moscow denounced as an "unacceptable terrorist act."The blast went off at the entrance to the embassy's consular section where Afghans were waiting for news about their visas, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry and the state news agency RIA Novosti.

WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 16: U.S. President Joe Biden gestures as he gives remarks on the worsening crisis in Afghanistan from the East Room of the White House August 16, 2021 in Washington, DC.

WASHINGTON - The Biden administration is tying its authority to cancel student debt to the coronavirus pandemic and to a 2003 law aimed at providing help to members of the military. Legal challenges are expected.Skeptics of the administration's ability to act on its own, without new legislation, had once included President Joe Biden himself and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.But in a legal opinion released Wednesday, the Justice Department said that the HEROES Act of 2003 gives the administration "sweeping authority" to reduce or eliminate student debt during a national emergency, "when significant actions with potentially far-reaching consequences are often required."RELATED: Student loan forgiveness: Biden unveils plan to cancel $10K in student debtThe law was adopted with overwhelming bipartisan support at a time when U.S.

Author Jamil Jan Kochai with his 2nd grade teacher in Davis, Calif. on August 13, 2022.

Millions of children in the Philippines returned to school this morning as the academic year started, with many taking their seats in classrooms for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic hit.

HOUSTON - Lonnice McCaskill-Thomas says the weeks leading up to her September 7 delivery date have been stressful. Last year while vacationing in Florida, a medical emergency two months after she delivered her third child caused her to begin taking blood thinner medication, after suffering from a pulmonary embolism.She was having problems eating, and began to cough up blood," says her husband Emmanuel.

PHILADELPHIA - One-year after arriving in Philadelphia from war-torn Afghanistan, evacuees gathered at Philadelphia's City Hall on Monday to thank officials and share their stories. Saleh Samit recalled arriving at Philadelphia International Airport after leaving behind his native Afghanistan as part of the Kabul airlift. He was among 2,5000 evacuees that came through Philadelphia during evacuation, 800 of them have remained living in the area. Samit said just a few months after arriving in the United States he got a full-time job and is proudly paying taxes. "We left everything behind we just came with one clothes," Samit said.

Taliban fighters ride in a convoy near the US embassy in Kabul on Aug. 15, 2022.

the fatal shootings of four men in Albuquerque, New Mexico, gave way to shock and sadness when it turned out the suspect in the killings was himself a Muslim.Muhammad Syed, 51, of Albuquerque, was arrested Monday after a traffic stop more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) from his Albuquerque home. The Afghan immigrant denied any connection to the crimes that shook the city and its small Muslim community.In court documents, in fact, he told police that he was so unnerved by the slayings that he was driving to Houston to find a new home for his family.Mug shot of Muhammad Syed.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. - Police announced Tuesday that they have detained a "primary suspect" in the killings of four Muslim men in Albuquerque, New Mexico, whose deaths sparked fear in Muslim communities nationwide.Police Chief Harold Medina made the announcement on Twitter, saying that authorities had tracked down a vehicle believed to be involved in one of the slayings in New Mexico’s largest city."The driver was detained, and he is our primary suspect for the murders," the tweet said.RELATED: Muslim man killed in Albuquerque may be linked to other Muslim shooting deaths: policeNo other information was immediately available. Police planned to provide an update later Tuesday.Albuquerque police say they have detained the "primary suspect" in the killings of four Muslim men in New Mexico’s largest city.Naeem Hussain was killed Friday night, and the three other men died in ambush shootings.Hussain, 25, was from Pakistan.

FILE-The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) seal is displayed in the lobby of CIA Headquarters in Langley, Virginia. (SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) WASHINGTON - In a recent closed-door meeting with leaders of the agency’s counterterrorism center, the CIA’s No.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. State Department has issued a "worldwide caution" alert after the death of al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.The alert reads:On July 31, 2022, the United States conducted a precision counterterrorism strike in Afghanistan that killed Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden’s deputy and successor as leader of al-Qa’ida. Al- Zawahiri was one of the masterminds of the attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001, and had continued to urge his followers to attack the United States.

WASHINGTON - A bill that would enhance health care and disability benefits for millions of veterans exposed to toxic burn pits hit a snag in the Senate last week, angering advocates like comedian Jon Stewart who say help from the government is long overdue.Lawmakers have been hearing increasingly from constituents with respiratory illnesses and cancers that they attribute to serving near burn pits in Iraq and Afghanistan. The military used the pits to dispose of such things as chemicals, cans, tires, plastics and medical and human waste.Veteran groups say service members who were exposed to the pits have waited long enough for enhanced health benefits, and lawmakers largely agree.

WASHINGTON - A United States drone strike in Afghanistan this weekend killed Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over as al-Qaida’s leader after Osama bin Laden’s death in a U.S. raid in 2011.President Joe Biden is set to announce the killing Monday, delivering a significant counterterrorism win just 11 months after American troops left the country after a two-decade war.Al-Zawahri, on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorist list, had a $25 million bounty on his head for any information that could be used to kill or capture him.RELATED: Top al-Qaida leader Ayman al-Zawahiri killed by US airstrike in AfghanistanAccording to the FBI wanted poster, al-Zawahri was born June 19, 1951, in Egypt. Some of his physical characteristics are unknown but he was listed as having black/brown hair, dark eyes and an olive complexion. He was also known to speak Arabic and French. The FBI said al-Zawahri went by several aliases including Abu Muhammad, Abu Fatima, Muhammad Ibrahim, Abu Abdallah, Abu al-Mu'iz, The Doctor, The Teacher, Nur, Ustaz, Abu Mohammed, Abu Mohammed Nur al-Deen, Abdel Muaz, and Dr.

WASHINGTON - The United States conducted a "successful" counterterrorism operation against a "significant" Al Qaeda leader Ayman Al Zawahiri in Afghanistan over the weekend, a senior administration official told Fox News.President Biden on Monday night at 7:30 p.m. E.T. is expected to address the nation from the White House on the operation."Over the weekend, the United States conducted a counterterrorism operation against a significant Al Qaeda target in Afghanistan," the senior administration official told Fox News Monday.

A US Navy patrol ship guards US and coalitions ships docked at the US 5th Fleet Command in Bahrain's capital Manama on Dec. 17, 2019.

A child walks amidst the rubble of damaged houses following an earthquake in Bernal district, Paktika province, on June 23, 2022. (Photo by AHMAD SAHEL ARMAN/AFP via Getty Images) GAYAN, Afghanistan - Villagers rushed to bury the dead Thursday and dug by hand through the rubble of their homes in search of survivors of a powerful earthquake in eastern Afghanistan that killed at least 1,000 people.

Inequality, emergencies, war and climate change threaten global mental health, says WHO’s newly released World Mental Health Report. Above: outside the Afghan Japan Hospital in Kabul, Afghanistan, 2022. ©WHO

KABUL, Afghanistan - A powerful earthquake struck a rural, mountainous region of eastern Afghanistan early Wednesday, killing at least 920 people and injuring 600 others in the deadliest temblor in two decades, authorities said. Officials warned that the already grim toll would likely rise.Information remained scarce on the magnitude 6.1 temblor near the Pakistani border, but quakes of that strength would be expected to cause severe damage in the remote area, where homes and other buildings are poorly constructed and landslides are common.Rescue efforts are likely to be complicated since many international aid agencies left Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover of the country last year and the chaotic withdrawal of the U.S.

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange speaks onstage via Skype at "A Virtual Conversation with Julian Assange" during the 2014 SXSW Music, Film + Interactive Festival at Austin Convention Center on March 8, 2014 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Waytao Shing/Ge LONDON - The British government on Friday ordered the extradition of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange to the United States to face spying charges, a milestone - but not the end - of a decade-long legal saga sparked by his website's publication of classified U.S.

CAMP PENDLETON, CA - JANUARY 24: (Photo by Kevin Sullivan/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images) WASHINGTON - The Senate on Thursday approved a sweeping expansion of health care and disability benefits for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans in response to concerns about their exposure to toxic burn pits.Passage of the bill by a vote of 84-14 sets a course that could help millions who served after Sept. 11, 2001, and caps years of advocacy work by veterans groups and others who liken burn pits to the Agent Orange herbicide that Vietnam era veterans were exposed to in Southeast Asia.The bill is projected to increase federal spending by about $283 billion over 10 years and does not include offsetting spending cuts or tax increases to help pay for it.

PHILADELPHIA - A mother will honor her son as she throws out the first pitch during the Phillies Memorial Day game on Monday.U.S. Marine Lc.

Staff Sgt. Seth Michael Plant (Photo courtesy: US Army) ANCHORAGE, Alaska - The U.S. Army on Thursday identified the soldier who died this week of injuries sustained during a bear attack in a military training area in Alaska.The Army in a statement said Staff Sgt.

#WATCH TMC is spreading rumours about CAA that it won't be implemented on ground, but I would like to say that we'll implement CAA on ground the moment Covid wave ends...Mamata Didi wants infiltration...CAA was, is & will be a reality:Union Home minister Amit Shah in Siliguri, WB pic.twitter.com/E1rYvN9bHM