Category: Kabul, Afghanistan

Attack on military hospital in Afghan capital kills 30

An attack on a military hospital in Afghanistan has killed more than 30 people, the country’s Defence Ministry has said. An Islamic State affiliate claimed Wednesday’s attack on the hospital in Kabul’s heavily guarded diplomatic quarter, which set off clashes that lasted for several hours.

Islamic militants release 14 kidnapped Afghan civilians

Fourteen Afghan civilians kidnapped by the Islamic State militants in the country’s eastern province of Nangarhar were released Saturday, March 4, the Provincial Government said. “The 12 religious teachers and two education employees, who were kidnapped by Daesh militants in Haska Mina district about 40 days ago were released Saturday morning.

French Mediapart journalist says judicial source denies report on Fillon’s wife

A journalist for French investigative web site Mediapart said his report that the wife of conservative presidential candidate Francois Fillon was being held for questioning by police had been denied by a judicial source. Journalist Michel Delean, who initially said on Twitter that Penelope Fillon was being questioned over allegations she did little work for payments she received as Fillon’s assistant, later issued a correction on Twitter, saying his report had been denied by a judicial source.

14 die in snowfall, severe cold in Afghanistan

Kabul, Feb 19 – At least 14 persons have died in snowfall and freezing weather in Afghanistan, an official said on Sunday. Ten people died due to snowfall in Jawzjan and the neighbouring Saripul province on Sunday, while four others died in Badakhshan since early Saturday, Xinhua news agency quoted the official as saying.

Afghanistan requests US air support for combat operations

Afghanistan’s national security adviser is appealing to the U.S. to provide aircraft to back ground operations in the country until Afghan security forces can do the job alone. Mohammed Hanif Atmar told reporters in Brussels on Tuesday that “we will need a kind of filling-the-gap measure from the United States.”

Avalanches kill over 100 and destroy homes in Afghanistan

Kabul: More than a 100 people have been killed in a series of avalanches triggered by days of heavy snowfall around Afghanistan, including 50 in one village, officials said, warning the death toll could still rise further. The avalanches struck after three days of heavy snow, which has destroyed scores of homes and blocked roads mainly in central and northeastern provinces, making it difficult for rescue workers to reach the stricken villages.

Afghan spy agency busts three terror cells

Kabul, Jan 22 – The Afghan security service on Sunday claimed to have busted three terrorist cells in the southern restive province of Kandahar with the arrest of 16 Taliban militants. The National Directorate for Security said those arrested were involved in various attacks, killings of government workers and planting of landmines, Xinhua news agency reported.

Government says High Peace Council chief dies

An Afghan official says that Pir Sayed Ahmed Gailani, chief of Afghanistan’s High Peace Council, tasked with negotiating an end to the country’s protracted conflict, has died at age 84. Mohammed Karim Khalili, deputy head of the council, told The Associated Press that Gailani died in Kabul earlier Friday. The exact cause of death was not immediately reported but he had been ill.

Afghan Senators call on President Ashraf Ghani to dissolve High Peace Council4 min ago

Kabul , Jan. 16 : Senators from Upper House of Parliament in Afghanistan have asked President Ashraf Ghani to dissolve the High Peace Council following the insensitive remarks made by former HPC advisor Abdul Hakim Mujahid. According to the senators, those who call the Taliban peace angels and say they are a sacred group are disrespecting all civilians killed by the Taliban, reports the Tolo News.

U.S. military confirms that November firefight with Taliban killed 33 civilians in Afghanistan

Afghan villagers gather on Nov. 4 around several victims’ bodies who were killed during clashes between Taliban and Afghan security forces in the Taliban-controlled, Buz-e Kandahari village in Kunduz province, Afghanistan. In a statement released Thursday, the U.S. military in Afghanistan said the results of its investigation into the November firefight shows that American troops had fired on Afghan homes, killing 33 civilians.

United Arab Emirates says 5 diplomats killed in Afghan blast

The United Arab Emirates announced on Wednesday that five of its diplomats were killed in a bombing in southern Afghanistan the day before, one of the worst attacks to target the young nation’s diplomatic corps. The federation of seven sheikhdoms, founded in 1971 on the Arabian Peninsula, said it would immediately fly the nation’s flag at half-staff for three days in honour of the dead from the attack Tuesday in Kandahar.

Twin Blasts Kill Dozens In Kabul, Afghanistan

Afghan security personnel arrive at the site of two bombs on Tuesday near the Afghan parliament in Kabul. Wakil Kohsar /AFP/Getty Images hide caption Two bomb blasts near the parliament building in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, have killed at least 30 people and injured at least 70. “The first bomb exploded near a parked minibus,” NPR’s Nishant Dahiya reported.

Queen bees: The honey co-ops giving Afghan women control

In the mountainous central province of Bamiyan, one of the country’s least developed but most liberal regions, beekeeping complements its only other commercial crop, potatoes, and gives rural women the chance to become entrepreneurs. Four beekeeping cooperatives have been set up here in recent years, backed by NGOs and foreign aid.