Welcome back to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Mustafa Sarwar, a senior news editor at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

At least 120 Afghans were residing in Sudan when war erupted in the African country last month.

Forty-nine Afghans have been evacuated from Sudan to Saudi Arabia, from where they returned to Afghanistan on May 5, according to the Taliban.

Several dozen Afghans, including students and workers, remain trapped in Sudan, where clashes between warring generals have killed hundreds and uprooted hundreds of thousands of people.

Why It's Important: Since the Taliban seized power in 2021, hundreds of thousands of Afghans have fled the country to escape repression and the devastating economic and humanitarian crises.

Many Afghans who have returned in recent days to Taliban-ruled Afghanistan face an uncertain fate, including Mirwais Hamidi, who ran a restaurant in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.

"About a year ago, I moved to Sudan and opened a restaurant there,” he told Radio Azadi. “Five other [Afghans] were working there until the war broke out and we had to leave that country.”

Khaled was studying medicine at the International University of Africa in Khartoum. “Unfortunately, the war is still going on,” he told Radio Azadi. “I hope to be able to return to continue my studies."

What's Next: The Taliban-led government's ambassador to Saudi Arabia told Radio Azadi that efforts were under way to evacuate the remaining Afghans trapped in Sudan. But he said some Afghans are unwilling to leave Sudan.

The Taliban remains unrecognized by any country in the world, possibly complicating efforts to swiftly evacuate Afghans.

Mohammad Mossadegh, an Afghan who studied in Sudan, said he is in contact with several families and students who are still there. "Afghans who remained in Sudan are in good condition and were transferred to safe areas," he told Radio Azadi.

The Week's Best Stories

The Taliban has ordered all taxi drivers in Afghanistan to change the color of their vehicles from yellow to turquoise. The decision has angered taxi drivers and residents, who say the move is unnecessary, considering the more significant issues the country is facing.

A blacksmith in Kabul is building solar heaters as an affordable and environmentally friendly alternative to using fuels in poverty-stricken Afghanistan. Parabola-shaped solar heaters have grown in popularity as the country grapples with a chronic energy crisis.

What To Keep An Eye On

The United Nations has recently called on the Taliban to end corporal punishment in Afghanistan, including public executions, floggings, and stoning.

In a May 8 report, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said that "in the last six months alone, 274 men, 58 women, and two boys have been publicly flogged."

UNAMA said "corporal punishment is a violation of the [UN] Convention Against Torture & must cease."

The Taliban’s Foreign Ministry said that "in the event of a conflict between international human rights law and Islamic law, the government is obliged to follow Islamic law."

Two days after the UNAMA report was released, a man and woman were public flogged in the northern province of Parwan, a local member of the Taliban told Radio Azadi.

Why It's Important: The Taliban has reintroduced corporal punishments in recent months, including the public flogging of men and women for crimes including theft, eloping from home, and committing adultery.

Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada has ordered the group's courts to employ strict interpretations of Shari'a law, which prescribes punishment such as stoning, execution, amputation, and public lashings. The Taliban handed down similar punishments during its previous rule.

That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have.

Until next time,

Mustafa Sarwar

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.

Rahmat has seen his income as a taxi driver plummet since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan, which triggered an economic collapse.

The militant group’s restrictions on women’s freedom of movement further reduced his pool of customers.

Now, Rahmat is facing another financial hit after the Taliban ordered all taxi drivers to change the color of their vehicles from yellow to turquoise.

"There is no business, and I have no means to comply with this latest order,” Rahmat, who lives in Kabul, told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi. “I cannot burden my customers with higher fares, which they cannot pay.”

Hamidullah, another taxi driver in the Afghan capital, said he could not afford to pay for a paint job, which he said would cost around $300, a large sum for many Afghans.

“How can I pay that much money when I’m worried about how to feed my family,” he told Radio Azadi. “If the Taliban want us to repaint our taxis, they should pay for it.”

The Taliban's Media and Information Center releases photos of new turquoise-colored taxis.

The Taliban has said the move is aimed at combating crime, which is rife across Afghanistan. Vehicles posing as taxis have been used in kidnappings and robberies in recent years.

“If we have a specific color for all taxis, it will help eliminate the cases of kidnapping, other crimes, and insecurity," Mohammad Nabi Omari, the Taliban’s deputy interior minister, told journalists in Kabul on May 9.

The Taliban’s decision also appears to be an attempt to regulate the taxi industry in Afghanistan. Many taxi drivers do not have permits and avoid paying taxes. To earn additional income, some Afghans use their private cars as taxis, often picking up passengers on busy intersections.

Omari said all taxis will need to undergo a technical inspection, after which the owners will be issued a new operating license.

'Laughable'

Afghans have criticized the Taliban for focusing on trivial issues while avoiding more pressing problems, including high unemployment and acute hunger.

The country is suffering from a major humanitarian crisis aggravated by the Taliban takeover in August 2021, and has been identified as a "hunger hotspot" by the United Nations.

Since the Taliban seized power, around 1 million people have lost their jobs and nearly 90 percent of those employed earn less than $1.90 a day, according to the International Red Cross.

"This is laughable because the yellow color is universally associated with taxis," said Arash, a Kabul resident. “This is not needed. People and taxi drivers cannot afford it. The Taliban should focus on delivering services so people's lives can improve."

Sami Yousafzai, a veteran Afghan journalist and commentator who tracks the Taliban, said the move is “ill-thought-out and surreal.”

The Taliban’s choice of color is likely inspired by Qatar, where cabs are turquoise. The militant group operates a political office in the tiny Gulf state.

“They are apparently following the example of Qatar, which is one of the world's richest countries, while Taliban-ruled Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world,” said Yousafzai.

Taliban officials have not said what penalties, if any, await taxi drivers who violate the new order.

But Yousafzai said the new rules will likely be “another revenue stream for the Taliban as they arrest taxi drivers and impound their vehicles.”

The Taliban has imposed a number of decrees that have provoked anger and bewilderment.

In April, the Taliban closed video-game parlors and shops selling foreign movies, TV shows, and music in the western Afghan city of Herat. The group had earlier closed sheesha cafes and restaurants run by women in the city.

SEE ALSO:

'Nothing Left' For Herat Shopkeepers After Taliban Bans Music, Foreign Films, Video Games

In November, the Taliban banned Afghan women from entering public bathhouses and parks as well as gyms in Kabul.

SEE ALSO:

Banned From Public Parks And Bathhouses, Afghan Women Say Life Under Taliban Is Like A 'Prison'

Earlier that month, the militants prohibited the sale of animal testicles, saying the practice of consuming the delicacy is un-Islamic.

SEE ALSO:

Taliban Takes Lamb Testicles Off The Menu As Bigger Issues Loom

Retail stores, meanwhile, have been required to cover or cut off the heads of mannequins. The Taliban believes statues and images of the human form are forbidden under Islam.

Tajikistan has asked member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) to establish an independent agency to combat drug trafficking from Afghanistan. Foreign Affairs Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin says he also told a high-level meeting of officials from the SCO last week in India that it was important to establish a "safety belt" around Afghanistan. The proposal comes days after a Tajik soldier was killed in a clash between government forces and smugglers in Badakhshan Province. Tajikistan shares more than 1,300 kilometers of border with Afghanistan, a major producer of drugs. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Tajik Service, click here.

Some Afghan women employed by the United Nations have been detained, harassed, and had restrictions placed on their movements since being banned by the Taliban from working for the world body, the UN said on May 9. Afghanistan’s Taliban rulers informed the United Nations early last month that Afghan women employed with the UN mission could no longer report for work. “This is the most recent in a series of discriminatory -- and unlawful -- measures implemented by the de facto authorities,” the UN said in a report on the human rights situation in the South Asian country. To read the original story by AP, click here.

A former judge has been shot dead by unknown gunmen in Afghanistan’s central province of Ghor, local media reported on May 7. Two men riding a motorbike targeted Mohammad Nazir Manawi in the provincial capital, Firozkoh, as he was returning home from the local mosque, local broadcaster Salam Watandar reported. The men managed to escape. The motive behind the incident was initially unclear. Following their return to power in August 2021, Taliban authorities replaced all former judges. Some of the judges desperately tried to flee the country, while the situations of those who remain are insecure.

Pakistan is hosting talks on May 6 with China and Taliban-led Afghanistan. The Taliban administration's interim foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, who has long been subjected to a UN travel ban, asset freeze, and arms embargo, was granted an exemption to travel to Pakistan by a UN Security Council committee on May 1. The talks in Islamabad with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and Pakistani Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari are expected to focus on regional security and economic issues. To read the original story by Radio Mashaal, click here.

The United Nations in Afghanistan has reiterated its condemnation of a decision by the Taliban-led government to ban Afghan women from working for the UN, saying the move "seriously undermines our work, including our ability to reach all people in need."

The UN mission said in a statement from Kabul on May 5 that the decision is unlawful under international law, including the UN Charter and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women.

“We also reiterate the United Nations’ dismay over the relentless onslaught by the de facto authorities against the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan,” the statement said.

But the statement said that while lifting restrictions on the delivery of aid to Afghans is essential, the United Nations must remain focused on supporting the Afghan people.

“We cannot disengage despite the challenges,” the statement said.

The Taliban-led government last December barred Afghan women from working at NGOs, allegedly because they were not wearing the hijab correctly and were not observing gender segregation rules. In April, the government extended the ban to UN offices and agencies in Afghanistan.

The measure is being actively enforced by the country’s intelligence agency, which reports to the Taliban-led government’s leadership in Kandahar, although their chief spokesman says there are no obstacles for UN operations in Afghanistan.

The country’s Taliban rulers, who reclaimed power in August 2021, also have put other restrictions on females, including barring them from school beyond the sixth grade.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres pledged on May 4 that the United Nations would stay in Afghanistan despite the difficulties, but he made a new attack on the "unprecedented" curbs on Afghan women's rights.

The UN chief spoke during a two-day meeting of in Doha, Qatar, of representatives from about 25 countries and international organizations, according to diplomats. The Taliban-led government was not represented at the talks.

Guterres said leading powers want new efforts to try to change the policies in Afghanistan, while noting that a $4.6 billion UN appeal is less than 7 percent funded.

According to UN data quoted by Reuters, the United States was the largest donor to the UN appeal last year, giving nearly $1.2 billion. The United States has given the most money to this year’s appeal: $75 million.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Richard Bennett also issued a statement on May 5 after spending a week in Afghanistan.

The statement said girls and women are systematically oppressed in Afghanistan and expressed deep concern about the deterioration of the human rights situation in the country.

The Taliban-led government has not responded to the comments.

With reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban has intensified its crackdown on independent reporters and media outlets in Afghanistan, where the militant group has stamped out any form of dissent.

An Afghan media watchdog said cases of arbitrary arrests and detention, threats, and intimidation of journalists rose by around 60 percent in the past year.

In its annual report issued on May 3, the Afghanistan Journalist Center said it documented 213 human rights violations against media personnel in the past year. During that time, one journalist was killed and 21 wounded in attacks targeting media workers.

"Taliban intelligence has made our working environment terrifying," a female Afghan journalist, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution, told Radio Azadi. "Journalists face torture and detentions daily, which shows the real state of press freedom in our country."

Afghan media advocacy group NAI said around half of Afghanistan's estimated 600 media outlets have closed since the Taliban seized power in 2021. Around two-thirds of reporters have lost their jobs in that time, according to NAI.

Female media workers have been disproportionately affected. The Taliban's restrictions on women's right to work has left many women journalists unable to carry out their jobs.

Why It's Important: Since seizing power, the Taliban has waged a brutal crackdown on dissent that has targeted human rights defenders, women activists, intellectuals, and journalists.

The clampdown appears to have intensified in recent months, with the United Nations highlighting the "concerning number of civil society activists and media workers have been detained since early 2023."

They include journalists Khairullah Parhar and Mortaza Behboudi.

"Journalists are being forced to make editorial decisions based on fear, not public interest. It's sadly part of a wider trend of declining freedom of expression and access to information," said Roza Otunbaeva, the UN secretary-general's special representative for Afghanistan.

What's Next: The Taliban appears likely to further restrict the freedom of the press in Afghanistan as part of a wider rolling back of basic rights.

Despite promising to allow free media upon seizing power, the Taliban has issued decrees intended to protect its government from "disrespectful" criticism by the media.

The militants have also issued "11 rules for journalists" that prohibit the publication or broadcasting of reports that are "contrary to Islam," and which discourage reporting of news that has not been confirmed by Taliban officials.

What To Keep An Eye On

The Taliban has announced that it will build a nearly 1,500-kilometer-long railway line connecting three major Afghan cities.

The Taliban's chief spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, said the railway line would connect the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif with the southern city of Kandahar via the western city of Herat.

Mujahid said the Taliban would fund the ambitious project through domestic revenues.

Why It's Important: The project underscores the Taliban's ambitions to transform Afghanistan into a trading hub connecting Central Asia to South Asia.

But it is doubtful whether the Taliban government has the finances and technical expertise to complete the multibillion-dollar project on its own.

There is also little indication that neighboring or regional powers are willing or able to step in to help the Taliban, whose government remains unrecognized and is under international sanctions.

The Taliban has gone ahead with a giant canal project in northern Afghanistan that has provoked controversy in the region. Meanwhile, its attempts to attract Chinese investment in the mining sector have yet to bear fruit.

That's all from me for now.

Until next time,

Abubakar Siddique

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.

The United Nations will stay in Afghanistan to deliver aid to millions of desperate Afghans despite the Taliban's restrictions on its female staff, but funding is drying up, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on May 2. "We are determined to seek the necessary conditions to keep delivering," Guterres said after a meeting of envoys from more than 20 countries in Qatar to discuss a common approach to Afghanistan. Guterres also warned of a shortfall in financial pledges for a UN humanitarian appeal this year, which is just over 6 percent funded. To read the original story by Reuters, click here.

A UN Security Council committee late on May 1 agreed to allow the Taliban administration's foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, to travel to Pakistan from Afghanistan next week to meet with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China, diplomats said. Muttaqi has long been subjected to a travel ban, asset freeze, and arms embargo under Security Council sanctions. According to a letter to the 15-member Security Council's Taliban sanctions committee, Pakistan's UN mission requested an exemption for Muttaqi to travel between May 6-9 "for a meeting with the foreign ministers of Pakistan and China." To read the original story by Reuters, click here.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will gather international envoys at a secret location in Doha on May 1 in a bid to find ways to influence Afghanistan's Taliban rulers. The United Nations considers Afghanistan to be the world's biggest humanitarian crisis, and Guterres's quandary has been deepened by the Taliban administration's move to stop girls going to school and most women from working, even for UN agencies. The Taliban government, which reclaimed power in August 2021, will be absent from the talks, which will involve representatives from about 25 countries and international organizations, according to diplomats.

A group of Afghan women on April 29 staged a spontaneous march in the Afghan capital, Kabul, in defiance of Taliban security forces to urge the international community not to recognize the militant group that returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021.

Since taking power after the exit of international troops, the de facto Taliban rulers have imposed a series of restrictions on Afghan women, including banning them from higher education and many government jobs.

About two dozen women marched in Kabul on April 29 ahead of a summit in Doha on May 1 that the United Nations says will discuss a "durable way forward" for Afghanistan.

"The United Nations will hold a meeting in Doha and they have not invited any women. They want to hold a meeting to recognize the (government) of the Taliban," Julia Parsi, one of the protesters, told RFE/RL.

"Recognition of the Taliban -- a violation of women's rights," and "We will fight and we will die for our rights," the protesters chanted during the minutes-long march that was not suppressed by Taliban security forces.

SEE ALSO:

Banned From School, Teenage Afghan Girls Turn To Taliban-Run Madrasahs

No country has recognized the Taliban government as legitimate since the radical militant movement's return to power.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed said last week that the Doha summit could take into consideration some "baby steps" on a path to a conditional recognition of the Taliban.

"There are some who believe this can never happen. There are others that say, well, it has to happen," Mohammed told a conference in the United States.

"The Taliban clearly want recognition...and that's the leverage we have," she added.

Earlier this month, the United Nations ordered its 3,300 employees in Afghanistan not to report to their offices for two days as the UN mission in the war-torn country sought further clarification after Taliban rulers appeared to extend a ban on Afghan women working in UN offices.

With reporting by AFP

Welcome to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Abubakar Siddique, a senior correspondent at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban has intensified its war with the rival Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) extremist group, killing several senior leaders and commanders in recent months.

Among them, according to the United States, was the alleged mastermind of a suicide bombing outside Kabul airport in 2021 that killed some 170 Afghans and 13 American soldiers.

The White House on April 26 announced that the alleged mastermind, whose identity has not been revealed, was killed in a recent Taliban operation. But it did not say when or where he was killed.

The Taliban has not commented on the reported death of the IS-K member.

Why It's Important: The Taliban has waged a brutal war to eliminate IS-K, the biggest threat to its rule in Afghanistan. The Taliban appears to have weakened the group, whose attacks have waned in recent months.

But the Taliban also appears to be trying to use its campaign against IS-K to burnish its counterterrorism credentials and boost its legitimacy in the eyes of the international community.

Under the U.S.-Taliban deal signed in 2020, the militants pledged to prevent any group from using Afghan soil to attack other countries.

The international community, particularly Afghanistan’s neighbors, considers IS-K a significant security threat because of the group’s global ambitions.

What's Next: Despite its efforts to eliminate IS-K, the Taliban is believed to be sheltering members of Al-Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban. That is likely to temper hopes that the Taliban can be a reliable counterterrorism partner.

On April 14, the foreign ministers of China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan said the Taliban has links with some extremist groups based in Afghanistan that “pose a serious threat to regional and global security.”

They include the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement, the Baloch Liberation Army, Jundallah, Jaish al-Adl, Jamaat Ansarullah, and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan.

The Week's Best Stories

A growing number of teenage Afghan girls, who are banned from attending school, are turning to Taliban-run madrasahs to get an education. The Taliban has allowed girls of all ages to attend Islamic seminaries, which have surged in number since the hard-line Islamist group seized power in 2021.

Afghans are defying a ban on using Iranian rials or Pakistani rupees, as their economy struggles following the Taliban takeover. In Zaranj, Nimroz Province, the Iranian rial is the most common currency. Elsewhere in Afghanistan, Pakistani rupees are widely used.

What To Keep An Eye On

The United Nations will hold a closed-door meeting on May 1-2 that will bring together envoys to Afghanistan from various countries.

Ahead of the meeting in Doha, Amina Mohammed, the UN deputy secretary-general, sparked controversy after she said the participants would discuss the possible recognition of the Taliban.

Many Afghans vented their anger at Mohammed’s comments. Meanwhile, Human Rights Watch called for “a firm line that only a reversal of the Taliban’s oppressive policies will open the door to further engagement.”

In an open letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Amnesty International and other rights groups demanded that the world body ensure that Afghan women’s “full, equal, and meaningful participation is central to the international community’s next steps.”

Why It's Important: The meeting will be crucial in crafting a united response to the Taliban’s repressive policies, including its ban on Afghan women working for the UN and foreign NGOs.

It remains unclear if the international community can pressure the Taliban to rescind its restrictions on Afghan women or whether the world body will decide to leave Afghanistan.

In a sign that the UN is likely to take a firm stand, the UN Security Council on April 27 unanimously condemned the Taliban’s ban on Afghan women working for the world body, calling it “unprecedented in the history of the United Nations.”

That's all from me this week.

Until next time,

Abubakar Siddique

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.

The chief of the State Committee of National Security's (KDAM) branch in Tajikistan's southern city of Khorugh, Komron Rajabzoda, has been killed in a shoot-out with alleged drug and weapons traffickers along the Tajik-Afghan border. The KDAM said in a statement on April 28 that the incident took place overnight. Two sources close to security entities confirmed to RFE/RL that Rajabzoda was killed in the incident. Tajikistan's Border Guard Service said one Tajik serviceman was killed in the shoot-out but did not give further details. To read the original story by RFE/RL's Tajik Service, click here.

A group of girls wearing black face veils silently enter a madrasah in Afghanistan's central province of Ghor.

Inside the Islamic seminary, dozens of teenage girls sit on the floor, rocking back and forth, as they recite the Koran, Islam's holy book.

Among them is Zohra Jalali, who was in her final year of school when the Taliban seized power in 2021. The militant group soon banned girls above the sixth grade from attending school, shattering her dream of becoming a doctor.

Jalili is now among the thousands of teenage girls who have enrolled in Taliban-run madrasahs as a last resort to continue their education. The militants have allowed girls of all ages to study at seminaries in Afghanistan, a predominately Muslim country of around 40 million.

"We want our regular schools to be open," the 18-year-old told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. "Besides religious education, we also want to study other subjects."

The Taliban has vowed to root out all forms of the modern secular education that thrived in Afghanistan after the U.S.-led invasion in 2001 toppled the Taliban's first regime.

Since regaining power, the militants have converted scores of secular schools, public universities, and vocational training centers into Islamic seminaries, leading to a surge in the number of madrasahs in the country.

The Islamist group has also vowed to overhaul the national curriculum and build a vast network of madrasahs across the country's 34 provinces.

Tamina Qudusi, a former university student, told Radio Azadi that the Taliban's attitude toward modern education is self-destructive.

"How can we [Afghans] stand on our own feet if we don't have [modern] education?" she asked. "Uneducated women won't be able to achieve anything."

Qudusi enrolled in a madrasah in the northern province of Parwan after the Taliban banned women from studying at universities in December. She said attending a seminary would allow her to at least receive some form of education.

SEE ALSO:

'War On Education': Taliban Converting Secular Schools Into Religious Seminaries

At Taliban-run madrasahs, students learn to read and memorize the Koran, which is written in Arabic, a language that few Afghans understand. They also learn about the teachings and sayings of Prophet Muhammad.

Neda Rahmani, a former university student from the southwestern province of Nimroz, said limiting education to religious studies is a detriment to Afghanistan, where men and women are needed in all fields, including in education, health, and even the security sector.

"The Taliban needs to invest time in thinking through and understanding the role of women in this county," said the 21-year-old, who also attends a madrasah.

The Taliban has defended its efforts to root out modern secular education.

Mawlawi Abdul Jabbar Saqib, the head of the Taliban's education department in Ghor, said "modern education is not compulsory for women."

"They must get the correct knowledge of religion for themselves and their families," he told Radio Azadi.

But many Afghan religious figures and teachers disagree. They have accused the Taliban of using madrasahs to brainwash the young generation with their extremist ideology and erase modern forms of education.

"We need modern education as much as we need bread and water," said an Islamic scholar in Nimroz who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. "We must have female doctors. We also need women engineers and teachers."

Besides limiting girls and women's education, the Taliban has also imposed severe restrictions on women's appearances, freedom of movement, and their right to work.

Razia Haqshanas, a ninth grader in Parwan, has witnessed girls and women's access to education gradually erode. She fears the Taliban might even ban girls from attending madrasahs.

"My future is dark here," she told Radio Azadi.

Written by Abubakar Siddique based on reporting by Radio Azadi correspondents Ahmed Hanayesh and Mansoor Khosrow

The United States had no role in the Taliban's killing of the suspected mastermind of the Islamic State suicide bomb attack that killed 13 U.S. troops and scores of Afghans at Kabul airport during the U.S. withdrawal in 2021, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said. Kirby denied that Washington had supplied any information or other assistance to the Taliban to undertake the operation. He told reporters on April 26 that U.S. officials were confident of the mastermind's identity and death. U.S. officials said earlier that the plotter was from the Islamic State-Khorasan and was killed in a "Taliban operation." To read the original story by AFP, click here.

The death toll from a massive landslide earlier this week that buried a fleet of trucks waiting to cross from Pakistan into Afghanistan has risen to eight, officials said on April 22. The predawn landslide on April 18 hit the Torkham border post, the busiest trade and transit point between the two countries, as more than 100 trucks were waiting to cross. "So far we have recovered seven dead bodies," said Pakistani rescue services spokesman Bilal Faizi, adding that "an operation is ongoing to recover an eighth body" from the debris.

Welcome back to The Azadi Briefing, an RFE/RL newsletter that unpacks the key issues in Afghanistan. To subscribe, click here.

I'm Mustafa Sarwar, a senior news editor at RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. Here's what I've been tracking and what I'm keeping an eye on in the days ahead.

The Key Issue

The Taliban has closed all education centers in the southern provinces of Kandahar and Helmand that were funded by foreign NGOs.

The hundreds of education centers, mostly funded by UNICEF, the United Nations children's agency, and Save The Children, provided literacy classes to tens of thousands of girls and boys in remote areas that lack government schools.

Wakil Ahmad Mutawakil, a spokesman for the Kandahar educational department, told Radio Azadi that the activities of the education centers had been suspended until further notice. He said the decision was made after “complaints from locals,” without elaborating.

Why It's Important: The decision is the latest blow to education in Afghanistan, where the Taliban has banned girls above the sixth grade from attending school and women from studying in universities.

The militant group has also tried to root out all forms of secular education and converted scores of secular schools, universities, and training centers into madrasahs, or Islamic seminaries.

Munir Ahmad, a resident of Kandahar, told Radio Azadi that he is "very concerned" about the Taliban’s decision. "This is not good news for us because most classes were in areas where children have no [other] access to education," he said.

The Taliban’s move appears to be the latest salvo in its standoff with foreign NGOs. The Taliban has imposed restrictions on the UN and other international organizations, including banning them from employing Afghan women.

What's Next: There are fears that the closure of foreign-funded education centers in southern Afghanistan, the birthplace and political base of the Taliban, could be extended nationwide.

If that occurs, hundreds of thousands of children will join the already estimated 3 million school-aged girls who are unable to receive an education.

The Week's Best Stories

The sidewalks outside bakeries in the Afghan capital, Kabul, are packed with desperate mothers and children hoping for a bite to eat. The Taliban has banned women and girls from many jobs, secondary schools, and universities since returning to power in August 2021, triggering an economic crisis, according to the UN.

Kandahar, the country’s second-largest city, appears to be becoming the de facto capital under the militant group’s rule. Several officials have recently been transferred from Kabul to Kandahar. Taliban Supreme Leader Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada lives in the city and rarely leaves the Pashtun heartland in southern Afghanistan.

What To Keep An Eye On

The UN has threatened to leave Afghanistan as soon as next month if the Taliban does not reverse its ban on Afghan women working for the world body.

Achim Steiner, the administrator of the United Nations Development Program, said on April 18 that the “entire United Nations system” is taking “a step back and reevaluating its ability to operate” in Afghanistan. He said the UN would not negotiate its “fundamental principles.”

Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on April 12 that the group does not want to create "obstacles for the United Nations," but added that the ban on Afghan women working for the organization was "an internal issue of Afghanistan."

But the UN has said the around 600 Afghan women it employs are vital in delivering life-saving aid to Afghans and warned that the Taliban would bear responsibility for the humanitarian consequences.

Why It's Important: The UN’s exit from Afghanistan would have disastrous consequences and aggravate the already dire humanitarian crisis in the country. UN agencies provide critical assistance in the fields of health, education, and food security.

The UN on April 18 announced that an estimated 34 million Afghans -- out of a population of 40 million -- were living below the poverty line. The figure is a huge increase of 15 million since 2020, when the Western-backed Afghan government was still in power.

That's all from me for now. Don't forget to send me any questions, comments, or tips that you have.

Until next time,

Mustafa Sarwar

If you enjoyed this briefing and don't want to miss the next edition, subscribe here. It will be sent to your inbox every Friday.