At least 26 Afghan soldiers have been killed and 13 wounded in a Taliban attack on a military base in Kandahar province, the defence ministry said Wednesday, the latest blow to struggling security forces. The militants “attacked an army camp in Karzali area of Khakrez district of Kandahar last night,” MoD spokesman General Dawlat Waziri … Read more
Silently, the figures climb the hill in a dusty breeze to reach the gravestones of their loved ones. The site west of Kabul is the last resting place for victims of a deadly suicide bombing on July 23 last year — the first claimed by the Islamic State group in the heart of Kabul against … Read more
Afghanistan’s President Ashraf Ghani has signed into law a cybercrime bill targeting online crime and militancy by groups such as the Taliban and Islamic State, officials said Monday, amid concerns it could limit free speech. The Cyber Crime Law criminalises a range of online activities including hacking, spreading ethnic hatred, distribution of online defamatory speech, … Read more
Gunmen have killed eight Afghan guards working at the largest American base in Afghanistan, officials said Tuesday, as the US appears set to boost its troop presence in the country. The guards were ambushed near Bagram base north of Kabul as they were driving home in convoy late Monday, said district governor Abdul Shakoor Quddusi. … Read more
At least 20 Afghan policemen were killed early Sunday when Taliban fighters stormed multiple security outposts in the volatile southern province of Zabul, officials said, as the insurgents escalate their annual spring offensive. Local officials made desperate calls to journalists to seek attention as they were unable to get hold of senior authorities for help, … Read more
Afghan security forces were killed at a “shockingly high” rate during what historically has been a winter lull in fighting against the Taliban, a US watchdog said in a report Monday. According to the US government’s Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), 807 troops from the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces died between … Read more
Authorities have arrested 35 soldiers who served on an army base in northern Afghanistan where the Taliban staged a deadly attack last week, officials said Wednesday, as fears grew they had inside help. The defence ministry released its official toll of 135 recruits killed in the assault on the sprawling base, home to the 209th … Read more
The green mosque in the Afghan military compound attacked by Taliban militants is scarred — disfigured by bullet holes, blast marks and with blood splattered across the ceiling — telltale signs of the deaths of at least 144 young Afghan recruits. Images filmed by an AFP journalist reveal some of the horror of one of … Read more
The death toll from last week’s Taliban attack on an Afghan military base stands at 144, a senior US defense official told AFP on Tuesday. The exact toll from the assault had been unclear, with Afghan officials ignoring calls to break down the tally it gave of more than 100 soldiers killed or wounded. Speaking … Read more
The US State Department on Monday described last week’s Taliban attack in northern Afghanistan as “unconscionable,” but stressed America has no intention of giving up on the country despite more than 15 years of brutal war. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said more than 100 Afghan soldiers were killed and more than 60 others were … Read more
The Afghan defence minister and his army chief resigned Monday, days after a Taliban attack at a military base in northern Afghanistan killed or wounded more than 100 soldiers, a presidential statement said. “President Ashraf Ghani has accepted the resignation of the defence minister and army chief of staff,” the statement from Ghani’s office said. … Read more
Afghanistan is holding a day of national mourning after the Taliban attacked an army base, killing or wounding more than 100 soldiers. President Ashraf Ghani said the assault near the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif had been contrary to all human values and Islamic teachings. Insurgents targeted those leaving Friday prayers at the base’s mosque and … Read more
As many 140 Afghan soldiers were killed on Friday by Taliban attackers apparently disguised in military uniforms in what would be the deadliest attack ever on an Afghan military base, officials say. One official in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, where the attack occurred, said on Saturday at least 140 soldiers were killed and many … Read more
Taliban gunmen wearing Afghan military uniforms launched an attack on an army base in northern Afghanistan Friday killing “more than 50 soldiers”, officials said. Afghan commandos were deployed during the attack which lasted several hours and targeted soldiers as they attended mosque and ate a meal. Two of the ten attackers blew themselves up while … Read more
The president of war-torn Afghanistan is creating a tourism ministry in a bid to attract visitors to the country endowed with stunning landscapes and archaeological sites, but wracked by nearly four decades of conflict. Ashraf Ghani issued a presidential decree this week ordering the ministry be established and naming Ghulam Nabi Farahi, a former parliamentary … Read more
A roadside bomb killed nine policemen and wounded four others outside their checkpoint in northern Afghanistan, officials said Sunday, in the latest casualties ahead of the spring fighting season. The bomb exploded Saturday when police entered a Taliban stronghold they had retaken in Chimtal district in Balkh province following an operation led by the powerful … Read more
Music fans in conservative Afghanistan Wednesday hailed the groundbreaking finale of a popular television singing competition, in which the first woman to reach the last round lost to another avant-garde competitor. “Afghan Star”, an adaptation of “American Idol”, has become a huge hit in a nation where the Taliban regime once confined women to their … Read more
The Red Cross on Saturday called for the unconditional release of two staff members who were abducted when their convoy was ambushed in northern Afghanistan last week, leaving six other workers dead. The aid workers came under insurgent fire in Jowzjan province on February 8 while they were en route to a remote snowbound area … Read more
A suicide bomber has rammed a truck into the German consulate in the Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif, killing at least two people, officials say. Reports described a huge blast at the diplomatic mission followed by gunfire. A hospital official said more than 80 people were hurt in the attack, which happened around 23:00 (18:30 GMT). … Read more