Taliban

In Afghanistan, the new academic year begins from March which also marks the first month of the new solar year, reports Khaama Press. In a statement on Sunday, spokesman of the Ministry of Education Aziz Ahmad Reyan said the Taliban is committed and optimistic to reopen schools for girls and that it is working in this regard "seriously and tirelessly".

The demonstration was staged on Saturday to oppose the visit of the Taliban delegation and their meetings with Norwegian authorities and members of the International community, Khaama Press reported. The Afghan protesters said that the Taliban are on the blacklist for "terrorists" of the US and that they should not be negotiated within Norway. The delegation arrived in Oslo on Saturday on an invitation by the Norwegian government.

Washington's special representative for Kabul, Thomas West, also emphasized that the normalization of relations between the Islamic Emirate and the world depends on the Taliban's behavior. West made the remarks while speaking to BBC Pashto.

In a tweet on Friday, Ministry spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi said the decision to open the Embassy came after "consecutive meetings and reaching an understanding with EU representatives". "Apart from 220 million euros humanitarian aid, the EU announced 268 million euros additional assistance and set aside a portion for teachers' salaries, which we welcome," he added.

No country has yet recognised the Taliban, with most waiting to see how the group - accused of human rights abuses during their first stint in power - performs. Despite the claims made by the Taliban that they have fulfilled all the conditions of the world to get the government recognised, the ground realities are totally different.

The remarks were made by Acting Minister Maulaee Noorullah Muneer during his meeting with Deborah Lyons, the UN General-Secretary's special representative to Afghanistan, here on Thursday, Khaama Press reported. Muneer said that getting an education is the right of girls and the Taliban government has the responsibility to provide it. Taliban officials have announced that higher schools for girls and public universities for boys and girls will be reopened in the next educational year that begins in March.

In an assessment report released on Wednesday, the ILO warned of increasing unemployment in the country, adding that if the current trend of unemployment continues then some 900,000 people will lose their jobs by mid-2022, reports TOLO News.

Anyone who seeks revenge spoils the current system which is not acceptable, said Haqqani while speaking at a capacity-building conference of Kabul police districts commanders, The Khaama Press News Agency reported. He further said that he met the previous leaders and officials who have assured him that no one will harm them unless they commit a crime.

Two issues have created a chasm between the Taliban rulers in Kabul and the GHQ in Rawalpindi which rules Pakistan through their 'selected' civilian proxies in Islamabad. One, Pakistan wants Taliban to take stern action against Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) – the bad terrorists so that they are eliminated. Two, Pakistan wants Kabul to rein in the Afghan Pashtuns, who are objecting to the fencing of the 2500 km-long de-facto border, the Durand Line.

The displaced families escaped heavy conflict between the Islamic Emirate and former government forces before the fall of the republican government in the northern provinces of Balkh, Sar-e-Pul, Faryab and Jawzjan. A charity committee is helping displaced families with food and cash aid in order to dissuade them from selling their children and kidneys.