Asia

Taliban claim to enter resistance stronghold Panjshir, Massoud supporters deny

The Taliban said their fighters entered Panjshir province on Saturday without facing any resistance, Afghan news outlet ToloNews reported. “No fighting occurred, but the.. [Taliban fighters] advanced from various directions without facing any resistance. The [Taliban] forces have entered Panjshir from different directions,” said Anaamullah Samangani, a member of the …

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Death toll in Kazakhstan arms depot explosions climbs to 13

The death toll from explosions at an arms depot in southern Kazakhstan climbed to 13, authorities in the ex-Soviet country said Saturday, adding that three people were still missing. The blasts occurred at a defense ministry ammunition depot in the southern Jambyl region, leaving dozens injured and forcing the evacuation …

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Baghdad condemns Kabul explosion

The Iraqi Foreign Ministry condemned today the bloody bombing that targeted the Afghan capital, Kabul. The vicinity of Kabul Airport witnessed two explosions targeting crowds of Afghans who were trying to leave their country. The bombing killed at least 12 American soldiers. The Foreign Ministry said in a statement, “We …

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Factbox: Evacuations from Afghanistan by country

The United States and allies are hurrying to evacuate as many people from Afghanistan as possible before an Aug. 31 deadline amid deteriorating security. The United States and partners have evacuated about 105,000 people since Aug. 14, the day before the Taliban entered Kabul, the White House said on Friday. …

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Kazakhstan: 9 killed, 90 injured in blasts at arms depot

Blasts triggered by a fire at a Kazakh munitions storage facility killed nine servicemen and firefighters and wounded 90 others, authorities in the central Asian nation said on Friday. Four people remained missing, the government said. It is unclear what caused Thursday’s fire at the military base in the southern …

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Taliban appoint veterans to key ministerial posts

The Taliban have appointed senior veterans to the positions of Afghanistan’s finance minister, interior minister, and defense minister, but the appointments have not been formally announced. The country’s Pajhwok news agency reported on Wednesday that Gul Agha had been named the finance minister and Sadr Ibrahim the acting interior minister. …

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