Afghanistan Financial News

Islamist militants along the country's western border with Afghanistan, a statement said on Sunday. It said border troops killed all the militants in an exchange of fire during the night between March 22 and 23 in North Waziristan district. «Own troops effectively engaged and thwarted their attempt to infiltrate,» the army statement said. Islamabad says that Islamist militants who attack inside Pakistan, and against the army have safe havens in Afghanistan, a charge Kabul denies. The incident took place as Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan Sadiq Khan is on a two-day official visit to Kabul to talk about bilateral and economic issues, a statement from Pakistan's embassy in Kabul said.

Sirajuddin Haqqani, who acknowledged planning a January 2008 attack on the Serena Hotel in Kabul, which killed six people, including US citizen Thor David Hesla, no longer appears on the State Department's Rewards for Justice website. The FBI website on Sunday still featured a wanted poster for him. Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said the U.S. government had revoked the bounties placed on Haqqani, Abdul Aziz Haqqani, and Yahya Haqqani. «These three individuals are two brothers and one paternal cousin,» Qani told the Associated Press. The Haqqani network grew into one of the deadliest arms of the Taliban after the U.S.-led 2001 invasion of Afghanistan.

Hamas ties. The detention of Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University in the US capital, came as fears mount in the academic world that freedom of research and speech is being challenged two months into US President Donald Trump's new term. Suri's lawyer demanded his release and denounced the arrest as a «targeted, retaliatory detention» that was intended «to silence, or at the very least restrict and chill, his speech» as well as that of others who «express support for Palestinian rights.» Early Thursday evening Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles of the Eastern District of Virginia Court ordered Suri «shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the court issues a contrary order.» The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which has also filed an emergency motion to stop the deportation, said Suri was being held at an immigration detention center in Louisiana.

TTP outfit were killed by Pakistan police in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in different engagements from January 1 to March 15, official data released on Thursday said. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police lost 26 policemen in the line of duty while fighting against terrorists during the same period, according to the data released by the Central Police Line here. The banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) is a militant group having ideological similarities with Afghan Taliban. Pakistan has witnessed an uptick in terror activities recently, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces, after the TTP group ended its ceasefire with the government in November 2022. Giving the break-up of those injured, the Central Police Line data said, 31 were injured in gunbattles. The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police faced 29 attacks on their installations in January, 24 in February and 15 till March 15 this year. The number of attacks on police posts made in the same period are 16 while seven police stations were attacked too.

The United Nation on Thursday released the World Happiness Report 2025 that focused on the impact of caring and sharing on people’s happiness. This year, Finland has been declared as the happiest country out of 147 countries. Which one is the unhappiest?

According to UN-backed report, released Thursday, Finland maintained its position as the world's happiest nation for the eighth consecutive year, with its extensive lakes and robust social welfare system cited as key factors by residents and specialists. Afghanistan, facing severe humanitarian challenges since the Taliban's 2020 return to power, remained at the bottom of the global happiness rankings. The US descended to position 24, its poorest showing since the report's inception in 2012, when it had achieved its peak ranking of 11th place. One of the biggest reason for the fall in happiness of Americans, according to the report, is eating meals alone. «The number of people dining alone in the United States has increased 53 percent over the past two decades,» the authors stated, highlighting that shared meals «is strongly linked with well-being». Data from 2023 showed approximately 25% of Americans consumed all their daily meals alone.

Google is celebrating this year's Nowruz, the Persian New Year, with a special Doodle illustrated by guest artist Pendar Yousefi. The festival is being observed on March 20, precisely at 2:31 pm IST, which coincides with the spring equinox. The festival, which marks the beginning of the new year in the Persian calendar, has been observed for over 3,000 years. Nowruz means «new day» in Persian. The day has its roots in Zoroastrianism and ancient Persian culture. The festival symbolizes renewal, rebirth, and the triumph of light over darkness. The day signifies new beginnings and families gather to observe cultural festivities. In 2010, UNESCO added Nowruz to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, and the United Nations recognises March 21 as International Nowruz Day. On this day, about 300 million people across Iran, Central Asia, Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, the Caucasus, Turkey, and parts of South Asia celebrate withe festival. Google, in its description of the Doodle, explained that central to Nowruz traditions is the haft-sin table, a display of seven symbolic items each beginning with the Persian letter 'sin. These include sprouts for rebirth, wheat pudding for strength, olives for love, berries for the sunrise, vinegar for patience, apples for beauty, and garlic for health.

S Jaishankar on Tuesday stressed the importance of having an international order just like a domestic order. He slammed the United Nations for making the Kashmir invasion a dispute and turning the attacker and victim at par and called for having a «strong and fair» UN. In his remarks at the Session on 'Thrones and Thorns: Defending the Integrity of Nations' at Raisina Dialogue on Tuesday, Jaishankar called the occupation of some parts of Kashmir by Pakistan «the longest standing illegal occupation» of territory by another country after the Second World War. Jaishankar said, «Let's give you a second example. We all speak of sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Balochistan Liberation Army militants, who ambushed a train in Balochistan, were army and paramilitary soldiers. Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General Lieutenant Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, during a press conference with Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfaraz Bugti, said 26 hostages were killed by the terrorists before the start of the army operation. «The 26 hostages include 18 army and paramilitary soldiers, three other government officials and five civilians,» he said. He also said that five paramilitary soldiers of Frontier Corps were killed during the operation, including four Frontier Corps personnel killed by terrorists when they attacked the train. The Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) terrorists ambushed the Jaffar Express carrying over 400 passengers on Tuesday in Bolan area of Balochistan and held the passengers hostage, prompting the security forces to initiate an operation that lasted until the next day evening. Security forces stormed the hijacked train on Wednesday, bringing a dramatic end to a 30-hour siege, killing all 33 terrorists, while successfully rescuing more than 300 passengers.

The Hundred draft. Big names like Imad Wasim, Saim Ayub, Shadab Khan and Hasan Ali and Naseem Shah, who was the highest priced, all found no bidders. Among women Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana, Yusra Amir, Iram Javed, and Jaweria Rauf did not find any takers. Meanwhile, Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad and New Zealand all-rounder Michael Bracewell got the best deal. Ahmad joined Manchester Originals, while Bracewell was picked by Southern Brave. Former Australia cricketer David Warner was picked by London Spirit.

trade with Pakistan means expanding their export base and extending economic influence in the region. For Pakistan, reopening structured trade with India could be a lifeline. Institutional frameworks built during the Indo-Pak trade discussions of 2011-12 still exist. Rather than settling for a hesitant revival of pre-2019 trade, both nations have the chance to build a structured, high-impact trade corridor that turns decades of rivalry into economic interdependence, stretching beyond Afghanistan to CIS countries. Despite ad-hoc bans and restrictions, trade has not vanished. But it has been driven underground, morphing into an informal, fragmented and inefficient shadow of its true potential. In 2023-24, India officially imported only $3 mn worth of goods from Pakistan, while its exports to Pakistan reached $1.2 bn.

Donald Trump has asked U.S. Representative Mike Waltz, a retired Army National Guard officer and combat veteran, to serve as his National Security Adviser. The position, which does not require Senate confirmation, places Waltz at the center of handling several pressing global security challenges, including the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, tensions with China, and the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea. Waltz’s Role and Policy Stance Waltz, a three-term Republican congressman from Florida, is known for his hawkish stance on China and Iran. He has been a sharp critic of the Biden administration’s national security strategy, including the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan and handling of Chinese espionage. Waltz has pushed for a tougher U.S. approach to counter China’s influence, calling for a boycott of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics over human rights violations and concerns around COVID-19 origins.

National Center for Seismology (NCS) said. As per the NCS, the earthquake occurred at a depth of 10km, making it susceptible to aftershocks. In a post on X, the NCS said, «EQ of M: 4.0, On: 10/03/2025 07:01:10 IST, Lat: 36.97 N, Long: 73.14 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Hindu Kush Region, Afghanistan.» Shallow earthquakes like this one are more dangerous than deeper ones due to their greater energy release closer to the Earth's surface, causing stronger ground shaking and increased damage to structures and casualties, compared to deeper earthquakes, which lose energy as they travel to the surface.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. When you make a pact with the devil, he always comes back to get his due. I wish Volodymyr Zelensky had remembered this before getting into a confrontation with Russia.

In his address to the joint session of Congress on Tuesday (local time), Trump said, «I want Congress to pass a bill permanently banning and criminalizing sex changes on children and forever ending the lie that any child is trapped in the wrong body. This is a big lie and our message to every child in America is that you are perfect exactly the way God made you. Because we are getting wokeness out of our schools and out of our military and it's already out and it's out of our society. We don't want it. Wokeness is trouble. Wokeness is bad. Its gone and we feel so much better for it, don't we. Don't we feel better? Our service members won't be activists and ideologues. They will be fighters and warriors. They will fight for our country.» The US President also urged Congress to fund a state-of-the-art golden dome missile defence shield. He called it important to have golden dome missile defence shield and mentioned that Israel and other nations have it.

United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday expressed gratitude to the Pakistani government for assisting in the arrest of a key terrorist involved in the 2021 Kabul airport bombing. «Three and a half years ago, a [Daesh] terrorist killed 13 American service members and countless others in the Abbey Gate bombing,» Trump said during his address to a joint session of Congress. He added, «Tonight, I am pleased to announce that we have just apprehended the top terrorist responsible for that atrocity. And he is right now on his way here to face the swift sword of American justice.» The attack at Kabul airport in August 2021 claimed the lives of 13 US service members and around 170 Afghan civilians during the chaotic withdrawal of American forces from Afghanistan.

BJP on Tuesday slammed the Congress and other opposition parties over Maharashtra Samajwadi Party (SP) president Abu Azmi's remarks about Mughal emperor Aurangzeb and said they could stoop down to any level in their bid to «eradicate» Sanatan Dharma. The BJP's reaction came amid a row over the Maharashtra SP leader allegedly eulogising Aurangzeb in his recent remarks. He said during the Mughal emperor's reign, India's border reached Afghanistan and Burma (Myanmar), and the country was then called a golden sparrow with its GDP then accounting for 24 per cent of the world GDP. Asked about the fight between Aurangzeb and Sambhaji Maharaj, Azmi, an MLA from the Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar constituency in Mumbai, termed it a political battle. BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi also termed Azmi's remarks an «insult to the entire Indian society» and alleged that the opposition INDIA bloc constituents are engaged in a «cut-throat competition» with each other to prove themselves anti-Hindu for minority votes.

India vs Australia Semifinal LIVE SCORE, Champions Trophy 2025: India are taking on Australia in the first semifinal of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai on Tuesday. Unbeaten in the tournament so far, Rohit Sharma's men finished on top of Group A to set up a clash with injury-hit Australia, led by Steve Smith. In fact, it will be first IND vs AUS clash in ODIs for the first time since the final of World Cup in 2023.India started off the campaign with a win over Bangladesh before beating Pakistan and New Zealand.

West Indies cricket legend Vivian Richards has urged his national team to take inspiration from Afghanistan's rise in world cricket, highlighting their passion, energy, and determination. His comments come as West Indies cricket continues to struggle, having missed out on both the 2023 ODI World Cup and now the Champions Trophy. Once a dominant force in the sport, the team has faced setbacks due to inconsistency. On the other hand, Afghanistan has been on the rise, putting up one surprising performance after the other, having beaten Pakistan, New Zealand, and Australia within the last 2 years. Continuing its recent trend, it again shocked England in the ongoing Champions Trophy defeating them by 8 runs, ending the team's campaign in the tournament.

England for 179, the lowest total of the tournament, in their final Group B match here. Already eliminated from the semifinal race, England needed a victory by at least 207 runs to give Afghanistan a chance of qualifying based on the run-rate. However, Marco Jansen (3/39) stole the show with the new ball, taking three crucial wickets, and Wiaan Mulder (3/25) and Keshav Maharaj (2/35) applied the pressure in the middle overs as South Africa confirmed their knockout berth, irrespective of the match's result. It remains to be seen who finishes on top of Group B and that will decide who India and New Zealand will play in the knockout stage.

South Africa vs England LIVE SCORE, Champions Trophy 2025: Welcome to the live coverage of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 clash between South Africa and England at the National Bank Stadium in Karachi. While England have already been eliminated, they will be looking to salvage some pride with a strong performance. South Africa, on the other hand, will aim to finish their group stage on a high note and gain momentum.Can England end their campaign with a win, or will South Africa dominate once again? Stay tuned for live updates, scores and key moments from this exciting battle!South Africa vs England LIVE SCORE: For South Africa, this match is crucial.