Netflix dance comedy Best of the Best has faced criticism over a joke referencing the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. The line, delivered by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan’s character, sparked backlash online, with viewers calling it insensitive. Producer and writer Hasan Minhaj and director Lena Khan also faced criticism as audiences debated the film’s treatment of South Asian representation.
Tag: Afghanistan
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Netflix Film Draws Backlash Over Afghanistan Joke
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LHC Suspends PMDC Directive on Afghan Students
LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday suspended the operation of Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) directives requiring Afghan medical students to return to Afghanistan. Justice Khalid Ishaq issued the order while hearing petitions filed by 13 Afghan students studying at medical institutions in Lahore. The court also sought replies from respondents at the next hearing.
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UN Warns Afghanistan War Victims Remain Forgotten
KABUL: The United Nations has warned that many civilian victims of Afghanistan’s two-decade war remain without justice, compensation or recognition. UNAMA said tens of thousands of civilians were killed or wounded between 2001 and 2021 in attacks and military operations involving the Taliban, Islamic State and Afghan or international forces. Survivors continue to face psychological trauma, financial hardship and disrupted lives. One victim, Mohammad, said the world had forgotten those affected by the conflict. -
No current talks with Taliban: Afghanistan’s Massoud
There were no talks with the Taliban to negotiate a peace settlement, Afghan anti-Taliban leader Ahmad Massoud stated, vowing to step up “guerrilla warfare” to bring the hardline Islamists to the negotiating table. Speaking in an interview in Paris, Massoud, the exiled leader of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan (NRF), said that the only way for the Taliban to achieve legitimacy would be to hold elections, but there was no prospect of that happening for now.
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IS claims responsibility for Afghanistan mosque blast
Islamic State on Friday claimed responsibility for an explosion inside a mosque in northern Afghanistan the day before, the militant group said in a statement. The blast inside a mosque in northern Afghanistan killed at least 11 people during the funeral of the Taliban’s provincial deputy governor, who died in an attack earlier this week, officials said.
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Afghan provincial governor killed in car bombing
The acting governor of a northeastern Afghan province was killed in a car bombing, officials said. The bomber rammed a car filled with explosives into the vehicle carrying Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi, acting governor of northern Badakhshan, in the provincial capital Faizabad. The incident took place months after the region’s police chief was killed in a similar attack claimed by an affiliate of the ISIL (ISIS) group.
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Taliban supreme leader, Qatari PM hold talks
The Qatari prime minister held talks with the Taliban earlier this month, signalling a new effort by the Taliban to end its international isolation since they took over Afghanistan. The talks took place on May 12, which included a meeting between the Taliban’s supreme leader, Haibatullah Akhunzada, and Qatari PM Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. However, no details or official readout from the meeting have been released.
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Iran, Afghanistan face off over sharing Helmand waters
The Taliban authorities in Afghanistan faced mounting pressure from Iran after lethal clashes on the border between the two sides. The skirmishes reportedly led to the deaths of two Iranian border guards and one Taliban fighter. The Taliban’s Ministry of Interior released a statement on Sunday, calling for dialogue and saying “looking for excuses for war are not in the interests of either side”.
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No ‘significant steps towards normalization’ with Taliban: US
The US special envoy for Afghanistan, Thomas West, said that Washington had not seen significant steps towards normalization with the Islamic Emirate. “We have not seen significant steps towards normalization with the Taliban, They do not have a permanent representative sitting in New York at the United Nations…… in foreign countries and I do not envision that we will budge on any of these issues until they make more responsible decisions,” West noted.
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Pakistan calls for Afghanistan’s capacity building to counter terrorism
Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Saturday urged the international community to help in capacity building of the Afghan interim authorities to take on threats of terrorism. During a panel discussion at Munich Security Conference, FM Bilawal said the global community wanted the Afghan interim government to live up to its obligations and commitments in areas like women’s education, all-inclusive government, and tackling potential threats from terrorism.
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Protests in Afghanistan against desecration of Holy Quran
Hundreds of Afghan men staged a protest in the eastern city of Khost on Tuesday to express anger at the desecration of the Holy Quran in the Swedish capital over the weekend. Swedish-Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan on Saturday set fire to a copy of the Holy Quran in front of Turkey’s embassy in Stockholm. “Death to the Swedish government, death to such politicians,” protesters chanted in the city’s main square.
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“Afghanistan was used to launch attacks on Pakistan”: Defence minister
Pakistan’s defense minister alleged that Afghanistan’s soil was being used by armed groups to launch attacks on his country. The statement prompted a sharp response from the Taliban government in Kabul which called the allegation “incorrect” and “regrettable”. “We have spoken to the Afghanistan government and we will keep saying that … their soil is being used for cross-border terrorism,” Khwaja Asif stated.
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Agreement signed to extend import of power from Uzbekistan
The Afghan Ministry of Energy and Water signed an agreement with Uzbekistan to extend the import of electricity to Afghanistan for another year. He hoped the development would end power cuts in the capital city, Kabul. Abdul Latif Mansour, the acting minister of energy and water, said, “We signed and extended the agreement for the import of electricity in 2023.”
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“Deporting of Afghans Will Start in January”: Official
A prison official in Karachi said that they would start deporting Afghan women from the first week of January. The detainees had been sentenced for living in the country without legal documents. “In the first week of January, the process to deport around 58 of them will start,” said Sheeba Shah, the superintendent for the Central Prison for Women in Karachi as quoted by AP.
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Resumption of Indian projects ‘beneficial’: Afghan govt
Work on Indian projects in Afghanistan was halted over security and political situation, Indian media reported, citing Afghanistan’s External Affairs Ministry. Afghanistan’s Ministry of Economy on Thursday said that the resumption of development projects in the country would create job opportunities for people across the country. “Resumption of development projects will enhance economic development, reduce poverty, and increase jobs,” Deputy Minister of Economy Abdul Latif Nazari said.
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Afghan girl stages solo protest against university ban
On Tuesday, an 18-year-old Afghan student took Taliban taunts and insults as she staged a solo protest against the ban on women attending university. “For the first time in my life, I felt so proud, strong, and powerful because I was standing against them and demanding a right that God has given us,” Marwa stated, asking not to be further identified.
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Afghan Interior Ministry bans poppy cultivation
Afghanistan: The Ministry of Interior reported on Sunday that poppy cultivation had been banned nationwide since the establishment of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. Preventing the cultivation of poppy was part of the counter-narcotics campaign of the ministry, said Nafi Takor, spokesman for the ministry. “The Ministry of Interior has been fighting in the field of poppy cultivation and trafficking for a year and the fight will continue to avoid this bad phenomenon,” he added.
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Afghan Taliban start Shariah-imposed punishments
The Afghan Taliban flogged 27 people, including women, in front of a large crowd on Thursday. The move came a day after they publicly executed a convicted murderer. Their chief spokesman also pushed back at international criticism of the public punishments, calling it a lack of respect for Islam. Chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the criticism showed outsiders “don’t have respect for the beliefs, laws and internal issues of the Muslims”.
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Several injured due to firing from Afghan side: Official
According to officials, seven people, including two children, were injured following firing from across the Afghan border in Kharlachi and Borki near Kurram border. Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Sajid Hussain Turi, while confirming the incident, condemned the firing. In a statement shared on Twitter, he said: “Afghanistan’s violation of Pakistan’s Kurram border at Kharlachi and Borki and targeting the civilian population is condemnable.”
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Afghan leader orders full implementation of Sharia Law
Afghanistan: The leader of the Islamic Emirate, Mawlawi Hebatullah Akhundzada, has ordered judges to fully implement Islamic law on criminals. The Islamic Emirate’s spokesperson said on his Twitter page that Akhundzada had ordered the judges to carefully investigate the cases of kidnappers, thieves, and seditionists. “Mawlawi Hebatullah in meeting with the judges, told them to investigate the cases of thieves, kidnappers and seditionists properly. Those cases that have reached all the requirements of the Sharia retribution, you (judges) are obliged to implement retribution,” he added.
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UAE firms to manage air traffic over Afghanistan
Kabul: A United Arab Emirates firm signed a contract with Afghanistan on Thursday to manage air traffic across the country as the Taliban authorities seek to expand international flights. Abu Dhabi-based GAAC signed an agreement that it expected would help bring back major international airlines. The contract is part of more than $300 million that GAAC aims to invest in Afghanistan over a 10-year period to develop the country’s aviation sector.
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TTP commander reportedly killed in Afghanistan
As per reports, outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan’s (TTP) senior commander Omar Khalid Khorasani had been killed in the Paktika province of Afghanistan on Monday. According to the sources, along with Omar Khalid Khorasani, two more senior commanders of the banned organisation were also killed. Hafiz Daulat and commander Mufti Hassan are among the dead.
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China announces Afghan trade, investment plans
Kabul: On Tuesday, China’s ambassador announced trade and investment plans for Afghanistan after an earthquake drew attention to the humanitarian impacts of Western sanctions. At a rare press conference alongside the Taliban administration’s acting minister for disaster management, Ambassador Wang Yu announced $8 million in aid for relief from the June 22 earthquake that killed more than 1,000 people. “Besides emergency humanitarian aid, after the political changes last year and after the earthquake, we also have long-term economic reconstruction plans,” he said.
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Japan to provide necessary aid for Afghanistan after Earthquake
A government official announced on Thursday that the Japanese government intends to help Afghanistan after an earthquake there claimed at least 1,000 lives.
Seiji Kihara, the deputy chief cabinet secretary, stated during a routine news conference that the government was planning actions to “promptly give required support” in addition to evaluating the situation to understand local requirements.
At least 1,000 people were killed and 1,500 more were injured when a powerful earthquake struck a remote border region of Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan overnight, according to officials. The death toll is expected to rise as desperate rescuers search through the collapsed homes.
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Pakistan faces influx of asylum seekers from Afghanistan
According to the UN refugee agency, Pakistan is facing new inflows of asylum seekers from neighboring Afghanistan, following the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul. On the eve of World Refugees Day, observed on June 20 every year, the spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Pakistan, Qaiser Khan Afridi, said that more than 250,000 Afghans seeking asylum have trickled into Pakistan since January 2021.
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Taliban to sign pact with UAE on running Afghan airports
It emerged on Tuesday that the Taliban would sign an agreement with the United Arab Emirates on operating airports in Afghanistan. The group’s acting deputy prime minister Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar said on Tuesday that the decision was made after months of talks with the UAE, Turkey, and Qatar. He made the announcement in a tweet and later told reporters in Kabul that his government was reviving an airport ground handling agreement with the UAE.
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6 wounded in grenade attack in mosque
Kabul: On Wednesday, six people were wounded in a grenade blast at a mosque in the Afghan capital minutes after worshippers offered midday prayers marking the holy month of Ramazan, the police reported. “We had finished the prayers and were heading out of the mosque when the blast occurred,” worshipper Mohammed Yasin told. Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran told that a grenade was thrown inside the Pul-i-Khisti mosque and a suspect was arrested at the scene.
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Taliban ban drugs cultivation
Kabul/peshawar: On April 3, it emerged that the Taliban announced a ban on the cultivation of narcotics in Afghanistan_the world’s biggest opium producer. “As per the decree of the supreme leader of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, all Afghans are informed that from now on, cultivation of poppy has been strictly prohibited across the country,” according to an order from the Taliban’s supreme leader Haibatullah Akhundzada.
“If anyone violates the decree, the crop will be destroyed immediately and the violator will be treated according to the Sharia law,” the Ministry of Interior announced. -
Blast in Afghan capital kills one
KABUL: On sunday, a blast hit the money exchange hub in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, slaining one and injuring dozens. No group immediately claimed responsibility. The Emergency Hospital in Kabul stated in a tweet that one fatality and 59 injured people had been brought to the hospital, 33 of whom were admitted for their injuries.
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China’s FM Wang Yi visits Afghanistan
According to a spokesman for Afghanistan’s foreign ministry, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Kabul on Thursday to meet with his Afghan counterpart, marking the highest-level visit by a Chinese official since the Taliban took power last year.
Wang landed in Kabul on Thursday, less than a week before Beijing hosts a conference of Afghanistan’s neighbours to discuss ways to help the Taliban government.
Beijing had worked to retain connections with the Taliban even before the Taliban took control of the country in August, as US-led foreign soldiers departed. However, China, like other countries, has refused to recognise the Taliban authority.