Latest news with #Taliban-run
Euractiv
10 hours ago
- Politics
- Euractiv
More EU countries eye deportations to Afghanistan, says German interior minister
Berlin says other countries want in on controversial return operations. Euractiv is part of the Trust Project Nicoletta Ionta Euractiv Jul 22, 2025 11:08 2 min. read News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Germany's recent deportation of criminals to Taliban-run Afghanistan is drawing attention from across Europe, according to German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt. 'We have spoken several times about the fact that the deportations to Afghanistan we have carried out are attracting great interest from other countries, who would like to take part in such operations,' Dobrindt said at an informal EU Home Affairs Council meeting in Copenhagen. Last week, Berlin deported a group of convicted criminals to Taliban-run Afghanistan and became the first EU country to let Taliban officials onto its soil to help carry out deportations. One of the key topics under discussion, Dobrindt added, is 'whether and how this can be realised.' 'We believe this is an innovative and absolutely necessary approach,' Dobrindt said, calling for agreements with third countries near countries of origin. Dobrindt didn't rule out Germany pursuing its own migration deals, noting that more and more countries 'have advanced plans to set up such structures.' 'We need partner countries, preferably close to the countries of origin, that through specific agreements are able to receive rejected asylum seekers and settle them in a dignified way near their homeland. This is the basic idea, which has our full support.' Acknowledging the political sensitivity, Dobrindt said: 'We know that for individual member states this can be very difficult, we've already seen that in the past.' Still, he believes a Europe-wide approach could work, as it offers greater chances of implementation." Dobrindt's comments follow a declaration by EU interior ministers on Friday stating that 'returns to Afghanistan and Syria must be possible.' The hardline statement, backed by a self-styled 'coalition of the willing' led by Germany and joined by France, Poland, Austria, Denmark, Czechia, and EU Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner, calls for tougher migration rules across the bloc.
Euractiv
4 days ago
- Politics
- Euractiv
EU ministers push for returns to Syria and Afghanistan at high-altitude summit
Atop Germany's snow-capped Zugspitze, EU interior ministers declared that 'returns to Afghanistan and Syria must be possible' in a declaration on migration that did not mince its words on Friday. The self-styled 'coalition of the willing' led by German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt and joined by France, Poland, Austria, Denmark, Czechia as well as EU Home Affairs Commissioner Magnus Brunner, signed off on a hardline declaration calling for tougher migration rules across the EU. The group wants faster and easier return mechanisms for irregular migrants and insists that deportations to Afghanistan and Syria 'must be possible'. The declaration also called for Frontex's mandate to be strengthened to assist EU countries with returns to hubs in third countries, including a mandate to conduct returns from third countries such as the Western Balkans. Earlier on Friday, Berlin deported a group of convicted criminals to Taliban-run Afghanistan, the first such deportation since 2024 and the first one under Merz's government. Returns and deportations are a "gap in the reorganisation of the migration system," Dobrindt said, adding it was "where we need to do more". His Austrian counterpart Gerhard Karner struck a triumphant tone after the meeting, pointing to 'new opportunities' recently created. Austria in early July deported a convicted man to Syria in an EU first after the fall of the Assad regime, and Germany follows suit with deportations to Afghanistan. 'These are all enormously important steps toward a credible asylum policy in Europe, if we can also return criminals to their countries of origin,' Karner said. Back in December, Brussels had still taken a far more cautious line. The European Commission reaffirmed its position then that, despite political changes in Syria, the conditions for safe, voluntary, and dignified returns were still not in place, echoing the assessment of the UN refugee agency. Member states also committed to 'carefully analyse' European Court of Human Rights rulings on asylum, a nod to the Danish-Italian letter that helped spark the current debate. EU ministers will reconvene next week in full 27-member format for the informal Justice and Home Affairs meeting in Copenhagen, where subjects including irregular migration and beefing up the return system are high on the agenda. (vib)
Indian Express
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Why over 500,000 Afghans were forced out of Iran in just 16 days and what's next?
The dusty border town of Islam Qala in western Afghanistan has become a holding pen for the displaced, families huddled under tarpaulins, children too young to understand why their lives have been upended, and elderly men with sunburnt faces staring silently into the horizon. The summer heat here touches 40°C (104°F), but the suffering runs far deeper than the temperature gauge. In just over two weeks since Iran's conflict with Israel came to an uneasy halt, more than half a million Afghans have crossed into Afghanistan from Iran, a staggering human tide that the UN has called one of the largest forced movements of people in recent years. Behind this exodus lies a brutal combination of politics, suspicion, and long-standing tension. What Iran says is a national security move, critics call a purge of one of the region's most vulnerable communities. On June 24, just days after the fighting ended, Tehran's mass deportations accelerated. By July 9, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded 508,426 Afghans crossing the border back into their homeland. Some 51,000 were forced out in one day alone, a crescendo ahead of a July 7 deadline for undocumented migrants to leave. Among them was Bashir, a young man in his twenties who had been living and working in Tehran. 'The police caught me in the street,' he told reporters in Islam Qala, CNN reported. Bashir added, 'They took 10 million tomans ($200) from me, sent me to a detention centre, and forced me to pay another 2 million ($50). They didn't give us food or water. They beat us.' He said around 200 people were being held in that facility, detained without basic necessities and treated with abuse. For many, these last days in Iran were marked not by quiet exits but by extortion and violence. Parisa, just 11 years old, stood beside her parents after arriving back in Afghanistan. 'We lived in Iran for six years. I was told I couldn't go to school anymore,' she said. 'Even though we had a legal census document, they said we had to leave immediately.' Her education now hangs in limbo — especially in Taliban-run Afghanistan, where girls' schooling is severely restricted, the report by CNN added. Iran had long hinted at its desire to reduce the number of undocumented Afghans, many of whom perform low-wage, grueling labour across cities like Tehran, Isfahan, and Mashhad. But the new wave of expulsions followed a chilling narrative twist: unproven claims that Afghan nationals spied for Israel during the recent conflict. Though no substantial evidence has been presented, Iranian state media has broadcast footage of a supposed Afghan 'spy' admitting to passing locations to a handler based in Germany in exchange for $2,000. The man's identity and the claims remain unverifiable, but they've been enough to ignite public suspicion and fuel what rights groups say is a campaign of collective punishment. 'We are witnessing discrimination, dehumanising language, and incitement to violence,' the CNN report quoted Richard Bennett, the UN's special rapporteur to Afghanistan as saying, warning of growing hostility towards Afghans and other minorities in Iranian media, . Tehran has defended the removals. 'We've always striven to be good hosts, but national security is a priority,' government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said on July 1. 'Naturally, illegal nationals must return.' The deportations come at enormous human cost. Mihyung Park, IOM's mission chief, as per a report by CNN, said that half of all Afghan returnees this year crossed the border since June 1, with 250,000 arriving in one week of July alone. 'There are thousands under the sun. It's quite dire,' Park told CNN. 'Last week alone, there were around 400 unaccompanied, separated children, that is a lot.' Video footage from the border shows long lines of people waiting to be processed, faces flushed from heat, hands shielding infants from the sun. Some are bused in and marched off to unknown locations. Others speak of police raids in Iranian cities, with migrants hunted across open fields or yanked from construction sites. In one segment aired by Iranian television, a journalist confronts an employer: 'Why did you hire the Afghan? It's against the law.' The man replies, 'I know! But I had to pay him before he left.' Many deportees had spent years in Iran, carving out precarious but meaningful lives. Some had sent their children to school, started small businesses, and blended into communities despite lacking formal papers. That life, in the end, proved fragile — easily erased by a policy shift and a wave of fear. Iran's recent expulsions reflect not just the fallout of a regional war, but a growing intolerance toward those deemed foreign, illegal, or disposable. For the hundreds of thousands pushed into the deserts of western Afghanistan, survival has once again become the only goal. And with temperatures rising and aid resources stretched thin, the journey ahead looks just as perilous as the one behind.
Canada News.Net
02-07-2025
- Canada News.Net
Tourists return to Afghanistan as Taliban touts security gains
KABUL, Afghanistan: Afghanistan, long associated with war and instability, is quietly trying to rebrand itself as a destination for adventurous travellers. Despite lacking international recognition, the Taliban government is making an active push to revive the country's tourism industry, even as critics question the ethics of holidaying in a nation with harsh restrictions on women and fragile security. "We want tourists to come and see the true traditions and customs of Afghans," said Qudratullah Jamal, Deputy Minister of Tourism, in an interview with the Associated Press. "Tourism brings many benefits to a country." While still far from a tourism hotspot, the numbers are climbing. Nearly 9,000 foreign tourists visited Afghanistan in 2023. In the first three months of this year alone, almost 3,000 have already made the trip. Visas are reportedly easy to obtain, and flights from hubs like Dubai and Istanbul operate multiple times a week. The Taliban-run government has launched a training institute — currently open only to men — to prepare locals for work in hospitality. Jamal believes tourism can reach more layers of Afghan society than other sectors. "We are optimistic this sector will evolve into a large economy," he said. Afghanistan's tourism appeal lies in its dramatic landscapes, historical sites, and warm hospitality. But decades of violence kept visitors away. The Taliban's return to power in 2021 brought new uncertainty, even as the end of insurgency reduced bombings and street violence. Attacks still happen. In May 2024, gunmen killed six people, including three Spanish tourists, in Bamiyan — home to the ancient Buddhas destroyed by the Taliban in 2001. An Islamic State affiliate remains active in the country. Western governments continue to advise against all travel to Afghanistan. The Taliban insists the country is safe for tourists. "There is comprehensive security across Afghanistan," Jamal said. But safety isn't the only concern. Rights groups argue that travel to Afghanistan risks legitimising a regime that has severely curtailed women's freedoms. Girls are barred from education beyond primary school. Women face restrictions on work, movement, dress, and access to public spaces. Beauty salons are banned. Even parks are off-limits. Jamal declined to comment on the treatment of women, only saying that all visitors — male and female — are welcome as long as they respect local laws. For some tourists, the ethical question looms large. French-Peruvian Illary Gomez and her British partner, James Liddiard, spent a year debating whether to pass through Afghanistan in their UK-to-Japan road trip. "Some things didn't feel morally right," Gomez said. Ultimately, they decided to go. "You put money in the hands of the people, not the government," Liddiard said. Jamal echoed that sentiment. "Tourism helps foster mutual understanding, cultural exchange, and strengthens talents as people learn from one another," he said. "It is not just about economic development; it brings spiritual and political benefits too."
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Uzbekistan Builds Where the West Withdrew
Uzbekistan's interest in connectivity with Afghanistan is driven by economic opportunity, energy cooperation, security needs, and geopolitical strategy - factors that will help Uzbekistan access new markets and stabilize the region. Ambassador Javlon Vakhabov of the International Institute for Central Asia in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, calls it 'Stability Through Connectivity.' That is, Uzbekistan favors pragmatism over trying to isolate Afghanistan, and a policy that balances humanitarian support and regional security. The Central Asia republics (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Turkmenistan) were on the border of the wars in Afghanistan, i.e., the Afghan civil war (1992-1996, 1996-2001) and the U.S.-led NATO occupation (2001 – 2021), which they consider 'lost decades' of economic growth and social development. The republics' leaders know they and Afghanistan are 'neighbors forever' and do not have the luxury of retreating to North America if things go wrong, so policy must acknowledge geography. Uzbekistan's engagement with the Taliban began long before NATO evacuated Afghanistan in August 2021. In 1997, then-Uzbek president Islam Karimov proposed the Six plus Two Group on Afghanistan,which grew from an understanding that dialogue and a political settlement, nor armed force, was the path to peace. The group was unable to persuade the warring sides – the Taliban and the United Front (formerly the Northern Alliance) – to pursue a March 2018, Uzbekistan hosted the Tashkent Conference that urged direct peace talks without preconditions between the Taliban and the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Unfortunately, the Taliban said it would only negotiate with the United States, the "foreign occupying force,' and demanded the departure of foreign troops before the start of negotiations. In July 2022, Tashkent hosted a conference on Afghanistan, attended by representatives of 30 countries. It was an opportunity for the international community to take the measure of Taliban officials and for the Taliban to encourage investment in Afghanistan and seek the release of Afghan assets seized by the West after the fall of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. The tone of the event was forward-looking, but Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev, '…reiterated the international community's conditions for formal diplomatic recognition, namely 'forming a broad representation of all layers of the Afghan society in state governance, ensuring basic human rights and freedoms, especially of women and all ethnic and confessional groups.'' Tashkent has consistently called for engaging with Taliban-run Afghanistan, including unfreezing the $9 billion in state assets that were seized by American and European authorities after the ouster of the Kabul government in August 2021 Central Asia is a water-stressed region and Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan are in the 'severe water stress' category. The construction of the Qosh Tepa canal in Afghanistan threatened to increase tensions between the Taliban-led Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan and Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan by reducing the water flow of the Amu Darya River by 15-20% - a disaster for Central Asia agriculture. (In Uzbekistan, agriculture accounts for 25% of GDP and about 26% of the labor force.) In April 2025, Uzbekistan and Afghanistan agreed to cooperate in sharing the water resources in the Amu Darya River Basin. The republics are concerned as 'a significant reduction in the Amu Darya's flow could lead to ecosystem degradation, increased soil salinity, and deteriorating living conditions for populations downstream…[and] could hinder efforts to restore the Aral Sea and further exacerbate the region's environmental challenges.' Though Uzbekistan has not recognized the government of Taliban-run Afghanistan, the agreement on transboundary water resources demonstrates bilateral relations are becoming 'increasingly institutionalized.' Tashkent prioritizes its interests to address not just water resources but the threat of terrorist groups, 20 of which may be sheltering in Afghanistan. This effort will require serious diplomacy by all parties and is an opportunity for Uzbekistan (and the U.S.) to provide technical assistance to ensure the canal is built to minimize excessive water loss and soil salinization. Uzbekistan should take the opportunity to substitute crops less thirsty than cotton for the country's growing textile sector which plans to grow textile exports to $10 billion, and continue to import cotton from Turkey, China, and Bangladesh. (Uzbekistan also imports cotton from Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan but should take the opportunity to lead the region away from crops that deplete its water supply.) One step to peacefully resolve the water problem is to make Afghanistan a party to the 1992 Almaty Agreement which regulates water allocations based on the Soviet-era shares of water among the then-Soviet Central Asia republics. The agreement is implemented by the Interstate Commission for Water Coordination of Central Asia (ICWC) and making Afghanistan a member of the ICWC is a way to make it part of the solution and not the problem. It will teach the Taliban the 'rules of the road' in Central Asia and ensure the republics' officials have a clear understanding of Taliban personalities, motivations, and priorities. Other connectivity initiatives are: The Termez free economic zone which offers a 2-week visa for Afghan visitors and features a customs office, a hotel, storage facilities, and capacity to handle 100,000 trucks and 900,000 tons of goods a year. Trans-Afghan railway, a $7 billion, 765-kilometer link to Pakistan's ports that is expected to cut transport costs by 30–40%. And Uzbekistan may soon conduct preliminary studies on extending the railway from Hairatan to Herat, a jumping-off point for trade with Iran and Turkmenistan. Surkhan–Puli-Khumri Power Line, a 1,000 MW line to support electrification of Afghan transport, and that may potentially link to the CASA-1000 power project, a joint venture between Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. (Uzbekistan is already the leading exporter of electricity to Afghanistan, supplying nearly 60% of Afghanistan's electricity imports.) Once operational, the line will increase Uzbekistan's electricity exports to Afghanistan by 70%, delivering up to 24 million kWh daily or 6 billion kWh annually. The project spans 245.6 kilometers, with 45 kilometers on Uzbek territory—already completed—and 200.6 kilometers in Afghanistan. The capacity of this line will not only enhance power availability but also facilitate the electrification of the Hairatan–Mazar-i-Sharif railroad, reducing transportation costs by replacing diesel-powered trains with cleaner electric locomotives. Uzbekistan sees many opportunities in Afghanistan and in 2024 trade climbed to $1.1 billion, most of that exports from Uzbekistan. There are commercial opportunities to be sure, but Tashkent does not want to contain Afghanistan, but to use it as a regional bridge, and not just for trade. There are concerns Afghanistan is a potential source of future transnational terrorism, though that may be stymied by intelligence sharing between the Taliban and the U.S., who share concerns about the Al-Qaeda (AQ) and the Islamic State – Khorasan Province (IS-K) presence in Afghanistan. More trade will not necessarily make Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State change their policies but more economic opportunity may make it harder for them to find recruits, and efforts like funding madrassas in Afghanistan may help detoxify the educational system. And the Taliban can build legitimacy if they are seen to be putting the peoples' welfare first by encouraging trade and business. That won't be favored by the U.S., but after two decades of mayhem in the Hindu Kush, much instigated by America, Washington should encourage action – by anyone - that allows Afghanistan to build infrastructure and make money by means other than poppy cultivation. Outside meddling in Afghanistan usually leads to tears, but if Tashkent can work with the moderate, outward-looking Taliban based in Kabul that want to improve the economy, it may subtly tip the balance against the hard-liners in Kandahar. (Yes, Siraj Haqqani and Mullah Omar are the 'moderates' but that is where we are right now.) Uzbekistan may have a role in the future exploitation of critical minerals in Central Asia and can help the U.S. build a secure critical mineral supply chain. According to Visual Capitalist, 'Out of the 50 minerals deemed critical by the U.S. government, the U.S. is 100% reliant on imports for 12 of them, and over 50% reliant for another 321 critical minerals.' Central Asia and Afghanistan are endowed with critical minerals but their isolated location presents a difficult transport problem. Also, mining and processing rare earths requires a lot of water which is in short supply in the region, though a new Chinese technology may triple production speed and reduce pollution, but will put China in a key position, something the U.S. will probably oppose. Andrew Korybko notes that partial completion of the Trans-Afghan railway may still benefit the republics if they can backhaul Afghanistan's minerals for processing in the republics or in Russia or China. The republics will need to secure investment for local, sustainable processing of the minerals (with off-take agreements), but Washington and Brussels must make serious offers to keep the stuff out of Russian and Chinese hands. (Exhortations by Washington to 'do the right thing' and not sell to China and Russia, backed by the hint of sanctions, are a tax on Central Asia and only diminish America's standing in the region.) Uzbekistan, a double-landlocked country, faces hurdles accessing global markets. Connectivity with Afghanistan offers a pathway to South Asia, particularly through Pakistan's seaports Karachi and Gwadar, though Uzbekistan is improving trade relations with Iran as its ports Bandar Abbas and Chabahar, and access to the North-South Transport Corridor, are 'Plan B' if the trans-Afghan route is untenable. Over the past decade, Tashkent has sought to make Central Asia a 'safe neighborhood,' and many of Uzbekistan's priorities, such as peacefully settling border disputes with the neighboring republics and encouraging a broad-based government in Kabul, are shared by Washington, but the Central Asia republics have a broader definition of the regional security, one that is grounded in diplomacy human development, and trade, and that includes trade and normal political relations with Russia, China, Iran, and Afghanistan. Central Asian is no longer a platform for the NATO campaign against the Taliban, but will it become a platform to engage the Taliban, who probably aren't going anywhere despite Washington's ongoing economic warfare. In April, Uzbek president Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced he is ready to work with the European Union (EU) and other international partners to support Afghanistan's development 'to overcome the current crises,' a policy that was welcomed by the Taliban. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and António Costa, President of the European Council, visited Uzbekistan in April with the intent, in von der Leyen's words, 'to take our partnership with Central Asia to the next level.' Aside from the standard fare of promoting European foreign direct investment to the region, securing access to critical minerals, and promoting educational exchanges, Central Asia's putative European partners should move smartly to work with the republics to ensure Afghanistan a productive member of the region and no longer a source of terrorism and narcotics. The failed NATO mission in Afghanistan, though it included European troops, is seen as an American loss, giving Europe more post-war maneuver room in Central Asia. And Europe will rely more than America on East-West trade from Asia via the Belt and Road and the Middle Corridor, so it may be the right partner right now for Central Asia. But the Central Asian republics aren't waiting for the EU and international partners to get to work. In May 2025, shortly after Mirziyoyev's announcement, Tashkent commissioned the Termez Dialogue on Connectivity Between Central and South Asia as a permanent platform for regional connectivity. Uzbekistan and Afghanistan both favor an 'economy first' policy with their neighbors, which the republics call "acceptance of reality" in the wake of the West's failed nation-building project in Afghanistan. The same week the republics' delegates convened in Termez, Uzbekistan to plan to boost Central and South Asian connectivity, Pakistan, China and Afghanistan agreed to expand the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan. CPEC has fallen short of the partners' expectations, so it remains to be seen if including Afghanistan is a smart move or will just burn more of China's money. And on the heels of the Termez meeting, Iran and China launched a railway route from Xian in western China to the Aprin dry port near Iran's capital, Tehran. The route will reportedly cut travel time from 30 days via sea to 15 days and will avoid the Strait of Malacca and the Hormuz Strait, chokepoints the U.S. Navy hoped to exploit in future conflicts. The route will not pass through Afghanistan but is Beijing's vote of confidence in the region as a connectivity space. Uzbekistan and the other Central Asia republics helped NATO in Afghanistan but it was all for naught, so now it's time for get back to basics - economic and social development - via initiatives like the Uzbekistan 2030 Strategy, and promoting good governance and increasing civic engagement through initiatives like the Center for Progressive Reforms. Washington should focus on how it can assist these sorts of efforts by the republics and not be distracted and agitated by their commonsense wish to not isolate neighboring Afghanistan. By James Durso for More Top Reads From this article on
