Afghanistan

Crises in the region on both Afghanistan’s longest borders are undermining the country’s stability, a senior UN official warned the Security Council on Monday as concerns over Middle East crisis grow amid clashes with Pakistan and a worsening humanitarian crisis.

Pakistan’s Defense Ministry said on Friday that the country now considers itself in an “open war” with Afghanistan after the two countries carried out cross-border strikes Thursday night. 

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers said they are preparing "an appropriate and calculated response" to Pakistani air strikes that killed at least 18 people in Nangarhar and Paktika provinces. Pakistan said it had launched strikes on seven militant sites inside Afghanistan in a "retributive response" to recent suicide attacks it said were carried out by Afghan-based extremists.

[…] The next renewal of UNAMA’s mandate in March 2026 offers an opportunity to reimagine the mission’s approach. Deteriorating circumstances in Afghanistan and significant budget constraints will impact UNAMA’s capabilities and priorities in the coming year.

For the first time (the BBC) have been able to map two distinct groups at the very top of the Taliban - each presenting competing visions for Afghanistan. One entirely loyal to Akhundzada, who, from his base in Kandahar, is driving the country towards his vision of a strict Islamic Emirate … And a second, made up of powerful Taliban members largely based in the capital Kabul, advocating for an Afghanistan which - while still following a strict interpretation of Islam - engages with the outside, builds the country's economy, and even allows girls and women access to an education they are currently denied beyond primary school.

A new round of peace talks between Pakistan and Afghanistan has failed to produce a breakthrough to end tensions between the South Asian neighbours, although they agreed to continue their fragile ceasefire, officials from both countries said on Wednesday.

The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has vowed a "necessary response" after air strikes it alleged were carried out by Pakistan killed at least 10 people -- nine of whom were children -- just inside the country's eastern border region.

Afghan and Pakistani negotiators are set to resume ceasefire talks in Turkey on Thursday, aiming to prevent a return to hostilities following their worst clashes in years. 

Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed to extend a ceasefire for at least another week during talks in Turkiye, the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The sides plan to meet again at a higher-level gathering in Istanbul on November 6 to finalise how the ceasefire will be implemented, the ministry said in a statement released on behalf of Pakistan, Afghanistan and mediators Turkiye and Qatar.

Governments moving to restore ties with the Taliban risk legitimising oppression and deepening Afghanistan’s crisis, an independent UN human rights expert cautioned on Thursday, calling for a principled approach that defends the rights of women and girls.