Dozens of Afghan migrants are feared dead after Iranian border guards allegedly forced them into a river on the Iran-Afghan border on May 1. Of the 57 men and boys in the group, only 12 are known to have survived. One of the survivors told the France 24 Observers he and the others were arrested and tortured by guards from an Iranian border post overlooking the Harirud river.
As Afghans await the results of the presidential election held Sept. 28, many are watching online videos that appear to show ballot-stuffing, and wondering if they will have an effect on the outcome. Afghans cast their votes in 4,095 polling stations for 13 candidates.
A video of a Kabul shop owner being hit by an MP’s bodyguard has enraged online users in Afghanistan. But the incident is hardly the first example of the use of force by an elected official or a member of his team.
Three videos circulating on social networks in Afghanistan claim to show a “prayer-writing” mullah sexually assaulting three separate women. The videos were reportedly made three years ago in the north-central Faryab province, but appeared online the week of September 10. Local officials have identified the mullah and accused him of rape. If the charges are correct, these videos would be rare documentation of an often-alleged practice: rape committed by mullahs claiming to offer prayer-inspired healing to women. They are known as “taweez nevis” in Afghanistan: self-appointed mullahs who in return for money write prayers on paper that are supposed to serve as “charms” (taweez). Afghan families often send women to see them in case of marital problems such as infertility. The sessions often lead to abuse. The three videos sent to me by multiple sources in Afghanistan appear to show such abuse. They show the same man, with a long beard and white robes, alone with three different women, in each case lying on a mattress on the floor. Screengrab from a video circulating …
People who have fled the city of Ghazni, Afghanistan, have described apocalyptic scenes, including dead bodies on the streets, the horrible smell of corpses,
“Don’t let your daughter take this pill, it’s the infidels’ plan to eradicate Muslims. These tablets are actually birth control pills. Share this message,” says a Facebook post
After the deadly attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul on January 21, some Afghans claimed that the city’s Chief of Police didn’t do enough to thwart it.
Gunmen attacked the offices of the NGO Save the Children in the Afghan city of Jalalabad on Wednesday, leading to a battle with security forces that has left at least
The Taliban has published a propaganda video in which they claimed that 77 members of the Afghan security forces had defected and joined their ranks. The video, which included footage of the purported recruits,
For many people, fashion in Afghanistan means women in burqas and men with full-length beards, not dynamic young fashion designers.
