https://www.rferl.org Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is an international news organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Balkan countries https://www.rferl.org/Content/responsive/RFE/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.rferl.org en Copyright 2026 - RFE/RL, Inc. 60 Mon, 06 Apr 2026 17:06:07 +0200 Pangea CMS – RFE/RL Afghanistan's Taliban government announced the release and Dennis Coyle, a US citizen held for more than a year, after his mother plead for a pardon on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-taliban-release-us-citizen-coyle-rubio/33714600.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-taliban-release-us-citizen-coyle-rubio/33714600.html Tue, 24 Mar 2026 18:48:01 +0100 NewsAfghanistanThe Rundown Stories Afghans attended a mass funeral on March 18 for victims of an air strike that destroyed a drug rehab hospital in Kabul. Volunteers from the Afghan Red Crescent Society assisted with the burial of victims whose bodies were not claimed by relatives. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-funerals-hospital-bombing-kabul/33710095.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-funerals-hospital-bombing-kabul/33710095.html Wed, 18 Mar 2026 21:44:13 +0100 AfghanistanVideo ArchiveVideosThe Rundown Stories Doctors in Kabul treated the survivors of an air strike that destroyed a drug rehabilitation hospital late on March 16. Taliban leaders said Pakistan was responsible for the strike, which they said killed hundreds. Pakistan denied the claim, saying it had targeted military installations in Kabul. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-air-strike-rehab-hospital-pakistan/33709202.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-air-strike-rehab-hospital-pakistan/33709202.html Tue, 17 Mar 2026 23:14:14 +0100 AfghanistanVideo ArchiveVideos At least 400 people were killed and 250 injured in a Pakistani air strike on a hospital in Kabul, the Afghan Taliban said, while Pakistan rejected the claims. https://www.rferl.org/a/at-least-400-dead-in-kabul-hospital-air-strike/33708653.html https://www.rferl.org/a/at-least-400-dead-in-kabul-hospital-air-strike/33708653.html Tue, 17 Mar 2026 08:53:52 +0100 NewsAfghanistanPakistanThe Rundown Stories The United States has designated Afghanistan a “state sponsor of wrongful detention,” accusing the unrecognized Taliban government of holding American citizens as bargaining chips. https://www.rferl.org/a/us-designates-afghanistan-state-sponsor-wrongful-detention-taliban/33700635.html https://www.rferl.org/a/us-designates-afghanistan-state-sponsor-wrongful-detention-taliban/33700635.html Tue, 10 Mar 2026 16:17:22 +0100 NewsAfghanistanThe Rundown Stories Pakistani war planes bombed Kabul just hours after Afghanistan and Pakistan traded strikes on each other in their volatile mountain border region as days of escalating tensions boiled over into what one senior official from Islamabad called "open war." https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-afghanistan-attacks-dozens-dead-border-region/33689094.html https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-afghanistan-attacks-dozens-dead-border-region/33689094.html Thu, 26 Feb 2026 22:12:44 +0100 NewsAfghanistanPakistanThe Rundown Stories Several days of winter storms have left at least 61 people dead in parts of central and northern Afghanistan, according to a government spokesman. Avalanches from accumulating snow have damaged houses, killed livestock, and cut off vital highways. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-snow-avalanches-fatalities/33658539.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-snow-avalanches-fatalities/33658539.html Sat, 24 Jan 2026 21:37:31 +0100 AfghanistanVideo ArchiveVideosThe Rundown Stories At least seven people were killed in an explosion at a Chinese hotel restaurant in the Afghan capital, Kabul, on January 19. https://www.rferl.org/a/chinese-kabul-explosion-isis/33654716.html https://www.rferl.org/a/chinese-kabul-explosion-isis/33654716.html Tue, 20 Jan 2026 12:39:03 +0100 VideosAfghanistan At least seven people were killed as Islamic State-Khorasan Province (IS-K) said the attack was aimed at Chinese citizens amid rising regional security concerns. https://www.rferl.org/a/china-afghanistan-islamic-state-bombing-attack-taliban/33654631.html https://www.rferl.org/a/china-afghanistan-islamic-state-bombing-attack-taliban/33654631.html Tue, 20 Jan 2026 11:07:20 +0100 AfghanistanNewsTajikistanThe Rundown StoriesChina China has significantly expanded its media presence in Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power in 2021, with Afghan journalists saying Chinese outlets are producing content that highlights Beijing’s positive role while avoiding stories about poverty, repression, or human-rights abuses. https://www.rferl.org/a/china-taliban-afghanistan-media-journalism-investment-south-asia/33646051.html https://www.rferl.org/a/china-taliban-afghanistan-media-journalism-investment-south-asia/33646051.html Sat, 17 Jan 2026 14:33:38 +0100 AfghanistanFeaturesThe Rundown StoriesChina Ikramuddin Saree, a former police commander in Afghanistan's Takhar and Baghlan provinces under the pre-Taliban republic, was shot dead on the evening of December 24 outside his office in Tehran. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-ikramuddin-sartee-killed-iran-taliban/33632740.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-ikramuddin-sartee-killed-iran-taliban/33632740.html Thu, 25 Dec 2025 14:22:04 +0100 NewsAfghanistanIranThe Rundown Stories Iranian border guards shot and killed at least 10 Afghans who entered Iran illegally in early December, according to Taliban officials. The incident underscored how dangerous the Iranian border has become for Afghans. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-iran-afghan-refugees-migrants-border/33618370.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-iran-afghan-refugees-migrants-border/33618370.html Wed, 10 Dec 2025 07:08:16 +0100 AfghanistanFeaturesIranThe Rundown Stories Iranian border guards shot and killed at least 10 Afghans who entered Iran illegally in early December amid a growing crackdown. https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-afghan-border-deaths/33617556.html https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-afghan-border-deaths/33617556.html Wed, 10 Dec 2025 07:06:08 +0100 VideosAfghanistanIranVideo Archive Tens of thousands of Afghans involuntarily returned to their country every week as Pakistan goes ahead with plans to repatriate all Afghan refugees and migrants back into Afghanistan. RFE/RL has spoken to many who are being returned to a country they've never lived in. https://www.rferl.org/a/refugees-toll-afghan-taliban-pakistan-tensions/33606263.html https://www.rferl.org/a/refugees-toll-afghan-taliban-pakistan-tensions/33606263.html Thu, 27 Nov 2025 09:20:24 +0100 AfghanistanFeaturesPakistanThe Rundown Stories The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has vowed a "necessary response" after air strikes allegedly carried out by Pakistan killed at least 10 people -- nine of whom were children -- in the eastern border region between the two countries. https://www.rferl.org/a/taliban-pakistan-airstrikes-killing-10-vows-response/33605220.html https://www.rferl.org/a/taliban-pakistan-airstrikes-killing-10-vows-response/33605220.html Tue, 25 Nov 2025 14:22:50 +0100 AfghanistanNewsPakistanThe Rundown Stories Women in the western Afghan city of Herat say they're being told by Taliban officials that they must wear a burqa to access the main hospital. As hospital admissions rapidly drop, one woman says female patients are facing the threat of violence if they refuse to comply. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-women-health-burqa/33586436.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-women-health-burqa/33586436.html Tue, 11 Nov 2025 16:56:07 +0100 AfghanistanVideo ArchiveVideos Peace talks in Istanbul between Pakistan and Afghanistan’s hard-line Islamist Taliban rulers have ended with no deal, but a cease-fire between the neighboring countries will continue. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-peace-talks-pakistan/33584788.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-taliban-peace-talks-pakistan/33584788.html Sat, 08 Nov 2025 11:13:13 +0100 AfghanistanNewsPakistanThe Rundown Stories Afghans dug through the debris of collapsed homes on November 3 in the wake of a 6.3 earthquake that struck the country's north, killing at least 20 people. Areas around the city of Mazar-e Sharif were badly damaged, including the city's historic Blue Mosque, with hundreds injured. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-earthquake-deadly-taliban-emergency-aid-blue-mosque-samangan/33580165.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-earthquake-deadly-taliban-emergency-aid-blue-mosque-samangan/33580165.html Mon, 03 Nov 2025 13:30:00 +0100 AfghanistanVideo ArchiveVideos Experts fear “significant casualties" after an earthquake of 6.3 magnitude struck near the northern Afghanistan city of Mazar-e Sharif early on November 3, serving as another potential blow to the country’s struggling Taliban rulers. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-earthquake-mazar-taliban-pakistan/33579866.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghan-earthquake-mazar-taliban-pakistan/33579866.html Mon, 03 Nov 2025 02:29:11 +0100 AfghanistanNewsThe Rundown Headline Negotiations for a lasting truce between Afghanistan and Pakistan have broken down, Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said on October 29 after four days of negotiations brokered by Qatar and Turkey. https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-pakistan-taliban-negotiations-clashes-border/33575282.html https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan-pakistan-taliban-negotiations-clashes-border/33575282.html Wed, 29 Oct 2025 04:14:35 +0100 NewsAfghanistanPakistanThe Rundown Stories