The Women’s Movement Network has described the international community’s silence and inaction over the forced deportation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan as “shameful”. The network says thousands of Afghan women and men are trapped between the threat of deportation and a return to Taliban rule.

Hamid Karzai, the former president of Afghanistan, has again called for education opportunities to be provided for girls and boys. He says universal education and the training of skilled professionals could prevent the spread of illiteracy, poverty and social crises in Afghanistan.

Taliban officials in Bamyan have asked journalists to highlight the regime’s achievements and cooperate with relevant institutions to help strengthen the Taliban regime.

Mohammad Khalid Hanafi, the Taliban’s Minister for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, has called global reactions to the group’s policies on women’s dress “unfair” during a visit to Herat.