Families await news of 14 missing Afghan migrants after desert tragedy
Amu: Five Afghan migrants have been found dead in southwestern Afghanistan after attempting to cross illegally into Iran, while 14 others who were traveling with them remain missing, according to local Taliban officials and relatives of the migrants. The group of 19 disappeared while crossing the Dasht-e Margo desert in Nimroz province, a remote and inhospitable area that has become an increasingly common route for human smugglers seeking to evade border security. Click here to read more (external link).
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Sun, Simurgh & Lapis Mountains Shape Sepahiyan-e Mihan Emblem
Afghanistan International: The logo includes symbolic elements such as the Simurgh, the sun, the Hindu Kush mountains, lapis lazuli, a sword and a star. Social media users have described these images as references to the country’s historical and mythological identity. Click here to read more (external link).
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- Group is led by Qayum Malang, a former special forces commander with 13 years of military experience
- Anti-Taliban commander: tears of girls, the displacement and destitution of the people, and their hunger drove him to take up armed struggle against the Taliban
- Taliban Deploys Army Chief To Lead Operation Against New Armed Group
Tolo News in Dari – July 18, 2026
ISIS-K Wants Afghanistan As Base For Regional Expansion, Says Russian FM
Lavrov
Afghanistan International: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Islamic State Khorasan is the main threat to Central Asia, saying it seeks to use Afghanistan as a base for expansion and the creation of a caliphate. Click here to read more (external link).
UN official says Al Qaeda remains present in Afghanistan
Amu: Alexander Zuev, acting under-secretary-general of the UN Office of Counter-Terrorism, has said that Al Qaeda continues to maintain a presence in Afghanistan despite a decline in its operational activity. Click here to read more (external link).
District in Badakhshan briefly falls to anti-Taliban group: Sources
Amu: An anti-Taliban group briefly seized control of Yaftal-e-Paeen district in Afghanistan’s northeastern Badakhshan province early Friday before withdrawing several hours later, local sources told Amu TV. According to the sources, the fighters identified themselves as a newly formed group calling itself “Sepahian-e Mihan” (Soldiers of the Homeland) and raised the group’s flag over the district administration building during the takeover. The sources said the fighters later withdrew from the district. Click here to read more (external link).
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Tolo News in Dari – July 17, 2026
53 years after Daoud Khan coup: Where is Afghanistan today?
Daoud Khan
Amu: The overthrow of Afghanistan’s monarchy in 1973 ushered in the country’s first republic and reshaped its political trajectory, a legacy that remains contested more than five decades later. Afghanistan on Friday marked the 53rd anniversary of the July 17, 1973, coup that ended the country’s centuries-old monarchy and established its first republic under Mohammad Daoud Khan—a turning point that historians say fundamentally altered the country’s political course. Click here to read more (external link).
Shortage of Garbage Bins in Herat Turns Drainage Channels into Dumping Grounds
8am: As the population grows and the weather turns warmer, several residents of Herat province are criticizing the shortage of garbage bins in many parts of the city. According to them, the lack of adequate bins has led some residents to dump their waste in drainage channels, ditches, and public spaces because they have no suitable place to dispose of it. Residents say the municipality also fails to collect the garbage on time. As a result, with water stagnating in the drainage channels and waste rotting in the heat, a foul stench spreads across the city, and the number of mosquitoes rises, disrupting the daily lives and health of residents. Meanwhile, several environmental experts warn that poor waste management not only harms the city’s appearance and the environment but also pollutes the air, soil, and water, creating conditions for the spread of various diseases. Click here to read more (external link).