8am: After seizing control of Afghanistan and accelerating the extraction of mineral resources, the Taliban awarded contracts for the large gold mines of Badakhshan and Takhar to Chinese companies. Concerns had previously been raised that the Taliban were looting the country’s natural wealth. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News in Dari – March 10, 2026
US Adds Afghanistan To New Blacklist Over Taliban’s ‘Wrongful Detention’ Of Americans
Rubio
By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi and Zamira Eshanova
March 10, 2026
The United States has designated Afghanistan a “state sponsor of wrongful detention,” accusing the unrecognized Taliban government of holding American citizens as bargaining chips.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in September that created the designation, which allows Washington to impose sanctions, travel restrictions, and limits on aid on foreign governments. Last month, Iran became the first country to be added to the new blacklist.
“The Taliban continues to use terrorist tactics, kidnapping individuals for ransom or to seek policy concessions,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement on March 9.
Rubio said it was “not safe for Americans to travel to Afghanistan because the Taliban continues to unjustly detain our fellow Americans and other foreign nationals.”
The Taliban’s Foreign Ministry on March 10 denied it was holding American citizens for ransom.
“Certain individuals have been detained on charges of violating established laws, and in many instances, they have been released in the normal course following the completion of legal procedures,” the ministry said in a statement.
Several Americans are being held in Afghanistan, where the Taliban seized power in 2021 after a nearly two-decade insurgency against US-led international forces.
They include Dennis Coyle, a 64-year-old American academic who was detained by the Taliban in January 2025. Mahmood Habibi, another US citizen, was arrested in August 2022. The 37-year-old led the Afghan Aviation Authority under the previous US-backed Afghan government. The charges against both are unclear.
The United States has offered a $5 million reward for information leading to Habibi’s release. The Taliban denies holding him, and no verified details about his condition have emerged.
“We just want our brother to be released,” Ahmad Shah Habibi, the detainees brother, told RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi on March 10. “We have some hope in the US government because it has tried from the start to free American detainees. We hope these efforts will lead to my brother’s release.”
Another American, airline mechanic George Glezmann, 66, was freed in March 2025 during a visit to Kabul by Trump’s special envoy for hostage affairs, Adam Boehler, after more than two years in detention. He was the third American freed by the Taliban since Trump returned to the presidency in January 2025.
The Taliban has arrested dozens of foreign nationals since seizing power in August 2021. Human rights groups have accused the Taliban of arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, and torture in custody.
Copyright (c) 2026. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.
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Afghanistan International: Ahmad Massoud, leader of Afghanistan’s National Resistance Front, says the current crisis in the country is a direct result of Taliban policies, accusing the group of sheltering the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan and more than 20 other militant organisations. However, he said opposition to the Taliban should not translate into support for bombing or foreign aggression. Massoud also said that no invasion anywhere in the world leads to freedom or dignity. Click here to read more (external link).
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Tolo News in Dari – March 9, 2026
Afghanistan-Sri Lanka white-ball series set to be postponed due to West Asia conflict
ESPN: The white-ball series between Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, scheduled to be held in the UAE from March 13 to 25, is likely to be postponed indefinitely due to the ongoing military conflict in West Asia. Click here to read more (external link).
Why young girls are disguised as boys in Afghanistan
NPR: Girls dressed as boys has been documented for centuries in the patriarchal society of Afghanistan. It even has a term: a girl who disguises her gender is called a bacha posh — literally “dressing like a boy.” Bacha posh girls have long captured the imaginations of Westerners in Afghanistan. It was addressed in the movie Osama in 2003 and the 2018 Oscar-nominated animation film The Breadwinner, produced by Angelina Jolie. It was the subject of a deep-dive book published in 2014, The Underground Girls of Kabul. The reason for girls to dress as boys in times long ago may have included a desire to go soldiering. But the practice has had a different relevance in modern-day Afghanistan, through the first period of Taliban rule in the mid-90s, and now — with the group’s restrictions on the freedom of women. Click here to read more (external link).
Kabul During Ramadan: Streets Become a Stage for Women and Children Begging
8am: Several Kabul residents have expressed concern over the growing number of beggars on the streets and intersections of the city, particularly during the holy month of Ramadan. They say that women and children make up the largest portion of beggars across the city. According to them, rising unemployment, restrictions on women’s right to work, and economic hardship are among the main factors driving the surge in begging in Kabul. Some of these beggars do not merely ask for money but also harass and disturb passersby. Click here to read more (external link).
Tolo News in Dari – March 8, 2026
8 March: Amnesty International — Many Women in Afghanistan Have Been Forced to Abandon Their Own Identity
8am: On the occasion of International Women’s Day, Amnesty International says that many women in Afghanistan have had to set aside their identities and become invisible. The organization said in a statement on Sunday, 8 March, that it is calling for an end to human rights violations in Afghanistan. The organization says that the Taliban continue these practices of torture, sexual harassment, arbitrary detentions, and censorship without any accountability. Click here to read more (external link).
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- Then And Now: Life For Afghan Women Since The 2021 Taliban Takeover
- International Women’s Day: Khalilzad urges IEA to allow girls’ education
- Karzai urges reopening schools for girls in Afghanistan on International Women’s Day
- March 8: Taliban Restrictions Have Derailed the Dreams and Futures of Women in Afghanistan
- March 8: A Life in Limbo; How Sanam Became Trapped Between Her Husband and the Taliban