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Afghan shopkeepers search for remains of their damaged shops along a highway after an earthquake

Quake kills 20, damages historic mosque in Afghanistan

A powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck near the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e Sharif, killing at least 20 people, injuring hundreds and damaging the city's historic Blue Mosque, authorities said, with the death toll likely to rise.

Asia • 04 Nov

A general view shows a telecommunications antenna in kabul

Taliban's internet shut down leaves Afghans stranded

At least 14 flights scheduled to operate out of Kabul airport were cancelled, with the status of other flights unclear, data from plane tracker Flightradar24 showed, following an internet shutdown in Afghanistan.

World • 01 Oct

A picture of Sayed Farid Sanai sitting at a table outside

Internet cut 'truly sad', says Afghan man in Ireland

The Taliban cutting off Afghanistan's internet and telecommunications is "truly sad and disappointing" news for Afghans around the world, an Afghan man living in Ireland has said.

World • 30 Sep

Telecoms tower beside Taliban flag in Afghanistan

Taliban internet cut sparks Afghanistan telecoms blackout

The United Nations has called on Afghanistan's Taliban authorities to immediately restore internet and telecommunications in the country, 24 hours after a nationwide blackout was imposed.

World • 30 Sep

'Total destruction' - Afghan man on deadly earthquake

A week on from a deadly earthquake that killed thousands in Afghanistan, RTÉ's Laura Fletcher speaks to those affected by the disaster.

World • 08 Sep

A man sits outside near severely damaged houses after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck Afghanistan's eastern Kunar province

Hope of finding survivors after Afghan quake dwindles

Hope of finding survivors in the rubble of homes devastated by the weekend's powerful earthquake in eastern Afghanistan faded as emergency services struggled to reach remote villages.

World • 03 Sep

An man Afghan walks past a damaged house following earthquakes in the Mazar Dara village of Nurgal, a district of the Kunar Province, in Eastern Afghanistan

Aid workers losing hope in Afghanistan after earthquake

Aid workers in Afghanistan are losing hope that more survivors could be found in the mountainous region devastated by Sunday's earthquake, with rescue efforts still hampered by road conditions.

World • 02 Sep

Injured people at Nangarhar hospital after an earthquake in Jalalabad, Afghanistan

At least 800 killed, 2,800 injured in Afghanistan quake

One of Afghanistan's worst earthquakes killed more than 800 people and injured at least 2,800, authorities said, as helicopters ferried the wounded to hospital after they were plucked from the rubble of homes being combed for survivors.

World • 01 Sep

Members of the Taliban shout slogans as they celebrate the fourth anniversary of their takeover of Afghanistan

Taliban mark fourth year in power in Afghanistan

Afghanistan's Taliban authorities have marked the fourth anniversary of their takeover, buoyed by Russia's first official recognition of their government, a step they hope other countries will follow.

World • 15 Aug

a statue of a person in a military uniform

Afghans being relocated to UK after personal data leak

Thousands of people are being relocated to the UK as part of a secret £850 million scheme set up after a personal data leak of Afghans who supported British forces.

World • 15 Jul

A Taliban spokesperson claimed that under Sharia law 'chess is considered a means of gambling' (stock image)

Taliban bans chess in Afghanistan over gambling concerns

Taliban authorities have barred chess across Afghanistan until further notice over concerns it is a source of gambling, which is illegal under the government's morality law, a sports official has said.

News Lens • 11 May

Since the Taliban's return to power, women have been progressively erased from public spaces

UN condemns Taliban ban on Afghan women working at NGOs

UN human rights chief Volker Turk has said that Afghanistan's governing Taliban authorities must reverse their ban on Afghan women working for NGOs.

World • 31 Dec 24

Khalil Haqqani became a minister in the Taliban's interim government after foreign forces withdrew from Afghanistan in 2021

Afghan Taliban's refugees minister killed in Kabul blast

The Afghan Taliban's acting minister for refugees, Khalil Rahman Haqqani, and six other people were killed in an explosion in the capital Kabul, his nephew Anas Haqqani has said

Middle East • 11 Dec 24

Afghan men at bookshops along a street in Taloqan, the capital of the Takhar province, checking imported books earlier this month

Taliban removing 400 'un-Islamic' books from circulation

Taliban authorities are working to remove "un-Islamic" and anti-government literature from circulation through tactics like checking imported books and removing texts from libraries.

World • 20 Nov 24

Men leave after watching the public execution at the football stadium in Gardez, in Paktia province

Taliban conducts sixth public execution since 2021

Taliban authorities in eastern Afghanistan have executed a convicted murderer by gunfire at a sports stadium, the sixth public execution since their return to power.

World • 13 Nov 24

Mohammad Faqir Mohammadi, Deputy of the Taliban's Ministry of Virtue and Vice, speaks during a press conference in Kabul in August

Taliban to impose media ban on images of living things

Afghanistan's Taliban morality ministry has pledged to implement a law banning news media from publishing images of all living things, with journalists told the rule will be gradually enforced.

World • 14 Oct 24

Meryl Streep was speaking at 'The Inclusion of Women in the Future of Afghanistan' event

Squirrels have 'more rights' than Afghan girls - Streep

Meryl Streep is one of Hollywood's greatest actors - but at the United Nations she is lending her voice to Afghanistan's women - denied the right to speak out publicly, or do much else by the Taliban.

World • 24 Sep 24

It is mandatory for a woman to cover her body at all times in public

Taliban laws ban women's voices and bare faces in public

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have issued a ban on women's voices and bare faces in public under new laws to combat immoral behaviour and promote virtue.

World • 22 Aug 24

Taliban security personnel ride motorbikes to celebrate the third anniversary of Taliban takeover of Afghanistan

Taliban marks third anniversary of Afghanistan takeover

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers have celebrated three years in power with a military parade paying homage to their homemade bombs used in war, fighter aircraft and goose-stepping security forces.

World • 14 Aug 24

Afghan athletes will compete under the flag of the old Western-backed government

Taliban don't recognise women on Afghan Olympic team

Afghanistan's Taliban government does not recognise the three female athletes who will represent the country at the Paris Olympic Games this month, a spokesman for their sports department said.

World • 08 Jul 24

Boys attend their first class following the start of the new academic year, at a school in Charikar city of Parwan province

Afghan schools restart, with girls still barred

Schools in Afghanistan opened for the new academic year, the education ministry said, with girls banned from joining secondary-level classes for the third year in a row.

World • 20 Mar 24

Taliban security personnel stand guard as an Afghan burqa-clad woman walks along a street at a market in the Baharak district of Badakhshan province (Photo by Wakil KOHSAR / AFP)

Activists call for 'gender apartheid' law in Afghanistan

Rights groups have called for the Taliban's policies restricting rights and movement of women in Afghanistan to be declared a "gender apartheid" under international law.

World • 08 Mar 24

Afghan burqa-clad women queue to receive food from the World Food Programme

UN 'deeply concerned' by detentions of Afghan women

The United Nations mission in Afghanistan has said it was "deeply concerned" by "recent arbitrary arrests and detentions" of Afghan women, accused of flouting hijab rules set by Taliban authorities.

World • 11 Jan 24

The latest figures from the Department of Integration show there are 147 recently arrived International Protection Applicants in Ireland who were told there was no bed for them

New arrivals sleeping on streets: 'Where do we go?'

Newly-arrived asylum seekers say they were given sleeping bags, but were not provided with any tents after being told there is no State-provided accommodation for them.

Ireland • 18 Dec 23

An estimated 1.7 million Afghans are estimated to be affected by the order

UN 'deeply concerned' over forced return of Afghans

The UN refugee Agency has called on the government of Pakistan to halt the forced deportation of Afghan refugees to Taliban-controlled Afghanistan, amid human rights and humanitarian concerns.

World • 04 Nov 23