Senior Taliban official urges leadership to lift education ban on Afghan girls

Afghan primary school girls make their way home, near Shuhada lake, Kabul, Mar. 24, 2024. (AFP)
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Updated 21 January 2025
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Senior Taliban official urges leadership to lift education ban on Afghan girls

  • More than 1.1 million girls have been denied access to formal education since 2021
  • Stanikzai headed the Taliban team in talks that led to complete withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan

KABUL: A senior Taliban official has called on his leadership to scrap education bans on Afghan women and girls, a move that experts said on Tuesday voiced the public’s concerns and marked a new phenomenon for Afghanistan’s current regime.

Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai, Afghanistan’s acting deputy foreign minister, said in a speech over the weekend that the Taliban’s restrictions on girls’ and women’s education were not in line with Islamic Shariah law.

“Our expectation from the leaders of the Islamic Emirate is to open the doors of education. There is no excuse for this, and there never will be one,” Stanikzai said at an event in the Khost province.

Around 1.1 million girls have been denied access to formal education since September 2021, when the Taliban suspended secondary schools for girls.

It is part of a series of curbs that, in the three years since the Taliban took power, have increasingly restricted women’s access to education, the workplace and public spaces.

“In our population of 40 million, we are committing injustice against 20 million … The entire world is opposing us because of this problem. They criticize us for this same matter. The path we are currently following stems from personal attitudes, not Shariah.”

Stanikzai was the leader of a team of negotiators at the Taliban’s political office in Doha for talks that led to the complete withdrawal of US-led forces from Afghanistan in 2021.

His latest remarks were one of the strongest public rebukes of a government policy that has furthered the international isolation of the Taliban.

“In Afghanistan, women’s rights are being taken away in the name of Islam. As Stanikzai … said, the decision to stop girls’ education is a matter of the nature of the Taliban, not a matter of Shariah. This is only a rural and tribal view that they present,” Ziaulhaq Amarkhil, senior advisor to the former president of Afghanistan, told Arab News.

“The issue that Mr. Stanikzai discussed is the voice of every Afghan and every Muslim. Women should be granted their rights. They should be allowed to study and get higher education.”

Amarkhil said if the current education ban were to continue, there would be grave consequences in Afghanistan.

“After 12 years, we will not have a single female doctor in the country because those who are there will not be able to continue working due to their age and the new generation will not be educated, or they will leave the country,” he said.

Stanikzai’s criticism was “significant,” said Kabul-based political expert Tameem Bahiss, as it marked one of the first times that a senior member of the Taliban publicly criticized the supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada.

Similar criticisms have also come from Taliban’s acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, who in 2023 made veiled remarks against Akhundzada on “monopolizing” power and “damaging the government” in Afghanistan.

“Publicly criticizing the leader’s decisions is a new phenomenon within the Taliban. Until now, we haven’t seen criticism of this magnitude,” Bahiss told Arab News.

“If criticism from a Taliban leader of such stature continues to grow, it will undoubtedly put significant pressure on Sheikh Hibatullah.”

Bahiss highlighted how Stanikzai had challenged Akhundzada’s decision by saying that the education policy reflected the leader’s personal sentiment, rather than being based on Islamic law.

“Such voices within the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan are crucial as it transitions from an insurgency to a governing entity. Important decisions regarding the people’s affairs should involve all leaders’ input,” Bahiss said.

“We are seeing that such voices garner significant support, not only from the people of Afghanistan but also from within the Taliban ranks.”

With this new development within the Taliban and given Stanikzai’s status in the group, Bahiss said Akhundzada may tolerate the criticism.

“If this happens, it could encourage other leaders to publicly challenge Hibatullah’s decision to ban schools, potentially putting significant pressure on him and leading to the removal of the ban,” he said.


Regulators warned Air India Express about delay on Airbus engine fix, forging records

Updated 8 sec ago
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Regulators warned Air India Express about delay on Airbus engine fix, forging records

  • India’s aviation watchdog reprimanded Air India’s budget carrier in March for not timely changing engine parts of an Airbus A320
  • Air India has been under intense scrutiny since Boeing Dreamliner crash, killing all but one of the 242 people onboard

NEW DELHI: India’s aviation watchdog reprimanded Air India’s budget carrier in March for not timely changing engine parts of an Airbus A320 as directed by European Union’s aviation safety agency, and falsifying records to show compliance, a government memo showed.

In a statement, Air India Express told Reuters it acknowledged the error to the Indian watchdog and undertook “remedial action and preventive measures.”

Air India has been under intense scrutiny since the June Boeing Dreamliner crash in Ahmedabad which killed all but one of the 242 people onboard. The world’s worst aviation disaster in a decade is still being investigated.

The engine issue in the Air India Express’ Airbus was raised on March 18, months before the crash. But the regulator has this year also warned parent Air India for breaching rules for flying three Airbus planes with overdue checks on escape slides, and in June warned it about “serious violations” of pilot duty timings.

Air India Express is a subsidiary of Air India, which is owned by the Tata Group. It has more than 115 aircraft and flies to more than 50 destinations, with 500 daily flights.

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency in 2023 issued an airworthiness directive to address a “potential unsafe condition” on CFM International LEAP-1A engines, asking for replacement of some components such as engine seals and rotating parts, saying some manufacturing deficiencies had been found.

The agency’s directive said “this condition, if not corrected, could lead to failure of affected parts, possibly resulting in high energy debris release, with consequent damage to, and reduced control of, the aeroplane.”

The Indian government’s confidential memo in March sent to the airline, seen by Reuters, said that surveillance by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) revealed the parts modification “was not complied” on an engine of an Airbus A320 “within the prescribed time limit.”

“In order to show that the work has been carried out within the prescribed limits, the AMOS records have apparently been altered/forged,” the memo added, referring to the Aircraft Maintenance and Engineering Operating System software used by airlines to manage maintenance and airworthiness.

The mandatory modification was required on Air India Express’ VT-ATD plane, the memo added. That plane typically flies on domestic routes and some international destinations such as Dubai and Muscat, according to the AirNav Radar website.

The lapse “indicates that the accountable manager has failed to ensure quality control,” it added.

Air India Express told Reuters its technical team missed the scheduled implementation date for parts replacement due to the migration of records on its monitoring software, and fixed the problem soon after it was identified.

It did not give dates of compliance or directly address DGCA’s comment about records being altered, but said that after the March memo it took “necessary administrative actions,” which included removing the quality manager from the person’s position and suspending the deputy continuing airworthiness manager.

The DGCA and the European safety agency did not respond to Reuters queries.

Airbus and CFM International, a joint venture between General Electric and Safran, also did not respond.

The lapse was first flagged during a DGCA audit in October 2024 and the plane in question took only a few trips after it was supposed to replace the CFM engine parts, a source with direct knowledge said.

“Such issues should be fixed immediately. It’s a grave mistake. The risk increases when you are flying over sea or near restricted airpsace,” said Vibhuti Singh, a former legal expert at the India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.

The Indian government told parliament in February that authorities warned or fined airlines in 23 instances for safety violations last year. Three of those cases involved Air India Express, and eight Air India.

The Tata Group acquired Air India from the Indian government in 2022 and the Dreamliner crash has cast a shadow on its ambitions of making it a “world class airline.”

While Air India has aggressively expanded its international flight network over the months, it still faces persistent complaints from passengers, who often take to social media to show soiled seats, broken armrests, non-operational entertainment systems and dirty cabins.


Russia, Ukraine announce fresh prisoner swap

Updated 21 min 37 sec ago
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Russia, Ukraine announce fresh prisoner swap

  • The warring sides have swapped POWs throughout Russia’s more than three-year invasion
  • Russia is believed to hold thousands of Ukrainian prisoners, many of whom were captured in the first year of Moscow’s offensive

KYIV: Russia and Ukraine announced a fresh prisoner swap on Friday as part of agreements reached between them during talks in Istanbul last month.

The warring sides have swapped POWs throughout Russia’s more than three-year invasion. At recent talks in Istanbul, they agreed to free all heavily wounded, ill and under 25-year-old captive troops.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky published photographs of freed Ukrainian troops, wrapped in blue and yellow flags.

“Our people are home. Most of them had been held in Russian captivity since 2022,” he said on social media.

Zelensky said they included servicemen from the army, national guard, border service and transport service, adding: “And also civilians.”

He did not say how many Ukrainians had been returned.

“Ukraine’s goal is to free all our people from Russian captivity,” Zelensky said.

Russia’s defense ministry also reported the swap, saying Kyiv handed over a group of its servicemen who were currently in Moscow-allied Belarus.

It also did not say how many troops were exchanged.

Russia is believed to hold thousands of Ukrainian prisoners, many of whom were captured in the first year of Moscow’s offensive when Russian troops advanced deep into the country.

Kyiv also holds many Russian captives, although that number is believed to be considerably smaller.


Kremlin says it pays close attention to Trump statements after he voices disappointment with Putin call

Updated 20 min 48 sec ago
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Kremlin says it pays close attention to Trump statements after he voices disappointment with Putin call

  • Kremlin leader had told Trump that Russia expects to agree a date for a third round of peace talks with Ukraine
  • Russia would prefer to achieve its goals in Ukraine by political and diplomatic means

MOSCOW: The Kremlin said on Friday that Russia closely follows all of Donald Trump’s statements after the US president said he was “very disappointed” with his latest conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the war in Ukraine.

Trump, who had confidently stated last week that Putin was “looking to settle” the conflict, said after Thursday’s phone call that he did not think the Russian leader was looking to stop it.

Asked about the comments, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “Of course, we are paying very close attention to all of President Trump’s statements.”

He did not address Trump’s implied criticism of Putin.

Trump, who returned to the White House in January with a promise to swiftly end the “bloodbath” in Ukraine, said after Thursday’s call: “I didn’t make any progress with him at all.”

Peskov said Putin had told Trump that Russia would prefer to achieve its goals in Ukraine by political and diplomatic means, but in the meantime would continue what it calls its “special military operation.”

He said the Kremlin leader had told Trump that Russia expects to agree a date for a third round of peace talks with Ukraine, following earlier talks in May and June.


At least five dead in Pakistan building collapse: police

Updated 04 July 2025
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At least five dead in Pakistan building collapse: police

  • Up to 100 people had been living in the building
  • Roof and building collapses are common across Pakistan

KARACHI: A five-story building collapse in Pakistan on Friday killed at least five people and left six injured, with more victims trapped under the rubble, police said.

Rescuers and residents in the mega port city of Karachi worked together to pull people from the debris after the incident at around 10:10 a.m. (0510 GMT).

“We have so far retrieved five dead bodies and six injured people,” a senior local police official, Arif Aziz, said.

Up to 100 people had been living in the building, he added.

Saad Edhi, of the Edhi welfare foundation that is leading the rescue operation, said there could be “at least eight to 10 more people still trapped,” describing it as a “worn out building.”

He put the death toll at four.

Roof and building collapses are common across Pakistan, mainly because of poor safety standards and shoddy construction materials in the South Asian country of more than 240 million people.

But Karachi, home to more than 20 million, is especially notorious for poor construction, illegal extensions, aging infrastructure, overcrowding, and lax enforcement of building regulations.


After decades of service, Taiwan retires its last F-5 fighter jets

Updated 04 July 2025
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After decades of service, Taiwan retires its last F-5 fighter jets

  • To keep pace with increased threats from mainland China, Taiwan has been upgrading both its manned and unmanned aerial assets

HUALIEN, Taiwan: After decades in service, Taiwan’s Vietnam-era F-5 fighter jets are being retired as part of the island democracy’s transition to more advanced hardware.
To keep pace with increased threats from mainland China, Taiwan has been upgrading both its manned and unmanned aerial assets, including purchasing 66 of the latest generation F-16V fighters and upgrading existing aircraft to modern specifications.
China claims the island as its own territory and has never dropped its threat to invade since the sides split amid civil war in 1949.
The air force invited journalists on Friday to witness one last flyby by the F-5, which first entered service with Taiwan in 1965 and most of which have now been converted to trainers, reconnaissance planes or decoys.
The planes began moving into a backing role 30 years ago when Taiwan began acquiring more modern American F-16s, French Mirage 2000s and domestically developed Ching Kuos.
The F-5 is one of the world’s most widely produced jets, with Taiwan the largest operator at one point with 336, producing some 100 domestically. Dozens of countries still use them, including the US, which uses them as pretend opponents in training exercises.
The planes gained favor for their high speed and maneuverability, alongside their low cost and ease of maintenance. For Taiwan, they guarded the skies above the Taiwan Strait against mainland China’s Soviet and domestically built fighters.
Taiwan’s F-5s were based along the eastern coast, separated from China by both the 160 kilometer (100 mile)-wide Taiwan Strait and Taiwan’s formidable Central Mountain Range.