Western professors freed in prisoner swap with Taliban

Afghanistan's ultra-conservative authorities have ordered that women should no longer be allowed to enter amusement parks. The decree comes after a wider announcement restricting access to public spaces.

When the Taliban seized power in 2021, many people, including some Western diplomats, expected the fundamentalist group to rule differently this time around. A year later, Afghanistan's rulers have proven them wrong.

The Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terrorist group claimed responsibility for an attack on Pakistan's embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul on Friday, a statement carried by one of the group's affiliated channels on Telegram said on Sunday.

The Pakistani Embassy in Kabul came under attack Friday, where a guard was injured. The offices of warlord politician Gulbuddin Hekmatyar were also targeted by suicide bombers, two of whom were killed.

Once again, human rights are being violated in Afghanistan. Public floggings and executions have returned. The population is scared, and DW's Waslat Hasrat-Nazimi is horrified.

When the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021, photographer Roya Heydari was taken completely by surprise. She'd already spent six years of her life exiled in Iran during the Taliban's first rule. When they returned, she was forced to leave for a second time, a decision that devastated her.

The Taliban said they were suspending university classes for women until further notice, once more restricting women's access to formal education. The decision was announced after a meeting of the Taliban government.

Afghan girls may now only complete school until sixth grade but are barred from secondary and higher education. The move has sparked broad condemnation among the population.

Save the Children, the Norwegian Refugee Council and CARE said they could not resume their work without women staff. The Taliban had ordered all nongovernmental organizations to suspend their female employees.

German NGOs have joined dozens of other humanitarian organizations in suspending their work in Afghanistan after the Taliban banned women from working for them.

The Taliban claimed to have killed members of the so-called "Islamic State" (IS), who were tied to an attack on a Chinese hotel in Kabul last month. Afghanistan is facing a significant security crisis under Taliban rule.

The Taliban blocked journalists from accessing the blast site in Kabul. It's still unclear who is responsible for the attack, but the so-called "Islamic State" (IS) has ramped up its activities in recent months.