Taliban

Videos shared by Afghan security forces showed Humvees driving through dark, mountainous terrain at night, lit by flashes of gunfire. Sustained bursts of automatic fire could be heard.

Omar Wazir was a schoolteacher and also ran a travel agency. In a related incident, Aina Wazir's cameraman was kidnapped but later released.

The Taliban has restricted women's movements and barred girls from education beyond primary school since coming to power in 2021, via a series of morality laws limiting expression and employment.

The incident, just days after Pakistani airstrikes, is the latest flare-up along the border since the declaration of the October ceasefire.

Tensions escalate as Pakistan targets Afghan hideouts, accusing Kabul of harboring terrorists behind deadly bombings.

The strikes mark a sharp escalation in tensions between Pakistan and Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, days after Kabul released three Pakistani soldiers in a Saudi-mediated move aimed at easing tensions.

Their release comes after October clashes between the Taliban and Pakistani forces, during which dozens were killed before a fragile ceasefire was agreed upon.

The Taliban’s governance remains deeply controversial. Since returning to power in 2021, the group has imposed sweeping restrictions on women and girls and enforcing strict social rules.

Mujahid clarified that the Taliban would show sympathy and possibly cooperate with Iran if requested, but the group is not committing to joining a retaliatory war against the US.

Under the Taliban’s penal code, which includes 119 articles, published on January 7, 2026, the penalty for animal abuse outweighs that of a serious case of domestic violence.