• AFGHAN REFUGEE PROTEST MARCH PLANNED IN 4 PAKISTAN CITIES SUNDAY – A coordinated call for Afghan refugees in Pakistan to join the ‘Aurat March’ in four major cities on Sunday (29 October) to protest the deportation edict. The group intends to host marches at 1530hrs local time in Islamabad, Karachi, Lahore, and Multan. Refugees are being told to gather outside of the Press Clubs in each respective location. A source in Islamabad said that security forces had been informed about the planned protests and said that no permits had been issued to the organizers and that they may be treated as illegal gatherings. At least four major international news organizations TAD contacted said they had already arranged for coverage of the events. Some international NGOs said they intended to allow their volunteers to march with the Afghans but could not officially support the protests as it would damage their operations within the country.


• ISIS-K THREATENS ATTACKS IN CHINA – In a recently released video on ISIS-K’s website, the terror group threatened to “Flood (China’s) Streets with Blood”. While China has made it abundantly clear it has concerns about elements of the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (ETIM) gathering strength and recruiting in Afghanistan, ISIS-K has remained off the radar for the most part. It was not clear what prompted the recent threat against China and some observers feel the terror group is warning China against further cooperation with the Taliban. A source in Kabul said that Taliban security personnel had reported multiple incidents of surveillance by ISIS-K during the installation of security camera systems around the country.


• TALIBAN DEMAND SEAT AT THE UNITED NATIONS – The Islamic Emirate spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, implored the UN to hand over its seat to the Taliban on the UN’s International Day. Mujahid said that withholding the seat is an ‘injustice’ to the people of Afghanistan. It is not clear what will be done with the seat but few believe the Taliban will be allowed to take the seat with the current domestic policies in place and the fact that it is an imposed government and does not enjoy the full support of the citizens of Afghanistan.


• IRAN POSITIONING TO FOLLOW PAKISTAN’S LEAD AND MAY BEGIN DEPORTING AFGHAN REFUGEES – On Wednesday, the Iranian Interior Minister, Ahmad Vahidi, slammed the Taliban for failing to stem the flood of refugees headed to Iran. During a respite from a cabinet meeting, Vahidi spoke to several reporters and said that all undocumented Afghans needed to be expelled from Iran. He then went on to caution against vilifying Afghans currently in Iran. The Afghan refugee situation in Iran is confusing as throughout 2023, the hardline press has steadily called for greater government intervention to stop the influx of refugees. Then, at the end of September 2022, a bizarre amnesty plan was discussed in the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the parliament to grant Iranian citizenship to all legal Afghan immigrants currently in the country. Once the amnesty plan was made public in the summer of 2023, there was an immediate uptick in xenophobic press articles about Afghans. On Sunday, parliament ordered the Interior Ministry to set up a National Immigration Organization to begin tracking data for both legal and undocumented Afghans in Iran. The steps Iran is currently taking are eerily familiar to those enacted by Pakistan in recent months.


• ANOTHER 4.3 EARTHQUAKE REPORTED IN AFGHANISTAN – The latest quake’s location has yet to be ascertained but it occurred in the early morning hours on Thursday and struck at a depth of 150km. There have been no reports of damage or casualties as of publication.

Kandahar: An ALF strike team reportedly struck a Taliban security checkpoint in front of the provincial prison in Kandahar City (6th police district). ALF sources said they killed 1 Taliban and 2 others were injured in the fray.

• PAKISTAN TIGHTENING SECURITY AND SCREENING PROCESS AT BORDER ENTRY POINTS – Pakistan’s Federal Investigative Agency has set up a system to verify visas at Torkham Gate. The kiosk is meant to check visas of Afghans who attempt to cross into Pakistan. A source in Rawalpindi said the oversight was needed due to the problem of border security personnel taking bribes to let people in. A similar system is planned for Spin Boldak Gate in the South. The measures are being implemented as the Joint Implementation Committee (JIC) met to make final plans for the upcoming deportation operation. In a meeting yesterday, it was announced that undocumented Afghans found in Punjab would be taken to Rawalpindi for processing and would be deported from there. In addition, it has been decided that Afghan nationals who were currently being held in prisons for criminal acts would be sorted according to ‘minor’ and ‘major’ crimes. Those awaiting trial for minor crimes would be deported while those accused of major crimes would await trial. There are concerns that the holding center in Rawalpindi has a maximum capacity of 20,000 people and that overcrowding will cause significant problems.


• PAKISTAN DESIGNATES ‘DEPORTATION CENTERS’ TO HANDLE AFGHANS – Centers are expected to be established to process and hold deportees awaiting expulsion. Undocumented Afghans in Punjab and Sindh Provinces will be sent to centers in Rawalpindi and Karachi. Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa will host 2 centers (Nowshehra and Chamkani). Baluchistan will house 3 centers (Quetta, Pishin, and Qilla Abdullah). Sources in both Islamabad and Rawalpindi have expressed concerns that the designated ‘centers’ only exist on paper and very few preparations have been made at this point to contain the hundreds of thousands who are expected to be brought to the centers. The sources also say they expect to see severe problems with feeding the Afghans, drinking water, and medical treatment who will be interned in the centers.


• TALIBAN/PAKISTANI OFFICIALS MEET AT BORDER TO DISCUSS DEPORTATION OPERATION – The information Minister for Balochistan’s caretaker government announced that a meeting took place yesterday between Taliban and Pakistani border officials to discuss the upcoming deportation operation. Among the topics discussed were provisions for those Afghans who had been in Pakistan seeking medical treatment and treatment of women/widows who did not have male chaperones. According to an eyewitness present at the meeting, the discussion was a one-sided affair, and Taliban objections to specific points of concern about the operation were simply ignored.

• SCHOOL STUDENTS FEARED POISONED IN KANDAHAR – Over 20 students reputedly fell ill after eating breakfast food that had been brought to a religious school in the 12th District of Kandahar City. At this point, it is not clear if the poisoning was intentional or simply caused by contamination in the delivered food. Other cases in Afghanistan and Iran have involved deliberate efforts to poison students (primarily girls) but this case does not currently appear to be politically or terrorism-related.


• TALIBAN MEETS WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF HUAWEI CORPORATION - WANTS NATIONAL CAMERA SYSTEM IN THE COUNTRY – While the Taliban have installed some camera coverage across some of the cities in Afghanistan, sources in Kabul say the systems are prone to outages and are not particularly effective. The Ministry of the Interior held a meeting with representatives of Huawei Corporation (China) to discuss a project to install a nationwide system of cameras across the country.


• CHINA CALLS FOR MORE SUPPORT FOR AFGHANISTAN, BUT ISSUE WARNING TO TALIBAN – A spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry used the anniversary of the Afghanistan withdrawal to call on the international community to increase support for the country and to work with the Taliban on counter-terrorism matters. However, China also spoke bluntly and warned the Taliban that it must take active steps in areas such as women’s rights. From the start, China has been concerned about possible terror threats from groups like the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement crossing into the volatile Xinjiang Ughyur autonomous region.


• PAKISTANI CUSTOMS INVESTIGATORS RAID TORKHAM AGENCIES – At least four customs clearing agencies were forcibly closed after a raid of their offices confirmed the businesses were cheating the government out of import/export duties and pocketing the money. Investigators found stacks of forged documents inside the offices and multiple investigations are currently proceeding to hold the owners accountable. It is estimated the fraud has resulted in a loss of over 9 million rupees to the government.

• MOD CONFIRMS THAT ALL TALIBAN MILITARY FORCES HAVE BEEN ISSUED UNIFORMS, FAILURE TO WEAR THEM WILL BE PUNISHED – A chief complaint by citizens, since the Taliban took the reigns of power, has been the difficulty in recognizing legitimate military and police personnel. Since the coalition forces left, criminal networks seized on the confusion and chaos to set up scams by impersonating Taliban personnel and coercing citizens to extort money and bribes. Fake checkpoints on roadways and illegitimate home searches were common ploys used in these schemes and few dared to question the people carrying them out. Some Resistance forces and ISIS-K were thought to have taken advantage of the situation to collect intelligence and/or launch operations. The Ministry of Defense stated yesterday that all Taliban personnel under its purview had now been issued uniforms and those who fail to wear them will be punished.


• NEW NATO REPORT APPEARS TO CONFIRM RUMORS ABOUT WEAPONS/EQUIPMENT TRANSFERS TO ISIS-K – India, Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan have long been raising the alarm about US and NATO weapons showing up in their jurisdictions. The recent (17th) report of the UN Secretary-General on the threat posed by ISIL (Daesh) quoted several reports from regional member states that confirmed ISIS was receiving weapons from groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda, the TTP, and the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement (aka Turkistan Islamic Party). The report went on to detail efforts by ISIS-K to develop more robust weapons and bomb-making/delivery systems. The report also contradicted Taliban statements concerning the strength of ISIS-K in Afghanistan and estimates suggest that currently there are 4,000-6,000 ISIS-K affiliates operating in the country. It is important to note that these figures include family members of the terrorists.


• 6 AFGHAN MEN AMONG THOSE DROWNED WHILE ATTEMPTING TO CROSS FROM FRANCE TO THE UK – Yesterday morning, a boat carrying mainly Afghan and Sudanese refugees capsized near the French port of Calais. British and French maritime units responded to the emergency and rescued 49 people. Currently, 2 people are still reported missing. All 6 Afghan men who drowned were believed to be in their 30s and their identities were not known at the time of publication.


• MAKING GOOD ON THREATS OF PUNISHMENT FOR ‘SORCERERS AND WITCHES’, MAN IS SENTENCED TO EIGHT YEARS IN PRISON IN JAWZJAN – A spokesman for the Ministry of Vice and Virtue said that a Jadugar (sorcerer/witch) had been found guilty of violating Shari’ah law and will serve eight years in prison. The Ministry had issued a statement earlier in the week to Provincial and District administrators to prosecute those who practice animist beliefs.

• ROCKET ATTACK ON AIRPORT IN KABUL, SEARCHES UNDERWAY – A rocket attack was reported at Kabul International Airport on Saturday as the Taliban’s Foreign Minister was leaving for a conference in Islamabad. Several projectiles reportedly impacted near the terminal area and at least 3 airport workers were witnessed to have received injuries from the explosions. It was unclear what kind of projectiles were used with differing accounts made by eyewitnesses to the attack. However, most agreed the attack originated from the rooftops of at least two buildings to the West of the airport. An anonymous source who had previously served with the Afghan National Army said the impacts from the strikes were too precise to be Rocket Propelled Grenades. The attack did not disrupt the Foreign Minister’s trip but Taliban units swarmed the airport and the surrounding neighborhoods. Several journalists said they had been warned to hold off on reporting the incident until a Taliban spokesman could prepare a statement.


• TRILATERAL MEETINGS IN PAKISTAN – Security and economic stability were the primary points of discussion in the meetings between Pakistan, China, and Afghanistan. Calls were made to once again form an inclusive government and China used the opportunity to take more swipes at the United States for freezing assets. Ultimately, very little of consequence appears to have taken place at the event.


• STATE DEPARTMENT SAYS FUNDING ‘NOT’ GOING TO THE TALIBAN – A State Department spokesman, when pressed by a reporter over concerns raised in a recent Inspector General report about transparency, said that “US assistance in Afghanistan does not benefit the Taliban.” He stressed several ‘controls’ had been put in place to ensure the funding is handled by partner NGOs and the United Nations but many observers continue to question the validity of these claims and openly question how the State Department is monitoring the pipeline of cash.


• CHINA ‘GENTLY’ REMINDS TALIBAN OF TERRORISM COMMITMENT – China took the opportunity at Saturday’s meeting to explain to Amir Khan Muttaqi (Taliban Foreign Minister) that Afghanistan’s neighbors have valid security concerns about terrorism and that the Taliban had not convinced anyone that the threat of terrorism was diminished. China’s Foreign Minister mentioned his country’s specific concern by name (Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement) and said that China stood ready to assist with security cooperation programs to fight terror.


• PAKISTAN ISSUES PRESS ID CARDS TO AFGHAN JOURNALISTS – In a move to provide some semblance of credibility to the many Afghan journalists who find themselves in exile, Pakistan decided to issue these journalists press accreditation. The International Association of Pakistan-Afghanistan Journalists (IAPAJ) launched on Saturday in Islamabad and after brief remarks, began issuing the official cards to its members. The leaders of the IAPAJ hope the cards will deter Pakistani security personnel from harassing Afghan journalists and allow them to continue their work while residing in Pakistan.

• FAMILY MEMBERS OF POPULAR FREEDOM FRONT COMMANDER ROUNDED UP AND DETAINED – GDI agents conducted search operations in Kabul to find family members and associates of Akmal Amir (recently reported to have been killed in either Parwan or Panjshir). His house was reportedly burned to the ground and approximately 70 of his relatives have been arrested. Unconfirmed reports say that some early morning clashes took place between the Taliban and AFF forces in the city but these have yet to be confirmed. There are also rumors circulating that Amir was not killed. The situation remains highly confusing.


• CHINA ISSUES ITS POSITION PAPER ON AFGHANISTAN – China used the paper to clarify its bilateral relations with Afghanistan. Three of the key engagement points were focused on terrorism and China spelled out specific concerns over the existence of the East Turkistan Islamic Movement in Afghanistan. The document lashed out at the US and urged US leaders to unfreeze Afghanistan’s international holdings while also warning the US against redeploying military assets to the region. A synopsis of the paper can be accessed HERE.


• MONEYCHANGER MURDERED IN KHOST – Unidentified gunmen shot and killed a moneychanger in his stall at the exchange market in Khost’s capital on Wednesday. The murder prompted a protest by other money changers who accused the Taliban of not doing enough to protect their businesses. Some even accused the Taliban of participating in schemes to force money changers to issue loans to them that are never paid. The Taliban responded by saying they had assisted in a rescue of a kidnapped money changer earlier in the week and that they had arrested 6 men who (they say) were claiming to be Taliban security forces. There were no casualties reported during the protest.


• EDUCATION DEPARTMENT BUILDING BURNED IN PANJSHIR – The Directorate of Education building caught fire and burned well into the morning in Panjshir. Local eyewitnesses reported gunfire shortly before the fire occurred. There have been attacks against many schools across the country since the Taliban rose to power and notes have been discovered that appear to criticize secular education while praising Madrassas. It is not clear if the incident in Panjshir involved arson at this time.

• PAKISTAN ON ALERT IN KHYBER PAKHTUNKHWA – Security forces in the Province have been placed on high alert after receiving intelligence that a suicide bomber (Abdullah Badshah Gul) had entered Kurram and may be planning to conduct a suicide attack against the Shiah community in Parachinar. Security forces are actively searching for the man. At-risk Afghans in the area are advised to avoid Shiah community/religious centers while the threat continues.


• FOREIGN MINISTER’S MEETING TO CONVENE IN UZBEKISTAN TODAY – Officials from Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Iran, China, Pakistan, and Russia will open the Fourth Foreign Minister’s Dialogue on Afghanistan in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The Taliban have lobbied extensively to be included in the meetings but the regional powers have not allowed them to participate. Security in Samarkand and Tashkent is said to be extremely tight and there were several security alerts issued over possible ETIM or ISIS-K plans to attempt to disrupt the gathering.

• THE PASSPORT DIRECTORATE HALTS WORK – The Passport Directorate announced the stoppage of passport issuance for an unspecified amount of time. The official reason given for the stoppage stated technical difficulties. However, previous reporting has indicated the existence of a far-reaching investigation into the illicit black market for passports, visas, and national identity cards that has resulted in several arrests. A source in the Ministry of the Interior stated that some arrests had already been made of Directorate employees in Jalalabad and Kabul and that more were coming.


• LAND REFORM PROBLEMS IN TAKHAR – Conflict has been reported in the Khwaja Bahauddin District as a result of a Kuchi
  

  ... Kuchi means ‘nomad’ in the Dari (Persian) language. Kuchis are Pashtuns from southern and eastern Afghanistan. They are a social rather than ethnic grouping. Though traditionally nomadic, many have been settled in northwestern Afghanistan, in an area that was traditionally Uzbek and Tajik, after strong encouragement by the Taliban government. Nowadays only a few thousand are still nomadic herders and traders. Others have become farmers, settled in cities or emigrated. The largest population of Kuchis is probably in Registan, the desert in southern Afghanistan...

  raid that is said to have been supported by the Taliban forces in the Province. Approximately 100 Tajik and Uzbek families were reportedly forced out of their homes which were then occupied by Kuchi families. Unconfirmed reports state the Kuchis involved in the raids came from Waziristan in Pakistan. No casualty figures were available.


• META BANS TALIBAN ACCOUNTS – While some Taliban-affiliated accounts on Facebook had previously been shut down, the ban is now thought to have been extended to non-state-owned pro-Taliban sites. A full list of these pages is being compiled.


• SENIOR ETIM TERROR GROUP LEADER SPOTTED IN BADAKHSHAN – A photo emerged on social media depicting a reputed leader of the Eastern Turkish Islamic Movement,
  

  ...also known as the Turkistan Islamic Movement and the East Turkistan Islamic Movement, a Uighur jihadi group originally from China’s Xinjiang province. But they mostly made hijira, primarily to join Al Nusra in Syria, secondarily to North Waziristan and to ally with the Taliban in Afghanistan......

  Sadiq Ighori, standing between the Taliban’s Qari Fasihuddin and Maulvi Amanuddin. Ighori is a Chinese national of Uyghur descent and is also believed to have been appointed as a leader of foreign fighters in the Ministry of Defense. Ighori is thought to be wanted by Chinese authorities in connection with a bus bombing in Pakistan that killed scores of Chinese nationals.


• ISIS-K TAKES AIM AT THE ICRC - A pamphlet released on ISIS-affiliated social media sites lays out six reasons it is heresy to seek out International Cross and Red Crescent assistance and leveled claims that the aid agency is simply a tool of an anti-Muslim United Nations campaign. It is possible the accusations could initiate attacks against Red Crescent facilities operating in the country and/or region.