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Afghanistan

Latest news and updates on Afghanistan, China relations and the Taliban's return to power after the 20-year war with the US and allies.

Capital

Kabul

Head of state

Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada

Head of government

Supreme Leader Hibatullah Akhundzada

This photo taken on March 3, 2026 shows a view of the damaged Golestan Palace in Tehran, Iran. The UNESCO World Heritage Site was partially damaged in air raids during US and Israeli strikes on Iran. Photo: Xinhua

My Take

My Take | An America in decline will keep losing wars to weaker foes – including in Iran

When battles become a matter of choice rather than necessity or survival, US leaders have a preternatural ability to choose badly and undermine their own country.

9 Mar 2026 - 10:39AM

US, Israel war on Iran

Trump’s ‘feeling’-driven Iran war cops criticism for ‘arrogant’ messaging

7 Mar 2026 - 3:53PMvideocam

Pakistan

Pakistan imperils its IMF rescue as Afghanistan border violence rages

7 Mar 2026 - 2:00PM

Iran

How far could the war with Iran spread beyond the Middle East?

From Turkey and the Caucasus to South Asia, analysts warn the war could ignite new flashpoints along regional fault lines.

6 Mar 2026 - 6:29PMvideocam

The sun sets behind a plume of smoke from a US-Israeli military strike in Tehran, Iran, on Tuesday. Photo: AP

US, Israel war on Iran

Open Questions | Iran war’s impact on China limited, scholar Pan Guang says

China’s Middle East position ‘relatively favourable’, professor says, and regional spillover from US-Israeli attacks likely to be limited to Tehran’s Shia militia allies.

6 Mar 2026 - 4:04PMvideocam

Hong Kong tourism

Hong Kong trying to secure seats on flights from Dubai for stranded residents

Carrier Emirates is planning to operate direct flights from Dubai to Hong Kong from Friday to Sunday, government says.

6 Mar 2026 - 10:49AMvideocam

War and conflict

Opinion | Pakistan’s forever war and the politics of exhaustion

What Pakistan needs is not war with Afghanistan but urgent efforts to fix its economy, security and divided society after disruptive decades.

4 Mar 2026 - 10:30PMvideocam

Pakistan

Pakistan aims to walk tightrope between Saudi Arabia and Iran as war flares

Islamabad has to navigate a tricky regional environment and manage the domestic blowback of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

4 Mar 2026 - 9:22PMvideocam

US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | US war on Iran isn’t likely to go as planned

US war planners have overlooked viewing their adversary through realpolitik in the past. They now face a far more organised opponent.

3 Mar 2026 - 9:50PMvideocam

Pakistan

Pakistan cities under curfew after 23 die in protests over Khamenei killing

Authorities have imposed a three-day curfew in the northern cities of Gilgit and Skardu, citing ‘deteriorating law and order conditions’.

3 Mar 2026 - 8:53AMvideocam

Smoke and flames rise from the UN office in Gilgit, Pakistan, after it is set ablaze by protesters on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

War and conflict

Editorial | Strikes on Iran may complicate US-China ties

No significant impact expected on China’s, or Hong Kong’s, economy from the most recent conflict in the Middle East.

3 Mar 2026 - 7:15AM

A missile launched from Iran is pictured in the sky from the Bureij camp for Palestinian refugees in the central Gaza Strip on March 1. Photo: AFP

Middle East

Asia’s travel sector rattled by Iran attacks, fears of ‘domino effect’ slowdown

Airlines are bracing for higher oil prices, continuous flight disruptions and plunging traveller confidence.

2 Mar 2026 - 5:59PMvideocam

Pakistan

Opinion | How the Taliban can end the cycle of violence with Pakistan

Working with neighbours to combat terror groups operating in Afghanistan will ensure peace and improve the Taliban’s international standing.

2 Mar 2026 - 6:44PMvideocam

India

Friend to all, foe to none: Iran war tests India’s Middle East balancing act

New Delhi has long prided itself on being friends with everyone in the Middle East. The killing of Khamenei just made that much harder.

2 Mar 2026 - 5:26PM

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (right) shakes hands with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during a press conference on February 26. Photo: EPA

Pakistan

Blasts in Kabul as Afghan government says responding to Pakistan attacks

Diplomatic efforts have failed to secure a truce between Pakistan and the Taliban, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar engaged in efforts to halt the fighting.

2 Mar 2026 - 6:10AM

Pakistan

‘Managed escalation’: Pakistan-Taliban stand-off enters dangerous new phase

With positions entrenched, mediation efforts by regional powers are unlikely to deliver a swift breakthrough, observers say.

28 Feb 2026 - 4:03PMvideocam

United Nations

UN rights chief slams violence against women, calls it ‘a global emergency’

Volker Turk highlights the segregation of women in Afghanistan and sex trafficking cases against US financier Jeffrey Epstein as examples.

28 Feb 2026 - 2:27PMvideocam

Pakistan

Afghanistan’s Taliban open to talks with Pakistan as ‘open war’ continues

The attacks by Pakistan come as it continues to allege that the Taliban harbours militants seeking to overthrow the Islamabad government.

28 Feb 2026 - 1:34PM

An Afghan security force member takes part in a military operation against Pakistan in Khost, Afghanistan, on Friday. Photo: Xinhua

Central Asia

Trains through the Taliban: Central Asia’s plan to bypass Russia and Iran

The Soviet Union severed Central Asia’s ancient trade routes to the Indian subcontinent. The region’s modern-day leaders want them back.

2 Mar 2026 - 11:21AMvideocam

Pakistan

A tale of 2 allies: inside the deadly unravelling of Pakistan-Taliban ties

Islamabad is in an ‘open ‌war’ with Kabul due to persistent border clashes and militant attacks, straining their historic relationship.

28 Feb 2026 - 7:32PMvideocam

Pakistan

China seeks to mediate after Pakistan declares ‘open war’ on Afghanistan

Beijing calls on Islamabad and Kabul to stay calm and exercise restraint as relations between the neighbours plummet.

27 Feb 2026 - 8:11PMvideocam

Taliban security personnel keep watch for air strikes in Khost province, Afghanistan on Friday following overnight cross-border fighting with Pakistan. Photo: AFP

Pakistan

Video | Pakistan declares ‘open war’ with Taliban

Air strikes came hours after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops in what the Taliban government said was retaliation.

27 Feb 2026 - 4:55PM

01:43

Pakistan

Pakistan declares ‘open war’ with Afghan Taliban, attacks Kabul, Kandahar

The air strikes came hours after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops in what the Taliban government said was retaliation.

27 Feb 2026 - 5:06PMvideocam

Pakistan

Pakistan claim of killing 80 militants ‘false’, Taliban security source says

The Afghan Defence Ministry said ‘various civilian areas’ in eastern Afghanistan were hit, including a religious madrasa and multiple homes.

23 Feb 2026 - 2:19AM

My Take

My Take | Arrest shows that no one is above the law, not even a former British prince

While the monarchy’s future may depend on how King Charles handles the affair, every effort must be made to ensure the Epstein victims receive justice.

21 Feb 2026 - 10:30PM

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, formerly known as Prince Andrew, is escorted by police after being arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office. Photo: Reuters

Pakistan

11 soldiers, 1 child killed in Pakistan after suicide bomber hits security post

Seven other civilians were injured in the blast, which damaged part of the compound and nearby homes.

17 Feb 2026 - 10:39PM

Emergency workers help the injured after a militant attack in Bajaur, Pakistan, on Tuesday. Photo: Pakistan Red Crescent/Reuters

China-Russia relations

As Central Asia builds ‘smart cities’ with China, is it moving away from Russia?

Lack of Russian involvement in the mega-projects is seen as part of a broader structural shift as the region moves ‘closer to the world’.

11 Feb 2026 - 8:00PMvideocam

China-India relations

Could India’s twin trade agreements set back its improving ties with China?

Analysts expect the deals with Washington and Brussels to give New Delhi leverage with Beijing and may even slow the thaw.

6 Feb 2026 - 4:45PMvideocam

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Afghanistan

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}My Take | An America in decline will keep losing wars to weaker foes – including in Iran

When battles become a matter of choice rather than necessity or survival, US leaders have a preternatural ability to choose badly and undermine their own country.

Trump’s ‘feeling’-driven Iran war cops criticism for ‘arrogant’ messaging

Pakistan imperils its IMF rescue as Afghanistan border violence rages

How far could the war with Iran spread beyond the Middle East?

From Turkey and the Caucasus to South Asia, analysts warn the war could ignite new flashpoints along regional fault lines.

.css-sioo19{color:#c79a00;}Open Questions | Iran war’s impact on China limited, scholar Pan Guang says

China’s Middle East position ‘relatively favourable’, professor says, and regional spillover from US-Israeli attacks likely to be limited to Tehran’s Shia militia allies.

Hong Kong trying to secure seats on flights from Dubai for stranded residents

Carrier Emirates is planning to operate direct flights from Dubai to Hong Kong from Friday to Sunday, government says.

Opinion | Pakistan’s forever war and the politics of exhaustion

What Pakistan needs is not war with Afghanistan but urgent efforts to fix its economy, security and divided society after disruptive decades.

Pakistan aims to walk tightrope between Saudi Arabia and Iran as war flares

Islamabad has to navigate a tricky regional environment and manage the domestic blowback of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran.

Opinion | US war on Iran isn’t likely to go as planned

US war planners have overlooked viewing their adversary through realpolitik in the past. They now face a far more organised opponent.

Pakistan cities under curfew after 23 die in protests over Khamenei killing

Authorities have imposed a three-day curfew in the northern cities of Gilgit and Skardu, citing ‘deteriorating law and order conditions’.

Editorial | Strikes on Iran may complicate US-China ties

No significant impact expected on China’s, or Hong Kong’s, economy from the most recent conflict in the Middle East.

Asia’s travel sector rattled by Iran attacks, fears of ‘domino effect’ slowdown

Airlines are bracing for higher oil prices, continuous flight disruptions and plunging traveller confidence.

Opinion | How the Taliban can end the cycle of violence with Pakistan

Working with neighbours to combat terror groups operating in Afghanistan will ensure peace and improve the Taliban’s international standing.

Friend to all, foe to none: Iran war tests India’s Middle East balancing act

New Delhi has long prided itself on being friends with everyone in the Middle East. The killing of Khamenei just made that much harder.

Blasts in Kabul as Afghan government says responding to Pakistan attacks

Diplomatic efforts have failed to secure a truce between Pakistan and the Taliban, with Saudi Arabia and Qatar engaged in efforts to halt the fighting.

‘Managed escalation’: Pakistan-Taliban stand-off enters dangerous new phase

With positions entrenched, mediation efforts by regional powers are unlikely to deliver a swift breakthrough, observers say.

UN rights chief slams violence against women, calls it ‘a global emergency’

Volker Turk highlights the segregation of women in Afghanistan and sex trafficking cases against US financier Jeffrey Epstein as examples.

Afghanistan’s Taliban open to talks with Pakistan as ‘open war’ continues

The attacks by Pakistan come as it continues to allege that the Taliban harbours militants seeking to overthrow the Islamabad government.

Trains through the Taliban: Central Asia’s plan to bypass Russia and Iran

The Soviet Union severed Central Asia’s ancient trade routes to the Indian subcontinent. The region’s modern-day leaders want them back.

A tale of 2 allies: inside the deadly unravelling of Pakistan-Taliban ties

Islamabad is in an ‘open ‌war’ with Kabul due to persistent border clashes and militant attacks, straining their historic relationship.

China seeks to mediate after Pakistan declares ‘open war’ on Afghanistan

Beijing calls on Islamabad and Kabul to stay calm and exercise restraint as relations between the neighbours plummet.

.css-rcruog{color:#C79A00;}Video | Pakistan declares ‘open war’ with Taliban

Air strikes came hours after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops in what the Taliban government said was retaliation.

Pakistan declares ‘open war’ with Afghan Taliban, attacks Kabul, Kandahar

The air strikes came hours after Afghan forces attacked Pakistani border troops in what the Taliban government said was retaliation.

Pakistan claim of killing 80 militants ‘false’, Taliban security source says

The Afghan Defence Ministry said ‘various civilian areas’ in eastern Afghanistan were hit, including a religious madrasa and multiple homes.

My Take | Arrest shows that no one is above the law, not even a former British prince

While the monarchy’s future may depend on how King Charles handles the affair, every effort must be made to ensure the Epstein victims receive justice.

11 soldiers, 1 child killed in Pakistan after suicide bomber hits security post

Seven other civilians were injured in the blast, which damaged part of the compound and nearby homes.

As Central Asia builds ‘smart cities’ with China, is it moving away from Russia?

Lack of Russian involvement in the mega-projects is seen as part of a broader structural shift as the region moves ‘closer to the world’.

Could India’s twin trade agreements set back its improving ties with China?

Analysts expect the deals with Washington and Brussels to give New Delhi leverage with Beijing and may even slow the thaw.

My Take | An America in decline will keep losing wars to weaker foes – including in Iran

Open Questions | Iran war’s impact on China limited, scholar Pan Guang says

Video | Pakistan declares ‘open war’ with Taliban