It had been reported by Jamal Nasir Barakzai, Spokesperson to police chief of Kandahar that an explosion occurred in Kandahar City.

The explosion occurred on Thursday.

More details to come.

The Afghan Army in the north of the country reported that a car bomb went off prematurely killing 2 suicide bombers in Balkh province.

209th Shahin Corps said in a statement on Thursday that, a Toyota Corolla type vehicle packed with explosives went off prematurely before the suicide bombers managed to detonate it in the area of their target.

The statement further added that the explosion took place in a Village of Chahar Bolak district of Balkh.

With the announcement of the appointment of the new Commissioners and Ms. Shaharzad Akbar as Chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, the United Nations released a statement looking forward to continuing to work closely with the AIHRC as its role in safeguarding human rights remains crucial, especially so in the context of ongoing talks around peace.

The UN paid tribute to outgoing Chairperson, Dr Sima Samar, who has led the Commission since its inception in 2002. Under her stewardship, the AIHRC engaged in advocacy in promoting respect for human rights and fundamental values, including the right to life, the right to elect political representatives, women’s rights, freedom of expression, the freedom of association and space for civil society activists, as well as the need to tackle impunity. “The AIHRC has played a critical role in transforming attitudes and promoting legislative and policy developments that have enhanced respect for the human rights of all Afghans”, the statement said.

As a member of the UN Secretary-General’s High-Level Advisory Board on Mediation, a position she was appointed to earlier this year, Dr Samar will continue to provide the Secretary-General with advice on mediation initiatives and back specific mediation efforts around the world, as part of a “surge in diplomacy for peace” in support the prevention and mediation efforts of the United Nations.

As mandated by the United Nations Security Council, the United Nations remains committed to strengthening human rights and supporting a truly independent national human rights institution in safeguarding fundamental freedoms in Afghanistan. As peace efforts intensify, it is vital to protect and preserve the human rights of all Afghans, including women and girls.

The security forces killed a prominent Taliban commander Mawlavi Junudullah during an operation in northern Faryab province.

The Special Operations Corps in a statement said the Special Forces conducted an operation against a Taliban hideout in Kolian area of Bulchiragh district.

The statement further added that the security forces killed Mawlavi Jundullah, one of the prominent commanders of Taliban during the raid.

Furthermore, the Special Forces also killed 18 fighters of Jundullah during the same operations.

The Special Operations Corps also added that the security forces also wounded 9 Taliban insurgents during the raid.

The Afghan Ministry of Defense has announced that an Army commander lost his life in an insider attack in Ghazni province.

The ministry of defense said in a statement on Wednesday evening that, “Colonel Abdul Mubeen Mujtaba, the Commander of the 3rd Brigade of 203rd Thunder Corps was killed in an insider attack carried out by army personnel who was enemy infiltrator.”

The statement further added that Colonel Mujtaba had visited Qarabagh district to review the security situation of the district when he came under fire by an enemy infiltrator.

Moreover, the Ministry of Defense said the security forces returned fire and shot dead the assailant.

The Taliban group in a tweet claimed the responsibility of the attack and said that the assault was conducted by an infiltrator of the group.

President Ghani on Wednesday appointed Ms Shahrzad Akbar as the new chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission.

Ms Akbar replaces Ms Sima Samar as the chair of the AIHRC.

Shaharzad Akbar is currently the Deputy National Security Advisor to President.

Before that, she was the Senior Advisor to National Program on Culture and Creative Economy with UNESCO Afghanistan .

She was Senior Advisor to Afghan President on High Development Councils (August 2017-August 2018) and in this capacity, coordinated the prioritization of development projects and programs for high level decision-making.

Prior to this, Shaharzad was Country Director for Open Society Afghanistan (Sep 2014-July 2017), a non-profit that supports Afghan civil society and media in building a vibrant and tolerant society.

Shaharzad Akbar completed an MPhil at Oxford University as a Weidenfeld scholar in 2011; previously she obtained her BA (cum laude) in anthropology from Smith College in the U.S.