Politics
Cash-strapped Taliban look to airspace for windfall
Far above Kabul, the cash-strapped Taliban government has located a potentially lucrative revenue stream: Afghanistan’s airspace.
As Israel and Iran’s exchange of missiles threw flight paths into disarray this year, the skies above Afghanistan offered carriers a less turbulent and faster route to ply — for a flat $700 overflight fee, according to industry insiders.
The US aviation authority eased restrictions on the country’s airspace and paved the way for commercial flyovers in 2023, two years after the Taliban takeover.
Airspace that had long been avoided — as the country endured four decades of war and shifting powerbrokers — suddenly became a viable option, allowing carriers to abbreviate routes and save on fuel costs.
But it was not until the 12-day war between Iran and Israel in June that the route really gained traction, allowing the Taliban government to potentially rake in millions.
Faced with shuttered airspace over Iran and Iraq, and unpredictable openings and closures across the Middle East, airlines saw reason to divert course and found refuge over Afghanistan.
While missiles clogged the neighbouring airspace, “the risk of flying over Afghanistan (was) virtually zero”, said France-based aerospace and defence consultant Xavier Tytelman.
“It’s like flying over the sea.”
May’s average of 50 planes cutting through Afghanistan each day skyrocketed to around 280 after June 13, when war erupted in the neighbourhood, data from tracking website Flightradar24 showed.
Since then, in any given day, more than 200 planes often traverse Afghanistan — equivalent to roughly $4.2 million a month, though this figure is difficult to verify as the authorities do not publish budgets and have declined to comment.
- India, Canadian FMs agree to deepen cooperation.
- Both sides seek to repair trust after two years of tensions.
- Emphasise partnership to counter global economic vulnerabilities.
India and Canada agreed on Monday on a new roadmap for their relations after talks between their foreign ministers in New Delhi, as both countries seek to mend ties strained over the killing of a Canadian Sikh separatist.
The two countries, both of which are looking to diversify trade away from the United States due to tariff announcements, agreed to collaborate on areas like critical minerals, trade and agricultural value chains, a joint statement said.
“Reviving this partnership will not only create opportunities for enhanced economic cooperation but also help mitigate vulnerabilities arising from shifting global alliances,” it said.
Almost two years of strained relations
The statement came after Canada’s Foreign Minister Anita Anand met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and her counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Monday.
“Both of our governments agree on the importance of elevating the relationship,” Anand said in her opening remarks at the meeting with Jaishankar.
Relations between New Delhi and Ottawa were strained for almost two years after then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau accused New Delhi in 2023 of involvement in the killing of a Canadian Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.
India denied Canada’s allegations of involvement in the murder and, in turn, accused Ottawa of fostering separatist groups on its soil.
In June this year, Trudeau’s successor Mark Carney hosted Modi at the G7 summit in Kananaskis in the Canadian province of Alberta.
India is Canada’s top source of temporary foreign workers and international students, as well as an important market for pulses such as lentils and yellow peas.
Canada is home to an influential Sikh community. Indian leaders say there are some fringe groups there that are still sympathetic to the cause of an independent Sikh state called Khalistan to be carved out of Hindu-majority India.
Overwhelmed with emotion, Palestinians poured into the streets of Gaza and the occupied West Bank to welcome home freed prisoners under a US-brokered ceasefire deal — a day marked by tears, cheers, and the bittersweet weight of loss and hope.
The prisoners were released after the Hamas militant group freed the last 20 living hostages taken during the October 7, 2023 attacks that precipitated the war in Gaza.
Under the deal, Israel is set to release 250 Palestinians convicted of murder and other serious crimes as well as 1,700 Palestinians detained in Gaza since the war began, 22 Palestinian minors, and the bodies of 360 militants.
Several thousand people gathered inside and around the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, awaiting the arrival of freed prisoners, with some waving Palestinian flags and others holding pictures of their relatives.
Fighting back tears, one woman who asked to be identified as Um Ahmed said she said that despite her joy at the release, she still had “mixed feelings” about the day.
Freed prisoners arrived in buses, some of them posing from the windows, flashing V-for-Victory signs. They will undergo medical checks at the facility.
Earlier, about a dozen masked and black-clad gunmen, members of Hamas’ armed wing, arrived at the hospital where a stage and chairs had been laid out to welcome returning Palestinian prisoners.
Loudspeakers blared songs celebrating the Palestinian national cause.
Hamas said 154 prisoners were also deported to Egypt.
During previous releases, mass gatherings had flooded entire streets in Ramallah, with people waving Palestinian flags as well as those of political factions including Hamas.
‘Live my life’
Dressed in the grey tracksuits of Israeli prisons, many prisoners also wore a black-and-white kuffiyeh around their necks — the traditional scarf that has become synonymous with the Palestinian cause.
Some of the newly released prisoners happily let themselves be carried away on relatives’ shoulders.
“Prisoners live on hope… Coming home, to our land, is worth all the gold in the world,” said one freed detainee, Samer al-Halabiyeh.
“God willing, peace will prevail, and the war on Gaza will stop,” Halabiyeh added.
“Now I just want to live my life.”
Journalists rushed to talk to the prisoners, but many declined to engage, sometimes explaining that before their release, they were advised not to speak.
In the south Gaza city of Khan Yunis, a crowd gathered near Nasser Hospital, in the hope of catching sight of the prisoners taken during the war with Israel.
In the afternoon, thousands cheered to welcome their loved ones as they caught glimpse of the buses carrying them home.
United States President Donald Trump on Monday addressed the Israeli parliament, following a peace deal he brokered to end the war in Gaza.
Here are 10 key takeaways from his address:
1. Gaza agreement dawn of a new Middle East
Trump was of the view that peace in Gaza ushered in the dawn of a new Middle East, saying that it ended the “long and painful nightmare” for all parties involved.
2. Offer to Iran for a peace deal
The US president expressed hope for a peace deal with Iran, saying his administration was ready for any agreement with the country.
3. Plan to disarm Hamas
The US president stated that the entire region has endorsed his plan to disarm Hamas.
4. Call on other nations to join Abraham Accords
Trump expressed hope that other countries would join the Abraham Accords quickly after the Gaza peace deal.
5. Acknowledgement of US help to Israel in Gaza war
“Israel, with our help, has won all that they can by force of arm[s],” the US president said.
6. Call for a pardon for Israeli PM
Trump called for a pardon for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been accused of corruption.
7. Muslim nations’ role in peace efforts
Terming the Gaza deal a triumph, the US president thanked mediators from the Arab and Muslim world for their crucial role in the peace efforts.
8. Role in the rebuilding of Gaza
Trump said that he intended to be a partner in the effort to rebuild Gaza.
9. Israeli lawmaker interrupts Trump’s speech
A left-wing lawmaker was expelled after he interrupted the US president’s speech to the Israeli parliament.
10. Time to focus on Russia
Trump told his envoy Steve Witkoff that “we’ve got to get Russia done” following the implementation of the Gaza peace deal.
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