The Islamic Emirate’s spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid has urged the international community to lift sanctions on Afghanistan’s banking system and its ruling officials.

Mujahid stated the policy of pressure, sanctions, and force has been a failed experiment.

He added the policies of some countries, which have affected major global organizations, are driven by resentment and must change.

He stated these policies have a direct and negative impact on the lives of the people of Afghanistan.

"The current policies against Afghanistan directly affect the lives of the Afghan people and are in contradiction to human rights and humanitarian claims. We demand that coercive policies, pressure, restrictions, and sanctions come to an end. Afghanistan is an important country for all nations and seeks good relations with all of them,” he said.

Mujahid also called for the release of Afghanistan's frozen central bank assets and emphasized the need for the Islamic Emirate to have a seat at the United Nations.

He further stated that Afghanistan is part of the global community, and IEA seeks economic, trade, and diplomatic relations with both the region and the world.

However, experts have noted that IEA should focus on establishing a constitution, holding national dialogues, and removing the barriers to education and work for women and girls.

Other analysts believe that if the IEA respects human rights, it should pave the way for interaction between the caretaker government and the world, and 2025 could be a successful year for the Islamic Emirate.

In the past three years, IEA’s efforts to lift restrictions on the banking system, the travel bans on certain officials, gain international legitimacy, and secure a seat at the United Nations have been unsuccessful.

This is because the world sees respect for human rights, education for girls, and employment for women as red lines for the legitimacy of the IEA, while the ruling system has repeatedly considered these matters internal and stated that it does not allow outside interference in internal affairs.

Levies forces arrested 72 Afghan nationals who had crossed into Pakistan illegally from Afghanistan in the Chagai area on Tuesday, dawn news reported.

According to a senior Levies officer, the Afghan citizens did not have legal travel documents and were subsequently deported at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border crossing at Baracha, in Chagai.

He said Pakistan had tightened security in its border areas with Afghanistan to curb illegal crossings.

According to officials, Levies and Frontier Corps personnel carried out 10 joint operations in 2024, resulting in the arrest of 3,826 Afghan nationals, including 2,779 men, 338 women and 290 children, from various border areas of Chagai district.

These Afghan families, who had illegally entered Pakistan, were sent back to Afghanistan after investigation. Levies officials said Pakistan is closely monitoring its border with Afghanistan to fulfil its commitment to preventing illegal entries, maintaining law and order, and combating illegal activities.

Pakistan had previously imposed a “one-document regime” system for border crossings between the two countries, which mandates that all movement at crossing points like Chaman be conducted via passports and valid visas.

To facilitate this, the government established passport offices in Chaman and Qila Abdullah districts. Around 20,000 people have already been issued passports under this system, with no fee charged for the service.

At least 71 people died in Ethiopia when a truck packed with passengers plunged into a river, according to the spokesperson for the southern Sidama regional government and a statement, Reuters reported.

The accident occurred in the Bona district, the regional communication bureau said in a statement issued late on Sunday.

Wosenyeleh Simion, spokesperson for the Sidama regional government, told Reuters on Monday at least 71 people had died, including 68 males and 3 females.

"Five are in a critical condition and taking treatment at Bona General Hospital," he said.

In a statement late on Sunday the regional communication bureau had given the death toll as 60.

Wosenyeleh said the truck had missed a bridge and fell into a river and that the road had many bends.

Some of the passengers were returning from a wedding ceremony and some families had lost multiple members, he said, adding traffic police in the region had reported the truck was overloaded, which likely caused the accident, read the report.

The state-run Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation (EBC) also reported that the passengers were travelling to a wedding when the accident occurred on Sunday.

Deadly traffic accidents are common in Ethiopia, where driving standards are poor and many vehicles badly maintained.

At least 38 people, mostly students, were killed in 2018 when a bus plunged into a ravine in Ethiopia's mountainous north.