Illustration by Radia Durrani Saad Shafqat’s sophomore novel Rivals is a fast-paced potboiler set, like his debut novel, in a milieu he knows well as a practising doctor — the world of medicine and healthcare practitioners.... A couple of hours later, Dr Zarak had rounded on her and — to Nasreen’s intense relief — found everything in order.... Nyla was still groggy — presumably from the anesthetic, thought Nasreen....

SHOCKING pictures have emerged of the treatment of drug addicts in Afghanistan following the Taliban's takeover. Images show Afghan addicts with shaven heads being rounded up by the militants and marched into rehab.... Do you have a story for The Sun news desk?... Click here to upload yoursClick here to get The Sun newspaper delivered for FREE for the next six weeks. Disturbing moment screaming man is tied to pole and flogged by Taliban for ‘stealing a mobile phone’....

But classrooms were not physically divided.A document outlining guidelines for resuming class circulated by an association of private universities in Afghanistan listed measures such as the mandatory wearing of hijabs and separate entrances for female students.It also said female teachers should be hired to teach female students, and that females should be taught separately or, in smaller classes, segregated by a curtain.It was unclear if the document, seen by Reuters, represented official Talib

The sky over Tajikistan was a deep deoxygenated blue as we sped through the desolate mountain landscape of the eastern Pamirs.... “ Border guards see ghosts there — poltergeist.” He knew this because his father, uncles and grandfather had all been Soviet border guards.... Borders are opening and visa restrictions are lifting: As of 2018, citizens from more than 100 countries, including the United States, can travel visa-free through Uzbekistan for up to five days with proof of an onward flight