Customers at the General Post Office (GPO) in Peshawar February 6 buy stamps commemorating the late computer prodigy Arfa Karim, who died of epilep...
On Sept. 28, Kyrgyz authorities announced a reinforcement of the border with Tajikistan, in connection with the search for a group of armed individuals who fired at a border post two days earlier.
Iran tested its longest-range missiles on Sept. 28, and warned that they could reach any place that threatened their country, including Israel, parts of Europe and U.S. military bases in the Middle East.
Iran said it successfully test-fired short-range missiles during military drills by the elite Revolutionary Guard on Sept. 27, a show of force coming just days after the West warned Tehran about a newly-revealed underground nuclear facility Iran was secretly constructing.
Kazakhstan is in negotiations with Kyrgyzstan on a mutually advantageous exchange of electricity. Astana can supply Bishkek with electricity during the winter in exchange for the same amount of electricity during the growing season.
A suicide car-bomber killed a pro-government ethnic Pashtun tribal leader and four others in northwest Pakistan on Sept. 28.
Methadone, a synthetic substance chemically similar to heroin, is now being used to treat drug addicts in Tajikistan. The first cities selected to test methadone replacement therapy include Dushanbe, Khorog, Khudzhand and Kurgan-Tyube.
On Sept. 23, Kazakhstan's Justice Minister said Kazakh law does not ban the wearing of headscarves in schools. The country's post-Soviet neighbours, however, have taken a decidedly less permissive stance on the matter.
Many Tajik migrant workers have still not received back-pay from their Russian employers. Current wage arrears total more than US$1 million.
Under increasing attack over Iran's suspected nuclear weapons programme, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 23 that Tehran was ready to meet conciliation with conciliation.
Two vehicle bombings occurred in the northwest on Sept. 26, the first on the outskirts of Bannu, close to the rugged tribal region of North Waziristan, where Al-Qaeda and the Taliban rebels are holed up.
The Kuwaiti daily Al-Watan published an article by Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister Dr Mohammed Sabah al-Salim al-Sabah, stating that Iran's policy of exporting the Islamic Revolution aims to take over neighbouring countries and plunder their wealth.
More than 1,400 students pursuing graduate degrees and doctoral studies this year will receive US$2.4 million in interest-free loans from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
Uzbekistan has stopped supplying natural gas to southern Kyrgyzstan due to outstanding debts of US$19 million. The head of petroleum firm Kyrgyzgaz flew to Tashkent on Sept. 25 for talks on the issue.
Flats, stilettos and platform heels have come and gone, but the ‘khussa’ design, decorated with embroidery, beads and pearls, remains timeless in Pakistan.
More than 30 homes in the village of Shokhindar in Tajikistan’s Rasht Valley were washed away by heavy rainfall on Sept. 22.
Addressing journalists in Mazar-i-Sharif on Sept. 23, Afghan Army General Mustafa Patang said the transfer of Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) militants into northern Afghanistan from Pakistan’s Tribal Belt may be part of a deliberate strategy.
Kyrgyzstan is now preparing for the final stages of the Kyrgyz Aty Festival that is aimed at preserving indigenous horse breeds native to the Central Asian country, and celebrating the country's nomadic heritage.
On Sept. 18, the Uzbek Embassy in Dushanbe lifted restrictions introduced Aug. 14 on visa for Tajik citizens after haemorrhagic fever was detected in Tajikistan’s Tursunzadev district.
Turkmenistan athlete Vepa Nurnanazarov set two world records and won three gold medals at the Powerlifting Championships held recently in the UK.
With U.S. President Barack Obama in the chair at an unprecedented meeting of the UN Security Council, major world powers on Sept. 24 endorsed his goal of a nuclear weapons-free world and pledged to strengthen the shaky international system for preventing the spread of nuclear arms.
The British Department for International Development will provide US$27.6 million to help alleviate poverty in Central Asia.
Jazz Fest Tashkent 2200, held from Sept. 15 to 20, coincided with celebrations marking the Uzbek capital’s 2200th anniversary.
Pressure deepened against Iran Sept. 25 when the world's eight top economic powers gave Tehran until year's end to cease enriching uranium or face new sanctions, but resistance from China could undermine the effort.
Turkmen athletes enjoyed success at the Ninth International Issyk-Kul Games, a yearly event held in the Kyrgyz city of Cholpon-Ata, winning a total of 20 medals.
The results of a regional anti-AIDs programme in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan implemented between 2004 and 2009 have been published.
Armed with the disclosure of a secret Iranian nuclear facility, the leaders of France, the UK, and the U.S. demanded Sept. 25 that Tehran fully disclose its nuclear ambitions ''or be held accountable'' to an impatient world community.
Karakorum International University in Gilgit will establish an on-campus research centre to save the Shina language and its dialect from being lost to history.
Blind Pakistani citizens are seeking a two percent job quota in banks, said Amir Ashraf, president of the Pakistan Association of the Blind on Sept. 17.
On Sept. 22, Astana’s Department of Internal Affairs reported that an Uzbek citizen named Akbarov had been detained in the Kazakh capital. He is wanted by law-enforcement agencies in Uzbekistan on suspicion of involvement in terrorism.
On Sept. 21, the Uzbek Ministry of Emergency Situations declared that accidents at reservoirs in Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan could flood towns and settlements in Uzbekistan.
Suspected Taliban militants bombed a primary school on the outskirts of Peshawar on Sept. 22, underscoring their disregard for the Taliban 'Code of Conduct' issued in July that forbids attacks on civilians.
Three detainees under investigation, two suspected of extremist activity and one suspected of espionage, escaped from a remand centre run by the State National Security Committee in Osh Province on Sept. 17.
The Islamic Republic of Iran displayed its third-generation Sejjil homemade ballistic missile in a military parade on Sept. 22, the local Fars news agency reported.
A 165km gas pipeline running through Kamchik Pass in the Kuraminsky Range of Uzbekistan mountains at altitudes as high as 2,268m has been constructed and tested.
Due to the increasing price of gold, costume jewellery is becoming more popular, and women can choose from virtually limitless designs and colours.
The Pakistan Navy (PN) received its first Chinese-built F-22/P Frigate, dubbed the PNS Zulfiquar, on Sept. 12.
There has been a sharp rise in the number of suicides in Pakistan because of depression, poverty, mental illness and family crises, according to a statement issued by Aga Khan University in connection with World Suicide Prevention Day.
The head of criminal investigations and insurgent detention for the Isfara District in the Sugd Region was shot in Tajikistan near the entrance to his own apartment block. The Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) is the prime suspect in the criminal investigation.
On Sept. 18, the Kyrgyz parliament removed the parliamentary immunity of Social Democratic Party opposition members accused of organising riots during July’s presidential elections.
A UAZ service centre has opened in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan. The country is the third largest importer of UAZ vehicles, which have been manufactured since the Soviet era.
On Sept. 18, Tajikistan's Department of Constitutional Guarantees of Citizens' Rights and the UN High Commissioner of Refugees met in Dushanbe to discuss the status of stateless individuals in the Republic.
Kyrgyzstan has begun its autumn army draft. The army currently has 3,000 conscripts and more than 20,000 have chosen alternate or reserve forms of army service made available under the new army reforms.
Sept. 20 marked the end of the holy fasting month of Ramadan, celebrated by Eid al-Fitr. This three-day feast varies from country to country, but has similar traditions.
On Sept. 14, Veritas, an Uzbek human rights group for young people, opposed an unofficial ban on Islamic headscarves in Tashkent's secondary schools.
Edible oil imports cost Pakistan more than US$1 billion annually. Experts in the predominantly agricultural country do not consider such large oil imports to be necessary.
After a five-year hiatus, Kyrgyz journalists earned Endeavour Awards sponsored by the Internews Network.
On Sept. 17, the Dushanbe headquarters of the Coordinated Central Asian Rapid Reaction Forces (CCARRF) began drafting contingency plans for a joint response to a potential influx of Taliban and Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan militants into Tajik territory.
To minimise petrol consumption, Solar Geysers, a local manufacturing company, has established the first solar water heater manufacturing plant in Pakistan.
Kazakh politicians consider legally formalising Nursultan Nazabaev’s status as President for Life.
A Japanese construction company is rebuilding the road between Kurgan-Tyube and Dusti in south Tajikistan, a stretch of highway linking the centre of the country and Afghanistan.
On Sept. 18, the print run of the Kazakh newspaper Republic-Business Observer was seized. The bank accounts of the paper’s owner and publisher were also frozen in accordance with a court decision on Sept. 9 on BTA Bank’s lawsuit against the paper.
Tens of thousands of protesters rallied on Sept.18 in defiance of Iran's Islamic leadership, clashing with police and confronting state-run anti-Israel rallies.
According to the Kyrgyz Border Service, Kyrgyzstan’s border with Uzbekistan will open after Sept. 20, when the “Border 2009” joint exercises are concluded.
On Sept. 15, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) delivered a note of protest to the Kazakh Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the detention and alleged cruel treatment of Uzbek refugees in the republic.
A small village in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh is setting an example of religious amity, with its Hindu residents hosting iftar for their fellow Muslim villagers.
Taliban militants on Sept. 7 shot dead four schoolchildren and wounded six others in an apparent sectarian attack in a remote tribal town in northwest Pakistan.
Tajikistan's environmental organisations have called for the implementation of a national programme and plan of action to increase the country’s energy efficiency and develop alternative sources of energy.
A senior Uzbek militant linked to Al-Qaeda was killed in a recent strike by an unmanned aircraft in Pakistan's North Waziristan region near the Afghan border, security officials said Sept. 17.
Italy will stay the course in Afghanistan despite its worst loss of life in its five years there, officials said.
A suicide car bomber killed at least 25 people in northwest Pakistan on Sept. 18 in an explosion on a road that brought down nearby shops.
On Sept. 12, an operation by government military and international coalition forces was launched against Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) militants active in Afghanistan’s Kunduz province.
In a year of record regulatory reform worldwide, most Asian economies made business regulations efficient to increase opportunities for local firms, according to the World Bank report, “Doing Business 2010,” that was released earlier this month.
The International Road Transport Union praised Tajikistan’s role in developing transit corridors and simplifying border crossings by presenting its president an award for his contribution.
More than 2,000 Uzbek Muslims who have already paid for Umrah pilgrimages will not be able to fly to Saudi Arabia after all.
Pakistan and the World Bank concluded three agreements on Sept. 15 to disburseme a US$350 million loan by the bank.
Iranian nuclear energy chief Ali Akbar Salehi agreed to new terms of cooperation with the UN atomic watchdog investigating Tehran’s nuclear activities, according to a top Iranian official in Vienna on Sept. 15.
Kyrgyzstan’s official statistics claim that there are less than 70,000 child labourers in the country. The International Labour Organisation, however, estimates that more than a third of the country’s children perform labour that is inappropriate for their age and development.
The World Bank, USAID and the local government are jointly implementing the Sindh Education Reforms Programme to provide basic facilities at thousands of schools in the province and increase enrollment.
Tajik authorities intend to review the country’s military cooperation with Russia and seek compensation for a Russian military base on its territory amounting to US$300 million a year.
The increasing popularity of electronic greetings, e-cards and text messaging has curtailed sales of traditional Eid cards this year.
On Sept. 14, as the Steppe Eagle 2009 international peacekeeping exercise in Kazakhstan was launched, the U.S. ambassador suggested that Kazakh soldiers could participate in special operations in Afghanistan.
The government of Kyrgyzstan intends to provide internet access to all rural authorities by 2011. In addition to the indisputable advantage of having access to the web, the service will also reduce the phone bills of local authorities.
Libya will accept 30 to 50 thousand skilled and semi-skilled Pakistani workers between September and next June, Jamil Ahmed Khan, Pakistan’s Ambassador to Libya, said on Sept. 9.
On Sept. 13, a fire destroyed a drug rehabilitation clinic in Taldykorgan, killing 37 people locked in rooms with barred windows.
The cornerstone has been laid for Tajikistan’s first coal-fired power plant in the village of Luchob that will also supply heat and hot water to a third of Dushanbe’s residents.
Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden appears to be a man weakened under pressure in his latest message addressed directly to the American people, analysts said on Sept. 14.
The Punjab government has invited Renexus Bhd, a Malaysian firm, to construct 160,000 housing units across the province.
On Sept. 12, the 15th World Boxing Championships ended in Milan, Italy. Kazakhstan experienced its greatest losses in eight years, but the Uzbek team performed exceptionally well.
Tajikistan and Kazakhstan have issued guidelines on appropriate attire for teachers.
MAN, a leading German lorry manufacturing firm, has gained a foothold in the heavy lorry market in Central Asia with an initial investment of US$1.2 million in a joint venture with Uzbekistan.
Pakistan claimed on Sept. 13 to be close to capturing the leader of the Swat Valley Taliban after arresting five of his senior commanders last week.
Dispelling rumours of mid-term elections in Pakistan, Prime Minister Gilani said on Sept. 4 that the government would complete its five-year term.
Janez Lenarcic, director of OSCE’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, said in Tashkent on Sept. 8 that he is aware of the Uzbek government’s willingness to strengthen its compliance with international commitments.
Participants in the CIS Intellectual Youth Forum held at Issyk-Kul Lake appealed to CIS leaders to do everything possible to involve young people in resolving social issues in the CIS.
On Sept. 10, Zadratdin Baidosov, with a doctorate in history, proposed that the Kazakh president remain in office for life. Nazarbayev did not reject the idea outright.
Pakistan's Higher Education Commission will award 1500 scholarships for merit students hoping to pursue a higher education in nursing and midwifery.
On Sept. 2, unidentified gunmen shot and wounded Pakistan's Religious Affairs Minister, Hamid Saeed Kazmi, in a brazen attack that killed his driver.
Activists in Samarkand are collecting signatures on a petition to save the home of Tajik writer, scholar and public figure Sadriddin Aini (1878 – 1954), which is in danger of being demolished.
The Chinese government delivered 98 new buses to Kyrgyzstan in late August, via a US$3.5 million grant.
Tajik security forces have disrupted an international crime syndicate engaged in large-scale drug trafficking operations.
Fearing a repeat of the tragedy that occurred at Russia’s Sayano-Shushensky hydroelectric plant on Aug. 18, the chairman of the Executive Committee of Uzbekistan’s Environmental Movement has called for inspections of hydroelectric plants in Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
On Sept. 8, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) presented its annual report, Doing Business 2010 in Washington. Of the former Soviet republics of Central Asia, this year’s leader in streamlining business procedures was Kyrgyzstan.
Pakistan's army has detained a top Taliban spokesman and four other militant leaders in the Swat valley in the first major arrests of top-level insurgents from the troubled region, military officials said Sept. 11.
On Sept. 9, the Almaty District Court ruled partially in favour of BTA Bank in its lawsuit against the newspaper Republic, fining the paper approximately US$400,000 and ordering it to publish a retraction within 10 days.
Afghan presidential election results from five polling stations were declared invalid on Sept. 10 because of fraud by the Electoral Complaints Commission.
For weeks, hard-line elements in Iran's government have been calling for the arrest of the country's opposition leaders, especially defeated presidential candidates Mir-Hossein Mousavi and Mehdi Karroubi.
Breast cancer in Kyrgyzstan accounts for 15 percent of all cancers diagnosed in Kyrgyzstan. Doctors point to women's lack of awareness and neglect of their health as the primary reasons for this figure, while women with breast cancer cite poor medical care as the main problem.
A survey by the International Finance Corporation of no less than 1300 Uzbek companies reveals that the country's private sector spends US$184 million a year on book-keeping, an enormous sum for the economy.
The International University of Information Technology opened in Almaty on Sept. 8. It has partnered with Carnegie Mellon University in the U.S. to train high-tech specialists in Kazakhstan.
