Taliban start issuing passports in Afghanistan

25,000 passports ready to be issued to those who had applied before Aug. 15, says official

By S. K. Khan

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan (AA) – In a major development, the Taliban authorities in Afghanistan on Tuesday announced resuming passport issuance as well as employing female staff to handle women passport matters.

In a statement, Alam Gul Haqqani, the recently appointed acting head of the Passport Department, said at least 25,000 passports were ready to be issued to those who had applied and went through all the procedures before Aug. 15 when the previous government collapsed.

“The passports are going to be issued under the same current title (Islamic Republic of Afghanistan),” announced the Taliban’s Interior Ministry Communication Director Saeed Khosti.

It is important to note the Taliban have declared their “Islamic Emirate” in Afghanistan but that has not been officially recognized internationally.

Hundreds of thousands of Afghans fled the country with the arrival of the Taliban in Kabul, and many wishing to flee remained stranded partly due to a lack of passports.

The latest move followed the Taliban cabinet’s decision to approve the resumption of passports’ issuance in its first meeting on Monday.

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