Tajikistan

8 Stories

Mexico's President Dumps Unwanted Luxury Jet for $92M

Austerity-loving Lopez Obrador sells presidential plane to former Soviet republic of Tajikistan

(Newser) - After almost 4 1/2 years of trying, Mexico's president said Thursday he has finally sold his unwanted presidential jet—to the former Soviet republic of Tajikistan. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said that nation's government paid the equivalent of about $92 million for the Boeing 787 jet. Lopez...

If Taliban Don't Pay Electric Bill, It'll Be Lights Out

Foreign suppliers could cut off power, leading to blackouts in Kabul

(Newser) - On top of everything else, the people of Afghanistan could soon lose power because the ruling Taliban aren't paying foreign electrical suppliers. "This would be a really dangerous situation," said Daud Noorzai, who quit as head of Afghanistan's power monopoly after the Taliban takeover, the Wall ...

They Were 29 and Biking the World. Then Came the Attack

Jay Austin and Lauren Geoghegan were both killed at 29

(Newser) - Jay Austin and Lauren Geoghegan shook the dust of Washington, DC, off their feet—and the jobs that had kept them there—a year ago in order to bike around the world. The 29-year-olds' journey met a tragic end in Tajikistan on Sunday, with the Islamic State claiming credit for...

Strong Earthquake Strikes Afghanistan and Pakistan

There are reports of at least 30 injured in Peshawar, Pakistan

(Newser) - Reports of injuries and destruction are starting to trickle in after a strong earthquake hit near Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Tajikistan on Friday, the AP reports. Sources are putting the earthquake's magnitude between 6.2 and 6.9. According to ABC News , the epicenter was 176 miles from Kabul near...

Chance Photo Could Lift This Tajik Gardener Out of Poverty

Munira Mirzoyeva scores Internet fame on Atlas of Beauty

(Newser) - A Dushanbe city gardens worker in the capital of Tajikistan has become a local celebrity through a chance picture taken by a visiting Romanian photographer. Internet and local TV reports about 19-year-old Munira Mirzoyeva's inclusion in the Atlas of Beauty —an online compendium of the diversity of feminine...

US-Built Bridge Supports Afghan Drug Trade

$37M project facilitates opium smuggling into Tajikistan

(Newser) - A US-built bridge linking Afghanistan and Tajikistan that cost taxpayers $37 million has greatly benefited exporters of Afghan opium, McClatchy reports. The bridge over the Panj river was supposed to facilitate commerce between the two nations, but the surging flow of opium across Afghanistan’s northern border threatens to turn...

US to Expand Routes Into Afghanistan

Safer roads will depend on cooperation of Central Asian nations

(Newser) - More than four-fifths of the supplies for allied troops in Afghanistan travel via Pakistan along a treacherous route, prompting the US to plan new supply lines in the embattled region. The fragility of the current setup was laid bare after a Pakistani counter-militant offensive shut down the Khyber Pass yesterday,...

World Bank Offers $1.2B in Food Aid

Millions at risk of starvation

(Newser) - The World Bank is offering an emergency $1.2 billion in aid to several nations in a desperate bid to stave off starvation for millions of people, reports the BBC. The money is being offered to Haiti, Liberia, Djibouti, Togo, Yemen and other nations identified as at immediate risk from...

8 Stories