Opium production has dropped sharply in Afghanistan, but trafficking in the region is on the rise, according to a Thursday report by the United Nations.

The death toll from an earthquake in northern Afghanistan is climbing, and hundreds of families have lost their homes as the harsh winter arrives.

O pium farming in Afghanistan has dropped significantly following a ban imposed by the Taliban government in 2022, the United Nations said. The total area of land for growing opium poppy shrank 20% since last year, while the amount of opium has fallen by 32% over the same period, the UN's Office on Drugs and Crime said in a survey.

Having lost his job as a police trainer after the Taliban takeover last August, Hussain Ali moved back to his village in Afghanistan's central highlands with the intention of farming once more to provide for his family.

Afghanistan's Taliban government says a powerful earthquake in the country's north has killed at least 20 people and left hundreds injured.

Survivors of a powerful earthquake in northern Afghanistan are digging through the rubble of their homes after spending a bitterly cold night outdoors.

Women in Afghanistan are being forced to undergo so-called virginity tests, more than two years after a law requiring consent was introduced, researchers said on Thursday.

Afghan players fled the country in 2021 after the Taliban banned women's sports. Their return to international competition sent a powerful message.

Photojournalist Lorenzo Tugnoli was in Afghanistan between 2019-2023, a pivotal time of transition and upheaval.