ISLAMABAD: Ariana Afghan Airlines is beginning regular twice-weekly services from Kabul to Islamabad, the state-owned operator said on Thursday, joining Kam Air which has begun flying five times a week between the two cities.
Ariana, which began regular services to Dubai this week, will operate flights between Kabul and Islamabad on Thursdays and Mondays, charging $400 from Kabul and $100 from Islamabad.
Earlier this week, privately owned Kam Air started services five times a week to Islamabad as international air traffic gradually reopens following the Taliban's seizure of power in Kabul in August.
The announcement from Ariana came as the Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi was visiting Islamabad for talks that are expected to cover issues including aviation links between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Some charter services have been flying to Kabul since the Taliban takeover but normally scheduled commercial flights had been suspended.
With an economy in deep crisis and continuing concerns about Afghanistan's future under the Taliban, there has been huge demand from people wishing to leave Afghanistan, made worse by repeated problems at land border crossings into Pakistan.
Pakistan International Airlines suspended its charter service to Kabul from Islamabad last month, citing interference from Taliban authorities, who had warned the airline it should cut its ticket prices
Ariana Afghan Airlines begins flights from Kabul to Islamabad
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Ariana Afghan Airlines begins flights from Kabul to Islamabad
- Ariana will operate flights between Kabul and Islamabad, charging $400 from Kabul and $100 from Islamabad
- Announcement from Ariana comes as the Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is visiting Islamabad
Bangladesh’s religio-political party open to unity govt
- Opinion polls suggest that Jamaat-e-Islami will finish a close second to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in the first election it has contested in nearly 17 years
DHAKA: A once-banned Bangladeshi religio-political party, poised for its strongest electoral showing in February’s parliamentary vote, is open to joining a unity government and has held talks with several parties, its chief said.
Opinion polls suggest that Jamaat-e-Islami will finish a close second to the Bangladesh Nationalist Party in the first election it has contested in nearly 17 years as it marks a return to mainstream politics in the predominantly Muslim nation of 175 million.
Jamaat last held power between 2001 and 2006 as a junior coalition partner with the BNP and is open to working with it again.
“We want to see a stable nation for at least five years. If the parties come together, we’ll run the government together,” Jamaat chief Shafiqur Rahman said in an interview at his office in a residential area in Dhaka, days after the party created a buzz by securing a tie-up with a Gen-Z party.
Rahman said anti-corruption must be a shared agenda for any unity government.
The prime minister will come from the party winning the most seats in the Feb. 12 election, he added. If Jamaat wins the most seats, the party will decide whether he himself would be a candidate, Rahman said.
The party’s resurgence follows the ousting of long-time Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a youth-led uprising in August 2024.
Rahman said Hasina’s continued stay in India after fleeing Dhaka was a concern, as ties between the two countries have hit their lowest point in decades since her downfall.
Asked about Jamaat’s historical closeness to Pakistan, Rahman said: “We maintain relations in a balanced way with all.”
He said any government that includes Jamaat would “not feel comfortable” with President Mohammed Shahabuddin, who was elected unopposed with the Awami League’s backing in 2023.
