Afghanistan’s Tagab district is known for two things – its mouthwatering pomegranates and the constant fighting between Taliban militants and the Afghan government and foreign forces over the past 20 years.
The district, bordering the Kabul province to the south-east, is home to green valleys full of trees and walled gardens. Those gardens make it almost impossible to fight the Taliban.
That is one of the reasons it has been a stronghold for the militant group for many years.
An older villager from one of the valleys, a 10-minute drive from the centre of the district, told The National that whichever side took an area first, the other would not be able to retake it.
“If the Taliban took an army check post first, it was impossible for the security forces to recapture it,” he said. “It works the same way for the Taliban.”
The Taliban, however, have the privilege of knowing the villages well and has the support of local households.
Between Taliban and Afghan government forces and foreign troops fighting for territory, the people in the villages paid the price.
Haji Yosuf, a 43-year-old resident of Bar Sinzai, said his family and other villagers felt at peace only after Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, as fighting had stopped.
“For the past 15 years, we were not able to sleep on the roof of our house for fear that bullets would hit us,” he said.
People in the country's rural areas often sleep on the top of the house during spring and summer to escape the hot weather.
“The past two months have been peaceful,” said Mr Yosuf with a relaxed sigh.
For people like him, the Taliban's complete takeover of Afghanistan on August 15 means one thing: an end to the bloody war.
Mama Shafi, an elder from the district, in his 50s, remembers an incident when his neighbourhood was hit by a mortar.
“Three years ago, I was having green tea in the yard on a summer afternoon when I heard a loud noise followed by men and women screaming,” he said.
Later, he found out that a mortar had hit his neighbour’s house, killing at least one young girl and injuring two others from one family.
“I took one of the injured girls in my arms to the clinic,” Mr Shafi said. All the three girls were aged under 10.
The mortar was fired by the Afghan Army from the nearby military base.
Mr Shafi’s eldest son Hamid fought in the Taliban. In 2014, a drone attack killed a group of 12 Taliban militants. Hamid, 35, was among them.
Drone attacks in rural areas often resulted in civilian casualties and destruction of people’s houses and other properties during the 20 years of the US war on terror.
“They [drones] would attack the target wherever the target was. They didn’t care if the target was at home, a place of worship or another public place,” one elder villager said.
One of Mr Shafi’s younger sons, Jamshid, 8, was killed along with two cousins, aged 4 and 6, when Afghan Army members opened fire as they tried to enter their village.
“Mama Shafi’s family were invited to another village but his wife stayed at home. When Jamshid and two of his cousins were on the way to bring food for his mother, the soldiers shot them,” one of Mr Shafi’s relatives said.
Khalid, 31, a young gardener who works on the pomegranate fields, said raids by foreign troops were regular.
“We were all disturbed by night raids,” he said. “The troops would explode the door in the middle of night to enter a house for a search. There wasn’t any month that the French soldiers didn’t enter our house at least once.”
Since 2009, the French Army, along with the Afghan National Army and the Afghan Local Police, have been responsible for fighting the Taliban in the area.
Afghan-American national security analyst Arash Yaqin believes many people in rural Afghanistan have been victims of insurgency groups, night raids and air strikes.
"The success or failure of military raids and air strikes firmly depend on the local circumstances," he said. "While they have succeeded in other parts of the world, it didn't achieve its objectives in Afghanistan."
He said the two military tools have had adverse effects on the people in rural areas and even helped the Taliban gain more support.
"The Afghan government and the international community have lost more hearts and minds among the local population as a result of night raids and air strikes, particularly those that hit civilians," Mr Yaqin said.
"They even helped the Taliban find safe havens in the Afghan villages."
A villager in the district called Ibrahim said Afghan soldiers from the army and militia “were crueller than the foreign troops”.
He said one army commander would shoot mortars towards the villages solely to scare people – and caused casualties in some cases.
Although in peace since the Taliban took control of Kabul, the district is facing drought and a broader worsening economic crisis – there has been less snow than last winter and no rain so far.
“We had a lot of water in previous years. This year, the river has had no water throughout the year,” Mr Yosuf said.
Mr Shafi blames the US for the economic crisis because no major infrastructure projects have been introduced in the past 20 years.
“The US has frozen our money and tried to collapse our system of government,” he said.
The fast-approaching winter will affect people in the district as prices of food have already risen by more than 30 per cent. The UN Development Programme predicts more than 97 per cent of the country’s population will face a food crisis by the middle of next year.
But Mr Shafi and other members of his village are hopeful that Taliban rule will improve the situation for them.
“The Taliban are making progress, as we see it,” he said.
Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
The Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index
Mazen Abukhater, principal and actuary at global consultancy Mercer, Middle East, says the company’s Melbourne Mercer Global Pension Index - which benchmarks 34 pension schemes across the globe to assess their adequacy, sustainability and integrity - included Saudi Arabia for the first time this year to offer a glimpse into the region.
The index highlighted fundamental issues for all 34 countries, such as a rapid ageing population and a low growth / low interest environment putting pressure on expected returns. It also highlighted the increasing popularity around the world of defined contribution schemes.
“Average life expectancy has been increasing by about three years every 10 years. Someone born in 1947 is expected to live until 85 whereas someone born in 2007 is expected to live to 103,” Mr Abukhater told the Mena Pensions Conference.
“Are our systems equipped to handle these kind of life expectancies in the future? If so many people retire at 60, they are going to be in retirement for 43 years – so we need to adapt our retirement age to our changing life expectancy.”
Saudi Arabia came in the middle of Mercer’s ranking with a score of 58.9. The report said the country's index could be raised by improving the minimum level of support for the poorest aged individuals and increasing the labour force participation rate at older ages as life expectancies rise.
Mr Abukhater said the challenges of an ageing population, increased life expectancy and some individuals relying solely on their government for financial support in their retirement years will put the system under strain.
“To relieve that pressure, governments need to consider whether it is time to switch to a defined contribution scheme so that individuals can supplement their own future with the help of government support,” he said.
Teaching your child to save
Pre-school (three - five years)
You can’t yet talk about investing or borrowing, but introduce a “classic” money bank and start putting gifts and allowances away. When the child wants a specific toy, have them save for it and help them track their progress.
Early childhood (six - eight years)
Replace the money bank with three jars labelled ‘saving’, ‘spending’ and ‘sharing’. Have the child divide their allowance into the three jars each week and explain their choices in splitting their pocket money. A guide could be 25 per cent saving, 50 per cent spending, 25 per cent for charity and gift-giving.
Middle childhood (nine - 11 years)
Open a bank savings account and help your child establish a budget and set a savings goal. Introduce the notion of ‘paying yourself first’ by putting away savings as soon as your allowance is paid.
Young teens (12 - 14 years)
Change your child’s allowance from weekly to monthly and help them pinpoint long-range goals such as a trip, so they can start longer-term saving and find new ways to increase their saving.
Teenage (15 - 18 years)
Discuss mutual expectations about university costs and identify what they can help fund and set goals. Don’t pay for everything, so they can experience the pride of contributing.
Young adulthood (19 - 22 years)
Discuss post-graduation plans and future life goals, quantify expenses such as first apartment, work wardrobe, holidays and help them continue to save towards these goals.
* JP Morgan Private Bank
FA Cup quarter-final draw
The matches will be played across the weekend of 21 and 22 March
Sheffield United v Arsenal
Newcastle v Manchester City
Norwich v Derby/Manchester United
Leicester City v Chelsea
Meydan racecard:
6.30pm: Handicap | US$135,000 (Dirt) | 1,400 metres
7.05pm: Handicap | $135,000 (Turf) | 1,200m
7.40pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes | Group 3 | $200,000 (T) | 2,000m
8.15pm: UAE Oaks | Group 3 | $250,000 (D) | 1,900m
8.50pm: Zabeel Mile | Group 2 | $250,000 (T) | 1,600m
9.20pm: Handicap | $135,000 (T) | 1,600m
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
THE BIO
Favourite car: Koenigsegg Agera RS or Renault Trezor concept car.
Favourite book: I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes or Red Notice by Bill Browder.
Biggest inspiration: My husband Nik. He really got me through a lot with his positivity.
Favourite holiday destination: Being at home in Australia, as I travel all over the world for work. It’s great to just hang out with my husband and family.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
info-box
COMPANY PROFILE
Company name: Happy Tenant
Started: January 2019
Co-founders: Joe Moufarrej and Umar Rana
Based: Dubai
Sector: Technology, real-estate
Initial investment: Dh2.5 million
Investors: Self-funded
Total customers: 4,000
Top tips to avoid cyber fraud
Microsoft’s ‘hacker-in-chief’ David Weston, creator of the tech company’s Windows Red Team, advises simple steps to help people avoid falling victim to cyber fraud:
1. Always get the latest operating system on your smartphone or desktop, as it will have the latest innovations. An outdated OS can erode away all investments made in securing your device or system.
2. After installing the latest OS version, keep it patched; this means repairing system vulnerabilities which are discovered after the infrastructure components are released in the market. The vast majority of attacks are based on out of date components – there are missing patches.
3. Multi-factor authentication is required. Move away from passwords as fast as possible, particularly for anything financial. Cybercriminals are targeting money through compromising the users’ identity – his username and password. So, get on the next level of security using fingertips or facial recognition.
4. Move your personal as well as professional data to the cloud, which has advanced threat detection mechanisms and analytics to spot any attempt. Even if you are hit by some ransomware, the chances of restoring the stolen data are higher because everything is backed up.
5. Make the right hardware selection and always refresh it. We are in a time where a number of security improvement processes are reliant on new processors and chip sets that come with embedded security features. Buy a new personal computer with a trusted computing module that has fingerprint or biometric cameras as additional measures of protection.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League final:
Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
When: Saturday, May 26, 10.45pm (UAE)
TV: Match on BeIN Sports
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Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
The Library: A Catalogue of Wonders
Stuart Kells, Counterpoint Press
Wicked: For Good
Director: Jon M Chu
Starring: Ariana Grande, Cynthia Erivo, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh, Ethan Slater
Rating: 4/5
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3EName%3A%20Cashew%0D%3Cbr%3EStarted%3A%202020%0D%3Cbr%3EFounders%3A%20Ibtissam%20Ouassif%20and%20Ammar%20Afif%0D%3Cbr%3EBased%3A%20Dubai%2C%20UAE%0D%3Cbr%3EIndustry%3A%20FinTech%0D%3Cbr%3EFunding%20size%3A%20%2410m%0D%3Cbr%3EInvestors%3A%20Mashreq%2C%20others%0D%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
More on Quran memorisation:
Company profile
Name: GiftBag.ae
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2011
Number of employees: 4
Sector: E-commerce
Funding: Self-funded to date
