MAZAR - More than 300 people in Mazar-i-Sharif came out to hear what their government is doing for them. They sat in two long tables facing each other, government officials on one side, provincial council members representing local residents on the other.

KUNDUZ - An ancient regional type of wrestling and body building is being revised in northern Afghanistan, where the Kunduz Zurkhaneh Sports Federation was established with support from the Afghan Olympic Committee.

KABUL - With winter approaching, the top Afghan agricultural official said more than the usual 30 per cent of the population is expected to fall under the poverty line due to a poor harvest spurred by dry conditions, rising food prices and instability.