Lawyers

• Afghanistan gave CIA money to al Qaeda for diplomat's ransom: NYT

  About $1 million provided by the CIA to a secret Afghan government fund ended up in the hands of al Qaeda in 2010 when it was used to pay a ransom for an Afghan diplomat, the New York Times reported on Saturday.

• Afghan cabinet nominee wanted by Interpol for tax evasion

  Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's nominee for agriculture minister in the new cabinet is on an Interpol wanted list for tax evasion in Estonia, a fact Ghani's spokesman said was unknown to his office at the time of his nomination.

• U.S. hands Pakistan senior militant detained in Afghanistan

  The United States has handed to Pakistan three prisoners including a senior Taliban militant held in Afghanistan, as Washington rushes to empty its Afghan prison before losing the legal right to detain people there at the end of the year.

• Historic, anxious handover as Afghanistan swears in new leader

  Afghanistan inaugurates its first new president in a decade on Monday, swearing in technocrat Ashraf Ghani to head a power-sharing government just as the withdrawal of most foreign troops presents a crucial test.

• Ghani named Afghan president-elect after deal to end election dispute

  Former Afghan finance minister Ashraf Ghani was named president-elect on Sunday after he signed a deal to share power with his opponent, ending months of turmoil over an election that destabilized the country as most foreign troops prepare to leave.

• Afghan presidential rivals at last reach unity deal after disputed vote

  The rival candidates in Afghanistan's messy election for a new president finally struck a power-sharing deal on Saturday, aides said, after more than two months of tension over a vote in which each side accused the other of fraud.

• Afghan court sentences seven men to death for gang rape in case that shook capital

  Afghanistan handed the death penalty to seven men on Sunday for raping and robbing a group of women returning from a wedding in a rare case of sexual assault that has shaken the capital and raised concerns over public security at a time of transition.