Taliban's further damage to women and to Afghanistan

A woman walks with a girl along a street in Kabul on May 7. AFP

An opportunity for bisht makers

With reference to the piece Messi's bisht maker sees business boom after World Cup (December 21): The British don’t like the Bisht, but the Argentines do. That's nice to see.

Bob Hosein, Western Cape, South Africa

Some of the fans or the football commentators criticising may not know the value of the bisht or the gesture, as the teams many of them supported were out early in the tournament. Secondly, they seemed to have had less of an interest in the World Cup than in their own political agendas. There was no point in paying attention to some of the thoroughly biased western views.

Najmul Ahmed, Ras Al Khaimah

It's interesting to see how around big world events and in their aftermath, there is usually an opportunity waiting. That is the world of business for you.

Jowahar Shalu, Coimbatore, India

When Zelenskyy and Biden met

About Ellie Sennett and Kyle Fitzgerald's report Zelenskyy tells US congress peace in Ukraine means 'no compromises' (December 21): Good to see a meeting of two such highly regarded persons.

Sabina Mariani, Milan Italy

The world is facing a crisis and many people just wish to see a countdown to peace and stability.

Yunis Ahmed, Nairobi, Kenya

Taliban's further denial of women's rights

With reference to the article Taliban ban Afghan women from universities (December 20): This is hardly a surprise. Many of us would have seen this coming as the Taliban are not known to stick to their word.

Jeff Holzl, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Our country is in the hands of the completely unworthy. This will set us back decades. One can only hope and pray that God protects our people from them and their backward policies.

Matiullah Nadim, Kabul, Afghanistan

It is very reasonable to ask why the regime in Kabul is so keen on not letting the country develop and holding back half of its population.

Louis A Sarwary, Hamburg, Germany

Braving the Atlantic to spread a message

With reference to Anjana Sankar's story UAE rowers full of Christmas cheer as they brave Atlantic storms (December 22): These men are doing an amazing thing. Even beyond the physical feat of such a journey, their determination is inspiring. We can learn from this. Wishing the three sea-farers lots of luck for the journey and in their larger goal to raise awareness about the dangers of marine pollution.

Cynthia Addawan, Cagayan de Oro, Philippines