Photo taken on Nov. 30, 2021 shows the site of a blast in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan. (Photo by Aria/Xinhua/IANS/IANS)
Monday’s incident took place around lunchtime when the city is especially crowded as government office staff leave early for the day during the Islamic holy month of Ramzan….reports Asian Lite News
At least six civilians were killed and several others, including three Taliban security force personnel, were wounded in a suicide attack near a security checkpoint leading to the foreign ministry in Kabul on Monday, reported Tolo News.
The blast occurred near a security checkpoint in Malik Azghar Square in Kabul, a spokesman for the Kabul security department, Khalid Zadran said. Monday’s incident took place around lunchtime when the city is especially crowded as government office staff leave early for the day during the Islamic holy month of Ramzan.
According to the Khaama Press, the blast happened when the Ministry of foreign affairs employees left their offices.
“In Malik Azghar Square … a suicide attacker before reaching the target was identified at a check point and killed, but his explosives detonated,” said Kabul police spokesperson Khalid Zadran. He said several people were injured, including three Taliban security force members.
Earlier, the eyewitnesses confirmed to Tolo News that a blast happened on Foreign Ministry’s road near the Daudzai Trade Center, and they also described it as a heavy explosion.
Meanwhile, the Emergency NGO in Kabul said on Twitter that it received 12 wounded from the blast near Foreign Ministry this afternoon while two other victims were already dead on arrival.
It added that one child is among those wounded in the explosion.
Taliban authorities have not commented yet.No one has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.
Several ambulances reached to the area to transfer the injured people to Wazir Akbar Khan hospital, reported Khaama Press.
Kabul and other urban areas have been hit by several attacks in recent months, some of which have been claimed by Islamic State militants.
A blast in January killed at least five people and injured dozens at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as employees streamed out of the building at the end of the working day.
The Taliban administration has said it is focused on securing the country and that it has carried out several raids against suspected Islamic State members in recent weeks. (ANI)
Afghanistan is now the only country that forbids girls from attending secondary school…reports Asian Lite News
In a recently released report, Human Rights Watch (HRW) has asked the Taliban regime to lift the prohibition on girls’ education and reopen the schools and universities for women in Afghanistan, reported Khaama Press.
According to the report, Afghanistan is the only country that forbids girls from attending secondary school at the moment, and the ruling Taliban regime should cease undermining the future of girls, women, and the nation. The organisation expressed concern about how the Taliban’s gender-based discrimination has harmed the prospects of women and girls in Afghanistan as well as the world’s complacent approach to dealing with the group.
Afghanistan is now the only country that forbids girls from attending secondary school, thanks to the Taliban regime. They had pledged to uphold everyone’s rights, especially those of women and girls.
Nevertheless, as the new academic year got underway, they sent teenage girls back home, according to Sahar Fetrat, an assistant researcher at HRW’s women’s rights division, according to Khaama Press.
In March 2022, the caretaker regime reopened secondary school for boys, but girls in grades seven through twelve were not permitted to enrol. Female employees of non-governmental aid organisations were also subject to the bans when they were increased in December, which drew harsh criticism both within Afghanistan and abroad.
Afghanistan, which has the worst rate of illiteracy in the world, is facing a bleak future, according to an HRW assessment. “No country can conceive a happy future without educated girls and women,” the report concluded.
Afghanistan, Sep 07 (ANI): Afghan nationals including women shout slogans during a protest outside the Pakistan embassy, in Kabul on Tuesday. (ANI Photo)
The statement also emphasised how the Taliban expanded on their contempt for women by outlawing women’s higher education last year. Hence, HRW urged the world leader to act swiftly, pragmatically, and meaningfully to stop the Taliban’s ongoing repression of Afghan women and girls.
Notably, the Taliban were publicly criticized globally after closing Paktia girls’ schools after a brief opening.
It sparked serious reactions inside and outside of Afghanistan. On Saturday, dozens of girls took to the streets in the centre of Paktia to protest the closing of their schools, reported Tolo News.
The videos of the protests went viral on social media and triggered strong reactions by the Afghan public as well as famous politicians and human rights defenders.
Several human rights and education activists had urged world leaders in an open letter recently to mount diplomatic pressure on the Taliban to reopen secondary schools for girls in the war-torn country as the Taliban’s brutal regime in Afghanistan will soon complete a year in August.
Young girls and women have been compromising with their aspirations as it has been almost 300 days since their development has been distorted, the activists said adding, that if this situation persists, their aims and hopes will suffer greatly, reported Khaama Press.
World leaders, regional allies, and international organizations were urged in the letter to take serious actions to fulfil their commitments in order to promote and protect Afghan girls’ rights, especially the right to education which was snatched away from them after the Taliban-led Afghan government banned the education for girls in classes 6 and above, Khaama Press reported. (ANI)
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid speaks during a press briefing in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Nov. 10, 2021. (Photo by Saifurahman Safi/Xinhua/IANS)
The Afghan caretaker government, which has downplayed Daesh, or the IS group, as a serious threat, has vowed to crack down on any armed opponents in the war-ravaged country….reports Asian Lite News
The Taliban-led caretaker government in Afghanistan has dismissed Washington’s claim over the alleged stronger presence of Daesh or Islamic State (IS) in Afghanistan as utterly fabricated.
“The statements of US officials about the number of IS militants in Afghanistan are not true. Daesh militants have already been reduced in ranks and suppressed,” chief spokesman of the Afghan caretaker administration Zabihullah Mujahid tweeted.
US Central Command chief Gen. Michael Kurilla, according to media reports, has said “IS is stronger today in Afghanistan” and warned of a possible IS attack on the interests of US and allied nations within six months, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Brushing aside the baseless allegations by the US general on the IS strength in Afghanistan, Mujahid said on his Twitter account, “The interest of the US officials in this matter and their grandiosity is aiding and abetting the IS insurgents, which should be stopped.”
The Afghan caretaker government, which has downplayed Daesh, or the IS group, as a serious threat, has vowed to crack down on any armed opponents in the war-ravaged country.
The Afghan security forces have killed four armed militants affiliated with the rival IS group in two separate operations on the outskirts of Kabul over the past week.
IS weaponry found
The Afghan security forces have discovered a weapon cache and mine-making center of Daesh, or Islamic State (IS), in Shiberghan, the capital of Afghanistan’s northern Jawzjan province, the provincial police chief said on Sunday.
Acting on a tip-off, the security forces raided a house in Sakhi Abad village of Shiberghan on Saturday and discovered a variety of arms and ammunition, including a suicide vest, hand grenades and objects used in making mines and explosive devices, Shah Mohammad Ahmadi said, Xinhua News Agency reported.
The official didn’t say whether anyone had been arrested.
However, the police chief claimed that the IS-affiliated militants were planning to launch subversive activities but their plot had been foiled.
In similar operations, the Afghan security forces discovered and seized arms and ammunition, including 17 AK-47 assault rifles, in the eastern Kunar province.
The Afghan forces have intensified their crackdown on the rival IS outfit and in the latest operations have killed four IS-affiliated militants on the outskirts of Kabul over the past week.
The fact that Pakistan is now fighting against the Taliban to safeguard its border regions indicates a more significant policy failure…reports Asian Lite News
Recently, a high-level Pakistani delegation comprising Defence Minister, DG ISI, and Foreign Secretary visited Kabul and held discussions with the Taliban.
While both sides were reticent to discuss the outcomes of the meetings, it is evident that the recent spike in violence constituted the core of the discussions, the Politeia Research Foundation said in a report. In February, a suicide squad carried out a brazen attack on the Karachi Police Office and killed five people. Earlier, the bombing of a Peshawar mosque, located in a highly secured police headquarters, killed approximately 100 people.
There were also frequent clashes between the Taliban fighters and Pakistan border guards. All these developments point to the deteriorating security situation at the Afghan-Pak border, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
The Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021 was supposed to be a significant victory for Pakistan. However, since the takeover, Pakistan lost an estimated 637 security personnel and 314 civilians in 543 terrorist attacks primarily carried out by Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
There was a resurgence of TTP after the Taliban released all the terrorists from Afghan jails. After a prolonged Pakistani mediation between the Afghan Taliban and the US, the tables turned with the Taliban mediating peace talks between TTP and Pakistan government, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
It is a paradox that, despite a prolonged and intense engagement, Pakistan’s Afghan policy lacks a long-term approach and is guided by elusive objectives such as gaining ‘strategic depth’.
Many policymakers in Pakistan, such as Hamid Gul, former Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), noted that the absence of strategic depth dictated Pakistan’s Afghan policy.
The objective of gaining strategic depth in Afghanistan serves the corporate interest of the Pakistan military and gives it significant influence in defining security policies.
While Pakistan’s leaders may blame the superpowers for entrapping their country in geopolitical conflicts, it should be noted that they sought to define the trajectory of the Great Game in the region. Further, Pakistan’s leadership was keen on leveraging its strategic location and willingly played along with the machinations of the big powers in Afghanistan at enormous economic and human costs. The narrative of strategic depth validated such proactive participation, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
An elusive search for strategic depth and immediate security considerations coloured Pakistan’s Afghan policy. For example, in the 80s’ Pakistan supported the Mujahidin against the Soviet Union with the help of the US, then helped Mullah Omar to establish the Taliban to fight against the same Mujahidin.
In 2001, Pakistan joined the Americans in War on Terror against the Taliban and subsequently went on to help the Taliban against the US. Pakistan leadership may interpret, with pride, that these shifts indicate an ability to adapt to changing circumstances, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
However, the fact that Pakistan is now fighting against the Taliban to safeguard its border regions indicates a more significant policy failure.
The skewed security policies of Pakistan are located in its inability to forge an inclusive nationalist framework since its inception. In addition, internal power politics and narrow personal interests of political leadership did not allow inclusive nationalism to flourish.
Subsequently, the military took control of political power and relied on geopolitical events to conceptualise Pakistan’s national identity. After the separation and independence of Bangladesh in 1971, the rhetoric of protecting Pakistan’s territorial integrity became even more prominent.
The issue of the disputed border between Pakistan-Afghanistan (the Durand Line), which stretched from China to Iran, acquired greater salience, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
The alleged need for a ‘strategic depth’ and consolidating the western border probably constitute the primary objectives that provide context to Pakistan’s Afghan policies. Pakistan’s military leveraged the Cold War and, subsequently, the War on Terror to promote leaders favourable to Islamabad in Afghanistan while outsourcing the bills of such strategies to the West in general and the US in particular.
The dependence on external actors for the financial resources to execute its strategy prompted Pakistan to maintain the facade of cooperation with the US policy in Afghanistan.
Pakistan also sought to build a robust ideological base to legitimise its interventionist policies in Afghanistan. The Islamic identity of Pakistan was radicalised during the Zia regime through strengthening institutional frameworks such as establishing separate Shariat judicial courts and sponsoring thousands of madrasas, which dictated the terms of engagement with Mujahidin and subsequently with the Taliban, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
Supporting the Jihad against the Soviet Union, providing a safe haven to the Taliban, and being the only Muslim country with nuclear weapons fostered Pakistan’s self-perception as a protectorate of Islam. Moreover, the growing religious radicalism in Pakistan also helped the government to use religious ideology to reach out or create different factions in Afghanistan.
It should be noted that most of the Taliban leadership studied in Haqqani madrasas that were funded by Pakistan Government.
However, Pakistan’s interventionist policies in Afghanistan had severe limitations. First, in the eyes of extremist groups, Pakistan’s establishment is a pawn of the US. The trust and legitimacy of the Pakistan military are fast eroding among various religious groups.
Second, Pakistan’s attempts to harden the Durand Line by fencing, building military posts and regulating the cross-border flow of people have not yielded the anticipated results. The resurgence of TTP clashes on the Durand Line, and the inability to take control of the situation internally suggests that Pakistan still needs to achieve its objectives of consolidating the Durand Line, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
Third, there is growing discontent among the various ethnic groups, such as the Baluchis and the Pashtuns. However, the persistent economic crisis means that Islamabad does not have space to address disenchantment in minority ethnic groups through development policies.
Fourth, the deterioration of the security situation impacts the already weakened economy by keeping away foreign investors. Further, there are reports that China is worried about the security of BRI projects. To overcome the economic crisis, Pakistani leadership has often resorted to quick fixes, such as external borrowing from the Middle East, China, IMF and others.
Photo taken with mobile phone on Aug. 22, 2021 shows trucks waiting to cross border at a border crossing point between Pakistan and Afghanistan, in southwest Pakistan’s Chaman. (Str/Xinhua/IANS)
However, such borrowings meant growing concerns about the loss of sovereignty.
Despite the willingness to pay for such costly outcomes, Pakistan failed to develop a consensus among the international community to provide substantive economic aid to its friends in Afghanistan.
The takeover of Kabul by the Taliban in August 2021 should have forced Pakistan to rethink its Afghanistan strategy. However, there is no evidence that Islamabad has learnt its lessons. Therefore, international donors must reflect honestly on whether Pakistan can achieve economic growth without addressing regressive religious ideologies and imprudent security frameworks, the Politeia Research Foundation reported.
Given the ungoverned spaces in Pakistan, some wonder whether Afghanistan, in consonance with its territorial claims, will find greater strategic space to its East in the coming years. (ANI)
Taliban has imposed draconian restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly and movement for women and girls…reports Asian Lite News
Banning females from attaining education is a very serious issue for Afghanistan and the children of our country, former Afghan President Hamid Karzai said in a statement to a Canada-based news organisation, reported Khaama Press on Tuesday.
Calling girls’ education a ‘primary concern’ for the Afghan people, he added that education is the foundation of a country’s well-being, not only for Afghanistan but for every other society. He also expressed his concern about how young people are leaving the country at a tremendous rate since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, which in return has proved to be a massive loss for the country.
“Leaving people from the country, especially young, educated ones adding that this is a disaster and a massive loss for the country, as it is already suffering the lack of proper human capital,” Khaama Press quoted Karzai as saying.
The de facto authorities of Afghanistan, after seizing power in August 2021 have restricted women’s and girls’ freedom of movement, barred girls from attending secondary school, excluded women from the majority of the workforce, and forbade women from using public restrooms and gyms, reported the Afghan news agency.
Reverse decrees limiting women’s rights, UN urges Taliban.(Photo : Twitter.com/unwomenafghan)
Taliban has imposed draconian restrictions on the rights to freedom of expression, association, assembly and movement for women and girls.
The Taliban’s decision to ban female students above grade six from going to school has drawn widespread criticism at the national and international levels.
A number of international bodies, including the United Nations and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, expressed concern over restrictions on women’s and girls’ education and work. Since the Taliban took control, the basic rights of women and girls have been violated. (ANI)
Despite receiving humanitarian assistance, Afghanistan’s poverty, malnutrition, and unemployment rates are still at their peak in the country…reports Asian Lite News
Afghanistan has sought help from the United Nations (UN) amid rising concerns about drought in the war-stricken country, asking the UN to provide storage facilities for wheat, TOLOnews reported.
According to the Afghan news agency, the chamber of agriculture and livestock has called the UN to help the country regarding the same and said that it will in turn help Afghanistan boost its economy. Notably, Afghanistan’s economy turned upside down after the Taliban seized power in the country in August 2021. Since then, the nation is under a severe humanitarian crisis as the citizens continue to live miserable lives.
Quoting Mirwais Hajizada, the deputy head of Afghanistan’s chamber of agriculture and livestock as saying, TOLOnews reported, “The international community and other countries need to support Afghanistan under the current situation.”
Regarding the ongoing food crisis, a spokesperson for the Taliban-led agriculture ministry, Musbahuhddin Mustaeen said, “The ministry of agriculture has sent the plan to the cabinet to allocate the purchase budget of 100,000 tons of wheat for emergency situations.”
Despite receiving humanitarian assistance from across the globe, Afghanistan’s poverty, malnutrition, and unemployment rates are still at their peak in the country.
Highlighting Afghanistan’s situation, an analyst, Qutbuddin Yaqubi said, “Afghanistan needs six to eight million metric tons of wheat every year. Fortunately, nearly five million metric tons of it is supplied from domestic sources and the rest is supplied from foreign sources,” according to TOLOnews.
Continued discrimination against more than half the population of the country continues to affect the growth of Afghanistan as a country.
In August 2021, the Taliban seized control of Afghanistan and enacted laws severely curtailing the fundamental rights of the people, especially those of women and girls. (ANI)
People cross border into Pakistan at the border crossing point of Torkham between Pakistan and Afghanistan on Sept. 5, 2021. (Photo by Saeed Ahmad/Xinhua/IANS)
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled Afghanistan to the neighboring countries fearing persecution…reports Asian Lite News
Over 2,000 Afghan refugees had returned back to their nation from Iran and Pakistan, Taliban appointed Refugees and Repatriation department announced, according to Khaama Press.
Taking to Twitter, the Refugees, and Repatriation department, on Saturday, said that 1851 Afghan refugees from Iran and 331 others from Pakistan returned home through Spin Boldak and Islamqala crossing points. The department further revealed that out of 331 refugees, 70 are the ones who were released from Pakistani prisons following the mediation of the Afghan Embassy in Islamabad.
Earlier, Pakistani prison released 26 Afghan detainees, Khaama Press reported.
The detainees were brought from the prisons in Pakistan through the Spin Boldak border crossing.
Afghanistan’s department of Refugees and Repatriation, on Wednesday, said that women and children were imprisoned in Sindh because of the lack of residency documents. They were among the detainees who had been released.
Over the past few months, hundreds of undocumented Afghan nationals, including women and children, have been imprisoned in Pakistan’s prisons, including Karachi and Sindh, confronting fierce criticism by national and international entities, according to Khaama Press.
The organizations, particularly the Pakistan Human Rights Commission and the UN Refugee Agency, urged the government of Pakistan to treat Afghan citizens decently, reported Khaama Press.
137 Afghan citizens were released from Karachi prison earlier this month and returned home.
Moreover, it is reported that a considerable number of Afghan migrants return to Afghanistan from Iran and Pakistan over the past months. Some of these refugees chose to come back home willingly, others are forced to leave the host countries.
Since the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021, thousands of Afghans fled Afghanistan to the neighboring countries fearing persecution and death threats. Most of these people entered host countries through illegal channels, now facing serious problems including forceful deportation and imprisonment. (ANI)
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs….reports Asian Lite News
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, over 50 per cent of journalists lost their jobs and half of the media outlets were closed for many reasons, particularly financial issues, TOLOnews reported citing Afghanistan National Journalists Union (ANJU) report.
The report revealed that 53 per cent of journalists lost their employment and 50 per cent of the media outlets were closed for many reasons published on the occasion of National Journalist’s Day in Afghanistan. “Most media employees have left Afghanistan. The media community is facing several problems. It faces economic difficulties, and restrictions have been placed on the media’s activities in Afghanistan. Besides this, the suspension or closure of the protective laws of the media community is a big challenge,” said Masroor Lutfi, a member of (ANJU).
Meanwhile, several journalists expressed concerns regarding the lack of information access and economic difficulties on National Journalists’ Day, according to TOLOnews.
Journalists asked the Islamic Emirate to address their challenges, especially in the area of access to information.
“Twenty-seven of Hoot, the Journalist’s Day, is celebrated when the lack of information access continues to be considered a difficulty and this community is still dealing with major economic issues,” said Raqib Fayaz, a journalist.
“We ask government officials and related officials to pay serious attention to the problems of journalists and ensure their safety,” said Mustafa Shahriar, a journalist.
But, the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture said that they are committed to upholding journalists’ rights and that efforts are being made to increase the facilities available to them, reported TOLOnews.
According to the United Nations, in 2022, more than 200 violation cases have been recorded against journalists in Afghanistan which include arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment, harassment, threats, and intimidation.
Media freedom in Afghanistan has gone from bad to worse and journalists are suffering from low morale under the ruling regime. Many reporters have been arrested, persecuted and threatened with death for reporting sensitive issues which are not to the likes of Taliban authorities across the country, reported Khaama Press.
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs.
Female Afghan journalists suffer from double pressure for being a journalist and a woman. The latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban restricting women from attending university, working with government or non-governmental aid organizations, and appearing in public places, have also affected female journalists, according to Khaama Press.
TOLO News recently reported that as the Taliban’s crackdown on journalists and media personnel continues in Afghanistan, numerous journalists in Paktia province on Friday criticized limited access to information and claimed that this has a negative influence on their operations as their basic rights to work are being challenged under the regime of the organization.
They claimed that they are not getting timely information from officials. “It is the responsibility of officials and relevant organizations to provide accurate and timely information to the media,” said a reporter, Abdul Rahman Wayand.
The journalists urged the authorities to fulfil their duty to grant access to information. A number of journalists in the Afghan province also complained that their issues are no longer being addressed in the nation since certain departments refuse to provide the media with any information on certain cases, according to TOLOnews. (ANI)
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, over 50 per cent of journalists lost their jobs and half of the media outlets were closed for many reasons, particularly financial issues, TOLOnews reported citing Afghanistan National Journalists Union (ANJU) report.
The report revealed that 53 per cent of journalists lost their employment and 50 per cent of the media outlets were closed for many reasons published on the occasion of National Journalist’s Day in Afghanistan. “Most media employees have left Afghanistan. The media community is facing several problems. It faces economic difficulties, and restrictions have been placed on the media’s activities in Afghanistan. Besides this, the suspension or closure of the protective laws of the media community is a big challenge,” said Masroor Lutfi, a member of (ANJU).
Meanwhile, several journalists expressed concerns regarding the lack of information access and economic difficulties on National Journalists’ Day, according to TOLOnews.
Journalists asked the Islamic Emirate to address their challenges, especially in the area of access to information.
“Twenty-seven of Hoot, the Journalist’s Day, is celebrated when the lack of information access continues to be considered a difficulty and this community is still dealing with major economic issues,” said Raqib Fayaz, a journalist.
“We ask government officials and related officials to pay serious attention to the problems of journalists and ensure their safety,” said Mustafa Shahriar, a journalist.
But, the Taliban’s Ministry of Information and Culture said that they are committed to upholding journalists’ rights and that efforts are being made to increase the facilities available to them, reported TOLOnews.
According to the United Nations, in 2022, more than 200 violation cases have been recorded against journalists in Afghanistan which include arbitrary arrest, ill-treatment, harassment, threats, and intimidation.
Media freedom in Afghanistan has gone from bad to worse and journalists are suffering from low morale under the ruling regime. Many reporters have been arrested, persecuted and threatened with death for reporting sensitive issues which are not to the likes of Taliban authorities across the country, reported Khaama Press.
Many radio, and TV stations and news agencies have closed their doors, with some estimates indicating that more than 6,000 journalists have lost their jobs.
Female Afghan journalists suffer from double pressure for being a journalist and a woman. The latest restrictions imposed by the Taliban restricting women from attending university, working with government or non-governmental aid organizations, and appearing in public places, have also affected female journalists, according to Khaama Press.
TOLO News recently reported that as the Taliban’s crackdown on journalists and media personnel continues in Afghanistan, numerous journalists in Paktia province on Friday criticized limited access to information and claimed that this has a negative influence on their operations as their basic rights to work are being challenged under the regime of the organization.
They claimed that they are not getting timely information from officials. “It is the responsibility of officials and relevant organizations to provide accurate and timely information to the media,” said a reporter, Abdul Rahman Wayand.
The journalists urged the authorities to fulfil their duty to grant access to information. A number of journalists in the Afghan province also complained that their issues are no longer being addressed in the nation since certain departments refuse to provide the media with any information on certain cases, according to TOLOnews. (ANI)
Pakistan Taliban vows to step up war for free homeland, tells Pakistani soldiers to give up arms.(photo:IN)
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the situation of females in the country has only gone worse…reports Asian Lite News
As female education continues to suffer majorly in Afghanistan under the Taliban regime, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is all set to send a team of scholars to the country to discuss women’s right to education and work with the regime, TOLOnews reported.
The Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Hissein Brahim Taha announced the scholars’ team on the first day of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s meeting in Mauritania. He said that OIC will continue to voice concerns for the education of Afghan women and girls with the Taliban and will also send an expanded team of scholars to Afghanistan for dialogue on related aspects.
Since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the situation of females in the country has only gone worse. Females in the country are prohibited from leadership posts and are not allowed to travel unless accompanied by a male companion.
Almost 40 countries sent representatives to the 49th OCI meeting, which took place in Mauritania on March 16 and 17, TOLOnews reported.
However the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirates of Afghanistan, Zabiullah Mujahid refuted the claims of women being treated in an unfair manner in the country and said, “We are trying to solve our problems in education and employment in terms of women’s issues. Efforts are underway but it takes time. The issue will be solved soon,” according to TOLOnews.
The Taliban promised to reopen all schools on March 23, 2022, but on that day they once more closed secondary institutions for girls.
There is still no word on when or if these schools will reopen or the ban is indefinite.
The Taliban took over Afghanistan in August 2021 and imposed policies severely restricting basic rights–particularly those of women and girls, dismissed all women from leadership posts in the civil service and prohibited girls in most provinces from attending secondary school.
The Taliban have also carried out broad censorship, limiting critical reporting, and have detained and beaten journalists. Taliban forces have carried out revenge killings and enforced disappearances of former government officials and security personnel. (ANI)
The other resolution, Resolution 2679, requests an independent assessment of recommendations for the efforts to address Afghanistan’s challenges…reports Asian Lite News
The UN Security Council (UNSC) has adopted two resolutions concerning Afghanistan, both unanimously, one of which extended the mandate of the special political mission in the war-torn nation for one year.
Resolution 2678 decides to extend the mandate of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) until March 17, 2024, reports Xinhua news agency.
It stresses the critical importance of the mission’s continued presence and calls upon all relevant Afghan political actors and stakeholders, including relevant authorities and international actors, to coordinate with UNAMA in the implementation of its mandate and to ensure the safety, security and freedom of movement of UN and associated personnel throughout the country.
The other resolution, Resolution 2679, requests an independent assessment of recommendations for the efforts to address Afghanistan’s challenges.
By the terms of the resolution, the 15-member council requests the secretary-general to conduct and provide, no later than November 17, an integrated, independent assessment, after consultations with all relevant Afghan political actors and stakeholders, including relevant authorities, Afghan women and civil society, as well as the region and the wider international community.
The Council also requests that the independent assessment provide forward-looking recommendations for an integrated and coherent approach among relevant political, humanitarian, and development actors, within and outside of the UN system, in order to address the current challenges faced by Afghanistan, including those relating to the humanitarian situation, human rights, security and terrorism.
