The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has extended the travel exemption of 13 senior Taliban members, however, they have excluded Abdul Baqi Haqqani, Taliban’s minister of higher education, and deputy minister of education, Saeed Ahmad Shahid Khel, from the exemption.
Travel exemptions permitting 15 Taliban officials to go abroad for negotiations were set to expire Monday.
Abdul Ghani Baradar, Abdul Salam Hanafi, Amir Khan Muttaqi and Sher Abbas Stanikzai are the prominent figures of Taliban whose travel exemption has been extended for three months. Diplomatic sources told AFP that the travel ban on two Taliban members is in response to the heavy restrictions the hardliners have imposed on Afghan women.
The diplomats told AFP that after difficult negotiations, Taliban’s sanction committee in the United Nations agreed to the travel exemption of 13 Taliban senior members. Meanwhile, some countries have been supporting cancelation of travel exemption for all Taliban leaders due to extreme violation of women’s rights, however, many objected to this move.
Economic sanctions, including trade and suspension of these individuals’ assets, military sanctions and military interaction with these Taliban officials, remains in place. The travel ban on some of the Taliban’s officials was lifted by Donald Trump, the former president of United States in 2019, to pave the way for peace negotiations between the US and the Taliban.
The travel exemption list published by the United Nations includes Shahabuddin Delawar, Taliban’s minister of mines; Khairullah Khair Khah, Taliban’s minister of information and culture; Abdul Haq Wasiq, Taliban’s chief of intelligence; Noorullah Noori, Taliban’s minister of borders and tribal affairs; Abdul Latif Mansoor, Taliban’s minister of energy and water; Mullah Fazil Mazloom, Taliban’s deputy minister of defense; Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, Taliban’s political affairs deputy prime minister; Din Mohammad Hanif, Taliban’s minister of economy and Noor Mohammad Saqib, Taliban’s minister of Hajj.
