SCO Foreign Ministers Meet Kicks Off in Uzbekistan

Kabulov, during a press conference on Thursday, said that if Massoud is ready, he can probably play a role in the power structure. He, however, added that to reach an agreement, the resistance must be stopped.

According to Kommersant Newspaper, Kabulov stressed that any attempt to support the armed opposition means the resumption of civil war on an ethnic-political basis. He said that Russia does not support such approaches.

These statements were made while there were reports that Ahmad Massoud and the Taliban held meetings in Moscow.

Increase in IS-K fighters in Afghanistan

Kabulov also said that the number of Islamic State-Khurasan (IS-K) fighters in Afghanistan has increased.

He said that since the Taliban took over power in August 2021, the number of ISIS fighters in Afghanistan has tripled. Kabulov added that in the past year, this number has reached 6,000.

Kabulov stated that the rise of ISIS fighters is "the most negative aspect of the current situation in Afghanistan”.

He said that this situation poses a threat not only to Afghanistan, but also to the national interests of Russia's partners such as Iran, Pakistan, and China.

According to Kabulov, as a result of the sanctions, the Taliban does not have enough financial resources to increase the ability of its forces to fight against terrorists.

Raisi emphasized during the meeting of the Council of Ministers of Iran that the Islamic Republic will not fail in any way in pursuing the "rights of the nation".

The office of the Iranian President said in a statement that Raisi instructed the relevant ministries to seriously pursue alternate ways of supplying drinking and agricultural water to the people of Sistan and Balochistan province.

Officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran insist on the country's water rights from the Helmand river, while the Taliban have continuously said that according to the agreement between Afghanistan and Iran, Iran's annual water rights have been given.

Earlier, Ali Akbar Mehrabian, Minister of Energy of Iran, said that the Taliban has only verbally promised to fulfil the country's water rights.

Mehrabian told reporters that he will personally start negotiations with Taliban to fulfil Iran's water rights when he comes to Afghanistan.

Iran's Crisis Management Organisation had previously said that the country is vulnerable in the water sector and there is no safe water in Iran, except the sea.

Iran's water rights have always been a source of tension between Tehran and Kabul. Under the Taliban’s reign in the past year, the two countries have even witnessed armed clashes over water issues.

The Ministry of Defense of the Taliban reported that Mawlawi Muzamal and Mawlawi Najibullah, the deputy of the Ministry of Interior and the General Directorate of Intelligence of the Taliban, were also part of the military delegation.

In late July, the Taliban sent thousands of military forces to suppress Mawlawi Mahdi, the only Hazara commander of the group, to Balkhab district of Sar-e-Pul province. Three days after the fierce fighting in Balkhab, the pro-Mahdi forces fled from the district.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid for Afghanistan (OCHA) announced that at least 27,000 people have been displaced as a result of the three-day war in Balkhab.

Human Rights organizations reported that the Taliban have shot civilians, set people's houses on fire, and killed prisoners in Balkhab district.

Dawran's family called the accusations "baseless" and stressed that he has no connection with the resistance group and has never cooperated with the NRF.

Dawran’s relatives said that he has been imprisoned without any proof and they are worried about his health condition and fate.

Taliban have increased detention of locals on charges of collaboration with the National Resistance Front as clashes between the group and the resistance forces are growing in the northern provinces, particularly in Panjshir and Baghlan.

In a recent report, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) confirmed the torture, arrest, and killing of dozens of people by the Taliban over the 11 months.

In a letter to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Gueterres, the senators asked the UN to take targeted measures to hold the Taliban responsible for its continued abuses of Afghan women and girls’ human rights.

US Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Jim Risch (R-Idaho); Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; in addition to Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), asked the UN Security Council to re-impose sanctions on the Taliban.

The senators stated that Taliban leadership are allowed to travel freely due to an exemption put in place in 2019, while Afghan women can barely travel outside their own homes due to recent Taliban edicts. Moreover, Taliban leaders have misused the exemption, traveling to Beijing and Moscow in efforts to establish diplomatic ties, they added.

Additionally, they urged the UN to work to ensure the Taliban does not receive a seat at the United Nations when the UN Credentials Committee is scheduled to meet this September to determine diplomatic representation for Afghanistan.

“We must not stand by as the Taliban seeks to erase the human rights of Afghan women and girls. We strongly urge the United Nations to prioritize and advance the human rights of women and girls through all aspects of its work in Afghanistan,” the senators wrote against the backdrop of the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan completing a year soon.

In addition to calling on the UN to ensure its response in Afghanistan protects and advances human rights of women and girls, the senators also pressed for UN humanitarian agencies to maintain a principled approach to aid delivery that is inclusive of female aid works in all sectors and ensures Afghan women and girls are able to equitably access humanitarian aid.

“The new Special Representative of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) must depart from her predecessor’s approach and elevate the importance of women’s human rights and empowerment within its mandate, including by hiring more Afghan women and ensuring they are a part of political dialogue and negotiations,” they added.