Taliban Celebrates Day of Withdrawal of Foreign Troops at Bagram Airfield

In a statement published by Zabihullah Mujahid on Twitter, August 31 has been referred to as the "victory day". The statement reads, "Let's use the opportunities of this great conquest and make tireless efforts to establish a strong, true, and solid Islamic system."

The Taliban statement urged the international community to respect the independence of Afghanistan and adopt reasonable policies toward the country too.

The Taliban has said that the "policy of pressure and threat" has failed over the last twenty years and has only increased the crisis.

The last American soldier left Afghanistan on August 31, 2021, which ended the 20-year-long military presence of the United States in Afghanistan.

With the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan, the country's economy has crumbled, and Afghan girls and women have been systematically deprived of their basic rights.

Nuruddin Azizi, the Acting Minister of Industries and Commerce of the Taliban, said that China has exempted tax of 98 items from Afghanistan.

According to Azizi, among others, about one million square meters of carpets and rugs were exported too.

Azizi, however, said that the amount of Afghanistan's exports to Uzbekistan has declined compared to the previous year.

Azizi stressed that talks are underway to increase exports from Afghanistan and attract more investments in the country.

He said that Turkey, China, United Emirates, Iran, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, and Russia have expressed interests in investment, particularly in the mining sector of Afghanistan.

Azizi said that in the current solar year, the Ministry of commerce and industries has issued 6,300 business licenses of which around 100 are issued to foreign companies.

According to him, in the latest development, Iran's commercial cargo was recently transported to Tajikistan through Afghanistan.

With the fall of the previous government, the Taliban had dismissed hundreds of professional staff members of the Ministry of Finance.

The dismissed employees of the Ministry of Finance protested in front of the ministry in Kabul on June 11, 2022, and said that their salaries haven’t been paid yet. Protesters also said that prices of food items have increased in the market due to inflation, and they face a dire economic situation.

It seems that the Taliban have hired their own members in this ministry after firing employees of the Ministry of Finance in a collective move.

Griffiths remarks came at the UN Security Council on the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and he stated that humanitarians have stayed and delivered in Afghanistan in the year since the Taliban takeover. A $4.4 billion Humanitarian Response Plan for Afghanistan currently has a gap of $3.14 billion, he said.

UN Humanitarian Coordinator Martin Griffiths, who briefed ambassadors, reported on the ongoing hardships and uncertainty facing Afghans, nearly half of whom require aid relief to survive. “Afghanistan’s crisis is a humanitarian crisis, but it’s not only that. It’s an economic crisis. It’s a climate crisis. It’s a hunger crisis. It’s a financial crisis. But it’s not a hopeless crisis,” he said.

Griffiths, while stating that engaging with de facto authorities is “labour intensive”, explained that large-scale development assistance has been halted for a year in a country that was already facing severe levels of food insecurity and malnutrition, which have only deteriorated since then.

He added that no confidence in the domestic banking sector which has sparked a liquidity crisis, has affected aid delivery.

Griffiths also referred to the closure of school for girls and violation of women rights, adding, “In the 21st century, we should not need to explain why girls’ education and women’s empowerment are important to them, to their communities, to their countries, and indeed to all of us.”

The UN relief chief stressed that preserving basic service delivery alongside humanitarian assistance “remains the only way to prevent a catastrophe even greater than what we have seen these many months.”

Meanwhile, Markus Potzel, the Secretary-General’s Acting Special Representative for Afghanistan, reported on the UN’s ongoing engagement with the de facto authorities, as well as efforts towards promoting inclusive governance, rights and freedoms. He said the Taliban have been “ambiguous” as to the extent to which they want to engage, predicated on being in accordance with their interpretation of Sharia law.

Earlier media reports confirmed that an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) explosion hit a Taliban vehicle in Tanbana village.

Meanwhile, reports from Khaja Bahauddin district of Takhar province confirmed that new "armed nomads" have been transferred to the district. The Taliban have recently ordered the residents of two villages, "Lala Guzar" and "Katakjar", in the district to evacuate these areas.

Local residents said that the Taliban is relocating families from southern provinces and Pakistani tribal agencies to Khaja Bahauddin district.

The Taliban have not yet reacted to the reports.