16 People Died in Afghanistan Due to Snowfall, Severe Winter Conditions, Says Taliban

Recently, the Pakistani Taliban appeared in a military exercise with American-made weapons that had been left by American forces in Afghanistan.

The weapons, included US made M16 and M4 guns, which the Taliban accessed after taking control of Afghanistan in August 2021.

The Taliban has been accused of harbouring and having close ties with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).

Since taking power in Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban has hosted talks between the Pakistani government and the TTP for the past one year, but these talks have not yielded results and the Pakistani Taliban announced the start of attacks across Pakistan after the ceasefire ended in late 2022.

The government of Pakistan claims that TTP has a sanctuary in Afghanistan. Islamabad has warned the Taliban to destroy the hideouts of TTP in Afghanistan, or Pakistan will wage operations against the group inside Afghanistan.

The recent snowfall in Afghanistan stopped traffic movement on the highways of several provinces in Afghanistan. However, the Taliban have now said that the highways have been reopened.

This year’s winter in Afghanistan has been unprecedented and the coldest winter during recent decades.

According to reports, dozens of people have died in different parts of Afghanistan due to the cold weather in the past weeks.

The organisation stressed that the International Cricket Council's anti-discrimination policy for global games requires the council to ensure that wherever cricket is played, it is enjoyed by all players.

Currently, women in Afghanistan are not allowed to pursue sports including cricket.

It has been over a year since female students in Afghanistan have not been able to go to school.

The Taliban has also banned higher education, work, and any kind of presence of women in social activities.

According to human rights organisations, Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban is experiencing the worst type of gender apartheid in the world.

He added that countries and international organisations should not link humanitarian aid to political issues in Afghanistan.

The spokesperson of the Taliban said, "The Taliban cannot allow illegal acts in Afghanistan because religion has obliged them, and they are responsible to the people.”

The Taliban spokesperson’s statement comes after the members of the United Nations Security Council, including UK, United States, Switzerland, Albania, Brazil, Ecuador, France, Japan, Malta, and the United Arab Emirates, expressed their concerns about the situation of Afghan girls and women under the Taliban.

They called on the Taliban to immediately remove all repressive actions against the Afghan women.

The letter has been signed by over 900 people and stated that prohibition of right to education and work of Afghan women dramatically impacts the life of half of the Afghan population.

The letter stressed that human rights mechanisms of the United Nations, of which Afghanistan is a member, consider the deprivation of girls from education as a direct violation of human rights.

Afghan lawyers have also stated that the Taliban's decision to ban education is against the Islamic laws and teachings.

The letter states, "The Taliban had about 16 months to address concerns related to Hijab, the educational environment, and logistical issues of Afghan girls’ education.”

The letter noted that contrary to the Taliban's claims, there are no traditional or cultural barriers to the education of girls in the Afghan society.

The letter emphasised that the international community is responsible for the current situation in Afghanistan and added that failure to act against the actions of the Taliban can lead to gender apartheid and a disaster that the world will not be able to contain.

The letter also added that other extremist groups are watching the world's reaction to the Taliban's actions and decisions and keeping silent will make these groups bolder.

The Afghan lawyers have also asked the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation to immediately hold a debate of religious leaders in order to issue a fatwa to justify the right to education for girls in Afghanistan.