Peace Improbable in Afghanistan Without Inclusion of Ethnic Groups, Announces Russia

Rustam Minnikhanov, president of Tatarstan, was the first speaker at the meeting. Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban’s Foreign Minister, is also one of the guests present for the Moscow Format meeting this year.

The current situation and the formation of an inclusive government in Afghanistan is one of the major topics to be discussed during the Moscow Format meet.

Representatives from Russia, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, China, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan are participating in the meeting.

Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatari, and Turkish representatives have also been invited as observers to this year’s Moscow Format.

Earlier, the Council of National Resistance for the Salvation of Afghanistan had warned against the "unilateral" inclusion of the Taliban in this meeting.

In a statement, it demanded the presence of all parties from Afghanistan at the Moscow Format.

On the other hand, Zamir Kabulov, Russia's special representative for Afghanistan, stated that the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has no plans to meet with the Taliban delegation.

He added, "The Russian Foreign Minister did not invite the Taliban delegation to participate in the Moscow format meeting, I did."

The Russian Foreign Minister bears no obligations towards "the guests I have personally invited”, said Kabulov.

The Russian representative stated, "I want to emphasise that the Taliban are not participants, but guests of the Moscow format meeting. There is a fundamental difference between the two," he said.

Al-Thani emphasised that the people of Afghanistan, especially minorities and women, should have their human rights, such as the right to education and work.

The Emir of Qatar, whose country hosted the political representation of the Taliban and the group's peace talks with the United States, said that he raised this issue so that the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan does not become more complicated.

He also added that his country wants dialogues within the framework of the United Nations in Afghanistan and stressed on respect for human rights and girls' access to education in Afghanistan.

He stated that it must be ensured that the people of Afghanistan have access to international aid.

As the host of negotiations between the Taliban and the US, Qatar has played a prominent role in the return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan.

In accordance with the Doha agreement, the Taliban had committed to upholding the rights of women and Afghan citizens. However, it has been two years since girls have been denied access to education, and women have been unjustly deprived of their rights to work and social life.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) reported that the Taliban subjected the detainees to “severe pain and suffering through physical beatings, electric shocks, asphyxiation, stress positions and forced ingestion of water, as well as blind-folding and threats”, in order to get a confession or other information.

This report has been published on Wednesday. UNAMA said that it has recorded cases of human rights violations by the Taliban from January 1, 2022, to July 31, 2023, in 29 provinces.

The UN agency emphasised that nearly 50% of these violations include torture and other "cruel, inhuman or degrading treatments".

According to the report, cases of torture and inhumane behaviour mainly took place during arrests and in detention centres under the group’s Ministry of Interior Affairs and Taliban’s Intelligence agency.

UNAMA said that the violation of procedural safeguard, including the lack of access to lawyers, has become a common practice in Afghanistan under the control of the Taliban.

UNAMA has documented violations despite the issuance of directives by Taliban leadership aimed at enhancing the protection of prisoners' human rights and regulating the conduct of security personnel.

Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in this report said, “The personal accounts of beatings, electric shocks, water torture, and numerous other forms of cruel and degrading treatment, along with threats made against individuals and their families, are harrowing. Torture is forbidden in all circumstances.”

He stressed that torture is being used as a tool instead of effective investigation. Türk called on Taliban officials to take concrete measures to stop these bad behaviours and make the perpetrators accountable.

UNAMA asked the Taliban authorities to take steps to create a stronger legal framework and address the high volume of arbitrary arrests “with no effective judicial oversight".

The report also highlighted that the arbitrary and prolonged detention of individuals awaiting the completion of investigations exposes them to an elevated risk of abuse.

Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Secretary-General's Special Representative for Afghanistan, acknowledged that while there have been some positive indications, such as leadership directives and a willingness among many Taliban officials to cooperate with UNAMA and permit prison visits, the documented evidence underscores the imperative need for immediate and urgent action by all parties involved.

She asked the United Nations General Assembly to hold the Taliban accountable for their actions against Afghan women and girls.

Joly further emphasised that the actions of the Taliban places girls at risk of underage marriages, jeopardising the future of numerous young girls, and the exclusion of women from economic participation exacerbates the country's predicament.

She stressed that the international community should continue to support Afghan girls and women and monitor what is happening in the country.

Joly asked the United Nations to hold the Taliban accountable for the group's actions, "because women's rights are non-negotiable”.

Canada's foreign minister said that the failure of the United Nations and the international community to support Afghan girls and women would constitute a betrayal of one of the fundamental principles upon which the United Nations is founded.

The United Nations General Assembly met on Tuesday. Leaders from a number of countries addressed this meeting.

During this meeting, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also emphasised that the Taliban has systematically deprived Afghan women and girls of their rights.

AFF released a "video recording of the attack on the Taliban commander" and said that four other Taliban members had also been killed and wounded as a result of the attack.

Local sources told Afghanistan International that a hand grenade had been thrown at a Taliban Ranger vehicle in Pul-e-Khomri city. However, independent sources have not yet confirmed the death of this Taliban commander.

The Afghanistan Freedom Front claimed that this Taliban commander was inspecting people's houses in Baghlan and apprehending individuals based on suspicions of their affiliation with Taliban’s opposition factions.