Taliban’s Ministry of Interior Registers People's Mobile Phones

Jun 24, 2024, 18:20 GMT+1

The Taliban’s Ministry of Interior announced the launch of a system to register mobile phones belonging to the citizens of Afghanistan.

The ministry stated that it has begun the process of registering citizens' mobile phones by distributing forms among the public.

Abdul Mateen Qani, Taliban’s spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior, wrote on X social media platform on Monday, that registering mobile phones "has been undertaken to protect and secure citizens' mobile phones”.

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UN To Investigate Reports Of Sexual Assault Against Women In Taliban Prisons

Jun 24, 2024, 16:47 GMT+1

The Spectator magazine reported that the United Nations is investigating reports of sexual assault, gang rape, and sex slavery of women in Taliban prisons.

Previously, the United States’ State Department had stated that 16 out of 90 female prisoners in three northern provinces became pregnant after being raped by the Taliban members.

The Spectator reported that the United Nations is set to investigate sexual assaults on women in Taliban prisons.

Reports of sexual violence and assault by the Taliban on female prisoners in Afghanistan have raised concerns for the State Department and Richard Bennett, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan.

Bennett said, "In general, I am aware of serious ill treatment of detainees, not only sexual but beatings, threats, extortion."

He also added that a team of UN staff is investigating the sexual assault and mistreatment of Afghan women by the Taliban.

The special rapporteur on human rights also said another concern is that some prisons may be operated outside the jurisdiction of the prison administration, managed by Taliban intelligence and personally by their commanders, limiting researchers' access to real information.

Additionally, some women who have experienced Taliban prisons have repeatedly spoken of mistreatment, torture, and sexual violence by the Taliban against women in prisons.

Previously, the George W. Bush Institute released a report on the situation in Afghanistan titled "Captured State," which mentioned issues such as the Taliban acquiring wives through force and manipulating families' desperation to settle debts or bolster support from loyalists.

This comes as the US State Department, in its annual report on the state of human rights in Afghanistan, said that at least 16 out of 90 female prisoners in Jowzjan, Faryab, and Samangan became pregnant after being raped by Taliban members.

State Department also noted that the Taliban have not implemented any mechanisms to support women who are victims of sexual assault.

2-Day Clash Between Pakistani Guards & Militants At Afghanistan Border Ends

Jun 24, 2024, 15:10 GMT+1

The Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported on Monday, citing its sources, that the clashes between Pakistani border guards and militants at the Afghanistan border has ended.

According to Dawn, these clashes began on Saturday evening in three border areas in the Lower Dir of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

So far, the Pakistani military has not commented on the clashes.

Dawn reported, citing local residents, that there had been no exchange of fire or shooting in the Lower Dir district on Monday.

According to the report, after two days of fighting, the militants retreated to Afghanistan.

The Pakistani media wrote that both sides suffered casualties in these clashes, however, the details of the casualties are not clear.

It also reported that on Monday, local elders, politicians, and intellectuals held a jirga to discuss a permanent solution for maintaining law and order in the region.

Afghans Moving Toward Political Unity, Says NRF

Jun 24, 2024, 13:15 GMT+1

Ali Maysam Nazary, the head of foreign relations for the National Resistance Front (NRF), stated that the people of Afghanistan are closer to achieving political unity and consensus about the future of their country.

Speaking on the sidelines of the Vienna conference on Monday, Nazary called on the international community to "abandon the failed policy of appeasement" and support the Vienna conference. Meanwhile, Rangin Dadfar Spanta, former National Security Advisor of Afghanistan, described the Taliban as a "disaster" at the fourth Vienna Conference for a democratic Afghanistan.

Spanta urged opposition groups to unite to save Afghanistan from this "disaster”. Former Afghan Justice Minister Fazl Ahmad Manawi, speaking on the sidelines of the Vienna conference, told Afghanistan International that the diversity of Afghanistan is represented at this meeting.

Manawi added that the UN's unilateral engagement with the Taliban at the Doha meeting has increased people's concerns.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo to Supervise Doha Meeting

Jun 24, 2024, 10:20 GMT+1

A UN source confirmed to Afghanistan International that the third Doha meeting will be held under the supervision of Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Deputy Secretary-General.

The source added that DiCarlo will meet separately with representatives of the Taliban and Afghan civil society.

The Doha meeting, scheduled for about a week from now, will take place in Doha, Qatar's capital, with the participation of special representatives from several countries, a delegation from the Taliban, and several Afghan civil activists.

The UN's decision to send DiCarlo comes amid widespread criticism that the organisation has "overlooked" the inclusion of female representatives and the issue of women's rights at this meeting.

Critics have stated that the UN, at the request of the Taliban—who have excluded women from all areas of public life, including banning their employment and education—has sidelined women and women's rights from the Doha meeting.

However, Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Special Representative for Afghanistan, has said that women's rights will be addressed in areas such as combating drug abuse at the meeting.

Otunbayeva noted that women make up 35% of the three million drug addicts in Afghanistan, highlighting the importance of discussing this issue at the Doha meeting.

Previously, a Taliban Foreign Ministry official announced that the agenda for the Doha meeting had been shared with the group and that the discussions would focus on private sector issues, finance, banking, and combating drugs.

Meanwhile, some protestors at a demonstration in Paris called on European countries to boycott the Doha meeting.

Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Deputy Secretary-General for Political Affairs, reportedly visited Kabul a few weeks ago and invited Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Taliban’s Foreign Minister, to attend the Doha meeting.

The previous UN meeting in Doha on Afghanistan, attended by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, included several female representatives and Afghan civil activists.

Women's Rights to Be Highlighted at Doha Meeting, Says UN Spokesperson

Jun 24, 2024, 09:28 GMT+1

Stéphane Dujarric, the UN spokesperson, stated on Sunday that the goal of the Doha meeting is to encourage the Taliban to engage with the world in a coordinated and orderly manner for the benefit of the Afghan people.

Dujarric added that human rights, particularly women's rights, will be highlighted in all discussions at the meeting.

He further noted that the Doha meetings are part of a process, not a one-time event, and that Afghan women and civil society will remain part of this process.

The Taliban will send their representatives to Qatar late next week to participate in a two-day meeting with senior UN officials and special representatives from 25 countries for Afghanistan in Doha.

This is the third UN-led meeting and the first to include Taliban officials. However, the exclusion of women and civil society representatives from the main meeting has sparked widespread criticism.

Tirana Hassan, executive director of Human Rights Watch, told Reuters that excluding women from the Doha meeting risks legitimising the Taliban and causing irreparable damage to the UN's credibility as a defender of women's rights and meaningful participation.

Agnès Callamard, Secretary-General of Amnesty International, stated that marginalising crucial discussions on human rights is unacceptable and sets a very damaging precedent.

Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN's head of political affairs, and Roza Otunbayeva, the UN's special representative for Afghanistan, are set to meet separately with Afghan civil society groups after their meeting with the Taliban.

However, at a press conference in New York, in response to a question from Maryam Rahmati, a journalist for Afghanistan International, about the Taliban's opposition to women's participation in the Doha meeting, Otunbayeva said, "[The Taliban] are not like us. The Taliban have come from the mountains and from war, and turning them into people who sit at the negotiation table and accept our principles is not easy."

Otunbayeva said that the Doha meeting will focus on the private sector and combating drugs. She also noted that the upcoming meeting has created significant expectations that realistically cannot be met in one session.

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UN To Investigate Reports Of Sexual Assault Against Women In Taliban Prisons

Jun 24, 2024, 16:47 GMT+1

The Spectator magazine reported that the United Nations is investigating reports of sexual assault, gang rape, and sex slavery of women in Taliban prisons.

Previously, the United States’ State Department had stated that 16 out of 90 female prisoners in three northern provinces became pregnant after being raped by the Taliban members.

The Spectator reported that the United Nations is set to investigate sexual assaults on women in Taliban prisons.

Bennett said, "In general, I am aware of serious ill treatment of detainees, not only sexual but beatings, threats, extortion."

He also added that a team of UN staff is investigating the sexual assault and mistreatment of Afghan women by the Taliban.

Additionally, some women who have experienced Taliban prisons have repeatedly spoken of mistreatment, torture, and sexual violence by the Taliban against women in prisons.

State Department also noted that the Taliban have not implemented any mechanisms to support women who are victims of sexual assault.

2-Day Clash Between Pakistani Guards & Militants At Afghanistan Border Ends

Jun 24, 2024, 15:10 GMT+1

The Pakistani newspaper Dawn reported on Monday, citing its sources, that the clashes between Pakistani border guards and militants at the Afghanistan border has ended.

According to Dawn, these clashes began on Saturday evening in three border areas in the Lower Dir of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

So far, the Pakistani military has not commented on the clashes.

Dawn reported, citing local residents, that there had been no exchange of fire or shooting in the Lower Dir district on Monday.

According to the report, after two days of fighting, the militants retreated to Afghanistan.

The Pakistani media wrote that both sides suffered casualties in these clashes, however, the details of the casualties are not clear.

It also reported that on Monday, local elders, politicians, and intellectuals held a jirga to discuss a permanent solution for maintaining law and order in the region.

Afghans Moving Toward Political Unity, Says NRF

Jun 24, 2024, 13:15 GMT+1

Manawi added that the UN's unilateral engagement with the Taliban at the Doha meeting has increased people's concerns.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Rosemary DiCarlo to Supervise Doha Meeting

Jun 24, 2024, 10:20 GMT+1

A UN source confirmed to Afghanistan International that the third Doha meeting will be held under the supervision of Rosemary DiCarlo, the UN Deputy Secretary-General.

The source added that DiCarlo will meet separately with representatives of the Taliban and Afghan civil society.

The UN's decision to send DiCarlo comes amid widespread criticism that the organisation has "overlooked" the inclusion of female representatives and the issue of women's rights at this meeting.

However, Roza Otunbayeva, the UN Special Representative for Afghanistan, has said that women's rights will be addressed in areas such as combating drug abuse at the meeting.

Otunbayeva noted that women make up 35% of the three million drug addicts in Afghanistan, highlighting the importance of discussing this issue at the Doha meeting.

Meanwhile, some protestors at a demonstration in Paris called on European countries to boycott the Doha meeting.

The previous UN meeting in Doha on Afghanistan, attended by UN Secretary-General António Guterres, included several female representatives and Afghan civil activists.

Women's Rights to Be Highlighted at Doha Meeting, Says UN Spokesperson

Jun 24, 2024, 09:28 GMT+1

Dujarric added that human rights, particularly women's rights, will be highlighted in all discussions at the meeting.

He further noted that the Doha meetings are part of a process, not a one-time event, and that Afghan women and civil society will remain part of this process.

The Taliban will send their representatives to Qatar late next week to participate in a two-day meeting with senior UN officials and special representatives from 25 countries for Afghanistan in Doha.

This is the third UN-led meeting and the first to include Taliban officials. However, the exclusion of women and civil society representatives from the main meeting has sparked widespread criticism.

Agnès Callamard, Secretary-General of Amnesty International, stated that marginalising crucial discussions on human rights is unacceptable and sets a very damaging precedent.

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Germany Deports ‘Criminal’ Afghan Refugee After Agreement With Taliban

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