Norway Refuses To Hand Over Afghan Embassy To Taliban In Response To Hibatullah's Decree

The Taliban has said that Afghans have not participated in the recent protests, but Pakistani police continue to harass Afghan refugees.

Earlier, Pakistani officials had said that Afghan refugees had participated in the PTI protests. Pakistan's Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi said at a news conference that 19 Afghan refugees had been arrested for attending demonstrations in Islamabad.

The Pakistani interior minister also said that from December this year, all Afghan refugees in Islamabad must have a residence permit in the capital or else they will be deported from Islamabad.

The Taliban's Ministry of Refugees has said that the number of detainees is about "800 people”.

The ministry said in a statement that no Afghans had participated in the demonstrations.

The Taliban has asked the Pakistani government not to use Afghan refugees politically.

According to sources, a number of members of the Taliban's cabinet opposed the request, and no final decision has been made on the matter yet.

The Taliban leader has summoned members of the group's cabinet to Kandahar for an emergency meeting.

According to information received by Afghanistan International, Hibatullah Akhundzada expressed concern about the activities of foreign organisations in Afghanistan, in addition to various issues.

The Taliban leader has claimed that foreign organisations in Afghanistan are doing "intelligence work" and should be shut down.

Sources said that members of the Taliban's cabinet have opposed Hibatullah Akhundzada's request, saying that it is "not possible to make a decision in one day”.

Members of the Taliban's cabinet have said that the group's intelligence agency is currently active and will take action in case of any observation of espionage activity by foreign organisations.

In addition, the Taliban's cabinet has argued that the closure of foreign organisations will increase the distance between the international community and the group.

‘Deepening Divisions Within Taliban’

Sources told Afghanistan International that Mullah Hibatullah's recent order to close medical institutions for girls has exacerbated divisions within the group.

According to information received by Afghanistan International, a number of members of the Taliban's cabinet have opposed Mullah Hibatullah's decision.

According to our source, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Taliban's deputy prime minister for economic affairs, is among those who are unhappy with Mullah Hibatullah's recent decision. In this regard, Mullah Hibatullah had summoned the cabinet members to Kandahar to gain their support.

Another source told Afghanistan International that Mullah Hibatullah had consulted with the ministers of higher education before issuing the decree on the closure of medical institutions for girls.

The Taliban's spokesman confirmed that the Kandahar meeting was held in the presence of the group's leader. The Taliban has not officially commented on the details of the meeting so far.

The protesters called for women's right to education and said that they wanted to make their voices heard. Videos provided to Afghanistan International show that dozens of women and girls participated in the protest.

After the Taliban's severe crackdown on women's protests, women once again took to the streets of Herat and emphasised on the provision of justice and women's right to education.

These women carried slogans calling for the reopening of educational centres for women and called on the international community and human rights institutions to pay attention to the restrictions and prohibitions imposed by the Taliban against women.

Sources told Afghanistan International that the Taliban tried to disrupt the protest, but the protesting women continued their demonstrations.

After the closure of medical education centres by the Taliban, girls in a number of provinces protested against the Taliban's move.

Meanwhile, sources in Takhar told Afghanistan International that the Taliban’s intelligence agency arrested a number of girls on Thursday for protesting.

The recent order of the Taliban leader to close medical training centres for women has also provoked widespread reactions from international organisations and women's rights activists.

They called this decision another step towards the elimination of women from society and called on the Taliban to provide the ground for women's education in accordance with international commitments.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) issued a statement warning that the Taliban's move would halt the education of thousands of women and disrupt their access to health services.

UNICEF on Thursday (December 5) expressed deep concern over the Taliban's decision and its far-reaching consequences, including worsening humanitarian crisis and increasing hardships for the Afghan people.

UNICEF said that it was confirming various reports about the closure of medical education facilities by the Taliban.

In the statement, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell warned that the ban could lead to an immediate halt to medical education for thousands of women and severely disrupt women's and girls' access to health services.

She stressed that such a decision would have far-reaching consequences for women's rights and Afghanistan's public health.

Russell emphasised that without female providers, women are less likely to seek prenatal care during pregnancy and are less likely to deliver their babies safely in clinics. "In a country where women and children depend on female health professionals for critical care, cutting off the chain of healthcare endangers the future of lives," she said.

UNICEF has called for the decision to be reversed and for women to continue to have access to medical education. The organisation stressed that the full participation of male and female professionals is essential for the future of Afghanistan's health system.

The UNICEF statement said that Afghanistan is currently facing a severe shortage of trained health workers, especially women. The organisation said that women's health professionals play a vital role in ensuring that children receive adequate maternal care, that children are vaccinated and that communities have access to essential health services.

The Taliban has imposed severe restrictions on women over the past three years. The group has closed girls' schools above the sixth grade and banned girls from going to university. Also, the Taliban has banned women from going to parks, restaurants, traveling, sports, and working in non-governmental organisations.

The Taliban's recent decision to ban the education of women and girls in medical fields has sparked widespread reactions.

Human rights organisations and women's rights advocates have condemned the Taliban's move and called on the group to provide education for women and girls.

The Taliban has not yet provided an official explanation for the closure of medical institutions to girls.

According to sources, the Taliban's intelligence agency is still seeking to arrest protesting students in Takhar.

The Taliban’s intelligence agency entered the Takhar Institute on Thursday and detained a number of girls, sources said.

A source said that the Taliban arrested three female students and released them after a few hours.

The Taliban's intelligence agency has warned students to refrain from any protest and to stop publishing pictures and videos of their protests.

One student said that the Taliban’s intelligence agency officials told them that protesting "harms the honour and dignity of women".

Over the past two days, a number of female students of medical institutes in Takhar and a number of provinces have protested against the closure of these educational centres by the Taliban.

One of the protesting girls in Takhar told Afghanistan International, "Today, the lives of all female students are in danger." She said that the Taliban’s intelligence agency is searching every lane to arrest these protesting students. Regarding the reason for the girls' arrest, she said, "We raised our voices yesterday, but today two of our colleagues were arrested by the Taliban's intelligence agency."