UN Admits Taliban Interference In Afghan Aid Delivery Following US Watchdog Report

In an interview with Shamshad TV, Mujahid rejected international assessments of poverty and humanitarian needs in Afghanistan, insisting that Afghans have “found their own path” and that statistics from such bodies should not be trusted.

International agencies have repeatedly warned of a deepening humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan, with an estimated 23 million people in need of aid. Mujahid dismissed those figures, portraying them as part of a broader effort to misrepresent conditions in the country.

Citing the ongoing crisis in Gaza, the Taliban official claimed the UN’s inability to address that situation underscores its ineffectiveness. He alleged that the organisation engages in lobbying and manufacturing crises rather than serving humanity.

Addressing the issue of the Taliban’s lack of international recognition, Mujahid argued that foreign governments seek a dependent Afghanistan led by their proxies and compliant with their demands; a condition, he said, the Taliban will not accept.

His remarks came shortly after the US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) alleged that the Taliban, in collusion with UN officials, had been diverting international aid.

The experts urged the world to resist any attempt to normalise the Taliban’s rule.

In a statement issued Thursday, the experts called for Taliban leaders to be held accountable, voicing alarm over the situation of women and girls, public executions, arbitrary arrests, repression of the media and human rights defenders, and discrimination against ethnic, religious, and gender minorities.

“Operating without legitimacy, the Taliban enforces an institutionalised system of gender oppression, crushes dissent, exacts reprisals, and muzzles independent media while showing outright contempt for human rights, equality and non-discrimination,” the statement read.

The experts said the Taliban’s system of discrimination and gender persecution amounts to a crime against humanity. They welcomed the issuance of arrest warrants for Taliban leaders and pledged support for all accountability efforts.

They also warned about executions, corporal punishment, mistreatment in detention facilities, enforced disappearances, restrictions on religious freedom, the targeting of minorities, and a rise in internally displaced persons.

“The situation in Afghanistan is dire,” the experts said. “But it must not be regarded as a lost cause. The international community must resist the narrative that the current situation under Taliban rule is inevitable or irreversible. Another future is possible.”

The experts urged a comprehensive approach to improving conditions, including criminalising gender apartheid, bolstering civil society, increasing humanitarian funding, and advancing the Sustainable Development Goals.

They also stressed the need to protect Afghan refugees and internally displaced persons, saying this support is critical as Pakistan and Iran intensify deportations.

Change in Afghanistan, they said, must be led by its people, warning that each day of delay “strengthens the Taliban’s oppressive grip.”

At the opening ceremony in Karukh district on Thursday, Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid said that after ensuring security and enforcing Islamic Sharia, the group’s priority is the economy.

Several senior Taliban officials attended the event, including Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdul Ghani Baradar and Minister of Energy and Water Abdul Latif Mansoor. Mansoor said the dam was built with “domestic funding and without reliance on foreign aid.”

Baradar described the Pashdan Dam as vital for Herat, saying its operation would help reduce the effects of drought and address farmers’ challenges.

“We want to manage our water resources safely while also giving others their fixed rights,” he said. “Our goal in water management is to strengthen the country’s economy, and we consider water management a key measure to reduce poverty, unemployment, and migration.”

Baradar added that over the past four years, the Taliban had “achieved many accomplishments in implementing Islamic Sharia and in political and economic fields.”

The Pashdan Dam, located about 25 kilometres from Herat city, was first launched in 2011 and was expected to be completed within three years. Construction was repeatedly delayed by insurgency, but the Taliban resumed work on the project in 2024.

The project has drawn concern from Iran, whose officials have called the dam a threat. An Iranian water industry spokesperson described Afghanistan’s “unilateral” use of the Harirud River as a violation of Iran’s customary water rights.

Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, cited sources as saying Pakistan carried out a drone strike in Nuristan.

On Thursday, Karzai said he was “deeply concerned” about the reports. He called on the Pakistani government to “respect Afghanistan’s national sovereignty and, by refraining from violating international principles and rules, engage with Afghanistan through the establishment of civilised relations and good neighbourliness.

Pakistani authorities have not yet commented on the reported strike.

Tasnim reported there was no information available on the target or possible damage from the attack, but speculated that Pakistan may have targeted positions of Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in the province.

He said the Taliban is building an army of “150,000 to 200,000 personnel” and will not comply with Washington’s conditions.

Speaking to a Taliban-affiliated outlet on the fourth anniversary of the group’s return to power, Fitrat claimed the United States had created problems for them because they refused to meet US demands, though he did not specify what those demands were.

The senior Taliban official also responded to Trump’s comments about Bagram Airbase, insisting the group will not negotiate with foreign countries over its control. Fitrat said that because Taliban forces are stationed at Bagram and hold military parades there, Trump is “begrudging,” claiming the US had “many plans” for the base.

While the US and the Taliban maintain intelligence cooperation against Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K), Washington has pressed the group to change its policies on women and governance in Afghanistan. The US does not recognise the Taliban government, and it remains unclear what other demands Washington has made.

Marking the anniversary of the Taliban takeover, Fitrat said the Ministry of Defence now employs “between 150,000 and 200,000 military and civilian personnel.”

He added that new uniforms had been procured for Taliban forces and would be distributed soon.

Since seizing power, the Taliban have overhauled Afghanistan’s security institutions, removing many trained professional officers from the former Afghan government and replacing them with their own fighters.