The European Union Delegation to Afghanistan, marking the “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence,” has warned that Afghan women face escalating risks of violence, deportation, and internal displacement.
The delegation called for an end to violence against women during migration, return, and displacement, stressing that support for returning women is a core priority in its programmes.
In a statement posted on X on Sunday, 7 December, the EU Delegation said it remains committed to upholding the dignity of Afghan women and supporting them as the country confronts multiple overlapping crises.
The warning follows a September report by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, which found that restrictions on education, employment, and social participation have created severe challenges for Afghan women and girls, challenges compounded for those returning from Iran and Pakistan.
According to the UN, access to essential services for returning women has sharply declined since 2021. Twenty-one per cent of returnees reported difficulties accessing water, 22 per cent struggled to obtain public health services and 28 per cent faced barriers to legal assistance.
The UN Refugee Agency added that returning women also experience heightened isolation and psychological distress, further deepening their vulnerability.
The UN Security Council will convene on Wednesday to review the situation in Afghanistan amid mounting international concern over human rights restrictions, humanitarian needs, and terrorism-related threats.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) said on X on Sunday that the meeting will begin at 7:30 p.m. Kabul time. Council members are expected to discuss a broad range of political, human rights, humanitarian, social, and economic challenges facing the country.
In previous briefings, most Security Council members have voiced alarm over Taliban policies and the deteriorating human rights environment.
The Taliban, however, have dismissed such global meetings as ineffective, arguing that outcomes lack legitimacy because the group is excluded from international forums. They have repeatedly urged countries to engage directly with their administration.
UN Women said on Sunday that the Taliban have barred the organisation’s female Afghan staff from entering United Nations offices for the past three months. The organisation warned that prolonged restrictions threaten the delivery of life-saving services.
Susan Ferguson, UN Women’s representative in Afghanistan, said in a statement that humanitarian assistance “must be delivered by women, to women.” She noted that for 91 days Afghan female UN staff had continued their essential work from home and in the field despite being denied office access.
Ferguson said Afghan women are central to the UN’s operations in the country, adding that only with their presence can the organisation reach women and girls safely and provide culturally appropriate support. She said the United Nations remains firmly opposed to the Taliban’s restrictions, which she described as violations of fundamental human rights and principles of equality enshrined in the UN Charter, and measures that undermine the organisation’s ability to function.
She called for an immediate reversal of the ban on Afghan female staff and contractors entering UN premises, urging the Taliban to guarantee their safe access to offices and field sites so that assistance can reach the women and girls most in need.
Sources told Afghanistan International in early September that Taliban security forces had blocked female UN employees from entering the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) office in Kabul. According to the sources, Taliban personnel told the women that they were prohibited from entering their workplace by order of Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada.
The UN later warned that the move would severely limit efforts to reach vulnerable communities in multiple provinces. The organisation said that on 7 September Taliban forces prevented female Afghan staff from entering UN facilities in Kabul, Herat, and Mazar-e Sharif, posting guards outside and informing women they were not permitted to work for the UN or any institution.
The Taliban had previously banned Afghan women and girls from working for domestic and international organisations, though a special arrangement with the UN had allowed female UN staff to continue operating. The UN has also said that gender-based restrictions have impeded women’s access to health care in areas affected by recent earthquakes.
Qatar’s Foreign Minister, Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, said on Sunday that his country played a central role in bringing an end to two decades of conflict in Afghanistan.
He noted that Doha facilitated talks between the Taliban, the United States, and the former Afghan government.
Speaking on the second day of the Doha Forum in the Qatari capital, Al Thani said Qatar’s mediation efforts have demonstrated that engaging all parties to a conflict is essential for progress in any peace process. He said this approach had been applied in Afghanistan and had delivered results.
Qatar hosted the negotiations between the United States and the Taliban that led to the February 2020 Doha Agreement. Many former Afghan officials and analysts say the accord weakened the then-government in Kabul and hastened the Taliban’s return to power.
Al Thani stressed that Qatar’s foreign policy is grounded in diplomacy and cooperation, adding that Doha continues to rely on these tools to help resolve global crises. He said regional disputes frequently arise both between states and within political factions, which is why Qatar maintains channels of communication with all sides in pursuit of mutually acceptable solutions.
He also said that each conflict has its own dynamics and cautioned against comparing Qatar’s mediation between the United States and Afghanistan with its role in efforts to broker a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. He noted that, in the latter case, the principal challenge was that Washington initially engaged only with Israel. According to him, meaningful progress emerged only once the United States began speaking to both sides.
The Doha Forum is one of Qatar’s major annual gatherings, drawing government officials, diplomats, researchers, and representatives of international organisations from around the world.
Amid growing regional and international pressure on the Taliban, the Islamic Republic of Iran has intensified its outreach to Afghan political opposition figures in an effort to promote reconciliation and a political arrangement with the Taliban.
Multiple sources say Tehran has recently hosted several political leaders and representatives of anti-Taliban factions.
A well-placed source, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the issue, told Afghanistan International that Iran is seeking an agreement between the Taliban and the political opposition that would preserve the Taliban’s rule. According to the source, Iran has become the Taliban’s closest regional ally and is increasingly concerned about the consequences of escalating tensions between the Taliban and Pakistan.
The source said the Taliban has served Iran’s interests over the past four years, noting that Iran’s trade volume with Afghanistan under Taliban rule now exceeds its total trade with all European countries.
At the same time, other sources reported meetings in Tehran between Iranian officials and several prominent Afghan opposition figures. According to these accounts, Iranian authorities have held talks with a former vice president, a former deputy chief executive, a former national security adviser, a former foreign minister, representatives of political leaders, members of an anti-Taliban military front, and a former governor of Balkh encouraging them to seek reconciliation with the Taliban.
Hanif Atmar, Afghanistan’s former foreign minister, and a source close to Atta Mohammad Noor, the former Balkh governor, denied to Afghanistan International that they had travelled to Tehran or met Iranian officials. However, images circulated in recent days showed Batur Dostum son of former vice president Abdul Rashid Dostum and leader of the National Islamic Movement Party of Afghanistan at the Espinas Hotel in Tehran. The party has not commented on the purpose of his visit.
Reliable sources told Afghanistan International that Taliban opponents plan to hold a unity meeting in the coming days, bringing together traditional anti-Taliban leaders from the National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan and several officials of the former Afghan government.
A forthcoming declaration is expected to emphasise resolving Afghanistan’s political crisis through intra-Afghan negotiations and agreement; restoring national sovereignty through the establishment of a legitimate, representative government; protecting human rights and combating discrimination; and expanding humanitarian assistance.
Iran’s move to rally Taliban opponents comes as Pakistan is also seeking contact and cooperation with anti-Taliban groups. Some sources say a high-level delegation from Jamiat-e-Islami may soon travel to Pakistan. One source said Iran fears Pakistan may empower the opposition and further weaken the Taliban administration, prompting Tehran to push for the opposition to move closer to the Taliban.
Relations between the Taliban and Pakistan have sharply deteriorated in recent months. Pakistani diplomats have openly raised the prospect of “regime change” in Afghanistan and have called for engagement with the Taliban’s opponents.
Australia’s Foreign Ministry has announced the establishment of an independent sanctions framework targeting at least 140 Taliban individuals and entities, aimed at holding the group accountable for its repression of women and girls.
Australia is the first country to formally integrate a Taliban-specific sanctions system into domestic law.
The ministry said the framework was created in response to the Taliban’s continued suppression of women, girls, minorities and the broader Afghan population since August 2021. The system incorporates into Australian law the Taliban figures and entities already listed under United Nations Security Council sanctions.
Under the new framework, restrictions are imposed on providing weapons, services, training, advice or commercial activity to designated Taliban individuals and entities. Travel bans also apply to those listed.
Simultaneously, Australia announced financial sanctions and travel bans against several senior Taliban officials, whom it described as “so-called ministers,” along with the group’s chief justice, citing their roles in violating women’s rights and undermining governance and the rule of law. Those sanctioned include:
Mohammad Khalid Hanafi
The Taliban minister responsible for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, Hanafi is known for hardline positions on women’s rights. Measures under his leadership include compulsory full-body coverings for women, bans on music and artistic expression, restrictions on foreign media, compulsory mosque attendance, and prohibitions on women travelling without a male guardian.
Neda Mohammad Nadim
The Taliban’s higher education minister, Nadim is aligned with the Kandahar hardline circle loyal to Taliban leader Hibatullah Akhundzada. He banned women from attending universities in 2022 and has said that critics of the Taliban system “deserve death.”
Abdul Hakim Sharei
The Taliban justice minister, educated at Darul Uloom Haqqania in Pakistan, has said the Taliban’s duty is to enforce Islamic law rather than respond to international criticism. He also heads the commission charged with reclaiming land designated as “Emirati land,” a process in which affected individuals cannot file complaints.
Abdul Hakim Haqqani
The Taliban chief justice and a founding member of the movement, Haqqani previously served as chief justice during the 1996–2001 Taliban regime. A close confidant of Akhundzada, he oversees a powerful council of religious scholars.
Australia Tightens Pressure on the Taliban
The Foreign Ministry said the new sanctions regime reflects Australia’s firm stance on Afghanistan’s deteriorating human rights situation. The objective, it said, is to increase pressure on the Taliban over the repression of women and girls and to hold the group accountable.
The framework includes a humanitarian exemption under UN Security Council Resolution 2615 to ensure aid and essential services can continue. Australia has also introduced a group permit system to help facilitate humanitarian work when restrictions arise.
Australian sanctions law applies both within the country and to Australian citizens and entities abroad. Violations carry criminal penalties, including potential imprisonment and substantial fines.
Australia has provided more than USD 260 million in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan since the Taliban takeover, with an additional USD 50 million allocated for the 2026 fiscal year, prioritising support for women and girls.