Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Islamabad is reviewing a US proposal to deport Afghan nationals through Pakistan. Speaking at a press briefing on Friday, 6 November, he confirmed that the proposal remains under consideration.
Spokesman Sajjad Haider Khan said all aspects of the proposal were being carefully examined and that Islamabad was in contact with its partners on the matter.
He said Pakistan hoped a solution could be found that would be acceptable to all parties.
The administration of US President Donald Trump plans to deport more than 150 Afghan nationals from the United States. According to US media reports, the individuals would first be transferred to Pakistan before being returned to Afghanistan.
AfghanEvac, an organisation supporting Afghan asylum seekers in the United States, said those facing possible deportation include family members of individuals who worked with US forces in Afghanistan before the Taliban returned to power.
However, a US federal court in New York has temporarily blocked the implementation of the plan until Saturday, 7 November.
Judge Valerie Caproni ruled that the US government could not deport Afghan nationals to Pakistan or Afghanistan before that date.
The ruling came after immigrant rights organisations and several US lawmakers warned of the dangers of returning these individuals.
The Taliban's Foreign Ministry had also previously expressed concern over the US plan to deport Afghan migrants. The ministry urged Washington to make decisions concerning the fate of Afghan nationals through bilateral coordination and mutual understanding.
The Taliban also said third countries should not exploit the fate of Afghan nationals to secure short-term concessions.
Meanwhile, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said the US government had not contacted the agency about the plan.
The agency stressed that individuals whose lives are at risk and who require protection should not be forcibly deported.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesman said Islamabad is seeking coordinated international efforts to counter terrorist threats originating from Afghanistan.
Speaking at a press briefing on Friday, 6 November, Sajjad Haider Khan said the Taliban administration's misleading narratives did not absolve it of responsibility for preventing Afghan territory from being used to launch attacks against other countries.
The Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesman said the country's foreign minister had discussed terrorist threats originating from Afghanistan and ways to counter them during a meeting with Dan Jarvis, the UK's Minister of State for Security.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar met the British official in Islamabad on Friday. According to Pakistan's Foreign Ministry, the two sides discussed bilateral relations and expanding cooperation in security, law enforcement, migration, trade and investment.
British and Pakistani officials described the presence and activities of terrorist groups, including Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), in Afghanistan as a serious threat to the region. The assessment was made on Wednesday, 4 November, during bilateral counterterrorism talks in Islamabad.
Sajjad Haider Khan also rejected the Taliban administration's claims of civilian casualties resulting from Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan territory, describing them as baseless.
He said that disinformation and misleading narratives neither conceal the threat posed by terrorist networks operating on Afghan soil nor absolve the Taliban administration of its responsibility to prevent Afghan territory from being used to attack Pakistan.
The Taliban administration says civilians, including women and children, have been killed in Pakistani airstrikes. The United Nations has also previously confirmed civilian casualties in these attacks. Pakistan, however, maintains that it targets militant positions and facilities belonging to armed groups.
In recent months, Pakistan has carried out airstrikes in Kandahar, Helmand, Paktia, Paktika, Kunar and Khost provinces. It has also previously bombed Kabul. In one attack on the Afghan capital, hundreds of people were killed at a drug rehabilitation centre.
Relations between Pakistan and the Taliban administration have become severely strained in recent months amid escalating border clashes, airstrikes and mutual accusations.
Pakistan accuses the Taliban administration of allowing anti-Pakistan armed groups to operate from Afghanistan and claims that India supports these groups.
The Taliban administration denies the allegations and, in turn, accuses Pakistan of supporting armed groups opposed to its rule.
Diplomatic efforts and negotiations between the two sides have so far failed to produce an agreement to end the tensions.
Pakistan is now calling for international involvement in countering what it describes as terrorist threats emanating from Afghan territory.
The US Secretary of State has also previously said he understands Pakistan's concerns about security threats.
Yaël Braun-Pivet, President of France's National Assembly, said the Taliban's systematic policies and restrictions against women amount to gender apartheid. She described the situation as unacceptable and stressed the need to challenge the Taliban's treatment of women.
In a post on X, Braun-Pivet wrote that women have been systematically excluded from public life in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. She added that Afghan women have been denied their fundamental rights and forced into silence.
The French official said she had discussed the need to recognise gender apartheid and take action against it with Nargis Nehan, a former minister in the Afghan government.
In recent days, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot met with several Afghan women's rights activists. During the meeting, he warned that the Taliban's policies aimed at excluding women from public life were jeopardising the futures of millions of women and girls, as well as the prospects for peace and stability in Afghanistan.
Barrot said that since returning to power, the Taliban had gradually deprived women of access to school and university education, employment, justice and other areas of public life.
On Thursday, Margarita de la Pisa Carrión, a Spanish member of the European Parliament, said the Taliban terrorist regime had reduced women to second-class citizens and violated their fundamental rights by denying them access to education and employment.
She called on the European Union to take action against those responsible for violating women's rights in Afghanistan.
Previously, at a meeting in Paris on 8 May this year, several Afghan activists submitted a request to the French Foreign Ministry calling for the recognition of gender apartheid in Afghanistan.
The proposal sought to bring the issue of gender apartheid before the United Nations Security Council and pursue legal and diplomatic measures against the Taliban's restrictions on women.
Last week, the secretariat of the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with Afghanistan informed Baktash Siawash, a former Afghan parliamentarian, in a letter that it would cooperate in advancing efforts to secure recognition of gender apartheid within the European Parliament.
The secretariat said discussions concerning a new convention on crimes against humanity were continuing.
In early May this year, the European Parliament announced that a petition titled “Recognition of Gender Apartheid in Afghanistan and Designation of the Taliban as a Terrorist Organisation” had been referred to its Committee on Petitions.
Richard Bennett, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, has also stressed that gender apartheid, as a crime against humanity, is the most accurate description of the institutionalised oppression of women in Afghanistan.
He has urged governments to recognise gender apartheid as a crime against humanity.
Henna Virkkunen, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, said the European Union has not recognised the Taliban and that any change in relations with the group would depend on significant progress in human rights, particularly women's rights.
Virkkunen made the remarks in response to statements by Baktash Siawash, a former Afghan lawmaker, at the European Parliament.
Siawash accused the European Union and the international community of applying double standards towards Afghanistan during Thursday's meeting. He called for the recognition of gender apartheid, an end to diplomatic relations with the Taliban and the group's designation as a terrorist organisation.
The European Commission's Executive Vice-President said the EU continues to support Afghan women and consistently criticises the Taliban's policies towards women and girls. She added that human rights violations, particularly the situation of Afghan women, remain among Brussels' main concerns.
Speaking at the meeting, Virkkunen said the European Union had not recognised the Taliban despite continuing to provide humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan. She explained that the EU had maintained its official presence in Kabul to monitor developments in the country closely.
She added that the EU's presence in Kabul did not constitute endorsement or recognition of the Taliban. Instead, its purpose was to engage with different sections of Afghan society and hear their perspectives, particularly those of women.
Describing the situation in Afghanistan as involving systematic human rights violations, Virkkunen said the EU's policy was based on engagement with the Taliban but stressed that such engagement should not be interpreted as recognition of the Taliban government.
She emphasised that maintaining contact allows the European Union to address issues including the formation of an inclusive government, combating drug trafficking and counterterrorism.
The senior European official also referred to ongoing discussions about using the term "gender apartheid" to describe the situation in Afghanistan, saying the European Union does not currently use the term.
Virkkunen said that we use the term gender-based persecution to describe the Taliban's treatment of women, but we are interested in and are following the legal and political discussions surrounding the concept of gender apartheid.
She added that meetings on crimes against humanity and human rights violations were expected to take place soon at the United Nations in New York, where the issue of gender apartheid would also be discussed.
The European Commission's Executive Vice-President further stressed that any future steps towards recognising the Taliban would first require substantial and measurable progress on women's rights and human rights.
According to her, combating terrorism and drug trafficking would also be among the important preconditions for any such move.
In another part of her remarks, Virkkunen highlighted efforts to establish an independent investigative mechanism for Afghanistan, saying the European Union had allocated funding to support its implementation.
She added that further financial contributions from EU member states and other countries could help strengthen accountability for human rights violations in Afghanistan.
Responding to Siawash's call for the Taliban to be designated a terrorist organisation, Virkkunen said the European Union had not currently listed the group as a terrorist organisation.
She explained that such a designation would require specific legal procedures and decisions by competent authorities in EU member states or partner countries.
Virkkunen also recalled that the European Union implements UN sanctions against individuals and entities linked to terrorism in Afghanistan.
She added that the EU had also placed five individuals on its human rights sanctions list for their involvement in serious violations of the rights of Afghan women and girls.
Baktash Siawash, a former Afghan lawmaker, criticised the international community's approach to the Taliban during a European Parliament meeting, accusing countries of applying double standards towards Afghanistan, particularly women.
He urged the EU to decide whether it stands with the Afghan people or the Taliban.
The former Afghan parliamentarian called for the recognition of gender apartheid in Afghanistan and urged countries to suspend diplomatic relations with the Taliban and designate the group as a terrorist organisation.
He also called on European lawmakers to adopt more concrete measures against the Taliban.
Siawash delivered his remarks on Thursday, 5 November, during a meeting of the European Parliament's Committee on Petitions.
He said more than 1,908 days had passed since the Taliban began implementing restrictive policies against Afghan women and girls. According to him, these policies have deprived millions of women and girls of their fundamental rights, including education, employment and participation in public life.
The politician added that the international community had largely remained a spectator to developments in Afghanistan, while the Taliban continued to expand restrictions and pressure on women. He said the world's response had been largely limited to issuing political statements.
Siawash also accused the Taliban of supporting and harbouring terrorist groups, saying the group had eliminated opportunities for political activity, suppressed the media, music and cinema, and prevented opponents from operating freely.
He described the current situation in Afghanistan as "gender apartheid", saying Afghan women had been deprived of normal lives and participation in society. He argued that the situation amounted to organised and structural discrimination against women.
The former Afghan lawmaker also criticised Western countries for issuing visas to Taliban officials and facilitating their participation in international meetings while simultaneously expressing concern about women's rights.
He said that the world's double standards are unacceptable.
Siawash urged the international community to stand for justice and human values and take practical measures to support the people of Afghanistan.
In another part of his speech, he stressed that Afghanistan's future must be based on the sovereignty of its people and that the country needs a political system in which citizens can determine their own future.
Siawash also called on European institutions to increase parliamentary and political pressure on the Taliban.
Recently, the secretariat of the European Parliament's Delegation for Relations with Afghanistan informed Siawash in a letter that it would cooperate in advancing efforts to secure recognition of gender apartheid within the European Parliament.
The secretariat said discussions concerning a new convention on crimes against humanity were continuing.
The European Union has repeatedly expressed concern over the deteriorating human rights situation in Afghanistan and strongly condemned the severe, institutionalised gender-based discrimination and repression faced by women and girls.
The EU recently told the Third Committee of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly that systematic violations of women's and girls' rights in Afghanistan could amount to gender-based persecution.
The United States acknowledged Pakistan’s concerns regarding terrorism from Afghanistan during a speech at the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Summit in Atlanta. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, “we agree with Pakistan and we don’t want them to be targets of terrorism.”
This has diplomatic significance as Pakistan often highlight the need for effective action to be taken against the various militant groups operating in Afghanistan.
When asked about Pakistan’s security concerns, Rubio acknowledged that Islamabad are concerned with the Afghans Taliban not doing enough to stop terrorism from their country. “We agree with Pakistan. We don’t want them to be targets.” This shows that Washington acknowledges Pakistan’s concerns, how this translates into policy will depend on how they move forward with the concern.
Cross-border terrorism has been a major issue for Pakistan with frequent attacks on security forces, police forces and civilians. Islamabad have constantly asked the Afghan Taliban authorities to ensure militant groups are not using their country to plan, organise or conduct attacks. Pakistan argue that for true stability to be achieved in the region there must be effective action taken against groups.
There is a concern regarding whether the Afghan Taliban authorities can ensure militant groups aren’t operating in their country. Pakistan have often raised concerns over the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and their increased attacks on the Pakistani state. Pakistan argue that having militant safe havens means they have the space to conduct attacks.
The Afghan Taliban authorities have been constantly questioned regarding their commitment to terrorism. Whether they are capable and willing to stop armed groups from operating affects not just Pakistan but the whole region. If they don’t show they are taking the concerns seriously it will cause issues between Kabul and Islamabad, meaning there will be weaker security along the border. Having effective counter-terrorism measures in place will benefit both countries by reducing violence.
Rubio’s comments were significant as they acknowledge Pakistan’s concerns. Comments from high-ranking US officials can help create common ground over security issues. However, this won’t remove militant attacks. There must be ongoing engagement, trust and effective measures to ensure armed groups can’t plan or conduct attacks.
This issue presents a security issue for Washington. Stability in Afghanistan is linked to their neighbours. Constant militant activity can cause issues and prevent effective measures to be put in place to prevent transnational terrorism networks from re-emerging. The United States are interested in ensuring their territory isn’t used to threaten other countries. Acknowledging Pakistan’s concerns aligns with their aim to reduce terrorism threats.
However, this situation requires careful diplomacy. Pakistan and Afghanistan share a long border and have strong social and economic ties. They have mutual security interests and increasing tensions can cause issues with trade, preventing people from travelling across the border and causing worse conditions for people living close to the border. Any long-term solution should include effective border controls, direct engagement, clear expectations and verifiable measures against militant groups.
Pakistan argue that there must be effective measures to ensure commitments to counter-terrorism are achieved. Measures must be in place to stop militants moving around, disrupting recruitment and funding. They must also ensure they aren’t using safe havens and those responsible are held accountable. Collaboration between relevant authorities can help with these issues.
The acknowledgment from Washington could give an opportunity to increase collaboration with Islamabad regarding counter-terrorism. This could include sharing relevant intelligence, diplomatic engagement and supporting efforts to prevent terrorist networks using the region to cause instability. This should be looked at on a case by case basis.
It is important to understand that whilst they are acknowledging Pakistan’s concerns, this does not mean they are supporting all actions taken. The comments made by Rubio show they oppose Pakistan being targeted by terrorist groups and recognise Islamabad’s concerns regarding militant activity. This doesn’t mean they have created a new security deal, given extra support or fully agree with everything Pakistan have said. However, it is important they are publicly acknowledging they have concerns.
Overall, the main issue is to ensure the understanding translates into real improvements. Pakistan need effective action to be taken against those responsible for attacks. Afghanistan have a responsibility to ensure their country isn’t used to threaten their neighbours. The United States and other relevant international parties can help by encouraging commitments to counter-terrorism and supporting diplomatic efforts to reduce risk of further escalation.
Rubio’s statement shows that Pakistan’s security concerns are being heard. How this translates into increased collaboration will depend on how engaged they are. For Pakistan the main priority is to prevent attacks, stop militant groups having space to operate and create stability through effective counter-terrorism. Long-term peace will require all relevant parties to engage in meaningful dialogue, honour their commitments and work together to ensure peace, stability and a region free from the threat of terrorism.