Archive

At the end of the first day of the UN meeting in Doha, which included Taliban representatives, the Afghanistan Freedom Front (AFF) reported an attack on the Taliban in Kabul.

On Sunday, the Canadian Foreign Ministry in a statement expressed extreme disappointment regarding the absence of women’s rights advocates, religious and ethnic minorities, and human rights activists at the main Doha meeting.

The second day of the third Doha meeting, in the presence of representatives from countries for Afghanistan, UN officials, and the Taliban, began on Monday.

The National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan, in response to the third Doha meeting, stated that the United Nations has ignored Afghan women and insulted the country's political factions.

Zamir Kabulov, Ismatullah Irgashev, and Yue Xiaoyong, special representatives of Russia, Uzbekistan, and China, met with Zabihullah Mujahid, the head of the Taliban delegation, ahead of the main session of the third Doha meeting.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the head of the Taliban delegation at the Doha meeting, evaded questions from Maryam Rahmati, a reporter for Afghanistan International, about the group's lack of domestic legitimacy. Mujahid also did not respond to questions about women's rights.

A group of female activists and civil society members from Afghanistan protested in Islamabad on Saturday, boycotting the third Doha meeting.

The draft agenda for the Doha meeting, obtained by Afghanistan International, shows that human rights and meetings with representatives of women and civil society are not included.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan announced that Ashgabat will host the fifth meeting of foreign ministers of Afghanistan's neighbouring countries this year.

Afghanistan International’s reporter in Doha reported that Roza Otunbayeva, head of UNAMA, and Thomas Niklasson, special representative of the European Union for Afghanistan, arrived at the venue of the third Doha meeting.

The Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it welcomes the participation of Taliban representatives in the Doha meeting.

On Saturday, Zabihullah Mujahid, Taliban’s spokesperson, announced in a press conference that the group will participate in the third Doha meeting to "engage with all parties and resolve issues”.

Reliable sources have told Afghanistan International that relations between Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, the leader of the Taliban, and Amir Khan Muttaqi, the group's foreign minister, have soured.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) has called on the United Nations to reconsider its engagement with the Taliban to compel the group to end gender apartheid in Afghanistan.

Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Pakistan's Minister of Defense, has once again supported the ban on travel without visas and passports at his country's border with Afghanistan.

Abdul Hamid Khorasani, a Tajik commander of the Taliban, says that the behaviour of the "Emirate's leadership" towards non-Pashtun Taliban members is like that of “prisoners of war, slaves, and servants”.

Zakir Jalali, a senior official from the Taliban's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said that the upcoming Doha meeting is expected to address the lifting of sanctions imposed by the West on the group.

Zamir Kabulov, the Russian special representative for Afghanistan, stated that the third Doha meeting will be successful if it facilitates cooperation between the international community and the Taliban.

Sources from the National Resistance Front (NRF) confirmed to Afghanistan International that Abdul Samad Kohgaday, also known as Commander Hamza, a commander of the NRF, was killed in a battle with the Taliban.

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that China will continue to play its role in addressing issues related to Afghanistan.

The US State Department released its annual report on "International Religious Freedom" on Wednesday, stating that religious minorities in Afghanistan faced violent attacks and widespread discrimination last year.