KABUL: The Taliban on Friday welcomed a UN Security Council resolution formally extending the world body’s presence in Afghanistan, although the government of the hardline group remains unrecognised by the international community.

Thursday’s resolution — which avoids using the word “Taliban” — allows the UN to continue work in Afghanistan, still reeling after decades of war and whose economy was devastated when the international community cut off aid as the group took power last year.

The vote to extend the United Nations Assistance Mission for Afghanistan (UNAMA) was 14 in favour, with one abstention — by Russia.

The UN has not yet recognised the Taliban’s pick of envoy to the body, and the resolution does not give the new government international recognition. The mission includes several strands of cooperation, on humanitarian and political issues as well as on human rights, including those of women, children and journalists.

“We consider the extension of the mandate of UNAMA as a good step and want them to work effectively for solving humanitarian and other problems in Afghanistan,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid told AFP on Friday. “We will coordinate and cooperate with them.”

First established in Afghanistan in 2002, UNAMA’s mandate has in the past included humanitarian support, human rights advocacy and political and regional cooperation. Before last year it also sought to protect civilians throughout the conflict and support the peace process.

TV staffers released

The Taliban have released three employees of Afghanistan’s largest television station who were detained over a report that the country’s new rulers had banned all broadcasts of foreign drama series, a channel executive said on Friday.

Three staffers from TOLO TV were taken from the station on Thursday evening, according to Khpalwak Sapai, head of TOLONews department and one of the arrested. Sapai later said that he and Nafay Khaleeq, the station’s legal adviser, were released within hours later Thursday.

Journalist Bahram Aman, a news presenter, was kept in custody overnight and released on Friday evening, the station said.

Moby Group, the media company that owns TOLO TV, said the detentions were the result of the station reporting about the banning of the foreign drama series a decision made by the Taliban-appointed Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.

The Taliban gave no explanation for their ban, the latest restriction imposed since their takeover of the country in mid-August.

TOLO TV is an Afghan-owned media company with interests in South and Central Asia as well as the Middle East and Africa. The majority of TOLONews reporters and producers are women. Sapai said he had made a special effort to recruit and train Afghan women journalists.

Published in Dawn, March 19th, 2022