DOHA/KABUL: As special envoys to Afghanistan convened in Doha on Sunday to discuss increasing engagement with Afghanistan in the second UN meeting of its kind in less than a year, the spokesperson for the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan said countries who failed and left Kabul were providing untrue information about the region.
“Countries that failed in Afghanistan and left the country, they are now trying to provide untrue information to the region through their intelligence. The countries express such baseless remarks without considering the ground facts in Afghanistan,” said Zabiullah Mujahid, according to ToloNews.
At the close of the first day of Doha convention, the Afghan government’s participation remained unclear, while the secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council wrote on X, it was “disappointing that the Taliban declined to attend the special envoy meeting”.
At the Munich Security Conference 2024, the foreign ministers of several European countries had expressed concern about the violation of human rights, especially women’s rights, in Afghanistan, saying that the situation had no improved since last year’s security meeting.
Countries that left Afghanistan are ‘misguiding’ about region, says Zabiullah
In the joint statement, the 12 countries asked Kabul to allow Afghan girls to seek education with international standards.
The Islamic Emirate denied the claims of 12 European countries foreign ministers’ joint statement about the violation of human rights in Afghanistan.
Zabiullah Mujahid, the spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, said that countries are trying to convey an unpleasant picture of Afghanistan. “Countries that failed in Afghanistan and left the country, they are now trying to provide untrue information to the region through their intelligence. The countries express such baseless remarks without considering the ground facts in Afghanistan.”
Meanwhile, the Doha convention organisers pushed to include voices from civil society inside and outside Afghanistan including women and from the media and businesses.
The meeting will also consider the recommendations of a UN independent assessment on Afghanistan, which has suggested recognition of the Taliban authorities be tied to the removal of restraints on women’s rights and access to education.
The assessment, backed by Western nations, also recommends the appointment of a UN special envoy, which the Taliban government has also rejected.
UN special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan Richard Bennett said he hoped the meeting in Doha “leads to a series of meaningful and inclusive meetings among key stakeholders”.
Published in Dawn, February 19th, 2024
