Afghanistan
Tuesday 30 May 2023
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“It seems like the Americans deliberately left these weapons there, and now they are destabilizing the situation because terrorists may get hold of them.”
Washington had provided the Afghan security forces the weapons to fight the militants. The Taliban seized those weapons after the U.S. withdrawal. -
“The Ministry of Education assures its people and the international community that the Islamic Emirate considers education essential for every Afghan.”
In fact, the Taliban have indefinitely suspended higher education for female students. -
“Their first excuse for choosing Afghanistan for the invasion was the existence of terrorism and al-Qaida while the group came to Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks.”
Iran’s attempts at historical revisionism bear no relation to the realities of al-Qaida and Islamic State operations in Afghanistan. -
“Americans, together with their British collaborators, are putting their frantic efforts into strengthening the positions and the destructive potential of the Afghan offshoot of Daesh (Islamic State)…”
In fact, the U.S. has worked to eliminate Islamic State, killing its leaders, and has suffered attacks in return. -
“The report of the United Nations representative Richard Bennett on human rights is biased and far from reality. Today, there is no threat to the life of women in Afghanistan … no one dishonors Afghan women.”
The U.N. report adds to an abundant body of evidence showing discrimination against women, minorities and journalists under the Taliban’s harsh version of Islam. -
“Different people with different views are going to gather ... this will be a positive step for stability in Afghanistan and strengthening national unity.”
Since the Taliban overran Afghanistan, they have blocked women from participating in public life. -
“Because these departments were not deemed necessary and were not included in the budget, they have been dissolved.”
Eliminating the country’s Human Rights Commission raises new alarm about women’s rights and recent reports of abusive practices. -
“There is no issue of banning girls from schools … It is only a technical issue of deciding on form of school uniform for girls. We hope the uniform issue is resolved and finalized as soon as possible.”
The Taliban have given no indication about when schools might reopen for girls after the sixth grade. -
“There are no negotiations yet being held on the topic of the official recognition of the transitional government in Afghanistan.”
In October, Russia invited the Afghan Taliban to talks in Moscow that included the topic of diplomatic recognition. -
“The Mojahedin are fully committed to enforcing the amnesty decree, and the staff of the former administration will not be harassed because of their previous opposition.”
Reports of reprisals contradict the Taliban’s promised amnesty for former security officers. -
"Poland decided to fight illegal migration on the border with Belarus with the help of Leopard tanks. … Are they going to use tanks against civilians?"
Poland has sent additional troops to the border in response to Belarusian human trafficking, but not tanks. -
In fact, Taliban violence and bullying has forced scores of media closures, often targeting outlets employing women. Journalists are fleeing in fear.