Former official in front of the United Nations: Taliban steals humanitarian aid and starves the Afghan people
Afghanistan’s Taliban movement has claimed that humanitarian aid is delivered transparently to all segments of Afghan society, but during a UN meeting senior Afghan official Mohibullah Taib expressed concern about the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, which has been exacerbated by a lack of food, medicine and harsh weather conditions, The First Post reported.
Aid theft
The legal adviser for the Afghanistan mission in Geneva accused the Taliban regime in Kabul of interfering with the delivery of aid and even stealing it, leading to food shortages for sections of the Afghan population.
“The Taliban forced NGOs to register and provide information which led to interference in the fair delivery of humanitarian aid,” Mohibullah Taib told a UN meeting in Geneva.
The senior Afghan official also expressed concern about the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan, which has been exacerbated by the lack of food, medicine and harsh weather conditions.
The Taliban, however, denied all accusations and claimed that the aid was delivered transparently to all segments of Afghan society, the paper reported.
“We are trying to distribute aid to the vulnerable and ensure transparency in the delivery of aid,” Abdul Latif Nazari, deputy economy minister in the Afghan Taliban regime, was quoted as saying by the media.
The Taliban’s stance against women’s education will have a negative impact on the current Kabul regime’s relations with the international community, said former Afghan Finance Minister Omar Zakhwal.
Extension of the United Nations mission
The UN Security Council on Friday unanimously adopted two UAE-sponsored resolutions on support for Afghanistan at a council meeting on the situation in Afghanistan.
The first extends UNAMA’s mandate for 12 months, enabling the mission to continue its work on promoting human rights, engaging with all Afghan stakeholders, and coordinating relief assistance, while the second demands an independent assessment of the international approach to Afghanistan.
Crisis management
The UN Security Council on Thursday asked Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to provide an independent assessment of how Afghanistan’s Taliban administration can be handled and meet challenges including its repression of women’s and girls’ rights.
The 15-member council unanimously adopted a resolution requiring Guterres to submit a report in mid-November containing “recommendations for the future on an integrated and coherent approach to be adopted by relevant political, humanitarian and development actors, both within and outside the UN.”
The Taliban administration, which seized power in August 2021 with the withdrawal of US-led forces from Afghanistan after a 20-year war, says it respects women’s rights according to its strict interpretation of Islamic law.
Preventing Women from Education
“But they have prevented women and girls from attending secondary schools and universities, visiting parks and working with aid groups.” Women are not allowed to leave the house without a male guardian and face covering. “The current situation cannot continue,” said UAE Ambassador to the UN Lana Nusseibeh. The UAE and Japan were the co-authors of the draft resolution.
“The council’s response to a difficult crisis is measured and precise, with outside expertise and fresh thinking, and basically indicates that the usual course of action is not enough with regard to Afghanistan,” Nusseibeh told reporters. The Security Council resolution expressed concern that the Taliban were not making progress towards meeting their expectations.
