Guterres concerned about humanitarian situation in Afghanistan

KABUL (Pajhwok): UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed his concern about the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan and asked Afghan government officials to respect human rights and observe international humanitarian law.

Addressing the 49th session of the UN Human Rights Council on Monday, Guterres called on the United States, Afghanistan, Ethiopia and several other countries to respect equal human rights and the protection of minorities.

Guterres stressed at the meeting that human rights cannot be confiscated by dictators. He expressed concern about the human rights situation in some countries, including Afghanistan, saying that with the current government in power, some human rights institutions and organizations are concerned about human rights, particularly the rights of women and girls.

This comes as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights earlier told a special meeting that human rights abusers in Afghanistan, especially those who have violated the rights of children and women, should be held accountable.

He had said that under the current government in Afghanistan, human rights activists, journalists, lawyers and judges are facing increasing threats.

On the other hand, the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has announced that the UN Security Council is scheduled to hold a meeting on Afghanistan tomorrow, Wednesday.

UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, is scheduled to brief UN Security Council on the current situation in Afghanistan.

mds/ma

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