Violence leaves 23 dead, 12 injured in Afghanistan last week

KABUL (Pajhwok): Marking International Women’s Day, a number of countries last week asked the caretaker government to remove restrictions on girls’ education and women’s work while neighboring nations insisted on cooperation for stability in Afghanistan.

Last week’s major events

• On Women’s Day, various sources sought removal of bans on women’s education, work
• Nadeem: Curbs on girls’ education temporary, IEA committed to every citizen’s right to education
• Russia, India and Pakistan stressed interaction with interim govt
• Uzbekistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Russia emphasized cooperation for stability in Afghanistan
• India, Central Asian countries want Afghanistan’s national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity respected.
• Tariq Ali Bakheet: OIC delegation to visit Afghanistan about infrastructure projects
• Last week, 80 million dollars humanitarian aid arrives in Kabul

Casualties

Last week, 23 people were killed and a dozen others were injured in various incidents of violence across the country.

The governor of northern Balkh province was killed along with two others in a suicide attack inside his office in Mazar-i-Sharif, the provincial capital. Four others were injured in the attack reportedly claimed by the Islamic State or Daesh group.

Also in Balkh, eight ‘kidnappers’ were killed during special operations in Mazar-i-Sharif city, but relatives of the slain individuals said they were innocent and demanded justice.

Local officials said two ‘armed robbers’ were also killed during a clash with security forces in Mazar-i-Sharif.

Separately, unknown gunmen killed three people including the water supply department head in western Herat province and one person in central Parwan province.

Two members of a family were killed and three others injured when an unexploded ordnance went off in southeastern Pakia province. In a similar blast in Ghor, one child was killed and another injured, and in Kandahar, a child was killed after allegedly taking away a sheep.

A blast killed two people in Kabul and a businessman was shot dead by armed robbers in Kandahar.

These figures are based on reports reaching Pajhwok Afghan News. Some incidents may have gone unreported or sources provided incorrect figures.

In the previous week, 19 people were killed in various incidents across the country.

Before the regime change in August 2021, hundreds of civilians, government forces and insurgents would get killed and injured in violence every week.

UNSC meeting

Last week, the United Nations Security Council during a meeting discussed the situation of Afghan girls and women and the restrictions imposed on them.

Addressing the meeting, US Deputy Representative Robert Wood said Washington would not remain silent over the curbs on Afghan girls’ education and women’s work.

United Arab Emirates Ambassador to the United Nations Lana Zaki Nusseibeh said that such decisions of the caretaker government of Afghanistan had nothing to do with Islam and Afghan culture.

However, Russia’s UN ambassador Vasily Nebenzya said lasting peace in Afghanistan was not possible without interaction with the new authorities.

India and Pakistan representatives also linked achieving the international community’s goals in Afghanistan to interaction with the Islamic Emirate.

After the UNSC meeting, Albania, Brazil, Ecuador, France, Gabon, Japan, Malta, Switzerland, UAE and the UK asked the caretaker government of Afghanistan to cancel curbs on women.

But officials of the Islamic Emirate have repeatedly pledged their commitment to the rights of women and men in the Islamic framework. They say that the restrictions on girls’ secondary and higher education as well as women’s work in non-governmental organizations are temporary.

Tashkent meeting

Last week, representatives from Uzbekistan, China, Iran, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Russia met in Tashkent, the capital of Uzbekistan and conferred on the current situation of Afghanistan and cooperation with the Islamic Emirate for long-term peace and stability.

Iran’s ambassador to Afghanistan Hassan Kazmi Qumi told the meeting that regional countries would welcome the Islamic Emirate’s move towards inclusive government and protection of women’s rights.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan said in a press release that all the participants of the meeting emphasized on good relations with Afghanistan.

Commenting on the meeting, Bilal Karimi, deputy spokesman of the Islamic Emirate, said: “We hail all the meetings that are organized through cooperation with the people of Afghanistan on human and humanitarian issues, as well as the strengthening of the system and all areas that benefit the country. “

In New Delhi, special representatives of India and Central Asian countries discussed security, political, economic and humanitarian situation of Afghanistan during a meeting and called for respect to the national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of Afghanistan .

OIC delegation

OIC special envoy for Afghanistan Tariq Ali Bakheet and his delegation called on acting Foreign Minister  Maulvi Amir Khan Muttaqi.

At the meeting, Bakheet said it was important to review the decisions on postponing girls higher education and women’s work.

He also announced that an OIC delegation would visit Afghanistan regarding implementation of infrastructure development projects.

For his part, Muttaqi said an ideal security had been established in Afghanistan and the Islamic Emirate desired special relations with the OIC member countries in various fields.

International Women’s Day

The caretaker government did not mark the international women’s day, but third acting deputy prime minister Maulvi Abdul Kabir congratulated the Afghan women on the occasion and said: “The blessed religion of Islam sees men and women with the same eye, considers both as two wings of society, respects the dignity of women and invites everyone to respect them and to treat women well.”

The United Nations once again asked the Islamic Emirate to cancel the restrictions imposed on the “fundamental rights of women and girls” in Afghanistan.

United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres expressed concern about women’s rights in Afghanistan and said that the global frameworkfor women and girls in the world was not effective and should be changed.

Likewise, a number of women in Afghanistan also asked the caretaker government to allow women to study and work and to remove restrictions on them.

US Special Representative for Afghanistan Thomas West has reaffirmed Washington’s support for Afghan women, men, girls and boys.

On Wednesday, West tweeted: “Today, International Women’s Day, we recognise the extraordinary courage of Afghan women and girls in the face of unspeakable restrictions on their rights – to work, to be educated, to access vital aid – imposed by the Taliban.”

The diplomat reiterated support for Afghan women, men girls and boys to see half of their country return to school, work and deliver aid in every sector.

Former president Ashraf Ghani alleged that the Afghan women were being used for political gains while his predecessor Hamid Karzai said girls and women should be allowed to continue their education and work.

Acting Higher Education Minister Nida Muhammad Nadeem last week said universities were not closed for girls permanently, but temporarily and that the Islamic Emirate was committed to the people’s right to education.

The European Union (EU) has slapped sanctions on two senior officials of the interim Afghan government for their alleged involvement in violations of women’s rights.

The bloc also sanctioned Russian military officers and police, as well as an Iranian prison facility, the European Union said in a statement on Tuesday.

Humanitarian aid

Last week, two packages of $40 million each arrived in Kabul as part of the international community’s humanitarian aid to Afghanistan. The European Union donated 100 tons of medical supplies to Afghanistan.

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