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UN deputy chief hopeful the IEA will lift restrictions on women
Amina Mohammad, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, has said that after meeting with some Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) officials she is hopeful that authorities could ease restrictions on women and girls.
In an interview with CNN, Mohammad, who visited Afghanistan earlier this month, was asked if she had any hope about IEA lifting restrictions on women and girls.
She replied: “Yes, I do. It was tough going in. But I feel now it is doable, looking at all the players and seeing some fissures within the Taliban (IEA), I think this is possible. We also had a few exceptions since then. So, yes there is hope.”
Amina said that there are differences of opinions within IEA in terms of carrying of edicts coming from Kandahar.
“I don’t think there is any change from their consolidation around that power base, but there is, in terms of carrying out some of these edicts, differences of opinions,” she said.
“I think in our visit, the recognition mattered. It was very clear that the humanitarian response that the international community was giving was really important. So we have some leverage and I think that is what we are trying to see, what is state of play in reality on ground,” Amina said.
Sima Bahous, the executive director of UN Women, said that when she asked IEA officials about the “further notice” in their decrees, they replied: “We need to build infrastructure, we need to build schools, we need to train the teachers, we need to change the curriculum for it to become less Western or actually not Western at all but Islamic and according to Sharia of what they believe they should learn.
“They believe women should only learn certain things about the Sharia and how to serve their husbands, families and their little community where they live,” she said.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan announced on Tuesday the release of American citizen Dennis Coyle from prison.
According to the ministry, Coyle’s mother had written to the leader of the Islamic Emirate demanding amnesty and the release of her son on the occasion of Eid. The Supreme Court considered time served sufficient and decided to release him.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that this action was carried out on the basis of humanitarianism and good faith, and it believes that such measures can strengthen trust between countries. The ministry also expressed hope that both countries, in the future, can find solutions to remaining issues through mutual understanding and constructive dialogue.
The Islamic Emirate also expressed appreciation for the cooperation of the United Arab Emirates in this matter.
Separately, for Coyle’s release, an American delegation, including Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan, met on Tuesday with Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Emirate.
The meeting was also attended by Saif Mohammed Al-Ketbi, Ambassador of the UAE in Kabul, and a member of the prisoner’s family.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Muttaqi stated that the Islamic Emirate has not detained any citizen of any country to achieve political objectives; rather, detentions were the result of legal violations, and individuals were released after completing judicial procedures.
At the meeting, Khalilzad praised the action of the Islamic Emirate and emphasized the importance of continuing discussions on all issues between the two countries, expressing hope for further progress in the future.
Muttaqi also stressed that Kabul and the UAE should provide standard consular services to their citizens, and that the Afghan government is fully prepared in this regard.
He thanked Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, for their constructive role in facilitating the release of the prisoner and referred to the UAE as a close friend of Afghanistan.
Earlier, Muttaqi had also praised the role of the State of Qatar in facilitating information exchange between the Islamic Emirate and the prisoner’s family.
Additionally, the UAE ambassador expressed his country’s readiness to play a role in humanitarian institutions and called such developments beneficial for everyone.
The United Kingdom has announced an additional £3 million (AFN 257 million) in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, aimed at supporting people affected by natural disasters and other shocks.
Richard Lindsay, in a post on X, said the funding will be used to provide essential nutrition supplies and related support to vulnerable populations.
The new allocation brings the UK’s total bilateral assistance to Afghanistan for the current financial year to £154 million (AFN 13.18 billion).
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