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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.
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IEA leaders contact Maulana Fazlur Rehman to express condolences over Sheikh Idris’s death
According to a statement issued by Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Pakistan (JUI-F), senior leaders of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) contacted JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to express condolences following the killing of prominent religious scholar Sheikh Muhammad Idris in Charsadda.
The statement said that the callers included Defense Minister Mohammad Yaqoob Mujahid, Interior Minister Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani, Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, and spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid.
According to JUI-F media cell, the Afghan leadership expressed sorrow over Sheikh Idris’s death and prayed for his elevated status. They also strongly condemned his killing and said they share the grief of the bereaved family and religious community.
The statement further added that the Islamic Emirate expressed solidarity with JUI-F, religious scholars, and students, and said that the people of Afghanistan share the grief of the Pakistani people over the incident.
Sheikh Idris, a senior member of JUI-F was shot dead by armed motorcyclists in the Utmanzai area of Charsadda on May 5, while he was traveling to a madressah. Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack.
Hundreds of former U.S. officials are calling on Washington to cancel a reported plan to relocate Afghan refugees from Qatar to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In an open letter addressed to the U.S. State Department, more than 600 former civilian and military officials, along with around 100 organizations, urged the administration to stop the proposed transfer. The letter was sent to Marco Rubio.
The signatories argue that the Afghan nationals in question were brought to Qatar by the United States to complete legal immigration procedures after undergoing extensive security vetting. The letter states that while the individuals were cleared for resettlement in the United States, they are now being considered for relocation to Congo, a country for which they were never screened.
“Those individuals were vetted and approved for the United States, not for the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” the letter reads.
According to the report, more than 1,100 Afghan allies and their family members are currently being held at Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar under U.S. supervision. Around 800 of them have already completed all security checks and received authorization to travel to the United States. More than half are women and children, and many have remained in transit limbo for over 15 months.
The situation has drawn criticism from former officials and policy observers, who describe the proposed relocation as a betrayal of Afghan allies who supported U.S. missions and risked their lives during the war in Afghanistan. Critics also warn that the move could damage U.S. credibility with future partners.
Several members of the U.S. Congress had previously expressed opposition to the proposal, cautioning that it could significantly undermine trust in the United States among its allies.
Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s former special envoy for Afghanistan, has said that no country should interfere in Afghanistan’s internal affairs, stressing that it is up to Afghans themselves to bring about any change in their country.
In a post on X, Durrani said Afghans should be “left to their own devices” and that they would eventually “find the way out” of their challenges.
However, he warned that instability inside Afghanistan could have negative consequences for neighbouring countries, adding that Afghan leaders and their supporters should take responsibility to address such risks.
Durrani described his remarks as a simple expression of goodwill and best wishes for the Afghan people and their future.
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