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UN Security Council set to condemn IEA crackdown on Afghan women
The UN Security Council is set to vote on Thursday to condemn a ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations in Afghanistan.
The resolution will also call on the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to “swiftly reverse” its crackdown on the rights of women and girls.
The resolution to be voted on – drafted by the United Arab Emirates and Japan and seen by Reuters – describes the ban as “unprecedented in the history of the United Nations” and asserts “the indispensable role of women in Afghan society.”
Diplomats said it is expected to be adopted. A resolution needs at least nine votes in favor and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, Britain or France to pass.
The draft resolution says the ban on Afghan women working for the United Nations “undermines human rights and humanitarian principles.”
Earlier this month the IEA began enforcing the ban on Afghan women working for the U.N. after stopping most women working for humanitarian aid groups in December. Since toppling the Western-backed government in 2021, they have also tightened controls on women’s access to public life, including barring women from university and closing girls’ high schools.
The IEA says it respects women’s rights in accordance with its strict interpretation of Islamic law and officials have said decisions on female aid workers are an “internal issue.”
The draft Security Council resolution demands all parties allow full, rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access “regardless of gender” and “stresses the urgent need to continue addressing the dire economic and humanitarian situation.”
It also “recognizes the need to help address the substantial challenges facing Afghanistan’s economy, including through efforts to enable the use of assets belonging to Afghanistan’s Central Bank for the benefit of the Afghan people.”
The United States froze billions of the bank’s reserves held in the U.S. and later transferred half of the money to a trust fund in Switzerland overseen by U.S., Swiss and Afghan trustees.
The draft resolution also stresses “the critical importance” of the United Nations’s continued presence across Afghanistan.
Local officials in Panjshir have announced the discovery of over 1,600 emerald mines in the province, with extraction currently underway at 600 sites.
Over the past year, the extraction of emeralds from 600 mines in Panjshir has yielded 100,000 carats, valued at approximately $6.9 million.
Panjshir Governor Mohammad Agha Hakim expressed optimism that the development of the mining sector will provide significant job opportunities, particularly for the province’s youth.
Economic experts believe that increased investment in large-scale mining could create tens of thousands of direct and indirect jobs, helping to reduce unemployment.
Meanwhile, Panjshir residents are calling on the Islamic Emirate to expand mining contracts in the province, highlighting the area's wealth in emeralds, iron, lead, zinc, and gold.
A judicial delegation of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), led by deputy of the Supreme Court, Sheikh Abdul Malik Haqqani, departed for Tehran to discuss issues related to Afghan prisoners, the court announced on Friday.
The primary objectives of the visit include strengthening judicial cooperation between the two countries, ensuring the rights of Afghan prisoners in Iran, fostering mutual goodwill, seeking alternatives to execution for Afghans sentenced to death, and facilitating the extradition of prisoners, Supreme Court said in a statement.
During the two-day visit, the judicial delegation will hold comprehensive discussions with Iran’s justice minister, the head of the Convicted Prisons Extradition Committee, and other senior officials.
Iran Human Rights has reported that in the first 10 months of 2024, the country has executed 49 Afghan nationals,
According to IHR, the number of executions of Afghan nationals in Iran has increased in the past three years.
Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, leader of Pakistani political party Jamaat-e-Islami, said on Thursday that Pakistan cannot afford war with Afghanistan.
“Afghanistan needs to understand that its matters cannot be addressed without us [Pakistan]," Rehman said on Samaa TV.
“We have come up with the proposal that the JI and other political forces should hold the jirga on the matter,” said Rehman.
“Some of the delegations will visit Afghanistan in the forthcoming days,” he added.
Pakistani officials have repeatedly claimed that attacks in the country are planned in Afghanistan.
The Islamic Emirate, however, has denied the allegations, saying Afghanistan is not responsible for Pakistan's "security failure".
The Pakistani army carried out airstrikes on Barmal district of Afghanistan's Paktika province last month, killing and wounding dozens of people.
The Islamic Emirate retaliated by attacking several points across the Durand Line.
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