UN calls on Taliban to respect human rights amid Afghanistan crisis

The Taliban cannot expect legitimacy in the eyes of the international community if it continues to abuse human rights, the UK’s representative to the United Nations (UN) has said.

The UN Security Council held an emergency meeting in New York on Monday in response to the deteriorating situation in Afghanistan after the Taliban took control of the country.

James Kariuki, the deputy permanent representative to the UK Mission to the UN, told the meeting the country could not again become a safe haven for terrorists.

Mr Kariuki said: “We have long believed that the only path to a sustainable peace in Afghanistan and regional stability lay in a negotiated political settlement.”

But he said: “If the Taliban continue to abuse basic human rights, they cannot expect to enjoy any legitimacy in the eyes of the Afghan people, or the international community.”

Mr Kariuki said that despite assurances from the Taliban that it would uphold international norms, there has been evidence of human rights abuses in areas where it has taken control “including persecution of minority groups, harsh restrictions on women, allegations of forced marriage and using civilians as human shields”.

It comes as Ghulam M Isaczai, who was appointed as Afghanistan’s representative to the UN by Afghan president Ashraf Ghani – who has now fled the country, told the meeting that the fate of the country’s people “hangs in the balance”.

Mr Isaczai said: “Today I’m speaking on behalf of millions of people in Afghanistan, whose fate hangs in the balance and are faced with an extremely uncertain future.

“I’m speaking for millions of Afghan girls and women who are about to lose their freedom to go to school, to work, and to participate in the political, economic, and social life of the country.

“I’m speaking for thousands of human rights defenders, journalists, academics, civil servants and former security personnel whose lives are at risk for defending human rights and democracy.

“I’m speaking for thousands of internally displaced people who are desperately in need of shelter, food and protection in Kabul and other places.”

The following days will be pivotal, the world is watching. We cannot and must not abandon the people of Afghanistan

He said: “We’re extremely concerned about Taliban not honouring the promises and commitments made in their statements at Doha, and other international fora.

“We’ve witnessed time and again how Taliban have broken their promises and commitments in the past. We have seen gruesome images of Taliban mass executions of military personnel and target killings of civilians in Kandahar and other big cities.

“We cannot allow this to happen in Kabul, which has been the last refuge for many people escaping violence and Taliban’s revenge attacks.”

Mr Isaczai called on the UN to put pressure on the Taliban “to prevent further violence, prevent Afghanistan descending into a civil war and becoming a pariah state”.

He added: “Kabul residents are living in absolute fear right now.”

United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres said Afghans “have known generations of war and hardship”.

Mr Guterres urged the Taliban to uphold human rights, especially for women and girls.

He told the meeting: “We are receiving chilling reports of severe restrictions on human rights throughout the country.

“I am particularly concerned by accounts of mounting human rights violations against the women and girls of Afghanistan, who fear a return to the darkest days.

“The international community must unite to make sure that Afghanistan is never again used as a platform or safe haven for terrorist organisations.”

He added: “Afghans are a proud people with a rich cultural heritage. They have known generations of war and hardship. They deserve our full support. The following days will be pivotal, the world is watching. We cannot and must not abandon the people of Afghanistan.”