A 12-member Taliban delegation is in Geneva this week at the invitation of an NGO in a bid to improve respect for human rights and access to humanitarian aid in Afghanistan, officials said.
A spokesman for the Swiss Foreign Ministry (DFAE) clarified that this visit “does not constitute legitimacy or recognition” of the regime that came to power in August 2021 and has not yet been recognized by any country.
According to the Swiss news agency ATS Keystone, the Afghan delegation is led by Mufti Latifullah Hakimi, a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Defense and head of the committee responsible for detecting abuses within their movement.
“A meeting with a DFAE delegation consisting of representatives of the DDC (Directorate for Development and Cooperation), the Department of Peace and Human Rights and the Asia-Pacific Political Department is scheduled for this week,” she said. Ministry in the French Agency.
Discussions are also planned with representatives of other European countries.
The invitation came from the non-governmental organization Geneva Call, which seeks to strengthen the implementation of international humanitarian law by non-state armed groups and has been active in Afghanistan for many years.
“Geneva Call is hosting a conference with limited access from 7 to 11 February in Geneva, aimed at improving the free delivery of humanitarian aid to Afghanistan,” the NGO said in a statement.
The closed-door event aims to “strengthen the implementation and observance of humanitarian standards in Afghanistan”, the NGO said, adding that specific issues related to compliance with humanitarian standards “at national and regional level” would be discussed. on facilitating the passage of humanitarian aid, ensuring respect for medical assistance or even tackling the threat of anti-personnel mines, which continue to cause many casualties in the country.
According to the Swiss Foreign Ministry, the members of the delegation will have discussions on access to humanitarian aid to people in need, protection of members of humanitarian organizations and respect for human rights. Protecting children during conflict and managing minefields are also on the agenda.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has confirmed that a meeting with the Afghan delegation is scheduled. “This dialogue is essential for the fulfillment of our strictly neutral and impartial humanitarian mission. We will continue the dialogue with the High Level Delegation of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan in Geneva this week and look forward to constructive discussions,” he told AFP. ΔΕΕΣ.
Since the Taliban came to power, after the withdrawal of American forces, a terrible economic and financial crisis threatens to starve more than half of the country’s population. The UN has been supporting the easing of sanctions imposed on Kabul since August 2021 for months to prevent the country from collapsing.
Nearly $ 9.5 billion of Afghanistan’s central bank has been frozen by Washington since August.
The international community is particularly shocked by the fate of girls and women, which undermines the progress made 20 years after the ousting of the Taliban by the Americans in late 2001.
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