KABUL — Mohammad Haneef Atmar, Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, called Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, his Indian counterpart, on Aug. 3 to ‘discuss convening an emergency session of the UN Security Council on Afghanistan.’
Atmar, on Twitter, said that the United Nations and the international community should take more responsibility and play a greater role in stopping the unfolding tragedy in Afghanistan due to the violence and the atrocities caused by the Taliban.
“Called Indian FM Dr. S Jaishankar to discuss convening an emergency UN Security Council Session on AFG. UN & the international community must play a greater role to stop the unfolding tragedy in Afghanistan due to Taliban violence & atrocities. Appreciate the lead role of India as current UNSC President,” Atmar tweeted.
“Atmar, during a telephone conversation with Jaishankar, talked about the escalation of violence, widespread human rights violations by the Taliban and foreign terrorist groups operations in Afghanistan, and the need to hold a special session of the UN Security Council on Afghanistan,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Afghanistan said in a statement.
He discussed the unprecedented increase in the Taliban’s brutal attacks on the Afghan people, which have resulted in the killing of scores of civilians and displacement of many thousands of others.
Atmar also highlighted the war crimes committed by the Taliban in their recent attacks carried out in collusion with foreign fighters and terrorist groups in Afghanistan, calling them flagrant violations of international humanitarian law and warned of catastrophic ramifications.
“The Indian Minister of External Affairs expressed his country’s deep concern over the escalation of violence, insecurity, and explicit human rights violations by the Taliban and terrorists in Afghanistan.” read the statement.
The statement also mentioned that Jaishankar called the UN Security Council meeting important for the immediate cessation of human rights abuses and the establishment of lasting peace and stability in Afghanistan and the region. He reassured Atmar of his country’s commitment to reviewing Afghanistan’s proposal and conducting the necessary consultations.
The two sides also discussed the agenda and the level of participation in the upcoming meetings on the Afghan peace process in Doha.
The statement further said that the two sides also discussed the agenda and the level of participation in the upcoming meetings on the Afghan peace process in Doha.
This came amid heavy clashes between Afghanistan forces and the Taliban in several Afghan cities, including Herat, Kandahar, and Helmand.
In the past few weeks, Afghanistan has witnessed a surge in violence as the Taliban has intensified their offensive against civilians and Afghan security forces with the complete pullback of foreign forces just a few weeks away, as per reports by the Council on Foreign Relations.
“The Islamic fundamentalist group ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until the U.S.-led invasion in 2001,” said the report. “Since then, it has waged an insurgency against the U.S.-backed government in Kabul.”
“Experts say the Taliban is stronger now than at any point since 2001. It launched an offensive amid the U.S. troop withdrawal and, by summer 2021, controlled over half of Afghanistan’s districts.”
(With inputs from ANI)
Edited by Saptak Datta and Ritaban Misra
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