Taliban govt rejects report on human rights violations in Afghanistan

The Taliban-led government in Afghanistan has rejected a recent report by the Human Rights Watch (HRW) which expressed concerns over the violations of human rights, especially those of women and girls, in the war-torn nation.

In a statement on Friday, spokesman of the Taliban's Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) government Zabihullah Mujahid said that citizens were currently being provided with better human rights than any other period in the country, reports TOLO News.

"The Islamic Emirate asks the UN and human rights advocate agencies not to listen to the propaganda... They must consider and accept the truth in the country. Human rights are respected in comparison to the past 20 years in Afghanistan," he said, adding that the HRW report was "incorrect and baseless".

Mujahid's remarks came a day after the HRW released its report which also called for an end to an exemption on travel bans of the IEA.

"Human Rights Watch has issued a new statement today calling for some specific action by the Security Council of the UN in response to the rising level of abuses by the Taliban against women and girls in Afghanistan," Heather Barr, Associate Director of the Women's Rights Division at the HRW, was quoted as saying in the report.

"In June, the travel ban exemptions that are currently in place for fourteen members of the Taliban leadership will expire, at that point we are asking the Security Council, not only to end those exemptions but also to consider whether there might be a need for a travel ban against additional individuals."

Travel bans on some IEA leaders were first imposed in 1999 as part of the UN response to violent activities in Afghanistan and it was partially suspended three years ago to allow 14 members of incumbent Taliban government to attend peace talks, reports TOLO News.

Meanwhile, the UN Security Council will hold a meeting on human rights, particularly concerning women, in June.

--IANS

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