United Nations: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Monday called on the international community to unite and use all available instruments to ensure Afghanistan is never again used as a platform or safe haven for terrorist organisations, telling the UN Security Council that we cannot and must not abandon the people of the war-torn country.
The Taliban swept into Kabul on Sunday after President Ashraf Ghani fled the country, bringing an end to a two-decade campaign in which the US and its allies had tried to transform Afghanistan.
The country's Western-trained security forces collapsed or fled in the face of an insurgent offensive that tore through the country in just over a week, ahead of the planned withdrawal of the last American troops at the end of the month.
The world is following events in Afghanistan with a heavy heart and deep disquiet about what lies ahead. All of us have seen the images in real time. Chaos. Unrest. Uncertainty. And fear. Much lies in the balance. The progress. The hope. The dreams of a generation of young Afghan women and girls, boys and men, Guterres told an emergency meeting of the Security Council.
The Council, under India's current Presidency, met for the second time in over a week to discuss the situation in Afghanistan, where the Taliban seized Kabul in a matter of days after taking over provincial capitals across the country as US forces withdrew from the country and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani fled.
Guterres told the Council that at this grave hour, he urges all parties, especially the Taliban, to exercise utmost restraint to protect lives and to ensure that humanitarian needs can be met.
"The international community must unite to make sure that Afghanistan is never again used as a platform or safe haven for terrorist organisations. I appeal to the Security Council and the international community as a whole to stand together, work together and act together and use all tools at its disposal to suppress the global terrorist threat in Afghanistan and guarantee that basic human rights will be respected, Guterres said.
He said regardless of who holds power, these two fundamental principles in which our world has such a deep and abiding interest must be upheld.
Guterres called for an immediate end to violence, for the rights of all Afghans to be respected and for Afghanistan to comply with all international agreements to which it is a party.
Voicing deep concern that the conflict in the country has forced hundreds of thousands from their homes, Guterres said Kabul has seen a huge influx of internally displaced persons from provinces around the country where they felt insecure or fled during fighting.
Afghans are a proud people with a rich cultural heritage. They have known generations of war and hardship. They deserve our full support, he said.
Underlining that the following days will be pivotal, he said the world is watching and we cannot and must not abandon the people of Afghanistan, and urged all countries to be willing to receive Afghan refugees and refrain from any deportations.
Concern about human rights violations
As the Taliban took over the country, Guterres said he is particularly concerned by accounts of mounting human rights violations against the women and girls of Afghanistan who fear a return to the darkest days.
It is essential that the hard-won rights of Afghan women and girls are protected. They are looking to the international community for support the same international community that assured them that opportunities would be expanded, education would be guaranteed, freedoms would spread and rights would be secured, he said.
Reminding all parties of their obligation to protect civilians, Guterres called on all parties to provide humanitarians with unimpeded access to deliver timely and life-saving services and aid.
I am relieved to report that in large measure, our personnel and premises have been respected. We continue to urge the Taliban to honour the integrity of these facilities and the inviolability of diplomatic envoys and premises, he said. While stressing that the United Nations presence will adapt to the security situation, Guterres said above all, we will stay and deliver in support of the Afghan people in their hour of need.
Noting that the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan affects 18 million people fully half of the country's population, he said it is vital that basic services continue to be provided.
Must ensure Afghanistan cannot ever again be a base for terrorism: US
The US told the UN Security Council that the international community should ensure that Afghanistan "cannot ever, ever again be a base for terrorism and urged the country's neighbours and others in the region and beyond to give refuge to Afghans attempting to flee.
Today I want to reiterate reemphasise and reassert this call, civilian populations including journalists and non-combatants, must be protected. Attacks against civilians or civilian objects must stop and the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all Afghan citizens, especially women, girls and members of minority groups must be respected, US Ambassador to the UN Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the UN Security Council meeting on Afghanistan.
She said, We also call on all parties to prevent terrorism and we must all ensure Afghanistan cannot ever, ever again be a base for terrorism.
The US envoy said that over this past weekend, members of the international community joined together to state unequivocally that every Afghan should be able to live in safety, security and dignity.
The US envoy emphasised that critically all Afghan nationals and international citizens who wish to depart must be allowed to do so safely.
President Biden has made clear that any action that puts US personnel or our mission at risk will be met with a swift and strong military response. The United States promises to be generous in resettling Afghans in our own country, and I'm heartened by the pledges we've seen from other nations to do the same.
We need to all do more and the time to step up is now. We urge Afghanistan's neighbours and others in the region and beyond to give refuge to, be temporary or permanent, to Afghans attempting to flee. And together we must do everything we can to help Afghans who wish to leave and seek refuge.
The Afghan people deserve to live in safety, security and dignity. We in the international community stand ready to assist them.
UNSC must not recognise any admin that achieves power through force: Afghan's UN envoy
Asserting that there is no time for blame game anymore, Afghanistan's Permanent Representative to the UN Ghulam Isaczai on Monday said that the powerful Security Council and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres must not recognise any administration that achieves power through force.
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, he said.
There is no time for blame game anymore. We have an opportunity to prevent further violence, prevent Afghanistan descending into a civil war and becoming a pariah state.
Therefore, the Security Council and the UN Secretary General should use every means at its disposal to call for an immediate cessation of violence and respect for human rights and international humanitarian law, Isaczai said.
He said the international community must call on the Taliban to fully respect the general amnesty offered by it, cease target killings and revenge attacks, and abide by the international humanitarian law, urge that no public institutions and service delivery infrastructure be demolished, including works of arts in museums and media institutions.
The Council and the global community should call on neighbouring countries of Afghanistan to open their borders and facilitate exit of people trying to escape and entry of goods for humanitarian relief and operations, call for the immediate establishment of an inclusive and representative transitional government that includes all ethnic groups and women representatives, which can lead to a dignified and lasting solution to the conflict, bring peace and preserve the gains of the last 20 years, especially for women and girls.
You have seen chaotic scenes at the Kabul International Airport as desperate citizens are trying to leave the country. We are extremely concerned about the Taliban not honouring their promises and commitments made in their statements at Doha and at other international fora. We've witnessed time and again how the Taliban have broken their promises and commitments in the past.
We have seen gruesome images of the Taliban's mass executions of military personnel and target killings of civilians in Kandahar and other big cities, the Afghan envoy said.
We cannot allow this to happen in Kabul which has been the last refuge for many people escaping violence and the Taliban's revenge attacks, Isaczai said, adding that Kabul residents are reporting the Taliban have already started house to house searches in some neighbourhoods, registering names and looking for people in their target list.
"There are already reports of target killings and looting in the city. Kabul residents are living in absolute fear right now, he said.
He also called for mobilising urgent humanitarian assistance for the 18 million people of Afghanistan, particularly those displaced by the current conflict.