An official in the United Nations Children’s Fund on Tuesday said he was “optimistic” after some Taliban leaders expressed support for girls’ education following the militant group’s seizure of much of Afghanistan, including the capital of Kabul.
Mustapha Ben Messaoud, UNICEF’s chief of field operations in the embattled country, indicated that he visited with Taliban representatives in the conquered territories of Kandahar, Herat, and Jalalabad, among others. Messaoud said some Taliban leaders want schools “up and running,” while others are awaiting guidance from higher-ups.
“We have ongoing discussions. We are quite optimistic based on those discussions,” the UNICEF boss said, adding that 11 of the country’s 13 field offices, in which his organization provides aid, were operational.
“We have not a single issue with the Taliban in those field offices,” he added.
TALIBAN DECLARES ‘AMNESTY’ FOR AFGHANS AND URGE WOMEN TO JOIN GOVERNMENT
Also on Tuesday, the Taliban declared general “amnesty” for all in Afghanistan and urged women to take roles in government despite the group’s history of forcing females to don a burqa and stymieing individual liberties. The announcement was made by Enamullah Samangani, a member of the Islamic Emirate’s cultural commission, on Afghan state television, which the Taliban now controls.
“The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan doesn’t want the women to be the victims anymore,” Samangani said. “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan is ready to provide women with environment to work and study, and the presence of women in different [government] structures according to Islamic law and in accordance with our cultural values,” adding that “all sides should join” the government.
However, Messaoud has cautioned that Afghanistan is a volatile place for women and children.
“With each and every day, the flaring conflict in Afghanistan is taking a greater toll on the country’s women and children. Indeed, since the start of the year, more than 550 children have been killed, 1400 injured,” he said.
“Afghanistan has, for many years, been one of the worst places on Earth to be a child,” he added. “In the past few weeks, it has got worse. As we speak, if we do not take action immediately, UNICEF’s prediction is that without urgent action, 1 million children under the age of 5 will be severely malnourished by end of 2021, and 3 million will be moderately acutely malnourished.”
The Taliban has since been accused of seeking “those who had worked with” or who “had fought alongside the Americans” while “terrified” residents scramble to destroy any proof of association, according to Fox News’s Jennifer Griffin.
Similarly, the Afghan ambassador to the U.N., Ghulam Isaczai, said Monday the violent group was engaging in “targeted killings” after he reported seeing mass executions.
Suhail Shaheen, an English-speaking Taliban spokesman, contested the reports on Monday.
“If someone goes from door to door and they are posing as Taliban, they are not Taliban,” he said.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
“These allegations are totally baseless, totally wrong,” he continued, adding that the claims are “propaganda” being “used to mislead the world against us.”
Still, hundreds of people in Afghanistan have frantically arrived at Kabul’s airport in the hope that they will be able to board a plane to flee the country. The United States resumed its airlift operations Tuesday after a brief hiatus following overcrowding concerns on the runway. At least seven have been pronounced dead in the area amid the turmoil, and the Pentagon said U.S. troops, which now stand at around 7,000 men, killed two armed individuals.
