www.washingtonexaminer.com By  Kaelan Deese
The Taliban have broken their promises to the West, violating their pledge for “amnesty” for all in a more inclusive Afghanistan following the group’s August takeover of the government.
The Taliban vowed to form a more moderate and inclusive government backed by Islamic rule compared to the brutal authority the group exhibited from 1996 to 2001, including promises to respect women’s rights, provide stability to the region, and block armed groups from plotting terrorist attacks in the country.
But the reality in Afghanistan is far different from the commitments the Taliban initially made on Aug. 17, when the militant group declared “amnesty” for those who oppose their regime and particularly for women, who have received downgraded treatment since the mid-August collapse of the 20-year U.S.-backed government.
On Monday, women were barred from participation at Kabul University, according to Taliban-appointed Chancellor Mohammad Ashraf Ghairat, who said the school’s doors would be closed to women until “an Islamic environment has been created.”
Taliban officials also previously encouraged women to join the ranks of government officials, though a spokesperson for the group said on Sept. 10 that women are incapable of performing government duties and dismissed the concerns of some women who have taken to the streets to protest as the Taliban ordered Kabul women to exit the workforce.
“The Taliban have vowed to respect women’s rights, but women’s rights are disappearing from the landscape,” Nasir Ahmad Andisha, the Afghan ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, said earlier this month.
The European Union said on Sept. 8 that the Taliban have fallen short on maintaining its promises of the “inclusive and representative formation in terms of the rich ethnic and religious diversity of Afghanistan we hoped to see” after the group announced the formation of its acting government on Sept. 7, a group that included no women or non-Taliban figures.
The U.S. State Department said on Sept. 8 it would “continue to use economic, diplomatic, and political tools to support the rights of the Afghan people, especially women and girls, and to ensure that Afghanistan does not become a safe haven for terrorism.”
Other failed promises suggest the Taliban are reverting to practices of violent punishment toward any dissenters of the newly reformed government. The militant group said Thursday that it would bring back executions and amputations for people who are on the run from the Taliban or who are seen as targets by the group.
On Saturday, the Taliban exemplified its commitment to restoring harsh punishments when militants suspended the dead body of a person suspected of kidnapping from a crane in the city of Herat in western Afghanistan.
U.S. officials said in mid-August that they were working with the Taliban to help evacuees escape, with national security adviser Jake Sullivan saying on Aug. 17, “The Taliban have informed us that they are prepared to provide the safe passage of civilians to the airport.”
Those attempting to flee the country were then met by chaos upon reaching the airport in Kabul, Afghanistan, most notably after an explosion outside the airport on Aug. 26 left 13 U.S. service members and more than 170 Afghan civilians dead . Some reports indicated Taliban actors were blocking access to the airport, which the group then took over after the end of the U.S. troop withdrawal on Aug. 31.
As part of President Joe Biden’s vow to defend the United States against evolving threats from terrorist groups such as the Islamic State, the U.S. has largely exercised its financial “leverage” over Afghanistan, having frozen billions of dollars in Afghan national bank reserves and paused millions in international aid.
Sullivan has said that the U.S. will support “humanitarian assistance,” such as health and food aid, “to the people of Afghanistan,” reassuring that the supplements would not go through the Taliban government.
On Aug. 31, the U.S. withdrew all remaining forces from Afghanistan in compliance with Biden’s deadline. Since July, the U.S. has airlifted more than 120,000 people from Afghanistan, including roughly 5,500 Americans. Nearly 100 U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents remain in Afghanistan who are trying to leave the county, the State Department said Monday.
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