The UN's Afghanistan rapporteur will tell the Human Rights Council on Monday that the international community's efforts to engage with the Taliban and supply humanitarian aid have emboldened Afghanistan's hard-line rulers.
UN human rights envoy to the country Richard Bennett has said more pressure was needed on Kabul as the rights of women and girls in Afghanistan had continued to deteriorate “incrementally”.
Weeks after a third round of UN-led peace talks with the Taliban in Doha, the UN's special rapporteur to Afghanistan described a hardening of rhetoric leading to tougher conditions in Kabul.
“It's step by step, tightening the grip,” he told a meeting of South Asians for Human Rights, a Colombo-based network. “When it first started, we thought that their rhetoric, that there was a gap between their words and their actions. There's not so much of a gap now, actually, and that's not a positive thing.
Their words have become more harsh, more exclusive, more based around national sovereignty. This is probably in line with the trend internationally, but particularly noticeable in Afghanistan” he said.
When Mr Bennett presents his findings at the UN Human Rights Council meeting, he said he will also call for more international pressure on the Taliban in a three-step plan. “I am in favour of dialogue with the Taliban, but not without a real plan and unity,” he said.
The group who had been fighting a US-led coalition for over 20 years took over the country in 2021, banning girls from attending secondary schools, and women from universities.
Though the Taliban had promised in the early days of its rule not to close schools and issue a general amnesty towards those who were fighting against them, these promises had been overturned. Their attempts to erase women and girls from public arenas have been described as a “gender apartheid”, which activists say should be considered a war crime.
Yet lack of “unity” or “cohesive plan” in the international community meant the Taliban's hardline positions could become further entrenched, Mr Bennett warned.
“The (Taliban's) strengths are the international community's weaknesses. They have an ideology. They have been successful in implementing it. They believe in themselves,” he said.
“The international community has none of those things. It doesn't have a plan, it doesn't have coherence, and it has no confidence in what it's doing either.”
The Security Council Resolution 2721 to appoint a Special envoy in Afghanistan had been a step in the right direction. But the meetings in Doha, from which Afghan civil society was excluded, sent the wrong message.
“A message was sent to the Taliban that they can continue to crack down on human rights and the rights of women and girls especially, and there will be no consequences,” he said.
Humanitarian aid, which many say has been misused by the Taliban, could be restricted as a form of pressure. “I'm not against providing humanitarian support to the people of Afghanistan, but at the moment, we are also emboldening the Taliban with it,” he said.
Afghan women living under Taliban rule – in pictures
The US-led coalition in Afghanistan also needed to acknowledge its detrimental role in Afghanistan, with the UN introducing accountability processes that pre-date the Taliban's takeover in 2021.
“There is little or no admission of the by the international community of the its responsibility for the situation that Afghans find themselves in,” he said.
The Taliban needed to be pressured to improve the human rights situation in Afghanistan. “Any normalisation of engagement with the de facto authorities must be based on demonstrable, measurable and independently verifiable, verified improvements and human rights,” he said.
An “all tools” approach to assess the human rights situation in Afghanistan would include the international courts, and an assessment of whether “gender apartheid” was being committed against women and girls.
Transitional justice and accountability shouldn’t start from August 2021, but look at the “root causes”. The International Criminal Court's case on Afghanistan was rightly focused on the Taliban, Mr Bennett said, but did not look at crimes committed by the US-led coalition.
“Afghanistan, suffered four and a half decades of conflict. Some people would say that is not over yet. There have been human rights violations committed by all parties to the conflict over decades. That should be addressed,” he said.
The Details
Kabir Singh
Produced by: Cinestaan Studios, T-Series
Directed by: Sandeep Reddy Vanga
Starring: Shahid Kapoor, Kiara Advani, Suresh Oberoi, Soham Majumdar, Arjun Pahwa
Rating: 2.5/5
Miguel Cotto world titles:
WBO Light Welterweight champion - 2004-06
WBA Welterweight champion – 2006-08
WBO Welterweight champion – Feb 2009-Nov 2009
WBA Light Middleweight champion – 2010-12
WBC Middleweight champion – 2014-15
WBO Light Middleweight champion – Aug 2017-Dec 2017
Gifts exchanged
- King Charles - replica of President Eisenhower Sword
- Queen Camilla - Tiffany & Co vintage 18-carat gold, diamond and ruby flower brooch
- Donald Trump - hand-bound leather book with Declaration of Independence
- Melania Trump - personalised Anya Hindmarch handbag
Ballon d’Or shortlists
Men
Sadio Mane (Senegal/Liverpool), Sergio Aguero (Aregentina/Manchester City), Frenkie de Jong (Netherlans/Barcelona), Hugo Lloris (France/Tottenham), Dusan Tadic (Serbia/Ajax), Kylian Mbappe (France/PSG), Trent Alexander-Arnold (England/Liverpool), Donny van de Beek (Netherlands/Ajax), Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Gabon/Arsenal), Marc-Andre ter Stegen (Germany/Barcelona), Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal/Juventus), Alisson (Brazil/Liverpool), Matthijs de Ligt (Netherlands/Juventus), Karim Benzema (France/Real Madrid), Georginio Wijnaldum (Netherlands/Liverpool), Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands/Liverpool), Bernardo Silva (Portugal/Manchester City), Son Heung-min (South Korea/Tottenham), Robert Lewandowski (Poland/Bayern Munich), Roberto Firmino (Brazil/Liverpool), Lionel Messi (Argentina/Barcelona), Riyad Mahrez (Algeria/Manchester City), Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium/Manchester City), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal/Napoli), Antoine Griezmann (France/Barcelona), Mohamed Salah (Egypt/Liverpool), Eden Hazard (BEL/Real Madrid), Marquinhos (Brazil/Paris-SG), Raheem Sterling (Eengland/Manchester City), Joao Félix(Portugal/Atletico Madrid)
Women
Sam Kerr (Austria/Chelsea), Ellen White (England/Manchester City), Nilla Fischer (Sweden/Linkopings), Amandine Henry (France/Lyon), Lucy Bronze(England/Lyon), Alex Morgan (USA/Orlando Pride), Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands/Arsenal), Dzsenifer Marozsan (Germany/Lyon), Pernille Harder (Denmark/Wolfsburg), Sarah Bouhaddi (France/Lyon), Megan Rapinoe (USA/Reign FC), Lieke Martens (Netherlands/Barcelona), Sari van Veenendal (Netherlands/Atletico Madrid), Wendie Renard (France/Lyon), Rose Lavelle(USA/Washington Spirit), Marta (Brazil/Orlando Pride), Ada Hegerberg (Norway/Lyon), Kosovare Asllani (Sweden/CD Tacon), Sofia Jakobsson (Sweden/CD Tacon), Tobin Heath (USA/Portland Thorns)
The Indoor Cricket World Cup
When: September 16-23
Where: Insportz, Dubai
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
The specs: Fenyr SuperSport
Price, base: Dh5.1 million
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm
Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km
The Vile
Starring: Bdoor Mohammad, Jasem Alkharraz, Iman Tarik, Sarah Taibah
Director: Majid Al Ansari
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
if you go
The flights
Emirates flies to Delhi with fares starting from around Dh760 return, while Etihad fares cost about Dh783 return. From Delhi, there are connecting flights to Lucknow.
Where to stay
It is advisable to stay in Lucknow and make a day trip to Kannauj. A stay at the Lebua Lucknow hotel, a traditional Lucknowi mansion, is recommended. Prices start from Dh300 per night (excluding taxes).
Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations
Edited by Sarah Cleave, Comma Press
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sept 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Various Artists
Habibi Funk: An Eclectic Selection Of Music From The Arab World (Habibi Funk)
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
MORE ON CORONAVIRUS & THE ECONOMY
Two products to make at home
Toilet cleaner
1 cup baking soda
1 cup castile soap
10-20 drops of lemon essential oil (or another oil of your choice)
Method:
1. Mix the baking soda and castile soap until you get a nice consistency.
2. Add the essential oil to the mix.
Air Freshener
100ml water
5 drops of the essential oil of your choice (note: lavender is a nice one for this)
Method:
1. Add water and oil to spray bottle to store.
2. Shake well before use.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
