Guterres has called on Taliban authorities to lift restrictions on women and girls, protect media freedom and due process, prevent further violations of the general amnesty, and end corporal punishment.
As of Wednesday, August 19, hospitals continued treating the wounded. Families of the injured children, many of them primary-school pupils, waited for updates.
In a sobering assessment released this week, the United Nations has painted a complex portrait of Afghanistan under Taliban governance, where a dramatic increase in security incidents coincides with fragile stability, devastating cross-border violence with Pakistan, and a deepening humanitarian and human rights crisis.
The UN's broader appeal comes amid regional instability. Weeks of prior violence had already heightened tensions, with Pakistan linking the strikes to cross-border incursions by groups like the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP).
The mission emphasised that “standing with Afghan women” requires more than symbolic gestures: it requires resources, policy pressure, and the international will to ensure that women in Afghanistan can live with dignity and safety.
UNAMA’s quarterly report highlighted sections of the ministry’s law, claiming it imposes new restrictions on women. It stated that the law formalises previous decrees and broadens existing limitations while introducing additional ones.
The joint report by the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan and the UN Human Rights Office documented 336 cases of human rights violations against media professionals between August 2021 and September 2024.
Afghan women fear arrest, harassment and further punishment whenever a new Taliban decree is announced, according to a new multi-agency UN report issued on...
While a single monthly reading above 6 per cent does not constitute a formal policy failure, the persistent upward trajectory since early 2026 leaves monetary authorities with little room to manoeuvre.
The authors stress that individual knowledge alone is insufficient. Food environments – marketing, pricing, availability and access – must support healthier choices.
While a single monthly reading above 6 per cent does not constitute a formal policy failure, the persistent upward trajectory since early 2026 leaves monetary authorities with little room to manoeuvre.