Taliban claim advances on several provincial capitals, Afghan forces say 274 insurgents killed in past 24 hours
KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) – Faced with deadly Taliban onslaught, the Afghan government on Wednesday reiterated its calls for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on the ongoing violence in the war-torn country.
The country’s Foreign Ministry hailed the recent UN Security Council’s stand on the Afghan situation.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan welcomes the announcement of the Security Council and calls for an emergency meeting of the Security Council to address the situation in Afghanistan and prevent a humanitarian catastrophe caused by Taliban violence,” it said in a statement.
Earlier, Foreign Minister Haneef Atmar told journalists in Kabul the issue of ensuring human rights is a shared responsibility of Afghanistan and the international community.
“We raise the issue that a special UN Security Council meeting should be convened and that special measures should be taken by the UN Security Council to take political and legal action and, if necessary, security measures,” he said, blaming the Taliban for mounting civilian casualties and anxiety in the country amid the withdrawal of foreign troops.
Members of the UN Security Council on Tuesday recalled resolution 2513 (2020) and reaffirmed that there is no military solution to the conflict “… and declared that they do not support the restoration of the Islamic Emirate (Taliban regime).”
Meanwhile, the Afghan Defense Ministry said security forces killed 274 Taliban in different provinces during the ongoing air and ground offensives.
The Taliban, on the contrary, claimed advances on the capitals of Helmand, Paktia, Maidan Wardak and Takhar provinces.
The UN in Afghanistan has documented 5,183 civilian casualties, 783 killed and 1,609 injured, in the first half of this year, a 47% increase compared with the same period in 2020.