Pointing to growing frustration over the lack of progress in political engagement with Afghanistan’s de facto authorities — compounded by cuts to humanitarian-aid funding that are placing additional pressure on the Afghan people — the top UN official there told the Security Council today that the Taliban must clearly demonstrate their commitment to Afghanistan’s international reintegration.
Nearly 15 million people in Afghanistan — one in every three — will experience high levels of acute food insecurity during the first quarter of 2025. UN humanitarian partners warn that aid funding cuts will cost both lives and livelihoods and undermine development gains.
The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Fu Cong (China):
The following Security Council press statement was issued today by Council President Linda Thomas-Greenfield (United States):
The Security Council today extended for 14 months the mandate of the team monitoring sanctions against the Taliban and associated individuals and entities that threaten Afghanistan’s peace, stability and security, as delegates highlighted the experts’ vital work.
Meeting on the heels of the Taliban’s new directive prohibiting women and girls from attending public and private medical institutes in Afghanistan, the Security Council examined the impacts of the de facto authorities’ increasingly repressive policies, amounting to “gender apartheid”, as speakers urged the Taliban to reverse course.
At least 68 journalists and media workers have been killed in the line of duty so far this year, according to a report published today by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Over 60 per cent were working in countries in conflict, the highest percentage in over 10 years.
The new developments — no surprise — are worsening an already horrific humanitarian situation for civilians in Syria. The International Organization for Migration sent 10 trucks of critical winter supplies from Gaziantep to the country’s north-west, adding to relief items it had already prepositioned for distribution.
In Haiti, as the security situation deteriorates, essential UN personnel from agencies and its political mission remain in Port-au-Prince, ensuring continued delivery of critical humanitarian programmes and assistance and political support to assist Haitian-led efforts to successfully carry out the political transition.
In its annual report, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said today that opium cultivation in Afghanistan in 2024 increased by an estimated 19 per cent year-on-year to cover 12,800 hectares. UNODC said that the increase follows on a 95 per cent decrease in cultivation during the 2023 crop season.
