Taliban rejects US report on persecution of religious minorities

Kabul, Jun 5 (EFE).- The Taliban government rejected Sunday the United States’ annual Report on International Religious Freedom, which mentioned concerns about the deterioration of the state of religious minorities in Afghanistan since the fundamentalists seized power last year.

“The religious and civil rights of all minorities in Afghanistan are protected. In this regard, the State Department’s report is incomplete and based on false information,” tweeted chief Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid.

The Taliban spokesperson’s comments come after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken denounced Thursday the persecution of religious minorities in Afghanistan during the report’s presentation.

According to Blinken, religious freedom in Afghanistan has “deteriorated dramatically” since the Taliban seized power in August last year coinciding with the US pullout from the country, with women’s access to education and work being restricted.

In this regard, Mujahid expressed his rejection of the US accusations and stressed that in Afghanistan all minorities and religions groups that live in the country are respected.

“All our Sunnis, Shiites, Sikhs and Hindus practice their religion freely. We reject the State Dept. report,” he said.

Although the Taliban repeatedly claimed that the security state in the country has improved since they came to power, terrorist attacks, mostly perpetrated by the Islamic State (EI) on the Shia Hazara minority, continue to take place frequently in the country.

Afghanistan has also witnessed a setback in the area of human rights, especially concerning women, who have seen fundamentalists successively breach their promises and impose more restrictions.

The Islamists have made it mandatory for women to step out of the house using clothing that entirely covers their body, such as the burka.

They have also restricted women’s access to jobs with a few exceptions, such as in the health sector, and limited access to education.

Moreover, they have made it compulsory for women to be accompanied by a male family member when traveling.

However, the Taliban insist that many of these limitations are temporary, as they try to find a way for women to go to school or work within the framework of Islamic law and Afghan culture, as understood by the Islamists, who generally reject contact between men and women. EFE

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