Taliban replace ministry for women with 'virtue' authorities

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KABUL – Afghanistan's caller Taliban rulers acceptable up a ministry for the “propagation of virtuousness and the prevention of vice" successful the gathering that erstwhile housed the Women's Affairs Ministry, escorting retired World Bank staffers connected Saturday arsenic portion of the forced move.

It was the latest troubling motion that the Taliban are restricting women's rights arsenic they settee into government, conscionable a period since they overran the superior of Kabul. During their erstwhile regularisation of Afghanistan successful the 1990s, the Taliban had denied girls and women the close to acquisition and barred them from nationalist life.

Separately, 3 explosions targeted Taliban vehicles successful the eastbound provincial superior of Jalalabad connected Saturday, sidesplitting 3 radical and wounding 20, witnesses said. There was nary contiguous assertion of responsibility, but Islamic State group's militants, headquartered successful the area, are enemies of the Taliban.

The Taliban are facing large economical and information problems arsenic they effort to govern, and a increasing situation by IS militants would further agelong their resources.

In Kabul, a caller motion was up extracurricular the women's affairs ministry, announcing it was present the “Ministry for Preaching and Guidance and the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.”

Staff of the World Bank's $100 cardinal Women's Economic Empowerment and Rural Development Program, which was tally retired of the Women's Affairs Ministry, were escorted disconnected the grounds, said programme subordinate Sharif Akhtar, who was among those being removed.

Mabouba Suraj, who heads the Afghan Women's Network, said she was astounded by the flurry of orders released by the Taliban-run authorities restricting women and girls.

On Friday, the Taliban-run acquisition ministry asked boys from grades six to 12 backmost to school, starting connected Saturday, on with their antheral teachers. There was nary notation of girls successful those grades returning to school. Previously, the Taliban's curate of higher acquisition minister, had said girls would beryllium fixed adjacent entree to education, albeit successful gender-segregated settings.

"It is becoming really, truly troublesome. ... Is this the signifier wherever the girls are going to beryllium forgotten?” Suraj said. “I cognize they don’t judge successful giving explanations, but explanations are precise important.”

Suraj speculated that the contradictory statements possibly bespeak divisions wrong the Taliban arsenic they question to consolidate their power, with the much pragmatic wrong the question losing retired to hard-liners among them, astatine slightest for now.

Statements from the Taliban enactment often bespeak a willingness to prosecute with the world, speech of unfastened nationalist spaces for women and girls and protecting Afghanistan's minorities. But orders to its fertile and record connected the crushed are contradictory. Instead of what was promised, restrictions, peculiarly connected women, person been implemented.

Suraj, an Afghan American who returned to Afghanistan successful 2003 to beforehand women's rights and education, said galore of her chap activists person near the country.

She said she stayed successful an effort to prosecute with the Taliban and find a mediate ground, but until present has not been capable to get the hard-line Islamic group's enactment to conscionable with activists who person remained successful the country, to speech with women astir the mode forward.

“We person to talk. We person to find a mediate ground,” she said.

UNESCO's Director General Audrey Azoulay connected Saturday added her dependable to the increasing interest implicit the Taliban's limitations connected girls aft lone boys were told to spell backmost to school.

“Should this prohibition beryllium maintained, it would represent an important usurpation of the cardinal close to acquisition for girls and women,” Azoulay said successful a connection upon her accomplishment successful New York for the opening of the U.N. General Assembly.

A erstwhile advisor to the women's ministry nether the erstwhile Afghan authorities sent a video connection to The Associated Press from her location successful Kabul, slamming the Taliban's determination to adjacent the ministry.

It is “the close of women to work, larn and enactment successful authorities connected the nationalist and planetary stage," said Sara Seerat. ”Unfortunately, successful the existent Taliban Islamic Emirate authorities determination is nary abstraction successful the Cabinet. By closing the women's ministry it shows they person nary plans successful the aboriginal to springiness women their rights oregon a accidental to service successful the authorities and enactment successful different affairs."

Earlier this period the Taliban announced an all-male exclusively Taliban Cabinet but said it was an interim setup, offering immoderate anticipation that a aboriginal authorities would beryllium much inclusive arsenic respective of their leaders had promised.

Also connected Saturday, an planetary formation by Pakistan’s nationalist bearer near Kabul's airdrome with 322 passengers connected committee and a formation by Iran’s Mahan Air departed with 187 passengers connected board, an airdrome authoritative said.

The official, who spoke connected information of anonymity due to the fact that helium wasn't authorized to talk to the media, said the 2 planetary flights departed successful the morning. The identities and nationalities of those connected committee were not instantly known.

The flights were the latest to depart Kabul successful the past week arsenic method teams from Qatar and Turkey person worked to get the airdrome up to modular for planetary commercialized aircraft.

A Qatar Airways formation connected Friday took much Americans retired of Afghanistan, the 3rd specified airlift by the Mideast bearer since the Taliban takeover and the frantic U.S. unit pullout from the state past month. The State Department said Saturday that determination were 28 U.S. citizens and 7 imperishable residents connected committee the formation from Kabul, and thanked Qatari authorities for their help.

Also Friday night, a formation by Kam Air, Afghanistan's largest backstage carrier, took disconnected from Mazar-e-Sharif, the superior of bluish Balkh province, with 350 passengers connected board, according to 2 employees there.

The formation was headed to Dubai, said the two, who spoke connected information of anonymity due to the fact that they were not authorized to speech to the media. They said the level carried foreigners but it was not wide if and however galore Americans were connected board.

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Associated Press writers Edith M. Lederer astatine the United Nations, Tameem Akhgar successful Istanbul and Matthew Lee successful Washington contributed to this report.

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