Afghans who are at risk of being persecuted by advancing Taliban troops require immediate evacuation and international protection. Foreign countries should make obtaining visas and assisting in the safe transit of civilians who may be targeted for abuse by the Taliban due to their former employment or status, as well as their close family members, a top priority.
Civilians who have worked to promote human rights, democracy, and education, professors, authors, journalists and other media workers, and persons who have worked for foreign countries, are among those who are thought to be at risk. Ethnic minorities and Shia Muslims, particularly Hazaras, are also more vulnerable.
As previously announced, US President Joe Biden has authorised the deployment of an additional 1,000 US troops to Afghanistan. Around 5,000 US troops are already on the ground, assisting in what Biden previously described as a “orderly and safe drawdown” of American and coalition personnel. Afghans who collaborated with the military during the nearly two-decade battle will also be evacuated with the assistance of US troops.
According to the Taliban, its fighters have been ordered to “remain at the gates of Kabul and not enter the city.” Sensitive records have been instructed to be destroyed as soon as possible by US Embassy officials.
The decision to re-insert thousands of US troops into Afghanistan at the last minute mirrored the country’s terrible security situation, as the Taliban gained control of multiple Afghan cities in a matter of days. Before the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Biden set an August 31 timetable for entirely withdrawing combat troops.
Washington Center For Human Rights calls on the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva to pass a resolution to create a special body to collect and preserve evidence of abuses by all parties to the conflict in Afghanistan and prepare files to facilitate fair and independent criminal proceedings.
All deportations and forced returns to Afghanistan should be halted immediately. All countries should officially acknowledge that Afghans fleeing the country should be offered legitimate asylum options. The UN and UN member states should expand humanitarian aid to adjacent countries where Afghans are fleeing and help countries that accept them. Governments should also increase funding for Afghan emergency evacuation, relocation, and resettlement efforts, and convene promptly to create coordinated protocols for resettling people in third countries who are particularly vulnerable.
In September, the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) will have its mandate renewed by the Security Council. The mandate of UNAMA should be broadened to include expressly collecting information and proof of major violations and abuses committed by all conflict sides. The council should direct UNAMA to publish its conclusions and share information and evidence with the International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor, as well as other international and domestic bodies investigating war crimes and other violations in Afghanistan.
We call on all governments to increase funding for nongovernmental organisations working to promote human rights, women’s rights, children’s rights, education, health care, and other critical needs both inside and outside of Afghanistan. Governments should ensure that Afghan civil society organisations are included in discussions about assistance and relocation.