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ISLAMABAD -- Hundreds of people have been killed in Afghanistan since the Taliban overran the country nearly a year ago, even though security on the whole has improved since then, the United Nations said in a report Wednesday.

The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan also highlighted the poor situation of women and girls since the Taliban takeover and how they have been stripped of many of their human rights under Afghanistan's current rulers.

It is beyond time for all Afghans to be able to live in peace and rebuild their lives after 20 years of armed conflict. Our monitoring reveals that despite the improved security situation since 15 August, the people of Afghanistan, in particular women and girls, are deprived of the full enjoyment of their human rights, said Markus Potzel, deputy special representative of the Secretary-General for Afghanistan.

The report said as many as 700 people have been killed and 1,400 wounded since mid-August 2021, when the Taliban overran the Afghan capital of Kabul as the United States and NATO were in the final weeks of their withdrawal from the country.

The majority of those casualties were linked to attacks by the Islamic State group's affiliate in the country, a bitter rival of the Taliban which has targeted ethnic and religious minority communities in places where they go to school, worship and go about their daily lives.

Afghanistan has seen persistent bombings and other attacks on civilians, often targeting the mainly Shiite Muslim ethnic Hazara minority. Most of the attacks have been claimed by the Islamic State groups affiliate in the country.

The report added that the Taliban have made clear their position on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly, freedom of expression and freedom of opinion.

They have limited dissent by cracking down on protests and curbing media freedoms, including by arbitrarily arresting journalists, protestors and civil society activists and issuing restrictions on media outlets.

The report catalogued human rights violations affecting 173 journalists and media workers, 163 of which were attributed to the de facto authorities. Among these were 122 instances of arbitrary arrest and detention, 58 instances of ill-treatment, 33 instances of threats and intimidation and 12 instances of incommunicado detention.

Six journalists were also killed since August, 2021, including five by self-identified Islamic State affiliates and one by unknown perpetrators.

The right to the freedoms of peaceful assembly, expression and opinion are necessary for the development and progression of a nation, said Fiona Frazer, the U.N.s human rights representative in Afghanistan.

"They allow meaningful debate to flourish, also benefiting those who govern by allowing them to better understand the issues and problems facing the population, she added.

The U.N. also said an amnesty for former government officials the Taliban announced last year has not been consistently upheld. Frazer said the U.N. recorded 160 extrajudicial killings and 178 arrests of former government and military officials.

The report said human rights violations must be investigated by the authorities, perpetrators held accountable, and incidents should be prevented from reoccurring in the future.

Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid called the U.N. report baseless and propaganda and its findings not true.

Arbitrary arrests and killings are not allowed in the country and if anyone commits such crimes, they will be considered guilty and face legal action, he added.

After their takeover last year, the Taliban quickly started enforcing a sharply tougher line, harking back to similar radical measures when the Taliban last ruled the country, from 1996 to 2001.

They issued edicts requiring women to cover their faces except for their eyes in public, including women presenters on TV, and banned girls from attending school past the sixth grade.

The U.N. report added that the erosion of womens rights has been one of the most notable aspects of the de facto administration to date. Since August, women and girls have progressively had their rights to fully participate in education, the workplace and other aspects of public and daily life restricted and in many cases completely taken away.

The decision not to allow girls to return to secondary school means that a generation of girls will not complete their full 12 years of basic education, the U.N. said.

The education and participation of women and girls in public life is fundamental to any modern society. The relegation of women and girls to the home denies Afghanistan the benefit of the significant contributions they have to offer. Education for all is not only a basic human right, it is the key to progress and development of a nation, said Potzel, the U.N. envoy.

During the previous Taliban rule in Afghanistan, they subjected women to overwhelming restrictions, banning them from education and participation in public life and requiring them to wear the all-encompassing burqa.

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UN slams killings, rights abuses under Afghanistan's Taliban - ABC News

Kabul [Afghanistan], July 20 (ANI): After Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August last year, over 700 families have been displaced from Panjshir to Parwan due to security reasons.

Faraidoon Noori, an official at the refugee and repatriations department of Parwan said, 748 families were displaced from Panjshir to Parwan province. They left their houses due to conflict, reported Tolo News.

Bebe Begom, a 90-year-old woman, who was displaced from Panjshir said that she left her house behind due to fighting in the region. She along with her family live in a small room in Charikar city (capital of Parwan province).

We were not allowed to take clothes, we were even not allowed to drink a cup of tea. We came to Charikar, and are staying here without food, said Bebe Begom.

It is one month since we left our home there (in Panjshir). My family and I brought nothing with us, said Dilawar.

They have beat us, saying bring the arms, you are in the resistance party, you are part of Ghanis government, said Mohammad Haneef.

Meanwhile, local officials of Panjshir province confirmed the arrival of the families, saying that a precise number of displaced families were not available.

Panjshir officials said that the department is planning to provide families with cash assistance and pledged to seek ways for the displaced families to return to their homes, reported Tolo News.

The refugees and repatriation department is considering providing assistance with the families who sustained damages, said Nasrullah Malekzadah, head of information and culture of Panjshir.

Earlier, in June, a London-based rights group raised concerns about the reports of unlawful killings and arbitrary arrests in Afghanistans Panjshir province.

Constantly, reports are coming of arbitrary arrests and unlawful killings of civilians by the Taliban in Panjshir. Events in the last couple of weeks leave little room for doubt that there is a growing pattern of extrajudicial executions and arbitrary arrests committed by the Taliban, said Zaman Sultani, Amnesty Internationals South Asia Researcher.

The amnesty researcher in a statement said these serious human rights violations create a climate of fear and distrust in the region and violate international humanitarian law and may constitute war crimes.

While the Taliban have rejected any reports of civilian deaths, these incidents are accompanied by a lack of accountability within the Taliban rank and file.

As the de facto authorities in the country, the rights groups have asked the Taliban to take immediate steps to conduct thorough, impartial and independent investigations of these incidents and prosecute those responsible for the torture, arbitrary arrests and extrajudicial execution, according to rights groups.

To ensure accountability, transparency and safeguard civilians from torture, arbitrary arrests and enforced disappearances, the Taliban must release information on all those who have been arrested or detained and permit detainees to communicate with their families. (ANI)

This report is auto-generated from ANI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.

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Afghanistan: Post Taliban takeover, more than 700 Panjshir families displaced to Parwan - ThePrint

Health officials in Badghis province of northwest Afghanistan say that a passenger car overturned in the province, killing one person and injuring at least nine others.

The incident reportedly took place on Tuesday, the 19th of July, in the Khair Khana area of Qadis district in Badghis province.

A car of Corolla wagon type drove off the road and overturned, according to Sanaullah Sabit, the nursing head of the provincial hospital in Badghis.

The vehicle is said to have been en route to a wedding.

Sabit stated that nine people were wounded in this incident, including one man, five women, and three children, in addition to the one woman who tragically died.

The official told the media that the condition of the injured is good and that they are recovering from the wounds inflicted.

In a recent traffic event where a passenger car overturned in the Bala Murghab district of the same province killing four people and injuring another eight.

The main causes of the daily traffic fatalities in Afghanistan are drivers who disobey traffic laws, deteriorating roads, speeding, and the absence of traffic signals.

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Overturning Passenger Car Kills One and Injures Nine in Northwestern Afghanistan - The Khaama Press News Agency - The Khaama Press News Agency

LAHORE: Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) sounded positive over the vision of extending the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to Afghanistan in order to promote economic development and prosperity in the war-torn country during a meeting held at PCJCCI Secretariat, on Wednesday.

Mr. Wang Zihai, President PCJCCI claimed that it would not only be a game-changer but also a fate-changer of nearly 30 million people living in Afghanistan. He added that it will increase the mutual trust, cooperation and regional connectivity between the three nations; Pakistan, China and Afghanistan.

He added that this initiative of the government will help in de-freezing Afghanistans foreign reserves and facilitation of banking operations to ease the economic hardships of the Afghan people and will help in building a sustainable economy.

PCJCCI Senior Vice President Ehsan Choudhry said that by linking Pakistans southern Gawadar port in Balochistan on the Arabian Sea to Chinas western Xinjiang region will open new vistas of trade and development for the business community.

He added that Gawadar is the jewel in Pakistans economy. If it is combined with the surrounding areas through communications infrastructure, it could become a new Asian trade nucleus. Gawadar possesses immense strategic lure and could emerge as a key shipping point for both countries.

The joint Chambers Vice President Sarfaraz Butt said that expansion of CPEC in Afghanistan will bring a major breakthrough in socio-economic ties between the three nations. He added that the government of Pakistan and China should include educational projects in the framework of CPEC in Afghanistan including girls education and effective counter-terrorism measures.

PCJCCI Secretary General Salahuddin Hanif said that there is a dire need to expedite humanitarian aid to Afghanistan and its people to avert the looming crisis and called upon the international community to provide continued and enhanced assistance and support to Afghanistan including through unfreezing of Afghanistans financial assets. He also said that CPEC will work as a catalyst to stabilize and flourish the economy of Afghanistan.

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PCJCCI appreciates vision of CPEC in Afghanistan - Pakistan Today

A charity which was heavily criticised over its evacuation of rescue animals from Afghanistan has been cleared of any wrongdoing by the UK regulator.

Nowzad, which was set up by former Royal Marine Pen Farthing, had raised 200,000 ($240,500) in the days after the Taliban takeover for its Operation Ark project to fly about 200 animals to safety.

Operation Ark was set up to evacuate British citizens, military staff members and their immediate families, as well as the animals in the charity's care.

It attracted public attention after concerns were raised that high-ranking government officials had prioritised the evacuation of the animals over people. At one point Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said the move was distracting authorities from focusing on the most vulnerable.

Former diplomat Raphael Marshall last year told the Foreign Affairs Select Committee: There was a direct trade-off between transporting Nowzads animals and evacuating British nationals and Afghan evacuees, including Afghans who had served with British soldiers.

This was due, he said, to the limited number of soldiers available to bring eligible people into the airport at Kabul and limited capacity within the airport itself.

The Charity Commission started investigating Nowzad in August 2021.

The case examined whether the its actions and Operation Ark were within Nowzads remit and complied with charity law.

"The Commission did not identify any regulatory concerns about Operation Ark, concluding that it did fall within the charitys purposes," it said.

"The Commission concluded that the objectives of the operation were made clear to donors during fund-raising, that trustees decision-making and actions during that time were reasonable, and that consequently it was valid to spend funds raised for Operation Ark on the evacuation of animals and staff from Afghanistan.

"It was not within the Commissions remit to consider the role the government may or may not have had in the evacuation of animals and staff from Afghanistan."

The Commission says it has advised the charity on a number of issues, including internal governing and effective risk management while operating in conflict zones.

Tracy Howarth, assistant director of casework and proactive regulation at the Charity Commission, said: "We take all concerns raised with us seriously and will always assess them impartially and expertly against the Commissions own criteria and the law. In this case, we did not find evidence of wrongdoing and recognised the trustees ongoing efforts to manage the charity under difficult circumstances.

"We have provided Nowzads trustees with guidance to help ensure they respond appropriately to the uncertainty and challenges they now face."

Nowzad operated an animal clinic, dog and cat shelter and donkey sanctuary in Afghanistan and had trained and employed local residents, including women, as vets.

Pen Farthing with a rescued dog. Photo: Pen Farthing / Twitter

Mr Farthing said he has suffered 11 months' of stress due to the inquiry.

"11 months of stress, what you dont know is as well as press issues the charity commission launched a case against Nowzad," he tweeted.

"It concluded today July 2022 and obviously no wrong doing to be found (they investigated so much more than just Operation Ark)."

In May, a report from the Foreign Affairs Committee ruled out that the charity's animals had received special treatment from the government.

It had investigated whether government officials, acting on the orders of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, gave Nowzad special treatment during the international withdrawal from Kabul.

After the report, Mr Farthing said: We are pleased that the Committees findings unequivocally corroborated Nowzads long-standing testimony that we were not prioritised for evacuation during the governments withdrawal from Kabul, nor did we seek special status or favour from government officials.

The report allows us to move on from this distraction and resume focus on our mission of restarting our animal welfare operation in Afghanistan and developing our humanitarian animal welfare response to the horrific Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Updated: July 20, 2022, 10:30 AM

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UK charity behind Afghanistan animal evacuation Operation Ark cleared of wrongdoing - The National