- Title: 'Don't look away': ex Afghan diplomat tells UN special session
- Date: 24th August 2021
- Summary: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND (AUGUST 24, 2021) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF UNITED NATIONS OFFICE UN FLAG ROOM WHERE UN HUMAN RIGHTS BRIEFING IS TAKING PLACE
- Embargoed: 7th September 2021 13:23
- Keywords: Taliban executions UN
- Location: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- City: GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
- Country: Switzerland
- Topics: Europe,Government/Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA001ERN3Z9J
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Shaharzad Akbar, chair of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, told the UN human rights council on Tuesday to "not look away", after the U.N. human rights chief said that she had received credible reports of serious violations committed by the Taliban in Afghanistan, including "summary executions" of civilians and Afghan security forces who have surrendered.
The United States condemned attacks that it said were being carried out against civilians, journalists, activists and minority groups, but did not name the Taliban.
But China's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Chen Xu, said that the U.S. army and the militaries of other coalition partners, including Britain and Australia, should be held accountable for alleged rights violations their forces committed in Afghanistan.
Michelle Bachelet gave no details of the killings in her speech to the Human Rights Council, but urged the Geneva forum to set up a mechanism to closely monitor Taliban actions.
Independent U.N. human rights experts, in a joint statement, said that many people were in hiding as "the Taliban continues to search homes door-to-door" and that seizures of property and reprisals were being reported.
(Production: Noemie Olive, Yiming Woo) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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