Afghan envoy to Italy blasts Taliban

NEW DELHI: The Afghan embassy in Italy does not recognise the so-called Taliban Emirate caretaker cabinet, Ambassador Khaled A. Zekriya announced.

In a sharp anti-Taliban stance, Afghanistan Ambassador to Italy fully endorsed the legacy of Late Commander Ahmad Shah Masoud.

The Ambassador in a talk in Rome talked about the implications of a terrorist organization taking power by force and forming an Islamist Radical Emirate Caretaker cabinet.

"Masoud is a sign of Afghanistan's political and social continuity, has we have seen in the recent days how people from all over Afghanistan, from different ethnic groups gathered in Panjshir to continue to fight against domestic tyranny and foreign interference in Afghanistan", the Ambassador said.

"Let me tell you, in the next following days, weeks, months and even years, this struggle shall solidify and continue. In fact, the demonstration of the brave Afghan women and men in the past few days in Kabul, Herat, Badakhshan, and other part of the country are early signs of a national struggle and uprising in Afghanistan. Though in response, the Taliban killed, wiped, detained, and punished women, men, and our journalists, but they must understand that they cannot win with force and guns; they can win with their so called new strategic communication; and surely they cannot win by being supported by those states, intelligence services, and organizations that support them," he added.

Based on the last UNSC resolution, external legitimacy can be attained by the Taliban if they form an inclusive government (which they have not), Zekriya said.

"Be held accountable to stand by their commitments of upholding human rights, including of children, women and minorities (which they have totally obliterated)", he added.

"Prohibit, Afghanistan's territory for being used by terrorist organisations and their affiliates to threaten or attack any country or to shelter or train terrorist to plan or finance terrorism (This of course, stems from a sense of Naivety that a terrorist organization, where 17 out of 33 of its cabinet members are on the UN Sanction List and/or on the US Black List, with the assumption of power and possession of a political space, can change its political religious ideology and discourse)," he added.

"Contrary to our American friends' use of this famous slogan that Americas Long War Has Ended, let me say to you, that the World's Most Complex War-War Against Global Terrorism Has Just Began," Zekriya said.

Laying out future premises, Zekriya said that today's Struggle is the West against the Taliban and their terrorist affiliates and those states that either sponsor terrorism and/or have ill interests in Afghanistan. The so called false and bombastic claim to victory by the Taliban against US, EU, and NATO, questions our US, EU and NATO partner's strength, credibility, and utility in the upcoming future conflicts around the world, he said. (IANS)

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