The Taliban are celebrating the fourth anniversary of their return to power in Afghanistan today, buoyed by Russian recognition of the government and with hopes that other countries will follow suit.
Parades are planned in several cities, as well as in downtown Kabul, where flowers will be dropped from helicopters and black and white flags of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan will be displayed for Victory Day, which marks the recapture of the capital on August 15, 2021.
Since last night, the Taliban have gathered at the intersection leading to the US embassy, setting off fireworks and waving large flags, reports an Agence France-Presse journalist.
The military parade that has been held in previous years at Bagram airbase, the former center of Western operations against the Taliban insurgency during the 2001-2021 war, will not be held today. The celebrations have been canceled, a Taliban official told AFP on condition of anonymity.
The Taliban government remains excluded from the international community, which criticizes anti-freedom measures taken in the name of an ultra-rigorous interpretation of Islamic law and which are primarily directed against women.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in early July for two Taliban leaders for persecuting Afghan women, who are banned from attending university, going to gyms, beauty salons, parks, and numerous workplaces.
But the Taliban government, which is struggling to be accepted by the international community, just had a victory with Russian recognition.
In addition, Kabul maintains close ties, even without official recognition, with Central Asian countries, China, and the United Arab Emirates, among others.
The Taliban government announced that talks had been held in Kabul with Norwegian, British and American officials.
United Nations special rapporteurs today called on the international community not to normalize relations with the Taliban and to reject their "violent and authoritarian regime."
They assessed that the Taliban exercise power "without legitimacy" and show "flagrant contempt for human rights, equality and non-discrimination."
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